With over 70 booths, this 4-day "lana," or wool, exposition was recently hosted in the heart of Santiago at Club Providencia. Considering the fact that I've spent the last couple months trying to track down the best wool sources in Chile for my internship, it was quite impressive seeing so many related organizations and companies in one location. It normally requires a lot of time and energy to discover, locate, and arrange to meet with such specialized groups, but this very organized and professional event made it easy. From artisanal yarns and weaving looms to hand-made clothing and funky accessories, products covered a wide range. Several booths also held on-going hands-on demonstrations for the public. In addition, there was no lack of creative vendors, many representing small, family-run enterprises, eager to share their stories.
The quantity of booths with products related to felt particularly surprised me; never before had I realized that felt is actually derived from wool. As reflected by the items at the event, felt is actually quite a versatile product and can be molded into decorative balls, flowers, hats etc. Some gorgeous yak, alpaca, and llama yarns also caught my attention.
The event also featured several educational workshops and talks with titles like "Dying Wools," "How to Spin Your Own Wools," and "The Healing Power of Weaving."
For more information visit the event web-page at:
Looms for Sale
the machine pictured below is used to separate dreadlocks of crude or unprocessed wool, making it soft and preparing it for spinning or felt-work
Felt "Sewing Machine"
punches lots of tiny holes through colored felt pieces, permanently bonding them to a background cloth
Booths & Yarns
"Vestido de Novia," A Wool Wedding Dress!
Bags
Outside Club Providencia
...check out the mountains in the background at sunset (hard to capture on camera, but amazing in real life)
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.