Coldharbour Mill's Heritage Craft Festival
Tuesday 19th - Saturday 30th August (excluding Sunday 24th)
Coldharbour Mill proudly hosts the second annual Heritage Craft Festival! Step into our beautiful historic setting and experience traditional crafts brought to life. Join talented artists and makers for live demonstrations, hands-on workshops, and inspiring Q&As. With fun activities for all ages, it’s a vibrant celebration of heritage, creativity, and community you won’t want to miss!
Meet Our Featured Artists
Adam ‘Red’ Morrigan
A master craftsman in leatherworks applying a full process from making Parchment Velum to Oil Tawed (Brained) leather and furried hides to Oak Tanned Leather. All materials in Red’s leatherwork are natural and sourced locally, and he applies historical and principled methods to create unique handmade items. These are all finished using traditional hand methods and using traditional tools and techniques, including hand stitching with linen, beeswax, etc., and the use of UK findings and antique buckles.
Website & Socials:
redsrawtawtan.com
Facebook | Instagram
Amy Stevens
Amy Stevens is a textile designer and maker who focuses on her connection and memories of the natural world. She is a hand weaver and textile maker who creates bespoke designs, bringing together both printing and weaving to help capture a narrative. Amy has spent most of her childhood exploring nature alongside her family; she represents these subtle retellings of her adventures and memories in her work. Combining her love for the handmade and storytelling, Amy has recently launched a new venture making bags out of pre-loved and donated suit ties, under the name Scrapbook-studio which she hopes to use as a platform to celebrate all areas of her craft.
Website & Socials:
scrapbook-studio.com
Instagram
Arthur Sharp
Arthur first began stitching and working with textiles when he was 8 years old, including the use of a sewing machine. His interest and passion have continued to grow over the following 10 years and he has a particular interest in exploring textures that can be created using natural fibres, including wool, silk, and mulberry bark. Arthur is inspired by nature and the landscapes he sees and uses a range of techniques to layer his textiles of choice, and he then embellishes with stitch to create visually striking and texturally interesting works of art.
Justine Hartley
Justine is passionate about keeping the ancient craft of hand weaving alive within a context of a world with increasing appreciation of handmade items and an awareness of the environmental and social impact of the textile industry and fast fashion.
She gained an apprenticeship with Sioni Rhys Hand Weavers (Pandy, South Wales) after completing an Art Foundation at Hereford College of Art and Design.
Justine works as a studio weaver in Woolacombe and in partnership with Sioni Rhys Hand Weavers. Her designs are influenced by the power, colour and beauty of the traditional Welsh woven textiles that surround her and the roar of the wild sea and incredible natural environment she is immersed in.
Website: justinehartley.com
Instagram: @justine_weaves
Lucy Turner
Based in North Devon, Lucy Turner is passionate about making contemporary willow basketry using traditional and modern techniques. She has learned her craft via short courses, and has recently completed a three-year part-time City & Guilds in basketry in Shropshire in 2024.
Lucy has spent five years establishing a sustainable willow bed at home and uses this, other locally sourced willow, and willow from the traditional growers in Somerset to make her work. She makes a range of baskets and sculptures and incorporates leather, fabric, and driftwood as handles and features.
As well as making work to sell at fairs and for commissions, Lucy teaches workshops including at the Plough @ St Anne’s and the Burton in Bideford.
Instagram: @churchfordcrafts
Website: http://www.churchfordcrafts.co.uk/
Pam Martin
With a lifelong interest and passion for textiles and nature, in recent years Pam’s work has predominately been with natural fibres. She enjoys working with heritage craft skills and techniques, particularly with wool and silk, applying a contemporary 21st-century twist.
Pam’s primary inspiration comes from the natural world that surrounds her home and studio on the Somerset Levels and from her travels. She has exhibited in Somerset Arts Weeks and numerous independent exhibitions in Somerset over the past 10 years. An inveterate teacher of adults with a Masters’ degree in Adult Education, Pam runs regular workshops and seeks to regularly collaborate with like-minded others.
Website: somersetstitch.blogspot.co.uk
Facebook: somersetstitch
Instagram: @somersetstitch
Philippa Reid
Philippa Reid is an award-winning paper artist whose medium is Quilling—the centuries-old art of rolling and shaping narrow strips of paper to create images, decorations, sculpture and jewellery. A fully Accredited (Higher Level) Fellow of the international Quilling Guild, she is also an enthusiastic member of the Guild’s committee in the UK.
In addition to teaching quilling and creating paper jewellery, Philippa also edits the Guild’s highly-regarded members’ magazine, Quillers Today. Her book QUILLING: The Art of Paper Filigree (Crowood Press, 2019) is an illustrated practical guide to all internationally-recognised quilling techniques.
