Rooted in Creativity - Fabric Design with Carly from Roo-tid

In this episode of the Sewing Social Podcast, Carly, the designer and owner of Rootid Fabrics, shares her journey from a creative background to establishing her own fabric design business. 

She discusses the importance of sustainability in her work, the design process behind her collections, and the challenges of running a small business. 

Carly also emphasises the significance of community and connection through sewing, revealing her plans for future workshops and exclusive fabric collections.

Key takeaways:

• Carly's journey began with a passion for art and design.
• Roo-tid Fabrics was inspired by nature and local wildlife.
• The name 'Roo-tid' symbolises being grounded and connected.
• Carly prioritises eco-friendly and sustainable fabrics in her designs.
• She collaborates with certified manufacturers for quality materials.
• Carly's design process involves personal experiences and relatable themes.
• The sewing social events foster community and connection among crafters.
• Carly supports small businesses by allowing low minimum order quantities.
• She is self-taught in sewing, starting with a quilt for her brother.
• Future plans include workshops for beginners and exclusive fabric designs.

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Guest details:

Instagram: @rootid_fabrics

Website: https://roo-tid.com/

Facebook: Roo-tid

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to Rootid Fabrics

03:12 The Journey of a Creative Entrepreneur

04:55 Sustainability in Fabric Design

08:30 The Design Process Explained

11:52 Challenges of Running a Small Business

13:24 Supporting Small Businesses

16:05 Carly's Sewing Journey

19:32 Building Community Through Sewing Socials

21:17 Future Plans for Rootid Fabrics

21:53 Fun and Games: This or That

25:49 Share with a friend and how to contact the show

Transcript

Speaker 2 (00:09.902)
Carly, thank you so much for joining me today on the Sewing Social Podcast.

Hi, hello, thank you for having me.

You're welcome. Would you mind introducing yourself to the listeners?

Yeah, so I'm Carly and I am the designer and owner behind Rootid Fabrics. So we're based in Dorset along the South Coast. And yeah, I design, illustrate predominantly dressmaking fabrics on eco-friendly fibres. And yeah, I sell them to stockists and direct to customer. So yeah, that's me.

Lovely. Can you tell us about your background and how you got into running your own fabric design business?

Speaker 1 (00:49.984)
Yeah, so I've always been an artsy, creative person. So my siblings are all quite academic and I was known as the one that was going to colour in for a career. So yeah, so you know, I did college art at college and design illustration at university. And yeah, I just worked my way through. I did a lot of publishing, design work and illustration.

and marketing and then yeah, I just thought, you know, it's time to explore what these hands can really do being creative for myself rather than answering briefs for other people. So Rooted actually started out as a homeware brand. So we moved to the countryside and we started getting like crazy activity in our garden. So I would draw Peanut the Badger.

and then we were white tip and black tip were the foxes. We had Peggy and Bobby which were the pigeons and yeah and it was just crazy everything was having babies in the garden and out back because we'd back onto woodlands and so yeah so I started drawing those and I've got everything printed and made in the UK onto home wearing gift items so like cushions, bags, tea towels, oven gloves, aprons and I sold them online and now I just went to every craft

show I could find. I spent a lot of time in fly-infested, probably flea as well, airfields in hot marquees, questioning life. But yeah, it was great. It was really good. was, but anyway, the feedback that came back from that was predominantly people were really interested in the fabric itself. So they wanted to do something with the tea towel or, you know, the fabric rather than have necessarily the finished item. So I thought, that's quite interesting because I sew anyway. And by the way, I don't cook.

So it was really hard for me to talk about oven gloves and be passionate about aprons when I have no interest in cooking other than beans on toast or something. I kind of put that and homeware and gifts is quite, you know, it did very well at Christmas and Mother's Day and stuff and so on. But I thought, okay, like I love sewing. I love illustrating. People are interested in the fabric and want it. So yeah, so that's how I got into putting.

Speaker 1 (03:06.392)
putting this and this together and trying to create something that I love and I do.

that's lovely. And it sounds like where you live has really been a big part of your inspiration.

