Monthly Archives: July 2011

Giveaway – Win a Handmade Bowl!

*Now Closed!* Thank you to everyone who entered.

After the success of launching my new website, and to say a big thank you to all of my continuous supporting customers, fans and followers, I thought it was about time I had a giveaway!

'Blow Away' Dandelion Bowl

Up for grabs is a sweet little bowl from my new dandelion range. For a chance of winning this bowl, here’s what you need to do…

  • Leave a comment on this post to let me know you have entered and done any or all of the following things…
  • Follow me on Twitter, and tweet about my giveaway, e.g. “I just entered this giveaway by @CHCeramics ~ Win a handmade bowl! http://www.charlottehupfieldceramics.com/2011/07/28/giveaway-win-a-handmade-bowl/
  • ‘Like’ me on Facebook and leave a comment on my wall saying what you like about my work
  • Join my mailing list
  • Oh and while you’re here, would you mind voting for my cat Molly in this competition? She would love it if you could, she’s a bit of a poser!

A winner will be announced on 10th August so you have plenty of time to enter and let your family and friends know!

Good luck!

New Website Launch!

After lots of hard work and late nights, it has all been worth it and I am so pleased with the look of my new website. The best part has been being able to manage all of the content myself, having full control of every little detail. It has been a lot more fun that anticipated too! It’s hard to believe I was only thinking about designing a new website a week ago, and now it’s all complete.

A huge thank you goes to my web consultant Matt Debouge of Debouge.co.uk, who worked extremely hard to help me get my new site up and running. Matt’s services are highly recommended, and also very cost effective. Throughout my web design process, I had remote support from Matt who was able to remotely connect to my PC and show me how to do things easily, allowing me to develop the site how I wanted it and to get it up and running quickly.

My favourite part of the new site is the featured sliding images on the home page, I think they are very effective and will be useful for showcasing new products and news.

I would love to hear your comments and feedback – all welcome!

Also it would be great to hear from anyone else who tries Debouge.co.uk for their web hosting and design – Give it a go!

Playing with Pebbles

During my trip to the seaside a few weeks ago, I collected a tonne of these flat pebbles from one of the sandy beaches to make something with at home. The varied shades of colour in them were gorgeous, and the more pebbles I collected, the more I couldn’t stop! I initially started by filling my pockets with a few but then had to resort to a big carrier bag. They weighed the car down quite a lot on the way home too!I had an idea what I wanted to use the pebbles for, but had been looking for a particular type of mirror for a while. Yesterday I came across the perfect mirror (in a sale – bonus!), and spent the evening last night arranging the pebbles like a jig-saw around the edge of the mirror to create a border.


The pebbles were stuck down onto the mirror using a hot glue gun. Doesn’t it look fab!

(and another photo just to show off the beautiful pink hydrangeas in the garden…)

The mirror is going to be hung up in the bathroom. 

I used the rest of the pebbles to decorate the borders of some flat clipped photo frames, which will look lovely when I print off the perfect photos to go inside them. I’ll be sending one of the frames down to my friend in Plymouth with a photo of us and 2 other friends from when we were at the seaside, as a thank you for letting us stay. I hope she’ll love it!

I’m an Official Merchandise Creator!

…for The Light Direction ~ a series of novels and short stories by author Ces Creatively.

I’m so excited about this! Above is the mood board I was given to work with for the ‘Beside The Sea‘ theme, to fit in with the book. I will be creating bespoke ceramic beach hut hangings, plaques, mini art on easels, pendants, brooches and magnets. These handmade items will be used as official merchandise for the book.

And not only that, I am also written into the printed novel as the creator of a gorgeous unique vase! Wow!


I’ll be keeping you up to date with my progress on the pieces I’m making. To find out more about The Light Direction and the author Ces’ journey, please visit www.the-light-direction.co.uk

Featured Interview – Made From The Heart

Meet: Suzanne Lake of

Made From The Heart




How long have you been making your work and how did it all begin?

I started about 8 years ago when my eldest child was about 1. I was thinking of trying to contribute to our family financially and to earn my own money. I went on a trip back home to Canada and went to a massive craft warehouse, they had wood blanks for sale at a very good price along with the paint, so I thought I’d teach myself to paint them and then sell to friends and family for a little extra money. I have always been ‘crafty’ and was doing patchwork at the time. Anyway, eventually I decided that I was so limited with buying precut shapes and they weren’t really to my taste. My father-in-law bought me my scroll saw which isn’t really much different to a sewing machine so I was well away. I started to design new shapes and eventually I had enough confidence to approach shops and sell a few things to them. i now supply 3 shops locally and am always on the lookout for more.

What are you inspired by?

I love looking at the craft sites and seeing other peoples work. I also love vintage and antique things that are a bit quirky. Just reading different blogs with like minded crafters is great inspiration too!

Do you have a work space or studio? What is it like?

