Research Project: The Knitter's Tale: a contemporary interpretation of traditional machine lace patterns, skills and stories

"I did an MA in 2006 in Textile Design and Innovation at NTU and specialised in historical patterns and how they can be symbolic and meaningful. During my course I built up a really good working relationship with my supervisor who informed me of a possible research project that I would find challenging and interesting.

"My project is funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council in collaboration with the Ruddington Framework Knitters Museum. During my three year PhD I'll be looking at existing knowledge on framework knitting and exploring how this can be used within contemporary design innovation for knitted textiles.

"I think doing an MA gave me the foundation that was needed to take on research like this. I find I have been pushed in new ways and have developed in new areas. I've started to think about things with a fresh perspective.

"NTU is fantastic, the support and encouragement I have received has enabled me to carry out this research to a much higher level. There is a really good working environment with a diverse selection of researchers from different countries and ages."