Massively, yeah. I just feel lucky and grateful to be surrounded by countryside and woodlands. And then a 20 minute drive and we're at the coast. So there's lots of inspiration around. It's been an interesting journey, but hey, everything happens for a reason.

And your business is obviously called Rootid. Can you explain about what that means to you?

Yeah, there's a couple of things. mean, if I'm completely honest, I was looking out the window and just like trees, what am I going to call my business? There's trees. What am going to call them? there's trees. But then that didn't still didn't click. And I don't know, it just came to me. I think I was not long out of university and, I didn't really know what I was doing or, you know, panic kind of stations. And I went to like a mindfulness course and one thing I took away from it was

Speaker 1 (04:11.874)
the person leading it said, to stay grounded and rooted, wiggle your toes. And it's always stayed with me, just like if I'm ever feeling a little bit woo, I'll just like wiggle my toes, feel grounded and rooted. And I felt like leaving the security of my full-time job and starting this adventure, everything was a little bit woohoo. And there was a lot of toe wiggling. So I liked the idea of being rooted, being grounded, and just reminding myself.

that it's all right, just wiggle your toes. And yeah, that's kind of where Rootid came from because I want to create things that act as like gentle reminders for people to kind of remember everything's all right.

that, that's really lovely. You mentioned earlier sort of about the eco-friendly fibres that you use. Can you tell us a little bit more about what your designs are printed onto?

Yeah, yeah. So another kind of journey hurdle for the business was obviously what do we print on? Ideally, I wanted everything made in the UK. I wanted to support UK businesses and manufacturers. It just isn't possible financially. So I know and you can get fabric, beautiful fabric out there that is priced very low and still feels good. think you're getting good quality, but we don't really know where it's coming from.

what it's made from and what impacts we're having by supporting that piece of fabric. So I knew from the get-go, I wanted all the fibres to be UK friendly, sustainable. And yeah, so I work with manufacturers who are certified in 100 % organic cotton. So most of them have got certified and I was got certified, but with that comes a lot of paperwork and a lot of costs. So all my fibres are got certified, but I can't.

Speaker 1 (06:04.074)
advertise them as that, but they are. So they're a hundred percent organic cotton. And then on the other hand, instead of using viscose, which is actually a really harmful fiber to be produced, I used the Lenzing EcoVero version of viscose, which is obviously made of wood from sustainable resources. So it's also quite degradable naturally once its life cycle is done. And so yeah, it just feels right.

Like I just wouldn't do it if I didn't know where and how my fibres were made. Yeah. So that's, it's a big part is it is a big part of the business.

I was going to ask you about sustainability because it seems to be, you know, when you read your website and the things on there, it seems to be quite at the core of your business. Why is it so important to you?

I mean, you know, if we keep using and using and using and not thinking about how or where or what we're using and at what cost. You know, I might just be one small person in the whole grand scheme of things, but if each small person does it, it's really sad. It's really scary, sad place. And I just don't want to be another small person that adds to that big puzzle that is a scary puzzle. So I would rather not do it if I can't do it properly.

And so it's hard, it's hard working. So I work with manufacturers predominantly in Turkey who are all certified and it is difficult. know, it is hard to make sure that what you're getting is certified at the best quality you can get and working conditions and everything. So once you find your nuggets, your manufacturers, you hold on for dear life.

Speaker 2 (07:47.426)
lot of people have said that. Yeah, it's obviously very important in the running of these small businesses. So you got to hold on tight. Can you sort of talk us through the whole process of your designing really? from those initial ideas to actually getting the fabric in your hands.

Yeah, I say.

Speaker 1 (08:07.53)
Yeah, yeah, of course. So initially it starts with panic. I won't lie.

A new collection needs to come out. So I try and do two collections a year and each collection can have anything from 12 to 15 designs in each one. And I really like the idea of when you sew and make your own project, whether it's clothes, bags or anything, the time and effort that goes into it. I really like the idea that they can have a gentle hidden meaning behind them that maybe only you know and nobody else knows.

So with my designs, it's the same sort of thing. I like them to act as gentle reminders. If people wish to take that on board, it's just an extra thing that you can look down on and be like, yeah, I remember that little nugget and I also made it. So I try and think, a lot of my concepts start from things that have happened, either that I've heard, overheard, seen, watched, felt, you know, with friends or family or something that's relatable to not just me, but to other people.

