Hopedale beadworker gets biggest order yet — and it's from the British Museum
Iconic institution in London wanted local crafts for Arctic exhibition
A Hopedale craftsperson got the order of her career so far when the British Museum in London asked for 100 pairs of her beaded earrings.
When curators at the museum called late last year, they were looking for permission to use a wooden carving made by a family member in a new exhibit, and asked for tips on where to find handmade items from the region.
Vanessa Flowers, who primarily makes beaded moccasins, jumped at the chance to offer her work. The museum showed interest, but wanted Flowers's earrings instead, she said.
She accepted, despite having only ever made one pair.
"First I just looked at it as another order," she said. "'OK. A hundred pairs of earrings,' you know. And I started at it but then I realized a hundred pairs of earrings — this is a lot."
To finish 200 of the intricate pieces, which require a steady hand and a sharp eye, she enlisted her boyfriend and sister, and completed the order for Thursday's deadline.
"It was great that they wanted our products," she said. "I was just worried that I didn't have enough time to do it."
Between substitute teaching gigs, Flowers and her ad hoc crew were able to pull together the shipment, beading steadily over the course of the winter.
"Now that I've had time to think about it," she said, "I'm thinking, 'Wow, these earrings are going to be in this gift shop and people over there, they're going to see my products.'"
After selling mainly to clients in North America, breaking into the European market could be a career boost, she said.
"Every time I would come home from school, I would sit down and make a pair of slippers or do some beading. So right now craft work is my side work," she said. "In the future … I do think about pursuing that as a main career choice."
Flowers comes from a line of craftspeople: her grandfather George was a wood carver, with his pieces sold internationally — including in the United Kingdom.
The museum intends to sell Flowers's work at a gift shop for that upcoming exhibition, Arctic: culture and climate, which looks at innovations of Arctic cultures around the world.
Her grandfather's carving — and her earrings — will be displayed beside 28,000-year-old mammoth tusk sewing needles and other ancient artifacts.
With files from Labrador Morning