Weaving stories of a workshop under suspension : Experiences of female weavers in rural Greece

Abstract: A weaving program initiated in 1981 by the National Welfare Organization to support the women with low educational background living in a Slavic-speaking area of the mountainous borderlands of Northern Greece, and continued for thirty years until its suspension in 2010. This research aims to shed light on factors that are experienced as important by participants in handcrafted employability projects. By uncovering socio-political factors that led to the suspension of the program, and its consequences on the women, insights about better understanding and dealing with similar conditions could be beneficial for future programs. An open-ended research strategy using individual semi-structured interviews, under the scope of the biographical narrative approach, was followed. According to the research results, the existence of the workshop improved the working conditions of the local women. The positive impact of its operation is reflected on the economic and social life of the village too. However, the sudden decision for suspension left no room for reactions, thus resulting to various economic and social consequences on personal and community levels. In conclusion, the power of structural forces started and ended the program. Despite the restrictions and intentions of the program, the people of this small community managed to create beautiful artefacts and a balanced social atmosphere, as well as to enrich the social life of the village.