And then I try and, you know, visually put that down as best as I can with sketches. And I mean, it's a lot of, it's a lot of pyjama days sketching that I'm thinking I might go to. And then, yeah, once it grows, I do it digitally. And yeah, I just like the collections. Like for example, the last collection I did was called Connect. So it's all about, you know, how do we connect with people or places or anything? And how do we...

feel comfortable in connecting in who we are. So the collection focuses on animals that you might not necessarily associate with one another. So there's a sloth and a tiger and, you know, a monkey and a butterfly. And none of these animals really make sense. But if you're, if you be your true, weird and wonderful self, you attract, you connect. And so

Speaker 1 (10:01.122)
It's just that little reminder that like, if you feel like, maybe I don't belong here or I don't feel like I belong there, just be your strange tiger self and your tribe will find you. So it's just, it's just little concepts that people can choose to take away with them. Yeah. And then I get them, I send them away, the artwork away and wait for samples to come back. And then that's where I play with colors and the quality of the fibers. So that's a lot of.

back and forth normally. And then once we're happy, we press go and just hope it doesn't get stuck in customs for too long. then, yeah, and then, and then I then process them and send them out to stockists first. So my stockists have them available. And once everybody has them, we all kind of launch at the same time and yeah, take it from there.

And considering there's no delays in customs, how long is that sort of process in general?

I would say probably you're talking from initial concepts, I'm working like five to six months ahead. Yeah. So now the sun's shining, I'm like autumn, winter. Let's think about getting cold and snuggly.

It's so strange, isn't it, that you've got to think ahead like that. Again, apart from the customs delays and things like that, have you come across any particular challenges in running your small business?

Speaker 1 (11:30.03)
The challenge is you always have internal challenges. So do I just like this or will other people like it? And that is always a big, I think a lot with creative people, you know, it's no matter how confident you are, how much experience you have or how good your last piece of design or collection was. You always have that niggle with yourself of come on, we can do this, let's go. And then I guess...

To a certain degree, the manufacturing is a little bit out of your control. Everything takes so long. So when you get something back and maybe the quality isn't quite right or there's a few marks or you're not happy with the colour, it can really push a collection back the to and from. So in that sense, a little bit of control is taken away from you, which can be a little bit painful.

You're a real sort of supporter of small business, aren't you? Because I noticed that you let other small businesses order small quantities, say if they're making garments or other things to sell. And that's really admirable because not all businesses do that.

Yeah, absolutely. mean, I love anything creative. I love people who have passion and dreams. And I'm one of those people. And if we can't support each other as best we can, I think that's a really sad place to be. And if it means that...

I lower my MOQs, my minimum order quantities for a small startup or small business, but it gets them going. That doesn't harm me. Like it makes me very happy actually. it's just supporting one another and yeah, it brings me joy. It simply brings me joy.

Speaker 2 (13:08.514)
That's it.

Speaker 2 (13:16.11)
love that. Could you pick a particular favourite out of your designs so far or is that too difficult?

That's like taking one of my fur babies. I don't know, I don't know, I don't know. Because every time I make something with one of these, I mean, I love them all when they come back. And if I didn't love one, I just wouldn't put it out. I just couldn't. But every time I then make something with one of them, I'm like, this is the one I love. This one. So I've just made the jumpsuit out of the vibration pattern. I'm like, this is the one. I say to my husband, I love this one, I love this one.

And then I'm like, actually now I'm going to make some trousers out of this one. So I don't know if I can answer.

That's fair play, that's fair enough.

And if I do answer, all this fabric is just gonna fall on me, like karma.

Speaker 2 (14:08.302)
So tell us about your sewing journey. Are you self-taught or did somebody teach you?

Yeah, so no, I'm totally self-taught. So my sewing journey started early twenties, I would say. So I'm not like a childhood sewer with my mum or Nan or anything. So the first thing I ever made was for my little brother. So when he was 13, he was diagnosed with leukemia and he's always loved Marvel comics, know, the comic heroes. He's had, you know, figurines, comics, all sorts.

