Since 1978 I have been dealing with vegetable dyes and weaving natural biodegradable yarns such as silk, wool, alpaca, cashmere, linen, hemp, cotton, and bamboo, entirely acrylic-free, in the attempt to combine archaic, and nearly lost, traditions
with a contemporary and creative take.
with a contemporary and creative take.
Dye
This wonderful island is, by all means, my palette; I love finding every day some chromatic selections in the wild. I grow and gather the majority of plants from which the dyeing active ingredients are extracted. Any piece of bark, blade of grass, spice, leaf or flower can be used to obtain an exclusive shade, one of a kind, (impossible to be reproduced with the chemical dyes), which is no harm to our skin, nor to our invaluable ecosystem. Leaves of sage, rosemary, artichoke, eucalypt, olive, myrtle, roots of madder, peels of pomegranate, flowers of broom, hibiscus, mallow, and chamomile have been the core of my first recipes, and still are amongst the materials I am typically keen on using to attain ever different colourings, that grant my garments their unique authenticity. |
Weaving
In addition to taking care of the whole dyeing process – that, even tough requiring a long time, assures riveting results – I also plan and design the outfits to be made with the eco-fabrics, and oversee the whole weaving on the loom. All the yarns I use, being they as light as linen or cotton, or else as warm and enveloping as cashmere, or as smooth as silk, they all smell of the flowers, herbs, barks and leaves of Panarea, where “Penelope”, my workshop, is based. That is where you can catch me working between warp and weft, sitting at my handloom, engrossed in weaving the threads as our ancestors used to do back in the mists of time. I regard my workshop as a sacred place, where I am happy to welcome the visitors who would like to wear a shade of the island. I let the inspiration reach me on my terrace overlooking the sea all around, to suggest new directions and matchings for the creation of new pieces. Accordingly, every single item of clothing, as well as every yarn flowing on the loom, is inextricably weaved with this enchanting land, that has been inspiring me for decades. It is nature where I collect all the raw materials needed to create my garments and accessories such as bags, hats, and sandals. The vegetal variety on the island allows me to give life to shawls, knitwear, trousers, and dresses in dyes as rich as the peel of a pomegranate or as pale as the flower of mallow, without any chemicals threatening our environment and our health. |
Not only clothes
Moreover, if the clients wish so, I can design and handcraft rugs, bedspreads, wall panels with slings, tapestries, cushions, runners, table matching sets and much more to embellish your homes. Lastly, I am keen on trying out different techniques of dyeing such as the shibori, the stitch resist dyeing technique, and the ikat, all of which, along with the botanical print (also known as eco-print) I have been mastering of late. |
-COMING SOON-
You can also find Penelope online and visit my e-shop on Etsy, where you will be able to purchase the one of a kind pieces I create, most conveniently from home. Otherwise, you can contact me via mail, I will be happy to customise a specific garment for you with the colours and materials that most represent you.
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