Yongle Market in Taipei City has take on a new lease of creative life after transforming into a hub for handicraft classes.
The stores in the market carry a variety of materials, including buttons and colorful patterned fabrics. The area was once a major wholesale center for Taiwan’s clothing manufacturers, but the relocation of these firms overseas forced the shops to change focus to handicrafts.
The stores now run classes on how to use the different materials to create and decorate a range of accessories and personal items such as aprons, purses and identity card holders.
One-off classes teach students to make a knickknack for about US$10, including the cost of materials. Other stores offer free sessions for patrons.
The all-inclusive packages and flexible timetables have seen growing popularity among housewives and female office workers in recent years.
Some courses are heavily oversubscribed, especially those for making bead jewelry and knitting. Senior citizens keen to make interesting things to give to their grandchildren are the main participants.
Classes offered on nearby Yenping North Road attract a different demographic—mostly young people keen to study advanced knitting techniques and stuffed-toy making. (DF-SDH)
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