The “Vidzeme Creative Beehives” are taking shape in the Coachman’s House in Cēsis – a new gathering place for creative minds from all over the Vidzeme region.

The Vidzeme Creative Beehives celebrated the “Cēsis 815” festival through active participation at the Coachman’s House in Castle Square (Pils laukums), where the festival program was enriched by masters of Vidzeme’s creative industries.

Inga, Māra, and Ruta, weavers and needleworkers from “9 arodi”, showcased an extensive collection of textile works – ranging from pulse warmers (mauči), belts, and brooches to festive tablecloths, shawls, and blankets in traditional Latvian colors and patterns. Visitors were introduced to weaving techniques and the association’s activities.

The Lubāna Crafts Centre brought the scent of Vidzeme’s meadows to the festival, carefully woven into Katrīna’s herbal sauna mats, alongside Dace’s playful sauna hats. These attracted both children and adults, offering a firsthand look at the hat-felting process.

Sandra, drawing inspiration from weaving, showcased skirt patterns from lesser-known parishes of the Cēsis district.

Ilze from Jaunpiebalga’s “Baltie darbi” gave festival participants a chance to see linen garments in the master’s original style, which combines sewing, embroidery, and crocheting. Meanwhile, Laima from the Rūjiena association “Rūzele” displayed imagination and a blend of beauty and practicality in her knitwear, also introducing visitors to the soft touch of alpaca wool.

Alongside the outdoor activities, visitors could explore the Piebalga Porcelain Gallery inside the Coachman’s House, where various creative industry workshops are planned for the near future. The gallery’s host, Jānis Ronis, not only invited guests to try their hand at porcelain painting but also explained the production process and presented collections available for purchase, as well as custom-designed lamps and tableware.

Next to the Porcelain Gallery, visitors could view and purchase lamps and paper art from the Lamp Design Workshop, fragrant soap sets from “Da’ Ziepe”, eco-friendly linen and cotton bags made from fabric offcuts by “Neparasti”, as well as floor rugs and linen shawls by Dzintra Kokina.

Very soon, we will introduce the workshop program for the Vidzeme Creative Beehives! These creative industries are being brought together within the Interreg Europe project “Cult-CreaTE” to develop competitiveness and promote local products and engagement opportunities for both locals and international guests.

Welcome to Cēsis, Pils laukums 1, at the Coachman’s House, and follow us for updates: https://www.facebook.com/VisitVidzeme!

The lead partner of the Cult-CreaTE project is the Vidzeme Tourism Association. The total budget is 1,798,270.00 EUR, with 85% co-financed by the European Union. The project runs from June 1, 2018, to November 30, 2022.