Pamela Watson
Pamela is a self-taught crafter based near Tarbert on the shores of Loch Fyne. While she works across many media, wool is Pamela's passion, and she can usually be found spinning, weaving, dyeing, embroidering and mending using this versatile material.
When Pamela moved to Argyll in 2022, this passion for textile art reached new heights, as she joined the local spinning guild and discovered new techniques as well as more about the history and heritage of Scottish wool.
Pamela is inspired by Scottish heritage and identity, and these notions play a central role in her work, from using locally produced yarns and fleeces from small Scottish farms and mills, to creations that highlight different aspects of Scotland's rich textiles tradition.
Pamela's Pieces for Forgotten Fleece Tales
Pamela will be creating a wall-hanging tapestry representing Tarbert Harbour. She will use a combination of different spinning, weaving and knitting techniques to create a textured scene that highlights Tarbert's rich fishing heritage. From fishermen in ganseys to Tarbert's famous ring nets, the piece will be full of small day-to-day details of life in a busy Scottish fishing village, but with hints of its heritage present in the castle on the hill, and the ship of Magnus Olafsson.
The piece will use Shetland, Hebridean, Suffolk and Cheviot fleece sourced exclusively from Kintyre-based farms, which have previously been sat unused in sheds. These are hand-spun and dyed, and accented with waste fabric scraps from Ardalanish Mill on Mull. The piece will use the natural variations in the colours of the fleeces to their full potential, while adding splashes of colour using handmade natural dyes.
