The people
Lorraine Traer-Clark, Managing Director, Textile Holiday Tours
I studied textiles as a mature student at art college and university. I organise voluntary arts and crafts groups and advise on arts related steering committees. I am an active member of The Embroiderers' Guild and a founding member and Chair of Eastern Region Textile Forum. I have worked with the Warner Textile Archive in Essex, both documenting archive material and organising workshops using the Archive as a starting point for inspiration. I have experience in mounting exhibitions and working with museums and schools to deliver learning packages for textiles.
Kate Dibble
Kate has been a registered 'Blue Badge' tourist guide for Manchester and the North West for 25 years, leading walking and coach tours in Manchester, Cheshire, Lancashire, Merseyside, the Peak District and the Lake District. Her specialist themes include Manchester Town Hall, Industrial Heritage, Regeneration, and the authoress Elizabeth Gaskell.
Kate has an interest in restoration and textiles, and attends furniture restoration and upholstery classes. Living in an old house she easily finds projects to work on, and is currently re-upholstering a chesterfield sofa. She enjoys linking her personal interests with her guiding work, and finds much inspiration in the city of Manchester and the beautiful surrounding countryside.
Stacey Harvey-Brown
Stacey Harvey-Brown is an accomplished weaver and designer. Initially largely self-taught, Stacey has studied weaving in Italy, the US and Canada and now works, exhibits and gives lectures around the globe, including both North and Central America, and Oman. She also attracts international students for her residential weaving courses at her studio in the Staffordshire Moorlands and has a close working relationship with Macclesfield Silk Museum as one of the few designers and weavers of the old card-driven jacquard looms.
Jacqui Hyman
Jacqui obtained a Textile Design degree from Leeds University and postgraduate Textile Conservation training through the North of England Museums Service. She is now an Accredited Textile Conservator/Restorer.
In 1982 she began her freelance Textile Restoration Studio, in Cheshire, offering a Textile Conservation Service to private clients, churches, cathedrals, stately homes and auction houses. Her clients, as a result, cover a wide range. Each textile item is different and requires its own particular specialist treatment. The Studio always has a variety of items passing through its doors, ranging from family samplers and christening gowns through to full size hanging tapestries, altar frontals, upholstered furniture, flags and banners. Never to be daunted, Jacqui continues to research the items she conserves and recent conservation work involving the unique Egyptian Textile Collection at Bolton Museum and Leeds University has led her to continue her textile studies towards an MA in Egyptian Textile Research. She is a NADFAS lecturer and is currently President of her local NADFAS society.
Jacqui is married to Michael and has two sons.
Dr Brenda King
Brenda King is an experienced university lecturer, researcher, curator, author of many articles and two publications which feature Thomas and Elizabeth Wardle. Her book 'Silk and Empire', published by Manchester University Press, is now available in paperback, her latest book 'Dye, Print, Stitch: Textiles by Thomas and Elizabeth Wardle' is available through Macclesfield Museum Trust. Brenda is currently the Chair of the Textile Society.
Lizzi Walton
The Stroud International Textile Festival was started in 2006 by the present Director, Lizzi Walton. With 20 years' experience working in the arts Lizzi is a passionate advocate of excellence and innovation and over the four years of building the festival and the year-round programme, she has built an enviable reputation for a high quality and inspiring festival.
Stroud International Textiles aims to raise awareness, increase knowledge and the enjoyment of contemporary and traditional textiles, and broaden out to include related art forms. It aims to challenge the conventional approach to textiles.