On 11th December 2015, Bulmer and Lumb Group’s Technical Director Paul Hamilton was pleased to welcome new up and coming, award winning designer Geri Copsey & show her around the production facility at our site in Bradford.
The inspiration and driving force of the Fibre and Hide design studio; where she combines her flair for design with her love of textiles and weaving. Geri is the creator of an exciting and inspirational range of designer handbags, which combine soft Italian leather with locally sourced Yorkshire yarn.
Geri approached Bulmer and Lumb with a request to tour a local dyeing facility to enable her to better understand the dyeing process, its capabilities, limitations and its importance to the local textile industry.
Geri looking at some of the recently dyed fibres in the dye house.
Bulmer and Lumb Group have been dyeing at its current site since the 1950s. The company are proud of its history and heritage and also of its commitment to the advancement of the dyeing process; with recent considerable investment in both package and top dyeing machines.
Technical Director Paul Hamilton gave the following statement:
“We get many requests of this nature but not many from designers with such a commitment to the UK Textile industry and in particular the industry based around Yorkshire, as one of the biggest and most flexible dyeing facilities in the region I considered it important to encourage and support such a talented young designer.
Whilst Bulmer and Lumb Group are major exporters, we are also proud to support the local domestic industry. Geri has a studio located within 5 miles of our Bradford dyeing facility, and we would be pleased if she could use yarns sourced using British wool and dyed at our local dyehouse. We are currently in discussion about looking at a range of colours for her future designs.”
Geri brought with her examples of her designs in which the inspiration comes from geometric forms found within architecture, both past and present. As a further reflection of the pride she takes in her local region, Geri has named ranges after local villages and landmarks such as Grassington, Ingelborough, Pen-y-Ghent and Masham.
The 'Malham' woven clutch
Detail of the beautiful handmade products.
Bulmer and Lumb Group are committed to the creation of the next generation of textile technicians through a combination of in-house and external training. We therefore feel it is important to encourage the next generation of designers too.
We have partnerships with both the Society of Dyers and Colourists and Huddersfield Textile Centre of Excellence.
Geri’s designs and a range of her products can be found at www.fibreandhide.com