Wheatear Strawcraft

Based in the Cotswolds, Wheatear Strawcraft is run by Ian and Emma Speechley.

Ian and Emma have been working with straw for many years; Ian’s initial interest started at primary school with Artstraws! Their particular interests are corn dollies, Swiss straw work and straw marquetry. In particular they enjoy bringing a contemporary twist to traditional designs. 

Straw work is an ancient craft with traditions reaching across the globe and is now listed as endangered by Heritage Crafts. Ian and Emma aim to revive this low impact, sustainable craft and bring a mindful experience to their workshops.

They are members of Straw Craftsmen the UK organisation that promotes this traditional craft.

Find them on instagram: @wheatear_strawcraft

Lizzy Hippisley-Cox

Elizabeth (Lizzy) Hippisley-Cox is a Fellow of the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings (SPAB), a longstanding member of ICON (CTQ/PACR Pathway), and a qualified conservator of architectural stained glass (MA, University of York). After completing a degree in Medieval Studies from the University of Manchester in 2009, she began her career in conservation with an ICON HLF Skills in Practice Internship at the York Glaziers Trust, followed by a further seven years of academic, itinerant and studio-based training including an apprenticeship, fellowship and Masters Degree.

 

Lizzy established Eden Stained Glass, situated in Westmoorland, Cumbria, in 2017 after relocating from York. Her studio primarily takes on conservation, repair and new design projects, and occasionally assists other artists to create works in stained glass. Lizzy is a stained glass advisor for the Carlisle and the Leeds Dioceses, reviewing and commenting on casework.

 

With first-hand experience of coming through a varied patchwork of training schemes at the start of the last recession, Lizzy is particularly passionate about providing sustainable training and employment terms for the next generation of craftspeople. She is Trustee for the William Morris Craft Fellowship Trust, and has also recently joined the SPAB’s Education and Training Committee. Alongside work, she is proud steward to an excellent daughter, enigmatic cat and incorrigible whippet.

Karina Wiles

Karina is a textile and mixed media artist based in Yorkshire. Her tactile art works are both inspired by and reflective of nature’s textures, shapes and colours. Although a multi-disciplined artist, her love of textures led her to the heritage craft of rag rug making. Inspired by the storytelling work of Heather Richie and the Reeth, Swaledale exhibition, her love of this craft opened her path to more contemporary creations. After dislocating her wrist in 2018, she began introducing more upcycled and locally sourced naturally dyed yarns and lightweight fabrics for hooking. This not only enabled her to place more detail within her wildlife artworks but meant less stress on her wrist than using heavier weight and tougher fabrics.
“I stem from a long ancestral lineage of makers and creators and was fortunate enough to be taught many crafts when I was young. Being part of the ‘make do and mend’ generation, rag rugging sits perfectly with the ethos of upcycling and recycling. I’m also passionate about pushing the boundaries to show others that this often misrepresented craft of ‘what granny used to do’ can be a magical exploration into the realms of the contemporary in so many different ways”
Karina creates artworks for sale, runs workshops for beginners and intermediates as well as being involved with community projects. She is a member of ‘The Art Crowd’ based in Northallerton and is the current Chair of Ebor Ruggers in York.

Ness Burrows

Although from Brighton, Ness fell in love with North Yorkshire and its people, and decided to settle here. Ness was inspired by Macrame from the moment she saw it at a wood turning market in Horsham. The knotting techniques and the process and tactile nature of the cords cast their spell but Ness knew she wanted to exclusively use recycled materials.

“It was like a lightening bolt to my heart, I knew that I wanted to make beautiful things using knots. My large pieces have all been inspired by moments in my life, my childhood walking barefoot in fields of clover, reading a certain book with the images and colours put onto a wall hanging, creating on a full moon can be so powerful, the feeling I get when I am knotting is meditation, my mind shuts out the noisy traffic and I feel a sense of calm, warmth, being in the now. It is an amazing way to de-stress and breath. This is why I wanted to teach macrame to others, to pass on that inspiration, that feeling I had when I first discovered the art of knotting.”

A really good day. Excellent tutor who gave clear demonstrations and supportive help. Use of webcam was also very helpful. I came away feeling that I had learnt some basic techniques – and with 4 completed sample notebooks. A lovely lunch was an extra treat! I am looking forward to coming back again in the Autumn.

Lindsay Lowe

Lindsay Lowe works in vocational education by day, but in the evenings and at weekends she whiles away her time hand sewing and creating beautifully crafted, traditional and fully jointed mohair teddy bears. She discovered her love of teddys at a very young age, meeting her lifelong friend over 50 years ago aged just 4 in the school playground, both clutching a small comfort teddy. She loves to develop new patterns, and to see new characters emerge. Each Teddy has a completely unique personality, depending on the placing of facial features. Lindsay is a true Arctophile ‘a person who collects or is very fond of teddy bears’ and she loves to share this passion and skill with anyone who is interested.

Christine Addley

Christine began re-seating chairs professionally in 1978, initially with cane, and then with other materials. She has been teaching chair seating since 1991. Her commissions over the years have included chairs of all ages, styles and sizes, from important furniture seen in stately homes to simple cottage chairs.

Carole Rennison

Based in the Yorkshire Dales, Carole draws inspiration from her beautiful, peaceful, rural surroundings, finding it a wonderful place to create and contemplate.

Hooking, using carpet wool, first caught her attention at a local craft show way back in 1993. She was captivated and immediately wanted to ‘have a go’.  She loves the art of hooking , finding it very rhythmic , therapeutic and addictive.  She now runs her business, Hooked By Design and creates hooking designs and kits for a wide range of cushions, pictures and bags.

Carole also has a published book in print on Yarn and Rug Hooking.

Leilah Vyner

Leilah started her willow weaving business as a hobby through Medieval Re-enactment around 2000.  First making medieval items like willow bee skeps, eel traps, quivers and chicken cages and not a basket in sight!

As Leilah’s interests moved away from the medieval scene she started to make more everyday items such as baskets and decorations and she soon became interested traditional green wood working too.  Since then the scale of her ambition has grown and she tackles large scale willow sculptures, a wide range of basketry, willow fencing and green willow projects too.  She also has a collection of sculptural pieces that can be hired for events.

Leilah loves to share these tradition craft skills and teaches widely.

Charlotte Tollyfield

Charlotte is a Sheffield based silversmith, recently commissioned to produce the 12th edition of the William Hill St. Leger Stakes Trophy for Doncaster Racecourse in 2018. Her work includes silver and copperwork.

Her fascination with geometric shapes and symmetry has been evident throughout her creative career. Drawn by silver’s ability to be manipulated to create soft curves and acute angles; Charlotte’s focus lies with the composition and structure of shape and form, whilst preserving a strong sense of function and purpose. Employing a wide range of techniques in the creation of her work, Charlotte prefers to adapt to the design instead of designing around a specific technique.

Charlotte’s own Christmas decorations play with the perfect symmetry of snowflakes whilst depicting the Twelve Days of Christmas, putting a unique twist on this classic fairy tale. Each decoration depicts one of the twelve gifts, becoming a little work of art in its own right, but only when the whole set is brought together is the full story told.