The Makers

Kent-based furniture maker @sean_evelegh has won the second annual Young Woodworker of the Year Award, supported by @axminstertools, including a £1,000 prize awarded at a special presentation at Eltham Palace on Tuesday 26 November 2024.

The award celebrates a young woodworker who has made an outstanding start to their craft career. The winner is highly skilled amongst their peers, whilst raising the perceived value of their craft through sharing and awareness raising. They have given themselves a fantastic chance of achieving long-term success, perhaps overcoming disadvantage or setbacks along the way.

Sean Evelegh set up his own furniture making business straight out of university, making pieces for clients all around the world. In 2020 he won a TV show called ‘The Chop’, to be crowned Britain’s top woodworker, competing as a teenager against experienced professionals. He was recently recognised by the Furniture Makers’ Company as one of 60 future leaders in the furniture industry.

The two other finalists for the award were @jessiehills.design, who studied 3D Design and Craft at Brighton University, and went on to study fine furniture making at Robinson House Studio under the guidance of renowned makers Marc Fish and Theo Cook, and Lizzie Jarvis, who started working alongside a carpenter at age 13, and at age 14 started her own workshop to delve further into woodworking. At age 16 she set up her own business, @bramblecarpentry, and recently completed her Silver Arts Award.

Global suppliers of woodworking tools and machinery, Axminster Tools has spent 50 years building their family business into the renowned organisation it is today. Working together with makers and creators at all levels, from trade professionals through to craft enthusiasts, their commitment to supporting woodworking skills fits perfectly with the ethos of Heritage Crafts.

Read more via the linktr.ee in our bio. We will be posting about each of our awards over the next few days.

📷 @robertwadephotography and @josh.fmc

Surrey weaver Scarlett Farrer @scarlweaves has won the 2024 Young Weaver of the Year Award, supported by @roseuniacke, including a £1,000 prize awarded at a special presentation at Eltham Palace on Tuesday 26 November 2024.

The award, now in its second year, celebrates a young weaver who has made an outstanding start to their craft career. The winner is highly skilled amongst their peers, whilst raising the perceived value of their craft through sharing and awareness raising. They have given themselves a fantastic chance of achieving long-term success, perhaps overcoming disadvantage or setbacks along the way.

Scarlett Farrer has been weaving for three years, after discovering her passion for it at University. Within that time she has experimented with multiple materials, fibres and techniques. In June this year she qualified as a TEX+ finalist and went on to exhibit alongside 24 other designers and makers at the Chelsea College of Arts. There she was awarded the Helga Goldman Award for outstanding contribution to future textiles.

The two other finalists for the award were Sauda Imam @simplysauda, who was inspired by her grandmother’s stories of the wondrous women weavers of Kano, Nigeria, to relocate to the UK to study at Central Saint Martins, and Natalie McCormack @botanicatextiles, whose work combines the beauty of handcrafted textiles with the meticulous research of natural dye making, earning her a Collect Open Award and an Young Innovators Award with Innovate UK.

Rose Uniacke has long been committed to championing traditional skills and craftspeople. Over the years, she has nurtured relationships with an exceptional group of highly skilled artisans and craftspeople who have the experience, virtuosity and sensitivity to interpret her designs. Since 2021 Uniacke has been supporting Heritage Crafts through donating profits of her Remnant Weave range, created from Rose Uniacke fabric remnants.

Read more via the linktr.ee in our bio. We will be posting about each of our awards over the next few days.

📷 @robertwadephotography

Maille maker @philparkesmaille has won this year’s inaugural Wales Maker of the Year Award, supported by @silverliningfurniture, including a £1,000 prize awarded at a special presentation at Eltham Palace on Tuesday 26 November 2024.

The award celebrates a heritage craftsperson in Wales who has made an outstanding contribution to their craft within the previous year. It recognises a contribution that is far beyond the ordinary, either in pushing their craft to new levels, contributing to its promotion or continuation in an exceptional way.

