The Spectacular Spring WI Rag Market - the Waterfront Hall
Saturday 27th April 2022
Entry £2 for all locations, crafty under-16s FREE
10.30am - 4pm
The Rag Market, organised by Hebden Bridge WI, returns to the Town Hall, Northlight Studio and The Making Mill.
Twice a year, Hebden Bridge WI hosts a fabulous Rag Market with stalls at The Town Hall, Northlight Studio and The Making Mill on Valley Road.
Rag Market organiser Val, from HBWI explains:
“What’s on earth is a rag market?” we hear you cry. Well, it’s definitely not a place to sell old rags: in fact, it’s a traditional term for a textile market.”
“Our Hebden Bridge Rag Market is becoming well known amongst textile fans and crafters in Calderdale and beyond. With the continuing trend for ‘make do and mend’ and the rise in the popularity of homemade furnishings and clothing (thanks to programmes like The Great British Sewing Bee and Kirstie’s Homemade Home), there’s never been a better time to brush up on old crafting skills or learn new ones. And our Rag Market is the perfect place to find the tools and materials to get started.”
“Hebden Bridge WI Rag Market is being held on Saturday 27th April in both the Town Hall and Northlight Studios, with additional stalls at the The Making Mill on Valley Road. The Rag Market is a twice-yearly event run by Hebden Bridge WI to raise funds for our Charity of the Year which this year is Mothershare Halifax. It also pays for an Educational Bursary which is offered to members of the Hebden Bridge Branch in keeping with the Women’s Institute’s aims in providing women with educational opportunities and the chance to build new skills.”
“Our Rag Market has to be the perfect place to source not only a bargain but original and quality crafting, dressmaking and tailoring materials buttons, ribbons, yarn, vintage pieces, patterns, books, and anything else you could possibly need to inspire your creativity! Many of the fabrics are vintage, one-offs and from private collections, so you can pick up many items that are not available in the shops for amazing prices. Our stallholders are generally crafters themselves, reluctantly selling items from a treasured hoard that has become too large to store, but some of our regular stallholders also include local small businesses selling beautiful (Yorkshire!) woven wool tweeds and plaid fabrics and a ceramicist selling unique and unusual handcrafted ceramic buttons.”
The next Rag Market will be on Saturday 27th April, split across three venues where you can find more textile bargains than ever before, and the ever-popular WI cake stall. There is a small entry fee that gets you into all three venues and the proceeds fund the WI’s educational bursary, speakers, and the charity of the year. For up-to-date information, follow HBWI on Facebook or Twitter.