Say it With Stitch GY is a Great Yarmouth-based Craftivism project, founded by 2018, exploring local and global environmental issues through (recycled) textile arts. It’s led by Rachel Harrison, Carol Desborough, Clare Southern, Clare Atherton and I. We host regular workshops in Norfolk, which are often free to take part in – upcoming sessions, projects and updates can be found below
As of October 2020, Say It With Stitch GY is based at PRIMEYARC, a creative spaced based in the ex-Debenhams department store within Market Gates Shopping Centre, Great Yarmouth run by originalprojects;
You can follow Say It With Stitch GY on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram or using the hashtag #SayItWithStitchGY
Craftivism (craft + activism) is a worldwide movement which incorporates gentle activism with craft, specifically sewing and textile arts. Betsy Greer, who coined the term in 2003, describes Craftivism as “a way of looking at life where voicing opinions through creativity makes your voice stronger, your compassion deeper & your quest for justice more infinite”
The Great Yarmouth-based Say It With Stitch GY project champions environmental causes which are relevant to the local area. The aim is to raise awareness of issues, such as marine pollution and litter, through positive and inspirational mediums. The project is delivered through pop-up workshops around Great Yarmouth and wider Norfolk
EVENTS & WORKSHOPS
16th March 2022
We’re delighted to be back at Norfolk Makers Festival at The Forum, Norwich for another year. This year, we’ll be running a free drop-in workshop called ‘Patches & Droplets’. Find out more on our Facebook event. As well as taking part in our activity, we’ll also have some hand-made items for sale on our stall to raise funds for out activities
8th March 2022
We have been invited by Norfolk Libraries Service/Norfolk Record Office to facilitate a free textiles workshop for International Women’s Day on Wednesday 8th March. The free event will happen at Great Yarmouth Library from 12pm to 2pm. If you’d like to attend, please complete the booking link
The workshop is part of the ‘Stitching Our Stories’ project. Stitching Our Stories is an Arts Council-funded project by Norfolk Libraries and artist Connie Flynn to make a protest banner demanding an end to violence against women, inspired by the long history of the creation of textiles by women as protest. The banner will be on display in Great Yarmouth Library from Friday 18th February to Tuesday 8th March 2022
19th & 20th February 2022
Come along to the originalprojects; jumble sale weekend on 19th and 20th February. Take part in our free #ShowTheLove green heart sewing workshops on the Saturday
13th November & 13th December 2021
Join us at our pop-up workshops creating environmentally sustainable festive gifts and decorations. We’ll be running 2 workshops at PRIMEYARC, Market Gates Shopping Centre, Great Yarmouth. This is where we’ve been based for the past year
The first one – Saturday 13th November – will be an opportunity to have a go at recycled rag wreath making from textile scraps. The second one – Saturday 11th December – will include felt-making from natural wool. At both, you’ll be able to create your own Craftivist-inspired eco patch, from repurposed fabrics and embellishments, to wear with pride!
Drop-in from 12:30pm to 4pm. All activities are free but we ask that you make a £3 donation for taking part, if you’re able to. As well as developing your craft skills, you can gather inspiration for making or re-making gifts from scraps and natural materials – Save money and the planet!
18th & 19th September 2021
We have been commissioned to run ‘Roaming Craftivists’ at Out There Festival 2021, in partnership with We Wear The Trousers. You’ll catch us on the weekend of 18th & 19th September roaming up and down Regent Road in Great Yarmouth with our craftivist trolley stuffed with sewing tools and tricks. We’ll help you to perform street repairs on your clothing, through creating your own bespoke hand-stitched patches using repurposed materials. Get inspired to recycle, repurpose and refresh your clothing. It’s also #SecondHandSeptember, so there is loads of current inspiration online for getting into sustainable fashion!
