Nikki Tompsett is an artist and weaver whose work is a celebration of the ancient traditions of hand spinning and weaving techniques.
She founded Dawson Road Studio in 2022, to encompass her own textiles art as well as the complementary works of her mother and daughter. Since then Nikki has developed her freestyle weaving, mostly using a simple rigid-heddle loom.
Her love of colour manifests in carefully hand-spun yarn, which is made up in individual colourways for each project. Her scarves and shawls are made from ethically produced and super soft merino, and also often hand dyed in tiny batches to complete the singularity of each item, giving them the quality of a wearable painting.
Nikki works from her home in a 1930’s terrace house in Folkestone, situated between the English channel and the North Downs. This proximity to the sea and the hills feeds into her work. The changing seasons are reflected in the colours of her work.
Nikki loves taking her loom out and working en-plein-air, allowing her surroundings to directly influence her work.
Her weaving is more than just a craft; it is a mindful act of rebellion. She describes her work as “sandwiched between school runs, dog walks and school holidays,” making her slow-paced creation a form of protest against the rush of daily life, a soothing balm for the nervous system. This therapeutic aspect of weaving is central to her practice, enjoying the healing process as well as the tactile process of making.
Education
Foundation Course at Hastings College of Art and Design 1994
Fine Art Degree at Kingston University 1997 – First
Master of Fine Art from Reading University 1999 – Distinction
Workshops
Nikki is happy to run small group workshops where space and time allows. She is particularly interested in the mindful and thereputic qualities of weaving, using her own stash of very tactile and beautiful yarns to share with participants.
Process – Sourcing Fibre
Weaving is ultimately a humble tradition of unnamed makers honing their skills to produce useful items. With this in mind, processes and suppliers are there for everyone to use. These are some quality suppliers loved by Dawson Road Studio.
Local wool
It is wonderful to build relationships with local farmers to produce ‘low mileage’ items.
Processing raw fleece is time consuming; picking out the wool, washing, drying and carding ready for spinning. It’s best to tackle it on warm sunny days.
Nikki is working towards creating a ‘community’ yarn from local and often unwanted fleece. Contact us if you would be interested in helping, whether you are a farmer, spinner or community group.
Dawson Road Studio 