1 00:00:00,650 --> 00:00:05,950 Our country is full of incredible makers dreaming of turning their talent into 2 00:00:05,950 --> 00:00:07,050 money -making careers. 3 00:00:07,330 --> 00:00:10,370 It would mean everything to be able to do this full -time. 4 00:00:10,810 --> 00:00:15,250 So, with a team of fantastic professional mentors... I know your 5 00:00:15,250 --> 00:00:16,490 know what you're capable of doing. 6 00:00:16,710 --> 00:00:20,790 I run a one -of -a -kind bootcamp, showing them how to do just that. 7 00:00:21,030 --> 00:00:23,710 Perfect. My Travis moment, I'll just share that. Yes. 8 00:00:23,930 --> 00:00:28,330 Now I'm on my way to catch up with those who have made their dreams come true. 9 00:00:28,510 --> 00:00:30,010 Hello. There he is. Hello, mate. 10 00:00:30,850 --> 00:00:33,370 I'll be hearing about their amazing achievement. 11 00:00:33,710 --> 00:00:35,570 I've been able to put down a deposit on a house. 12 00:00:35,770 --> 00:00:37,070 This is my full -time job. 13 00:00:37,390 --> 00:00:39,690 And finding out how much money they're making. 14 00:00:40,200 --> 00:00:41,360 I took £20 ,000. 15 00:00:41,840 --> 00:00:45,120 In one month? In one month. About £35 ,000 this year. 16 00:00:45,400 --> 00:00:49,980 So join me and meet the fabulous makers who have transformed their lives and 17 00:00:49,980 --> 00:00:51,040 made it at market. 18 00:00:51,460 --> 00:00:53,760 You can kind of say I'm living the dream. 19 00:00:53,980 --> 00:00:55,540 I think that's fair to say. 20 00:01:00,120 --> 00:01:06,900 Whether they're practising endangered crafts or using 21 00:01:06,900 --> 00:01:11,530 the latest technology to create their work, We see every type of maker at my 22 00:01:11,530 --> 00:01:15,690 bootcamp, and they're all trying to build successful businesses from their 23 00:01:15,690 --> 00:01:16,690 skills. 24 00:01:16,970 --> 00:01:21,230 Today, we'll be checking in on the progress of two with very different 25 00:01:21,770 --> 00:01:26,450 In a short while, we'll be visiting woodturner Shannon, who's turned her 26 00:01:26,450 --> 00:01:27,690 into a paying profession. 27 00:01:28,310 --> 00:01:34,030 I've always had this dream of being where I am today. To be able to have an 28 00:01:34,030 --> 00:01:37,790 actual career in heritage craft, it's incredible. 29 00:01:38,810 --> 00:01:43,150 Before that, I'll be catching up with shop assistant, artist and digital 30 00:01:43,150 --> 00:01:45,270 illustrator, Tasia from London. 31 00:01:47,390 --> 00:01:52,850 She came to my bootcamp in the spring of 2022 and job one was finding out 32 00:01:52,850 --> 00:01:55,790 exactly what stage she was at commercially with her art. 33 00:01:57,390 --> 00:02:00,450 How is the business side of things working out for you? Are you selling 34 00:02:00,750 --> 00:02:05,230 Yes, so at the end of my graduation, I was contacted by an art house. 35 00:02:06,080 --> 00:02:09,460 And they wanted me to sell some prints with them, so I've been selling through 36 00:02:09,460 --> 00:02:10,460 them. Storybook? 37 00:02:10,639 --> 00:02:13,740 Yeah, children's books as well. I did one the other day, and it was about a 38 00:02:13,740 --> 00:02:16,640 in a forest, which I love. It was literally like, that is me. 39 00:02:17,420 --> 00:02:20,840 So, yeah, things like that. What are you hoping your mentor is able to do for 40 00:02:20,840 --> 00:02:25,040 you? I need help on the business side. I feel as though I've definitely found my 41 00:02:25,040 --> 00:02:29,320 style and my brand, and you can definitely see parts of me in my prints. 42 00:02:29,580 --> 00:02:31,640 But what I don't know is the business side of it. 43 00:02:33,900 --> 00:02:38,000 To help Tasia build a business from her skills, I asked her to make three 44 00:02:38,000 --> 00:02:41,480 different pieces to work out which of them were most likely to sell. 45 00:02:42,540 --> 00:02:47,380 First up was a volume piece and she created an illustration of a woman's 46 00:02:47,380 --> 00:02:50,420 using digital art priced at £120. 47 00:02:52,020 --> 00:02:56,360 This was art which was produced on a tablet or computer with specialist 48 00:02:56,360 --> 00:02:57,360 software. 49 00:02:58,060 --> 00:02:59,880 I'm at the sketching part now. 50 00:03:00,540 --> 00:03:05,780 So I've got the figure walking into her bedroom with the picture frames all on 51 00:03:05,780 --> 00:03:12,000 her walls and she's holding plants and the story would be her coming into her 52 00:03:12,000 --> 00:03:13,780 room and just adding to her plant collection. 53 00:03:14,360 --> 00:03:18,680 Deja spent two hours sketching, which gave her a rough draft of her 54 00:03:18,680 --> 00:03:22,080 illustration. She then refined it and added colour. 55 00:03:22,360 --> 00:03:27,500 I usually start with a black colour and then add on with shadowing, so maybe 56 00:03:27,500 --> 00:03:29,380 brighter colours on top of darks 57 00:03:31,040 --> 00:03:35,840 textures textures of color on top of it so you've got the full scope of the 58 00:03:35,840 --> 00:03:41,100 illustration as she created the pieces i challenged her to produce tasia was 59 00:03:41,100 --> 00:03:46,900 guided by professional artist sharon walters sharon's fantastic paper cuts 60 00:03:46,900 --> 00:03:52,760 mixed media collages have brought her critical and commercial success having 61 00:03:52,760 --> 00:03:57,640 built her own art practice from scratch she was the perfect person to help tasia 62 00:03:57,640 --> 00:03:59,340 take her work to the next level 63 00:04:00,720 --> 00:04:02,540 Tell me a bit about the colours you've chosen. 64 00:04:03,000 --> 00:04:09,160 Yes, so I always go with the same sort of theme in colouring. So a lot of 65 00:04:09,160 --> 00:04:15,220 pinks, reds, oranges and yellows. And you'll see that in a lot of my work. But 66 00:04:15,220 --> 00:04:20,079 do also like the muted kind of colours and then like a hint of bright colours. 67 00:04:20,720 --> 00:04:25,460 I love Teja's work in terms of its storytelling, but I think she can expand 68 00:04:25,460 --> 00:04:26,460 use of colour. 69 00:04:26,480 --> 00:04:30,380 She's really keen and she's really developing her own voice, which is 70 00:04:30,380 --> 00:04:33,080 to see. So I'm really looking forward to seeing how this develops. 71 00:04:34,180 --> 00:04:38,940 With Tasia making good progress with her digital illustration, I wanted to take 72 00:04:38,940 --> 00:04:40,280 a look at her second item. 73 00:04:40,840 --> 00:04:44,860 Before she came to my boot camp, I asked her to produce a high -end piece, 74 00:04:45,120 --> 00:04:47,460 something she could charge a top price for. 75 00:04:47,720 --> 00:04:52,440 She decided to create an oil -on -canvas painting called Drowning on a Summer's 76 00:04:52,440 --> 00:04:56,740 Eve. Painted over four months, it was priced at £700. 77 00:04:57,200 --> 00:05:00,600 And I wanted to know if Sharon thought it was a business builder. 78 00:05:01,220 --> 00:05:04,560 Yeah, I think it's a really interesting painting. It carries through some of the 79 00:05:04,560 --> 00:05:09,160 storytelling of her more illustrative works. But I think it could be pushed a 80 00:05:09,160 --> 00:05:10,160 little bit further. 81 00:05:10,620 --> 00:05:12,880 Tayshia's hoping to get £700 for that painting. 82 00:05:13,120 --> 00:05:16,280 She doesn't create many paintings, so they are quite unique. 