KEEP IT LO CAL E V E N T AT H AW LE Y GARDE N C E N TRE
KEEP IT LOCAL EVENT AT HAWLEY GARDEN CENTRE
By Anne Marriner
We are delighted to announce a partnership with Hawley Garden Centre to offer you an exciting range of locally hand-made gifts and treats. There is a whole raft of reasons why people start hand-making things for themselves, their families and their friends. And the bug can bite most of us at some stage in our lives. Craft skills contribute £3.4 billion to the UK economy. Some high-value crafts lend themselves to technological innovation, for example glass blowers are creating moulds for bio-engineered organs, but most in the sector are not so newsworthy. Nevertheless, en bloc, these cottage industries amount to a significant body of artistic talent.
The Keep it Local group is made up of workers from across the entire working age spectrum….and beyond. Some are driven by the need of income; students, perhaps in an artistic environment trying to supplement their income, Mums and Dads saving for a family holiday, those who have some spare time to fill and the retired who are keen to keep their parent’s skills alive. Others have artistic vision which clamours to be materialised. There are lots of reasons why crafters develop their skills, but all have one thing in common – they make things because they enjoy the creative process. From conception, through the design stage to completion, all of these people have very special, unique pieces of work to offer and are in turn rewarded by the simple pleasure of creating either something useful or a piece of art to be proud of. Keep it Local was set up in 2012 to bring the South East’s astounding group of crafting talent together. Amongst our association, some have workshops and studios, some work in a spare bedroom and some work on their kitchen table or sofa in front of the TV. Some have full-time careers in other
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sectors, others have made the craft industry their full-time occupation. Their skills range covers the whole spectrum of the crafting world – the list is endless. Where we shop can say a lot about who we are and our sense of style, but our destination also needs to be a relaxing place to go, offering attractive, good quality food and merchandise. The Keep it Local team are well known for delivering an event which is all this and more besides. If you want an unpressurised stroll to see high quality, good value and a huge variety of Kent produced goods - give this Keep it Local event a try! You won’t see any traders or “tat”! In supporting our stallholders, you’ll not only be helping to ensure the continuity of the hand-crafting skills we have in the UK, but you can also hear from the maker about the thought behind the design and buy a positively unique item as a beautiful gift or treat for yourself. Keep it Local Crafts at Hawley will be held between 10-4pm from Friday 7th February to Sunday 9th. Admission and parking are free and, in case you’re tempted, bring cash as not everyone can accept cards.