We Must Create

We Must Create — A First Call to Action.

I’m really chuffed to share that I’m now part of the wide and generous global community at wedotart. It’s prompted me to write from my base here in my London studio. I’ve been thinking a lot lately about why making matters. Making as a creative expression, a way of grounding, connecting, and being well in a world that increasingly demands we “produce” value, impact, meaning, sustainability, and solutions all at once.

I have a mantra that keeps returning to me, it’s We Must Create, but it’s not just about art as a product, it’s about art as a kind of portal: a way into presence, connection, and collective imagination. And it isn’t limited to any one discipline. We Must Create is a call to everyone, whether through film, poetry, dance, painting, writing, singing, building, cooking, stitching, or drawing. The warp may be my canvas at the moment (aside from teaching and working with private clients on their homes), but creativity belongs to all of us. And for me, making permits us to think by doing, to slow down, to commune, and to let insight arise through our hands as much as through our minds.

Intuition aside, there is growing evidence that creative engagement has physiological benefits. For example, participatory visual art activities have been shown to significantly reduce full-day heart rate and cortisol levels, a beautiful proxy for better balance between stress and rest systems in the body. This was among older adults who participated in regular art-making sessions over three months (ref pmc). More broadly, creativity and cultural engagement are linked with improvements in wellbeing, life satisfaction, and emotional regulation in large population samples (ref Dr. Helen Keyes, The Guardian)

This embodied act of doing, feeling, and sensing echoes the wisdom of Joanna Macy’s work around cultivating Active Hope (ref. the book), Otto Scharmer’s Theory U, and Janine Benyus’s invitation to “learn from nature rather than extract from it.” Benyus reminds us that life has been solving problems for 3.8 billion years — and that by observing, making with, and learning from living systems, we begin to design not against the world, but in partnership with it.

Macy speaks of reconnecting with life at multiple scales, self, other, planet, and of turning toward what wants to emerge. Scharmer’s concept of presencing describes learning from the future as it emerges through our bodies and minds in dialogue and practice. These ideas materialise from the conditions that allow resilience, imagination, and agency to flourish.

I see this in the workshops I lead, whether in Dalston Curve Garden or elsewhere, when people settle into the act of making and suddenly something shifts: the worry relaxes, the mind opens, and a deeper kind of thinking emerges through the hands. Thinking by making isn’t escapism; it’s cognitive and emotional recalibration in the face of complexity and oftentimes burnout.

I know there’s so much more we could explore together, large collective weaving projects that bring people into shared making, architectural interventions in the street that invite civic communities to co-create, or a community-rooted series that combines reflection, action, and care. These are early thoughts, still not fully coherent, but I want to use this moment, now that I’m on wedotart.com, to begin weaving them together.

For me, making is a form of well-being and care for our bodies, our minds, each other, and the world we inhabit. It is a starting point for connection rather than a finished product. We Must Create is an invitation to practise art daily, to make connections and collaborations, and to find wellbeing through making and a collective practice.

If you are in London, come to the workshop in March, or get in touch with me here. #WeMustCreate!

Weaving colour

TAP - IN - CREATIVE PROJECTS WITH HACKNEY ARTISTS AND MAKERS

TAP IN is a new series of evening workshops for adults, hosted by Make Club in the wonderful new community workshop space at Dalston Curve Garden.

Ella shall be hosting a workshop with them. See below for details and a booking link:

Tue 10 Mar 2026 7:00 PM - Tue 17 Mar 2026 9:00 PMDalston Curve Garden, E8 3DF.

This event takes place over two Tuesday evenings.

Dates: 10th March and 17th March

Time: 7.00pm - 9.00pm

This weaving project is all about slowing down, playing with colour and texture, and discovering how simple techniques can build into something beautiful and personal.

Designer Ella Doran shares simple weaving techniques to create a beautiful and personal woven artwork.

This two-day weaving workshop is all about slowing down, playing with colour and texture, and discovering how simple techniques can build into something beautiful and personal.

You will work with wool sourced from Yorkshire Sculpture Park sheep, dyed in colours inspired by the landscape, and recycled wool donated from Camira Fabric’s ReSKU 2.0 range, you are welcome to bring your own wool and textiles, string or ribbon to add to your work during the sessions. Take home a beautiful woven artwork.

