Ynysfach W.I “get crafty”

November turned out to be a month full of craft and creativity.

Our first crafty caper was a trip on the 4th November to see the ‘Made By
Hand’ exhibition held in Cardiff City Hall.
This annual event is held to showcase the work of 135 exceptional craftsmenand women from Wales .
The skills on display were astonishing, delightful and in some instances beyond belief or imagination.

The makers displayed products beautifully and were more than willing to explain the processes involved and in some cases were actually making things while we watched. Almost every craft medium was represented, so no matter where your interest lay,  there was something to delight you- from ceramics to wood turning,jewellery to textiles.

Everyone enjoyed the exhibtion and the chance to make a start on their Christmas shopping.

Our second creative inspiration was provided by our speaker at our November meeting.
Alison Westwood from Eclipse Gift Wrapping demonstrated a myriad of interesting ways to wrap your Christmas gifts. In her deft fingers tissue paper, cellophane and ribbon were beautifullypleated, tucked and tied to result in an elegantly wrapped gift that anyonewould be delighted to receive.I’m not too sure that these materials would behave in quite the same way inmy hands!

However Alison assured us that it was all easy with a little bit of practice

-A most interesting and entertaining evening.

Anybody interested can view Alison’s tutorials on Youtube.

Our last craft event was a trip to a craft fair held in Margam Orangery on  the18th November. This event was organised by the Glamorgan Federation to enable WI members to display and sell their handmade wares.There were many stalls for us to browse and lots of beautifully made goodies for us to buy.  We then went on to Cowbridge to enjoy a delicious lunch and even more retail.therapy.

So it was a month of inspiration, and we have many new ideas that I’m sure our own clever crafters will be able to make to stock our craft stall at the Resolven Christmas Fayre on Saturday the 2nd of December! 

Jen Colley (President Ynysfach W.I)