Textiles - Creative Arts Safaris textile tours

I have been gathering little bits of vintage Vietnamese stitching for years, I say gathering rather than buying because I never set out wanting to buy anything.

BUT it is a great way of “helping the local economy” especially when I am dealing directly with the person who will benefit from my spending.

So… I have all these fine examples of traditional work,

I hate the idea of them being consigned to a cupboard and forgotten, with that in mind I appliqued a strip of Blue H’mong batik/patchwork/embroidery onto a pair of pants- they are a great teaching aid when talking about building complexity from simple elements and the strips are so loved they are now attached to their third pair of pants.

I still have a whole heap of other bits and pieces and the idea of some type of book started years ago, really years!

Proud to say it is taking shape with samples from the people I most often encounter on my travels.

I think a book will be a pleasant way to share these treasures, I don’t have enough wall space for another hanging.

A book also screams touch me, feel me, swoon over me…. OK – I am a bit keen on textiles.

Taking the time to stitch these pieces in my book I have actually learnt a whole lot more of their construction and in my mind their swoonability has increased, the richness of the work is wonderful.

It is an idea I am going to pursue further- a whole library looms.

I have started the pages for Morocco….I am not clear yet but think it will be more a series of postcards compiled into a cloth book…sometimes you just have to start something and see where it leads you.

I have pieces to work on for Gujarat…. Rajasthan I could create a whole library not just a book…..

Romania I made a little pouch out of cloth I embroidered – not on the correct scale, I admit but I couldn’t see well enough to get that right.

Ghana I need to come up with something with beads as well as cloth- the wealth of vibrant crafts there are bold.

All this just pushes me to be more creative in presentation, I guess.

Check our calendar for dates and details.

I've been on tour with Creative Arts Safaris to India and Vietnam. Both trips were wonderful, exciting experiences. I was introduced to amazing places, people and food. Meeting the makers and learning how cloth and paper "have always been made, Madam" were memorable visits. I thoroughly recommend tours with Creative Arts Safaris.

Dawn Thompson

2024-08-13

I'm not a tour person but the Rajasthan tour I did with Fiona in 2013 was just magic. The pace was just right allowing time to stitch things we had seen but I was also doing natural dye samples along the way on a 10m scroll of silk. Days in the Fort drawing and talking to the local people were very precious. The colours and fabrics of Rajasthan shine in a light similar to Australia, so I felt captivated. Indigo, natural dyes, chemical dyes, carpet weaving, beading, kantha stitch are now parts of my textile lexicon. Thank you, Fiona.

Alison Huskins

2024-07-22

I have been travelling on Creative Arts Safari tours for many years. The detail and execution of these tours has always been exceptional and the tour destinations are carefully researched. I will continue to explore new destinations with this highly competent organisation.

Leonie Norton

2024-07-17

Travel with Fiona and Praveen if you travel with the heart open to the unexpected sacred spaces of the world, or to experience the warm-hearted welcome of people who live their lives with quiet grace in environments different from those at home; if you yearn to know how a place has been affected by its history, by political forces, or even by the weather; or if you love the hustle and bustle of ancient marketplaces and the thrill of a good bargain. Maybe you want to meet women who have found empowerment through traditional art, craft, and skill, or to delve into the poetic soul of a place. And, of course, you want to have good conversation over a glass of wine and good food from the region. If you travel because you want to be changed, or because you want to be reminded of the thread of good that connects the world, even in times of chaos, travel with Fiona and Praveen. You will not regret it.

P.D. Crumbaker

Glorious Ghana was a fabulous adventure with Fiona. We explored the textiles and beautiful crafts of a very welcoming country. Thank you so much Fiona

Donna Elswick

2024-07-16