More Than a Blanket

Hi all,

I don’t usually write Maker’s Journal posts. In fact, I’ve only written one before. It was back in January, when we started the journal.

At the time, I wrote: “We’ve got a lot planned for this year. Proper things. Things we’ve been quietly working on for a while.”

We did have a lot planned. And somehow, we’ve done almost all of it. But this one is particularly special to me.

The Idea

I’ve spent my entire professional career working in creative and fashion. Hiut was the first place I’d worked where I felt I could be proud of the whole process. Not just the finished product, but the way it was made, the quality of what was being made, and the people making it.

The factory wasn’t somewhere far away, disconnected from the people designing, selling and talking about the product. It was right here in Aberteifi. You could walk onto the factory floor. You could see the jeans being cut and sewn. You could speak to the people making them. You could understand the whole thing.

That was a big part of why I fell in love with Hiut. And it made me wonder whether the same idea could go further.

Workshop Wisdom Crefft

Workshop Wisdom Crefft came from that thought. I liked the idea of taking some of what I loved about Hiut — care, skill, good materials and knowing who made something and applying it elsewhere. Working with people who had spent years learning how to make something properly, and giving them the chance to make something useful and beautiful.

That became the idea behind Crefft, the Welsh word for craft. Not simply to celebrate craft from a distance, but to help make it possible

Daniel Harris

Then there is Daniel Harris.

Daniel founded London Cloth Co. and now owns Elvet Mill, where he made the blanket. When I went to visit him, two thoughts came to me almost immediately: This guy really loves weaving. And this guy is a little insane.

Elvet Mill is not an easy place to take on. The converted farmhouse looks as though it is one strong push away from falling over. Around 50 windows need replacing. Flooding is a near-constant threat in winter. And to top it all off, there is no loo.

Then you step inside. It feels like walking back into the late 1890s. Almost every machine looks as though it could have been working when Queen Victoria was still alive. One loom is powered by pedalling. Others have been ingeniously adapted to run on electricity, replacing the water wheel that once sat out back beside the Afon Duad.

Nothing about it is straightforward. And yet Daniel keeps going.

Keeping a place like this alive takes more than an interest in weaving. It takes obsession, ingenuity and a level of determination that is difficult to understand until you see it for yourself. His passion and fortitude beggar belief.

An aside: the Weaver’s Breakfast.

When we visited, Daniel introduced us to his Weaver’s Breakfast: an egg-soaked fried crumpet topped with Brie and bacon, served with really strong coffee. He mentioned a variation involving ginger. That’s for next time.

In many ways, Daniel and Elvet Mill are exactly what I hoped Crefft could be about. Not preserving an old way of making simply because it is old, but finding the people who believe enough in the knowledge, the machinery and the craft to keep it working.

The Blanket

Which brings me to the blanket.

For me, it is probably the clearest expression of what I hoped Crefft could become. The blanket takes that idea and turns it into something real. Something useful, warm and made to be lived with. You can wrap it around yourself, throw it over a bed, or share it with someone else.

It felt like the perfect piece to carry the idea of Crefft.

It was made slowly, using knowledge, skill, heritage and a way of working that deserves to continue. And at the end of that process, you have something beautiful. But you also have something useful.

There is another reason this blanket matters.

Welsh tapestry weaving has been classified as an endangered craft by Heritage Crafts. At one point, more than 300 woollen mills operated across Wales. Today, fewer than 15 remain, and Heritage Crafts identifies just four or five mills with the capacity to weave traditional Welsh tapestry cloth.

Those numbers make you realise how easily a tradition like this can disappear.

So it feels good to know that, in our own small way, Hiut and the people who buy this blanket are helping to keep that knowledge in use. Not just preserving it, but giving someone a reason to keep practising it.

I think that matters.

Because craft is not a buzzword. It is skill, passion and tradition made real. It belongs in everyday life, in things that are used, loved and, hopefully, passed on.

That was always the purpose of Workshop Wisdom Crefft. The blanket just made the idea tangible.

Special thanks

A lot of people helped turn this from an idea into something real.

Johann — for giving it the thumbs up, and for allowing Hiut to grow in the best possible way.

Cally — for making it all happen, and for working so closely with Daniel to bring the blanket to life.

Joe — for making everything look beautiful.

Jasmine, Hugo and Netty — for giving us the perfect place to show the blanket off.

Jane and Holly — for being such great models.

And Daniel — for creating something so beautiful.

And, of course, for breakfast.

Thanks for reading!

Sincerely,
DH

PS.

Wait till you see Crefft Piece - 02.  It's already in the early stages.  Coming next Spring.