83 00:05:16,560 --> 00:05:19,780 Could possibly ask for more, but if she's happy with that amount of money 84 00:05:19,780 --> 00:05:22,160 currently, I think that's what we should go for, definitely. 85 00:05:23,660 --> 00:05:28,420 Back in the artist's corner, Tasia was continuing to work on her more 86 00:05:28,420 --> 00:05:32,020 piece, the digital illustration of a woman's bedroom. 87 00:05:32,840 --> 00:05:39,500 I'm zooming in, cleaning up edges, adding detailing to the posters and 88 00:05:39,500 --> 00:05:40,500 to the pillows. 89 00:05:41,160 --> 00:05:46,660 I'm not particularly nervous about working quickly because editorial 90 00:05:46,660 --> 00:05:50,820 usually want the piece within a day or maybe two days. 91 00:05:53,160 --> 00:05:57,660 Hi, Tasia. Hi. Hi. How's it going? Going well, yeah. I'm just colouring the 92 00:05:57,660 --> 00:05:59,200 leaves. It's looking really good. 93 00:05:59,480 --> 00:06:02,180 So your work is generally sold through prints? 94 00:06:02,740 --> 00:06:07,420 Yes, that's the majority, yeah. Also commissioned base as well, I would say. 95 00:06:07,560 --> 00:06:10,020 Yeah, so you don't sell your originals at all? 96 00:06:10,680 --> 00:06:16,940 I do sell my original paintings and then I'll have editions of the prints, maybe 97 00:06:16,940 --> 00:06:21,580 10 or 15, and then I intend to frame it. So you provide the prints? 98 00:06:21,900 --> 00:06:25,680 already framed yeah always i wouldn't want to see my print stuck on walls with 99 00:06:25,680 --> 00:06:32,320 blue tacks to finish tasia added her signature swirls twists 100 00:06:32,320 --> 00:06:37,840 and turns before printing and framing the piece her digital print took her 101 00:06:37,840 --> 00:06:41,320 hours to produce and had a price tag of 120 pounds 102 00:06:42,920 --> 00:06:46,260 The speed at which you were able to turn this around was unbelievable. 103 00:06:46,940 --> 00:06:50,040 I think it's brilliant for a high -volume piece because it shows that 104 00:06:50,040 --> 00:06:52,780 able to create maybe a couple within a day, which is brilliant. 105 00:06:53,020 --> 00:06:54,020 How about the price? 106 00:06:54,220 --> 00:06:57,080 I don't think the price is the problem. I just need you to ensure that you're 107 00:06:57,080 --> 00:07:00,720 purchasing a good frame if you are purchasing a frame. But selling with a 108 00:07:00,720 --> 00:07:05,080 different print, it's really important to have a certificate of authenticity to 109 00:07:05,080 --> 00:07:09,780 also ensure that you've numbered the pieces, maybe look at embossing as well. 110 00:07:09,780 --> 00:07:12,520 really adds to the quality of the work. 111 00:07:12,840 --> 00:07:13,779 Is that helpful? 112 00:07:13,780 --> 00:07:14,780 Very. 113 00:07:16,800 --> 00:07:20,940 With plenty of business building potential in her first two items. 114 00:07:21,520 --> 00:07:25,960 For Tasia's final task, I asked her to make her favourite piece, to see if that 115 00:07:25,960 --> 00:07:27,440 could also be a hit with customers. 116 00:07:28,320 --> 00:07:32,980 She decided to put her tablet away and produce a nature -inspired acrylic 117 00:07:32,980 --> 00:07:37,600 painting of a woman surrounded by flowers, priced at £450. 118 00:07:38,760 --> 00:07:43,300 It was a detailed piece of work, and she'd created the base of it before 119 00:07:43,300 --> 00:07:44,520 arriving at the boot camp. 120 00:07:45,900 --> 00:07:46,900 Tasia, you OK? 121 00:07:47,220 --> 00:07:49,900 Hi, yeah, I'm doing good. So nice to see you with your brushes out. 122 00:07:50,200 --> 00:07:54,000 Yeah, it's a lot different than the... Than your tablet? Than the tablet, yeah. 123 00:07:54,340 --> 00:07:55,340 What do you prefer? 124 00:07:55,380 --> 00:07:58,980 I do find this quite therapeutic and because I'm surrounded by leaves and 125 00:07:58,980 --> 00:08:01,200 flowers and things like that, I'm really enjoying it. 126 00:08:01,420 --> 00:08:02,740 Yeah, very fitting painting. 127 00:08:03,080 --> 00:08:07,420 Yeah, I'm about halfway now. Okay. So what I'm doing is I'm kind of blocking 128 00:08:07,420 --> 00:08:11,280 the colours so you can see like the yellows here next to the pinks and how 129 00:08:11,280 --> 00:08:15,440 that's like working with the green. So I'm just doing a bit of the tonal work. 130 00:08:15,620 --> 00:08:17,140 Amazing. Well, I won't distract you anymore. 131 00:08:17,440 --> 00:08:18,440 Thank you. 132 00:08:19,440 --> 00:08:23,720 I've kind of mapped out where I want everything to be. And what I'm doing now 133 00:08:23,720 --> 00:08:29,100 I'm going in with just a little bit more detail, fine -tuning the shapes and 134 00:08:29,100 --> 00:08:32,740 going in with colour on the leaves as well. 135 00:08:35,020 --> 00:08:39,400 Tasia's painting was progressing well, but Sharon wanted to talk to her about 136 00:08:39,400 --> 00:08:40,799 developing her skills further. 137 00:08:41,159 --> 00:08:46,060 I really like the use of the body. Have you actually been doing life drawing 138 00:08:46,060 --> 00:08:52,820 classes? I touched on it a few years ago, maybe when I was 139 00:08:52,820 --> 00:08:53,820 18. 140 00:08:54,620 --> 00:09:00,520 I think I managed to do four classes, and I actually enjoyed it, and my art 141 00:09:00,520 --> 00:09:02,920 teacher really liked what I created. 142 00:09:03,240 --> 00:09:06,580 And if it's something you'd consider doing again, just picking it back up, 143 00:09:06,580 --> 00:09:11,180 just thinking in terms of your skill set and developing your practice, if it's 144 00:09:11,180 --> 00:09:12,220 something you'd consider doing. 145 00:09:12,500 --> 00:09:14,740 I haven't considered it yet. 146 00:09:15,290 --> 00:09:19,590 But I think if I'm going to continue to do bodies, it would be something that I 147 00:09:19,590 --> 00:09:20,810 should probably do. 148 00:09:21,010 --> 00:09:22,010 Yeah. 149 00:09:22,170 --> 00:09:26,190 Tasia's acrylic painting was a vibrant and striking piece of work. 150 00:09:26,430 --> 00:09:30,910 It took her eight hours to produce and had a price tag of £450. 151 00:09:32,210 --> 00:09:36,630 It's a really lovely painting. I like the way that it just feels so relaxing. 152 00:09:37,310 --> 00:09:39,750 And the use of colour, it's so vibrant. 153 00:09:39,970 --> 00:09:43,950 Yeah, a real celebration of nature, which I love. What about the price? 154 00:09:44,330 --> 00:09:48,410 I think that's a reasonable price. I don't feel as though you've overpriced 155 00:09:48,410 --> 00:09:52,830 at all. It took you quite some time to do and it's a unique one -off piece. 156 00:09:53,070 --> 00:09:57,210 It would be great if you worked on a theme in your work. In like a 157 00:09:57,450 --> 00:10:01,590 Yeah, so create a collection where you have a theme that you're working on. It 158 00:10:01,590 --> 00:10:05,710 will allow you to work on something over and over and try different things and 159 00:10:05,710 --> 00:10:06,710 really experiment. 160 00:10:07,290 --> 00:10:10,490 I think I'll do my favourite piece of the collection, actually, because I 161 00:10:10,490 --> 00:10:13,870 enjoyed doing that. That's nice. I think that would work really, really well. 162 00:10:15,510 --> 00:10:21,250 Tasia was a multi -talented artist, willing to explore new ideas, and we 163 00:10:21,250 --> 00:10:24,830 an action plan to help turn that undoubted talent into a business. 