During the week we received a lovely message through our Facebook page from Carl who lives in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Carl was born in the UK and moved to Alberta in 1982. Carl told us:

“Thanks to your guys inspiration, and Coronavirus lockdown, I would like to share with you my first embroidery EVER! Cheap Amazon embroidery cotton on Down-prof pillow ticking… have to make do with what you have in the house right now…

I’ve been sewing clothing for almost 40 years, went to fashion design school 25 years ago, but never got around to embroidery. Over the years every time I needed to sew it was on a deadline to make money…so, it just never happened! Now, with the lockdown and being semi-retired, I had the time and a bit of cash spare to give it a go, and this IS my first attempt! I can see where I went a bit astray, but I’ll have to work on technique to do what I wanted to do.”

Now, in lockdown, this is the perfect time to take up hand embroidery or perfect stitches or techniques which you have not managed to do in the past. All you really need is a needle and thread and, for your base fabric, you can use an old tea towel, T-shirt, table cloth — which not only saves you money but perhaps you can reuse an item that was precious to you but no longer fit for it’s original purpose. Why not start by creating your own RSN Postcard From Home to remind you of when you started this beautiful art!

The Crafts Council and partners recently launched its ‘Market for Craft Report’ which is the first report to identify and gauge the appetite for British craft for over a decade. The results reveal “our passion for craft has never been greater — 73% of UK adults had bought craft in 2019 — snapping up almost 25 million handcrafted objects. In a significant shift, almost a third (32%) of today’s buyers are aged under 35 making this demographic the biggest buyer of craft today.”

The Report states: “The maturing of the craft market in the UK can be attributed to a number of wider trends that are likely to accelerate as a result of the pandemic – the rise of e-commerce, investment purchases over throwaway objects, and an interest in sustainability and supporting small businesses”, and the RSN is truly grateful to everyone who has supported us during lockdown, whether that’s been through purchasing items or vouchers from the RSN Online Shop or through continuing your learning with us or taking an Online Day Class for the first time on the other side of the word, which many of you have done!

The report continues, “The current pandemic has highlighted the growing craft trend – the BBC’s Great British Sewing Bee has shifted to a prime-time BBC TV slot and attracts audiences of close to five million, and sellers of craft supplies for the domestic market are seeing a surge in sales. With 20% of British consumers indicating that they would pay to attend a craft workshop, it is no surprise that such a significant number of people are turning to online tutorials and craft kits to learn a new skill while they have more time at home.”

Read the Market for Craft executive summary  or the full report.

The RSN Education team are rolling out new Online Day Classes almost every week so follow us on social media to ensure that you don’t miss your place as they are all selling out!