Hopkins Dan

Textiles (Sarah Hopkins)
“I am a self taught weaver, who has been practising this craft for some eight years.

I have always loved the tactile nature of natural fabrics and am fascinated by weaving and how it combines functionality with aesthetics; channelling one’s mental energy into using one’s hands, in a skilled, creative, purposeful way, is essential to being human”.

Ceramics (Dan and Martin).
“We have been collaborating since 2010, specialising in throwing, hand building, slip-casting and sculpture, with a range of finishes including glaze (dipped, poured and brushed-on), oxides, underglaze, crushed glass, and coloured slip.

We enjoy surface texture, colour and individuality. We use carving, chattering, inlaying, and hand-added pieces to ensure that every piece we craft unique and impossible to replicate pieces, some functional, all decorative”.

Wight Chine Arts is a small local family project, which began during the coronavirus lockdown. The idea stemmed from a challenge of who could collect the most beach glass and as our family are extremely competitive, these products are our efforts throughout the pandemic! Every design is unique due to the natural materials we work with, all the sea glass, driftwood, and seashells are all collected from beaches on the Isle of Wight.

I have lived in South Northants for the past 30 years and my cushion collection is a fushion of my love of working with fabrics and a passion for the flowers in my garden.

Having enjoyed the experience of printmaking in my college days I like to keep my designs quite stylised and 2 dimensional and in some cases with a nod to Art Nouveau and The Arts and Crafts designs.

My bags are created using solely upcycled fabrics which is an interesting challenge and means each one is quite unique.