This is Little Langdale in the lake district. Last weekend I spent a bit of time there with my dad, uncle and cousin. I simply love the weather we are having, crisp cold, deep frost but still air and dry. A light snowfall to make the landscape pretty. This is slaters bridge a very simple foot bridge which I suspect…
Woodcarving is so much easier if you have the right tools for the job and thankfully in this case the right tools need not cost a fortune. So what makes the best knife for wood carving and whittling and what should you look for when buying one? It should be made of a good quality steel, reasonably hard and take…
Meet John Penrose MP for Weston-super-Mare and minister for Heritage and Tourism. Following our meeting last week John Penrose has sent us the following message of support. “ The Heritage Crafts Association has brought together a fine range of different living crafts which are valuable parts of our heritage. The Association’s commitment to supporting small businesses all over the country…
Do you know anyone that sews or does embroidery and apreciates lovely handmade things?Then how about these for a gorgeous Christmas present. Hand made in Sheffield gold plated and they work perfectly. They come in a leather sheath and presentation box delivered to your door for just £20 which I think is a bit of a bargain but then you…
This time signwriting canal boat style and on a nice old Morris van And Saville row tailors trying to protect their name. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VFPHW_mIcmo and last one spinning and dyeing in Peru
Kevin McCloud is well known as the TV presenter of the “Grand Designs” program which makes him very influential in forming popular opinion. It was great to hear then that he was going to speak on “value and craftsmanship” urging people to ” rediscover the unfashionable value of craftsmanship – it is the only way we will match creativity and…
This week UK news is reporting the UNESCO world heritage list. Radio 4 Today program this morning andTelegraph 1Telegraph 2Surprisingly non of these pointed out that there are no UK examples of living heritage on the list. This one is better.GuardianOne humorous one from ScotlandHeraldThe world heritage list recognises important parts of our cultural heritage that are at risk. The…
I love the light quality when the sun drops low in the sky in the autumn, side lighting brings out all the contours in the landscape and makes everything look beautiful. The workshop is pretty too, to me aesthetically soft lighting like this has deep beauty about it, not easy to explain but compared to harsh artificial light or even…
The BBCs Victorian Farm program was described as a “surprise hit” and the team are back now for Edwardian farm. We will be updating information about the crafts and craftspeople shown in the program and of course we are delighted that Alex Langlands one of the shows presenters is a patron of the Heritage Crafts Association. Alex will be speaking…
The last person making really good mazers was the celebrated silver smith Omar Ramsden. His mazers were not aiming to be close to the originals but a modern twist on the old theme. They were however nicely made and now command good prices in the silver trade. This one was made in 1924 and recently sold for £2850. I have…