Find out more on the Out There Festival website
Summer/Autumn 2021
We’ve linked up with a new creative project: Stitches For Survival – Mass-craftivism to put the Earth centre-stage at COP26. We’re building on our core values at Say It With Stitch GY, creating recycled textile interventions that speak about our environment and climate
For our 12 panels – contributing to 1.5 miles of national craftivist creativity – we’ll be exploring the experience, threat and impact of the rising sea level here in Great Yarmouth
Spring/Summer 2021
During Lockdown in 2020/21, we kept connected with our group through taking part in the 999 Call for the NHS ‘Threads of Survival’ quilt project. At our respective homes, we created patches reflecting on our experience of Lockdown and the COVID-19 situation. The patches include designs on gardening, new headlines, vaccine statistics, and the small moments of joy
From August 2021, our quilt will be touring with the national quilts. Details about this can be found on the 999 Call for the NHS website and social media
September 2020
We put SIWS on-hold during COVID-19 lockdown as it was not safe for us to have our regular meet-ups in Great Yarmouth. We are now looking into how we can reconnect in autumn/winter 2020…
February 2020
We’ll be back at Norfolk Makers Festival for the second year. On Friday 14th February, we’re running a drop-in from 11:15am to 2pm at Great Yarmouth Library and on Friday 21st February, we’ll be at The Forum, Norwich from 10am to 4pm
November 2019
From 19th to 23rd November, we’re hosting Materials Matters, a textile arts exhibition at Skippings Gallery, Great Yarmouth. Exploring the environmental impact of the fashion and textile industries
As part of the programme, take part in a Dare to Dream stitching workshop. The #DareToDream project was created by Sarah Corbett of Craftivist Collective for Heritage Open Days 2019. The workshop costs £2 and tickets are on sale at Mermaid Quay craft shop, King Street, Great Yarmouth.
September 2019
We’re running a free bookable workshop on Friday 20th September from 1pm to 2:30pm, as part of the Rows of Great Yarmouth Exhibition at Skippings Gallery in Great Yarmouth and as part of Norfolk Heritage Open Days 2019. The workshop is now fully booked!
Come and reflect on what local changemakers from history achieved to inspire you to dream up the future you want to see, and consider how you can play a role in making it happen. There will be a series of ‘crafter-thought’ questions to help you dream up your vision for change as you stitch your message about the world you wish to live in – onto an ethically-sourced fabric dream cloud. Follow the project across the UK using the hashtag #DareToDream
July 2019
Join us on Monday 1st July from 10am to 2pm on Great Yarmouth beach. We’ll be stitching environmental messages and designs onto an upcycled windbreaker using recycled materials. We’ll meet at Munchies beach café at 10am before going down to one of the beach huts which we’ll be working from for the day
May 2019
We led a pop-up mini-banner making workshop at Chillspot youth club for young people in Great Yarmouth, led by MAP Mancroft Advice Project
February 2019
- Thursday 14th February 10:30am-12:30pm at Great Yarmouth Library: Show Your Love: Thoughtful Textiles Session – free drop-in stitching session
- Saturday 23rd February 10am-4pm at Norfolk Makers Festival, The Forum Norwich – free drop-in mini-banner making session. Find out more
October 2018
Join us on Monday 1st October from 10:30am to 12:30am at St George’s Theatre café, Great Yarmouth for a free drop-in workshop – free, including all materials!
July-August 2018
Exhibition 160 at Skippings Gallery, 133 King Street will host a #SayItWithStitchGY drop-in. The exhibition is open from Saturday 28th July until Friday 3rd August, 10am to 4pm
June 2018
This month, we are very pleased to announce that we have been awarded funding from Norfolk County Council’s Arts Project Fund for #SayItWithStitchGY! The funding will be used for materials and costs for our pop-up workshops and events.
April-May 2018
Artwork and textile provocations from the #SayItWithStitchGY project will feature in ‘Space a Waste’ exhibition at Skippings Gallery, King Street, Great Yarmouth from Tuesday 24th April to Tuesday 1st May. Plus, drop-in to a weekend of mini-banner making activities on Saturday 28th and Sunday 29th April at Skippings Gallery. Create a Craftivism-inspired mini-banner for only £3!