164 00:10:25,550 --> 00:10:29,990 First, we wanted her to add a touch of luxury to her packaging and a 165 00:10:29,990 --> 00:10:32,430 of authenticity for each print she sold. 166 00:10:32,990 --> 00:10:35,430 Next, she needed to get some life -drawing practice. 167 00:10:36,340 --> 00:10:40,860 Finally, we wanted her to produce a themed collection to help her become 168 00:10:40,860 --> 00:10:42,380 experimental with her work. 169 00:10:45,900 --> 00:10:50,480 For the next two months, Tasia continued to be guided by Sharon as she worked 170 00:10:50,480 --> 00:10:54,400 through the advice we'd given her, beginning with making the packaging of 171 00:10:54,400 --> 00:10:55,400 prints more luxurious. 172 00:10:55,920 --> 00:11:00,240 I think this week I'm going to be focusing on my certificate of 173 00:11:01,100 --> 00:11:03,760 I think I want them to be hand -signed. 174 00:11:05,740 --> 00:11:08,320 something that's a little bit more personal to my customers. 175 00:11:08,920 --> 00:11:14,020 And I'm also going to be working on my shipping as well because I have a few 176 00:11:14,020 --> 00:11:17,840 prints to be shipped and just working out packaging and things like that. So 177 00:11:17,840 --> 00:11:19,860 that's what I'll be doing this week. 178 00:11:21,680 --> 00:11:26,340 She also got some advice from Sharon about how to juggle her art with her 179 00:11:26,340 --> 00:11:27,340 -time job. 180 00:11:28,100 --> 00:11:29,880 After my chat with Sharon... 181 00:11:30,440 --> 00:11:35,400 I think I might have to create the floral collection in my living room just 182 00:11:35,400 --> 00:11:38,900 because I don't have enough time to go back and forth from the studio. So I'll 183 00:11:38,900 --> 00:11:40,180 be creating a floral collection here. 184 00:11:40,720 --> 00:11:46,600 I also have a commission for an editorial magazine, a podcast and 185 00:11:46,600 --> 00:11:48,260 musical theatre. 186 00:11:48,620 --> 00:11:53,540 So I'm doing that all alongside creating paintings, which is getting me really 187 00:11:53,540 --> 00:11:56,920 stressed out. But I have to do it. 188 00:11:59,489 --> 00:12:05,430 Sharon kind of taught me through the processes of pacing yourself and 189 00:12:05,430 --> 00:12:09,690 making sure that you're not doing things that are too overwhelming. Initially, I 190 00:12:09,690 --> 00:12:14,450 wanted to do five paintings, but I think I'll only do maybe three, and 191 00:12:14,450 --> 00:12:17,830 I'll just see how I get on. 192 00:12:18,370 --> 00:12:23,150 For eight weeks, Tasia worked hard at putting all of our advice into practice, 193 00:12:23,410 --> 00:12:26,890 and she came back to see us with the most amazing news. 194 00:12:27,780 --> 00:12:33,140 Overall, I've made £6 ,000 in commissions and selling prints, so it's 195 00:12:33,140 --> 00:12:37,760 really busy, but really good. That's incredible. You must be absolutely over 196 00:12:37,760 --> 00:12:38,539 moon. Yeah. 197 00:12:38,540 --> 00:12:42,440 Huge congratulations, because I know that you've got the added pressure of 198 00:12:42,440 --> 00:12:46,880 working part -time as well. You've done an outstanding job. Well done. 199 00:12:47,480 --> 00:12:52,780 Sharon was bang on, even after taking off the costs from her incredible sales. 200 00:12:53,240 --> 00:12:57,200 Tasia was well on her way to building a successful full -time business. 201 00:13:00,040 --> 00:13:04,580 It's now over three and a half years since I first met her. And with her 202 00:13:04,580 --> 00:13:08,620 business going from strength to strength, I've come to London to Tasia's 203 00:13:08,620 --> 00:13:11,520 studio to find out exactly what she's achieved. 204 00:13:12,360 --> 00:13:13,660 Hi. Hello. 205 00:13:14,060 --> 00:13:16,360 Come on in. Thank you so much. It's been a while. 206 00:13:17,140 --> 00:13:20,740 Tasia's studio is light, bright, and really impressive. 207 00:13:21,400 --> 00:13:26,640 the place of an artist who's clearly on the up this place is brilliant thank you 208 00:13:26,640 --> 00:13:32,200 what a space you've got to work in i think this studio is the best i've had 209 00:13:32,200 --> 00:13:35,900 i'm really i'm really grateful um that i was able to get the space and work it 210 00:13:35,900 --> 00:13:38,860 it quite motivates me to come in and get the work done talking of getting work 211 00:13:38,860 --> 00:13:44,240 done how is business looking Really good. Yeah, I've been working on 212 00:13:44,560 --> 00:13:49,020 I'm doing a lot of children's book covers and illustrations. So that could 213 00:13:49,020 --> 00:13:55,820 anywhere from 900 to 4 ,000, depending on if it's just a cover or if it's 214 00:13:55,820 --> 00:13:57,920 illustrations throughout the entire book. 4 ,000 pounds. 215 00:13:58,620 --> 00:14:02,080 a huge amount of money, but I guess a lot of work if it's a big book. It's a 216 00:14:02,080 --> 00:14:04,420 of work, yeah. What about your beautiful paintings? 217 00:14:04,680 --> 00:14:05,680 Are you selling any of these? 218 00:14:05,800 --> 00:14:10,120 I am. I have an artist agent now and I sell a lot of things. 219 00:14:10,560 --> 00:14:11,700 Yes, thank you. 220 00:14:12,000 --> 00:14:16,500 It's amazing to be able to have someone who's rooting for me and my paintings 221 00:14:16,500 --> 00:14:17,960 and murals. 222 00:14:18,200 --> 00:14:23,480 murals as well yeah tell me about those i love creating large scale and i've 223 00:14:23,480 --> 00:14:27,080 been able to do murals in different communities around london what sort of 224 00:14:27,080 --> 00:14:32,820 are you doing then is this murals on building walls or yeah um it could range 225 00:14:32,820 --> 00:14:39,820 from anywhere from schools uh communities uh wall cafes anywhere 226 00:14:39,820 --> 00:14:44,600 that needs a new bit of life some color that's wildly different from doing the 227 00:14:44,600 --> 00:14:50,360 small intricate delicate illustration work yes it's a painting large scale 228 00:14:50,360 --> 00:14:54,500 in a public space yeah what's driving the growth of your business the most is 229 00:14:54,500 --> 00:14:59,600 murals illustration or the paintings right now i would say murals uh i'm 230 00:14:59,600 --> 00:15:06,240 uh driving my business as well as my illustrations it's great to hear that 231 00:15:06,240 --> 00:15:11,440 tasia is selling her paintings which are priced at 150 pounds for small ones up 232 00:15:11,440 --> 00:15:13,480 to 3 000 pounds for larger pieces 233 00:15:14,730 --> 00:15:19,090 I love that she's branched out into large -scale work, though, and as her 234 00:15:19,090 --> 00:15:23,190 are now bringing the most money into her business, we've travelled half an hour 235 00:15:23,190 --> 00:15:27,310 away to a community arts centre so she can show me how she creates them. 236 00:15:28,030 --> 00:15:32,090 She's painting a nature -inspired mural on the wall of the centre's reception, 237 00:15:32,430 --> 00:15:35,330 featuring flowers, leaves and greenery. 238 00:15:38,910 --> 00:15:43,310 Wow, this is not what I was expecting. Oh, goodness me! 239 00:15:44,200 --> 00:15:45,520 It's called the squiggle method. 240 00:15:45,740 --> 00:15:51,520 And what it is, it's just a bunch of random letters, numbers and symbols that 241 00:15:51,520 --> 00:15:57,100 use and mark on the wall. I take a photo on my phone and then I take my artwork 242 00:15:57,100 --> 00:16:03,920 that I've already sketched before and place it on top of the 243 00:16:03,920 --> 00:16:05,700 letters. Which is the coloured sections. 