#1 / Move over Queen of stitch: Introducing… the Queen of Rust

The world of garment decoration is vast and includes many interesting and passionate artists, crafts people and industry specialists, some of who we have had the privilege of meeting and working with.

Our new ‘Introducing…’ blog section aims to highlight some of the amazing talent that makes our industry so wide ranging. From professional crafters to artists and avid hobbyists, we hope to shine a light on some of the best.

This month we have the delight of presenting the amazing talent and personality, Bex Raven. More commonly known in the industry as ‘The Queen of Rust’, Bex has had an amazingly creative career and has been sewing from a very early age. With a BTEC in Fashion and Textiles and a Masters in Fine Art, this incredibly talented mother of four, fashion designer and art tutor never ceases to amaze with her fabulous and unique creations.

Here’s what she had to say to us… 

Sum yourself up in 10 words
Blue hair, pink tea, circles, wabi sabi, rockpools and rust! 

The Queen of Rust – by Sarah Schmidlin Photography

Tell us a bit about your background, why you took the path you took and how it led you to now?
Ever since I was young I have designed and made clothing and costumes. It started with dolls clothes helped by my grandmother, then I would help my mother in the drama department. I loved being involved with productions in school and making the costumes was as important as being on the stage. My fascination with literature, music and film began at an early age too, with my great grandmother warning my parents that we were being over stimulated as I would never stop reading. I never missed an opportunity to dress up and have always had a unique personal style. At college I studied fashion and textiles which gave me the grounding for my current practice alongside my previous studies in science and design technology. This I then continued at University when I diversified taking Fine Art and Art History which allowed me the scope of using other media such as photography, film and installation alongside my textile practice. 

What or who is your biggest inspiration?
My inspiration comes from the world around me. I live in North Wales and my studio looks out over fields. I spend a lot of my time outdoors and combine the natural objects from that world into my work. A concern for the environment also feeds into my work so a lot of my processes are influenced by sustainability, natural materials and non-wasteful methods.

Rockpool

All about now and the Queen of Rust
People call me the Queen of Rust because of my addiction to all things rusty – in fact one of my methods is to dye fabrics with rusted metal. It always amazes people how many different colours you can achieve and what a beautiful natural palette you get. Another of my key focuses is reviving traditional skills; the ones people have forgotten as they rely on technology or they simply revert to the modern throwaway culture. Darning, mending, weaving, felting, dyeing, patching, recycling – these are all skills we used to use every day but, as the generations have passed, we have not continued to teach them to our children.

Why embroidery?
I can make threads and fabric do things that you cannot do with paint and pencil. They have a texture and form that is not available in any other way. It also allows me to work on surfaces that are not flat and move away from the Fine Art aspect and into a more functional form. I create in both ways and put as much time and care into a wearable piece as I do a piece that will hang on a wall.

They have a texture and form that is not available in any other way.

What’s good about Marathon Threads?
Marathon threads are designed to be able to work on industrial machines, so they have the strength necessary to keep up with the speed that I work. When I embroider on a machine I work fast and for extended periods of time, so I need a thread that can take the strain and stress that I place on it. The polyester range work really well for this and has a good range of colours especially in the greens which is important for my natural palette.

What could Marathon provide that they don’t already offer?
I would love to see a range of sparkly threads added to the current metallics as everybody needs a little sparkle in their life.

What’s been your most unusual project?
Recently I had to construct a piece of outer wear for an outdoor show that would keep me warm and dry for a week whilst playing the part of a post-apocalyptic huntress. I constructed it from a parachute bag, leather, hessian, my rust dyed fabric, sheepskin and snakeskin. It took four days as it was so capacious, and it was trimmed with a variety of objects from army surplus rope and fake fingers to bones we had found on mountain walks. It was finished off with red leather dye to look like blood stains and then a special paint mix to look like mud. The overall effect was genuinely gruesome but very warm and dry!

Which fictional or non-fictional character would you love to design for?
I have always been fascinated by the versatility and detail of Lady Gaga’s outfits. She swings from classic style to abstract design in a single show. She also knows how to put on a fantastic stage show with her outfit being a focal point each time. To be able to design and make an outfit for her would be an honour and a challenge.

We’d like to thank Bex for taking the time to talk to us and for her amazing answers. To find out more and see some of her incredible work, go to her website or visit her Facebook and Twitter pages.

If you would like to feature in a future ‘Introducing…‘  slot, we’d love to hear from you. Get in touch here or send us a message via our Facebook page.