Ellen Parry

My Final Major Project is located in The Mill House in Bromley by Bow, London. It is a Grade 1 listed 18th century Tidal Mill– during my final major project I will be converting this Mill into a Plastic to Fabric manufacturing space, with various workshops and classroom for students and creatives from the local area and universities to come and create sustainable garments, along with learning about the importance of finding alternatives for our current finite material sources. As a designer in the 21st century, it is essential for all creatives to learn how to make more sustainable decisions, as all environmental issues begin with the point of design.

The plastic waste is collected from the River Lea (which runs through the mill) as well as being donated by locals.  The plastic is collected from the river through a specially designed canal boat (which collects the plastic waste as it floats downstream). This plastic is then converted to fabric through a step by step manufacturing method within the Tidal Mill. 

The existing wheels of the Mill will be used to import the plastic from the canal boat (below the building), the plastic will then be collected inside the Mill by workers and sent up to the top floors for processing, via a hoist which will cut through all floors of the Mill and run through the centre of a spiral staircase- which will be one of the main attractions of the space. Visitors will be involved within the process from plastic to fabric, creating an immersive and educational experience. The more plastic waste collected, the more fabric can be created. The garments created by the local and students will displayed throughout the Mill, which will guide the public circulation.

Much of this project focuses on sustainability and environmental issues, not only by recycling the plastic into new fabric but reusing elements from the Elephant Park Pavilion and making sure that elements extracted from the Mill are re-purposed.