Newtown House: Can you tell us how you got started in yarn and fibre?

John Arbon: Ohhhh, well, it originally started way back in the early 80’s when I studied print at the LCP (London College of Printing) and learnt about silk-screen printing on textiles. Later in life I set up a T-shirt printing company called Shirt State, printing band and festival T-shirts, etc. Got to the point where I wanted to know more about the textile I was printing rather than the actual printing. So I enrolled at DMU, or Leicester Poly as it was, and studied a degree in Textiles & Apparel and specialised in spinning and knitting. I then went on to start a Masters at Nottingham Trent University but only got as far as PGDip in Textiles & Fashion. I then went on to work in the knit industry in Leicester before quitting it all and followed a pipe dream of starting a textile business in the South West utilising alpaca fibre.

NH: We know that you, John, have been responsible for restoring the Mill's machinery, with much of it salvaged from other mills that had closed down. How many pieces of equipment have you restored to their full glory? Are there any more waiting in the wings? Do you have a favourite?

JA: Well, we have worked on about 8 -10 machines over the years to get them running — wouldn’t say full glory, more like running fine and looking a bit tatty! One day we will give them all a lick of paint and they will return to their full glory! Favourite-wise I love Butler, the sample ring spinner — it’s a thing of beauty and totally bulletproof. This machine will spin for another 50 years at least — built in 1968, which makes me older than Butler! Last machine I revamped was Piglet, our mini-skein winder. Quite proud of the way that one turned out, so it is time for me to revamp Gillian, our 120-year-old skein winder.

NH: Tell us why it's been so important for you to ensure skills and equipment are maintained, and even revived?

JA: The industry is becoming more and more generic with large machinery spinning large volumes of craft yarn, and consequently we tend to see the same old yarns and blends doing the circuit, albeit in different and interesting dye combinations. With our old small-volume machinery and gentle, slower production we are able to offer diversity, quality and a real love and understanding of what we produce. It is vital we pass these skills on, and the knowledge of fibre and its behaviour, so that for future generations we can continue to produce bespoke quality craft yarns.

NH: What's it like walking into the Mill each day and firing up the machines you've carefully restored?

JA: Once you’ve done it a thousand times it becomes automatic, although there is always a bit of anxiety if a new noise suddenly occurs — a slight knocking or buzzing — but to hear those machines hum in harmony and whirl out the fantastic yarn is always special. The weirdest bit is when everything is switched off, and then there is this deafening silence!

NH: What's been the hardest thing about this, and what has been the greatest reward?

JA: Hardest thing …..too many over the years, but big ones have been putting machines together from a pile of components when you have never see the machine built — somewhat daunting. Breaking machines down and literally humping solid steel and cast down flights of stairs in old mills. Being told not to bother, and you’re wasting your time to have nothing but a few quid in the back and a dream that one day it will all work. Not much change there, then!

NH: What's the highlight of the last 20 years - if you can name one?

JA: Getting this far without a breakdown and retaining all my fingers! Seriously, seeing like-minded people in the Mill team get involved and sharing mine and Juliet’s vision and passion but also seeing them take it to new levels beyond what we could do. Things are always growing and evolving, and we couldn’t do that without our team.

NH: What's ahead for the next 20 years?

JA: More please! More fantastic yarns, new blends, new breeds, exciting new colour combos, more patterns, new techniques creating new interesting and diverse yarns…..watch out, here we come!

Inspirations from vintage vinyl for Yarnadelic

NH: Anything else you’d like to add?

JA: I would just say this: There is nothing special about what me and Juliet have done. All it takes is the desire and will to do something you are passionate about and tried your damndest to do it well with style. To that end it would be great to see other such mills in the UK doing similar to what we have done rather than importing yarn into the UK. Let’s face it, we have a lot of sheep and a lot of yarn crafters here, plus we should be exporting unique yarns, not importing!

Photos courtesy John Arbon Textiles

Sharon Mendham is the creative force behind the UK’s Maven Patterns, a company she set up as a creative outlet for her designs after a career that has included work as a pattern cutter, seamstress, and screen printer. As Sharon says, it’s all come together as a perfect launching pad for this labour of love. Sharon’s designs are classics - wonderful lines, easy to wear, and very versatile. Her obsession with detail and technique means the patterns are also packed full of instructions to help you get from fabric to garment in the most elegant way possible. We just adore her approach and hope you enjoy hearing more about her. If you’re inspired to try your hand at one (or all!) of Sharon’s lovely patterns,, we’ve got them in stock here.