All materials and hand-held loom provided.

TO BUY YOUR TICKET CLICK HERE!

Session One

We’ll begin by cutting shapes and collaging to create a design on paper, exploring colour play through different wool combinations. You’ll then learn how to set up the warp on your loom and try out simple tapestry techniques including plain weave, rya knots, and soumak weaving. By the end of this first session, you’ll have your loom warped for your final piece and will have already made a start on your design.

collage and colour coding

Session Two

In the second session, you’ll continue developing your tapestry, building on the techniques you began in session one. You’ll have the option to finish your piece with or without a fringing detail, and you’ll also learn how to cast off and secure the back neatly with all loose ends. By the end of the workshop, you’ll take home a completed woven tapestry along with your paper collage — and, if you’d like to keep weaving, you’ll have the option to purchase your frame at a reduced fee.

Studio Open

Studio Open

You are invited to
AN EVENING WITH ELLA DORAN & BEN DAY
20th November  5 ~ 8 pm.

Studio 57a Lawford Road, Hackney, London, N1 5BJ

You’re warmly invited to join us for a special Studio Open Evening on Tuesday, 20th November, 5–8 pm, where I’ll be sharing new woven textiles, alongside a curated selection of archive pieces (including printed textile pieces) available to browse and purchase.

This is a chance to see behind the scenes of my evolving practice — to explore materials, colour, and circular design in conversation — and to discuss potential commissions or bespoke interior pieces.

I’ll be opening my studio in collaboration with my neighbour Ben Day, whose exquisite contemporary jewellery will also be on show. Together, we look forward to welcoming you for an evening of craft, conversation, and a glass of something refreshing.

Please RSVP here to let us know you’re coming

Woven Colour at Dalston Curve Garden

Woven Colour

For tickets, visit Eventbrite, click here.

This two-day weaving workshop is all about slowing down, playing with colour and texture, and discovering how simple techniques can come together to create something beautiful and personal.

The wonderful Emily Tracy, founder of Make Club London, has organised a series of creative classes to be hosted by Dalston Curve Garden. Each project is a 2-part course.

Ella’s two-day weaving workshop is all about slowing down, playing with colour and texture, and discovering how simple techniques can build into something beautiful and personal.

You will work with wool sourced from her project, Yorkshire Sculpture Park sheep, dyed in colours inspired by the landscape, and recycled wool donated from Camira Fabric’s ReSKU 2.0 range. You are welcome to bring your own wool and textiles, string or ribbon, anything you want to add to your work during the sessions.

Session One - Postponed until the spring, date to be updated as soon as we know.

We’ll begin by cutting shapes and collaging to create a design on paper, exploring colour play through different wool combinations. You’ll then learn how to set up the warp on your loom and try out simple tapestry techniques, including plain weave, rya knots, and soumak weaving. By the end of this first session, you’ll have your loom warped for your final piece and will have already made a start on your design.

Session Two - DATE TBC

In the second session, you’ll continue developing your tapestry, building on the techniques you began in session one. You’ll have the option to finish your piece with or without a fringing detail, and you’ll also learn how to cast off and secure the back neatly with all loose ends. By the end of the workshop, you’ll take home a completed woven tapestry along with your paper collage — and, if you’d like to keep weaving, you’ll have the option to purchase your frame at a reduced fee. 

No prior experience required. 

For tickets, visit Eventbrite, click here.

Camira Fabric’s ReSKU 2.0

Weaving with Ella Doran at the National Maritime Museum

Join Ella Doran for a hands-on weaving workshop inspired by Cutty Sark's rich textile history of transporting wool from Britain to Australia.

Ella will lead two inspiring workshop sessions, giving participants the chance to explore the art of weaving under her expert guidance.

Learn to weave with a small hand loom, and take home your creation at the end of the session.

• Work with wool sourced from Yorkshire Sculpture Park sheep, dyed in colours inspired by the landscape, and recycled wool donated from Camira Fabric’s ReSKU 2.0 range.

• Discover the fascinating connection between sailing and weaving—both rely on the art of tension!

• Take home your own tapestry loom to continue your weaving journey.

