 | Our friend Paa Luang - a master Indigo dyer from Phrae in northern Thailand. Luckily we are still managing to get some great Thai indigo fabrics sent to us. | | Well, what a funny old year it's been for all of us, no matter where we are in the world. Some things have been good and some of us have been lucky, and some things have been awful and others unlucky.
I know I am a strange hybrid creature - a retailer who is basically anti-consumerist and a Green who flies across the world every year, so its natural that I also have deeply mixed feelings.
On one hand the natural world has been grateful for the break and I have had the chance to glimpse a new way of living which I'm sure will stay with me. On the other hand I fear for the livelihoods of the young people around me and my friends and suppliers abroad.
My Thai friends have had to adapt - the friend who I go to for Thai massage every week has no customers now so she's working on a market stall, another who sells wonderful clothes and fabrics to me and other overseas customers, has lost her job and her accommodation at the worst possible time. My tailor has gone back to her family village to wait things out. | | | Friends in Indonesia who run batik workshops have also lost all their customers BUT Zoom technology has helped them out. Even accounting for time differences, we found a way to conduct workshops from the other side of the world.
I signed up the participants and collected in donations and they provided two batik workshops live and direct from their studios. Both were a great success. We got a totally immersive glimpse of life in rural Java along with birds, cockerels and a muezzin chipping in. I was also able to send out almost 10 million rupiah to each of them (about £500) so that was a great bonus!
I am hoping to organise another one on Indigo vat dyeing. Please let me know if you would like any information on that. | | |  | We have experimented with putting clothes on our website for the first time - and its been going well with several delighted customers! | | OUR SHOP HERE IN BISHOP'S CASTLE
As reported in the last newsletter we have been opening the shop three days a week (Mondays, Fridays and Saturdays) and with plenty of caution all has gone well. It started off very quiet (the first day we took a grand total of Zilch) but things are gradually getting back to ... well not exactly normal but something like it. The campsite and B and B's in Bishop's Castle have opened up and more visitors are coming in, so we will salvage something from the summer. Please come and see us - if you can. | | |  | We hope to be on our stall again soon.
Check out our Events Page to keep in touch! | | AND WHAT ABOUT WORLD TEXTILE DAYS?
We have been in touch with some of our venues and they are opening up again. We are keeping everything crossed that we will be able to go ahead with our shows in September and October.
EAST - Mundford Village Hall, Mundford near Thetford in Norfolk
on Saturday 5th September.
SOUTH - Brockenhurst Village Hall, New Forest, Hampshire
on Saturday 19th September
WEST - Saltford Hall between Bristol and Bath
on Saturday 3rd October
These will be smaller affairs with restricted numbers, there will be no teas (but bring a flask!) and no speakers but we will do our very best to make our World Textile Days safe, uncrowded and pleasant events, with, as usual, a selection of fascinating and unique trade stands!
Numbers in the halls will have to be limited so spread yourselves out through the day (any time from 10 am to 4 pm) and we will spread ourselves out too with plenty of chairs to sit on and outside space if the weather is kind! Masks will be worn (a great chance to show off your fabrics!) and of course hand sanitisers will be available.
We are also hoping we can go ahead with NORTH (in Frodsham, Cheshire on October 10th and WALES in Llanidloes on October 24th), but we will announce news on all our World Textile Days through the newsletter and on our World Textile Day website. | | |  | You can now browse our Bead Tray online as well as at our Shows. | | AND OTHER EVENTS?
We will also be at Hellen's Manor in Herefordshire on Wednesday and Thursday 9th and 10th September for the annual Textile Fair. Most of this will be outdoors and there will be lovely food available but no speakers this year. We'll bring a gazebo and hope for some decent weather, but it will just be nice to be out and about again whatever the weather. | | |  | Here we are a couple of years ago buying beautiful naturally dyed and hand woven ikat cloths in Flores. I wonder when we will get back there again? | | THREADS OF LIFE
I am always pleased to get newsletters from this organisation in Bali run by Jean and William and feast my eyes on the lovely textiles. They are doing what I would be doing if I had another life to live - supporting traditional craftspeople through the islands of Indonesia to continue making their top class traditional work by providing a high class market for it. They have a fabulous shop in Ubud in Bali and run textile workshops - but again all has ground to a halt and like us they are putting more on line. Have a look here, and IF you do get to Bali ever, please do look them up. | | | |
