Bespoke pieces are a crucial part of my work. More generally a bespoke commission is a collaboration between customer and maker which prompts sharing of thoughts and dreams. This is often truly personal with all sorts of touching family details. I regularly make special pieces for weddings, anniversaries or christenings - all the important moments in life, while sometimes I have the sad task of commemorating a much loved pet. It transforms the making process into a more involved exchange of ideas which brings huge responsibility with it. Its an honour to be included in people’s lives in this way and to help bring such personal stories to life.

A customer recently approached me to discuss a unique gift for her son. She wanted an automata that would encapsulate him and his family while also showing their combined interests and their pets. She especially wanted a nod to their home in America. It was quite a challenge to bring all these elements together in copper. I managed to record some of the different stages which I hope will help bring the bespoke process alive.

The images below show an initial sketch stage and the final piece. To see the carousel above the family group in action just click this link.

Initial sketch of automaton

The Finished Piece

The next gallery of pictures show the raw copper stages of the making process. I’ve added the final hand drawn sketch to show the translation from paper to metal. I use a combination of fine marker pens and paper cut outs to transcribe the sketch from paper to copper then cut the design using metal shears and a fret saw. Once the pieces are cut they need to be filed to get rid of rough edges. Next, eyes are drilled to suggest a more human appearance. I can spend quite a bit of time sawing and filing away at noses as the wrong angle can change the look of the face completely - the differences can be very subtle (I’m glad I don’t do rhinoplasty!). After everything is cut and smoothed off I add linear details either by hammering or taking the copper sheet through a rolling mill. More on these processes in a future blog post…

The biggest task is soldering all the different aspects of the design together. That too is for a future blog post. For now, I hope you get a picture of how the design aesthetics of the automata come together and how paper notions transform into metal.

To see a break down of the processes involved in commissioning a bespoke piece just click here.

Thought it was about time I shared some info about my regular gallery the Guild of Ten in Truro. I've been a member of the Guild since 2016 (can’t believe its been 6 years already!). Jeweller Jenny Yates invited me to join this cooperative gallery. She was on the look our for a new jeweller but got an automata maker into the bargain! All the makers in the gallery are based in Cornwall so you will meet a maker every time you are able to pop in.

The gallery has been in Truro, on Old Bridge Street, for over 40 years. It was initially set up by a group of 10 craftspeople who wanted to share rent and responsibility for their own gallery. Since the 70s it has been handed on from one group of craftspeople to the next. Currently our longest standing member, seamstress Christine Roxburgh, has been involved for 37 years, whilst our newest member, paper-crafter Pam Booth, joined in January of this year. To add yet more intrigue, textile artist Madeleine Jude was a founder craftsperson, she left for London in the 80s only to re-join in 2021!

The Gallery Frontage on Old Bridge Street

Interior of the gallery back in 2019

The deal is that we all chip in for the rent and take our turn in staffing the gallery. As with all good cooperatives all decisions are made by committee so we have great fun keeping on top of things! Each maker is allocated a space which we are free to set up as we wish (within reason). I inherited a lovely jewellery display case from a previous member and was able to adapt some shelves to display my freestanding metalwork and automata.

My little corner of the Guild - July 22

I’ve recently added wall hung work to my display. I have often played with lino cutting so it was a natural step to use this alongside metal motifs to make something new. The Guild is a place to try out new things. I know that if our customers are keen then I’m on to a winner and I might well take a new idea further.

Its great to have a regular gallery to be part of where I can meet people and chat about my work as well as that of the other members. It always makes a pleasant change from hammering away in the workshop! It has also given me a fabulous group of craftspeople to belong to. This has been so invaluable over the last couple of difficult years. There’s always someone to run things past if I’ve got myself in a muddle and its just lovely to share how other makers run their businesses and develop their work.

We have learned to move with the times and now have an online shop with some of our wares for those times you can’t make it to Truro.

New lino/metalwork wall hung work

Following my last blog post, which looked at recycled tin, today’s is all about reclaimed wood.

Wood is an essential part of my work. It provides a base for each piece adding texture, colour and warmth. As a nature lover its important to me that I don’t just reach for the most convenient piece of timber, I go to pains to never use virgin wood. Instead, I keep my eye out for alternative sources to ensure the wood is a by-product from someone else’s project. So I use wood that furniture makers and boat builders have discarded, I rescue old bits of broken furniture on their way to the tip and I scour beaches for driftwood. The latter is most satisfying and the subject of today’s blog.

