David Stewart

*Update: Tickets are NOW available for events at the Balvenie Fete. The Miss Whisky session takes place on 15 June at 3pm. Details can be found here and tickets can be bought here.*

When I was a kid, my local community hall hosted something called “Stitch ‘n Bitch” for anyone who was keen on a bit of sewing and gossip. Each year, the group would create a big quilt to raffle off and raise funds for the community, with us kids helping to add our bit of style design when possible.

While it wasn’t monumental – things like this were hosted in many small Canadian towns and I’m sure, English ones too – the coming together of community to create something crafty was, in its small way, a chance to build community spirit and put in public the handiwork that many people would otherwise have kept behind closed doors in the home.

I have always appreciated people who are skilled at creating handmade items. My father had a workshop on our farm and created beautiful woodwork jewelry boxes, cabinets, and more; I use a chopping board in my kitchen that he made back in the early ’90s which is still going strong.

Equally, it’s hard to not admit that times are, of course, changing and have been for a while. We are seeing less and less craft-work as our consumer appetites are satiated with imported clothes, furnishings and electronics. I’m no exception of course. I happily gobble these things up as easily as the next person.

But, I am also very appreciative of well-made items that take individual skill and time due to my childhood exposure to this world. And that’s why I’m a big fan of The Balvenie [...]