CARMARTHEN School of Art graduates who focus on the holistic health benefits of plant dyed yarn and making products from recycling textile waste, were overwhelmed by the interest in their work at last month’s 20th anniversary Wonderwool Wales show.

Joy Franklin from Llanelli and Emma Allin-Thomas from Pontardawe shared a stand at the record-breaking Wonderwool Wales 2026, which attracted 6,600 visitors to the Royal Welsh Showground, Llanelwedd.

Emma won the £1,000 Wonderwool Wales bursary prize and both she and Joy were given a free stand at this year’s show.

Such was the interest generated by their products that the Carmarthen School of Art graduates are considering returning to next year’s event and sharing the cost of exhibiting.

Joy has always been passionate about using recycled and repurposed materials in her textiles, especially woollen yarns that are dead stock, discarded or destined for landfill.

She is doing a Masters in Textiles - Contemporary Dialogues at Swansea School of Art, UWTSD, focussing on Activist work that raises awareness of the environmental impact of excessive textile waste.

She is encouraging people to re-discover value in textiles and step back from accepting disposable culture as a norm.

Joy works as a knit technician for Corgi, hosiery and knitwear manufacturer in Ammanford, who also value environmental care and sustainability, enabling her to practically explore the repurposing of textile waste within an industrial context.

“The products I made for Wonderwool Wales were all made from textile waste saved from ending up in landfill,” she said.

Emma is a natural botanical dyer, weaver and eco-printer who makes Welsh yarn products that have holistic health benefits.

Her degree was based on natural healing fabrics and she researched Ayurvastra, a sustainable textile from India's ancient Ayurveda system where natural fabrics, like wool, cotton and silk, are dyed with plants and herbs, spices instead of chemicals.

Emma says the result is healing cloth that is claimed to support ailments and well-being, address skin issues and balance the body's energies as it’s absorbed through the skin. It's eco-friendly, uses traditional techniques and offers therapeutic benefits, promoting holistic health.

Workshops run by Emma have proved very popular and she said: “The comments I have received have been so positive and it’s definitely the way forward. People are so interested to discover the medicinal properties of plants and the wonderful colours that they make.

“Everything that I exhibited was made from Welsh Cambrian Wool. We both had several sheep farmers come to the stand to thank us for using Welsh wool.”

Emma returned to education after her three, grown up children left home. She dyes Welsh yarn and weaves products including cushions, blankets, wall hangings and eco prints, also making eye masks infused with Lavender and Chamomile.

“My degree has opened up a whole new world, as so many people don’t know anything about ayurvastra, which has been proven over 5,000 years. Natural, holistic therapies are now in vogue.”

Joy and Emma both loved their first experience of exhibiting at Wonderwool Wales, the premier wool and natural fibre festival in the UK.

Chrissie Menzies, Wonderwool Wales director, said: “I am delighted that both Emma and Joy had so much interest in their work and to hear that they are seriously considering sharing a stand at next year’s show – they would be the first bursary winners to do that.”

Wonderwool Wales’ annual bursary is awarded to graduates from the BA Textiles course at Carmarthen School of Art to support their future careers using the skills they have learnt.