Month: December 2020

Now that my shops have closed for the holidays, and the last of the Christmas orders have been dispatched, it’s time to concentrate on another project. Way, way back at the beginning of 2020 (another time, another world) I responded to a call out for artists to submit designs for Light the North – the latest Scotland-based sculpture trail raising funds for cancer support. As with everything else this year, the planned date for the event had to be postponed, so I put it to the back of my mind in the hope that it would happen at some point. Well, I’m delighted to say that Light the North is going ahead in March 2021 and one of my designs has been selected!

I can’t reveal any details of my design at this point but I will be posting updates over the next two weeks of my progress on social media. It’s such an exciting and worthwhile project to be involved in – over 45 fibreglass lighthouses standing 2.5 metres tall, will shine a light over the north-east, Orkney and Shetland to inspire visitors and locals to explore and engage with this beautiful region of Scotland, whilst raising funds and awareness of the vital support provided by CLAN to people affected by cancer. You can follow Light the North on social media to see all the event’s news.

Thanks for reading, and have a safe and peaceful Christmas x

December 5th & 6th sees my last online fair of the year, and what a strange year it’s been. Every maker, artist and designer who would normally make most of their income at seasonal fairs and markets has had to adapt to selling their work online rather than face to face. And it’s been a very steep learning curve for everyone involved, including the organisers of these ‘virtual’ events! There has definitely been much more work involved in preparing for an online market; with an actual market all you have to do is make the work and turn up! The virtual world requires photographs, videos, even audio recordings! Which all takes time. And then of course you spend hours packaging orders followed by repeated trips to the post office (I’m not complaining, honest)! I’m just looking forward to a time when we can all gather together, chat to customers (and other makers) and have a bit of fun again.

Anyway, I am looking forward to the Folksy Christmas Market as it’s the first online fair I’ve done as Rudy and the Rowan Tree. I’ve had a sneek peek and there is so much incredible work on there it’s ridiculous! The standard and variety of art, craft, and design is truly phenomenal, and proves we are really punching above our weight in the UK when it comes to creating beautiful products. Find me in the ‘Art’ section and the ‘Scotland’ section!

Hope to see you’ll pop by this weekend!

Thanks for reading 🙂