Artisans of Dartmoor - Book - Page 164
the harmful effects synthetic clothes and dyes have on
the maker, wearer and environment.
“We live in an increasingly toxic world, and the
petrochemical textile industry plays a huge role in
that – it’s the second biggest polluter after agriculture,”
says Babs, as she snips fistfuls of freshly foraged
foxgloves into a saucepan of bubbling water over a
campfire in her garden. The next day, once this has
infused, she will strain it and use it to dye a new batch
of table linen.
Babs’ interest in natural dyeing grew during an
apprenticeship with traditional block printers in the
Rajasthani city of Jaipur, India. Upon returning to
the UK in 2014, she launched a clothing brand that
recycled the printers’ offcuts.
She later founded two businesses specialising in
naturally dyed fabrics: Bristol Cloth and Botanical
Inks. Eight years later, under Botanical Inks, she has
two books to her name, a bevy of high-profile clients
including Tate St Ives, a range of clothing, homeware
and dye-at-home products, and a programme of
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workshops and retreats. Meanwhile, Bristol Cloth has
become a pioneer in large-scale natural dyeing.
Having moved to Dartmoor from Bristol in 2022 in
search of a more rural lifestyle, Babs was immediately
bewitched by the area. “I feel an incredible ancestral
connection that I’ve never experienced before,” she
says. “With its granite tors, stone circles, deserted
villages, and expansive wilderness, it feels like a fitting
place to practise an old craft.”
Babs settled in the small village of Widecombe
in the Moor, where she is now long-term artistin-residence at Southcombe Barn, an arts-focused
self-catering retreat and gallery space. Her home
is a converted granite barn with large, dual-aspect
windows that overlook sloping gardens, which, in
summer, blaze with postbox-red poppies and pink
geraniums. In the middle distance, the crenellated
spires of Widecombe church rise from canopies of
towering oaks, while towards the horizon, the plains
of the high moor unfold in shades of caramel, chestnut
and honey. “When I’m in nature, I feel calm, open and
The Natural Dyer • Babs Behan
