In 2013 Franki’s QEST Scholarship enabled her to embark on a self-led internship into the industrial world of UK woven textile manufacture alongside fellow QEST Scholar and business partner Juliet Bailey. Together they broadened their knowledge of their craft and its relationship to the manufacturing process.
With the aid of her scholarship, Franki visited woven textile manufacturers and processors across the UK, learning about many of the techniques and processes involved with fabric production, from fibre harvest right through to textile finishing and dyeing.
This research gave Franki and Juliet the confidence to launch their second business in 2015 – The Bristol Weaving Mill – which they run alongside their textile design studio, Dash & Miller.
In 2016 Dash & Miller was awarded the QEST Fattorini Award for Excellence.