Once a tea clipper, historic ship Cutty Sark later transported wool from Australia to Britain, playing a vital role in the textile trade.

Weaving has become more popular in recent years as it promotes focus, creativity, cognitive function, and mental well-being—and most importantly, it’s fun!

This event will take place in the Rethink Space of the National Maritime Museum.

Minimum age: 8+. Children must be accompanied by an adult. 

This workshop will be at the National Maritime Museum

Saturday 1 November 2025 | 10am - 1pm and 2pm - 5pm

Prices £15 Adult | £12 Members and students

For tickets, click here.

“The Cutty Sark Wool experience”

Date and Times Thursday 9 October 2025 | 6.30pm. Prices Non-Members: £15 | Members and students: £12

The night includes an exclusive screening of “Sheep, Actually,” a film that documents Paul Wyatt's quest to understand Britain's enduring fascination with sheep. His journey to learn more about these fascinating animals led him on an unexpected and woolly adventure.

In London, he met talented makers, discovered the vital green spaces of London City Farms, and connected with sheep experts. The film uncovers a surprising universe right in the heart of the capital, from encountering the multi-horned Manx sheep and hardy Herdwicks, to the deer-like Castlemilk Moorits.

Join Paul and his camera as he explores the craft and effort involved in working with wool, from the farm to the finished product. The film features Justine Lee, fashion designer and author of The Wonder of Wool, textile artist Remiiya Badru, weaver Majeda Clarke, the Yarn Whisperer Andrew Kite, as well as farmers, shearers, producers, and many others who work with wool.

This special edition also features Ella Doran's inspiring journey creating products using wool sourced directly from sheep grazing the iconic landscapes of the Yorkshire Sculpture Park.

Most importantly, prepare to meet Cow - who, despite the name, is most certainly a sheep, not a cow.

Click here for tickets!

Event timings:

6.30pm: Cutty Sark Soundscape – Join us for a new digital experience that immerses you in the sounds of sailing on the ship 150 years ago. Visitors will be introduced to the experience and then left free to roam Cutty Sark outside of normal opening hours.

7.30pm: Sheep, Actually screening (60 minutes), introduced by director Paul Wyatt. The film will be followed by a Q&A session featuring the people who appear in it.

8.45pm: Join us beneath the suspended Cutty Sark in the atmospheric Dry Dock for drinks, chat, and live music.

For further details about Paul Wyatt and his film, visit www.sheepactually.com

Ella Doran X Well Crafted

Join Ella Doran and Well–Crafted for a three-day workshop series exploring creativity, sustainability, and community through hands-on making, during the Shoreditch Design Triangle week of activities.

Working with excess waste materials, these workshops will highlight the power of reuse as a creative and regenerative act, set in a wonderful location in South Shoreditch:

Clifton House,
64 Worship St
London EC2A 2DU

There are four workshops to choose from, see below, and click on the ticket link to read in full what’s in store!

Thursday 18th September 2:00 pm - 5:00 pm - Fragments Reimagined: Ceramic Off-Cut Jewellery with Rossella Cambarau BOOK HERE

Thursday 18th September 6:00 pm - 9:00 pm - Collage - Transforming the Found Image with Alexander Ikhide BOOK HERE

Friday 19th September 11:00 am - 9:00 pm - Drawing with found materials with Izi Dixon BOOK HERE

Sunday 21st September 2:00 pm - 5:00 pm - Woven Together with Ella Doran BOOK HERE

Images from recent Well_Crafted and Ella Doran workshops and events

The Bridge Bench series with B.C. Joshua

Ella Doran and Blake Carlson Joshua Unveil Collaborative Benches at Shoreditch Design Triangle

DOWNLOAD PRESS RELEASE HERE

London, UK — Designer Ella Doran continues her creative partnership with Blake Carlson Joshua, unveiling a new collaborative project for this year’s Shoreditch Design Triangle.

The collaboration was first conceived in 2022, when the pair met at the inaugural Material Matters show, where both were exhibiting. Bonding over their unconventional and innovative use of “waste” materials, they set out to create a project that reimagines discarded objects with fresh purpose.