I am lucky enough to have a big room in our house that is solely for my work. Its not quite how I would like it set up but I’m always so busy creating that I never seem to have the time to re-organize myself! The children also have their little spot to work too so its a family affair!


Where can people buy your work?

My online folksy shop, I will soon also be supplying a few exclusive items to www.flaxandfinch.co.uk.

You can also see my items at a few shops in Norfolk:

Big Blue Sky, Wells-next-the-sea

Rooms with a View, Diss, Norfolk

Norfolk Living, Burnham Market, Norfolk

How do you promote your work?

Mostly through facebook and twitter, and just word of mouth and going to some great craft fairs.


What goals do you have for the future?


I would love to supply a few more shops around the country as well as have my own online shop. My ultimate success story would be able to attend the Country Living Fair at Christmas.

What advice would you offer to someone thinking about turning their craft/art into a business?

Oh I have loads of advice…where to start….

  • be brave
  • if you want to do it just go for it!
  • Make things that you enjoy making and you would want in your home too.
  • In the beginning go to loads of fairs and test the market.
  • Join some of the women’s networking groups such as WiRE. They have been a great way for me to meet like minded people. Some of the ladies that I met last year have set up a group called Dead Good Designs in which we get together and support each other’s businesses and bounce ideas off each other. We also club together to go to a few of the more expensive fairs ones that we wouldn’t have been able to afford otherwise.

A few of your favourites (just for fun)….

Colour: I love to wear black

Animal: horses

Season: autumn, but then love English spring time, being Canadian I am reminded every spring why England is so lovely.

Person: my husband, he is so supportive of me and my business I couldn’t have done any of this without him

Food: pasta, I could eat it everyday! Wish it was fat free!

Website: facebook (unfortunately but it keeps me connected to friends and family back home)


~


Thank you for sharing your creations with us Suzanne, I’m a huge fan of the beach huts!


New Stockist: Tea Room Boutique

I’m pleased to announce my new stockist ~ Tea Room Boutique in Lancashire. The shop sells ethical clothing and accessories from some of the hottest Eco designers in the UK, US and Europe. As well as this small, independent boutique providing beautiful, stylish and highly desirable clothing, Tea Room Boutique also sells limited designer-maker products to complement the clothing range. As the name suggests, Tea Room Boutique is also a tea room offering tea, cream teas, home baking and organic teas, coffee and soft drinks.

At Tea Room Boutique you will find a selection of new pieces from my dandelion range, displayed next to Vogue magazine where one of my vases is featured!

Some of my mini ceramic landscape art on easels arrived at Tea Room Boutique last week and has already flown out of the shop!

Tea Room Boutique can be located at Backridge Farm, Twitter Lane, Nr. Waddington, BB7 3LQ.

Hearts

Hearts are a popular recurring theme throughout various different ranges and pieces of my work. I really need to make some new heart shaped clocks, that will be something to add to my list of things to make. I’ve enjoyed putting together these heart themed mood boards below, using my pinterest collection. So I’ve got plenty of heart related inspiration to work with now!


Featured Interview – Little Wren Pottery

Meet: Victoria of

Little Wren Pottery


How long have you been making your work and how did it all begin?

I’ve been making pots for about two years now, which I know makes me very ‘young’ for a potter I still get things wrong every now and then but its a learning process!

It all really started when my Dad, who’s also a potter, wanted to get me to have a go. It’d been a number of years since he’d done any potting, I can still remember the wheel he used to have when I was a little girl but he’d long since sold it on. So we went to collage together mainly to use their facilities and for me to pick up the basics of throwing. Since then we’ve gone on to acquire our own equipment and set up a small studio space.


What processes & techniques do you use in your work?

I throw all my pots on the wheel. They start out life as lumps of clay and are transformed into cups, bowls, vases and anything else I can think of! Most of my work is embellished in some way either with things like mice, made from a press mould or patterns stamped onto the surface.

I really like adding these elements to a pot, I just feel it gives each one a personality and I’d imagine at home people will be able to differentiate the subtile personalities of particular mice within a set to have their favourites!


What are you inspired by?

In pottery terms I’m largely inspired by Isaac Button, Shoji Hamada, Bernard Leach and Michael Cardew. I like the mix of producing items that are both decorative and functional, the principal of everyday beauty is really important in my own work.


I’ve always loved the Pre-Raphaelite artists as well in particular Gabriel Dante Rossetti and William Morris. In a more general way I really like the beauty of nature, the way light dances through leaves like stained glass and tiny birds that hop around in my garden they’re all welcome.



Do you have a work
space or studio? What is it like?

I have a very small workspace, its a little cramped being up in the loft of the house. Unfortunately there isn’t any running water or electricity so as you’d imagine this makes life a little difficult. I’m pretty fortunate that I have a small compact wheel for throwing on, just don’t stand up too quickly or you’ll hit your head on the roof!



