Soft textures can help calm the nervous system, easing anxiety and creating a sense of comfort. The main material in this project is wool, partly sourced locally, and partly from Lucky Ewe’s own flock. For this collaboration, it grounds the project in place and purpose, tying the material to the lives and environment of those involved.
Tactile Connections is more than an installation, it’s an ongoing exploration of how textiles support emotional well-being. Through continued workshops, documentation, and community engagement, the project invites broader reflection on how textiles can nurture emotional well-being in both shared spaces and daily life.
From the calming feel of wool to the rhythm of stitching, textiles offer meaningful ways to connect, create, and care.
The process of making has been just as important as the outcome. Through hands-on workshops, the Lucky Ewe community explored materials, tested textures, and created textiles together. This co-design process of shared creativity became a form of therapy. It offered moments of calm and reflection and created a safe environment for confidence-building. In making with our hands, we made space for wellbeing.
Every aspect of the installation was co-designed with the Lucky Ewe community. They contributed to ideas, research and reflection: embedding their voices and experiences into the work itself. Together, we chose materials and colours that supported each person’s sense of wellbeing, bringing individual experiences into a shared, collective design.
Textiles naturally invite touch. Their textures and forms encourage interaction that goes beyond the physical to create an emotional connection. This installation uses soft, familiar materials to create a space for reflection, comfort, and connection, with ourselves and with others. It’s not just about how it looks, but how it feels. It invites slow moments and a reconnection with touch in a world that often moves too fast.
Different textures can evoke different emotional responses and these responses are deeply personal. Some people find calm in soft, fuzzy materials, while others feel more grounded with coarse or bumpy textures. Our relationship with touch is unique and always evolving. That’s why this installation is modular, giving people the freedom to choose and interact with textures that feel right in the moment.
Touch is one of our most powerful tools for calming the body and mind. From an early age, we’re drawn to comforting textures as a natural way to soothe ourselves. This idea is at the heart of Tactile Connections, a textile installation designed to offer grounding, comfort, and sensory support.
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w o o l f o r w e l l b e i n g
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