Hello!
I seem to be very poor at updating my blog so I apologise. But I'm here now!
I've been very busy with making and markets, travelling across the country to show and sell my wares.
From Derbyshire and Warwickshire, to Surrey, I've been singing badly to favourite songs in my little van and loving every minute of it!
Well nearly every minute of it – the breaking down in Wiltshire, en route to Farnham, was horrendous. Despite me stating to the RAC I was an 60 odd year-old diabetic woman on her own, broken down on a dangerous roundabout, they left me there for 7 hours – mostly in the dark!
Anyway, I survived, and eventually got to my hotel at midnight, with the van on the back of an RAC recovery lorry.
The Festival of Craft at the Maltings in Farnham was superb, so it was all worth in the end… which is not what I would have said, waiting for rescue in the rain and dark, very emotional, and being honked at by passing van drivers when I was stuck!
The response to my work always surprises me and takes me aback if I'm honest. I, like many makers, suffer from imposter syndrome.
Life as a whole for me and probably many artisans is lonely. You spend hours squirrelled away in your work room, away from other humans and social contact. My main form of entertainment, apart from my snoring studio pooch, is singing along to 80s tunes and more recently listening to podcasts, covering everything from Henry the Eighth to what Gyles Brandreth did with his last Teddy Bear!
Many ask if I sell online or in a gallery where they can view my work and the answer is no. I like the face-to-face sales at Artisan fairs and Markets. I can post items out if required, but the personal touch is my preference.
I actually have to get my customers who buy the bigger pieces to go away while I wrap and box them up to go. I get all excited and a bit jittery, and end up wrapping like a child!
Silly I know, but I get emotional that people love my work.
I hope that never changes, the same as I hope I never tire of playing with clay, for that is exactly what I do. I find it very hard to make multiples of the same small things. My husband once came in to see me making small earthenware bowls for a shop and commented that he could see the life blood draining from my body and soul. He is a very sensitive man and clearly sees more in me and my moods than I do. That day he gave me some very good advice, which I have stuck to ever since and been so much better off for it.
The wise words were… Never second guess what people will want, make what you want to make, and people will love it. I do just that and the response is overwhelming.
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Off to St. Ives, Cornwall, at Tregenna Castle, a lovely hotel looking over Carbis Bay for a 3 day Artisan Market on the weekend of 20th, 21st and 22nd November 2026.
Friday 12 noon to 9 pm.
Saturday is 10 am to 5 pm
Sunday 10 am to 5 pm.
Come and say hello, I'm in the ballroom with lots of other creatives.
https://tregenna-castle.co.uk/events/
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Link for Katherine Miles, maker of the lampshades and other incredible willow scultpures: https://www.katherine-miles.com/
