This weekend the Cool Little Town of Hokitika held its Wool Day.
The event is held in the Heritage Park near the airport in town. Here there are collections of vintage and antique machinery ranging from steam engines to fire trucks. There is also a big collection of sewing machines and looms, a private collection that showcases the industrial textile heritage of the area.
Wool Day is held to showcase the use of wool by local groups such as Creative Fibre, and I took a loom down for people to try weaving, and some of the pieces from the textile collection. Most of the pieces are menswear, made in Aotearoa New Zealand and date from the 1960s through to the 1980s. It was good to hear stories from people who remembered wearing iconic bush-shirts for their work, and about relatives and friends who wove. I had lots of conversations with visitors about wool and what we are planning to do – more about that at a later date – and enjoyed learning about the ways in which New Zealand farmers have bred sheep to suit the conditions in which they live. There was a live demonstration of sheep shearing, and skirting and sorting the shorn fleeces, and, by the end of the day, there was spun yarn from those fleeces being shown.
There are a few of these kinds of events around the country. In May Reefton will be holding its Wool Day. They are always good to attend for the networking opportunities but also to have those chats about the memories people have of the industry. I look forward to learning more and to sharing those stories with you all on the blog.
Leave a Reply