1 00:00:00,650 --> 00:00:05,590 Our country is full of incredible makers dreaming of turning their talent... 2 00:00:05,740 --> 00:00:07,040 into money -making careers. 3 00:00:07,340 --> 00:00:10,380 It would mean everything to be able to do this full -time. 4 00:00:10,620 --> 00:00:15,260 So, with a team of fantastic professional mentors... I know your 5 00:00:15,260 --> 00:00:16,500 know what you're capable of doing. 6 00:00:16,740 --> 00:00:20,800 I run a one -of -a -kind bootcamp showing them how to do just that. 7 00:00:21,020 --> 00:00:25,540 Perfect. My proudest moment. I'll go share that. Yes. Now, I'm on my way to 8 00:00:25,540 --> 00:00:29,500 catch up with those who have made their dreams come true. Hello. There he is. 9 00:00:29,520 --> 00:00:30,520 Hello, mate. 10 00:00:30,840 --> 00:00:33,360 I'll be hearing about their amazing achievement. 11 00:00:33,720 --> 00:00:37,100 I've been able to put down... This is my full -time job. 12 00:00:37,320 --> 00:00:39,700 And finding out how much money they're making. 13 00:00:39,940 --> 00:00:41,600 A little bit under £40 ,000. 14 00:00:41,940 --> 00:00:43,940 Around £50 ,000. £50 ,000? 15 00:00:44,160 --> 00:00:48,760 Yes. So join me and meet the fabulous makers who have transformed their lives 16 00:00:48,760 --> 00:00:50,260 and made it at market. 17 00:00:50,680 --> 00:00:52,980 You can kind of say I'm living the dream. 18 00:00:53,180 --> 00:00:54,600 I think that's fair to say. 19 00:01:02,440 --> 00:01:07,600 Lots of makers come to my boot camp looking for help, swapping the 9 -to -5 20 00:01:07,600 --> 00:01:09,980 a full -time career doing the thing they love. 21 00:01:10,240 --> 00:01:14,780 And today we'll be catching up with two makers who have succeeded in doing that. 22 00:01:15,620 --> 00:01:19,960 Later, mentor Derek will be dropping in on Charlotte, who gave up a job in a vet 23 00:01:19,960 --> 00:01:21,960 to build a stained glass art business. 24 00:01:22,620 --> 00:01:29,620 I'm working a lot more for starters, but I'm definitely enjoying it a lot more. 25 00:01:30,020 --> 00:01:34,250 Before that... I'll be catching up with stone carver Louise in Oxfordshire. 26 00:01:38,150 --> 00:01:43,670 I first met her in the summer of 2023, when she was a novice but passionate 27 00:01:43,670 --> 00:01:49,750 carver. There is a sense of permanence with stone that you know that whatever 28 00:01:49,750 --> 00:01:55,890 you're carving is going to survive for thousands of years. It's brilliant. 29 00:01:57,280 --> 00:02:01,600 Louise had ditched her day job and gone to college to learn how to carve stone 30 00:02:01,600 --> 00:02:05,140 and was hoping we could help her build a business from it. 31 00:02:05,760 --> 00:02:11,280 I have put my life on hold and retrained the last two years. 32 00:02:12,180 --> 00:02:16,660 And, you know, I don't want to be a failure at the end of it. I want to come 33 00:02:16,660 --> 00:02:18,460 of this and be successful. 34 00:02:19,300 --> 00:02:24,480 To help Louise start making money from her passion, I set her three tasks to 35 00:02:24,480 --> 00:02:26,480 figure out how best to bring in sales. 36 00:02:27,600 --> 00:02:32,180 First up was making a volume piece, something quick to make and affordably 37 00:02:32,180 --> 00:02:33,180 priced. 38 00:02:34,540 --> 00:02:40,340 She decided to craft a decorative swallow carved into a 10cm square 39 00:02:40,340 --> 00:02:43,120 block, which she hoped to sell for £100. 40 00:02:44,500 --> 00:02:50,400 I'm just putting in a really shallow re -cut around the shape of the swallow. 41 00:02:51,230 --> 00:02:56,330 the v -cut is just i'm just protecting the bits of stone that i don't want to 42 00:02:56,330 --> 00:02:59,770 chip off really if i hit it too hard 43 00:02:59,770 --> 00:03:06,490 and i take off a bit that i don't want 44 00:03:06,490 --> 00:03:11,110 to then i just basically have to rethink the design 45 00:03:11,110 --> 00:03:17,990 and this is ancaster stone the lovely thing about ancaster is that 46 00:03:17,990 --> 00:03:20,170 it's quite pure so you don't have that many 47 00:03:21,179 --> 00:03:22,220 fossils in. 48 00:03:22,540 --> 00:03:26,980 Fossils can be a real pain because if you come across a fossil, you've either 49 00:03:26,980 --> 00:03:29,380 got to go round it or chip the whole thing out. 50 00:03:29,740 --> 00:03:31,100 I'm just doing the tail now. 51 00:03:31,920 --> 00:03:38,700 So I've nearly got the rough shape of the swallow in the V carving. 52 00:03:41,100 --> 00:03:45,500 To help Louise build her business, I teamed her up with professional stone 53 00:03:45,500 --> 00:03:46,940 carver, Louis Francis. 54 00:03:48,170 --> 00:03:52,290 Louis is a classically trained carver who's been running his own successful 55 00:03:52,290 --> 00:03:54,070 business for 13 years. 56 00:03:56,150 --> 00:03:57,230 Hello, you all right? 57 00:03:58,150 --> 00:03:59,150 How are you? 58 00:03:59,590 --> 00:04:02,490 How do you find carving with that frame? 59 00:04:03,090 --> 00:04:07,210 I'm kind of used to it. It's what I use for the really small carving. 60 00:04:07,490 --> 00:04:13,650 I suggest like a washing up bowl with sand filled to the top. 61 00:04:14,120 --> 00:04:18,420 and then you place the stone inside the sand, and because it's quite small, it's 62 00:04:18,420 --> 00:04:22,140 much easier to carve inside that framework because it won't move around. 63 00:04:22,600 --> 00:04:26,120 The frame seems a little bit clumsy, so you might struggle to get the full 64 00:04:26,120 --> 00:04:29,460 dexterity. Oh, that's a really good idea. Thank you. 65 00:04:31,340 --> 00:04:35,500 Whilst Louise cracked on with her volume piece, I caught up with Louis to 66 00:04:35,500 --> 00:04:36,900 discuss her second challenge. 67 00:04:37,540 --> 00:04:41,380 Before she left home, I asked her to bring along a high -end item. 68 00:04:41,790 --> 00:04:43,870 something with a more expensive price tag. 69 00:04:44,730 --> 00:04:47,130 Louise chose to bring Cyril the Owl. 70 00:04:47,370 --> 00:04:52,190 Packed full of character, he stood 70 centimetres tall and was made from 71 00:04:52,190 --> 00:04:53,350 beautiful York stone. 72 00:04:54,090 --> 00:04:58,450 When I saw the owl sculpture, I just was blown away because it's so beautiful. I 73 00:04:58,450 --> 00:04:59,450 love animals myself. 74 00:04:59,730 --> 00:05:00,709 I love them. 75 00:05:00,710 --> 00:05:02,730 So it's a really modern touch. 76 00:05:03,050 --> 00:05:04,370 It's a really nice piece. 77 00:05:04,710 --> 00:05:07,410 Would you say it's worth the £700 asking price? 78 00:05:08,490 --> 00:05:14,010 I would say maybe $500 to $700 in that area, but I think $700 is OK price 79 00:05:15,870 --> 00:05:20,170 Back in the stone carving yard, having marked out her swallow for her volume 80 00:05:20,170 --> 00:05:25,170 piece, Louise started to carve away the limestone around it to reveal the bird's 81 00:05:25,170 --> 00:05:26,170 outline. 82 00:05:26,210 --> 00:05:28,190 There we are. 83 00:05:30,590 --> 00:05:35,270 After chiselling away the bulk of the stone, she began to form the shape of 84 00:05:35,270 --> 00:05:36,270 swallow. 