The Moray Firth of Scotland is a haven for bird and marine life and this beach is a favourite beachcombing destination. Its a magnet for people, wrapped in layers, revelling in the detritus that’s been washed along the coast or down through the rivers rushing out of the Cairngorms. Its a beach at the other end of Britain from the Cornish coast but a place I return to regularly as its where I grew up. So far, I haven’t found a beach in Cornwall that’s as rich in treasure, but perhaps I’m not getting to the beaches early enough!

I’m not alone in my love of beach combing. The picture gallery above will give you a sense of what the locals get up to with all the flotsam and jetsam in this lovely place!

Schooner and Sperm Whale

Schooner and Sperm Whale

Day Dreaming

A beautiful gnarly bit of tree branch sets off my ‘Schooner and Sperm Whale’ automata perfectly, the twists in the wood suggesting the movement of the sea. This piece was inspired by the ship building that used to happen in this part of the world. For those that are interested, there’s a fascinating website all about the history of ship building on the Moray Firth. As a child I played with my brothers on the old and disused ship building site. Today its a source of imaginative inspiration!

‘Schooner and Sperm Whale‘ will be making its first public outing at this year’s Bovey Tracey craft festival. Not long now - it opens on Friday June 17th, keep an eye on my Instagram account for more details…

The 3rd picture is my piece ‘Daydreaming’ which was originally made for A Cabaret of Mechanical Movement, an exhibition at Falmouth Art Gallery. The big hunk of driftwood provided a good solid base for an automata that tells the story of my daydreams on a cold winter’s day. My partner was in the south pacific working on a boat building project on the islands of Tuvalu. His stories of island life were in marked contrast to my quiet life in a chilly Cornish workshop. Woven into this tale was the huge life event of my eldest daughter heading off on her own travels for the first time. Not the south pacific, but interrailing round Europe. Still, the sense of adventure and opportunity all came together to make ‘Daydreaming’.

Moray Firth View

Couldn’t let World Book Day pass by without some words. World Book Day’s a bit of a double edged sword for me as it brings horror as well as joy. Joy that books are given their own celebratory day and horror that I’ll have to help my daughter come up with a World Book Day costume for school! The costume isn’t needed till tomorrow so time for other things first… I’d like to focus on the enrichment that books have brought to my life. I’m an avid reader and always have been. Its not just the content of the books, the stories and the knowledge, but I love books as objects in their own right. I feel most at home in a room full of books!

One of my first automata featured a pile of old books. At the time I made it (2013) I was teaching on the craft element of the Foundation Course at Falmouth University (sadly no longer in existence - but that’s another story). I also worked closely with dyslexic students and had a keen interest in visual thinking as a learning model. As a staff we were invited to make a piece of work that would represent our work at the university so I came up with an automata as a self portrait. As you can see it features me having a good old think whilst sitting on a pile of books with copper and brass representations of thoughts spinning round my head. It felt like sacrilege when I drilled down through the books to transform them into a base but it was worth it to get the aesthetic I was after. The drilling allowed me to pass a tube of brass through the books so I could construct a solid base keeping everything together and creating a sound foundation for the automata. I have since made other versions of this piece, most notably one that featured an old Olivetti typewriter ordered as a gift for a Scottish writer. The original one remains on a shelf in my workshop - its not for sale but I have another daydreamy piece that can be bought from my online shop.

I’ve managed to hold on to books from childhood that are too precious to part with. My earliest book memory is of ‘Pookie’ by Ivy L Wallace. The beautiful illustrations of a misfit rabbit are etched into my memory and this particular page showing Pookie lost in the storm remains an abiding image of drama and fear. What a fabulous illustration of a tree caught in a storm, I need to revisit this book more often! You’ll be reassured to know that Pookie is rescued and finds shelter with a kind and welcoming fairy. Such a poignant story for our current times. It brings to mind the vital place for books in all our lives. Books can provide respite in difficult times and offer children specifically a much needed window into other worlds. My thoughts are with all those children that need such solace in their lives.