Custom order Crios-please read entire listing, if interested!

Holiday Gift? A special occasion? A wedding? Order a crios with the exact colors you would prefer, in the length and width that works for a dressy or casual ensemble- almost anything is possible- The standard, wool, eight foot, three inch wide belt delivered in less than two weeks will be $85. Cotton will be $65. I use wool and cotton from a recycling center, as well as quality yarns from major suppliers, like Webs. I can also make criossana up in  an acrylic with sparkles, or add handmade glass beads! 

Please note, These are a base price for a 3" wide belt about 8 feet in length. The price will vary for orders of wider, longer, or narrower belts. If you want something quite different in size, please message with your questions. 

To order, pick one background color, one dominant, then three additional colors and explain in your comments which color should be prominent besides the background color. The background will be the weft and the border.  See the photos above for ideas and combinations and PLEASE feel free to create your own, just describe in the comments.  Once I have warped and begun to weave your color choices, I will send you a photo in progress so you can see how it's coming out, after that, changes cannot be made.  You can also mail me fabric samples and I will match them as closely as I can. 

For other yarns including metallics, or special orders for handfastings, please message me and I will create a crios special order just for you. 

These belts are my original take on an ancient form.  In addition to traditional wool, I also use cottons, blends and acrylics; I also find beautiful, unusual and specialty yarns regularly at a recycling center I frequent.  My specialty is to offer this traditional belt in fashionable and  muted colors and black, to coordinate with a contemporary wardrobe, jeans or special occasion dressing.  Every crios is shipped with a descriptive card, and gift wrapping is available.

The ancient crios was worked in wool, often featuring the classic off-white yarns favored for sweaters, and if you’d like the most traditional version I will make it to order. Those tend to be red and blue with some green in a white background.

In the Aran Isles, the weaving of belts from spare lengths of wool survived as time-honored craft which originally extended back into the earliest times as a way to secure robes or trousers. The classic traditional “crios" (pronounced kris) was almost nine feet long!  The handwoven crios became popular as a craft once again in the Ireland of the 1960’s and was featured in the classic “Traditional Crafts of Ireland” (1984). 

Criosanna are popular for “handfasting” as part of a wedding ceremony, where the intended couples’ hands are gently joined with a crios wrapped around. They are a lovely, personal gift for men or women who are interested in Irish heritage, and are adaptable for width and length to suit any age or size. 

All criosanna are hand woven by me personally, and will have the odd slub or bump; these are to be expected in a handcrafted item. When washing, do so by hand and gently block the shape to dry.