85 00:05:36,330 --> 00:05:38,630 Unfortunately... I chopped a wing off. 86 00:05:40,930 --> 00:05:46,490 I am just basically looking at the shape again and seeing how I can work around 87 00:05:46,490 --> 00:05:49,030 it. You can rectify these things. 88 00:05:49,690 --> 00:05:56,610 Just a case of slowing down, looking at it and thinking, right, how can 89 00:05:56,610 --> 00:05:59,730 I get around that problem? 90 00:06:01,270 --> 00:06:03,650 Louise's attitude was spot on. 91 00:06:04,010 --> 00:06:08,110 Handmade items often have minor imperfections in them, but it's all part 92 00:06:08,110 --> 00:06:09,110 their charm. 93 00:06:10,170 --> 00:06:14,510 Once the swallow was reshaped, she used a gouge and a simple battery -powered 94 00:06:14,510 --> 00:06:17,510 nail file to add the finer details of the wings. 95 00:06:19,110 --> 00:06:23,910 I'm just basically making sure I'm happy with the feathers, really, and it just 96 00:06:23,910 --> 00:06:26,430 gives a little bit more detail. 97 00:06:27,510 --> 00:06:30,010 And it's such a fine... 98 00:06:31,630 --> 00:06:34,690 And there's hardly any resistance on it at all. 99 00:06:35,130 --> 00:06:36,770 It's, yeah, it's brilliant. 100 00:06:39,230 --> 00:06:43,770 Despite the setback with the wing, Louise's limestone swallow was charming. 101 00:06:43,990 --> 00:06:47,970 It took her around four hours to make and was priced at £100. 102 00:06:50,600 --> 00:06:55,420 I think it looks good. It's a great size, carving in quite a small area as 103 00:06:55,640 --> 00:06:59,540 I think people can buy it and then just put it on a shelf in their home. It will 104 00:06:59,540 --> 00:07:00,259 look great. 105 00:07:00,260 --> 00:07:01,720 What do you think of the price point, Louis? 106 00:07:03,420 --> 00:07:05,900 The £100 price point is good. 107 00:07:06,140 --> 00:07:12,220 One tip, maybe add like a gold leaf, an embellishment, just something on the 108 00:07:12,220 --> 00:07:17,120 beak, maybe something quite small, or maybe a few extra gold leaf details on 109 00:07:17,120 --> 00:07:18,520 wings, and that's it, quite simple. 110 00:07:19,920 --> 00:07:24,700 Two challenges in, and Louise had a well -deserved thumbs up for her first two 111 00:07:24,700 --> 00:07:25,700 pieces. 112 00:07:27,160 --> 00:07:32,260 For her final task, I asked her to produce her favourite item, to see if 113 00:07:32,260 --> 00:07:35,720 piece she most enjoyed making could bring in big sales. 114 00:07:36,220 --> 00:07:40,000 She chose to create her take on a traditional Lewis chessman. 115 00:07:40,680 --> 00:07:45,460 Standing 20 centimetres high, her bishop was carved from Ancaster limestone. 116 00:07:48,520 --> 00:07:52,460 I'm just going across, which is basically the shoulder of the bishop. 117 00:07:55,740 --> 00:08:01,600 There we are. Don't go too far, though, because if I carry on, I'm going to risk 118 00:08:01,600 --> 00:08:06,920 losing bits that I don't want to lose. So I'm going to turn it around and just 119 00:08:06,920 --> 00:08:07,920 go the other way. 120 00:08:09,840 --> 00:08:14,640 As work was progressing well, Louis was keen to talk to Louise about how she 121 00:08:14,640 --> 00:08:17,640 promoted and marketed herself and her work online. 122 00:08:19,720 --> 00:08:25,780 I've seen your Instagram page, been looking through it, and I haven't seen, 123 00:08:25,800 --> 00:08:31,100 like, a video or... Is that something you'd think about creating? I've watched 124 00:08:31,100 --> 00:08:36,380 those videos and they are so cool, but I don't actually understand how to do 125 00:08:36,380 --> 00:08:37,380 them. 126 00:08:37,440 --> 00:08:39,480 It's really, really simple. 127 00:08:39,799 --> 00:08:40,799 Set up a tripod. 128 00:08:41,200 --> 00:08:45,300 Film yourself doing it and then share it online. That's pretty much it. And then 129 00:08:45,300 --> 00:08:50,640 you'll draw in more people rather than through photos because a lot of people 130 00:08:50,640 --> 00:08:54,260 see photos and then they kind of scroll past it. Whereas the video, you can see 131 00:08:54,260 --> 00:08:56,760 someone's process and it's much more engaging to watch. 132 00:08:57,060 --> 00:08:59,020 I just find it just so daunting. 133 00:09:00,040 --> 00:09:05,100 I think it's a really important aspect of the business to just have that social 134 00:09:05,100 --> 00:09:07,360 media platform and a website as well. 135 00:09:11,140 --> 00:09:15,620 Louise's Louis chessman had a make time of around 20 hours to complete. 136 00:09:16,000 --> 00:09:20,600 So in order to show me and Louis a finished piece, she brought one closer 137 00:09:20,600 --> 00:09:23,280 completion to carve out the details of her bishop. 138 00:09:24,460 --> 00:09:29,360 Starting to look like a human and his face is starting to take shape as well. 139 00:09:29,680 --> 00:09:34,660 And we've got two hands here and then the crook going down. 140 00:09:39,470 --> 00:09:46,410 As Louise continued to carve in the character of her bishop, she made an 141 00:09:46,410 --> 00:09:47,410 important decision. 142 00:09:48,250 --> 00:09:54,970 I think he's chosen his own name and he's Cuthbert and Cuthbert was the 143 00:09:54,970 --> 00:09:59,050 bishop of Linderswan in 600 and something. 144 00:09:59,450 --> 00:10:01,170 So yeah, he's called Cuthbert. 145 00:10:01,690 --> 00:10:02,970 And there he is. 146 00:10:04,360 --> 00:10:09,220 Cuthbert took Louise 20 hours to carve and was packed full of personality. 147 00:10:09,900 --> 00:10:15,400 With material costs of around £35, she gave him an asking price of £300. 148 00:10:17,780 --> 00:10:20,380 I think it's a really lovely carving piece. 149 00:10:20,700 --> 00:10:23,540 You've got good size there as well. The detail is amazing. 150 00:10:24,940 --> 00:10:30,380 For your first sale, if you put £300, if people go, ooh, it's a bit steep, it's 151 00:10:30,380 --> 00:10:33,900 a bit expensive, and are a bit more hesitant towards it, you might be able 152 00:10:33,900 --> 00:10:36,180 drop it just slightly for your first sale. 153 00:10:37,380 --> 00:10:42,640 It was a joy to share Louise's love of stone carving, and as she headed home, 154 00:10:42,900 --> 00:10:47,000 Louis gave her an action plan to turn her passion into a sustainable business. 155 00:10:48,340 --> 00:10:52,640 First, he wanted her to think about adding gold and silver details to her 156 00:10:52,640 --> 00:10:55,310 design. to add value and boost her profits. 157 00:10:56,410 --> 00:11:01,250 Next, he wanted her to focus much more on her marketing and promote herself and 158 00:11:01,250 --> 00:11:04,410 her work by posting regular videos on social media. 159 00:11:05,570 --> 00:11:10,070 Finally, Louise needed to finish her website so that people could find her 160 00:11:10,070 --> 00:11:11,070 buy her pieces. 161 00:11:14,730 --> 00:11:19,470 With Louise's continued guidance, we gave Louise two months to work on her 162 00:11:19,470 --> 00:11:21,730 action plan and get the sales coming in. 163 00:11:22,170 --> 00:11:25,410 She started by adding colour to her characterful chessmen. 