OUR STORY
We are a passionate and creative team of designers and manufacturers, we are located near Oxford Street in Manchester. We believe everyone can create something amazing, all you need is a passion for trying new things!
Our founders, graduates in International Fashion Management from the University of Manchester, love to make things by hand, enjoy experimenting with styles and are always curious to learn new skills. One of our founders, Cassandra, comes from a small remote city in China, where the woollen industry is the mainstay of the economy.
She learned that most of the wool was used in rugs, which were factory-made and mass-produced in fixed patterns and styles. Driven to make these "works of yarn" more creative and lively with additional use cases, this process has inspired Cassandra to turn working with yarn into a fun and entertaining workshop where people can learn to create unique handmade rugs for themselves or their loved ones. She started to use the wool from her hometown to make rugs with her own aesthetics and style, and thus, our journey began.
OUR INSPIRATION
We've been heavily into fashion and design since we were young; it's always been a big part of our lives. Years ago when we were studying in China, we heard about a woman named Dawa who had an incredible story to share. After learning about her story, we always wondered if it would ever be possible to reach out to her one day to commend her for her achievements and learn more about her humble beginnings as a textile worker.
Years later, we started to discuss the idea of opening up our own tufting workshop and thought of how wonderful it would be to actually source our yarn from the very factory Dawa worked at. After six months of research, communications and undying determination, we finally discovered where Dawa works to this very day, which is exactly where we source all of our yarn from.
If you'd like to learn a little more about Dawa and her incredible story, please continue reading...
How does Tufting work?
Tufting begins with the main star of the show, the Tufting Gun! It's a handheld machine that shoots out tufts of yarn threads into a primary fabric, creating a fluffy rug effect. All you have to learn is how to position and angle the gun to apply consistent pressure onto the taut fabric in order to create a firm hold.
Make sure the foot of the gun is always pressed perpendicular against the primary fabric at any time while you are tufting. If there is too little pressure, the fabric will tend to jump and flap against the gun and the yarn will dance off the cloth. Always try to maintain it at 90 degrees too or else it might rip the cloth out. If this all sounds a bit confusing to you, don’t worry, we’ll be there to guide you through each step of the entire process.
Depending on your preference, you can choose to leave a gap between 2 tufted lines or keep them closely knit together for a firmer finish. Leaving a gap will create a softer, fluffier feel of the yarn on the flip side of the fabric, though if tufted too far apart will end up making them feel too sparse and weakly held. Yarns, it is the realm of endless possibilities. There are many different types of yarns/yarn weights/colours.
Yarn types differ from Acrylic, Cotton, Blended, Wool, and the list goes on. The colours are also determined by the company that manufactures them, and the dye colour code or batch number can differ from one to the other. Skeins are often referred to as a unit of yarn. What about the cloth that's stretched on the frame? This is the Primary fabric. Think of it as the tufting gun is the brush, the yarn is your paint, and the primary fabric is the canvas. There are many types that can be used e.g., jute, primary tufting cloth, monk's cloth, etc.
And, finally, now that all the hard yards have been put in and your masterpiece is almost ready, the icing on the cake is the backing fabric which is as essential as the tufting (if not more!). Hence, for the backing, you may choose to put on a non-slip backing especially if you choose to display these rugs on the floor, you won't slip on it like a banana peel! Once the rug is ready, the backing fabric is trimmed to the size and shape of the rug piece and glued onto the back using carpet glue to securely fasten the tufts so they do not drop off like feathers as you use them. Again, if any of this has confused you, don’t worry! We’ll be with you every step of the way.