That vision has now materialised in the co-creation of two unique benches, which will be showcased at the House of Icon, Shoreditch Town Hall, 380 Old Street, London EC1V 9LT.

Bridge Bench Multi Colour

Dimensions: L 1860mm × W 550mm × H 460mm
Materials: Salvaged Iroko wood, waste paint, paper, gypsum

This bench extends the legacy of Doran’s celebrated Paint Drop project. Responding to the horizontal nature of the piece, she chose to pour and drop waste paint from both sides of the reclaimed Iroko wood. The resulting surface balances an uplifting colour palette with Blake’s, handcrafted paper stones placed at either end, uniting texture, materiality, and colour.

Bridge Bench II

Dimensions: L 1860mm × W 550mm × H 460mm
Materials: Solid floor wood boards, plywood, salvaged brass, paper (including shredded paperwork from Solid Floors’ office), gypsum

For this piece, Doran chose to preserve the original painted white and burnt finish of the Solid Floor wood boards. Instead of removing a groove in the second plank, she serendipitously filled it with a salvaged piece of brass that fits seamlessly. Blake C. Joshua has crafted the paper stones moulded around salvaged fence posts, using shredded office paperwork. The bench is finished with layers of multi-coloured waste paint poured and dropped by Doran, adding vibrancy and depth.

Exhibition Details:

Shoreditch Design Triangle The House of Icon open 16th, 17th and 18th September 2025. Full details here.

For all sales and commission enquiries, please get in touch here

Worn by Ella Doran, an interview by Anna Kreeger for M.Hulot

photo by Beth Davis

Ella was interviewed by Anna Kreeger, the designer behind the eponymous brand M.Hulot, the name of which we have only just learnt. ‘was taken from the fictional Frenchman, Monsieur Hulot, who walked to the beat of his own drum, exuding an old-fashioned charm and magnetism in the emerging modern world.’

Ella and Anna go back over 20 years, when Anna worked for Ella, helping her with her own brand collections at the time. You can read her interview and get a peek into Ella’s life through the Q&A and photographs of her in her colourful home, by reading the full article HERE!

If you, like many others, want her to bring back the Honstu as for her gorgeous LOE bag, you can view and buy one here!

And if you are interested in any of her products featured in the article, from woodgrain vinyls to her collections of cushions… You know how to get in touch….. here :)

Photographs by Beth Davis

Well Crafted at Second Home Holland Park

from left to right, Ella Doran, Sicgmone Kludje, Rain Chan, Alexandra Lunn, Gifty Enright, Peter Stojanovic, and Lauren Godfrey.

We had a packed panel of creative entrepreneurs at Second Home Holland Park on Monday, the 12th May, capturing the energy, intentions, and purpose behind crafting for well-being during London Craft Week. A big thank you to Alexandra Lunn for curating such a thoughtful and inspiring evening and to Peter Stojanovic for chairing the event and sharing insightful anecdotes on crafting for wellbeing to support the launch of Alexandra's new platform Well–Crafted.

I shared the floor with Gifty Enright, coach and TEDx speaker; 𝗥𝗮𝗶𝗻 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗻, pleating for pleasure; 𝗟𝗮𝘂𝗿𝗲𝗻 𝗚𝗼𝗱𝗳𝗿𝗲𝘆, pattern lover and podcaster; and Sicgmone Kludge, one of the founders of Black Girl Knit Club. Each shared their superpowers in crafting for well-being for themselves and their audiences. And a big thank you to Kelan from Darlings of Hackney for the expert photography.

Thank you also to Second Home for hosting us in their beautiful light-filled space in Holland Park (ex Richard Rogers studio 😍 see images below. ) 

It’s a fine space, and the thunder and lightning passed us by!

If you're interested in a creative workshop for your workforce, check out Well–Crafted.

This vine was planted in the 1970’s by architect Richard Rogers, when the space was his home to his architecture studio. He also built the outdoor walkways you see above you…

Entrance/Exit through the portal…

Second Home Holland Park, open space on the ground floor with ETFE ceiling.

Well-Crafted at Second Home

Join Well-Crafted during London Craft Week for an inspiring evening exploring how craft can support wellbeing and connection in the workplace.

Enjoy kombucha and informal networking, a panel discussion, and a live creative experience.