164 00:11:25,990 --> 00:11:32,150 I bought some proper stone masonry gold paint, sort of thing that they use for 165 00:11:32,150 --> 00:11:36,910 lettering and things. So it lasts an awful long time and it weathers very, 166 00:11:36,910 --> 00:11:42,790 well. The case with this is just put a little bit on at a time because it tends 167 00:11:42,790 --> 00:11:44,790 to blob and it goes everywhere. 168 00:11:46,510 --> 00:11:51,390 She also began to build her online presence and had some good news about 169 00:11:51,390 --> 00:11:52,390 her work. 170 00:11:52,650 --> 00:11:56,010 I'm now in a gallery in Tetbury, which is brilliant. 171 00:11:56,750 --> 00:12:01,470 The gallery in Chipping Camden has asked if they could have my stone. 172 00:12:02,010 --> 00:12:05,170 So that's starting up in October, which is brilliant. 173 00:12:06,530 --> 00:12:11,590 With Louise's support, Louise knuckled down to building her business. And after 174 00:12:11,590 --> 00:12:15,490 eight weeks of hard graft, she reported back to us at the boot camp. 175 00:12:16,199 --> 00:12:17,220 Let's talk about money. 176 00:12:17,580 --> 00:12:18,760 How much have you made? 177 00:12:19,420 --> 00:12:26,420 I've taken about £600, so not great, but I'm... Not 178 00:12:26,420 --> 00:12:27,399 great, that's OK. 179 00:12:27,400 --> 00:12:31,360 And starting from scratch again, building your business, building your 180 00:12:31,420 --> 00:12:33,580 setting up a website, doing your social media. 181 00:12:33,880 --> 00:12:37,380 I mean, you've been doing so much stuff, all of the steps are there, and later 182 00:12:37,380 --> 00:12:39,440 you'll start to reap the benefits of all that hard work. 183 00:12:40,280 --> 00:12:41,700 Louis was bang on. 184 00:12:42,170 --> 00:12:47,010 Louise did have to deduct her costs from her £600 worth of sales, but she'd 185 00:12:47,010 --> 00:12:52,250 spent time laying solid foundations and put herself in the perfect position to 186 00:12:52,250 --> 00:12:53,850 start earning money from her work. 187 00:12:56,490 --> 00:13:00,970 Two and a half years later, I've come to Oxfordshire to see how she's getting on 188 00:13:00,970 --> 00:13:02,710 and how much money she's making now. 189 00:13:02,930 --> 00:13:06,210 And by the looks of this new workshop, she's not doing badly. 190 00:13:07,530 --> 00:13:08,530 Hello? Hello. 191 00:13:08,970 --> 00:13:13,150 Louise, hello. How are you doing? I'm very good. How are you, importantly? 192 00:13:13,410 --> 00:13:16,190 I'm fine, thank you. Here, come in. Thank you. 193 00:13:17,610 --> 00:13:21,490 This huge space is the perfect setup for a messy craft. 194 00:13:21,770 --> 00:13:24,650 And as a maker myself, it's making me rather jealous. 195 00:13:25,050 --> 00:13:27,770 Wow. It's great, isn't it? What a brilliant space. 196 00:13:28,050 --> 00:13:30,050 Yeah. It's absolutely cracking. 197 00:13:30,310 --> 00:13:33,490 Last time you were at boot camp, you were just finishing your training. 198 00:13:33,970 --> 00:13:37,930 Clearly. A lot has changed in the last two years. Yeah, I was still at college, 199 00:13:38,050 --> 00:13:39,810 so I was working on pieces at college. 200 00:13:40,470 --> 00:13:44,430 I set up a workbench in my garden, which wasn't ideal. 201 00:13:44,810 --> 00:13:48,190 I was using a stable quite close to where I live. 202 00:13:48,570 --> 00:13:49,970 Again, that wasn't ideal. 203 00:13:50,870 --> 00:13:54,210 But then I got a very large commission. 204 00:13:54,570 --> 00:13:55,590 Oh, did you? 205 00:13:55,810 --> 00:14:00,220 Yes. It was a swan for a stately home. What an amazing project. 206 00:14:00,520 --> 00:14:04,420 800 kilos of Portland, so it was a huge block over a metre high. 207 00:14:04,620 --> 00:14:06,640 Wow. So I needed somewhere big enough. 208 00:14:06,860 --> 00:14:11,040 Yeah, you're never going to get an 800 kilo stone into your back garden. 209 00:14:11,320 --> 00:14:12,320 No, exactly. 210 00:14:12,540 --> 00:14:14,160 So what did you do? Just found this place. 211 00:14:14,400 --> 00:14:15,880 Yeah. That's the sort of thing I would do. 212 00:14:16,100 --> 00:14:19,900 Confirm the order for something that you have no space for and no idea where 213 00:14:19,900 --> 00:14:20,900 you're going to do it. 214 00:14:21,640 --> 00:14:25,220 Louise's swan commission was worth a fantastic £6 ,000. 215 00:14:26,030 --> 00:14:27,990 But it's not her only big sale. 216 00:14:28,810 --> 00:14:34,530 She's also sold Cyril the Owl for an incredible £1 ,800, more than double 217 00:14:34,530 --> 00:14:38,050 she was hoping to get for it when she brought it to my boot camp as her high 218 00:14:38,050 --> 00:14:39,050 -end piece. 219 00:14:39,150 --> 00:14:41,130 Come on then, Louise, let's get down to business. 220 00:14:41,590 --> 00:14:43,850 How has it been going for the last two years? 221 00:14:44,570 --> 00:14:45,670 It's been going great. 222 00:14:45,870 --> 00:14:47,710 Has it? Yeah, I mean, I'm full -time. 223 00:14:48,930 --> 00:14:50,110 Is that not incredible? 224 00:14:50,530 --> 00:14:52,210 It is, actually. It's really good. 225 00:14:52,610 --> 00:14:54,410 Yeah. I sell in galleries. 226 00:14:55,070 --> 00:15:00,750 I do a few summer events and obviously Christmassy ones and all sorts. OK. My 227 00:15:00,750 --> 00:15:06,390 chess band, I think I've got up to 27 commissions on those now. 27? 228 00:15:06,710 --> 00:15:07,970 Yeah. Yeah. 229 00:15:08,390 --> 00:15:13,230 The Lewis chess band that Louise made for her volume piece had material costs 230 00:15:13,230 --> 00:15:14,270 around £35. 231 00:15:14,850 --> 00:15:19,210 And with the added silver and gold detail on some, as Louise suggested... 232 00:15:19,500 --> 00:15:24,620 They now sell for between £425 and £475 each. 233 00:15:25,560 --> 00:15:30,140 Louise is doing brilliantly, but selling her stone carvings isn't the only 234 00:15:30,140 --> 00:15:31,140 string to her bow. 235 00:15:31,620 --> 00:15:35,560 I do courses as well, and the courses are going great. 236 00:15:35,950 --> 00:15:41,330 I'm in four locations in about five different counties, and I've now got to 237 00:15:41,330 --> 00:15:45,730 point where I'm offering advanced courses for the people who've already 238 00:15:45,730 --> 00:15:47,290 my courses, and they sell out. 239 00:15:47,510 --> 00:15:50,790 Congratulations. Is that not the biggest compliment, that somebody's been on a 240 00:15:50,790 --> 00:15:55,020 course... and wants to come back and learn more from you. It's so rewarding, 241 00:15:55,020 --> 00:15:58,840 really is. I've got to ask, it's not all stone in here, is it? No. 242 00:15:59,200 --> 00:16:01,220 I didn't know that you even painted. 243 00:16:01,480 --> 00:16:05,600 I've done eight commissions this year so far, which is astounding. 244 00:16:05,840 --> 00:16:12,320 That's really good. Yeah, ranging from about 350 for a small piece up to 750. 245 00:16:13,340 --> 00:16:14,720 That's various money. 246 00:16:15,020 --> 00:16:17,760 Yeah, it's great. And obviously I sell prints as well. 247 00:16:18,350 --> 00:16:20,550 My income is basically split in thirds. 248 00:16:20,770 --> 00:16:25,410 So it's a third stone commission, a third paintings and a third courses. 