I was first introduced to the craft of hand hooking whilst studying for my BA Interior Textiles and Floor Covering at Wolverhampton. The history of the craft intrigued me in that it was once seen as necessity and is now seen as a way of producing luxury items. Initially I tried making rugs in the old fashioned way using jumble fabrics, mixing and matching colours and materials. Then I started to push the boundaries to see what could be achieved using other materials such as pan scourers or metallic foil. I stumbled across lots of colourful but humble carrier bags and the texture that was created reminded me of a cross between feathers and tissue papers and the colours were so vibrant. I have continued to recycle plastic bags from a waste material into something beautiful and ornate. I love the idea of bringing the traditional technique up to date by using contemporary materials. The plastic material seems to lose its environmentally unsound image when it is applied to hand hooking.

Reclaimed Recycling in Contemporary British Craft and Design, The British Council 1999