A perfect after-work event for HR professionals, team leaders, and anyone interested in the power of hands-on creativity.

12 May 2025 / 6:15am to 8:30pm / Holland Park, 47-49 Princes Place, London, W11 4QA.

Panelists include:

• Ella Doran – Award-winning designer championing sustainable, circular design.

• Rain Chan – Founder of CAHAYA STUDIOS, blending pleating, nature, and mental wellbeing.

• Sicgmone Kludje – Knitwear designer and co-founder of Black Girl Knit Club, exploring craft, identity, and cultural expression.

Moderated by Alexandra Lunn, the evening will include engaging discussion, audience Q&A, and creative interaction.

Let’s champion creativity as a vital part of modern work and wellbeing.

All Second Home members have free access to this event! Please email hello@secondhome.io for the code, or get your tickets HERE!

_a room within a room - Elite Design Awards 2025

Elite Arts and Crafts Award

_a room within a room - Elite Design Awards 2025

February 23, 2025

For its 8th edition, the prestigious Elite Design Awards, organised by Maison Elite, celebrate the emblematic "Arts and Crafts" movement. Ella Doran and Rachel Forster are proud to announce they have won the 3rd prize in the Elite Design Awards 2025 for their bed design.

Their design merges commodity with a reverence for nature and longevity. Inspired by Charles Rennie Mackintosh’s Hill House in Glasgow, it is a modern interpretation of the movement’s ethos: utility meets beauty. Every element reflects function and form, creating a sanctuary—a privy chamber for the soul; a room within a room. Read More

Meticulously crafted from the finest English oak, our bed combines timeless mortise-and-tenon joinery with the elegant artistry of Arts and Crafts-inspired reed weaving. The headboard is designed for both style and functionality,

offering a comfortable cushioned surface for reading or working in bed. The elegant hanging light shade can be adjusted or dimmed as required, from the thoughtful storage behind the headboard, which integrates built-in compartments for books, light control, and charging points, easily accessed from either side of the bed.

Front _a room with a view bed, designed by Ella Doran and Rachel Forster

Now House interview with Ella Doran.

Episode 8: ELLA DORAN DESIGN

‘It’s not often the opportunity to take part in an insightful and inspiring conversation with one of the UK's most innovative contemporary artists and designers arises, but that's exactly what happened when NOWHOUSE.uk podcast presenter Chris Billinghurst and guest host Elizabeth Knowles met with Ella Doran of Ella Doran Design.’

Read More

Ella is a renowned product and textile designer, mark-maker,, artist and photographer. Inspired by nature, wellbeing and sustainability, she has had an impressive twenty-five year plus career. Her highly-acclaimed homeware and furniture collections have appeared at Heals, John Lewis and the Conran shop, she has curated award-winning exhibitions for the TATE, The Glasgow School of Art and The Southback Centre and has accumulated an enviable list of clients ranging from the NHS and Habitat to Portmeirion Potteries and Paloma Picasso. Ella is also currently a Platform Associate Leader, SuperMatter Platform for the Interior Design MA course at the Royal College of Art and is based at her studio in East London. 

Watch on YouTube here!

Show notes:

Websites:

• The King's Trust (formerly The Princes Trust): www.kingstrust.org.uk

• Bristol Waldorf School: www.bristolwaldorfschool.org

• Yorkshire Sculpture Park Project: www.ysp.org.uk/whats-on/exhibitions/past-exhibitions/ella-doran-sheep-to-seat-fleece-to-floor

• Camira Fabrics: www.camirafabrics.com

• Clean-Up Camo Chair: www.elladorandesign.co.uk/projects#/clean-up-plastic-camo-chair

• Urban Upholstery: www.urbanupholstery.com

• Kniterate: www.kniterate.com

• Royal London Hospital Children’s Wards: www.carolinebanks.co.uk/makers/ella-doran-for-barts-the-royal-london-hospital/

• John Radcliffe Hospital Buttefly Bereavement Ward: www.hospitalcharity.co.uk/news/butterfly-garden

Museum of the Home Yard Sale 2024

Museum of the Home

The much-loved Yard Sale returns on Sunday 1 December with a fantastic array of items, ranging from elegant homeware to unique studio clear-out bargains. Ella will be there with some ‘clear out bargains’ so be sure to get there early!