249 00:16:25,650 --> 00:16:26,830 What a perfect mix. 250 00:16:27,130 --> 00:16:28,130 Yeah, it is. 251 00:16:28,750 --> 00:16:34,670 Louise charges £195 for a two -day course. And as they now form such a big 252 00:16:34,670 --> 00:16:37,750 of her business, I'm going to take a taster class. 253 00:16:38,570 --> 00:16:41,350 We're going to carve a raised, curled -up fox. 254 00:16:41,810 --> 00:16:46,250 And after tracing the design onto offcuts from Louise's larger 255 00:16:46,570 --> 00:16:49,730 We use a scribe to mark out a clear line to chisel to. 256 00:16:50,930 --> 00:16:52,870 This puts a fire break in. 257 00:16:53,790 --> 00:16:58,110 So it's telling the stone that you don't want to chisel past these lines. 258 00:16:59,470 --> 00:17:01,030 It's because the stone listens to you. 259 00:17:01,350 --> 00:17:04,069 Yeah, you know. I can tell it all I want. 260 00:17:06,050 --> 00:17:07,290 How hard am I pushing? 261 00:17:07,910 --> 00:17:09,270 Very hard, actually. 262 00:17:09,490 --> 00:17:12,869 With the outline of the design marked up... 263 00:17:13,069 --> 00:17:18,369 Our next job is to scribe a one centimetre line around the edge of the 264 00:17:18,369 --> 00:17:20,650 we can see how deep to take the background. 265 00:17:21,230 --> 00:17:22,710 Right, time for the PPE. 266 00:17:23,150 --> 00:17:24,510 It's getting serious now, isn't it? Mm -hmm. 267 00:17:25,089 --> 00:17:29,930 Now we'll chisel a channel around the outside edge of the design to create a 268 00:17:29,930 --> 00:17:31,030 weakness in the stone. 269 00:17:31,250 --> 00:17:32,250 Start off in the chisel. 270 00:17:35,470 --> 00:17:36,470 45 degrees. 271 00:17:36,830 --> 00:17:39,270 45 degrees. On the line or outside the line? 272 00:17:39,510 --> 00:17:40,510 Just a little bit outside. 273 00:17:41,930 --> 00:17:42,889 How's that? 274 00:17:42,890 --> 00:17:43,509 Mm -hmm. 275 00:17:43,510 --> 00:17:44,510 Okay. 276 00:17:45,430 --> 00:17:46,430 Okay. 277 00:17:48,410 --> 00:17:51,030 Take a little bit more so the pencil line doesn't disappear. 278 00:17:51,610 --> 00:17:53,970 Okay. You've got a nice sharp edge there. 279 00:18:01,610 --> 00:18:03,490 It all seems hard to be touched down. 280 00:18:03,710 --> 00:18:04,710 It's so hard. 281 00:18:05,350 --> 00:18:06,670 You have to touch it. I know. 282 00:18:08,880 --> 00:18:14,480 The next stage is to chisel inwards from our 1cm depth line, and the weakness 283 00:18:14,480 --> 00:18:18,920 created by the channel causes the stone around the outside of the design to 284 00:18:18,920 --> 00:18:22,880 break away, creating a dropped background and a raised fox. 285 00:18:23,760 --> 00:18:25,700 We might want to stand up to this, actually. 286 00:18:30,020 --> 00:18:31,020 OK, 287 00:18:31,560 --> 00:18:34,860 I'll have to chisel up to that line, this side line, OK? 288 00:18:35,160 --> 00:18:36,460 And give it a tap. 289 00:18:37,580 --> 00:18:38,720 Oh, my word. 290 00:18:39,620 --> 00:18:40,620 I'm sorry. 291 00:18:44,840 --> 00:18:45,579 Don't worry. 292 00:18:45,580 --> 00:18:49,580 I will just chisel this bit out here. 293 00:18:50,020 --> 00:18:51,100 Just a little bit. 294 00:18:52,160 --> 00:18:52,939 That's it. 295 00:18:52,940 --> 00:18:56,820 My chisel -happy hands might have let me down, but with a little help from 296 00:18:56,820 --> 00:18:58,680 Louise, my fox is rescued. 297 00:18:59,480 --> 00:19:04,020 As she's condensing a two -day course into a few hours for me, though, she's 298 00:19:04,020 --> 00:19:05,680 prepared one a little further along. 299 00:19:06,140 --> 00:19:09,420 so that I can chisel on the details to the fox's face and body. 300 00:19:09,880 --> 00:19:11,220 Where is it going to come to life? 301 00:19:11,500 --> 00:19:14,780 Yeah, hand it back in the corner of the eye. Yeah. 302 00:19:15,240 --> 00:19:16,240 And chisel in. 303 00:19:16,480 --> 00:19:21,660 This has to be very, very, very shallow. Deeper there. A little bit deeper here. 304 00:19:21,900 --> 00:19:23,700 And it's only a very shallow chisel. 305 00:19:24,180 --> 00:19:25,820 You know what, you're a very good teacher. 306 00:19:26,060 --> 00:19:29,160 Thank you. You're very calm. Thank you. You give me a lot of confidence. 307 00:19:32,760 --> 00:19:34,700 Under Louise's watchful eye. 308 00:19:36,520 --> 00:19:39,040 We carve the details into our boxes. 309 00:19:45,000 --> 00:19:45,999 How's that? 310 00:19:46,000 --> 00:19:47,000 Brilliant. 311 00:19:47,360 --> 00:19:48,360 Right, 312 00:19:48,640 --> 00:19:50,360 guys, I think that's about it for today. 313 00:19:51,360 --> 00:19:55,700 So we've got on really well. Some really lovely stuff going on here. That's been 314 00:19:55,700 --> 00:19:56,700 really good fun. 315 00:19:57,000 --> 00:19:58,240 Thank you. Really good. 316 00:19:58,680 --> 00:19:59,960 I'm quite chuffed, actually. 317 00:20:00,220 --> 00:20:01,680 It's really good. It's lovely. 318 00:20:02,830 --> 00:20:07,470 I'm thrilled with my fox, and after a little sanding, it will take pride of 319 00:20:07,470 --> 00:20:08,490 place in my workshop. 320 00:20:09,790 --> 00:20:14,830 Louise promotes these fantastic courses on social media, using reels like we 321 00:20:14,830 --> 00:20:16,310 asked her to do at the boot camp. 322 00:20:16,810 --> 00:20:21,490 And I'm keen to find out if any of the other advice we gave her has been useful 323 00:20:21,490 --> 00:20:22,750 in building her business. 324 00:20:24,050 --> 00:20:28,610 When you left my boot camp, we did send you off with an action plan, some key 325 00:20:28,610 --> 00:20:30,950 pointers to try and help you build it into a business. 326 00:20:31,350 --> 00:20:34,890 One of the pointers was to introduce more gold to your work. How have you 327 00:20:34,890 --> 00:20:39,030 that? Just adding a little bit is great. I mean, lettering, for example. 328 00:20:39,310 --> 00:20:40,490 Perfect. Yeah, exactly. 329 00:20:40,990 --> 00:20:43,930 Something else that we were really keen for you to work on was your website, 330 00:20:44,050 --> 00:20:45,950 which I know is not easy. 331 00:20:46,270 --> 00:20:50,090 It's up and running. It's been up and running for, well, over two years now. 332 00:20:50,090 --> 00:20:54,550 I add to it as well. So if I've got like a new project or I think I've got to 333 00:20:54,550 --> 00:20:59,230 promote something, I will then add another page to it. So it's all ever 334 00:20:59,770 --> 00:21:01,710 I can't even manage that. 335 00:21:01,910 --> 00:21:03,090 You're doing better than me. 336 00:21:04,210 --> 00:21:09,710 Louise has really taken all of our advice and run with it. She's 337 00:21:09,710 --> 00:21:13,990 business and two and a half years after I first met her, I can't wait to hear 338 00:21:13,990 --> 00:21:16,470 just how well she's doing in her new career. 339 00:21:16,830 --> 00:21:21,630 I know you're having great fun carving and sculpting, but how much money are 340 00:21:21,630 --> 00:21:25,590 making? Last financial year, my income was £21 ,000. 341 00:21:26,410 --> 00:21:29,750 From this. The courses, commissions, and the art. 342 00:21:30,150 --> 00:21:35,930 And I'm on track to do about the same this year, if not a bit more. What an 343 00:21:35,930 --> 00:21:38,310 achievement. You can kind of say I'm living the dream. 