About the Fairs

The fairs you enjoy today are run by me, Bailey Curtis – felt maker & dyer, self professed colour guru and felt artist.

I completed my Bradford Certificate of Weaving in 1974 enjoying colour lectures led by famed Sidney Harry and eventually started my own business selling my own range of textile dyes in 1985.

I continued my textile studies at Cheltenham Art College as a mature student.

Next I attended East Berkshire College, Windsor, to study Stitched Textiles with Jan Beaney & Jean Littlejohn.

I was made redundant from the local college where I taught textiles & art, in 2001, I had a payment from them which meant I had enough money to publish my first book on dyeing, which I launched at the Knit & Stitch Show that October. Success went to my head, I wrote 3 other books, self-published, all on textiles & techniques used by well known textile artists.

I soon developed my own signature style, initially doing wearables & felt hangings. One was shown at the Eden Project, Cornwall. I started making the multi coloured hanging poems in 2017 – word-bytes from poets like Dylan Thomas, Robert Frost, Edward Thomas, even Mae West... amongst a portfolio of dramatic feltwork.

I have known some of the Textile Fair’s contributors for many years – John Gillow and I first met over 40 years at Ashleworth Garden Festival – held in a smelly tythe barn there. I ran felt making workshops at the Knit & Stitch show at Alexandra Palace & The Festival of Quilts once that started in 2003, which continued for several years from 1996. There I first met Martin Conlan from Slow Loris & Art Van Go, now retired, who also became main contributors to the fair.

In 2010 Olivia Dell, a friend, asked me to help set up a new Textile Fair, and the Hellens Manor Textile fair was born. Now in its 10th year you can enjoy world class textiles from the experts, and even own them!

The Bisley World Textiles Weekend event is now in its 8th year, and has a continuous variety of textile specialist enticing many fabric fiends, collectors and dealers each year.

Please take a look at our stall holders’ social media to learn more about their areas of expertise, and we all look forward to seeing you at our events this year!