Mentions in the Press & Collaborations

BBC News

"Across continents and generations, the art of weaving has connected humans for thousands of years. But it’s dying out. Ella Al-Shamahi speaks to two women from The Netherlands and Turkey about their passion for preserving the traditional craft....

...Erna Janine from The Netherlands runs Freeweaver Studio in London, driven by her love of sustainable fashion and enthusiasm to share the joy of weaving with others. Both her grandmothers inspired her love of the craft: one was a shepherd who processed her own wool and the other was one of the last women in Holland to wear traditional costume."

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Obscura Magazine

"AsLondon Fashion Weekcoincides withSustainable Fashion Weekat the end of September, I found myself drawn toFreeweaver Studio, nestled near London Bridge and the Fashion and Textile Museum. Upon entering, I was greeted by founder Erna Janine and a young man quietly weaving—his name is Toby too, and he’s an architect. “I find this process incredibly therapeutic. I plan to display this piece on the wall as a work of art.”"

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Sustainable Fashion Week

"Next in our Meet the Maker series, we chat to Erna Janine from Freeweaver Studio in London. She shares insights into the studio, how it began, and the ethos behind everything that takes place at Freeweaver Studio."

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The South Londoner

"Deptford Yard’s Freeweaver Studio puts mindful, sustainable practice at its heart: owner Erna Janine tells Eliza Frost what it’s all about"

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Wharf-Life

"Decompressing after a hard day at work used to be about sweating at the gym or partying in bars.

But, post-pandemic, people have been seeking out gentler ways of relaxing – sitting at a loom, for example."

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Collaborative Partner Organisations

Weaving & Fibre Collaborations

2017

October - Neverending Thread - exhibition and residency Bhubaneswar India  

November - Woven World Craft Central exhibition

2018

May - London Craft Week Japanese Textiles exhibition and workshop

June - Fenton House, National Trust Hampstead - Asian Highlight Exhibition

August - Tanabata Festival Japan Society LondonSeptember Festival of Natural Fibres September London  

2019

January - Ahmedabad Khadi Conference Workshop and Exhibition

February - Assam State Museum Exhibition Art as Food, Ritual and Offering (curated by Regina Carmona)

February - Kathmandu Loom Installation + Textiles

February - Sanskriti Foundation Delhi - Residency

March - Japanese Textile and Craft Festival London

April - Earth Day Textile Installation London

May - London Craft Week: Khadi Cotton

May - SIT Select International Art Festtival Stroud

July - Osaka Bengala Dye

August - Surplus to Purpose Sanne Vaassen Unit 1 Gallery London

August - Tanabata Festival Japan Society London

September - Stroudwater Textile Trust RED installation at Dunkirk Mills

September - Open House Festival London Installation The Forge

October -  Japanese Textile and Craft Festival London

November - Festival of Natural Fibres London

November - Japan Society London workshops

2020

January - Odisha residency

January - Nagaland and Meghalaya residency

March - Japanese Textile and Craft Festival

May - Red Thread exhibition Lansdown Gallery Stroud

September - Restrictions (un)woven reflections on lockdown

October - London Craft Week TOAST exhibition at Mayfair

October - The Techniques Shaping Japanese Textiles, Embassy of Japan London

November - Japanese Textile and Craft Festival London

December - Winter Show Modern Eccentrics Highbury

2021

January - Roots: untamed connections in fibre exhibition London

May - Japanese Textile and Craft Festival London

May - Red Thread, Lansdown Gallery Stroud

June - SIT Select Stroud International Textile Festival

August - Festival of Natural Fibres, weekend of workshops

September - Exhibition of Natural Fibres Lansdown Gallery Stroud

October - London Craft Week From Thread to Garment Workshop + The Mountain, Project 99 studio

October - Indian High Commission London presentation

November - Festival of Natural Fibres London

November - Exhibition of Natural Fibres Silk Mill at Frome

2022

February - In The Pink Room prep public participation project

March - Japanese Textile and Craft Festival

May - London Craft Week Hacking The Pinstripe

May - Festival of Natural Fibres Weekend of Workshops

June - In The Pink Room, SITE Festival SVA Gallery Stroud

July - The Reclaimery at Lab E20

September - Brunei Gallery SOAS India in TextilesSeptember - London Fashion Week

October - Japanese Textile and Craft Festival

October - Festival of Natural Fibres London

2023

February - Tate Modern, Tate Late exhibition, presentation and workshop for Magdalena Abukanowicz

May-September - London Craft Week Aizome:The Craft of Japanese Indigo Dyeing, Embassy of Japan London: exhibition + artist talk

August - Exhibition of Natural Fibres with Cate Victoria, Lansdown Gallery, Stroud

September - SHE_SEES IMO London

Septmber - London Fashion Week 6 Park Place Mayfair

September - Deptford X - open studio + exhibition

November - Berta’s Flax presentation and Workshop

2024

February - Indigo day with Alex Hagen

March - Sustainable Young designers program with Yodomo

April - Earth Dye Day with Zoe Burt and Allan Brown

April - Fashion Revolution Islington/ Mend In Public day

May - Trinity Laban Centre for Contemporary Dance project with TLZ Movement Clothes

May - London Craft Week Japanese Textile and Craft Festival Deptford Market Yard

May - Creativity and Wellbeing Week London Arts and Health - workshops + presentation

August - SHE_SEES at Portsmouth Historic Dockyard (year long exhibition)

September - Sustainable Fashion Week workshops

September - Open House Festival ; open studio + exhibition

September - Leek Textile Week: Exhibition of Natural Fibres

October - Michael Steiner School workshop

2025

February - Donmar Warehouse Theatrical Production prop

March - Terra Carta Sustainable Markets Initiative presentation at Hampton Court Palace

March - UN Zero Waste Day ; workshop project

​April - Fashion Revolution England, Mend in Public Day

​May - London Craft Week: Resonance Group Exhibition

May: Creativity and Wellbeing Week, London Arts and Health

July - Kilentar Weaving Presentation Kensington

July - Trinity Laban dance costume collaboration led by TLZ Movement

July - Deptford X Art Festival (open studio and exhibiton) 

August - Hemp Harvest Retreat with Contempery Hempery, al fresco weaving workshops

September - London Fashion Week at The Conduit Private Members Club, Covent Garden, Creative collaboration with Sibu Dladla and TLZ Movement Clothes

September - Open House Festival London: exhibtion and open studio

October - Nagaland Textiles: Threads of Identity, independent back strap loom exhibition at the Nehru Centre in Mayfair, supported by the Indian High Commission in London

​October - set-design / woven props for Mirage Films, Robert Eggers

​November - BBC World Service "The Conversation" interview: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w3ct709n

​​December 4-15 Seed_2064 collaboration with Eva Barkardottir

​December - continued collaboration with Into Art

2026

​January 1 - February 28 Collaborative Residency at Artotel Hoxton (workshops by Peel Studio, residency by Yahvi Duggal)

​January 14 - loom presence at Source Fashion London Olympia organised by Ruby Webster​

March - Open Studio and Makers Market

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