Double award for Proiseact Nan Ealan 20/9/11
Gaelic arts agency Proiseact Nan Ealan (PNE) has won two Scottish Events Of The Year Awards at a glittering awards ceremony in Edinburgh.
PNE were presented with The Best Small Event Of The Year Award for their highly successful series of community fashion shows, Na Mo Chuid Aodaich (In My Own Clothes), held in Lewis last year. They also received a special award as the personal choice of the Chairman of the Judges across all the various categories of event.
The Na Mo Chuid Aodaich project was designed and led by PNE and delivered in partnership with five island communities and Crossroads Care. This fresh and original form of event involved each community hosting their own fashion shows using vintage clothing from local attics, closets and bottom drawers.
It unearthed a wealth of wedding dresses and high fashion gems from high church hats, uniforms and Victorian underwear to ballgowns, 1960’s Mary Quant outfits and elegant contemporary designs.
The stories behind the items were collated for voiceover during the catwalk presentation and for many this was a surprising new insight into the past lives of older neighbours and family members.
The events captured the imagination of the community and attracted large audiences and participants of all ages.
Each of the island venues was full to capacity with over 1700 attending the five shows and over 300 enthusiastic volunteers aged from 8 to 80 giving freely of their time and energy to create these hugely enjoyable events. They also raised a staggering £12,000 for Crossroads Care.
PNE Director, Malcolm Maclean said: “This prestigious award is a well-