THE WELSH GIRL
In our Start-up Success series, we meet inspiring entrepreneurs
It took Julie Leonard a while to pluck up the courage to approach the Welsh mill that now produces her signature ponchos. She may have spent 25 years in London working on prestigious production projects, but the Melin Tregwynt woollen mill has stood in the Ceredigion countryside for 200 years, staffed by generations of Welsh-speaking locals. As it turns out, though, steeling her nerve paid off. Her plan was to show them a red cape she had bought in a vintage shop that reminded her of a poncho her gran had once made her. “Suddenly I heard a voice from the rafters: ‘I made those capes in the 1960s’. It was the mill-owner’s wife. Over many cups of tea, we talked about my idea of making ponchos and they were keen to be involved.”
The poncho in question was made from Welsh Tapestry, which comprises two layers of cloth woven by a semi-automated ‘dobcross’ loom, also used to produce the mill’s renowned blankets. The garment’s discovery, in a vintage shop in Hay-on-wye, proved to be a pivotal moment for Julie. At the time, her city career was exciting and rewarding but, after 25 years of promoting other creatives, she began to crave a more hands-on role for herself. With her son Joey starting university, she was free to pursue her ambitions. “I was out walking on Hampstead Heath and suddenly realised I wanted to get back to my Welsh roots and make things again. I have always been passionate about Welsh textiles and wanted to celebrate them.”
Discovering the poncho provided the spark of inspiration she needed: “My aim was to create high-quality,
handmade lifestyle accessories that are versatile, practical, ethical and beautiful.”
It was a risky move but, seeing her today, working in her studio shop – a low-ceilinged space on the first floor of an old stone chapel where mass is still conducted downstairs – it’s clear it was the right one. The whirr of her sewing machine proves a counterpoint to the chatter of nesting birds under the eaves, and the walls are filled with traditional textiles (all woven at Melin Tregwynt) in cheerful shades. “The room was dark and dingy when I moved in,” Julie recalls, “so I ripped everything out and painted it off-white. A friend made a workbench for me, and I salvaged wooden cabinets to hold materials and stock. Later, I turned one section into a space for selling, which is great for market research. Customers like to see your workspace, so even if I don’t make a sale, I have interesting conversations.”
The journey to this workshop on a winding street in the historic Welsh ‘book town’ of Hay-on-wye wasn’t straightforward, though. Although Julie made the move from London to the Black Mountains, where her parents had retired 20 years previously, within six weeks of her epiphany on Hampstead Heath, she continued to commute back and forth from London, taking on projects that financed the development of her business. (During this time she was nicknamed
“The best piece of advice I received? ‘Forget your age.’ If you have the energy and the passion, go for it!”
‘the Welsh Girl’ by colleagues – a title that stuck and became the name of her business). Working from her kitchen table, she spent evenings and weekends refining designs, researching events and developing her website.
Working with textiles again tapped into skills first developed during her childhood in Wales. Her mother and grandmother encouraged her early interest in sewing and making, while her commercial expertise was gleaned from playing shop at her grandfather’s grocery store in the village of Talgarth: “I was a quirky child. From the age of seven, I would go to jumble sales and spend my pocket money on handbags that I could customise at home.” As a student in London, she made clothes on her mother’s Singer sewing machine, until she was given one of her own on her 21st birthday. Her family’s influence was also reflected in the very first poncho she made: “I called the design Maisie, after my mum, and last summer I buried her in it. She died of cancer and, in her final weeks, a poncho of mine gave her warmth and comfort.”
When she receives a bolt of fabric from the mill, Julie cuts out her pattern and stitches the design. Because the fabric is expensive, she devised a clever
“My biggest challenge was leaving a secure job to start something new”
way of using every inch of it, and extending her range at the same time. From surplus cloth she makes a reversible Coler Cwtch scarf, inspired by the Welsh shawl, as well as tote, clutch and wristlet bags. Her distinctive modern patchwork cushions are made with Welsh flannel, a loosely woven woollen cloth used in the national costume worn on St David’s Day.
As an advocate of artisan craft in Wales, Julie’s long-term goal is “to employ more outworkers, and ultimately set up a social enterprise to keep the Welsh textile heritage alive and the looms operating”. A dream she is pursuing stitch by stitch.
FOR MORE INFORMATION Julie’s studio is at St John’s Chapel, Hay-on-wye; to visit, call in advance on 07788 674660 (thewelshgirl.com; instagram.com/thewelshgirl.hay; facebook.com/thewelshgirl). Adult ponchos from £265, childrens’ from £95. Julie also takes commissions.