Pick Up The Unique Art of Weaving From The Mothers Of YWCA’s Empowering Mums Programme

With the ever-changing COVID landscape here in Singapore, most of us have gotten accustomed to searching for new weekend activities to engage in, so as to fill our itch for travel and large in-person events like bazaars and festivals. Instead of heading for another common workshop activity like cooking or painting, why not try your hand at the unique art of weaving?
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The YWCA Weaving Workshop is unlike any other workshop as it blends a unique craft experience with the YWCA Empowering Mums Project — a great community service for mothers from low-income families that help to equip them with life and work skills in order to improve their overall employability.

In collaboration with Lee Foundation and UPS, the YWCA Weaving Programme, an extension to the project, was set up to provide beneficiary mothers with an alternative source of flexible income.

In this programme, the mothers are first trained in the unique art of freeform weaving where they will pick up the skills and knowledge behind the art that they will impart onto others as they conduct the workshops. To date, the YWCA Weaving Programme has helped 9 women from disadvantaged backgrounds find flexible employment opportunities in a safe and welcoming environment. 

What can I expect to pick up from the weaving workshop?

The weaving workshops offer a quiet space for you to pick up this unique craft which features freestyle hand-weaving on a SAORI loom that provides a way for you to create your own style, free from the traditional concept and rules of weaving. This allows for irregularities and variations of weaving by hand to add a special quality to each piece that is created.

You are welcome to experiment freely in this therapeutic craft with different kinds of yarns, textures, colours, and designs, regardless of age, gender, disability or intellectual aptitude. 

How do I sign up for the weaving workshop?

Each session is $120 per person and it is inclusive of all the materials required. To sign up, you can email ywcaent@ywca.org.sg or debralow@ywca.org.sg, or call 6223 1227. For more updates on YWCA’s weaving workshop, click here.

Will there be any other workshops available?

Yes, there are plans to restart the YWCA Noms, a cooking workshop, in November. This programme engages mums from low-income families to conduct cooking workshops, from planning the menu to preparing the ingredients and facilitating the workshops.

 

 


All images courtesy of YWCA Singapore.