Tuesday 28 July 2009

Craft goes pop...

... at the Midland Railway in Butterley! aka the home of the Indietracks happening once a year, where Fabric Nation teamed up with Printed Wonders to run a bunting making party in the indietracks workshop wigwam.
Indietracks is a delightful music festival run in the grounds of a railway museum. It's been going for just a few years and is a lovely, perfect small celebration of all things indiepop. This year, for the first time, they included a workshop wigwam. We zoomed up the M1 on Saturday morning, pitched our tent and arrived just in time to meet the lovely Alice and transform the workshop wigwam into a bunting world.
With stacks of felt, sequins, buttons and teacakes on hand, we spent a fab afternoon with indie bunting makers. We were thrilled by all the lovely designs and bunting love, most especially, the girls who made birthday bunting for their friend and later met her off the steam train and wrapped her round in it!
The workshop wigwam was buzzing with creativity all weekend. As soon as we scooped up our pins and needles, Tatty Devine took over with a jewellery making session, helping indie campers create jewellery out of campsite finds. There were lots of train tracks and choo choo whistles being transformed into necklaces. We loved Alice's train track necklace.
Tatty Devine also where they were selling fab indietracks jewellery, including a bunting necklace, which of course we had to have!
Later on we joined Hey Ho Let's Sew to make felt and fabric corsages, really simple but effective designs and endless possibilities.
Here's Alison showing how to make a felt corsage, and Xtina modelling one she made.
It was lovely to meet the Craft Guerrilla's too. They run crafteroons in East London and had made a felt cassette brooch kit specially for the festival. I wish Walthamstow was a bit nearer to South London as their craft events look really good fun.
These scenes were typical of the weekend in the workshop wigwam. Everyone into whatever they were making and really enjoying it.
The craftiness was rounded off with a crochet and knitting that sprang out of the Buttons for Eyes portable workshop.
We also met Rachel from Kathleen and Lily, their shop is named after their nans! I loved their bingo earrings.
Even the indie popsters were getting in on the craft act, including this handmade CD cover stitched in felt from Little My.
We had such a lovely time, and I've not even told you about the steam trains, old buses, choo choo whistles, singing 'love is in the air' with a spainish popster, chatting with bar tenders about cheeky ales, riding steam trains, doing the indie dance with MJ Hibbett, dancing on the tracks, the happy express, tents with doors, sipping beers in old train carriages, guitars between the pews, falling asleep to boys singing 'we are the pipettes', and lots and lots of photos of vintage formica! Oh, and there was music too! More to come soon...

5 comments:

Valerie said...

Love your commentary and photos - really makes me wish I'd been there, creating and having fun!!

Top bird said...

This looks like so much fun. My mate went to Indie Tracks on the weekend. xx

Anonymous said...

Sounds like you had a great time and it looks like the weather was good to you. Wish I had been there! Xx

Fabric Nation said...

Thanks everyone, it was lots of fun. Wish I could go back sooner than next year! Lots more to post about it yet, I could write a book about the formica!

Fabric Nation said...

Guardian feature here - http://www.guardian.co.uk/travel/2009/jul/29/festivals-uk-indietracks-pop?page=all