Maker Directory

I have always loved to draw. But a lightbulb moment happened when driving along my local high street, observing the vibrancy and activity of a community – shoppers and parents getting from one point to another; pathways crossing and intersecting, given context when placed against recognisable shops and schools. I realised that this passing of […]

Beautiful ceramics, handmade in Bristol with love by Hanne Rysgaard. My work is all about fun and function working together in unison and bringing a playful elegance to any room, table or display that it adorns. My personal approach to life is “you have to smile” and my work focuses on fun and function – it is both useful and pleasurable in equal measures. I evolve new designs by an ongoing process of play; I like to juxtapose different patterns using open stock transfers, patterns and colours found in bric-a-brac, vintage fabrics, souvenirs, whatever grabs my attention and inspires me.

Design led porcelain lighting and functional tableware are handcrafted in small batches from Harriet’s boat house studio on Mersea Island, off of the Essex coast. Influenced by her Scandinavian roots, Harriet’s designs focus on simple form, linear patterned design and soft contrasting colours to invite a tactile approach to her work.
“My work is all about appealing to the senses. I love the idea of someone using one of my designs and enjoying these little details; how comfortable the cup feels in their hands when drinking tea, how the colourful light transforms a room when it’s turned on. To me this is what creates an enduring and enjoyable relationship between the person and the functional objects that they use every day…”

Hayley Gammon works mainly in small ranges, as the ethos of her work is ‘handmade’ Glass Blown technique. Working in small ranges means that she is able to keep a keen eye on development, with the work evolving and adapting with her skills, whist maintaining a theme in her work.
With glass there is always something to learn and a new skill to master. It has a huge element of problem solving and demands quick thinking on your feet – this drives the artist and keeps the work fresh and exciting. Hayley enjoys making work and keeping the work accessible. She has developed a range of work that uses intense colours and simple forms. Prices range from £35 to £350.
Hayley feels privileged to work in this industry and would not see herself doing anything else.

Heartfelt by Liz has been in business since 1996 and has developed a wide range of unique wool creations and specialist skills in textile crafts. In 2012 Heartfelt Studio from Ayrshire moved to Argyll to the stunning Victorian Railway Station at Dalmally. It is a working station and the Studio and gallery are set amongst the stunning Highlands landscape.
I use a lot of the local native wools and plant material to dye my work. Apart from running workshops from the Studio, I supply a huge range of fibre products in the shop. We have a full range of equipment for many textile crafts here at the studio as well as our own native rare breed sheep. I hold an NDSF in floristry and studied Millinery at Cardonald College and Fashion and design and pattern construction. I have travelled to teach in many countries such as Mongolia, America and Norway.

I come from a family of sheep farmers and weavers, with a court dress maker in the mix too so I feel I have fibres in my blood stream. Mum and Dad met in a textile mill, so there you go it was inevitable!  My wonderful Granny Mary taught me to stitch at an early […]

I am a printmaker, working primarily with linocuts and collagraph techniques. I am a trained Architect and completed my PhD in 2004. My handmade, limited edition prints are all made from my original sketches that are inspired by my life around me, and by seeing the beauty in the mundane. You will also see a layered colour palette, often bright but muted, and subtle. I aim to create prints that can inspire a smile, a memory, and a piece of art that you can form your own personal associations with.
Having studied Architectural Conservation, mark-making is of specific interest and how different surfaces and cutting methods can give individuality to a piece. With price range mostly between £15-£65, they are an affordable means to collect original, handmade and unique art.

I live and work in the Lake District, and love to create handmade bags, purses and home accessories from beautiful fabrics… when not walking my Border Terrier Heidi on the fells! Each of my pieces is quite unique, including my new collection using our local Herdwick Tweed, which is pure, undyed and sustainable.

Helen’s passion and aspiration is to create striking and original fabrics of complexity and beauty; whose colours appear to ripple and pulsate, shifting chameleon-like as light diffuses across their unique textures.
​Drawing her inspiration from the natural world – exotic birds, sea creatures, flora, the living landscape, ​Helen’s interpretation of the ancient Eastern craft of Shibori has two distinctive elements, bringing together the artisan and the artist, a union of control with the uncontrollable.
​The creation by hand of the pleats is a practical, mechanical, steady, reliable and very time-consuming process; the dyeing process is far less predictable, as the dyes are given free rein to blend and flow. There is an empathy with the sculptor who feels her role is to release the creation already hidden within her materials.

Helen has been designing award winning jewellery since she created ‘Helen Brice Designs’ in 2000, and has recently relocated her home and business to Devon. Bridging the gap between classical and contemporary jewellery, warm precious metals in unusual finishes are combined with the beautiful tones of natural gemstones. Drawing inspiration from architectural and organic forms […]