Charlotte A Lawson Johnston

Following a Bachelor of Science degree gained at Durham University here in England, I then studied for one year at the New York School of interior Design on the Interior Design Cerficate Program. I have worked in the Interiors industry since then, in-between raising two children.

In 2014 I apprenticed at a texile printing factory just outside London. I wanted to understand how textiles were printed and see the process first hand. Once I had gained an understanding of the processes involved in printing, I then embarked on a course at Central Saint Martins (University of the Arts London) in Drawing and Paiting for Textile Design. All of these experiences gave me a sound grounding to go on and create, print and launch a collection of 100% linens for the home market under the name CLJ Home. These linens were printed in the factory where I had apprenticed, on a rotary machine using chemical dyes and pigments.

When Covid hit, as a mother of two girls stuck at home, I happened upon natural dyeing. It became a vital creative outlet during a difficult period where our lives were abruptly put on hold. Fast forward 3 years and I had successfully set up a natural dye house here in Oxfordshire, England called the Cloth Collective. To scale the operation, I rented a studio space and leased two 100 litre dye vats and a steamer. Using dyes created from biowaste and botanical waste, Cloth Collective serviced both the fashion and interiors industry; selling non-toxic fabric by the metre for the home and offering a natural garment dyeing service to fashion brands. Clients included Natural Paint Company Edward Bulmer Paint & shoe brands Le Monde Beryl and Vivo Barefoot.

Last summer my husband took a job based in SeaZle, USA. I made the very difficult decision to close down the dye house so that I could support him – the primary bread winner - with the commute back and forth to England.

I find myself aged 43 with a significant amount of experience in the interiors and textile space but lacking a strong technical foundation and depth of knowledge regarding textiles which I have long longed for. In terms of career goal’s I would like to morph my business - The Cloth Collective - into a textile consultancy with a focus on sustainability.

Ultimately, I would like to make a positive impact on the British textile industry by educating, imparting knowledge and current research to the likes of textile houses, homeware and fashion brands, NGO’S and governments on how it is possible to mitigate the negative impacts of the textile industry on our environment as well as socio-economically. I believe that your Masters program at NCSU would give me the depth of knowledge and sound analytical skills required in this field of work.

In terms of key learning objectives, I would like to delve into the topics of sustainability and circularity. With greenhouse gases, high water usage and microplastics being the three main environmental challenges in this sector, I would like to gain a deep technical understanding of the current available textile manufacturing processes (particularly wet processing) and learn more about innovation in this area pertaining to sustainability. I am also interested in exploring key intervention points in the whole Textile Value Chain relating to Sustainability.

Your program flexibility which allows students to tailor the Masters in Textiles to align with their specific interests is hugely appealing. Having physically worked with natural dyes and with a background in Interior Design, I also have a particular research interest in the toxicity of textiles in the home and the potential impact they can have upon human health.

• Tennis, Cooking, Textile Reading, Hiking, Freestyle Embroidery, Volunteering