244 00:16:05,940 --> 00:16:06,940 Yeah. OK. 245 00:16:07,120 --> 00:16:12,600 And essentially what I need to do now is block in the colours and add details. 246 00:16:13,210 --> 00:16:16,930 Okay, I think I understand. So all of these letters and numbers and symbols in 247 00:16:16,930 --> 00:16:20,230 the dark colour are actually almost like a grid. 248 00:16:20,650 --> 00:16:22,950 It's just giving you reference locations. 249 00:16:23,530 --> 00:16:26,910 Yes, to make sure that things are in proportion and everything's in the right 250 00:16:26,910 --> 00:16:30,710 place and it looks good on the wall. That is so clever. When I first walked 251 00:16:30,750 --> 00:16:33,790 I was slightly terrified, but I can see it now. I can see what we're trying to 252 00:16:33,790 --> 00:16:36,250 do. Yeah. I guess it's time to get the paint out. Absolutely. 253 00:16:36,890 --> 00:16:39,070 We're going to get messy, aren't we? Very. Yeah. 254 00:16:39,510 --> 00:16:40,509 Very messy. 255 00:16:40,510 --> 00:16:41,510 Okay. 256 00:16:42,190 --> 00:16:47,030 I'm not new to painting big spaces, but Tasia's squiggle method is something 257 00:16:47,030 --> 00:16:48,310 I've not seen before. 258 00:16:49,150 --> 00:16:50,750 OK, I think you can start here. 259 00:16:51,370 --> 00:16:57,210 So if we look at the reference, you can see these two yellow bits. Yeah. And we 260 00:16:57,210 --> 00:16:59,610 just need to fill this shape in blue. 261 00:17:00,090 --> 00:17:05,230 The letters, numbers and symbols on the wall give us reference points and help 262 00:17:05,230 --> 00:17:08,970 to break down such a large piece of work into manageable and understandable 263 00:17:08,970 --> 00:17:09,970 sections. 264 00:17:10,730 --> 00:17:12,890 You're actually doing a really good job. Thank you. 265 00:17:13,530 --> 00:17:14,530 Good technique. 266 00:17:14,930 --> 00:17:16,910 Have you painted a mural before? 267 00:17:17,250 --> 00:17:22,410 Back in my set design days, I'd be quite often painting big walls and things, 268 00:17:22,510 --> 00:17:28,230 but never with this grid technique, this numbers and patterns technique. I'm 269 00:17:28,230 --> 00:17:29,990 fascinated by that. It would have been very handy. 270 00:17:31,870 --> 00:17:36,590 Tasia's design combines flowers, leaves and shapes in six different colours. 271 00:17:37,580 --> 00:17:40,600 This is quite a luxury being indoors in a nice warm room. 272 00:17:40,840 --> 00:17:43,980 Are you used to working on such big scale like this indoors? 273 00:17:44,240 --> 00:17:48,840 Most of them are outside, usually on fences or brick fences. Big walls and 274 00:17:48,840 --> 00:17:50,880 things. Own challenges. 275 00:17:51,240 --> 00:17:54,780 Yeah, the texture and, you know, it probably needs a few more coats than 276 00:17:54,860 --> 00:17:58,000 Yeah. That sort of thing. It doesn't help when it rains either. I bet. 277 00:17:59,060 --> 00:18:04,400 This is definitely the surface that I like to paint on. Yes, yes. And 278 00:18:04,400 --> 00:18:06,040 projects like this are going to make... 279 00:18:06,570 --> 00:18:10,690 an impact on so many people for a long time hundreds of people are going to see 280 00:18:10,690 --> 00:18:16,390 this and smile yeah you do good if we get it finished come on let's carry on 281 00:18:16,390 --> 00:18:22,570 depending on the size of her client's budget the price of tasia's murals range 282 00:18:22,570 --> 00:18:28,250 from 2 000 to 8 000 pounds and the more we paint the more i'm appreciating how 283 00:18:28,250 --> 00:18:33,570 the numbers letters and symbols she uses to guide her designs take away a lot of 284 00:18:33,570 --> 00:18:38,450 the stress of creating such large -scale work allowing her to concentrate on the 285 00:18:38,450 --> 00:18:43,930 details and colors she's using i think pink might be the best color it's really 286 00:18:43,930 --> 00:18:50,870 opaque oh nice yeah god how bright that is yeah goes on really nicely oh wow i 287 00:18:50,870 --> 00:18:56,570 like that yeah i really like it after three hours of painting the mural has 288 00:18:56,570 --> 00:19:00,190 first coat of paint nicely done thank you 289 00:19:01,160 --> 00:19:05,860 The following day, Tasia returned to finish her mural, and it's a real 290 00:19:05,860 --> 00:19:10,300 to see that the bold colors and natural themes she used at the boot camp are 291 00:19:10,300 --> 00:19:13,940 fueling the success of her business on such large -scale work. 292 00:19:14,400 --> 00:19:19,000 Since I last saw her, she's taken massive strides forwards, and as well as 293 00:19:19,000 --> 00:19:23,540 creating themed collections of paintings, I'm keen to find out how the 294 00:19:23,540 --> 00:19:28,720 gave her three and a half years ago has contributed to her success, and how much 295 00:19:28,720 --> 00:19:30,220 she's earning from her art now. 296 00:19:30,620 --> 00:19:33,920 When you came to my boot camp, we gave you an action plan to help boost your 297 00:19:33,920 --> 00:19:37,440 business. One of the pointers that we wanted you to look into was perhaps 298 00:19:37,440 --> 00:19:39,420 thinking about going to life drawing classes. 299 00:19:40,120 --> 00:19:46,460 Have you done that? I did. I tried. And I wanted to focus on something that I 300 00:19:46,460 --> 00:19:48,680 was more interested in. And that was the florals. 301 00:19:48,920 --> 00:19:51,980 Drawing people were just not for you. I think it helped with proportions, 302 00:19:52,100 --> 00:19:57,480 which... helped for my illustration but in terms of my painting and my style and 303 00:19:57,480 --> 00:20:03,180 who and what i want to continue doing it isn't really bodies it's forms another 304 00:20:03,180 --> 00:20:06,660 thing that we wanted you to explore was to try and elevate the presentation of 305 00:20:06,660 --> 00:20:11,340 your prints you know maybe think of certificates of authenticity signatures 306 00:20:11,340 --> 00:20:15,070 they i've got to say they are looking beautiful now Yeah, I really took on 307 00:20:15,070 --> 00:20:21,610 Sharon said about the luxury element. So now I'm more printing on giclee prints 308 00:20:21,610 --> 00:20:25,870 and I'm signing and they are limited edition. 309 00:20:26,190 --> 00:20:31,810 And has that made a difference? I think it has. People like when there's limited 310 00:20:31,810 --> 00:20:32,810 editions. 311 00:20:33,750 --> 00:20:38,170 I've noticed that quite a few of my buyers are art collectors as well. So 312 00:20:38,170 --> 00:20:40,230 really helps push it. 313 00:20:40,790 --> 00:20:45,070 Tasia's action plan has helped her to develop her business, and it's time to 314 00:20:45,070 --> 00:20:47,710 find out exactly how successful she's become. 315 00:20:48,130 --> 00:20:51,650 Do you mind if we talk numbers, as this is a business after all? Yeah. Once 316 00:20:51,650 --> 00:20:53,970 you've taken out your costs, how much have you earned? 317 00:20:54,190 --> 00:20:56,870 Around 50, 50 ,000. 50? Yeah. 318 00:20:57,170 --> 00:20:58,230 A year? Yeah. 319 00:20:58,750 --> 00:20:59,750 Wow. 320 00:21:00,050 --> 00:21:01,730 I'm not surprised you're smiling. 321 00:21:01,990 --> 00:21:03,510 That is incredible. 