From Waste to Wonderful December 6th 2013

Welcome to the last From Waste to Wonderful workshop for 2013. 

Today was bittersweet, enjoying our time together, feeling fulfilled and proud to have completed some beautiful creations while feeling somewhat sad that it would be our last workshop for the year. We also say goodbye to The Hobart Women's Health Centre as our workshop moves to The Salvation Army Hall in Moonah in the new year. 

Many thanks to The Hobart Women's Health Centre for allowing us this wonderful space to meet and create and enjoy some community spirit in such comfortable surrounds. It has been a wonderful place to meet. 

No matter where we gather we will continue to work in the spirit of creation, liberation and community. One of the most fulfilling things to come out of these workshops is that sense of community. It seems this creative collective has opened doors to unexpected things. These workshops not only provide a creative and social outlet, they support women in need. From medical advice, sewing machine repairs, house moving, helping hands, to just popping in for some wool before heading home, a network of support has evolved. 

Many of the women attending these workshops are recently settled Asylum seekers from Ethiopia, Bhutan, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Iran, Indonesia and Burma. The sharing of skills, stories and meals for these women and the Australian volunteers has been an important and fulfilling melding of cultures and support.  

I think it's safe to say that anyone attending these workshops whether its every week, every now and then, or even just the once, feels safe and cared for and like something special is happening. 

This week, being the last week, we focused on finishing up our projects but mostly our bags! From Waste to Wonderful was happy to announce that everyone was welcome to create a bag to be displayed at the Resource Collectables shop in Hobart. Some bags will be for sale with the proceeds going back into keeping From Waste to Wonderful running. If you would like to see some great things, hand-made by some great women in the community, head on down to Collectables, 117 Elizabeth Street, 12th - 26th December. 

Thanks again to all the volunteers and artists that keep this collective running. Its such an amazing and inspiring venture. I can't wait for next year! 

 

 

 

 

Thanks again to the Resource Work Cooperative for providing materials and space at The Collectables Shop to display our wonderful creations! 

 

 

 

 

From Waste to Wonderful will be continuing next year at the Salvation Army Hall, at the back of 73 Hopkins Street, Moonah - 10am to 2:30pm Thursdays and 1pm to 4:30pm Fridays, from January 16th. 

All welcome! 

From Waste to Wonderful 29th November 2013

Another Friday another inspiring start to the weekend for the women attending From Waste to Wonderful!

This was the second last workshop before summer holidays so it was a busy day for everyone wanting to get their tasks finished up. With so many exciting and beautiful projects near completion the energy was high and the helping hands were in full swing. 

 

 

While the women got stuck into their work in the work room the kitchen was filling with the delicious smell of fresh veges baking. When we finally broke for lunch we were treated to mountain of hot baked veges, fruit salad and yummy sweet little cakes. 

 Once again the hard work of the day was punctuated with the cuddling of babies! 

By the end of the day we were all delighted to experience the fruition of each others ideas with the completion of many projects. Some of these projects were weeks in the making with some skillful knitting and the squishing and rolling of wool into felt. And, of course, all that material donated by the Resource Work Co-Operative was lovingly and skilfully sewed into beautiful bags and skirts. 

Many thanks to all the women who make this workshop possible, and to all the women who come along each Friday to share their skills, stories and smiles. 

See you all next week! 

From Waste to Wonderful Thanks Gay Hawkes

Gay Hawkes is a talented and generous Tasmanian artist who is often found sharing her skills with the community. 

From Waste to Wonderful was proud to have Gay facilitating workshops, sharing her passion and skills. She enabled and encouraged women's freedom of expression whilst firing up their passion for all things beautiful. 

Sadly Gay could not continue with workshops due to illness but lucky for us Hanna Parssinen, another fantastic and inspiring Hobart artist, has been able to step into Gay's shoes. 

We would love to thank Gay Hawkes for her commitment to getting From Waste to Wonderful off the ground and leaving behind a legacy of freedom to create and share. 

From Waste to Wonderful November 22nd 2013

From Waste to Wonderful women's making co-op enjoyed another fruitful Friday creating and learning at the Hobart Women's Health Centre. Women from all walks of life, local and international, came together to talk, teach, learn and co-operate. 

Once again The Women's centre was a hive of activity as women chatted, sewing machines buzzed, knitting needles clattered and felt was squished in the sunshine.

Its clear to see this cooperative has quickly become a place of respite for the women who come along each week. Its a place where women from all walks of life can join with like-minded people, relax, learn and feel part of the community. Volunteers make sure to provide women with a safe and welcoming space to explore their creativity, meet new people and learn new skills. 

Last week we welcomed a new face, Gwen, who came to her first workshop at the Women's Health Centre. We were delighted to hear the workshop had such a positive impact for her. 

"I have only been in Tassie for 18 months and one of the first coffee places I went to ( and still go to) is the Raincheck lounge. I go there as much as I can and I have always said to myself that I should go in to the Women's centre and see what they do there. Well, the time finally came during struggles with personal issues. I was reminded of the woman's centre.  

Hanna politely greeted when I walked into the centre, then invited me into the room where a group of woman had gathered to make bags out of scraps of donated materials for the recycle market.  My Oma makes the best handbags and I love to learn new craft, so I thought , why not? 

Well, I have never felt or even dreamed of what it would be like to feel liberated as a woman.  It was a gentle calmness with kiddies and babies trotting around. Everyone was very welcoming. Annie and I spent most of the time together while she was teaching me and chatting away. Hanna showed me her skills, it was so beautiful to see someone so sharing and patient.  We shared lunch and I spoke to other ladies that had also been there that day. All of them relaxed and open to share.


When I woke up that day, I did not expect myself to meet so many woman and walk away feeling liberated.  Thank you to every one of the ladies and children that were there that day. You all made a difference in my life just by sharing. That was all it took for me to find another part of myself that had been dormant for so long.  I look forward to seeing those ladies again"

Welcome Gwen! We hope this co-op continues to give women like Gwen a space to feel safe, welcome and liberated! 

Gwen and Annie

Gwen and Annie 

Mothers are welcomed and treated to a space that allows for their little ones to explore and play while they work on their projects. Affection lavished on the little ones, by all the women at the Centre, makes for some beautiful moments.

We all thoroughly enjoy breaking for a meal together! This allows us time to swap stories and have a breather before continuing on with projects. Each week food is donated and cooked by generous volunteers. We eat, chat and get to know each other before getting back to work. 

Women make use of fabrics, wool and tools donated generously by The Resource Work Cooperative and Ourplace volunteers. Fabrics are lovingly and creatively reused or recycled and by the end of the day everyone has something to show for all their hard work. 

Beautiful colourful Patchwork

We're all looking forward to the next workshop this coming Friday, 29th November. All welcome! A huge thanks to all the volunteers and women who keep From Waste to Wonderful running. It couldn't be done without you!