​As you may know already Chester Zoo is now in great need of our help after the government ordered it to close indefinitely due to Covid-19. In order to keep going, the zoo needs 1.6m each month and visitor income makes up 97% of their overall income. There are over 35,000 threatened and critically endangered animals at Chester Zoo, I strongly believe we all need to play our part in protecting them. 

I've always felt that we are so lucky to have this incredible place on our doorstep, I've been a member for many years and seeing all of the support so far it's clear how much the zoo means to so many people. Visiting as a child was always amazing and now having the opportunity to visit regularly with my family, especially with my nephew has made it even more magical. 

It was wonderful to see such a huge number of artisans and creatives in one place, real experts in their field. I'd heard about the festival for years but never had the chance to go and I'm so glad I did. It had wonderful summer vibes as well as artists at work outside creating installations or demonstrating their craft, it was fab to see Kirstie too. Working closely with Hobbycraft means I'm made aware of the latest craft trends within the industry and getting to meet the people behind brands such as Cricut and Mollie Makes magazine was a great experience. Although art is my passion I love crafting too and I'm always in awe of the stunning pieces created, the festival showcased every artists work beautifully and I cant wait to visit again next year.

www.thehandmadefestival.com

I was thrilled to be invited to the Handmade Festival at Hampton Court Palace by Hobbycraft this year. The festival is hosted by Kirstie Allsop in the palace grounds, showcasing artists and designer makers as well as offering workshops over the weekend too. I headed down to London on the Saturday of the festival and explored the marquees in the sunshine. I was lucky enough to attend the watercolour workshop held by Katharine Wright which was fantastic, very relaxing and informative. 

I focused on using their iridescent paints or "DYNA" paints which are created with pearl pigments which transmit part of the light and reflect another part, creating stunning effects particularly when used over the foils.

​It was wonderful to see everyone interpret the examples in their own styles, as well as using fresh flowers for reference. Pushing people to move away from their comfort zones and experiment with colour and scale was important in order to help them discover their own unique style and technique. As this was a basic taster of acrylic painting focusing on the use of brush strokes the studio paints were ideal and would help broaden creative possibilities. 

I'm looking forward to creating more workshops with Hobbycraft in the future and experimenting more myself with the Pebeo Studio range. I will also be creating an online tutorial for Hobbycraft showing the basic techniques involved in painting these floral designs. The floral style is very reminiscent of narrow boat painting, something I watched quite a lot growing up, it clearly stuck with me to an extent and made me feel quite nostalgic.