322 00:21:03,850 --> 00:21:04,779 Thank you. 323 00:21:04,780 --> 00:21:09,440 Tasia enjoys the social part of her job in retail, and on average she's still 324 00:21:09,440 --> 00:21:13,660 doing a couple of days a week. But there's some news on the horizon that 325 00:21:13,660 --> 00:21:16,940 mean she takes the leap into becoming a full -time artist. 326 00:21:17,380 --> 00:21:21,340 I have hopefully a big commission coming soon, which would be my biggest project 327 00:21:21,340 --> 00:21:23,620 ever of 50 ,000. 328 00:21:24,480 --> 00:21:26,300 For one mural? For one mural. 329 00:21:26,500 --> 00:21:27,620 It must be a big one, I'm sure. 330 00:21:27,820 --> 00:21:28,920 It's huge, yes. 331 00:21:29,140 --> 00:21:31,080 Wow. If you need a hand, let me know. 332 00:21:31,980 --> 00:21:32,980 I'll let you know. 333 00:21:33,520 --> 00:21:37,960 Tasia's come an awfully long way since she was at the boot camp, and it sounds 334 00:21:37,960 --> 00:21:40,940 as though she's about to take another massive leap forward. 335 00:21:41,440 --> 00:21:46,360 Branching out into murals has turbocharged her business, and she 336 00:21:46,360 --> 00:21:48,440 ounce of the success she's having. 337 00:21:49,290 --> 00:21:52,050 I think my achievement has really boosted my confidence. 338 00:21:52,310 --> 00:21:56,050 Three years ago, I was sort of teetering on being an artist. I didn't really 339 00:21:56,050 --> 00:21:57,550 know who I was or what I was doing. 340 00:21:57,990 --> 00:22:03,230 And it was because of that reflection I'm able to be here today and say that I 341 00:22:03,230 --> 00:22:04,510 am now a professional artist. 342 00:22:09,230 --> 00:22:13,510 The second maker we'll be catching up with today is community gardener and 343 00:22:13,510 --> 00:22:15,650 woodturner Shannon from Northumberland. 344 00:22:16,220 --> 00:22:20,820 She also came to my boot camp three and a half years ago, hoping we could help 345 00:22:20,820 --> 00:22:25,120 her to make money from a rare skill of turning wood on a foot -powered pole 346 00:22:25,120 --> 00:22:32,040 lathe. I come from a long line of woodworkers. My father is a carpenter by 347 00:22:32,040 --> 00:22:34,880 and he learned from his father, so my grandfather. 348 00:22:36,580 --> 00:22:41,280 I'm definitely ready to start my business. I feel like I've been working 349 00:22:41,280 --> 00:22:42,280 it for quite a while. 350 00:22:42,860 --> 00:22:47,660 What is holding me back and one of my largest barriers is my anxiety of just 351 00:22:47,660 --> 00:22:48,780 putting myself out there. 352 00:22:50,400 --> 00:22:54,660 For her volume piece, Shannon decided to make a porringer -style bowl. 353 00:22:55,000 --> 00:23:00,100 This was a bowl she turned from birch wood with two handles, priced at £20. 354 00:23:01,240 --> 00:23:05,920 Her first job was to split a piece of green wood, which is wood that has just 355 00:23:05,920 --> 00:23:07,500 been cut and not dried out. 356 00:23:08,840 --> 00:23:12,760 Depending on how straight the grain is, with the first initial cut it could 357 00:23:12,760 --> 00:23:18,040 split off, so what I'm looking for is two half pieces so that it can be 358 00:23:18,040 --> 00:23:20,700 divided and made into two bowls that are similar. 359 00:23:27,640 --> 00:23:33,940 After using an axe to create a rough round bowl shape, Shannon's set to work 360 00:23:33,940 --> 00:23:35,940 turning it on her foot -powered lathe. 361 00:23:37,390 --> 00:23:43,430 As I push down, I make a cut using a small part of the hook tool. 362 00:23:44,470 --> 00:23:49,570 And when I push up, it oscillates back away from me so I stop the cut. 363 00:23:49,810 --> 00:23:51,990 And that's in a rhythmical fashion. 364 00:23:54,910 --> 00:24:00,250 So I'm generally keeping a steady pace and it just gently 365 00:24:00,250 --> 00:24:03,810 creates a new line around the bowl. 366 00:24:06,030 --> 00:24:10,770 To help Shannon as she strived to make money from her work, she was supported 367 00:24:10,770 --> 00:24:13,290 woodworker and furniture maker Alice Blog. 368 00:24:13,550 --> 00:24:18,250 Over the past 16 years, Alice has collaborated with a number of leading 369 00:24:18,250 --> 00:24:23,170 organizations and high street brands from her Dorset studio, which made her a 370 00:24:23,170 --> 00:24:25,110 fantastic person to guide Shannon. 371 00:24:26,700 --> 00:24:30,340 Something that's really special about you, Shannon, is that you're you. You're 372 00:24:30,340 --> 00:24:34,960 using this pole lathe, which not everyone uses to make products out of. I 373 00:24:34,960 --> 00:24:38,920 in a business sense, we can use you as something that markets, this pole lathe 374 00:24:38,920 --> 00:24:42,200 as something that markets, and really put your confidence into selling your 375 00:24:42,200 --> 00:24:44,560 work, which also is marketable too. 376 00:24:44,820 --> 00:24:45,820 That sounds great. 377 00:24:46,380 --> 00:24:51,100 As Shannon got back to making her Porringer -style bowl, I sat down with 378 00:24:51,100 --> 00:24:54,340 to discuss her second challenge, her high -end piece. 379 00:24:54,880 --> 00:24:59,180 Shannon had turned another two -handled bowl, this time from Sycamore. 380 00:24:59,520 --> 00:25:04,060 It was larger than her volume piece, so it took longer to turn, and she priced 381 00:25:04,060 --> 00:25:05,060 it at £60. 382 00:25:06,920 --> 00:25:09,180 It's beautiful. It's got Scandinavian style. 383 00:25:09,500 --> 00:25:13,740 I think she needs to work on her signature detailing of it. Maybe some 384 00:25:13,840 --> 00:25:15,820 maybe some stain or a little bit of carving. 385 00:25:16,020 --> 00:25:18,660 Ooh. Yeah, just a little je ne sais quoi. 386 00:25:18,920 --> 00:25:21,600 A little bit of, yeah, nice. I like it. A little bit of ping. 387 00:25:21,800 --> 00:25:25,240 So you've got Shannon's character, Shannon's work, and that little Shannon 388 00:25:25,240 --> 00:25:26,540 little detail in it. 389 00:25:26,800 --> 00:25:28,700 Well, she's hoping to get £60 for it. 390 00:25:29,080 --> 00:25:32,840 Would you pay £60 for a bowl like that? Oh, I'd definitely pay £60 for a Shannon 391 00:25:32,840 --> 00:25:33,679 bowl, yeah. 392 00:25:33,680 --> 00:25:34,680 Yeah. 393 00:25:35,560 --> 00:25:39,700 Back in the timber yard, Shannon had made good progress with her volume 394 00:25:40,060 --> 00:25:46,920 I have finished the back of the bowl, turned it round, and I've hollowed out 395 00:25:46,920 --> 00:25:51,840 inside of the bowl. And what I'm feeling for is the thickness of the walls and 396 00:25:51,840 --> 00:25:53,560 the depth of the cuts that I'm making. 397 00:25:55,580 --> 00:26:00,500 As she powered the lathe with her foot, Shannon kept her upper body as still as 398 00:26:00,500 --> 00:26:03,780 possible to control the hook she was using to carve her bowl. 399 00:26:04,620 --> 00:26:08,980 It was a physically demanding job that also required total concentration. 400 00:26:10,360 --> 00:26:11,520 OK, that'll do. 401 00:26:13,000 --> 00:26:17,320 So, across the grain, it's just going to go... 402 00:26:17,320 --> 00:26:20,940 ..and pop like that. 403 00:26:23,240 --> 00:26:27,280 That's when it flies off. So we've got a lovely little bowl, and that's where 404 00:26:27,280 --> 00:26:28,280 it's come from. 405 00:26:28,860 --> 00:26:32,760 With the bowl off the lathe, the next job was carving the handles. 