Craft in the Bay

Hello again! I've been out of touch in deepest darkest Wales. Not really, I've been in highly civilised Cardiff having a lovely time. So lovely that Hubby T and I have decided to retire there. Cardiff has everything I love about Melbourne but with Welsh accents. I admit there are advantages to being married to a UK & EU passport holder, and escaping Melbourne after the next 35 years of climate change is a big one.

High on my list of priorities to visit in Cardiff was Craft in the Bay, the retail space of The Makers Guild in Wales which is the Welsh equivalent of Craft Victoria. (See? Everything I love about Melbourne.)


Craft in the Bay has a gorgeous selection of work from established craftspeople. Yes, I asked permission before taking photos!

I fell in love with the work of Rebecca Raudaschl of RRArtWear, a textile artist creating bags, accessories and tiny collages on greeting cards of which I just had to start a personal collection (mainly because I couldn't afford a bag).

One lovely thing about Craft in the Bay is that it's run on a collective basis and the people working there are the makers themselves. So, when I enthused about the cards I'd bought, the woman behind the counter pointed out maker Rebecca assisting another customer and I was able to tell her in person how much I enjoyed her work! That's always my favourite feature of makers' markets. It is now my life's goal to work at Craft in the Bay. Try to add up how many individual steps I have to take to achieve that.

I can see some similarities in style between Rebecca's work and that of Cas Holmes who I was mad about at the Oad Street Centre (and who is now following this blog - hi!). Am I unexpectedly becoming a collage person? One thing I'm aware of when I really admire someone's work is that they have a genius for art and design which I feel I could never meet, even if I did learn every technique they use. That is intended as a compliment to those I admire. See, I don't even know enough about the techniques these artists have used to distinguish that their styles are in fact very different. I see two people making unique collages and group them together under one heading. Me = not an artist.

In the next few days I'll take some photos of the collage cards I bought so you can see why I liked them. For now, here's Little Jack in front of the Millenium Centre, where Hubby T took him after his shouting practice inside Craft in the Bay.