Ten Fabulous Independent Makers Who You Need To Know About
Or how to find lots of excellent things to add to your home that you otherwise might not have known about and support small creative business at the same time. WINNING ALL THE WAY.
I have spent much of my adult life wanting to run my own small business. My first attempt was when Ella was a baby and I decided that I wanted to set up an eBay shop (eBay, at this time, was only a few years old so I decided that I needed to jump on the wagon pronto). With absolutely no import/export experience and a budget of £300, I found a shoemaker in Thailand (don’t ask) and bought 60 pairs of espadrilles (£100 was spent on shipping and taxes), got my Dad to design a logo for me and convinced Joe to invest in a printer for the influx of anticipated orders for my wares. The printer itself cost £400 and was so big and cumbersome that it took up half of the spare bedroom. I listed my product, opened the shop and waited for the cash to flood in. Unfortunately, I hadn’t taken into account the only people who bought their shoes from eBay tended to be those that didn’t buy them in the shops as their feet were too big so my size 4-7 2001 espadrille collection sat largely unsold. I ended up selling them to friends at cost price or, worse, giving them away due to the fact that I had nowhere to store them thanks to the huge bloody printer that was never used. You live and you learn.
My second attempt, in 2008, was slightly more successful. I teamed up with a local friend and we spotted a gap in the market for shopping bags, designing our own which we had made alongside imported beauties from France. Calling our shop Roostlife, we joined a newly launched online small business shopping site, Not On The High Street, spurred on by their introductory offer of five years membership for £500 (they omitted to tell us that if we wanted any advertising inclusion we’d need to take out a small mortgage. Damn them). Astonishingly, we were approached by John Lewis to be included in store and my dedication to the cause was proven when we drove to their London offices for a meeting with Leo in tow, who was less than four weeks old (fun fact: this was also post c section). I met my brother James on his scooter, unceremoniously chucked over Leo in his car seat and went off the meeting whilst he gave Leo a bottle in a local cafe.
And then, disaster happened. Well, for us anyway, not for the planet. Supermarkets started bringing in reusable shopping bags in all sorts of sizes, colours and patterns as they started to phase out plastic bags at a cost of approximately £1.50 a go. Ours, though obviously much more luxe, were around £18. Our customer base disappeared, as did the John Lewis deal and that, my friends, was that. Another day, another failed attempt to conquer the retail world. Sigh.
Despite my lack of any real success in this area, I have always been persistent when it comes to finding and supporting smaller businesses and in particularly, creative makers. Finding beautiful handmade or hand sourced things and adding them to my basket is my super power, admittedly, and the excitement I feel when I find a new maker from whom to add to my home is extreme. We live in a world where we are surrounded by beauty on the High Street, but it’s also so important to check out and shop from smaller artisan businesses who make and curate glorious things with love. So I thought I would pass on some of my favourite independent homeware makers so that you too can enjoy. You’re welcome.
Minnie-Mae Studio
I’ve followed Minnie on Instagram for a few years now and I love her work. She’s based in Margate and her pieces are inspired by the British seaside, the history of London, Greek mythology, Italian kitsch and vegetables. Her oysters and cherries are my personal faves. @minniemaestudio
Harlie Brown Studio
Again, I’ve followed Harlie for ages and my first purchase was a pair of her Wiggle mugs which are used daily. Harlie uses techniques such as slab building, coiling and pinching and I love the French plates which are hand painted by her husband, Dan. @harliebrownstudio
Bertola Home Studio
Closer to home in West Yorkshire, this small business was started in lockdown and I found them when I was looking for a bobbin frame mirror for my kitchen. Handmade and painted in endless colours and different sizes, they also do picture frames and lighting. @bertolahomestudio
Rosie Gore
I started following Rosie when I bought two hand painted striped lampshades from her shop about three years ago and she now also stocks a selection of ceramics handmade in her studio, plus vintage and antique pieces. Her check serving platters are the BEST. @_rosiegore_
Poppy & Honesty
Sophie started her business in Australia before moving back to Cornwall in 2015. Her textiles are a glorious mix of gingham, candy stripes and Liberty prints amongst others and it’s all made from start to finish in South West. @poppyandhonesty
L & Clay Ceramics
Lesley is a brand new discovery for me whilst perusing the web last week and I immediately loved her work (and no, I could not resist adding to bag). She fuses text with ceramics for pieces that are as practical as they are beautiful. @landclayceramics
Kate Sellers Creative
Another ceramicist whose work I have loved for years is Kate Sellers who combines a love of Sicilian design with expert pottery skills. I have her plates on my wall and I particularly love the Duci stripes in gorgeous colours. @k.s.creative.pottery
Harriet Says Hi
Harriets work is inspired by all things food and table and I can hard relate to that. She makes hand tufted cushions and rugs amongst other things from her South London flat using dead stock Axminster Wool. @harrietsayshi
Sunday & Story
Jo designs and sources the most beautiful rugs which are handmade in Morocco by a Women’s Collective of highly skilled female weavers. She also has a range of homewares including pouffes, raffia bags and placemats and can make to order. @sundayandstory
Kate Gwilliam
Kate is the Queen Of Sequins and everything is made by hand by herself, with her inspiration coming from supermarket aisles through to vintage caviar tins. Her range also includes beautifully embroidered table linens. @kategwilliam
So those are ten of the best, but there are plenty more. Do you have a favourite maker to add to my list? Please do share in the comments below!
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Thank you for these artists! Can’t wait to explore their work.
Glorious collection 👌🏼