Reserve your early bird (exclusive preview ticket) here!

Read More

General entry starts at 10am on the day. Want to browse and get a first look ahead of the crowds? Visitors can book exclusive preview tickets to gain early access from 9am.

Tickets are now available for general access to the Yard Sale from 10am to 4pm on Sunday 1 December 2024. Get yours now at the early bird discounted rate.

Book general entry tickets here.

Visitors can book exclusive preview tickets to gain early entry at 9am on the day and be the first to browse and buy! Book early access tickets

Date: Sunday 1 December 2024

Time: 10am-4pm

Cost: £5-15

Location: Museum of the Home, 136 Kingsland Road, London E2 8EA.

Fabric of the Land: an exclusive screening at the Museum of the Home

For your free tickets visit the museum of the home (here)

 WOOL MONTH 2024

Please join me for an inspiring film screening and discussion on design, sustainability and textiles at the Museum of the Home in London this October. Read More

I'm excited that the next chapter is underway for the 'Fabric of Land' - the short film (with updates now a 20 minute film) by documentary filmmaker Paul Wyatt about my project at Yorkshire Sculpture Park, focusing on materials from the park; that of a naturally felled oak tree, and wool from the sheep that graze on their 500 acres of historic land.

The film highlights the importance of the circular economy in reducing waste and sustaining livelihoods and traditions. 

Following the screening, we'll be discussing climate action and shaping the future of design in a Q&A with Ewa Socha from the Museum.

Museum of the Home: 36 Kingsland Road, E2 8EA

Sunday 20th October 2pm to 3.30pm

 Reserve your seat here!

Hopeful Activism and Long Term Thinking

For tickets visit Equinox Wasing (here)

EQUINOX AT WASING 2024

20th – 22nd September.

I will be taking part in a workshop and panel discussion alongside my fellow Alexie Sommers from the URGE collective, Jeremy Whelehan, Wisdom Keepers and Nadeem Parera, Flock Together on Saturday 21st, 11 am - 12.30

Hopeful Activism and Long-term Thinking Read More

Alexie and I will host the discussion and collective workshop to develop our ability to move beyond the immediate and enable future generations to benefit from deeper, long-term thinking.

We’ll be taking inspiration from Ella Saltmarsh and The Long Time Project and grounding the group in meditation to start the session.

I’ve been contemplating what Hopeful Activism means and reading and listening to many great thinkers and writers, which I look forward to sharing on the 21st.

‘Hope locates itself in the premises that we don’t know what will happen and that in the spaciousness of uncertainty is room to act.’

Rebecca Solnit ‘Hope in the Dark’

The weekend festival as a whole, promises to be a jubilant homage to nature's transition, as the vibrant hues of summer yield to the contemplative embrace of autumn. With the equinox marking the balance between light and darkness, there will be special guests Paul Stamets, Nitin Sawhney, Sam Lee, The Egg and to name a few…

Use code URGE15 for 15% off weekend tickets (here).

Equinox is a one-off fundraiser for the PAR Campaign & Earth Percent.

Think Global and Act Local for World Localisation Day with EETG Tue 25 JUN 2024 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM

Ella will be speaking at this event, along with Margaret Asare, owner of EyeLondon Opticians, and Ben Mackinnon, E5 Bakehouse.

The EETG is an alliance of small businesses working together on shared issues and values for the common good of the local community. Join us at the EETG event to celebrate 'World Localisation Day' for the Hackney Festival of Learning with this member panel discussion followed by a Q&A and time to meet fellow businesses and locals with delicious local food and drink from E5 Bakehouse!

World Localisation Day, is an annual celebration, convened by the international NGO Local Futures. Together community groups and grassroots networks are joining forces to raise awareness about the need for a global to local shift and to celebrate the worldwide localisation movement. A myriad of events and campaigns are hosted all over the world, not just on June 21 – the day itself, but throughout the whole month.

for tickets and further information, visit Ticketailor here.

Reuse with Ella Doran and Yodomo, as part of Hackney Sustainability Day, Saturday 29th June.

