Happy spring month! Let’s hope it comes with good rains, warmer weather and an increased feeling of hope and looking forward to great things. There are some things to look forward to, although there is not a lot to report this month.
Firstly, the Covid project “Through the Eye of a Needle” is officially through stage one. Around forty pieces have been collected and the “put-it-all-together” committee is looking for a place large enough where they can safely plan the layout but at the same time keep social distancing according to current regulations. There are some pieces which were handed in to other members of the committee/Guild, so will those people who have them, please make an arrangement to hand them over to Jenni ASAP so the process can continue. It would be dreadful for the whole thing to go on display and a participant brings the grandchildren to look and find that inadvertently HER piece was not included in the final work. I’m sure you won’t put us in that position!!!
Now that the project is over, I’m sure you will be looking for new things to begin – or old things to complete. If you can, please think about our retailers (shops) and producers of embroidery materials. Apparently House of Embroidery was badly affected by the riots which we all experienced recently, and have worked very hard to catch up and get their orders out. Please support them if you can and help the company get on its feet again. Chameleon threads has expanded and moved out of Benoni and the company is now based somewhere near the airport. Such a brave move during a pandemic will mean that they could use some support too. Even our imported DMC comes through a local agent. We lost Anchor cottons through lack of support. Let’s not let that happen again.
Our retailers too are finding that things are “a bit slow at the moment.” If these businesses can’t stay open, then people will be out of work, and we will be forced to use inferior materials or import anything we need. “Sales table” type of stuff doesn’t go on forever.
Jenni Langford has offered to collate and distribute a list of all the shops we know of where haberdashery is sold – with particular emphasis on embroidery things, of course. There are heaps of these little shops – gift shops, stationery shops, supermarkets, which have the odd shelf of embroidery stuff, as well as the specialist shops we all know and love. Our members also come from Alberton to Centurion and the borders of Germiston to Roodepoort. PLEASE let us know of any shop within these boundaries. I remember travelling from northern Johannesburg to Boksburg to get ONE ball of wool that I needed. Us crafty people are crazy like that, so no shop is too small or too insignificant for our list, and I’m sure the owners of the businesses would appreciate the support. And I’m sure Janis can make a plan if you need things. She’s a very local retailer! Nobody needs an excuse to buy lovely things. Take the opportunity for a good cause!
If you REALLY don’t need anything, please think about buying a few things to donate to charities. Many of our members are involved in one or other charity, either through their religious institution or other socially motivated societies. Next month, I would like to publish as well as the above-mentioned shops, all charities that could use embroidery materials, fabric, wool, scissors, needles, hooks or whatever else people use, and you as an individual or we as a Guild can support them. Even if money is tight, two balls of knitting wool, or a reel of cotton, or some embroidery skeins, will be well used, and in the October newsletter we will publish the list so, not only will you be keeping people in work, but you will be helping those who need it too. By all means, let me add the name of your pet charity. Marvellous people that you are, I’m sure you’ll contribute. How nice it will be for the poorest, struggling people in our land to have nice new stuff to work with. Other people’s “recycling” is useful, but I’m sure there’s a lot of joy in working with something brand new! Think about it! We will definitely not be meeting as a Guild at the Recreation centre this year. They are upgrading and renovating the building – work which is very necessary apparently – so no groups are meeting. A pity about that, but it’s nice to have a non-Covid reason for a change! In the meantime, we have the benefit of the internet in all its variety of communication options, so let’s keep sewing, let’s be creative, and let’s keep talking to one another.
Have a wonderful month.