Imagine suffering an acute mental health crisis thousands of miles from home. For Esther Rutter, that was an all too real event whilst working in Japan. After being detained in a Japanese psychiatric institution, she only really began recovering while working in the Lake District at Dove Cottage, home of William and Dorothy Wordsworth, where she found a sense of home. She'll tell us how she forged an approach to understanding herself via personal reflection, and came to understand that the experiences of ordinary people are intrinsically worthwhile and important. Through her time in Cumbria, in the village where a cultural epoch was born, Rutter found the spirit of a place that sustains and inspires, making everything possible.

We ask that you wear masks at this event, and especially if you wish to have a book signed by the author. Masks will be provided at the door. 

To book tickets visit: https://tickets.wigtownbookfestival.com/sales/main-programme/events/wbf-2024/events/all-before-me-with-esther-rutt

Join award-winning author Esther Rutter for a whistlestop tour of Britain’s incredible knitting history. From bikinis to Gairloch stockings and Monmouth caps to cricket whites, there’s a wealth of woolly heritage to explore in this fun and fact-filled talk. 

Location: Skipton Auction Mart, Gargrave Road, Skipton, North Yorkshire, BD23 1UD

Free to attend with Yarndale entry ticket: https://yarndale.co.uk/

Join Esther Rutter on a search for belonging in the Wordsworths’ Lake District, exploring the power that creativity, community, and landscape can have to change our lives. Esther shares her experience of a mental breakdown in Japan and subsequent recovery during her time living and working at Dove Cottage, comparing life there in the twenty-first century with historical perspectives on Grasmere’s particular genius loci.

Beyond the Embroidery Needle: A Short History of Quaker Knitting

10th June 2023 11.45am – 1pm

This is a blended fundraising event, take part online or in person at Quaker Tapestry Museum, Kendal.

For Zoom ticket holders – you will receive a link after the event, allowing you to watch it for up to 14 days afterwards. This is also perfect for those who have to miss all or part of the live event for any reason.

Join this illustrated fundraising talk on the history of Quaker knitting, followed by a session looking at some of the Quaker Tapestry’s own collection items in more detail.

Esther is a non-fiction author from Suffolk who is now based in Scotland. Before becoming a freelance writer, she worked in arts education at the Wordsworth Trust, the Robert Burns Birthplace Museum, and UNESCO City of Literature Trust in Edinburgh, and currently holds a Research Fellowship at the University of St Andrews. Her first book, This Golden Fleece (2019), traces the social and cultural history of knitting and won a Society of Authors’ Roger Deakin Award. Her second book, which examines the connection between people, places, poetry and identity in the Lake District, is due for publication by Granta in 2024.

Funds from ticket sales to this event will go towards the ongoing work of Quaker Tapestry Museum.

To book your ticket visit: https://www.quaker-tapestry.co.uk/events/join-us-for-an-illustrated-fundraising-talk-with-non-fiction-author-esther-rutter-on-the-history-of-quaker-knitting/