Website: quilliancecreates.weebly.com
Facebook: quilliance
Instagram: @quilliance
Nesta Davies
Nesta is a bookbinder and book conservator. She trained at the (then) London College of Printing and the City Lit, London, where she has been a bookbinding tutor for many years.
She now lives in Dorset, working and teaching from her studio, Leafworks, and widely around the UK, both in person and online. Often working to commission, her work can be found in private collections and public institutions in the UK and America.
In her own practice, Nesta very much enjoys working with textures and a range of structures and surfaces. She loves working with books and spreading the joy.
Instagram: @leafwork.bookbinding
Rosie Burns
Rosie is a painter and printmaker whose work explores water, skies, environmental musings, and the human form.
She originally trained in Archaeological Illustration, earning a degree in Archaeology and Sociology in the late 1990s. Rosie regularly returns to pen and ink illustration and is developing a collection of drawings made on goat and deer parchment, with little gold leaf additions.
Rosie is qualified to teach Art and Design, working in various educational settings in the UK and internationally. She exhibits with galleries through national and international open exhibitions, independent galleries in the South West, and also offers workshops and teaching to support her practice.
Website: rosieburnsartist.com
Instagram: @burns_rosie
Sara Finch
Although she has been making bears and dolls since childhood, it took until 2005 for Sara Finch to finally launch Bower Hinton Bears, named after the Somerset village where she lives and works.
The beautiful bears she creates range from 60cm tall 5-way jointed mohair bears to 3cm Matchbox Bears, all heirlooms in the making. Sara offers one-day workshops, a repair service and ‘Little Felt’ kits, and also undertakes to repair bears as sympathetically as possible while retaining their characters.
Website: bowerhintonbears.co.uk
Facebook: Bower Hinton Bears
Instagram: @BowerHintonBear
Susan Bradshaw
Susan has been a designer/maker for over 30 years and is a qualified adult education tutor and coach. She regularly exhibits at galleries in Devon and is a member of the national group The Westhope Lace Group.
Susan likes to experiment with colour and texture using a variety of threads and mixed media to create her art lace and embroidery. The colours and shapes of both rural and urban scenes provide her with a full range of creative options. She particularly loves the patterns of rolling hillsides and the shapes of buildings as you look up into the sky.
Website: susanbradshaw.co.uk
Facebook: Susan Bradshaw Textile Artist
Instagram: @susan_bradshaw44
Wendy Greaves
Wendy feels that the medium of textiles allows the viewer to understand the tactile qualities, the fragility, and the rhythm of nature found in the landscape.
By mixing hand and free-motion embroidery, she contrasts minute details (hand stitch) with more patterned and ornate areas (free motion embroidery). Mixed media textiles beautifully replicate and respond to the tactile elements of the North Devon coastline. Fragility has become important to Wendy, as she seeks to underline the beauty that she sees and how it needs to be captured before it is lost.
Website: wendygreaves.com
Facebook: Wendy Greaves
Instagram: @Wendy.Greaves.Textiles
Heritage Craft Festival Workshops
Stitched Leather Key Fob
Wednesday 20th Aug
2.00–4.00
£40
Learn about the materials, tools and principles in leather working including cutting, embossing, stitching and riveting to create a unique leather key fob. All tools and materials included. Entry into the Mill and the Festival is included with every workshop ticket with an additional £3.50 charge.
Leather Belt
Wednesday 27th Aug
10.30–16.30
£135
Create a saddle stitched belt from oak-tanned British leather, learning cutting, embossing and stitching techniques to craft a lifetime quality belt. All tools and materials included. Entry into the Mill and the Festival is included with every workshop ticket with an additional £3.50 charge.
Card Winding Workshop
Saturday 23rd Aug
2pm–3pm
Thursday 28th Aug
2pm–3pm
£10
A relaxing session creating textile art out of card and thread, exploring different designs and techniques which you can take away with you to continue your work. The simple act of yarn wrapping around card is an important step in weave development but can also create stunning pieces of art work too. All materials included. Entry into the Mill and the Festival is included with every workshop ticket with an additional £3.50 charge.
Willow Platter Weaving
Friday 29th Aug
2pm –4.30pm
£30
This workshop is a wonderful introduction to basketmaking. Learn how to make a stylish and useful willow platter with a few basic weaving techniques. The platter can be used as a tray, to display items such as bread or fruit, or simply as a decorative piece.
Your tutor, Lucy Turner, is a willow artist living and making in North Devon. The willow you’ll be using is her own home grown and locally sourced willow. All tools and materials included. Suitable for beginners 14 years old + Entry into the Mill and the Festival is included with every workshop ticket with an additional £3.50 charge.