NEWTOWN HOUSE: Please tell us how you got started with Maven. What was the work you were doing before you started it? How old were you when you learnt to sew? Have you always had a wide creative streak?

SHARON MENDHAM: Let's start at the beginning. I was brought up in a house where it was normal to make stuff. My parents were obsessive DIY-ers before that was an actual thing. One of my earliest memories is trying to find a red washing up bowl to match the kitchen tiles and chopping up a three-piece sofa to make it into a corner one. Me and Dad taking down a wall while Mum was at work. You get the idea. We couldn’t afford to buy the latest this or that, so we’d make do and work with what we had. And we didn’t really make stuff for the sake of it, not just to have more stuff. There had to be a point to it, and usually, it was a practical solution. I didn’t realise for years as a kid that other people bought stuff and paid people to do these things. It gave things a value because of the time they took, but they would have to function and look good to earn and keep their place.

I can’t remember when I learnt to sew, I think I just assumed I could because my Mum did. My mum worked as a sample machinist so it was just part of life. Apparently, I was always making dolls’ clothes or cutting something up. When I was at junior school we had a visit from the ‘big’ school and were told we needed to decide what we were going to do for a job when we left school. I was 11. I was most likely the only person that would take that seriously and was then on a mission to find my life’s work by September. And then one night there was a girl on telly wanting to be a fashion designer and that was that decided! I studied fashion at college and quickly realised pattern cutting was for me. I never wanted to be a ‘famous’ designer I just wanted to quietly make stuff that would be worn.

After college, I worked as a pattern cutter for various suppliers to the High Street stores in the UK before eventually moving from London to Warwickshire. I wasn’t really learning anything anymore and it felt like there was just a constant churning out of clothes with no real thought behind it. Once in Warwickshire, I did a little bit of freelance work in the costume department at the Royal Shakespeare Company in Stratford-upon-Avon. And then worked from home as a seamstress doing alterations (excellent work to fit around children!). I did a short two-day screen printing workshop that my friend was teaching - which ended up lasting four years. And got me involved in two exhibitions. I started a blog in 2007 to keep track of the creative stuff. As the kids got bigger I, alongside my alterations business, I got a part-time job in a bridal shop, not sewing but selling (dressing people up in tulle and tiaras is not a bad way to pass the time). I frequently turned up with blue fingers from screen printing in the morning. Now, it’s not obvious immediately, but all of these random little jobs actually gave me a lot of skills that I use now. I’ve been constantly fitting, altering, sewing, selling and providing customer service thanks to them.

NH: Where did you get the idea for Maven, and how challenging was it for you starting out? And where does the name come from?

SM: Maven started as an idea just to sell patterns way back in 2012, I announced it on my old blog in January 2013 to try and make me do something with it, but I didn’t really know how. I didn’t really have a clue then about the Indie sewing pattern market and I didn’t know how to digitise a pattern.

Actual quote from my blog, dated January 2013: “You see, I'm planning to make patterns and sell them. Patterns for ladies to make clothes that they'll actually want to wear. More than once hopefully, so you can make your favourite dress or whatever again and again. And again if you fancy. Revolutionary I know, clothes women want to wear, not clothes that make you feel like mutton dressed as mutton. It could catch on.... I've just got to do it now.... you know me always a procrastinator...........why do today what you can easily put off by faffing on the internet............”

That kind of sums up my whole philosophy, really! It’s the way I dress anyway - I only really ever made or bought something if I thought I’d wear it for a long time, so it just made sense to me. I make for purpose and buy for purpose too. I was very inspired by the William Morris quote, it was like someone else had seen my family at work: “If you want a golden rule that will fit everything, this is it: Have nothing in your houses that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful.”