Where can people buy your work?

I sell my work largely online on Etsy, Folksy, and Dawanda. Recently I’ve been attending more craft fairs in my local area and hopefully I’ll be able to do more of these as time goes on.


How do you promote your work?

You can find me on Twitter and Facebook, I’m a bit of a Twitter addict I’m on there all the time! I also regularly publish blog articles over on my site, I think its really important for people to feel like they’re in touch with the process. From time to time I get featured in magazines too which is really invaluable to spreading the word.


What goals do you have for the future?

I’d love a new studio one with running water, electricity and somewhere I can comfortably stand up! I don’t pot full time either but I’d love to spend less time working and more time potting.


What advice would you offer to someone thinking about turning their craft/art into a business?

There aren’t really many barriers to setting yourself up in having a small business these days, theres only really the barriers you put up for yourself. It’s a lot of hard work especially when your basically starting from nothing to build up your business into a brand, stick at it though, it takes time to become established and for people to find you. I certainly feel like I’ve come on an awful long way in the last 18 months and hopefully there’ll be more changes to come yet!


A few of your favourites (just for fun)….

Colour: Ruby red or plummy purples, I can never decide.

Animal: I love animals just in general four legs or two feet it doesn’t matter! Of course I love Wrens, they have such personalities and for such a tiny bird it has a big song.


Season: Autumn has to be my favourite, its not too hot nor too cold. I really like the beautiful soft light of the season and the turning of leaves on trees. There’s plenty of tasty treats to be had too like Pumpkins and Blackberries.

Person: Although I work with my Dad all the time I’m a Mummy’s girl at heart!

Food: Got to be chips, or more specifically a chip butty in a lovely soft roll. With vinegar, and mayonnaise and ketchup ha : )

Website: http://www.littlewrenpottery.co.uk

~

Thank you for sharing your pottery and work processes with us Victoria. I love the coloured glazes that you use to decorate your work!

Close up detail

I love this close up image of one of my new heart plaques. The melted teal and turquoise glass, running into the natural crevices on the surface of the clay, reminds me of a swimming pool that I just want to jump into! Funny what close up details make you think of!


This teal heart plaque is a unique one-off item, and can be viewed and purchased here.

Featured Interview – Slugs & Snails

Meet: Louise of


Slugs and Snails

How long have you been making your work and how did it all begin?

I have been crafting since I was a child and I have always had some sort of craft on the go. I like trying new crafts / artforms and have dabbled in sewing, wet felting, photography, painting, jewellery making, mixed media, knitting and my latest obsession crocheting…

What processes & techniques do you use in your work?

My work is anything artistic. In my Folksy shop you can find paintings, felted bowls and jewellery to mention a few. I like learning new skills and developing my own unique style.

What are you inspired by?


I find inspiration in the things around me, whether it be a colours, nature or life. Art is life. Life is beautiful!

Do you have a work space or studio? What is it like?


My studio is anywhere I can find some space. The dining room table for my mixed media paintings. The conservatory floor if I’m wet felting and my comfy chair in the living room if I’m crocheting. My dream studio is a sheppard’s hut at the bottom of the garden overlooking the fields and of course it would have a wood burning stove installed for making cups of Chai.

Where can people buy your work?


Online at Folksy.

How do you promote your work?


I wish I could say that I spend time promoting my shop, but the truth is I don’t.

What goals do you have for the future?


I would love to sell more online and do craft fairs.

What advice would you offer to someone thinking about turning their craft/art into a business?

I’m not sure I’m the most qualified person to answer that as I run my shop as a little side line. BUT…. follow your heart and take the plunge.


A few of your favourites (just for fun)….

Colour: Pink or purple

Animal: unicorn

Season: Autumn

Person: My son

Food: Organic and fair-trade chocolate

Website: http://embers.typepad.com/e/


~

Thank you for sharing your work with us Louise, I love the colour and energy from your mixed media pieces!

Easy Peasy Bunting

I love decorative bunting and hanging garlands, wherever I see them hanging they always cheer me up! Bunting is great for decorating parties, weddings, the garden, and even any room of the house all year round. (Have you seen my ceramic bunting and hanging decorations? :) )


You don’t need to be a whiz on a sewing machine, or even pick up one single sewing needle to create your own decorative paper bunting. I made this simple neutral bunting by using a cut-out template from a cereal box to cut a range of different patterned and textured papers into flags. Some of which were from magazines.


Then, using a hole punch to create holes in the top corners of each flag, thread through some ribbon and tie loops at either end for it to be hung up.


Easy peasy! Happy Independance Day 4th July!

Fresh from the Kiln


Here are lots of lovely new goodies fresh from the kiln this week, hope you like them!

Not only are many of these products generous little treats for yourself to decorate and furnish your home or garden, they also make great unique gifts.

These plaques are perfect for the wedding season!



Thank you for looking. As always I would love to hear your comments :)
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