Nicola Price of Orchid Blue NZ leads a busy life: she is a jewellery maker by day and an HCA in a rest home/dementia unit by night. Her jewellery reflects her desire to reduce waste by upcycling and recycling tiny everyday art treasures – vintage silverwares and Aotearoa’s beautiful old coins.
For Liz Neale, it all began with a desire to create something truly special for her sensitive skin – something that not only brought results, but also nourished and nurtured the skin with the goodness of nature. Seeing skincare products with extravagant claims and sometimes questionable ingredients sparked a fire within her to do better, to offer something natural, genuine, and effective. The result? Bodytreats
When Emma Gillard sold her bookshop and took time out to recuperate after a breast cancer diagnosis, she discovered a passion for pottery that has taken over her North Canterbury garage and become Emma G Potteree. Beautiful textures are a feature of her hand built ceramic homewares, inspired by textiles and natural treasures she collects.
Bianca Escobar, also known as Bee, creates intricate pieces of hand embroidery for her Felt shop Embroider with Bee. Based in Ōtautahi Christchurch, Bee designs and stitches original works, mainly inspired by nature and promoting positive mental health. She also embroiders custom pieces, and has recently embarked on a new project involving creating patterns and teaching.
Auckland friends Tara, Jo and Amy share a love for the environment and a desire to create positive change. Three years ago they came up with a business plan that could change the face of packed lunches, picnics, and barbeques around the country – Jo … Read more »
Wood over plastic: the Northland illustrator making simply beautiful toys for imaginative play
Rosa May Rutherford’s Steiner background meant that wholesome toys for imaginative play were a must for her young son Maioha. Once she’d made him a couple of wooden toys she was hooked, and Dean’s Workshop was born…
Nature, culture and symmetry in print: art and textile design by Jill Butler
From her home studio in Auckland, Jill Butler designs and screen prints fabric, which she then makes into homewares, accessories and stationery items. Jill used to dream about having a place to sell her work where no door knocking was required, and where she could have total control over the colours, design and pricing of the screen printed products she sells…
A glimpse into The Felted Room: the tactile, textile imaginarium of Sandra Grieve
Sandra Grieve of The Felted Room is a mixed media artist who designs and creates her eco friendly artworks, which include everything from unique textile creations to needle felted sculptures, designer cat and dog beds, wedding boutonnieres and much more, all from her workroom in Wanganui.
Mindful making: the Christchurch woman who makes dolls to inspire inner strength
Hilary Tapper-Zakheim creates her inspiring, eco-friendly Khadil dolls with a hand-powered sewing machine in her Christchurch workroom. She uses handwoven cotton, woven by empowered village women in India, and other natural materials to create dolls that celebrate natural beauty, wholesomeness, inner strength, and handmade, conscious living.
Nature, heritage and homewares: making the tea towel meaningful
Kate Watts of Crown and Feathers screenprints her original designs onto high quality cotton and linen teatowels in her Dunedin workshop, using eco-friendly waterbased inks. Inspired by objects of household history, and the natural world around her, she feels her work brings lightness and enjoyment to everyday chores…