The Wonder of Children

Last summer, I had a wonderful trip to the U.K. with my daughter and her family. We spent a memorable time in Wales, primarily to attend a family wedding, but it also gave us an opportunity to reconnect with relatives. They all made us very welcome and made sure we saw as much as possible of this beautiful area. It was difficult to leave.

En route to Wales, we spent one day in London -- although it didn't seem like enough time to see this historic, exciting city, I think we made the most of our day there. One of our stops was the Natural History Museum and I've posted photos of two of my grandsons, thoroughly engrossed in the exhibits. To me it shows the wonder of children and their boundless curiosity.

Liz Christy Irish weaver

Today I received an email from Liz Christy of Swallow Studios in County Monahagn. She included a video made by the Irish Craft Council , one of a series of short films with talented craftspeople.

Have a look at the video and learn more about Liz's approach and dedication to her weaving: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bfMf0Hef9Vw.

Those who came on the tour to Ireland will remember meeting Liz at her studio. We loved having the opportunity to see the beautiful scarves and shawls, woven in colours inspired by Liz's love of Monet and his gardens at Giverny. I expect you will enjoy having a look at Liz's blog at: http://swallowstudios.wordpress.com/

Madrona Fiber Arts 2009

The Madrona Fiber Arts Winter Retreat is celebrating their 10th anniversary this year. The event is from February 12 to 15 at the beautiful Hotel Murano in Tacoma, Washington. To learn more about the teachers, classes, special presentations and the marketplace, have a look at their website: http://www.madronafiberarts.com/. Stephanie Pearl-McPhee (the Yarn Harlot), Cat Bordi and Elsebeth Lavold (from Sweden) are the three featured speakers.

Suzanne Pedersen, founder of this highly popular event, has again included the Shetland Textile Museum as one of the four designated charities. This year to raise funds, sock kits with specially commissioned, hand painted colours from the Madrona logo are available for the four days during the show.

I was fortunate to attend Madrona in 2008. Have a look at my post from last year to see some of the other attractions in Tacoma.

Review of 2008 Scottish Skeins & Skerries Tour

The 12th Scottish Skeins & Skerries Tour in July 2008 was another memorable opportunity to meet talented textile artists, to take in the beautiful scenery and enjoy the warmth of a Scottish welcome. Two full days in Edinburgh allowed us to acclimatize and to enjoy the stunning setting of this proud city, before boarding our Loganair flight to the Shetland Islands.

Our time on these unique islands is always a high point of our travels -- from the time our favourite coach driver, Magnus Smith, meets us at Sumburgh Airport, to our last day when we check out of our hotel in Lerwick for departure to the airport. As in previous years, our time on Shetland was a mixture of visits to archaeological sites, workshops of talented knitwear designers, a jewellery design workshop, the home of a talented basket maker, shops including a cooperative selling local knitwear, and a visit to a farm to see a flock of traditional Shetland sheep breeds.

Special additions to this year's tour were two morning workshops, where we were privileged to meet with especially accomplished Shetlanders for tuition in Shetland lace and Fair Isle knitting. Not only did we learn the fine points of these techniques, but tour members commented that it was a treat to just sit and chat casually with these ladies. Another highlight was a visit with the Shetland Guild of Spinners, Weavers & Knitters. Guild members welcomed us with a delicious homemade lunch and an exhibition of their handiwork. The venue was a community centre within sight of their ambitious project, the new Shetland Textile Working Museum. Once a nearby manor house is restored and enlarged, the Guild will have a permanent home for their collections and a space for meetings and workshops. Our group was pleased to present them with a contribution to help with their many expenses.

Another special visit was with Dr. Carol Christiansen, an American who is curator of the textile collection at the Shetland Museum and Archives. Dr. Christiansen showed us around the exhibits and explained their historical significance and how the Museum was able to acquire them, and talked about the importance of conservation of the collection. A visit to this stunning centre is not to be missed. The Museum is extremely interesting and Shetlanders are rightly proud of this building located on the Lerwick harbour. Although it only opened in 2007, the Museum had already received a five-star status from Visit Scotland.

After a memorable stay on Shetland, we had more wonderful experiences awaiting us on the nearby Orkney Islands. Orkney doesn't have as strong a textile tradition as Shetland, however our days here were filled with visits to the incredible archaeological sites of Scara Brae and Maeshowe, and to the many talented jewellery designers for which the islands are well known. We also took a short ferry ride from the mainland one afternoon and had a tour and tea at Balfour Castle. Before leaving Orkney we visited the small town of Stromness, where in previous centuries, Hudson Bay ships sailed for North America. One day, some members of the group took the short flight to the island of North Ronaldsay, home of the primitive breed of sheep of the same name.

Our last island stop on the tour was to the Outer Hebrides, now known as the Western Isles. Our very comfortable hotel, the Cabarfeidh, is located in Stornoway on the Isle of Lewis. Our popular Blue Badge Guide, Joan Morrison, spent the next four days giving us a memorable introduction to both Lewis and Harris. Our days were a mixture of touring and free time: we visited talented Harris tweed weavers in their weaving sheds; the control room of the Coast Guard Station (responsible for marine rescues over a wide area of the North Atlantic Ocean); galleries and the Neolithic site of the Calanais Standing Stones, which are older than Stonehenge. Our visit ended with a very special stop at Gearrannan Village, a restored collection of traditional thatched blackhouses, where we enjoyed a talk by the guide there, followed by a delicious dinner prepared by a local chef.
After our flight from Stornoway to Glasgow and checking into our hotel at the Glasgow airport, we went to the nearby Paisley Museum where one of the curators of the collection of traditional Paisley shawls gave us a private tour and showed us two of the huge looms which the weavers used.

The next Scottish Skeins & Skerries Tour is scheduled for July 2009. The details of this unique tour are on my website. www.joycejamestours.com

International Year Natural Fibres

http://www.naturalfibres2009.org/en/index.html

Yesterday, 22 January, was the launch of the International Year of Natural Fibres at the office of the FAO in Rome. The details and purpose of the event are found on the site, http://www.naturalfibres2009.org/en/index.html. There is a video and background of the fibres covered and promoted.

Design Africa

I’ve recently come across a very interesting company called ‘Design Africa’. This project was initially funded by CIDA (Canadian International Development Agency) and the original purpose was to develop a market for the designs of talented artisans in specific African countries. Have a look at their web site: http://www.designafrica.ca/designafrica/index.php to see their brochure and several short videos which give an idea of some specific projects.

The countries which are participating in the project are: Ghana, Ethiopia, Mali, South Africa and Senegal. Although most of the participants produce textiles and baskets, there are also furniture, wood and ceramic artisans.

Through CIDA and the Federal Trade Facilitation Office in Canada, these products are brought to the attention of importers and retailers, guiding the businesses through the maze of regulations to reach overseas markets. The high quality of their designs will hopefully place their creations on a different level, where they will not be supplanted by copies from Asian countries. These small businesses employ those whose options are otherwise very limited, and have had a relatively dramatic effect on the numbers employed and the amount they are paid per hour. Some of their products are found at the shops of Ten Thousand Villages.

The 2008 Design Africa presentation will be held in Canada in two locations: at the Montreal Interior Design Show at Place Bonaventure, 22 - 24 May, and in Toronto at The Richmond, 477 Richmond St. West, #104, 27 & 28 May. Further information is available from the Trade Facilitation Office Canada in Ottawa: toll-free: 1-800-267-9674.