344 00:21:38,570 --> 00:21:40,130 I think that's fair to say. 345 00:21:40,450 --> 00:21:42,330 Sure, I think that's fair to say. 346 00:21:43,610 --> 00:21:46,870 Importantly, you're living your dream. This is now your reality. 347 00:21:47,650 --> 00:21:50,810 Giving up her full -time income was a brave decision. 348 00:21:51,370 --> 00:21:57,110 But as Louise is now taking home £21 ,000 a year off the cost, it was 349 00:21:57,110 --> 00:21:58,110 the right one. 350 00:21:58,810 --> 00:22:05,530 You shouldn't be driven by money, but when what your own hands create, make 351 00:22:05,530 --> 00:22:06,770 sure that the bills are paid. 352 00:22:07,710 --> 00:22:09,650 It's actually quite an important thing. 353 00:22:10,570 --> 00:22:14,630 I'm making an income out of something that I am absolutely passionate about. 354 00:22:15,190 --> 00:22:16,670 So, yeah, win -win. 355 00:22:22,480 --> 00:22:26,740 The second maker we're going to catch up with today is wild swimmer and stained 356 00:22:26,740 --> 00:22:31,640 glass artist Charlotte from Bristol, who also came to my boot camp two and a 357 00:22:31,640 --> 00:22:32,640 half years ago. 358 00:22:32,740 --> 00:22:37,360 I swim in anything, as long as the water's clean. 359 00:22:37,960 --> 00:22:41,800 I swim in the sea, I swim in rivers, I swim throughout the winter. 360 00:22:42,080 --> 00:22:43,320 Colder the better, actually. 361 00:22:43,520 --> 00:22:46,280 Any band of water, I'm there. 362 00:22:46,910 --> 00:22:51,430 Like Louise, Charlotte had also left her job and was trying to make a living 363 00:22:51,430 --> 00:22:53,970 from her swimming -inspired stained glass art. 364 00:22:54,310 --> 00:22:59,670 I was working part -time in events and making pieces and then they built up and 365 00:22:59,670 --> 00:23:03,670 I thought, I'm going to actually have to get rid of some now. So I started 366 00:23:03,670 --> 00:23:06,130 selling them to my swimming friends and then... 367 00:23:06,650 --> 00:23:11,290 I had to take the plunge of going full -time. Take the plunge, I like it. Yeah, 368 00:23:11,290 --> 00:23:12,290 yeah. 369 00:23:13,370 --> 00:23:17,070 Financially, it has to work because I have to pay my way in the house. 370 00:23:17,430 --> 00:23:20,710 You've got your kiln, you've given up the job. Yeah. We'll do everything we 371 00:23:20,850 --> 00:23:21,850 I'm very excited. 372 00:23:23,170 --> 00:23:27,090 To work out the best way of getting some much -needed sales rolling in, 373 00:23:27,190 --> 00:23:29,530 Charlotte faced my three making challenges. 374 00:23:30,730 --> 00:23:35,510 For her volume piece, she decided to make a stained -glass 10 -inch Lido 375 00:23:35,980 --> 00:23:41,260 which she hoped to sell for £55, complete with a three -piece bathing 376 00:23:41,260 --> 00:23:42,260 hook for hanging. 377 00:23:43,480 --> 00:23:46,360 She started by tracing out her lady's limbs. 378 00:23:46,920 --> 00:23:51,800 Her fingertip doesn't quite fit on, but who cares? Some people have small arms. 379 00:23:58,140 --> 00:24:02,040 One of the things about glass is that I've just made a very simple score line 380 00:24:02,040 --> 00:24:04,620 and then you literally just do it. 381 00:24:05,200 --> 00:24:06,200 Like that. 382 00:24:06,440 --> 00:24:08,460 And that's very, very satisfying. 383 00:24:12,440 --> 00:24:17,280 I'm just following the marking that I've done, and then it just snaps. 384 00:24:17,700 --> 00:24:22,340 This is my first cut, and then later on I'll just go to the grinder and I'll 385 00:24:22,340 --> 00:24:24,520 decide what sort of shape I want the leg to be. 386 00:24:25,540 --> 00:24:30,220 Once the limbs were cut, Charlotte chose the coloured glass for the swimsuit and 387 00:24:30,220 --> 00:24:31,580 traced it out before cutting. 388 00:24:32,460 --> 00:24:36,760 Any sort of curve in glass is trickier than a straight line obviously. 389 00:24:37,060 --> 00:24:43,080 I have to cut into here as close as I can and then you just sort of nibble it 390 00:24:43,080 --> 00:24:50,040 away with the pliers like that. This bit will be finished off on the 391 00:24:50,040 --> 00:24:52,700 grinder and then I'll have a nice clean armpit. 392 00:24:54,040 --> 00:24:58,100 You can do this quite roughly and then sort of nibble. 393 00:25:01,260 --> 00:25:02,540 nibble little bits away. 394 00:25:03,060 --> 00:25:07,500 I can already see that the face that I've cut out here isn't going to fit 395 00:25:07,500 --> 00:25:12,320 hat. When I come to grind it, that's when I can really get in tight and make 396 00:25:12,320 --> 00:25:13,700 them fit snugly together. 397 00:25:15,020 --> 00:25:19,460 Having been brave enough to quit her job working in a vet and invest time and 398 00:25:19,460 --> 00:25:23,780 money into her stained glass business, Charlotte needed it to grow to support 399 00:25:23,780 --> 00:25:25,080 her and her family. 400 00:25:26,840 --> 00:25:30,500 To help it do just that, I teamed her up with Derek Hunt. 401 00:25:32,040 --> 00:25:36,600 Derek's been successfully designing and making glass artworks for public spaces, 402 00:25:36,800 --> 00:25:39,840 private homes and churches for over 40 years. 403 00:25:41,200 --> 00:25:44,520 Some clever cutting going on here. Where do you sell this kind of work? 404 00:25:44,800 --> 00:25:50,960 Mainly online, social media, and then I also sell occasionally at do markets. So 405 00:25:50,960 --> 00:25:52,280 I've got quite a big... 406 00:25:52,730 --> 00:25:57,350 travelling trunk that I take and I open it up and it's like, here are my ladies. 407 00:25:58,090 --> 00:25:59,090 Wonderful. 408 00:25:59,730 --> 00:26:03,950 You are a swimmer also, yeah? I'm also a swimmer. I also do synchronised 409 00:26:03,950 --> 00:26:07,750 swimming. This is great. I mean, I think that we can develop this theme into a 410 00:26:07,750 --> 00:26:08,750 collection. 411 00:26:09,730 --> 00:26:14,010 Whilst Charlotte pressed on with her Lido lady, I caught up with Derek to 412 00:26:14,010 --> 00:26:15,530 discuss her second challenge. 413 00:26:16,690 --> 00:26:20,650 For her high -end piece, Charlotte took inspiration from her love of 414 00:26:20,650 --> 00:26:21,650 synchronised swimming. 415 00:26:22,140 --> 00:26:25,240 to create a stunning piece of circular glass art. 416 00:26:26,040 --> 00:26:30,060 Designed to be hung from a window, she painted the glass with her Lido ladies 417 00:26:30,060 --> 00:26:31,720 forming a symmetrical pattern. 418 00:26:32,520 --> 00:26:37,580 With a make time of 40 hours, she gave it a price tag of £450. 419 00:26:38,969 --> 00:26:42,870 There's a lot of detail in there, a lot of very delicate painted work called 420 00:26:42,870 --> 00:26:46,950 scraffito, which is basically scratching out the paint. It was really, really 421 00:26:46,950 --> 00:26:51,110 nice to see. It's very unusual because it's a sort of freestanding piece that's 422 00:26:51,110 --> 00:26:55,390 hung in a window, and she can develop it further with lots of different costumes 423 00:26:55,390 --> 00:26:56,630 and lots of different colours. 