A crafty, tactile taste of Japan

FOR decades, Morgan Wills travelled to Japan to explore and purchase unique stock for her shop, The Crafty Squirrel.

Six years ago, she decided to not only bring these craft goodies back to Ballarat, but take a group of her clients on trips straight to the source for a tactile taste of the creative culture.

“I ran tours twice a year, taking some of my customers to my favourite places in Japan, and we did different workshops. It was a huge success,” she said.

“In 2020, we were two weeks off leaving for a booked-out tour when the whole thing got cancelled because of COVID.

“I decided, if we couldn’t go to Japan, which was still closed to tourism, then maybe I could do Japanese workshops in Ballarat, and pretend we’re on tour in Japan.”

The Crafty Squirrel’s next local Japanese retreat will be held at the Mercure Ballarat from Sunday, 22 to Tuesday, 24 May, and is a celebration of the culture, craft, and food of Japan.

The series of workshops include Japanese bookbinding with tutoring from Paperazzi Design Studio’s Michelle Lackenby, Sashiko stitching and bag-making, and Japanese-themed screen-printing with Nicola Cerini.

“If we were in Japan, we’d also be doing a lot of shopping, going to flea markets and things, so my local take on that is to do a bit of a shopping tour in Ballarat, with a visit to the Mill Markets for vintage things,” Ms Wills said.

With a few spare spots left, she encourages locals to express interest in taking part in the retreat if they’re simply interested in craft and love to make things.

“It’s a fantastic all-inclusive experience, and a very unusual thing in Ballarat,” Ms Wills said.

Visit thecraftysquirrel.com.au to register, or go into the shop on the corner of Urquhart and Errard streets, Ballarat Central.