Artisans in our gallery
Art
Kate Thornton Design – A Yorkshire artist Kate shares her love of the natural world through beautifully simple collections of greetings cards and prints. Passionate about birds and wildlife conservation, her ethos is to create work that you will love forever as sustainably as possible.
Her style developed from a love of paper-cutting wildlife silhouettes and incorporating a range of vintage materials & old maps inherited from her Grandad.
Laura Wallace is an Ilkley born artist and at home in Yorkshire she’s inspired by the beauty of the Dales through the seasons, from bluebell woods to snow scenes. Her garden is seasonally filled with blooms providing inspiration for her much loved floral paintings.
Her preferred medium is oil paint, she loves the texture and vibrancy it gives to her work.
Linda Mellin is a Yorkshire lass, and has spent her life inspired by the Yorkshire landscape, and animals that fill it. Her love of graphic design and painting have been combined in her bright, vibrant pieces that capture the landscapes and animals that she has spent her life admiring.
Linda spends hours perfecting each part of the layout of her paintings before she even starts to apply the paint! Every piece Linda creates is the accumulation of weeks of work.
Stephen Dinsdale as a local Ilkley artist Stephen has always had a love of photography but had never really done anything about it until September 2015 when he bought his first DSLR and now captures the fantastic Yorkshire countryside with his camera. A drone has added a wonderful new dimension to his photography but by his own admission, he has yet to have the time to truly do it justice.
Jane Crick mentions that the environment is incredibly important to her. All of her packaging bags for cards, giclees and gift wrap packs are made from annually renewable PLA derived from corn starch or similar and are fully biodegradable or compostable. She works from my studio in Felsham, Suffolk – doing all the designing, print finishing, packing and order fulfilment her self.
Jamie Poole‘s artwork frequently uses a range of mixed media techniques that have also incorporated words. In recent years this has become more important and now collage is a major part of his work which often uses words poetry.
The wide range of habitats such as wildflower meadows, wetlands, marshes, woodlands and wet grasslands are full of a diverse range of animals and birds. These offer endless inspiration for his artwork on a daily basis as he lives right on the edge of a stunning nature reserve near the towns of Higham Ferrers, Irthlingborough and Rushden.
Bath , Body & Candles
Wright & Green was established in 2016 in Boroughbridge, North Yorkshire, by Joanne Taylor. The company began life as an innovative candle refill service, after seeing the shocking amount of packaging and glass waste generated by online shopping.
Each candle is hand poured, and leaves the studio with a hand written scent label, twine and a wax seal. To minimise waste, the boxes are FSC certified and 100% recyclable and eco packaging and paper is used instead of plastic bubble wrap
Wright & Green candles are hand poured, bespoke, individually finished and delivered with a personal touch.
Kindr – Kate Thompson a local Burley in Wharfedale mum, launched The Kindr Company, providing an alcohol-free hand sanitiser, after realising that alcohol-based gels were wreaking havoc on her sensitive skin.develop sustainable solutions which are kinder to our skin and our planet whilst being deadly on germs, bacteria and viruses.
Ceramics
Gemma Whitaker is a designer-maker creating a range of contemporary porcelain tableware, home ware and jewellery from her studio in the market town of Sowerby Bridge, West Yorkshire. A self-confessed pebble collector, she’s always loved scouring the beach for interesting rocks. Her work was born from a desire to mimic the fascinating patterns and striking lines of ‘wishing rocks’; pebbles which contain an uninterrupted line or stripe that runs around the whole surface.
Her work is created with stained porcelain which is marbled together with plain clay on the wheel. The technique hovers between controllable and random with her able to manipulate the outcome to a certain extent. Every piece has its own unique landscape and character, some subtle others bold.
Lorna Gilbert Ceramics – Lorna Gilbert is a ceramicist specialising in hand thrown white stoneware that is both functional and beautiful. Coming from a background of fine art and textiles, she has always been fascinated with texture. Her current work is inspired by the wilderness, oceans, and mountains. She explores the interaction between matte and gloss glazes. This creates tension and fusion at unseen boundaries as well as reflections and shadows.
Rupert Blamire’s collection of ceramics for cooks and kitchens incudes olive oil decanters, salad dressing jugs, olive bowls, tapas plates, nibbles bowls, garlic pots and more all hand on a potters wheel. Each piece is unique and varies from the one before. All the work is high fired earthenware and is durable, tactile and serves a purpose. The perfect gift for foodies.
