Homewares
Designer Interview: Sam Gaskill of Lana Home
Lana Home have combined mid-century modern furniture shapes with Harris Tweed to produce their stunning first furniture collection. We catch up with Sam Gaskill, Lana Home’s co-founder, to find out about the manufacturing journey his furniture goes on across the British Isles, from the Outer Hebrides to Devon. Can you tell me a bit more about…
Read MoreHeal's launches totally British furniture collection
New dining furniture is made from ash from UK woodlands and travels only 180 miles from forest to store [youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=k9JRygP9FR4] Did you know that this week is Grown in Britain week? All across the country events have been taking place to encourage people into British woodlands as well as to highlight the products that can…
Read MoreSpotlight on…Jacksons Fencing
In the first of a series highlighting some of the Best of British businesses that feature in our directory, we catch up with Richard Jackson, CEO of Jacksons Fencing, to find out more about his company. About the company: Established in 1947, Jacksons Fencing is a family run business which designs, manufactures and installs perimeter…
Read MoreWhat's the link between one of the oldest textile mills in the UK and the Royal baby?
Answer: Quite a few actually. When the much-awaited Royal baby makes an appearance in July 2013, it will no doubt mean a deluge of over-priced, imported baby goods will hit the shelves, claiming to be just the sort of thing that a Royal baby should receive as a gift.
Read MoreA Day in the Life of…textile designer Catherine Tough
Welcome to the busy world of successful British business owner Catherine Tough Catherine Tough Textiles has taken the traditional craft of knitting and turned it on its head to create a truly individual British business. Established 13 years ago by namesake Catherine Tough, the business manufactures a unique range of homewares and gifts, including doorstops, cushions and…
Read MoreInnovation and expansion in British carpet design and manufacture
The unique collaboration between Timorous Beasties and Brintons Carpets was highlighted last week in a fascinating talk organised as part of the Clerkenwell Design Week festival. Founded in 1783, Kidderminster based Brintons Carpets, a worldwide market leader in the supply of high quality Axminster, Wilton, tufted carpets and rugs for both the residential and contract interior…
Read MoreHow craftsmanship is returning to the UK Tableware Industry
Designer/Makers are teaming up with small UK manufacturers to bring their designs to a wider audience As someone who has been working in the ceramics industry for over 20 years, it’s interesting to see the re-emergence of small scale manufacturing in the UK again after a decade dominated by mass-produced designs. Often called batch production…
Read MoreA visit to Royal Stafford Pottery
We took a trip to Stoke-on-Trent to meet Norman Tempest, MD of Royal Stafford and backer of British design A while I go I praised Norman Tempest, MD of Stoke pottery company Royal Stafford, for winning an award for his support of British design. So I was delighted to be invited up to Stoke on…
Read MoreStaffordshire Ceramicist wins 'Backer of British Design' Award
Managing Director of Royal Stafford Tableware gains recognition for his support of British designers with English Eccentrix range Norman Tempest, managing director of Royal Stafford tableware, established English Eccentrix in 2011 as a way of supporting British designers working in the ceramic industry. The project encourages up-and-coming British designers to enter the manufacturing industry by providing…
Read MoreInterview: Tom Holley from Art Star Industries
Tom Holley from Art Star Industries talks to Make it British about the importance of openness, dialogue and lessons learned when establishing a new UK manufacturing base
Read MoreVitsœ: standing up to a world that favours new over better
What can Vitsœ’s 606 Universal Shelving System teach us about living better with less that lasts longer? When people say to me that buying British equates to spending more money I always like to point out that if you buy something that is well made, it may cost you more but it will last you a…
Read MoreHappy Sofa: Bringing joy to the homes of Britain
Our interview with the founder of new British-made furniture brand Happy Sofa This year we are planning to feature a more diverse range of British brands and manufacturers on the site, other than just clothing and textiles, because there are so many great British made products out there spanning manydifferent industries. To kick this off…
Read MoreInterview: Ben Edmonds, creator of Blok Knives
Blok knives are no ordinary kitchen knives, they are more like works of art, and every one is handmade in Ben Edmonds’ workshop in Derbyshire Blok knives are a great example of British craftsmanship being reinvented. Each knife is profiled from a flat sheet of either stainless or carbon steel, with wooden handles carved from English oak.…
Read MoreRockman & Rockman furniture
Born from a frustration of not being able to find things that they wanted for their own home, Kate Lennard & Mark Garside set up Rockman & Rockman furniture Rockman and Rockman is a brand new British furniture company founded by Kate Lennard and Mark Garside. Their first range of tables uses cast acrylic and…
Read MoreDesigner Interview: Victoria Cramsie from PaperBoy Wallpaper
How do you decorate a boy’s bedroom in a stylish way? PaperBoy Wallpaper solves the problem Here we interview Victoria Cramsie, founder of PaperBoy Wallpaper, to discover how she realised that there was a gap in the market for decorating boys bedrooms, and find out why she is grateful to the British manufacturers who made…
Read MoreDesigner Interview: Robert Paisley of Chisel & Mouse
Chisel & Mouse make miniature models of the facades of iconic buildings, and below we interview Robert Paisley, one of the brothers that founded the company. In the run up to the Jubilee, Make it British is endeavouring to prove that you can buy products that celebrate our Queen’s 60 year reign without resorting to…
Read MoreJubilee products made in Britain – the Mathmos Jubilee Astro Lava Lamp
WIN a Mathmos Jubilee Astro Lamp to celebrate 60 years of the Queen being on the British throne We’re all fed up with hearing about Jubilee and Olympics products that are made abroad and not benefiting the UK economy. So over the next couple of weeks we will be searching these Isles for those Jubilee…
Read MoreFight the fakes – buy British-made instead
The Equal Rights for Design Campaign A campaign by Elle Deco to change the law to protect the intellectual property of designers is gathering apace. It shows that there has never been a better time to invest in original, well-designed products. And if they are British-made, then even better. The recent case of Claire’s Accessories producing identical pieces…
Read MoreExclusive Interview: The Reefer Sail Company
Introducing Reefer Sails, a company selling recycled sail products designed & made in Britain Make it British has featured bags made from disgarded tents before, but never anything made from recycled sails. This week we got a chance to speak to the Reefer Sails’ technical director, Mark Turner, about his truly innovative British business (which…
Read MoreThe Canny Squirrel and her crafty tweed cushions
I haven’t featured any British made homewares on this site yet, but when I discovered Katherine Pentney’s Canny Squirrel range of quirky vintage tweed cushions, I thought I should share them. Here is an interview that I did with Katherine about her range: Can you tell me a bit more about yourself and why you…
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