Come October 2014, I’d made a few patterns and done a lot of research into creating PDF patterns and eventually invested and paid for the Pattern Workshop Course. This was the first time I’d actually invested in myself and in the business, so that was a major turning point. I built the website myself and pretty much did 12-hour days teaching myself Illustrator, fitting it around the alterations business and the bridal shop, until the following April when we released our first pattern, The Maria Apron named after my screen-printing friend - she’s actually a textile artist and wears it in her studio. The name Maven (rhymes with raven) means a trusted expert in a particular field, who seeks to pass timely and relevant knowledge on to others in the respective field. I took it to mean that we could all be our own experts in getting to know ourselves, and clothes are a part of that journey. Clothes really do reflect their owners and can give us confidence. I don’t think you need to know everything about sewing, but you can share what you know, learn from what others know and feel good about it, become an expert in what makes you happy! I really can’t be bothered with “You should wear this because you have that body shape,” for me it’s much more about “Wear what suits your personality.”

NH: In addition to pattern design, you also teach people to sew. What aspects do you enjoy most? And what's the one big message you'd want to give people who are trying to get started in these skills?

“It’s just a case of being honest with yourself - do you need all the things, bought or made, in all the colours? Probably not. ... We have to stop thinking short term happiness and strive for long term contentment.”

— Sharon Mendham

SM: I do really enjoy writing the sewing instructions for each pattern. They take an age to write, as I do all the illustrations too, but it’s actually one of my favourite parts. It’s constant problem-solving. I gained a good knowledge of construction working with some great machinists in London. They were really undervalued as they were not really seen, not glamorous, just women in the corner of the room. They were only too delighted to share what they knew, and it’s part of the reason I’m good at what I do - because I listened! My advice to a new maker would be: Don’t worry about making mistakes. It took me a frustratingly long time as a young pattern cutter to realise it was just a bit of paper, and you can quite literally stick it back together. But making mistakes is where you learn and grow. Keep a copy of the original pattern, just in case, and make a toile in a cheap fabric to practise and then enjoy the process!

NH: How do you spend your days, these days?

SM: Very little time actually pattern cutting and a lot of time tweaking stuff on the computer (which I actually love!). And I try and make sure there are some fun things, like exhibitions - you have to put stuff in to get stuff out. There is no life/work balance at all...and I’m the slowest producer of sewing patterns on the planet...but I’ve stopped worrying about it. That’s working well for me!

NH: What inspires you? And which aspects of your work do you most enjoy? And how do you power through the less-fun parts?

SM: It’s often a combination of fabric and problem-solving. It’s all a subconscious conversation with myself that I hadn’t vocalised until I started Maven. What gaps are in my wardrobe? How can I make a garment that's functional and easy to wear, interesting without being fussy, that is versatile and will offer longevity of wear. I often think there is a pattern cutter solution to clothing design which is based heavily on form, function and integrity of design.

I do really enjoy developing a pattern, I could toile quite happily for an eternity and writing the instructions is very satisfying. The less fun parts - I ignore for as long as possible and then once I start just keep going until it’s finished!

NH: Businesses like yours are very inspiring for people who are hoping to embrace the ideals of slow fashion - either by making their own clothes or buying one-off, handmade garments. Can you tell us a bit about your approach to slow fashion, and perhaps a bit about the change you hope to see as a result of people starting to really grab hold of these concepts?

SM: It’s just a case of being honest with yourself, do you need all the things, bought or made, in all the colours? Probably not. But something that makes you feel great, in a colour that resonates with you - that will bring you joy for a long time. And if you love it, surely you’ll look after it, so it automatically becomes less disposable. We have to stop thinking short term happiness and strive for long term contentment. I usually only buy or make for purpose or with the certainty that I’ll wear or use the item for years. This will change depending on your lifestyle, I work from home and am happy to wear the same clothes so I naturally need less clothes than someone in a different type of job. I don’t think any one action will change the fashion industry and the way it operates overnight, but they will notice a change in consumer habits. If we buy and make more thoughtfully, I’m hoping the industry will slow down with the overproduction of their ranges and break the cycle.

NH: What is ahead for Maven?

SM: Lots of plans...and more patterns! I’m very lucky that I work with Eve, my eldest daughter, now - she’s made printing and wholesaling the patterns possible. We’ve been sourcing fabrics so we can curate some kits and hopefully sell by the metre too. We are hoping to exhibit as some more shows next year. We’ve done a couple and it’s so lovely to chat to all the Makers that visit the stand.

All photos courtesy Maven Patterns

The Maria Apron - a Maven pattern

The Wendy Smock - a Maven pattern

The French Dart - a Maven pattern

The Kitty Dress - a Maven Pattern

The Rochester - a Maven pattern

The Barcelona Dress - a Maven pattern