22 Jul The Lilac Crane – craft & decor shop with heart
The Lilac Crane is a stunning craft, gift and decor shop located in the heart of Nottingham Road. This store is an absolute treasure stocking such a unique selection of locally sourced and crafted goods. The owner has a real eye for choosing beautiful crafts that are different, unique and of high quality. When you enter the store you can immediately tell that they love local, with many of their products having an African flavor while using a lot of Eco-friendly and up-cycled materials. They use fibres crafted from natural materials from the area so the products are unique to the Midlands Meander.
They are very passionate about supporting and uplifting local communities and many local crafters use this store to showcase and sell their artwork. This makes us all the more happy to support them and shop to our heart’s content.
Lilac Crane’s products are beautifully crafted with care and quality in mind. When one visits a lot of craft/decor shops you will tend to see a lot of the same kind of items but this store stocks a range of items that are special and unique, things that you would battle to find elsewhere. Unique products include things like lovely necklaces with antique style pendants where they use old china pieces to create the jewelry. Quirky products that will add a different dynamic to your decor look at home like wooden proteas which stand tall and hanging crocheted air plants. All their products are sourced and produced locally so they keep the prices down and remain really reasonable. Products include hand knitted items, hand-dyed silk scarves, Shwe-Shwe goodies, wooden crafts, beautiful jewelry, cushions, wooden boards, place mats and various items for the home.
They also stock all the products made by the Thandi Collection. Janet Barry, the previous owner who started Lilac Crane, trained ladies in Mpophomeni to crochet and created the Thandi Collection making beautifully hand-crafted products using materials like Eco-twine and chunky recycled cotton.They have an ethos of supporting rural women with skills training which enables them to work from home and still provide the necessary care to their children. They produce a varied range of ottomans, a selection of home ware items and also a children’s toy range. I know that when we hear the words crocheted we tend to think of our grandmother’s homemade blankets but these items are nothing like this. The products are works of art, they are very stylish and will add flair to any home.
For a beautiful craft store that stocks different products with heart then head down to Lilac Crane. Spoil yourself or find wonderful gifts for your loved ones, you will be supporting and uplifting local communities by shopping at their store, a win-win for everyone.
Location: Right in the middle of Nottingham Road, on the corner of the R103 and the D111 (Nottingham Road Hotel road).