Tea Towel Time with Jane in Support of the Maiwa Foundation

Hey kids, I just wanted to share a wee story, some great news and a great pattern. 

I need to thank all of you for your continued support of JST… we feel so blessed each day when we come to work and see your orders.  Most of the staff continue to work from home but Elizabeth, Sharon and I are in the studio Monday to Friday answering questions and providing continued support to our amazing community. AND because of this support we are so pleased to announce that JST will be making a $5000.00 donation to our favourite charity… The Maiwa Foundation… on behalf of all our customers.

As many of you know, the Maiwa Foundation is very near and dear to my heart. I have had the privilege of travelling to India on three occasions with Charllotte Kwon. Those trips have changed my life in ways I can’t even begin to describe. It was on one of those trips that I met Kathy Marshall from Sabahar… and working with Sabahar has also changed my life in ways I can’t even begin to describe. I know there are thousands of voices that echo my feelings about Maiwa and Charllotte.

Last week I asked Charllotte for an update and how we can help.

With 1.3 billion people, India is one of the most populous nations on Earth. The government implemented a strict 21 day lockdown, with just a few hours notice. Our artisans had to make their way back to their homes as they could, walking long distances as transit services and car traffic were shut down. Everyone remains inside their homes. People are not permitted outside, so travelling to work is out of the question.

Our business relationship with artisans has always been a long-term one and we are in regular contact with many of them. The primary concern for each of the artisans we know is not the difficulty of remaining at home but the uncertainty of the future.

The Maiwa Foundation is marshalling its resources for the uncertain future of craft. We also don’t know what the future holds, but we know it will not be easy. We want to be prepared to help where we are most needed. We know that it will be possible to keep hands on the loom, to keep the dye bath going, to plant organic cotton, to harvest, weave, dye and sew. We trust that you share our optimism and thank you for your continued support

If you would like to make your own personal donation to the Maiwa Foundation or learn more, click here.

So Now for the Towel Story!

Last month I was feeling a tad down in the dumps and realized I needed a project to bite into. I couldn’t settle on anything, kept procrastinating and finally found a picture on the JST Instagram feed that turned out to be a design by my friend Sharon Broadley (Colourwoven). I loved the colours and graphic, asked her if I could use it and all of a sudden I felt grounded again and ready to roll.

I changed the colour and weave sequence, changed the graphic a bit, did a sketch and hit the warping mill running… and then I thought about everyone else out there that might be feeling like I was and decided to try Facebook Live… like really! Apparently there are folks out there waiting for someone to make a warp live on Facebook.

So that is how this started… the next day I dressed a loom… live on Facebook Live and then I threaded it, sleyed it and wove one towel everyday for the next two weeks live on Facebook Live at 1 pm PST.

By the time I was finished it had developed into Tea Towel Time with Jane and we had created a fun, supportive, caring community with hundreds of weavers watching and asking questions.

After everything was woven and hemmed I decided that I would make the pattern available to everyone in our community at a price that anyone could pay… whatever you want :). All proceeds from the sale of the pattern will go to the Maiwa Foundation. So pay whatever you want and get your pattern here.

What will become of those towels you ask? 🙂 We’re going to have a silent auction sometime during the month of June and will let you know about that once we get it all set up.

We have also made these towels into a kit so if you’re hankering to make your own set of towels click here. Please note that I used bits and pieces from my stash in some of the towels and those colours are not included in the kit. There is enough yarn in the kit for 12 towels.

You can still view all of the Tea Towel Time with Jane episodes on the Jane Stafford Textiles FaceBook page. The quality of our live feed was not great because we live in the boonies and have very slow internet… but the banter is fun and there were some great teaching opportunities 🙂

Hope you are all well, always thinking about you.

Love Jane

Tea Towel Time with Jane Kit $89.00 CAD