Guest blog post by Annette Woolley, Textiles Student at Liberties College

This contemporary twist on the traditional 17th and 18th-century cultural tour of Italy recently saw three women of a certain age, aka ‘The Brescia Babes’, aka Textile Students of the mature type, undertake a whistle-stop adventure, desperately seeking sustenance with an artistic slant.

This is a short tale of how we managed to blag an all-expenses-paid trip and what we got up to while taking in the sights, experiencing the culture, being inspired, and making creative connections of the woolly kind.

It all started last Autumn, when we started the ‘Heritage Textiles & Craft Revival & Renewal Course‘ at Liberties College Dublin. Our class numbered about a dozen ladies, all with a fetish for felt, wool, threads and ribbons (except for one extremely talented young man), all with different levels of experience or expertise from zero to hero! With the promise of learning how to appreciate art, weave, embroider, wet, needle or Nuno felt, fabric manipulation, appliqué, ceramics, drawing, design skills or developing customer service or gaining relevant work experience, we set off together on a journey that led to new skills, outlooks, and lasting friendships with a bunch of likeminded people, with a passion for crafting.

But whilst that itself was worth the mere €50 a year fee (includes all materials and no books needed), not to mention getting your Student LEAP card (a travel card for non-Irish readers)! Lo and behold, we get told about the chance to go on an Erasmus Programme.

Now, most people think this is what young students do, backpacking across Europe on the pretence of a learning opportunity. But guess what, even the young at heart can apply once they have their student card in their pocket. Plus, there’s no heavy lifting involved – unless you count the duty-free bags on the way home.

All we had to do was write a short paragraph on why we thought we should go and what we hoped to get out of it. I won’t lie, one of us is extremely technophobic, and I distinctly remember the three of us sitting in the Chester Beatty library after a class outing, with 10 minutes to go before the deadline, trying to write and submit her application and literally sending it with seconds to go. We hoped but didn’t expect to get selected, but if you’re not in, you can’t win!

Anyway, in the end, one of us got picked alongside eight other students from different courses, and while we were delighted for her, if we’re being honest, we were slightly disappointed, nay weljel? No, actually raging. (Editor’s note: For readers outside of Ireland, ‘raging’ means jealous or angry).

But as the saying goes, what’s meant for ya won’t pass you, and a few weeks later, myself and herself got a call out of the blue saying that more funding had become available, and there were spots for us if we still wanted them. I mean, as if we’d turn it down. After all this was, although technically not a free holiday as we did have to commit to “working” in a textile-related organisation, but our flights, accommodation, insurance were all arranged and paid for, plus we got an ample allowance to cover food, internal transport, entrance fees to museums, etc.

So, let’s cut to the chase, at the beginning of May, twelve students, including us wise women, travelled to Brescia, a beautiful city in Lombardy.

During our two weeks there, despite having to “go to work” ( you all know that crafting isn’t working; it’s playing with wool), we had ample time to travel by train to Venice, Verona, Milan, Bergamo, Lake Garda and Iseo. We explored our host town too and crammed in castles, cathedrals, amphitheatres, museums and art galleries. Needless to say, our step count was pretty high, but so too was the abundance of beautiful frescoes, amazing architecture and scenery that inspired the masters. We swam in Italian lakes, we ate homemade gelato, we conversed with the natives and made many, many magical memories.

But back to textiles! On our second day (the first was spent on a speedboat on the lake drinking Prosecco), we discovered wonderful local fabric stores, second-hand shops, and haberdasheries and filled our arms with wool, embroidered fabrics, buttons and beads, and vintage crochet. We’d worry about our luggage allowance when the time came.

On the fourth day ( this sounds a bit biblical), we started our work placement at the wonderful Viva Vittoria. We had no idea what to expect. We had no Italian, just Google Translate on our phones, and to be honest, between the three of us, we had no skills in the knitting and crocheting department. So, uh ohh, guess what? This non-profit organisation is all about woolly squares. What to do?

Well, considering that the crux of Viva is to raise awareness and funds for local domestic violence groups by creating or facilitating the creation of thousands of 50x50cm personalised woollen squares, which are then stitched together into blankets for display and sale in a prominent city attraction—think Dublin Castle courtyard—we felt slightly guilty about not being able to contribute enough during our placement.

But they also have a permanent drop-in hub, which at first glance is a free space to learn the crafts of knitting or crochet, but is actually at its heart a safe place. It’s somewhere that anyone experiencing domestic abuse can go for respite, comfort, advice, or just to spend time focusing on creating and not on whatever worries await back at home. It’s like knitting with your nonnas. It’s amazing how sharing a skill, a biscuit or a laugh with a group of people who don’t judge, who understand and who will be there for you if and when you need them can make all the difference.

The group was established in 2015 in Brescia and was gifted the small but snug hub space in what used to be the city’s courthouse. Now, as part of the local authority’s commitment to its cultural community, the space is a creative venue housing music, art, and theatre outlets. Since its inception, its vision has spread across Italy, Europe, and even Australia, raising 1.6 million euros to date.

So you can understand why we felt a responsibility to do our bit. Margaret and Mary Ivell were able to be taught, or should I say, revive the skills from childhood, with the patient and expert guidance of the volunteers, and were soon on their way to creating a square. I, on the other hand, well, perimenopause, despite the HRT, has left my brain at a disadvantage. It’s basically on a go-slow, and I embarrassingly couldn’t grasp the basics. But I couldn’t just sit there and twiddle my thumbs, so the next day, even with a language barrier, I decided to teach hand weaving to anyone who wanted to learn. We improvised using books or box lids as mini looms, and over the six three-hour sessions, I passed on the craft to over a dozen women and girls. Using photos of my college work to show what could be achieved using the same techniques and stitches, and also using materials I’d sourced locally, such as magnetic fasteners, we made woven jewellery. By the end of our time, some of the volunteers I had taught were passing on the craft to others.

We could have been content with knowing that we’d done our bit, but the concept of Viva Vittoria is so wonderful, we are hoping to bring the project to Ireland. We’ve done initial research, approached Liberties College to come on board and are keeping our fingers crossed that enough crafty likeminded people with a passion for textiles and a compassion for the survivors of domestic violence will join us in our mission to raise funds, awareness and create safe spaces like the Viva Vittoria hub at home here in Ireland.

As for the Grand Tour itself, now that involved a lot of local wine, getting lost a little (some more than most but I’m not naming names and sure that’s were the adventure lies), plenty of bellisimo food, and some Irish Craic ( the young wans couldn’t keep up with us!) “What happens in Italy stays in Italy”-joke! We are women of a certain age, who are living la dolce vita, but have husbands waiting for us at home. This wasn’t a Shirley Valentine movie, but real Erasmus life.

The moral of this story is you are never too old to learn new things, say yes to opportunities even if they are out of your comfort zone, be brave enough to travel even if it’s on your own, and sometimes there is such a thing as a free lunch.

Please contact Annette by email at annette.woolley1@gmail.com

If you are interested in getting involved in the Viva Vittoria initiative in Ireland, or you want more information about the Textiles programme at Liberties College, we would love to hear from you.

More information about the Liberties College course that Annette, Margaret, and Mary Ivell were part of can be found on the school’s website – https://libertiescollege.ie/courses/textiles-heritage-craft-revival-and-renewal/

More information about Viva Vittoria is here on their website – https://www.vivavittoria.it/en/what-is-viva-vittoria/

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