Join Ella Doran and Yodomo for a special one-off cushion-making workshop as part of Hackney Sustainability Day! Book your 30 minute slot here!

This is a subsidised event designed to inspire people to reuse materials that might otherwise go to waste.

The event will be hosted at Hackney City Hall service centre- follow signage to find us on the day.

It will be run by Ella Doran and Yodomo who will show the simple techniques you can use to reuse otherwise 'waste' materials. No prior sewing experience is required.

Ella Doran Design Ltd. is an interior and textile design practice in Hackney.

Yodomo is a social venture working to reduce textile waste emanating from the interior design industry through the redistribution of 'waste' materials to its maker community.

There are 16 places available in half-hour slots. Participants will come away with their own cushion cover and learn more about reusing materials if they want to continue making at home.

Slots will run all day from 11 am til 4 pm. Please select your slot time when booking tickets on Eventbrite Here.

Shadescape - a participatory research project in collaboration with London South Bank University

Earlier this year we partnered with London South Bank University to run a small participatory piece of research named SHADESCAPE, looking at a circular economy for textile-based shading products with a focus on the local economy.

I have been asking the question of how my company Ella Doran Design Ltd. could close the loop and gain more transparency through our supply chains and communicate end-of-life or ‘next life’ with our customer base, for our shading products. Deborah Andrews has been my mentor on several applications to support this research. Below is an outline of what we have achieved so far, thanks to LSBU’s support through an External Participatory and Collaborative grant.

We spoke and/or worked with ‘actors’ throughout the product life cycle, from traders of the base cloth to the printers and recyclers, re-makers, and consumers. The project itself also involved re-making workshops where participants learned to repair and or repurpose waste shading textiles, empowering them to contribute to solutions that sustain materials and keep them in use demonstrating a circular economy in action.

You can read the call to action that we sent to our customer base here.

Kristina was a participant in one of the workshops here remnant textiles are creatively compiled to make a curtain panel

Curtain making from remnant and pre-used textiles

London South Bank University supported the conduction and management of the research, the workshops, and the publishing of the report. Deborah Andrews particularly was the academic eye during the whole time guiding and mentoring the process with her experience and past related studies. Essential was the collaboration with my company and Yodomo who contributed with their community engagement and making space in Hackney Wick for the public re-making workshops.

We also had full support from Hackney Council which promoted Shadescape at their Summer 2023 Sustainability Day where Sophie of Yodomo and I ran cushion-making workshops using remnant and pre-used textiles with the local community. 

This research and the project pilot touched every point mapped on the journey around Circular Economy for textiles in the Shading Product Industry. The research was structured to better understand the common practices of the industry and the behaviours of consumers. Unfortunately, the industry participation was scarce, nevertheless, the three interviewed experts gave precious insights that will inform further investigations. In the future, engaging more suppliers, manufacturers, and waste management companies will be extremely important to tightly close the loop of this discourse. Talking with a couple of my suppliers, it emerged that they live in a stationary condition and are unable to drive the change, due to their scale especially as they are not the actual ‘producers of the raw textile’. Also, the recycler we spoke with confirmed that traders as well as consumers do not have alternatives to landfill when it comes to disposing of shading textiles, and institutions do not seem to put systems in place for that. Textile waste collectors, repurpose hubs, and recycling plants are still too rare.

An additional survey regarding housing may help identify new opportunities for further studies and implement the holistic approach carried out so far. This research also demonstrated that blinds and curtains are valued after their use, and that circular approaches like this pilot have foundations to be built on. Public engagement is clearly evident, and not to be underestimated but rather leveraged. The Shadescape project and survey demonstrated that people have a sincere interest in contributing to research and are eager to acquire skills to play their part in the circular economy. They also committed to donating fabrics and repurposing them during workshops where sustainability values and actions were shared. In turn, the participants felt empowered, confident, and able to continue repurposing fabrics in the future. Finally, this study generated an ecosystem by connecting different elements together adopting a systemic approach. It highlights the preconditions for a localised circular economy where shading textiles are collected from pre-and post-consumer waste streams to be regenerated into new products by and for skilled communities.

