A colourful display of quilts and knits, traditional hardanger embroidery, paintings, fabric and paper art filled Raglan town hall’s supper room last Saturday as the town’s four crafting groups combined for the first time in an exhibition of their talents.
Organiser Sue Webber told the Chronicle it was such a great day that “we’re already talking bigger and better,” indicating that the next Raglan Crafters Showcase might well fill the whole of the town hall space.
On arriving in Raglan three years ago Sue first joined the long-running daytime knitting circle, then – seeing a need for those who work during the day – started up a crafters and hobby group which meets in the evening.
Two years on, after beginning with a dozen or so members online, Raglan Crafters Group now has no fewer than 288 keen and crafty people sharing ideas.
Add in the Raglan Art Group and Karioi Quilts & Crafts, which have both worked from the Old School Arts Centre for decades, and there’s a flourishing creative community across the various crafts.
Over the years these crafters have stitched up quite a storm, donating the likes of patchwork rugs to the local rest home and – most recently – knitting and crocheting beanies, 50 of which were recently donated to the flood-devastated families of Wairoa.
There’s also been a combined community effort to craft poppies for this week’s Anzac Day commemorations. Two of the many poppies made will end up across the other side of the world when one local takes them to Turkey at Christmas-time in remembrance of family members who fought at Gallipoli during the First World War.
Meanwhile coming up once again in June there’s a ‘World Wide Knit in Public Day’ where local crafters will get to yarn from the veranda of the Harbour View Hotel, demonstrating that these old-fashioned handicrafts have made quite a comeback.
*Raglan Knitting Circle meets every Wednesday at Orca from 9am.
Raglan Crafters Group meets the 2nd and 4th Mondays every month at Orca from 6pm.
Karioi Quilts & Crafts meets the 2nd Thursday of every month at the Old School from 10am.
Raglan Art Group meets Feb-Nov the 1st Friday of the month at the Old School from 10am.