And so during that hard period, I wanted to, for some reason, make him a cape. I'd never sewn in my life. I didn't even know how to buy fabric or anything. So I made it out of old clothes of his and old clothes of mine. And I basically just patchworked this quilt. I didn't have a sewing machine, so I bought one of those. They're almost like toys. I think I got them from Argos or something. It's like the smallest.

sewing machine known to mankind. And yeah, and so I made him a cape that was probably half the size of him. The combination of the process of making it and giving it to him and seeing how it made him feel, I just thought, isn't it amazing what fabric, whether it's scrap fabric or new fabric, some thread and a machine all your hands can do.

And then from then onwards, I was making bags and cushions and then eventually clothes. And yeah, so I'm totally self-taught. So I don't at all, I'm not some sort of sewing wizard. I use a lot of YouTube, but I just love, love the process. I love, I love the whole journey of making something.

Speaker 2 (15:51.616)
is there anything in particular that you like to make garment wise?

I love a jumpsuit. Yeah, but it's always touch and go, you know, when the two connect, but when it works, I love them.

Yeah, you run a monthly sewing social as well, don't you?

Yes. So this was the most happiest accident. I don't know if it was an accident, but the most pleasant surprise out of the whole business. cause obviously I knew the business. I wanted to design fabric, sell fabric. So that was like the plan. This was, I.

felt a bit lonely and I wasn't sewing as much and I just wanted to connect with people and I didn't really know where or how. And so yeah, I was thinking about it for a couple of months and I was scared. And then I just thought, I'm just going to book the local haul. And I just did a video on Instagram and I just had to think, okay, if nobody shows up, my husband will come and...

Speaker 1 (16:53.57)
we'll have cups of teas and I'll say something in front of it. Luckily, that first one, got eight people that didn't know each other. They didn't know me and they just came, you know, and it was just after the first one, it felt, if I could bottle that potion, feeling and hand it to people, you know, it was just amazing, amazing.

Then after, we've grown to 30 plus women that, and men are welcome, it just happens to be women, that come once a month. And honestly, everybody said it and I feel it, it's something we really look forward to. There's an awful lot of chatting, a lot of drinking tea and a little bit of staring. So we started out at four hours and we extended it to six hours.

Yeah, I mean, a group of us went to the Plymouth Frocktails a couple of months ago. And even that, you know, a group of us went and then we connected with a much wider group. you know, the sewing community is, it's hardcore, you know, and I love it. I'm totally and utterly there for it.

Yeah, that's amazing. it's incredible really how you can bond over a hobby, isn't it? But it really is bonding and we run a sewing social as well up in Nottingham and I find the same. really look forward to it. There might be people that come every time, but there might be new people that dip in and out and it's just lovely.

You can't underestimate a room full of just connection, people chatting at ease, doing something they enjoy. I really didn't expect it, but it's up there with one of the best bits of the business now. Yeah. And I've had to come to yours actually.

Speaker 2 (18:49.986)
Definitely. Well, you're welcome anytime. Ours is bi-monthly and it's called Sew Knots. So you're more than welcome. Yeah. I suppose with, you know, your job being quite solitary and sewing is quite solitary, those times of connection are really important, aren't they?

Yeah, absolutely. And, you know, it's just, it's just kind of made me think, okay, what do I want Rooted to be, you know, other than fabric? And it is, it's connection and it is community. And, you know, at some point in the future, I've got my, my, my vision board and it's going to be a place, it's going to be a hub. It's going to be somewhere people can come and, and, you know, put time aside for themselves. And yeah, just it's the dream. It's going to happen.

Yeah, that's a lovely vision and I was going to ask you if there are any exciting plans in the works for Rooted. Is there anything more short-term that you've got on the list?

Yeah, so I mean, apart from the grand thing, the dream of a farm with Rootid on it and everybody living happily ever after. Yeah, so in terms of the sowing socials, I've had quite a few people say, I really want to come, but either I can't sow or I'm not very good at sowing. And I don't teach at the sowing socials. It's very much you come, know, if anybody wants help, we all kind of chip in.