Sarah Jones-Morris, designs and creates a collection of handmade ceramics which includes ceramic love spoons, tealight holders, and decorations. She draws her inspiration from her Welsh heritage and the tradition of giving hand carved love spoons as a token of love and affection. Each spoon is modeled by hand and then embellished with the surface pattern before being glazed and fired.
Tara Binns – Joy Impression is an artist who lives and works in Ilkley casting flowers and foliage from the countryside capturing nature and all its detail in plaster relief casts and ceramics. The flowers and foliage are carefully selected, arranged and impressed into the clay, leaving their impression behind.
Natalie Elderton Ceramics is a ceramic artist making both decorative and functional pieces such as large platters, vases and garden decorations. All of her work is hand built using slaps, coils or pinching methods. Often, she will then apply coloured slips and then scrape and carve into the clay to show the colour of the clay beneath. This is a process called sgraffito. Working as a florist for many years she takes much of her inspiration from flowers, plants and the natural landscape.
Suzie Wright Pottery is from Upper Wensleydale where she has been able to pursue her love of ceramics full-time. She has been making pots and sculpture since she was very young. For a number of years she was working with clay almost everyday.
During my working life she returned to the stress relieving, relaxing benefits of sculpting with clay many times. Her ideas come from what she experiences everyday, running and walking in the fields and hills where she lives. All her work is hand-built individually or thrown on her antique wheel . Each piece is unique.
Tilnar Art has revolutionised the perception of home accessories from Africa, or inspired by Africa, into one that can be mainstream without losing its place in today’s home. Their products are hand-made and fairly traded. We check all our products for quality at source. Sizes, shapes and colours (of stone in particular) of our products may vary slightly because they are hand-made using natural materials.
Roefols & Rubens run their ceramics business from their cottage home in Berkshire. Over the years, their collection of decorations has grown and includes the popular ranges of animals and flowers and a lot more. The most popular by far is our Christmas range. Also have a large collection of Cathedrals, Abbeys, Museums, Teapots etc. in their bespoke hanging decoration range.
Piet has trained and worked as a graphic designer and Monty as a manager in a manufacturing company so this ceramics business was a new and exciting experiment with kiln explosions, cracks and warps and the never ending battle against pinholes.
Craft for kids
Crayon Box is a true believer in sustainability and this is embodied in their business. All the materials used for packaging are made from 100% recycled materials and can in return be recycled or reused
Glass
Kate Park – Twice Fired is best described as pattern, process and pure obsession with nature. These are the inspirations of glass artist and designer Kate Park, the owner and artistic mind behind Twice Fired. Based in Yorkshire home to an inspirational natural surrounding landscape, the Twice Fired studio designs and produces exquisite contemporary handmade glass.
Sally Moore – Sally’s creations are handmade in her studio in Pencaitland. The use of glass has enabled Sally to make larger pieces design driven by colour as well as texture. She is inspired by the colours and forms on the West Coast of Scotland and from her childhood in the English Lake district. Many of the animals created by Sally have metal inclusions to allow them to be free standing. These metal additions are hand worked, using her metalwork skills.
When first starting, the glass was very abstract but has since moved on to show her other great passion in nature such as birds and animals. She loves watching nature particularly birds so have been influenced and spurred on to make creatures. All the products are individually made so no two ornaments are quite the same.
Magdooska Creates has a passion to ‘create and make’ which has resulted in a lifetime of making, learning, practise and development, attending numerous courses and learning new techniques and skills using a variety of 3D materials.
She have always loved using the tools and equipment and learning and applying the individual techniques and processes involved in working with traditional lead came and copper foiling techniques. By combining stained glass with a variety of other materials, she creates organically driven pieces to hang or stand using wire, wooden and metal bases or stakes enabling her work to add more colour, light, and movement into any garden or home.
Marc Peters lives in Lanarkshire and has always had a passion for art even as a youngster. Whilst studying at City of Glasgow College he recognised for his outstanding creativity in design and production of a leaded stained glass panel.
He set up his own business (Marc Peters Glass) which he ran on a part-time basis from his garden shed. He has a vast experience with domestic, public, gallery and TV/film fused and stained glass work.
Jewellery
Laura Fernandez Designs – Laura is a self-confessed jewellery addict with a love of all things pastel and clay. After graduating from Leeds Art University, Laura began her career as an in-house textile designer working for a wide range of fashion and interior brands. During this time, Laura started experimenting with polymer clay as a side project to let her creativity run free and to de-stress after work. When she realised, she was making more jewellery than she could ever wear she opened her shop, to surprising success. She now handmakes all her jewellery in her West Yorkshire studio.