406 00:26:34,080 --> 00:26:38,420 Small pencil stencil line so that I can cut up to that line. 407 00:26:38,640 --> 00:26:41,280 And then I'll take out the scars with a hook knife. 408 00:26:42,080 --> 00:26:45,520 And we're pretty much at the final stages now. 409 00:26:46,380 --> 00:26:50,180 The handles on Shannon's bowl were both carefully hand carved. 410 00:26:50,820 --> 00:26:55,620 To finish, she needed the bowl to dry before adding a food grade oil to make 411 00:26:55,620 --> 00:26:59,260 usable and bring out the beautiful colour and detail in the wood. 412 00:27:00,780 --> 00:27:03,740 I feel excited about showing Dom and Alice my bowl. 413 00:27:04,020 --> 00:27:09,300 I'm open to criticism on my pieces. I think it's really interesting to see the 414 00:27:09,300 --> 00:27:10,300 observations of others. 415 00:27:11,240 --> 00:27:15,480 Shannon's bowl took her three hours to turn and finish, and she gave it a 416 00:27:15,480 --> 00:27:17,480 competitive price tag of £20. 417 00:27:19,090 --> 00:27:21,870 There's more value in your work, you just don't realise it. 418 00:27:22,070 --> 00:27:24,530 You need your name on it. People want to buy you. 419 00:27:24,870 --> 00:27:29,190 So you need to carve into it or milk paint or scorch it in some way. This is 420 00:27:29,190 --> 00:27:33,210 going to make people want a Shannon piece and come back for more and signify 421 00:27:33,210 --> 00:27:36,510 that it's you that made it. We don't want people to just buy one of your 422 00:27:36,570 --> 00:27:39,030 We want people to come back and buy the whole set and have cupboards full of 423 00:27:39,030 --> 00:27:40,890 them. Yeah, more and more and more. 424 00:27:41,170 --> 00:27:42,170 That sounds amazing. 425 00:27:44,650 --> 00:27:49,690 It was fantastic to see someone keeping a heritage craft alive and there was 426 00:27:49,690 --> 00:27:52,830 definitely more value in Shannon's work than she realised. 427 00:27:53,510 --> 00:27:57,410 To think that I'm a selling point of my business, I'm completely flattered that 428 00:27:57,410 --> 00:28:02,630 Dom and Alice was able to portray that to me through seeing my little volume 429 00:28:02,630 --> 00:28:03,690 piece. I think that's great. 430 00:28:04,490 --> 00:28:09,390 For her final challenge, I asked Shannon to make her favourite piece to see if 431 00:28:09,390 --> 00:28:13,290 the item she was most passionate about could also bring in big profits. 432 00:28:13,920 --> 00:28:18,940 She decided to turn a 6 -inch bowl from English Alderwood, priced at £40. 433 00:28:19,640 --> 00:28:23,660 It was one of the first bowls she successfully produced when she began 434 00:28:23,660 --> 00:28:28,100 woodturning. And with no handles, it was the simplest of the three bowls she 435 00:28:28,100 --> 00:28:29,100 created for us. 436 00:28:29,360 --> 00:28:36,120 So what I'm going to do is use the circle mark to identify where 437 00:28:36,120 --> 00:28:37,480 to take these edges off. 438 00:28:45,130 --> 00:28:48,850 I'm just lining it up so that I don't get it too close to the line. 439 00:28:52,330 --> 00:28:53,910 That was close. 440 00:28:55,550 --> 00:29:02,370 Now that I've got it close to the edge, I'm going to flatten the back 441 00:29:02,370 --> 00:29:05,630 so that I've got another reference point. 442 00:29:11,550 --> 00:29:12,710 I've flattened off the back. 443 00:29:13,710 --> 00:29:18,810 which means I can draw a centre point and use my compass to draw another 444 00:29:18,810 --> 00:29:19,569 for the foot. 445 00:29:19,570 --> 00:29:25,310 And then using a systematic approach, create facets down each corner and then 446 00:29:25,310 --> 00:29:29,290 just chase it round until it becomes a circular bowl blank. 447 00:29:30,870 --> 00:29:34,830 After the bowl had been shaped on the pole lathe, the wood needed to be 448 00:29:34,830 --> 00:29:38,410 to dry out for up to a couple of days and then oiled. 449 00:29:39,530 --> 00:29:44,350 What I'm going to do now is use the oil that I've poured inside to rub around 450 00:29:44,350 --> 00:29:50,870 with my fingers and get around the entirety of the bowl, making sure that I 451 00:29:50,870 --> 00:29:54,630 don't leave any marks or spots without the oil. 452 00:29:58,170 --> 00:30:02,790 Shannon's six -inch bowl made from English alderwood was larger and took 453 00:30:02,790 --> 00:30:06,850 to turn than the Porringer -style bowl she made for her volume piece, and she 454 00:30:06,850 --> 00:30:08,090 priced it at £40. 455 00:30:10,469 --> 00:30:14,530 well they're practical things i guess you need to think um about the end user 456 00:30:14,530 --> 00:30:18,990 about what they're going to buy it to use exactly do you have a use in mind so 457 00:30:19,420 --> 00:30:23,420 Even though it's six inch and it's quite small, I use it mainly so that I can go 458 00:30:23,420 --> 00:30:24,420 up for seconds and thirds. 459 00:30:25,940 --> 00:30:31,360 I appreciate that not everyone likes to get up from the table once they've sat 460 00:30:31,360 --> 00:30:34,100 down. So I think maybe for that size, it's a good price. 461 00:30:34,620 --> 00:30:38,500 But maybe if you wanted to sell a few more to people who may not want to go 462 00:30:38,500 --> 00:30:40,560 seconds and thirds, then maybe a bigger piece. 463 00:30:42,000 --> 00:30:47,220 Shannon made all of her products with enthusiasm and real skill, but she 464 00:30:47,220 --> 00:30:48,560 to turn that into money. 465 00:30:49,050 --> 00:30:53,030 To help her, we drew up an action plan for her to take back to Northumberland. 466 00:30:53,770 --> 00:30:58,570 First, we wanted her to find a signature style by adding colour or distinctive 467 00:30:58,570 --> 00:31:02,030 features like scorching or unique carving to her work. 468 00:31:02,610 --> 00:31:07,050 Next, she needed to start selling herself, because customers buy into 469 00:31:07,230 --> 00:31:09,670 and she had a fantastic story to tell. 470 00:31:10,410 --> 00:31:13,870 She could do this at markets or online through her website. 471 00:31:18,380 --> 00:31:23,500 For the next two months, with Alice's support, Shannon set to work building 472 00:31:23,500 --> 00:31:27,600 business. And job one was developing a signature style for her bowls. 473 00:31:27,860 --> 00:31:34,560 I create nature -based inks. They're ranging from anything using acorns or 474 00:31:34,560 --> 00:31:40,960 elderberries from last year. And I'm experimenting in using them to dye the 475 00:31:40,960 --> 00:31:41,960 of my bowls. 476 00:31:42,960 --> 00:31:47,760 She also worked on her website to boost her online presence and wanted to get 477 00:31:47,760 --> 00:31:49,020 mentor Alice's thoughts. 478 00:31:49,400 --> 00:31:53,920 So homepage, nice that there'll be a video. Have you thought about what that 479 00:31:54,080 --> 00:31:59,280 I love the idea of just having a loop of just a few cuts. 480 00:31:59,520 --> 00:32:03,200 I think that's such a simple and really effective idea. 481 00:32:03,440 --> 00:32:04,440 Yeah, 482 00:32:05,060 --> 00:32:08,720 I think there was a photo you took in the barn or somewhere with that nice 483 00:32:08,720 --> 00:32:10,500 floor. Yeah, yeah. 484 00:32:11,150 --> 00:32:13,770 That is such nice light in there. 485 00:32:13,990 --> 00:32:17,590 I think I want to take all my product shots in there. If I go in in the 486 00:32:17,770 --> 00:32:21,550 you get the back lighting from the door. And if I go in in the evening, you get 487 00:32:21,550 --> 00:32:25,030 a soft light from a yellow, like, from a top lighting. 