Textiles degree student wins sustainable start-up grant for her work in creating foraged natural dyes and yarns

Mira Smith is a degree student at the college’s Carmarthen School of Art who has a passion for sustainability.

Her inspiring work includes foraging for items such as rosebay willow herb flowers to produce outstanding natural fabric dye. 

She is also a registered nurse with over 20 years of experience working in high pressured intensive care units and although she can’t see herself retiring any time soon, Mira has had to rethink her future working life and says that textiles will play a part in that plan.

Mira is going to use the Carmarthenshire County Council grant to buy a loom to help develop her work and has fond memories of using one in her childhood with her grandmother.

Her journey towards textiles started with Carmarthen School of Art when she studied a ceramics evening course but when it finished and wasn’t on offer the following term, she opted for a machine knitting evening course. “The course and teaching were excellent,” said Mira. “I found myself enjoying it so much that I enrolled on the textiles degree programme.”

At college, Mira is currently exploring Photoshop to design scarves, exploring and balancing traditional and digital techniques steered by research, but next term she will be using her naturally dyed yarns in machine knitting and weaving techniques. 

With a goal of achieving net zero for sustainability, Mira has attended specialist natural dyeing training with textile designer Shan Lester, and inspired by the possibilities, she’s been dyeing yarns for her textile projects and is enjoying the experimentation. 

Carmarthen School of Art textiles student Mira Smith said: “Studying textiles has been an incredible journey for me and I love the hands-on creativity and sustainability aspects if offers. 

“Carmarthen School of Art places great emphasis on sustainability and recycling, which deeply resonates with me and I’ve completed three sustainability courses this summer using eco-friendly techniques.

“The teaching and support at Carmarthen School of Art have been fantastic, both in ceramics and textiles. The staff are incredibly focused, passionate and responsive, which makes the learning experience even more rewarding.”

Mira isn’t just nurturing the ethos of using nature’s own materials, she also works as an educational teaching specialist for a medical company where she supports others to grow and succeed.

She is also a part of Small99’s People, Planet, Pint, which is a global and local community of people with sustainability at its heart. She was recently inspired by talk on a seagrass project delivered by a seagrass nursery and is keen to ‘get the word out’ using art.

Photos: Mira foraging for rosebay willow herb, a dye bath in progress using rosebay willow herb flowers, naturally dyed yarns ready for project work.