Concertina Book Making
Saturday 23rd Aug
10.30–1.30pm
£30
Discover the joy of well-folded concertina! We’ll make a book with simple boards and a double-sided concertina in a cloth covered ease. Suitable for all levels, beginners are particularly welcome. All materials and tools provided and extra packs will be available to take home and make again! Entry into the Mill and the Festival is included with every workshop ticket with an additional £3.50 charge.
Disappearing Spine Book
Thursday 28th Aug
10.30–1.30pm
£30
This is a lovely, sturdy notebook which can be covered in either fabric or paper, (or both!). Suitable for all levels and beginners are welcome. All materials and tools are provided and extra packs will be available, so that you can make another one at home! Entry into the Mill and the Festival is included with every workshop ticket with an additional £3.50 charge.
Silk Fusion Tealight Making
Friday 22nd Aug
10.30–1.30pm
£30
Learn about the vibrant art of silk fusion, using different types of silk fibres and pressed flowers to create a stunning and unique tea light. This is a simple and fun technique that can be used creatively in many ways and a completed tea light will be taken home by everyone to dry. All tools and materials are included and is suitable for beginners. Entry into the Mill and the Festival is included with every workshop ticket with an additional £3.50 charge.
Beginners' Introduction To Paper Quilling
Thursday 21st Aug
10.30–1.30pm
£25
Create a quilled picture or greetings card to take away. All tools and materials included. Entry into the Mill and the Festival is included with every workshop ticket with an additional £3.50 charge.
Silk Kanzashi Flower Workshop
Saturday 30th Aug
10.30–1.30pm
£30
Learn the arts of Japanese ‘Kanzashi’ flower and woven button making to creating a striking summer brooch. We will use silk fabrics, eco-printed with natural materials for the flower petals and natural cotton threads for the button centre. All tools and materials included and is suitable for beginners. Entry into the Mill and the Festival is included with every workshop ticket with an additional £3.50 charge.
Create a Floral Garland in Paper Quilling
Tuesday 26th Aug
10.30–1.30pm
£25
Create a quilled garland, mounted on a greetings card or framed as a picture after the workshop. All tools and materials included, other than a frame. Entry into the Mill and the Festival is included with every workshop ticket with an additional £3.50 charge.
Wood Cut Printing
Thursday 21st August
2.00–4.30pm
£55
Learn about the materials, tools and process of making a small, single colour, black ink woodcut print based on animals. All tools and materials included. Entry into the Mill and the Festival is included with every workshop ticket with an additional £3.50 charge.
Pen and Ink Illustrating
Tuesday 26th Aug
2pm–4.30pm
£45
Learn about the production and process of making oak gall inks, and production and preparation of goat/sheep/deerskin parchment and vellum; then make your own oak gall ink illustration, using dip pens, on heavy cartridge paper. The processes used in the production of the thirteenth century Magna Carta and Mappa Mundi. All tools and materials included. Entry into the Mill and the Festival is included with every workshop ticket with an additional £3.50 charge.
Needle Lace Rainbow
Friday 22nd Aug
2.00–4pm
Saturday 30th Aug
2.00–4.00
£30
An introductory workshop to needle lace, using two needle lace stitches, colourful threads and small beads to create a small piece inspired by a rose arch in a garden. Needle lace is a complimentary technique for embroidery such as Stump work – a three-dimensional raised embroidery from Elizabethan times. All tools and materials included. Entry into the Mill and the Festival is included with every workshop ticket with an additional £3.50 charge.
3 Dimensional Mussels
3-Dimensional Mussels
Wednesday 20th Aug
10.30–1.30pm
£35
Explore the use of water-soluble fabric and free machine embroidery to make striking 3-dimensional mussel shells (hand embroidery will also be used if time allows). We will aim to produce at least one shell each to take home. A sewing machine allowing the dog feed to drop is required (a machine can be provided but must be booked in advance). All materials and a choice of background to mount finished shells on is included. Entry into the Mill and the Festival is included with every workshop ticket with an additional £3.50 charge.
3 Dimensional Flowers
Friday 29th Aug
10.30–1.30
£35
Explore the use of water-soluble fabric and free machine embroidery to make striking 3-dimensional flower heads (hand embroidery will also be used if time allows). We will aim to produce a single flower or lots of petals to bring together into a final form. A sewing machine allowing the dog feed to drop is required (a machine can be provided but must be booked in advance). All materials and a choice of background to mount finished flowers on included. Entry into the Mill and the Festival is included with every workshop ticket with an additional £3.50 charge.
