living well with nature
Susannah lives off-grid on a canal boat on the Grand Union canal just outside London with eight quails. She uses plants along the towpath for natural dyes.
Workshops and Talks
I offer workshops and talks for adults and children about organic and permaculture gardening and traditional crafts.
As a seasoned educator and experienced speaker I teach for Permablitz London (where I am a Co-founder/Director) and feature regularly at the London Permaculture Festival, Cecil Sharp House, Capital Growth, Social Farms & Gardens and RHS Urban Show. I’m well-known and connected to London’s community garden scene and I’ve even met King Charles and Queen Consort Camilla when they opened a garden I co-designed in 2022.
I live sustainably on a narrowboat on the Grand Union Canal with my quails and a small garden made of planters created with help through permablitzing.
If you’d like to try something completely different for your hen party, afternoon tea or children’s party (suitable for all ages from 5yrs up) book me to bring a mobile natural dye or felting workshop or design your own session. Available in North West London, Berkhamsted & Hemel Hempstead.
If you want to keep up to date with my latest workshops and courses join my mailing list
LONDON COURSES
Saturday 20th June
2pm-4.30pm
Kentish Town City Farm,
Design and print your own layout of flowers and leaves on a cotton canvas to take away with you. This afternoon session will teach you about how to reproduce the shapes and colours of different plants on cotton. The session is suitable for all ages from 8yrs upwards.
This is a participatory, hands-on course where you’ll have a chance to learn by doing in a collaborative, fun atmosphere.
What you will need: bring an apron
What you will take away: Ecoprinted piece of 100% cotton
No experience necessary.
Feedback from previous courses:
“Very good – super relaxed and friendly while being full of info” – Maz
“Great hands-on learning” – Betty
“Relaxed, informative. Very knowledgeable” – Yvonne
“ Very knowledgeable, always willing to answer questions and very generous with time and materials.” – Sophie
Thursday evenings
6.30pm-8.30pm
June 25th, July 2nd, 9th, 16th, 23rd 2026
Kentish Town City Farm, NW5 4BB
(closest transport: Gospel Oak (overground), Kentish Town (Northern line and Thameslink)
There is a mystery around producing a blue from plants and this course delves into that mystery teaching different methods of producing dye baths. You’ll learn about plants that contain the indigotin molecule, which of those we can grow in Britain and how to grow them.
You’ll have the chance to make up dye vats using fructose, henna and iron, each week dyeing a piece of cotton and a hydrosulphite vat to dye a piece of silk.
Session 1: an introduction to blue dye plants – those that contain the indigotin dye molecule. Learning which of those we can grow in Britain and how to grow them. Learn about the chemistry of the dye and how to release the blue dye so it will attach to fibre.
Session 2: you’ll learn all about how to make a fructose fermented dye bath, preparing the bath and then using it to dye a piece of cotton with indigo.
Session 3: you’ll learn how to make a henna fermented dye bath, preparing the bath and then using it to dye a piece of cotton with woad.
Session 4: you’ll learn how to prepare a hydrosulphite bath. You’ll use it to dye a piece of silk with indigo.
Session 5: in the final week you’ll learn how to create an iron dye bath, preparing the bath and then using it to dye a piece of cotton with woad.This is a participatory, hands-on course where you’ll have a chance to learn by doing in a collaborative, fun atmosphere.
What you will need:rubber gloves and an apron
What you will take away: tie-dyed pieces of cotton and silk along with handouts
No experience necessary
BERKHAMSTED COURSES
ABERGAVENNY COURSES
Saturday 27th June
10am-4.30pm
Llanwenarth Hall, Abergavenny, NP7 7EN
Situated in a beautiful setting in the Usk valley just outside Abergavenny. Close to St Peter’s Church with a near-circular churchyard which indicates that there has been a place of worship on the site since Celtic times.
Free parking available on site
The colours for our fabrics came mainly from plants until synthetic dyes were developed in the late 19th century. This introductory course offers the chance to learn how to use plants to create colours to dye cotton, silk and wool.
What you will learn:
Introducing the history of dyeing fibre, preparing your fibres and mordanting
Dyeing with traditional plant materials to create a range of different colours
Dye plants you can forage for
Using flowers and leaves for ecoprinting
This is a participatory, hands-on course where you’ll have a chance to learn by doing in a collaborative, fun atmosphere.
What you will need: rubber gloves and an apron
What you will take away: Dyed silk scarf, cotton and wool
No experience necessary.
Feedback from previous courses:
“Very good – super relaxed and friendly while being full of info” – Maz
“Great hands-on learning” – Betty
“Relaxed, informative. Very knowledgeable” – Yvonne
“ Very knowledgeable, always willing to answer questions and very generous with time and materials.” – Sophie
Previous workshops and courses
Natural dye course June-July 2025
We started dyeing with the traditional red dye (madder) and yellow dye (weld) before experimenting with foraged dyes. The most exciting result was from hawthorn, which gave a lovely red.
Feedback
“Absolutely exalted, it was more than I hoped for, and all I wished for!”
“Thank you – really enjoyed it!”
Susannah’s teaching style was
“Excellent”
“Really accessible – clear & open to questions”
Wool skills course May-June 2025
We spun Jacobs sheep wool, plyed it and then dyed it. The course finished with a session learning how to felt.
Feedback
“Very informative and clear instructions”
Susannah’s teaching style was
”Excellent, natural, going with the flow – allowing connected conversations, basic and easy to follow.”
This silk scarf has been dyed with madder, a traditional plant dye that uses roots from the madder plant (Rubia tinctorum). It is a beautiful red colour
The size of the scarf is 114cm x 28cm.
This silk scarf has been dyed with woad, a traditional plant dye that uses the leaves of the Woad plant (Isatis tinctoria).
The size of the scarf is 114cm x 28cm.
This silk scarf has been dip-dyed with madder and buddleja. Madder is the traditional red dye and buddleja’s purple flowers give a surprising yellow.
The size of the scarf is 114cm x 28cm.