424 00:26:56,970 --> 00:27:00,730 Charlotte's hoping to get £450 for that. Do you think it's worth it? There's 425 00:27:00,730 --> 00:27:03,750 quite a lot of work in it, and I think that's a fair price, yeah. And what's 426 00:27:03,750 --> 00:27:07,810 really exciting as well is that she's just recently invested in a kiln, so now 427 00:27:07,810 --> 00:27:09,390 that she can do... painting on glass. 428 00:27:09,650 --> 00:27:11,730 That's something that I really think I can help her with. 429 00:27:13,510 --> 00:27:17,910 Back at the glass station, Charlotte ground the individual parts of her Lido 430 00:27:17,910 --> 00:27:20,110 lady to smooth and add muscle tone. 431 00:27:20,890 --> 00:27:22,870 Checking they fit together as she went. 432 00:27:24,310 --> 00:27:28,150 Now the joints are all nice and flush. They're sitting nicely together, so I'm 433 00:27:28,150 --> 00:27:28,989 happy with that. 434 00:27:28,990 --> 00:27:33,570 I'm going to go around each individual piece, and I use copper foil, which is a 435 00:27:33,570 --> 00:27:34,570 sticky back tape. 436 00:27:35,200 --> 00:27:38,200 and centre the foil so that there's an overlap each side. 437 00:27:38,660 --> 00:27:43,580 It just needs to overlap a little bit so that all the joints can fit together 438 00:27:43,580 --> 00:27:46,880 nicely and you get a nice clean line around the border. 439 00:27:48,160 --> 00:27:52,540 Charlotte's next job was soldering the pieces together, taping the joints on 440 00:27:52,540 --> 00:27:54,540 side whilst she worked on the other. 441 00:27:54,980 --> 00:27:58,340 I'm going to tack solder it on each of the joints. 442 00:27:58,910 --> 00:28:03,530 flip it over take the masking tape off and then i can solder the whole piece 443 00:28:03,530 --> 00:28:06,690 make nice fluid solder lines to keep it all in place 444 00:28:06,690 --> 00:28:14,230 once 445 00:28:14,230 --> 00:28:19,450 she finished soldering okay so she's done i'm happy with her charlotte 446 00:28:19,450 --> 00:28:24,330 and polished up her figure before adding the finishing touches i'm applying the 447 00:28:24,330 --> 00:28:27,330 black patina which is a dye that will dye the solder 448 00:28:28,160 --> 00:28:31,240 Once she's done, I can attach a hook and then she'll be finished. 449 00:28:35,700 --> 00:28:40,560 With material costs of around £12 and a make time of just under an hour, 450 00:28:40,760 --> 00:28:45,120 Charlotte's fabulous Lido lady carried a price tag of £55. 451 00:28:46,620 --> 00:28:49,020 Charlotte, I feel like we're taking a trip back to the 1920s. 452 00:28:49,240 --> 00:28:50,940 You lied, old lady. It's brilliant. 453 00:28:51,360 --> 00:28:52,660 Thank you. Thanks very much. 454 00:28:52,900 --> 00:28:53,799 Derek, what are your thoughts? 455 00:28:53,800 --> 00:28:57,240 What is exciting about this is how we can develop it. I know you do 456 00:28:57,240 --> 00:28:59,200 swimming and you can actually perhaps... 457 00:28:59,770 --> 00:29:04,210 Include that. You can also do multiple figures together. You can have a series 458 00:29:04,210 --> 00:29:08,670 of collectible swimmers, themed Victorian swimmers, contemporary 459 00:29:08,790 --> 00:29:09,790 different costumes. 460 00:29:10,310 --> 00:29:11,990 Men. Yeah, exactly. 461 00:29:12,250 --> 00:29:13,149 That's true. 462 00:29:13,150 --> 00:29:16,890 It's a bit more tricky with a man because there's not so many curves and 463 00:29:16,890 --> 00:29:19,790 not quite as attractive. It's a bit more lumpy. Yeah. 464 00:29:21,590 --> 00:29:25,350 Derek thought Charlotte's first two pieces had lots of potential for 465 00:29:25,350 --> 00:29:26,350 development. 466 00:29:26,410 --> 00:29:31,190 For her third task, we wanted to see if her favourite piece, the item she 467 00:29:31,190 --> 00:29:35,010 cherished making most, could also be a big hit with customers. 468 00:29:35,530 --> 00:29:37,710 She chose to make a memory window. 469 00:29:38,310 --> 00:29:43,030 Framed in an arch, it brought together her Lido Lady style with a twist of 470 00:29:43,030 --> 00:29:46,630 personalised pressed foliage, bespoke to each client. 471 00:29:48,390 --> 00:29:51,050 This photo here is a friend of mine. 472 00:29:51,600 --> 00:29:56,540 and this moment is her walking down into the water and just pausing, and she 473 00:29:56,540 --> 00:30:00,160 almost parted the willow tree to get into the water, and then she was off. 474 00:30:01,080 --> 00:30:04,860 After tracing out the template for each of the glass pieces for her memory 475 00:30:04,860 --> 00:30:07,660 window, Charlotte moved on to choosing the foliage. 476 00:30:08,100 --> 00:30:12,860 Today I'll be using some heather, and there's some grasses here. I really want 477 00:30:12,860 --> 00:30:15,880 to create the drapery of the willow tree. 478 00:30:16,680 --> 00:30:19,860 By personalising the piece to an individual customer. 479 00:30:20,380 --> 00:30:23,000 Charlotte created something special and unique. 480 00:30:23,660 --> 00:30:26,660 But Derek wanted to talk to her about its price. 481 00:30:27,380 --> 00:30:30,880 How do we price it? I really struggle with pricing. 482 00:30:31,160 --> 00:30:36,940 Pricing is that kind of dark art and you've got to get it right. You have to 483 00:30:36,940 --> 00:30:39,940 through how long it's taken to make and the material cost. 484 00:30:40,200 --> 00:30:45,520 Everything above that is the perceived value of it and you have to decide what 485 00:30:45,520 --> 00:30:48,120 that value is over and above the cost. 486 00:30:50,380 --> 00:30:55,400 To finish her memory window, Charlotte positioned foliage between two pieces of 487 00:30:55,400 --> 00:30:56,400 glass. 488 00:30:57,940 --> 00:31:00,400 I think I'm happy with that fitting. 489 00:31:01,140 --> 00:31:03,280 Smoothed off the rough edges with her grinder. 490 00:31:06,520 --> 00:31:10,960 Gave it a quick polish and added copper foil around the edges to secure 491 00:31:10,960 --> 00:31:12,160 everything in place. 492 00:31:12,560 --> 00:31:17,680 I'm going to put the foil tape all the way around the outside and then I can go 493 00:31:17,680 --> 00:31:18,740 ahead and solder it. 494 00:31:22,200 --> 00:31:25,420 Charlotte's memory window was a remarkable piece of work. 495 00:31:26,220 --> 00:31:31,120 It had a make time of two days, plus pressing and prep time, along with a 496 00:31:31,120 --> 00:31:35,340 tag of £250, and got another thumbs up from Derek. 497 00:31:35,800 --> 00:31:36,679 That's fantastic. 498 00:31:36,680 --> 00:31:40,780 I love it because it's a combination of Delido ladies and also this memory 499 00:31:40,780 --> 00:31:43,540 panel. So there's two ideas in one. It's a great piece. 500 00:31:43,800 --> 00:31:44,519 Thank you. 501 00:31:44,520 --> 00:31:46,420 What do you think? The price is £250. 502 00:31:46,960 --> 00:31:51,100 Yeah, I think that's about right. I think keeping it under £300 is great. I 503 00:31:51,100 --> 00:31:53,260 think you're pitching it just about right. Okay, great. 