Leigh Shepherd – Working from her studio in Haworth, West Yorkshire, Leigh creates a range of mixed media pieces, cards, and jewellery. A passion for upcycling and a desire to make affordable, quirky pieces has been her inspiration. Earrings are made from original sixpence coins with sterling silver earring hooks. These are presented in a matching Teeny Tiny Tin. Pendants on sterling silver chains are made from vintage Scrabble tiles and brooches from draughts and domino pieces. These are presented in a matching Teeny Tiny Tin.
Hammered in Yarkshire lives in West Yorkshire and makes Tin Jewellery from Vintage and modern tins some using original Artwork of her own and also collaborates with a couple of other Artists. All her pieces have 925 Sterling Silver Fittings. She is passionate about the environment and try hard to do her bit, so sees it as upcycling and turning already made tins into beautiful wearable items. It’s like wearing a piece of history.
Textiles & Print
Diane Jones Textiles creates unique, hand-painted devore velvet scarves in a wide variety of beautiful patterns derived from the natural world. Her stylish scarves are available in a dazzling array of colours ranging from subdued pastel shades through to gem-like colours that shimmer in the light. Her designs range from songbirds and butterflies, flowers and foliage to Aboriginal designs and subtle stripes and spots. These wonderful scarves can enhance many outfits, and are versatile enough to wear in any season, making them fabulous gifts.
Folded Forest Limited Edition Prints & Homewares are hand-printed in a small West Yorkshire Studio. They take inspiration from the natural world around us; the woodlands, moorlands and nearby beaches of our home. The designs begin as handmade paper-cuts, then layers are added with pen & ink, before being transferred to screens ready for printing by hand.
Jill Govier – Touchy Feely Textiles is a lifetime lover of all things textile & handmade. She loves the challenge of sourcing retro and recycled fabrics and trimmings to create her work – a range that includes purses key fobs and stitched prints, giving it a distinctive individual feel.
Natalie Laura Ellen creates printed patterns inspired by nature, stories and moments across a range of home textiles, gifts and stationery. Much of her inspiration comes from exploring the flora and fauna of the British countryside. The plants that sit on her balcony garden and the wildlife they attract are also a big influence on her work. Her prints often start with sketched ideas, which she then develops using lots of different disciplines including hand drawn, painting and lino painting, which she then prints onto a range of products.
Dear Emma Designs is a small countryside business based in the Yorkshire Dales. It is from her bright and airy garden workshop that Cathy not only doodles and stitches, but also teaches free-motion machine embroidery and raw-edge applique. Inspired by her love of garden birds, insects and wild flowers her ideas are brought to life using this technique. Each piece is made individually from high quality linens, cottons and new and vintage snippets of fabrics and reflects a lifelong passion for making, mending and creating.
Wood
Wild Wood Gifts – Based in Skipton, North Yorkshire, Adam Wild is a former tree surgeon who has turned his passion for making all things wood into a full-time business.
Adam uses the finest English Oak, and Ash from a responsible reputable sawmill in the heart of Cumbria, to create hand-crafted wooden boards and gifts. The nature of the wood ensures that every product is unique in appearance and character.
He creates simple and classic designs using quality solid wood and other hardwood. The items speak for themselves and must be seen, to truly appreciate their timeless quality.
Betsy & Els is named after her two daughters, who spurred her on to follow her passion and start this business, Betsy and Els is a family affair.
It’s built around some of her great loves including the two of them, her son, and their dog Oscar, and in her work you’ll also see influences from her home at the seaside.
After training in Fine Art and Graphic Design, she spent a large part of her career working in multi-discipline design. With that under her belt, she soon followed her heart, and her family, back home to their coastal town… and the rest, as they say, is history.
Greeting Cards
Carolyn Hird-Rogers – Rogers Ink is an artist based on the edge of the Yorkshire Dales. Working in mixed media collage and digital drawing produces ‘cards to frame’ – original collage landscape or seascape on a square card, each one a numbered original designed to be kept and framed, the ‘collage cards’ are hand cut digitalised drawings of wild flowers combined with mono-print and each one is slightly different.
Umbellifer is based in a North Yorkshire garden cards. All the cards are printed on FSC-certified board which has been carbon offset using the Woodland Trusts Woodland carbon scheme and used recycled envelopes and biodegradable cellophane where possible.
Rachel Meehan is an artist, based in rural southern Scotland. Her art work is inspired by the colours of nature and a vivid imagination. She also have a keen interest in nature and the environment which is reflected in her love of gardening and plants. Many of her images are based on plants from my own garden.