Patricia van den Akker is director of The Design Trust, an online business school for designer-makers. She discusses the barriers to running a design or craft business, with 7 tips on overcoming them.
Develop Your Career
After years of running craft workshops, Momtaz Begum-Hossain decided to publish a guide to creating Bollywood-inspired accessories and decor. She described the process of getting her ideas into print.
Industry Insight
Making objects from metal casting is a craft that goes back thousands of years. Professional caster James Virgo talks about the process of casting metals and tells us about his creative career.
Industry Insight
Trevor Hardy is Master Mason at Hardwick Hall, a National Trust property in Derbyshire. He spoke about his career journey as a stonemason, and the skills needed to start out in stonemasonry.
Industry Insight
Mike Gadd's job as a taxidermist allows him to combine his love of wildlife with his skills as a sculptor. He spoke about his work.
Industry Insight
Tony Dew wanted to work with wood. But he didn’t just want to accept any kind of wood work, so it was rocking horses or nothing. Find out what attracted him to revive an old craft.
Industry Insight
Claudia Petley, who designs and creates intricate metal goods with her husband, spoke about her work and career journey.
Industry Insight
Mike Anderson founded Starfish Designs after making a traditional Scottish harp for his daughter. Now he sells instruments worldwide and spoke about how he achieved this business success.
Develop Your Career
Times are tough. High street and online retail outlets risk going out of business as consumer spending dries up and costs rise. Here are 6 tips for creating a recession-proof business.
Develop Your Career
'Making It' is a business incubation programme for emerging craft makers, established by Craft Northern Ireland. Those involved in the programme talk about why it is needed and how it works.
Fashion designers conceive of and create clothes
Create designs for a range of fabrics
Using the countryside to make artefacts
Involved in many functions of heritage sites
Restoring and repairing old buildings
Taxidermists make reconstructed animals
Work with paper to produce bespoke objects
Often specialising in a particular toy or range
Produce and maintain a range of instruments
Making objects and implementing craft techniques
