The Aberfan disaster occurred in a Welsh valley mining village in October 1966.  A landslide, caused by an unstable slag heap, coursed down a mountainside and demolished a primary school killing one hundred and forty four people – one hundred and thirteen of whom were children. My Handkerchief Project started as a direct result of images of the disaster showing women clutching hankies as they await news. Hankies are used as a metaphor for grief and over a period of a few months I bought and collected from friends one hundred and forty four hankies – one for each person lost in the disaster. The concept of trace and staining emerged as important as by using a dyeing and discharge process to soil the hankies I created a trace of the experience they represented.