488 00:32:25,250 --> 00:32:26,990 So I can play around with that. 489 00:32:27,250 --> 00:32:31,830 In the eight weeks after my boot camp, Shannon made huge steps forward, 490 00:32:31,830 --> 00:32:33,290 her business from scratch. 491 00:32:33,590 --> 00:32:36,690 And when she came to report back, she had positive news. 492 00:32:37,130 --> 00:32:39,610 I've made about £300 in the past eight weeks. 493 00:32:39,960 --> 00:32:40,960 Really? Yeah. 494 00:32:41,220 --> 00:32:43,360 How does that compare to before this experience? 495 00:32:43,740 --> 00:32:47,060 Well, I had only ever given my bowls as gifts to friends and family. 496 00:32:47,340 --> 00:32:50,500 I know, right? It's amazing. And now you've made hundreds of pounds from 497 00:32:50,500 --> 00:32:53,100 it. Well, when you say it like that, it sounds very impressive. 498 00:32:53,580 --> 00:32:54,459 It is. 499 00:32:54,460 --> 00:32:55,460 It is. 500 00:32:55,600 --> 00:32:58,560 It feels like a start, at least. 501 00:32:59,240 --> 00:33:00,240 Shannon was right. 502 00:33:00,440 --> 00:33:05,260 Selling your work is a very big first step to take. And having done that, she 503 00:33:05,260 --> 00:33:06,820 went from strength to strength. 504 00:33:08,490 --> 00:33:12,910 Three and a half years after I first met her, I've asked Alice to drop in on her 505 00:33:12,910 --> 00:33:16,470 to find out more about what she's achieved and things have changed. 506 00:33:19,210 --> 00:33:20,210 Hi! 507 00:33:22,630 --> 00:33:24,890 Shannon has diversified her business. 508 00:33:25,750 --> 00:33:31,530 She's also left Northumberland and moved hundreds of miles south to Somerset and 509 00:33:31,530 --> 00:33:33,730 is meeting Alice in a friend's workshop. 510 00:33:34,110 --> 00:33:37,330 Love the space, Shannon. So tell me more about how you ended up here. 511 00:33:37,790 --> 00:33:42,430 Around 18 months ago, I lost my base up in Northumberland and my workshop. 512 00:33:42,670 --> 00:33:46,110 So I moved down south, being a little bit closer to my family. 513 00:33:46,690 --> 00:33:51,790 Since we met at boot camp, I have moved primarily from polo training into being 514 00:33:51,790 --> 00:33:53,810 more primarily basketry based. 515 00:33:54,070 --> 00:33:59,030 So this practice has got far less kit, which means that I can be much more 516 00:33:59,030 --> 00:34:03,250 mobile and it means that I can create pretty much anywhere on the go. 517 00:34:03,710 --> 00:34:07,410 Your pole lathe is brilliant, but there's a lot of people doing it now, 518 00:34:07,410 --> 00:34:09,010 lovely for the endangered craft. 519 00:34:09,570 --> 00:34:13,330 But it seems like your basketry, there's not as many people doing it. So it's a 520 00:34:13,330 --> 00:34:15,210 USP. It's your selling point. 521 00:34:15,469 --> 00:34:19,290 Well, yeah, in my basketry, I use critically endangered techniques. 522 00:34:19,850 --> 00:34:26,630 So the skein or skein willow is something that is currently potentially 523 00:34:26,630 --> 00:34:27,630 become extinct. 524 00:34:28,639 --> 00:34:32,800 teach nationally and provide opportunities for people to learn these 525 00:34:32,800 --> 00:34:33,800 they can remain living. 526 00:34:34,300 --> 00:34:39,780 April through to about September, I'm able to go to craft fairs, different 527 00:34:39,780 --> 00:34:44,300 greenwood festivals and different events where I can either demonstrate or 528 00:34:44,300 --> 00:34:46,540 connect with people and teach these skills. 529 00:34:47,659 --> 00:34:52,500 Skeen willow is willow that has been turned from round rods into thin, flat 530 00:34:52,500 --> 00:34:55,199 flexible ribbons that are used for intricate weaving. 531 00:34:55,710 --> 00:34:58,450 which Shannon teaches in her summer basketry workshops. 532 00:35:00,030 --> 00:35:04,650 She holds them once or twice a week for 8 to 10 people per class and charges 533 00:35:04,650 --> 00:35:07,010 £100 to £150 per person. 534 00:35:08,350 --> 00:35:12,270 During the winter months, she boosts her income by working in the forestry 535 00:35:12,270 --> 00:35:14,070 industry and selling her pieces. 536 00:35:15,830 --> 00:35:20,110 When we first met at boot camp, you didn't even have a website, so tell me 537 00:35:20,110 --> 00:35:21,490 about how you're selling your products. 538 00:35:22,110 --> 00:35:24,150 The main place that I sell is online. 539 00:35:24,410 --> 00:35:27,730 My biggest sellers are still my bowls. That's still what I'm primarily known 540 00:35:27,730 --> 00:35:32,130 for. And they list from around £40 to £350. 541 00:35:32,430 --> 00:35:37,310 The commissions that I get usually come in at the higher figures as well, as 542 00:35:37,310 --> 00:35:41,930 they're usually a piece for maybe a big celebratory birthday or a wedding 543 00:35:41,930 --> 00:35:46,970 anniversary or something like that. Whereas my baskets are catching up. 544 00:35:46,970 --> 00:35:49,850 listed from around £85 to around £500. 545 00:35:50,490 --> 00:35:54,830 It's good to hear Shannon does still sell her bowls, but with the basketry 546 00:35:54,830 --> 00:35:59,370 becoming a growing driver of her business, she's going to show Alice one 547 00:35:59,370 --> 00:36:04,010 split willow and hazelwood umbra baskets, which she sells for £290. 548 00:36:04,910 --> 00:36:10,270 She begins by cutting rods of hazelwood lengthways, then shaves them to create 549 00:36:10,270 --> 00:36:11,270 flexible strips. 550 00:36:11,870 --> 00:36:13,250 Working from the middle. 551 00:36:15,340 --> 00:36:16,500 Down through the length. 552 00:36:16,840 --> 00:36:20,260 These will eventually become the frame of my basket. 553 00:36:20,920 --> 00:36:22,640 You can see it's going softer now. 554 00:36:22,900 --> 00:36:23,819 Yeah. 555 00:36:23,820 --> 00:36:25,420 So you can kind of feel the flex. 556 00:36:25,700 --> 00:36:26,700 Yeah, wow. 557 00:36:28,200 --> 00:36:33,700 You can really feel it go. You can feel the middle as well, because it's not as 558 00:36:33,700 --> 00:36:35,500 thin. I really enjoy this bit. 559 00:36:35,980 --> 00:36:41,220 The shape of the shavings always bring me a little bit of joy. 560 00:36:42,700 --> 00:36:47,300 With the hazelwood rods ready to create the frame, Shannon moves on to the 561 00:36:47,300 --> 00:36:51,640 strips of willow that will be woven between the rods, also known as the ribs 562 00:36:51,640 --> 00:36:52,399 the basket. 563 00:36:52,400 --> 00:36:59,080 This splitting the willow is part of the basketry that 564 00:36:59,080 --> 00:37:01,820 has the critically endangered technique in it. 565 00:37:02,920 --> 00:37:09,320 And what we do is use one willow stem and a 566 00:37:09,320 --> 00:37:10,680 splitter. 567 00:37:11,950 --> 00:37:14,330 And you split it three ways. 568 00:37:15,310 --> 00:37:20,930 This creates the inner material. This is one of the things that you need to make 569 00:37:20,930 --> 00:37:23,670 sure that you're thinking with your hands instead of your mind. 570 00:37:24,890 --> 00:37:26,450 You can hear the crackle. 571 00:37:28,030 --> 00:37:34,330 The centre of the rod or the stem is along all three. So that's what we're 572 00:37:34,330 --> 00:37:36,710 to be dressing down and making into a thinner strip. 