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An extraordinary project by a high-profile supporter is changing the lives of male prisoners, starting with teaching them to sew.
Since I remember, sewing has always been a part of my life. Maybe you are depicting the clothes I knit by the cozy fireplace, or maybe my grandmother bends over to make cross-stitch hoops or decorate some napkins. Nothing is far from the truth.
When I was very young, my mother was doing business in the garage below the house, sewing curtains. The sewing room is very small, and the workbench occupies almost the entire space. Once, when I went to visit my mother in the garage, I put my hand on the bench and a handful of hot iron fell to the ground. To this day I have been scarred.
In our house next door, the studio occupies an airy and bright room, which later became a snooker room with a three-quarter-sized table, so dad can be at Grace Bros during lunch time The executive restaurant held a practice competition before the competition. Broadway. The sewing business then expanded in three rooms above the Dee Why suburban store, and then expanded to the Brookville factory.
By this time, my mother was not only making curtains, although there were many more. There are also jelly and booty, cushions and headboards, ties and Roman blinds. Over the years, I have learned how to make counterweight bags and hand-sewn pleats pl. How to measure and cut the fabric, iron the final product and pack it for delivery. There is always work to be done, and a beautiful fabric is always worth admiring.
Women who work with mom are smart stitchers. In their spare time, they sew and crochet plush toys. One day, when I was much older, I was standing on one of the workbenches, and these beautiful women were measuring, pinning and making a fuss on my wedding dress.
That was a lifetime ago. This dress made the marriage lasting. My mother retired from the curtain making industry very early. There is no doubt that the “girls” who worked for her have also retired. But the memory still stays in my mind.
Fast forward to 2014. I am preparing to interview actor and writer Esther Freud (daughter of famous artist Lucian Freud and great-granddaughter of Sigmund Freud) about her new novel Mr. Mike and I, The weekly book column of the online women’s magazine Hoopla. In the process of research, I discovered a series of articles written by Esther about the “fine cell work” of a British charity. Their volunteers went to prisons all over the UK and taught men (because the prison population here is mainly men, because they are men) superb needlework and quilting skills. The founder of the fine work, Lady Anne Tree (Lady Anne Tree) cited the remuneration for these jobs, and the final product finally entered the “top store”.
When I read Esther’s article and appreciate the beautiful cushions and quilts that illustrate the story, the excitement disappeared from my veins. My first thought was: “What if one of these guys decides to make his daughter’s wedding dress?” The past and the present collided.I planted the seeds and it will eventually grow into my novel Tailor at Yalandara Prison.
Fine cell work shows the great power of social enterprise. Through their vision, they created a tool that allows people to learn skills that can be used outside the world in the future. Participants in the program can develop financial independence, improve self-esteem, acquire better anger management skills, and can dream of a different future. Stitching helps to individually fill long-lasting cells, but it also instills hope. Through the soft stitching art, these men’s works prove that beautiful things can come from dark and lonely places.
These men’s handicrafts hang in the Victoria and Albert Museum and Buckingham Palace. Those “top shops” still sell their fabulous cushions, and top designers have collaborated with them to create new works. Fine Cell Work has been growing since 2014, and there is now a post-prison outreach program “Open the Gate” that provides apprenticeships after men are released.
Esther Freud is a patron, and her work is stapler, About Lady Anne Tree’s work in establishing a charity cause, premiered in 2020. Girl with pearl earrings with The final runaway) Is also a patron. After speaking to the men in Wandsworth Prison about sewing, Chevalier conceived the “Sleep Quilt” project. The 63 squares of the sleeping quilt explored the relationship between prisoners and sleep and thoughts about sleep, and produced a book of the same name.
Sadly, in my novel page, it is the only work comparable to Australia’s “Fine Cell Research”. Like opponents in real life, “Connecting Line” brings meaning and purpose to life through stitching, and tries to prove that these people are not just the sum of crimes. Like “fine unit work,” “connecting threads” is ultimately about stimulating hope. Compared with wedding dresses, what is the bigger symbol of hope?
Tailor at Yalandara Prison Products published by Meredith Jaffe, published by HarperCollins, are now available.Our monthly magazine is Man’s end Christina Sweeney-Baird. Go to Booktopia and enter the code “END” at checkout to enjoy a 30% discount off the suggested retail price of US$29.99. And found us in the Sunday Book Club group on Facebook.
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