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Tell us a little about yourself?

I specialise in making non-leather, and holistic hand-crafted pieces (items with an element of healing) and other, ethical art.  At the moment I feel particularly inspired by traditional, ethnic, and even prehistoric styles.  I’ve been a Holistic Practitioner in the East Midlands for over 10 years doing complementary therapies such as Reflexology, Reiki and Crystals.  In 2006 I trained in Healing with Colour and this re-sparked my interest in painting with watercolours and acrylic using colour therapy as part of my inspiration.  I began to experiment with collage and texture and then went on to more 3 dimensional projects. 

What inspired you to set up your business?

Over 25 years ago I became vegetarian, and embarking into art and craft making I found that not all art material is ‘vegetarian’ so I began to research and find paints, gesso, glue, brushes and other materials that are not only good quality but also animal-free.  Traditional crafted items, which I love, such as dream-catchers, amulet pouches, beaded drawstring bags, other decorative items and jewellery are often made from leather, feathers, bone and other slaughterhouse products.  I didn’t want to buy products made with materials taken from factory farmed animals and believe many other people feel the same and buy ethical when given the choice.  I started to experiment with making craft pieces using faux suede, leatherette, fabric feathers and the occasional found, real, feather.  I also realised that I could incorporate elements of crystal healing and feng shui and give my work a holistic flavour, which sits along nicely with being a therapist and trying to live ethically and holistically.

What is your favourite part about creating your products?

Getting an idea and then seeing it come together to a finished product.  Sometimes it’s just as I imagined but I’m also happy to see something that has evolved and turned out better than I thought.

What have you done to manage your environmental impact?

I work from home so travel isn’t a big thing and as a household we already use eco cleaning products and everything is non-animal tested (I try to get BUAV approved).  I use full spectrum low energy lighting in my workspace which is better for your eyes and health as well as the environment.  I’m using ‘upcycled’ fabric, beads and trimmings from old clothes and jewellery and occasionally buy broken jewellery that I can take apart and use bits of, and also found objects, which I find particularly exciting.  I do buy new materials too of course, and whenever there is any ‘waste’; a scrap of material or end of string I save it so it can be reused in another project.  The crystals I use in my kits and sets (crystal healing for beginners) come from a supplier with an ethical statement; they know their suppliers and work with them, and this supports local employment where work is difficult to find.

What is the toughest part of your day?

It not being long enough!  I sometimes get an idea, or I have some new beads, that I want to work on right away but it’s getting late so I have to wait!

What is the biggest decision you ever had to make?

Showing people my stuff for the first time!  Whether its family, friends, clients or strangers at a craft fayre, the decision to ‘go public’ with a new idea is a bit scary!

What has been the best thing to happen to you so far?

Deciding to be ‘brave’ and show people my stuff and then getting a good reaction.

If you had to choose between Organic and Fair Trade which would you choose and why?

This is a difficult one but I tend towards organic because that helps everyone; the environment and the people that work with the organic materials as well as consumers.  Where there is the opportunity to have both, for example with foods like coffee, bananas and chocolate I go for that.

Where do you see yourself in five years’ time?

Healing arts can be part of aesthetic arts and to meld holistic concepts and values, into beautiful and useful things is important to me.  I intend to have expanded my range of products and also to make more bespoke items to encompass this.