What’s Happening in the Textile World Right Now?

Every so often I like to look beyond the studio and see what is happening in the wider world of textiles, sewing and creative craft.

At the moment there seems to be a real shift taking place. Sewing is attracting new audiences, textile art is becoming increasingly visible, sustainability is still very much part of the conversation, and traditional skills are sitting comfortably alongside new technology.

For those of us who already love fabric, thread and stitch, it makes interesting reading.

Sewing really is having a revival

We hear regularly that sewing and craft are enjoying a resurgence, but there are some fairly convincing signs that this is more than simply a passing trend.

Liberty in London has recently more than doubled the size of its fabric department to more than 4,600 square feet. Fabric sales reportedly rose by 11% last year, and the expanded department now includes more than 2,500 fabrics as well as workshops and additional specialist staff.

One particularly interesting part of this revival is the number of younger people discovering sewing.

Social media, The Great British Sewing Bee, second-hand clothing and a desire to own something more individual than mass-produced fashion are all playing their part.

Perhaps handmade is also beginning to mean something slightly different.

It isn't necessarily about making something because it is cheaper.

It is about making something because nobody else has exactly the same thing.

The Bayeux Tapestry is putting embroidery firmly in the spotlight

One textile story is particularly difficult to miss at the moment.

The Bayeux Tapestry has arrived at the British Museum from France, where it will go on public display from 10 September 2026 until July 2027. Demand has been extraordinary, with tickets already extremely difficult to obtain.

And, of course, despite the name, the Bayeux Tapestry isn't actually a tapestry.

It is embroidery.

Nearly 1,000 years later, people are still travelling to see a story told in stitch.

I think that's quite extraordinary.

We can sometimes think of embroidery simply as decoration, but stitch has recorded people, places, battles, beliefs and everyday life for centuries.

Modern textile artists are continuing exactly that tradition — although thankfully most of us aren't recording a Norman invasion!

Textile art is increasingly being treated as art

The distinction between art and craft also seems to be becoming much less rigid.

Fabric, embroidery, weaving, print, found materials and stitch are increasingly appearing within contemporary art exhibitions rather than being placed into a separate little box labelled "craft".

For textile artists, I think that's important.

A textile doesn't have to be useful.

Embroidery doesn't have to decorate a garment.

A stitched piece can exist simply because somebody has something they want to explore or say through cloth and thread.

That is one of the things I love about textile art.

Mixing techniques rather than following rules

There is another noticeable theme running through contemporary textile work: artists are increasingly mixing processes.

Weaving with embroidery.

Fabric with paper.

Printing with stitch.

Old cloth alongside new materials.

Machine stitch alongside hand stitch.

And sometimes materials that wouldn't traditionally be considered textile materials at all.

This is probably the area that feels most familiar to me.

At Eau Brink Studio, we're constantly experimenting with what happens when one technique meets another.

Sometimes it works beautifully.

Sometimes it doesn't.

But quite often the interesting part is discovering something you weren't actually looking for.

That is where experimentation becomes so important.

And closer to home — there is textile inspiration in Norfolk too

We certainly don't need to travel to London to see interesting textile work.

At Blickling Estate near Aylsham, Journeys – Global Textiles from the Karun Thakar Collection is currently on display and continues until 1 November 2026.

The exhibition brings together textiles from different cultures and periods, including Japanese kimonos, Punjabi baghs, French toiles, Italian embroidery, Turkoman coats and Ghanaian Kente cloth.

It explores much more than how the pieces were made, looking at the movement of textiles around the world through trade, migration, craftsmanship and cultural exchange.

This is exactly the sort of exhibition I enjoy because I don't necessarily look at a textile and think:

"I want to make that."

I'm far more likely to notice a colour combination, an unusual stitch, a border, a shape or the way two materials have been placed together.

And then that tiny detail starts another idea.

Sometimes going to an exhibition isn't about copying what you see.

It is simply about coming home wanting to make something.

Norfolk textile creativity is travelling too

Norfolk isn't only providing exhibitions either — some of our own textile creatives are taking their skills further afield.

Cat Nash, who many of you will already know from her workshops here at Eau Brink Studio, is teaching at The Creative Craft Show and The Stitching Show at Farnborough International from 10–12 September.

Cat will be teaching her Beautiful Free Machine Art Collar workshop, using free-motion embroidery and reclaimed materials to create an individual wearable piece.

Cat's work is very much about sustainable fashion, reclaimed textiles and creating clothes that are individual rather than disposable — ideas that fit extremely well with some of the bigger conversations currently taking place within the textile industry.

And I must admit, it is rather nice to see Norfolk textile talent represented at one of the country's major creative shows.

Second Hand September asks some uncomfortable questions

September is also Second Hand September, and Oxfam's latest research contains a fairly astonishing statistic.

According to its State of Style report, around 32% of the clothing in British wardrobes hasn't been worn during the past year.

Oxfam estimates that the water used to produce Britain's unworn clothing would be enough to provide one million people with a lifetime's supply.

That brings us straight back to something we've discussed before here at Eau Brink Studio.

Our relationship with fabric.

Perhaps we don't always need another new garment.

Sometimes we could alter what we have.

Repair it.

Add embroidery.

Change the shape.

Combine two garments.

Cover a stain.

Replace a worn section.

Or cut something apart and turn it into something completely different.

Being able to sew gives us choices.

And I think that is one of the most valuable things about keeping these skills alive.

What about AI and technology?

Technology is inevitably finding its way into textiles too.

Computerised embroidery machines, digital textile printing and design software have already changed how many artists and makers work, and artificial intelligence is now prompting another round of discussion about creativity, originality and where ideas come from.

I don't think technology itself is necessarily the problem.

A sewing machine was once new technology.

So was the embroidery machine.

So was digital printing.

For me, the important thing is retaining the maker's voice.

Technology can help us experiment, design or achieve something that would otherwise be difficult — but choosing the materials, changing an idea, deciding something isn't working and ultimately making the piece our own is still where the creativity happens.

Perhaps this is the most interesting part

When you put all these stories together, I think there is actually something rather encouraging happening in textiles.

Traditional skills aren't disappearing.

They are evolving.

People are sewing clothes again.

Old textiles are inspiring new work.

Embroidery is filling one of Britain's major museums.

Textile artists are mixing techniques and materials.

Repair and reuse are becoming creative choices.

And contemporary technology is giving us even more tools with which to experiment.

Perhaps the future of textiles isn't about choosing between traditional and contemporary at all.

Perhaps it is about taking everything we've learnt, adding our own ideas and asking:

What could I do with this?

That sounds very much like my kind of textile art.

What are you noticing?

Are you sewing more?

Repairing clothes rather than replacing them?

Experimenting with materials you haven't used before?

Or have you visited a textile exhibition recently that sent you home full of ideas?

I'd love to hear about it.