Sunday, March 20, 2022

Lost Trades

 Took a drive to Bendigo, to attend this event:

Lots of talented artisans demonstrated their skills, and displayed incredible examples of their work. 

As you might imagine, I spent a fair bit of my time in the textile and fibre area in the centre of that map. This was one of the intriguing demonstrations:

Spinning with a walking wheel. I had never seen one of these in action before. There is a nice article about this type of wheel at a museum in Canada here.

This patchwork silk coat was impressive:

It is inspired by the description of Gulliver's coat in Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift. The design is that of a frock coat from that time (the book was published in 1726). The silk patches are from recycled clothes, and it is lined with silk from discarded wedding dresses.

I didn't take anywhere near as many photos as I should have, but it was a wonderful day out.
 




8 comments:

Maria said...

Looks like lots of interesting things to see at the fair…
Gorgeous coat.

Ivani said...

Beautiful coat and very interesting spinning machine.
Looks like you had a lot of fun.

Jeanette said...

The Great Wheel being demonstrated came from Canada (as a home decor item) so your article is most appropriate. The other one was made in Tasmania from a drawing of a wheel, the maker never having seen one. It has a few issues.
So much to see at the fair, it was great to get out and about.

Pamela said...

Looks like a gorgeous day. I like the Gulliver coat!

Needled Mom said...

Wow! What a great show! That wheel looks fascinating, but that coat is gorgeous.

Coburgcraftstuff said...

We were there on the Saturday! That silk patchwork coat is just gorgeous. I was the same - forgot to take many photos!

Vivian said...

What a gorgeous "coat of many colors"! Sounds like a great event and a very nice day out.

Diana Studer said...

My MIL had a spinning wheel. I thought it was for decoration, but she told me she had used it. She had a linen tablecloth she had spun and woven herself (in Switzerland)