Phil Parkes is an accredited conservator with over 30 years’ experience. Since 2018 he has been studying maille (sometimes known as ‘chain mail’) and working to disseminate understanding of this endangered craft. In this relatively short time, he has become recognised for his incredible skill, and recently completed a piece of 15th century style maille for a researcher in Australia to study the effects of different types of arrowheads against maille armour.

The two other finalists for the award were Ian Dennis, an antler worker whose work with @guerillaarch to reinvigorate this lost craft has seen him recreate complex antler items recovered from historic sites in Scotland, and @marithomasjewellery, a jewellery maker who has received commissions from leading cultural institutions such as the Welsh Assembly Government, National Eisteddfod of Wales and the National Library of Wales.

Founded in 1985, Silverlining has built a reputation for innovation and excellence at its base in Wrexham, blending traditional hand skills with cutting-edge techniques to make one-of-a-kind furniture that is known for creativity and performance.

Read more via the linktr.ee in our bio. We will be posting about each of our awards over the next few days.

📷 @robertwadephotography and @dewitannattlloyd

North Wales-based dry stone waller Barney Murray @barneywalling has won the first Young Building Craftsperson of the Year Award, supported by @englishheritage, including a £1,000 prize awarded at a special presentation at Eltham Palace on Tuesday 26 November 2024.

The new award celebrates a heritage craftsperson aged 25 years or under who has made an outstanding start to their building crafts career. The award was open to practitioners of any skilled craft that is primarily focused on the construction, conservation or repair of buildings or the human landscape.

Though still young, Barney Murray has already attained the highest standard, as recognised by the Dry Stone Walling Association, achieving Master Craftsman certification in September this year. He has won several dry stone walling competition prizes and has acted as an ambassador for dry stone walling, taking a keen and active role in helping others develop their skills by undertaking an instructor course.

The two other finalists for the award were William Blackmore @the_works_department, a multi-skilled conservation practitioner at Chester Cathedral with an NVQ in stonemasonry, carpentry and joinery, and rudyhewlett, a fourth generation thatcher in a family-run business that has been going for nearly 100 years.

Read more via the linktr.ee in our bio. We will be posting about each of our awards over the next few days.

📷 @robertwadephotography

London leatherworker Preethi Kosanam @preethi.kumarrrr_ has won the inaugural Young Leatherworker of the Year Award, supported by @theleathersellers Foundation, including a £1,000 prize awarded at a special presentation at Eltham Palace on Tuesday 26 November 2024.

The award celebrates a young leatherworker who has made an outstanding start to their craft career. The winner is highly skilled amongst their peers, whilst raising the perceived value of their craft through sharing and awareness raising. They have given themselves a fantastic chance of achieving long-term success, perhaps overcoming disadvantage or setbacks along the way.

Preethi Kosanam is a graduate of the National Institute of Fashion Technology, Chennai, where she specialised in leather garments and accessories, and now studies at the London College of Fashion. Most recently, she won the prestigious Dents Prize for the most commercial and innovative glove design. She is deeply committed to creating products that are not only functional but also profoundly expressive. She uses craftsmanship as a medium to address today’s pressing issues in fashion, such as sustainability, ethics and consumer responsibility.

The two other finalists for the award were @anadelrio.studio, a fashion designer specialising in leathercraft and the founder of her own brand ANA DEL RIO, and Shuyan Chen @kalimeris.indica, a bookbinder on the Graduate Program at West Dean College who won the Best Craftsperson Award in the inaugural Edward James Bookbinding Competition.

Read more via the linktr.ee in our bio. We will be posting about each of our awards over the next few days.

📷 @robertwadephotography

Bedfordshire leatherworker Natalie Thakur @marrikur_studios has won the inaugural Leatherworker of the Year Award, supported by the British Leather Industry Development Trust @leather_uk, including a £2,000 prize and trophy awarded at a special presentation at Eltham Palace on Tuesday 26 November 2024.