This can help not only Hackney but also other councils to meet their sustainability targets. To achieve a stronger, lasting, broader, and demonstrable impact, the study needs to expand and build on the foundations of this pilot. Here, environmental and social benefits start to be explored by offering a way to reduce the need for new resources, mitigating the textile production impact on land and by teaching people new skills while developing a sense of responsibility and control towards waste. However, to determine a more accurate social impact the study needs to be extended to a larger and more diverse audience. Moreover, some points are still necessary to generate a Circular Economy Template/Actions Guidelines and to further engage experts of the shading products industry, as well as citizens.

This text has been adapted from the report and conclusions of our first research project with London South Bank University.

This recent Guardian article clarifies the issue further with the dumping of textiles in Chile’s Atacama desert to a beach in Accra, Ghana, but it also sheds light on an exciting innovation with Renewcell which can and will begin to change some of this discourse through recycling used clothes, but there is still much work to be done!  

For those of you still curious I learned about Renewcell via watching the World Circular Textile Day held at  The Conduit the afternoon session can be watched here if you are interested. A wider question, one that was raised at this event, and one I have been grappling with in my own business for some years now, is Jason Hickel’s book and provocation of LESS is MORE… How can we manage this transition in essentially making ‘less’ whilst retaining a healthy system?

He neatly points out that ‘… It’s not growth that’s the problem, it’s growthism: the pursuit of growth for its own sake or for the sake of capital accumulation ‘

He also said “….once we are liberated from the growth imperative we will be free to focus on different kinds of innovations - innovations designed to improve human and ecological welfare, rather than innovations designed to speed up the rate of extraction and production

a statement that I and all at Shadescape wholeheartedly agree and believe we are advocating through the participatory work with Yodomo to empower and inspire creative solutions to shading products.

Participatory Project Lead Ella Doran

Academic Lead Deborah Andrews

Full report written by Daniele Di Paolo

Bridge Bench series: I + II

Bridge Bench: Multi Colour I

For this September’s London Design Festival 2023, I have collaborated with designer maker Blake Carlson Joshua. After meeting at the inaugural Material Matters Design show in 2022 where we were both exhibiting, we made a connection with our unconventional use of waste materials.

We made a plan to collaborate…

...a year on and that plan has come together through the co-creation of two benches.

The first bench extends the legacy of the waste paint from my Paint Drop project, only this time, as we had decided to work on a bench, the horizontal nature of the piece led me to drop and pour the paint from either side of the reclaimed Iroko, in order to balance the organic pattern and convergence of the waste paint with the handcrafted paper stones at either end.

Bridge Bench Multi Colour Series I - dimensions L 1860mm W 550mm H 460mm

Close up Bridge Bench I

Close up Joint: Paper/Wood/Paint

Bridge Bench Nude - dimensions L 1860mm W 550mm H 460mm


Blake and I were invited by Solid Floor earlier in the year to work with some of their offcuts and waste wood, as they are retailers and fitters of flooring. We chose some wood boards named Magma Etna and Blake also collected all of their office paper waste for the stones.

Blake’s Studio

Here, Solid Floor’s wood planks needed to be celebrated, so I chose to leave them in their original painted white and burnt finish, and rather than removing the groove of the second plank, I serendipitously filled it with a salvaged piece of brass that fitted like a glove. The paper stones have been moulded around salvaged fence posts and made by Blake here in his studio.

Re-create is an exhibition curated by Solid Floor for the London Design Festival, and Shoreditch Design Triangle. Many objects have been created from Solid Floor timbers by local designers. Solid Floor has been supplying and installing bespoke timber flooring for over twenty-five years. Acclaimed in equal measure for the variety and distinctiveness of its floors!

The exhibition’s objective is to make use of waste flooring material that would otherwise be thrown away, via new-designed objects that not only showcase the beauty of the different timber floors with their various textures and colours but also reveal the ingenuity of the designers themselves.

Bridge Bench Nude II

B.C. Joshua is London based (Minneapolis born) in his own words he likes exploring the material landscape in a hands-on way. His work aims to interrogate and question pre-conceived narratives using a material-based approach to the creation of objects. Frequently his work considers the resources around us challenging the notion of ‘waste’ by changing its context entirely.

Below in-progress images of the Bridge Bench multi coloured

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