My work has been around the development of tweed, an historically important cloth from Shetland, and the Master of Research degree provided the ways and means to research tweed’s history and heritage, and to find ways to secure its future. My research was undertaken through a charity that I established in Shetland in 2001, GlobalYell, and my own business, The Shetland Tweed Company, the idea being to use research to inform development and vice versa.The result was a series of colourful cloths and design ideas for the future that were specifically traceable back to Shetland and its unique heritage of tweed.

Now, armed with this knowledge, I am continuing work to support the industry in the isles. Using a combination of research, art and industrial projects the aim will be to develop tweed in Shetland in innovative ways by bringing together an international group of organisations and people to work on Shetland Tweed’s future.