When I set off on my crafty journey 3 years ago I had a mission – I wanted to spread the crafty word and get my town crafting. Once the business was open in October 2012 I realised very quickly that the town was not enough! I needed to spread the word to wider audience and start Lancashire crafting… This year I am thinking this focus still needs to expand… crafters in the North of England, I am coming to get you!
As part of our service we provide regular classes for both young people and adults. The sewing classes have seen so many fabulous projects completed. I love to see the smiles on people’s faces when they complete a particularly tricky skill with the fabric, or when they complete the garment and try it on. For the young people it is the way they perceive the tasks required to complete a task – ‘not more pins!’ is a usual comment. ‘Why do we have to tack the fabric? Can we not just sew it on the machine?’ – then the moan that usually comes when they realise they didn’t tack and the seam is not straight – seam ripper at the ready! Finally they get to smile when the task is complete! It might be a bit wonky… or the seam not straight – but it is their work; their efforts.
Our one-off workshops provide a session of fun, chat, good company, crafty skills… oh and usually CAKE! (One cannot craft effectively without cake!). Over the last year we have enjoyed sessions in needle felting, fascinator making, woolcraft, rag-rugging, paper-crafting, lace-making, beading and jewellery making, sock knitting and much more. Once again the most enjoyment for me comes from seeing the crafty results from people that really didn’t think they could do it.
This year I have begun my lace-making in earnest and I have to admit that I am really enjoying it. I love to sit down and absorb myself in the fine art of bobbin winding in readiness for a new project. The anticipation as to what the project will be like is really quite exciting. Wrapping just the right amount of the thread, pairing up the bobbins and working out the pattern, frustration when I have to pull it back but ultimately joy at the finished article.
The shop has undergone some changes in its stock over the year so that we can support the every changing trends in crafting. We have however continued top stock the usual supporting resources for the sewing, knitting, crochet, papercrafting and beading groups. There will be an expansion of the fabric stock this Spring as I anticipate the Great British Sewing Bee will continue to wave its magic wand on the nation, encouraging them all to have a go at making their own clothes. I wonder what else would be good to stock? What else will the future hold? What lovely gadget will Kirsty Allsopp demonstrate in her crafty TV series that will ensure the public race to get hold of but there is never enough…leaving the nation with a famine of ‘must have’ tools!
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