meet a maker

being the inquisitive little feltmaker that i am, i thought it might be interesting to hear about other maker's stories. if you would like to be featured, please leave me a comment and i'll get in touch with some questions for you.

so, grab a cuppa, put your feet up and lets meet kate ...

Please introduce yourself …
...Stands up, scraping of chair can be heard...clears throat and ....

Hi, my name is Kate, aka hawthorn, I am an addicted procrastinator in order to do all things crafty and I love it!.....

How would you describe your work / style?
Umm, that's difficult. I dabble with many genre and think I fall under the artistic category of : Jack of all trades and master of none!
Who, or what, inspires you?
I love colour but the colours of nature, so my work tends not to be vibrant brights more the colours of the hills or the sea.

My children often give me the inspiration I need as they request the unexpected and after humming and haa-ing I make them their odd requests and am often pleasantly surprised how they turn out.

Do you sell your work? If so, what helped you decide to start selling your work?
I don't sell my work as I don't have time to make a lot, but I do take commissions and bespoke requests. When I lived in Africa I sold my wildlife paintings and painted cushions both from a small shop we ran and the local wild game park.

Do you have a website or blog address?
I have two blogs running at the moment - my personal daily waffling of stuff and nonsense and a slightly more grown up one where I am co-ordinating the making and distributing of crochet and knitted blankets for displaced families in Japan following their natural disasters.

www.hawthorntime.blogspot.com
www.kyoyukyoyu.blogspot.com
How did you learn your craft? How long have you been creating?
I've always drawn or painted but not as much recently as I would like to.

I love crochet and will be forever grateful to my fav-sis-in-law for patiently teaching me how to get to grips with it (pun fully intended) She taught me two years ago on holiday whilst sitting on a beach in Northumberland.

I dabble with and enjoy felt making and put the blame fully on a previous 'Meet a Maker' - Angela - whom you featured March 21st.

Is there any other craft skill you would like to learn?
Jewellery making particularly using sea-glass and silver. I have the glass collected from years of beach combing, now I just need the time to do something with it :)

If I wasn’t doing this, I’d be …
Well. I'd love to be creating and crafting full time, but realistically speaking it doesn't pay the bills so a regular job has to try and fit in around my crafting time!

I couldn’t do this if it wasn’t for …
An extremely long suffering, very understanding, encouraging and all round wonderful husband (yes he had to pay me to say that!)

Describe your perfect day.
Coffee in bed (thank you above-mentioned husband) breakfast in a sunny garden, walking out on the hills or gardening, curled up on the settee crafting in the evening after eating something pasta based. Being with my boys.
What do you do to relax?
Walking, crafting, gardening - doesn't sound that relaxing but I find I can completely unwind doing these.

Marmite … love it or hate it?
No question - love love love love but only as marmite not diluted in a mug of hot water as a drink - now why would you want to do that???

What animal would you be, and why?
A long coated tortishell and white cat with magnificent whiskers - lazing around in the sun in the garden or greenhouse, rolling on catmint or chewing strands of wool - (try not to think about the ensuing hairballs......)
What’s your weakness?
Err - plants and wool (that might be the cat in me.....)

How do you keep motivated?
The thought that I only have one life time, and each day is precious, once it has gone - it has gone forever.

What do you wish you’d known when you first started out?
Believe in yourself more and forget what teachers/adults say to you and about you when you create art from the heart.

What question did you hope to be asked but didn’t?
Would you like to have your own personal space to create and craft? (and not have to tidy up before dinner?)
What would your answer have been?
Show me where it is!

thanks for taking the time to chat kate, i share your 'weakness' of plants and wool - perhaps we were cats in a previous incarnation?! p.s. when you find that space to create and craft, please let me know if there's room for one more! :)