573 00:37:37,670 --> 00:37:42,030 To make the strips of willow narrower, Shannon passes them through a vertical 574 00:37:42,030 --> 00:37:44,790 shaver, which can give her different widths of willow. 575 00:37:45,290 --> 00:37:49,690 She also passes them through a horizontal shaver to give her the 576 00:37:49,690 --> 00:37:51,070 thinness she's looking for. 577 00:37:51,430 --> 00:37:56,910 We're just going to make it sure the same width as the other one, same width 578 00:37:56,910 --> 00:37:57,910 the other one. 579 00:37:58,770 --> 00:38:01,770 I always do the same width for a whole basket. 580 00:38:02,030 --> 00:38:06,630 So I'll do smaller pieces for the start of the weave. 581 00:38:07,080 --> 00:38:10,440 Yeah. Because it's tighter spaces between the ribs. 582 00:38:10,660 --> 00:38:15,680 Yeah. And then as the weave gets wider, I can use wider pieces of willow. Yeah. 583 00:38:16,620 --> 00:38:18,720 So you can make them really thin. 584 00:38:19,900 --> 00:38:24,700 With her willow prepared, Shannon begins weaving on a hazelwood frame she 585 00:38:24,700 --> 00:38:26,120 prepared before Alice arrived. 586 00:38:28,900 --> 00:38:30,380 Always twice around the top. 587 00:38:30,740 --> 00:38:33,000 Yeah. Just locks it in a bit tighter. 588 00:38:36,460 --> 00:38:40,380 Now you've moved from Paul Aiding into your basketry, how are you telling 589 00:38:40,380 --> 00:38:41,380 about this? 590 00:38:41,620 --> 00:38:47,120 I have lots of different forums, social media and places online. 591 00:38:47,960 --> 00:38:50,240 However, mainly it's my newsletter. 592 00:38:50,680 --> 00:38:55,960 It's located at the end of every page of my website and I've now got up to a 593 00:38:55,960 --> 00:39:00,240 thousand people that I'm able to have a bit more of a personal connection with. 594 00:39:00,680 --> 00:39:04,520 and let them know about what I've been up to, big projects. 595 00:39:05,260 --> 00:39:10,340 They'll be the first to know when any shop is updated on my seasonal releases. 596 00:39:11,000 --> 00:39:15,580 To keep her strips of willow soft and flexible, Shannon keeps them in a bucket 597 00:39:15,580 --> 00:39:16,580 of water. 598 00:39:17,080 --> 00:39:22,220 And after around five hours of weaving, she reaches the final stages of creating 599 00:39:22,220 --> 00:39:23,220 her basket. 600 00:39:24,360 --> 00:39:26,080 That should be my last piece. 601 00:39:29,960 --> 00:39:31,320 Stay with me, little one. 602 00:39:32,300 --> 00:39:33,940 I'm taking a terrace nap. 603 00:39:35,120 --> 00:39:40,240 Including drying time for the split hazelwood, Shannon's Umbra basket takes 604 00:39:40,240 --> 00:39:42,460 around two to two and a half days to make. 605 00:39:44,060 --> 00:39:50,520 It has material costs of £20 to £30 and a price tag of £290 for a brown basket 606 00:39:50,520 --> 00:39:53,100 and £340 for an ebonised one. 607 00:39:54,420 --> 00:39:55,420 Well done! 608 00:39:56,140 --> 00:39:57,520 Thanks. Dunning! 609 00:39:59,150 --> 00:40:03,650 It's clear that diversifying her business has been a big success for 610 00:40:03,970 --> 00:40:08,190 But I'm keen to know if the advice we gave her three and a half years ago has 611 00:40:08,190 --> 00:40:10,530 also played a role in the growth of her business. 612 00:40:11,310 --> 00:40:15,130 When you came to boot camp, we asked you to find your signature style by adding 613 00:40:15,130 --> 00:40:18,410 colour or distinctive features such as scorching. 614 00:40:19,070 --> 00:40:20,410 Do you think you found this? 615 00:40:20,970 --> 00:40:24,750 What I've been using is the charcoal dyes on the bottom of my bowls and 616 00:40:24,750 --> 00:40:29,130 ebonising strips of willow to go through the basket. So when someone sees a 617 00:40:29,130 --> 00:40:31,450 product like that, they know it's made by me. 618 00:40:31,790 --> 00:40:35,290 Something else we wanted you to do was to sell yourself because people really 619 00:40:35,290 --> 00:40:38,490 buy into craftspeople via markets, online. 620 00:40:38,750 --> 00:40:42,010 I still feel quite uncomfortable about putting myself out there. 621 00:40:42,330 --> 00:40:47,530 But when I take a step back and I see how well it's been received online or... 622 00:40:48,160 --> 00:40:52,980 at live events when i connect to people and how quickly my seasonal updates sell 623 00:40:52,980 --> 00:40:57,400 out and how popular my mailing list is i've done better than i thought i think 624 00:40:57,400 --> 00:41:03,140 you've done really well i absolutely agree with alice shannon has done 625 00:41:03,140 --> 00:41:07,860 incredibly well since i last saw her not only is she making money from her 626 00:41:07,860 --> 00:41:12,360 woodturning she's moved the length of the country and also learned a new and 627 00:41:12,360 --> 00:41:16,720 very rare skill which is playing an increasingly large role in her business 628 00:41:17,640 --> 00:41:20,940 Time to find out how much money that's all now making her. 629 00:41:21,940 --> 00:41:25,480 Shannon, it's time to talk numbers. Are you earning a living from your craft? 630 00:41:25,920 --> 00:41:30,060 So working part -time on the craft side, I earn about 15k a year. 631 00:41:30,660 --> 00:41:36,780 Wow, thank you. And combined with the income from my forestry work, it means 632 00:41:36,780 --> 00:41:40,360 that I do make a living and it means that I've created a viable business. 633 00:41:41,070 --> 00:41:43,850 I never thought I'd get here. I thought it was always going to be a side hustle. 634 00:41:44,270 --> 00:41:49,830 So to be able to have an actual career in heritage craft, it's incredible. 635 00:41:50,310 --> 00:41:52,590 It's so good to hear. You must be so proud of yourself. 636 00:41:53,170 --> 00:41:56,910 And you're only doing it for seven months of the year. So think what you 637 00:41:56,910 --> 00:41:58,790 if you're doing it for 12 months of the year. 638 00:41:59,070 --> 00:42:04,530 I think the future involves me taking a step back in winter months from forestry 639 00:42:04,530 --> 00:42:09,210 and coppicing to be able to give the craft a bit more space and time. 640 00:42:10,840 --> 00:42:15,860 open and sell out pretty quickly and also the interest that i have online 641 00:42:15,860 --> 00:42:19,060 that i think there's a bit more scope to be able to develop my collection ranges 642 00:42:19,060 --> 00:42:24,300 and increase the product numbers that i have on them the potential for shannon 643 00:42:24,300 --> 00:42:29,840 to grow her business further is massive but just 18 months after uprooting her 644 00:42:29,840 --> 00:42:35,260 life and learning a new skill to be earning 15 000 pounds off the cost is a 645 00:42:35,260 --> 00:42:38,440 fabulous achievement that she should be very proud of 646 00:42:39,500 --> 00:42:45,640 I've always had this dream of being where I am today and I can't believe 647 00:42:45,640 --> 00:42:50,760 made it here. I am really proud of my own achievements and it means that it's 648 00:42:50,760 --> 00:42:55,260 something that I see myself doing for a sustainable and long career. 649 00:42:58,600 --> 00:43:01,060 Want some help building a business that lasts? 650 00:43:01,380 --> 00:43:06,480 Visit the Open University's interactive guide for practical help to sustain and 651 00:43:06,480 --> 00:43:07,480 grow your business. 652 00:43:07,980 --> 00:43:14,820 Scan the QR code on the screen or visit connect .open .ac .uk forward 653 00:43:14,820 --> 00:43:16,540 slash I made it at market.