So I will be launching workshops in July and see how they go. They will be for beginners or people who just want a bit more experience to help people feel confident that then if they want to join us at the Sewing Social, then they feel like they can. So they will be starting hopefully in July. And I'm also going to be launching exclusive fabrics.

Speaker 1 (20:41.368)
for Rootid. It was originally going to be monthly, but then I realised, whoa, so it's going to be bi-monthly to start with. And so these designs will be just sold by Rootid, not my stockists. And it will just be one design every other month. And it will be under a new kind of collection, which will be ongoing, which will be called Stay Curious. So it will be fun designs that

make sewing not so serious. So yeah, those are the two little nuggets that we've got coming up.

Very exciting. Thank you for the exclusives.

They are exclusive, if they don't happen then you know something went wrong. So now I'll my hands up.

We won't hold you accountable, it's fine. So sort of to tie up the interview, Carly, I like to do a little game of this or that and it just lets us get to know the person a little bit more. Yeah. If you're up for playing. So I think I know the answer to this one, but prints or solids?

Speaker 1 (21:42.937)
definitely.

Speaker 1 (21:49.435)
Prints all the way,

A meal out or a takeaway?

can I have both? I just love both. I love to snuggle and veg out, then I like, we don't go out much for meals, so then it's really special. Can I be a both?

You can, you can. Okay. Tea or coffee?

Okay, I'm gonna go.

Speaker 1 (22:11.532)
I like a cup of tea if I'm having something to eat with it. A coffee, I can only have decaf because otherwise it makes my eyes shake. So take what you will from that.

An organised stash or creative chaos.

creative chaos that then turns into a organised stash eventually.

One project on the go or multiple? Are you like a bit like me where if you come across something annoying you'll put it to the side and then start something else?

Multiple.

Speaker 1 (22:41.326)
Oh, I don't know. The more annoying it is, the more determined I get. I actually, I will stay with it if it's annoying, because I'm will not be defeated. But I do have other things going on around that are like, come on, come on, come on. So yeah, but I am quite stubborn. I'm like, you're going to be annoying, I'm going to be annoying, and we're going to sort this out.

I love that.

I guess if I had to pick, if I had to, it would be sewing, right? Because you can design while sewing, but you could, you know, make a pattern out of other fabric by sewing them together. if I had to.

You've worked both in. Scissors or a rotary cutter? I'm with you on that one.

He says.

Speaker 1 (23:29.526)
I don't know this, no control. Waves. I like wave ends. Yeah.

or nip.

Yeah. Spring, summer or autumn, winter?

Autumn, winter. Yeah, I am a true autumn in terms of complexion. yeah, I just like putting a warm pair of socks on and yeah, I like boots and I like crunchy leaves and I like all that stuff.

Yeah, that sounds nice. And the last one, paper pattern or PDF?

Speaker 1 (24:01.006)
PDF because I really enjoy sticking it together. And I know people will think I'm crazy.

That's fair enough. think somebody said something interesting to me and they sort of said that in itself is like a mindful practice. So I don't know if you find that.

Yeah, I do. I do. Because it's just something that you're doing and not really thinking. So you can kind of either choose to clear your mind or you can listen to music or a podcast or something else. And it's just a bit of like, oh, don't have to really use my brain much. I quite enjoy that. Yeah.

Fair enough and you can zone out a little bit, can't you? That's nice. Where can people find you, Carly?

Yeah.

Speaker 1 (24:48.494)
So they can find me on Instagram. So that's, I don't know what my Instagram is.

I'll link it below, yeah.

Rooted Fabrics, but there's, I don't know. I'm on Facebook and obviously my website, is www.rooted.com.

Perfect. And you've been so lovely and I really enjoyed our chat today. So thank you for joining me on the Sewing Social.

Honestly, I've absolutely loved it. And yeah, if you want another chat, just let me know.

Speaker 2 (25:19.522)
Definitely, definitely. We'll catch up again, hopefully. That'll be great. Thank you, Carly.

Yeah, you very much. All right, take care. Bye.

Thanks so much for listening. If you do just one thing today, don't forget to share the show with a friend. I'd really appreciate it. Also, if you do want to get in touch, you can always email. Our email is thesewingsocialpod at gmail.com. Until next time, happy sewing.