504 00:31:55,120 --> 00:31:59,440 After being brave enough to quit her job, Charlotte needed to make her 505 00:31:59,440 --> 00:32:04,240 work. And as she headed home to Bristol, we gave her an action plan to help her 506 00:32:04,240 --> 00:32:05,240 do just that. 507 00:32:05,960 --> 00:32:10,480 First, she needed to develop her Lido Ladies into a collection with different 508 00:32:10,480 --> 00:32:13,280 swimmers, themes, groups, and men. 509 00:32:13,940 --> 00:32:17,920 Next, Derek wanted Charlotte to improve her glass painting skills. 510 00:32:18,360 --> 00:32:23,540 Finally, she needed to know her worth and up her pricing, calculating her 511 00:32:23,540 --> 00:32:25,700 costs and adding perceived value. 512 00:32:28,320 --> 00:32:33,200 With two more months of Derek's guidance, Charlotte set to work on her 513 00:32:33,200 --> 00:32:34,200 building advice. 514 00:32:34,480 --> 00:32:38,860 starting with exploring painting on glass at his studio in Leicestershire. 515 00:32:39,400 --> 00:32:42,000 We've been playing with different coloured paints. 516 00:32:42,480 --> 00:32:45,940 This is a green and this is a sort of orangey -brown colour. 517 00:32:46,740 --> 00:32:51,300 Usually I've just been playing with the black, so it's really nice to get the 518 00:32:51,300 --> 00:32:52,300 different tones. 519 00:32:52,500 --> 00:32:55,540 This colour combination is lovely. Yeah, yeah, it is, you're right, yeah. 520 00:32:55,800 --> 00:32:58,380 They also worked on her Lido Lady collection. 521 00:32:59,800 --> 00:33:03,860 almost refined the collection which was the one of the most important things for 522 00:33:03,860 --> 00:33:10,640 me to do um and also getting confidence in my painting which i 523 00:33:10,640 --> 00:33:14,140 feel like that's coming along as well so i feel like everything's going in the 524 00:33:14,140 --> 00:33:15,140 right direction 525 00:33:15,840 --> 00:33:20,480 For two months, Charlotte worked hard to move her business forward. And when she 526 00:33:20,480 --> 00:33:24,840 came back to my boot camp to update us on her progress, she had brilliant news. 527 00:33:25,280 --> 00:33:29,460 I've made £2 ,730. 528 00:33:30,580 --> 00:33:31,740 Whoa, amazing. 529 00:33:32,140 --> 00:33:33,300 £2 ,700. 530 00:33:33,620 --> 00:33:35,160 I feel really proud of myself. 531 00:33:35,480 --> 00:33:37,940 Yeah, it's wonderful. I think you should be proud. You really should because 532 00:33:37,940 --> 00:33:40,160 you've achieved so much and your work is beautiful. 533 00:33:41,720 --> 00:33:45,960 Charlotte had to take off her costs from her fabulous sales figure that she'd 534 00:33:45,960 --> 00:33:49,080 made a brilliant start to building a successful business. 535 00:33:52,580 --> 00:33:57,140 Two and a half years after she came to my boot camp, Derek has travelled to 536 00:33:57,140 --> 00:34:01,420 Bristol to find out how she's grown her business since then and how much money 537 00:34:01,420 --> 00:34:02,420 she's making now. 538 00:34:06,060 --> 00:34:06,679 Hi, Derek. 539 00:34:06,680 --> 00:34:09,739 Hi. Lovely to see you. Great to see you too. 540 00:34:10,000 --> 00:34:10,759 Come in. 541 00:34:10,760 --> 00:34:11,760 Fantastic. 542 00:34:12,880 --> 00:34:16,679 Charlotte runs her business from what used to be the dining room in her house. 543 00:34:17,300 --> 00:34:22,639 It's a brilliant workspace Derek has seen on a previous visit, but a lot has 544 00:34:22,639 --> 00:34:23,639 happened since then. 545 00:34:24,500 --> 00:34:26,139 Okay, here we are again. 546 00:34:26,480 --> 00:34:27,500 Wow, fantastic. 547 00:34:27,800 --> 00:34:28,800 It's great to see you again. 548 00:34:28,940 --> 00:34:34,260 Yes, thank you, yeah. I think it's very similar to when you did visit, possibly 549 00:34:34,260 --> 00:34:35,280 a bit tidier. 550 00:34:35,929 --> 00:34:40,750 had a bit of a thought out yeah yeah so i it's very organized now i know where 551 00:34:40,750 --> 00:34:44,650 everything is yeah looking great how's business how's things going for you it's 552 00:34:44,650 --> 00:34:49,409 great really good yeah yeah i'm releasing the lido collection three or 553 00:34:49,409 --> 00:34:55,570 times a year and then i do a couple commissions a month and i get website 554 00:34:55,570 --> 00:35:02,490 as well of the plain lido pieces i've also started experimenting with a 555 00:35:02,490 --> 00:35:09,290 process called fossil vitra i was Initially encasing pressed foliage that 556 00:35:09,290 --> 00:35:13,030 I'd collected or people had sent me in between two sheets of glass. 557 00:35:13,310 --> 00:35:17,950 The problem there was that it could potentially disintegrate over time. 558 00:35:18,170 --> 00:35:24,950 What I've discovered and researched is that I can essentially make a 559 00:35:24,950 --> 00:35:27,290 fossil of the foliage. 560 00:35:27,590 --> 00:35:33,410 So people will send me foliage from where they swim. I'll press them. 561 00:35:33,880 --> 00:35:39,460 I cover them in powdered glass and then I put glass on the top and then fuse 562 00:35:39,460 --> 00:35:45,020 them in the kiln. And that essentially creates a fossil of the piece, which is 563 00:35:45,020 --> 00:35:46,019 there forever. 564 00:35:46,020 --> 00:35:47,020 It's fantastic. 565 00:35:47,220 --> 00:35:50,660 They're kind of almost like heirlooms, family heirlooms, that can be passed 566 00:35:50,660 --> 00:35:54,660 because they've got a legacy to them. Which pieces have been your bestsellers? 567 00:35:55,200 --> 00:35:58,840 The Lido collection is definitely the bestsellers. 568 00:35:59,060 --> 00:36:06,060 And then from the figures from the Lido collection, I then have made some of 569 00:36:06,060 --> 00:36:08,260 them into what I call Lido loops. 570 00:36:08,960 --> 00:36:11,560 They're essentially glass drawings. 571 00:36:11,900 --> 00:36:16,340 There's quite a lot of negative space in them to keep them affordable for people 572 00:36:16,340 --> 00:36:18,040 and affordable for me. 573 00:36:19,120 --> 00:36:25,040 Charlotte's sold around 400 Lido ladies since the boot camp, which then were £55 574 00:36:25,040 --> 00:36:28,280 and are now priced between £75 and £95. 575 00:36:29,440 --> 00:36:34,300 It's great she's also incorporating them into her new pieces like her Lido 576 00:36:34,300 --> 00:36:40,020 loops. These are priced at £175 and she's going to show Derek how they're 577 00:36:40,540 --> 00:36:45,580 I've got my design here and I'm going to lay it down on the light box so that I 578 00:36:45,580 --> 00:36:52,060 can see the image through the selection of glass that I've chosen and I trace 579 00:36:52,060 --> 00:36:53,060 over. 580 00:36:53,670 --> 00:37:00,570 and try and make it as compact as I can on the glass so that I don't waste 581 00:37:00,570 --> 00:37:01,570 any. 582 00:37:02,150 --> 00:37:07,350 After Charlotte's traced around her bathing bell design, she cuts the pieces 583 00:37:07,350 --> 00:37:12,130 out, then grinds the edges to shape and smooth them. 584 00:37:12,850 --> 00:37:17,190 I like the grinding bit because it's the bit that actually makes them all fit 585 00:37:17,190 --> 00:37:18,790 together, so it's quite satisfying. 586 00:37:19,610 --> 00:37:21,150 And I like doing the profiles. 