Spinning a real good yarn

Hong Kong 

Edith Cheung remembers her first experiment with textiles. 

"As a child, I was quite weak, so I was mostly indoors," the Hong Kong costume designer explains. "My grandma was always knitting and my mom made dresses for her three daughters. So I always had scraps of fabric and wool to play with. I remember hand-stitching a small doll out of the scraps. One day, I decided that I should take it apart as it was getting dirty. But since I laid the pieces out on the balcony without securing them, they all blew away!" 

That start led Cheung to a career in design. After working in New York City and Europe, she returned to Hong Kong in the late 1980s and worked in the booming film trade. 

In 1990, she founded The Costume Squad to work specifically with the entertainment industry. Her company went on to garner awards for films including Wong Kar-wai's Ashes of Time in 1994 and Mabel Cheung's The Soong Sisters in 1997. 

After Hong Kong filmmaking fizzled as a result of the Asian financial crisis, she redirected her company's focus to a wider clientele. In 2004, she set up Cloth Haven, a gallery, shop and events venue that gives textile and craft aficionados a voice for their passion. 

"I thought it would be fun to show all my eclectic collection of textiles," says Cheung. "Slowly, I built up an interest group, and I started introducing weaving, natural dye and other textile crafts. The weaving that we teach is creative, so it can be done freely as stress release therapy. 

"I usually tell boys that the weaving loom is like the ancestor to the computer. 

"I think it is draining to be always intellectual. We need to balance that with manual activities; weaving, cooking and gardening all stimulate our other senses and give us a chance to concentrate and lose ourselves." 

The monthly flea markets at Cloth Haven evolved naturally, and have grown to become a neighborhood staple. "I needed to downsize my collection of books and materials, and so did some friends. So we just chose a Sunday and did it. It is meant to be a community activity, where the young and old can show their work. Grandmas can make her cakes and kids can perform magic tricks. You are the boss for a day." 

Take a look at this coming Sunday's market - and you may find that treasure you never knew you were seeking.