The award celebrates a heritage craftsperson who has made an outstanding contribution to leatherworking over the past year. It recognises a contribution that is far beyond the ordinary, based on a proven dedication to a particular leatherworking skill.

After studying Contemporary Applied Arts at Middlesex University in London, Natalie Thakur went on to study leatherwork at the London College of Fashion. She initially started out working in bespoke leather interiors, before starting up her own brand Natthakur and pioneering techniques such as hand-painted leather marquetry, specialist leather moulding, and hand-crafted sculptural relief. She has been stocked in some of the most prestigious shops in the world, including Selfridges, Le Bon Marche in Paris, Takashimaya and The V&A, and was selected for ‘The Best of British’ at Liberty’s London.

The two other finalists for the award were Andrew Hastilow @hastilowsons, a saddler who has trained five apprentices and teaches saddlery at the North American Saddlery School each year, and Brad Smith, a leatherworker at @geoffreyparker_ who has he has hand-crafted products for brands including Cartier, Dunhill, Aspinal of London and Tiffany.

Read more via the linktr.ee in our bio. We will be posting about each of our awards over the next few days.

📷 @robertwadephotography

Hampshire silk weaver Shannon Bye @s.bye.design has won the inaugural Fashion Textile Maker of the Year Award, supported by the @costume_society, including a £2,000 prize and trophy awarded at a special presentation at Eltham Palace on Tuesday 26 November 2024.

The award, supported by the Costume Society, celebrates a heritage craftsperson who has made an outstanding contribution to fashion textiles over the past year. It recognises a contribution that is far beyond the ordinary, based on a proven dedication to a particular fashion textiles skill.

Shannon Bye is Heritage Weaving Manager at @whitchurchsilkmill. Her progression as a silk weaver at the Mill reflects her dedication and passion for her craft. During the last year, as well as making excellent progress in her own silk weaving practice, she has developed her capacity to lead a growing team of weaver tacklers.

The two other finalists for the award were Clare Campbell @pricklytartan, whose work is represented in the prestigious permanent collections of the National Museum of Scotland, highlighting her commitment to excellence and innovation in the textile industry, and @rachelfrosthatter, a self-taught, multidisciplinary artist and historian who creates both historical and contemporary headwear and bags using a wide range of techniques.

Read more via the linktr.ee in our bio. We will be posting about each of our awards over the next few days.

📷 @robertwadephotography and @kirstybowenphotography

Sheffield-based silver spinner Warren Martin @wm.handmade has won this year’s Precious Metalworker of the Year Award, supported by @royalmintuk, including a £2,000 prize and trophy awarded at a special presentation at Eltham Palace on Tuesday 26 November 2024.

The award, supported by The Royal Mint, celebrates a heritage craftsperson who has made an outstanding contribution to working with precious metal over the past year. It recognises a contribution that is far beyond the ordinary, based on a proven dedication to a particular metalworking skill. The Royal Mint is Britain’s oldest maker, with a heritage of crafting precious metals dating back to 886AD. Today it is helping to revive the art of British jewellery making at its site in South Wales.

Warren Martin, from Sheffield, is a practitioner of the craft of silver spinning, where metal is formed on a lathe into vessels and other hollow shapes, over forms known as chucks. The craft of silver spinning is integral to the creation of some of the world’s most prestigious sporting trophies.

Warren is one of a dwindling number of craftspeople in the city known for its metalworking heritage, many of whom work for the trade and rarely receive recognition for their work. Silver spinning is listed as critically endangered on Heritage Crafts’ Red List.

The two other finalists for the award were @kittygriffithsjewellery, a goldsmith jewellery maker who studied at Sheffield University and excels at stone setting, and @eponasmith_, a silversmith and hand engraver who teaches the art of engraving in London and Birmingham.

Read more via the linktr.ee in our bio. We will be posting about each of our awards over the next few days.

📷 @robertwadephotography