587 00:37:21,370 --> 00:37:25,930 I like them to have a nice, clean, serene profile, I think. 588 00:37:26,530 --> 00:37:30,970 This one needs a little bit more taking off here because I think it looks like 589 00:37:30,970 --> 00:37:34,350 she's got a double chin. But don't we all? 590 00:37:36,250 --> 00:37:40,510 To add personality and colour to the piece, Charlotte is going to paint the 591 00:37:40,510 --> 00:37:42,090 face, hat and strap. 592 00:37:42,350 --> 00:37:46,490 I'm going to mix my paint up. So this is a ground. 593 00:37:47,380 --> 00:37:52,740 glass basically so you've got to be really careful not to ingest it and then 594 00:37:52,740 --> 00:37:59,320 add a tiny little bit of gum arabic to that which will help the paint stick 595 00:37:59,320 --> 00:38:05,860 to the the glass itself looking good how's your painting technique 596 00:38:05,860 --> 00:38:11,100 changed over the last couple of years uh yeah it's definitely got a lot more 597 00:38:11,100 --> 00:38:15,280 sort of experimental and are you experimenting with different types of 598 00:38:15,280 --> 00:38:16,280 well 599 00:38:16,790 --> 00:38:23,310 enamels transparent enamels and opaque and um different stains and i'm also 600 00:38:23,310 --> 00:38:30,270 i started making my own paints as well like i use a red powdered oxide 601 00:38:30,270 --> 00:38:37,030 and i mix it with ground fruit like ground glass this is fantastic yeah 602 00:38:37,030 --> 00:38:41,110 are not many glasses that are actually making their own paint it's pretty cool 603 00:38:41,110 --> 00:38:45,010 now we just need to let this dry for a few minutes 604 00:38:45,880 --> 00:38:48,680 until it forms a nice layer. 605 00:38:49,380 --> 00:38:54,780 Once dry, Charlotte adds the final details and pops the pieces into the 606 00:38:55,500 --> 00:38:59,020 As they need an hour and a half in there for the paint to stick to the glass, 607 00:38:59,260 --> 00:39:03,460 she's prepped a second set to be able to show Derek a finished Lido loop. 608 00:39:04,460 --> 00:39:11,240 Next stage is to foil each piece. So this is a copper foil tape and the 609 00:39:11,240 --> 00:39:14,160 foil overlaps each side. 610 00:39:14,910 --> 00:39:17,330 and gives the little border around each piece. 611 00:39:17,770 --> 00:39:22,390 Flux is painted onto the joint to help the solder stick to the foil. Then 612 00:39:22,390 --> 00:39:24,350 Charlotte solders everything together. 613 00:39:24,670 --> 00:39:30,390 OK, she's done, and then the last bit is just to put on the lead cane, which is 614 00:39:30,390 --> 00:39:34,270 the border that will go around the edge, and it makes it look a bit cleaner. 615 00:39:35,370 --> 00:39:41,110 The £175 bathing bell Lido loop takes around two hours to make. 616 00:39:41,330 --> 00:39:42,109 That's brilliant. 617 00:39:42,110 --> 00:39:43,110 I love that. 618 00:39:43,360 --> 00:39:47,340 It's great to see how Charlotte has expanded her portfolio of pieces. 619 00:39:47,760 --> 00:39:51,360 I'm also delighted that she's refined her glass painting skills. 620 00:39:51,680 --> 00:39:56,140 But have any of the other pointers we gave her at the boot camp helped to 621 00:39:56,140 --> 00:39:58,340 her business over the past two and a half years? 622 00:39:58,920 --> 00:40:03,940 Charlotte, when you were at the boot camp, we gave you a business plan to 623 00:40:03,940 --> 00:40:06,760 develop your themes with the Lido men and Lido ladies. 624 00:40:07,060 --> 00:40:08,520 Have you developed that further? 625 00:40:08,890 --> 00:40:14,370 Yes, so I developed the collection at boot camp and that was five ladies and 626 00:40:14,370 --> 00:40:15,189 two men. 627 00:40:15,190 --> 00:40:19,710 And then since then I have added another couple of figures. 628 00:40:19,990 --> 00:40:25,610 As my skills have developed, they're becoming a lot more of a sort of luxury 629 00:40:25,610 --> 00:40:28,130 item and a lot more intricate, I think. 630 00:40:28,370 --> 00:40:32,310 Something we also wanted to get you to work on was knowing your own value and 631 00:40:32,310 --> 00:40:35,950 getting your prices worked out. Have those prices evolved over time? 632 00:40:36,280 --> 00:40:42,260 Yeah, I definitely think that I know my worth now and I fixed my prices so they 633 00:40:42,260 --> 00:40:48,760 went up. I also feel that maybe they might need another tweak again. 634 00:40:49,960 --> 00:40:55,740 And I think that's only natural because everybody in other professions have pay 635 00:40:55,740 --> 00:41:00,440 increases and I think it's important for me to do that as well. As my skills 636 00:41:00,440 --> 00:41:02,700 develop, I should get a pay rise. 637 00:41:04,020 --> 00:41:05,660 Charlotte's absolutely right. 638 00:41:06,110 --> 00:41:10,770 As well as increasing the price of her Lido Ladies, she also upped the price of 639 00:41:10,770 --> 00:41:14,050 the synchronised swimmer's piece she made for her high -end challenge. 640 00:41:14,610 --> 00:41:20,310 She originally wanted £450 for it, but then sold it at an international art 641 00:41:20,310 --> 00:41:22,950 exhibition for a staggering £1 ,800. 642 00:41:23,630 --> 00:41:27,690 With figures like that, I'm looking forward to hearing what it's meant for 643 00:41:27,690 --> 00:41:28,690 finances. 644 00:41:29,170 --> 00:41:33,450 Charlotte, you came to the boot camp to really kind of develop your business and 645 00:41:33,450 --> 00:41:34,890 to get it off the ground. 646 00:41:35,520 --> 00:41:38,580 The important part, obviously, is, is it working as a business? 647 00:41:39,220 --> 00:41:46,180 So working a lot more, but I'm definitely enjoying it a lot more. 648 00:41:46,520 --> 00:41:51,280 I'm making more money, roughly sort of 24, 25 grand. 649 00:41:51,980 --> 00:41:56,400 It's been amazing and really inspiring for my kids to see as well that it's 650 00:41:56,400 --> 00:41:59,420 possible to make. 651 00:42:00,430 --> 00:42:04,870 A living from doing what you love. Like, everyone wants that, don't they? Yeah, 652 00:42:04,950 --> 00:42:07,970 absolutely. Oh, I love it. I wouldn't change it for the world. 653 00:42:08,970 --> 00:42:14,250 After taking off her costs, Charlotte has made a profit of £18 ,000 over the 654 00:42:14,250 --> 00:42:15,250 past 12 months. 655 00:42:15,670 --> 00:42:20,370 Having only left my boot camp two and a half years ago, it's a fantastic effort 656 00:42:20,370 --> 00:42:25,310 in such a short space of time. Years and years ago when I said I wanted to be an 657 00:42:25,310 --> 00:42:29,650 artist, this is now. I feel like I'm sort of living that dream. 658 00:42:30,370 --> 00:42:34,930 And now I've got the next dream to kind of think about. 659 00:42:37,730 --> 00:42:41,630 And that's really exciting. 660 00:42:49,200 --> 00:42:50,680 Inspired by I Made It at Market? 661 00:42:51,000 --> 00:42:55,420 Go behind the scenes with the Open University to discover bonus interviews 662 00:42:55,420 --> 00:42:59,760 exploring new insights into how makers have sustained and grown their 663 00:42:59,760 --> 00:43:06,440 businesses. Scan the QR code on screen or go to connect .open .ac .uk 664 00:43:06,440 --> 00:43:08,980 forward slash I Made It at Market.