World Traveller Sam Sets up Eclectic New Business

From a very young age, Shrewsbury-born Sam Handbury-Madin had a fascination with finding and collecting things. He’s now turned the fascination into a business and has recently launched his venture as the quirkily named ‘It’s a Nomad Life’. Sam says “from a small boy I was always coming home with things I’d found. I had drawers stuffed full of old coins, bottles, fossils, mineral specimens, animal bones, you name it I probably had a collection of it!”

Sam with an Ibo mask from Nigeria

32 year old Sam was always interested in history and, undoubtedly this is connected with his family history as Sam’s father was a history teacher before becoming an antiques dealer and Sam’s great grandfather was also a collector. Sam said “I guess my passion for travel and wandering around the globe stems from my great grandfather, who I never met but it must certainly be in the blood! He was quite a traveller in the late 19^th and early 20^th century. He spent time in Africa and the Far East, mainly in India and he also visited Australia”.

“Dad used to bring interesting things home all the time”, said Sam. “I remember I was first entranced by some Australian aboriginal items he brought back: spears and clubs, some flaked stone stools, boomerangs etc., think I must have been 8 or 9. I knew from an early age that I was interested in ethnography and other cultures from around the world and wanted to start collecting objects.  I used to love the Oceanic (Pacific) art Dad used to bring home, like masks from Papua New Guinea, beaded necklaces with metal adornments, cooking pots and textiles.”

With many precious items locked away in display cabinets, Sam was allowed to ‘play’ with the tribal art items his father had brought back “these were always out, so I could look at and dream about where these wonderful items had come from and who had owned them before me”

After leaving school, Sam was accepted onto an Archaeology Degree course at the University of Bristol. Sam continued “archaeology was the perfect combination of history and learning and of course, going out in to the field to look for artifacts was something I’d always enjoyed doing”.

During a university dig in Somerset in 2000 Sam uncovered the hearthstone of the long house they were excavating. Sam said “finding the hearth stone was a key discovery as we were able to radio carbon date the charcoal on the stone to around the late 14^th century AD. It was an amazing feeling”.

After graduating from Bristol in 2002, Sam stayed on in the area and volunteered at the Bristol City Museum. “I used to love being down in the vaults full of cabinets of curious items, from ethnographic weapons to ancient Egyptian sarcophagi. It was just breathtaking being among such incredible items”.

Sam then moved to London where he undertook a work placement at Bonhams Fine Art Auctioneers in the Tribal Art and Antiquities Department. Sam said “it was a yearlong placement and I enjoyed it greatly. I loved doing the cataloguing of the items that were going to be sold – I also helped in the sale room on sale days and loved the buzz of the auction room. Most of the other time was spent researching objects so I used the skills I gained in my degree. I also met some very interesting characters and some very ‘colourful’ antique dealers”.

An interesting period then came for Sam, as he lived in the Caribbean for a few years where he worked in an art gallery and he also volunteered at the Anguilla Museum, where he catalogued finds and cleaned and restored items. “I’ve found some amazing things, like a large collection of ancient  pottery I dug up in my garden when I lived there, dating back to circa 1200 AD. I donated this to the local museum along with numerous axe heads and arrow heads and a very fine Arawak carved conch shell pendant I had found”.  

Being passionate about travelling and collecting, Sam’s favourite places are North and South America. “I am very interested in the ancient cultures of South America and the Caribbean, especially the ancient Inca people of Peru and the Taino people of the Caribbean. I also am fascinated by Native American cultures and in particular the cultures of North West Coast of Canada such as the Haida and Tlingit people where I have spent time”. Sam continued “I have always wanted to travel to the pacific islands (Oceanic art is probably my single favourite area of collecting) – so this would be my ultimate trip with stops off in Australia and New Zealand to see friends and to learn about the Maori and Aboriginal cultures”.

After almost  ten years of working for other people, Sam decided to bite the bullet and go into business alone. “I just decided that I wanted to start my own business after working for others for the past ten years. I’ve been very fortunate to work in the art and antiques industry in some amazing places such as the Caribbean and Canada, and doing work that I’ve always been so passionate about”.

A Hornbill totem from Papua New Guinea

Sam has amassed a large collection of eclectic and interesting items for the business “I’ve been building my collection up over the years so I’ve got plenty to sell!”

Sam’s business, ‘It’s a Nomad Life’ is initially an online emporium bringing customers a collection of globally inspired affordable goods, ranging from the ancient Neolithic period right up to the 1980′s, items are sourced responsibly and with respect. By using his experiences and expertise, Sam is able to source quality interesting items from all over the world.

www.itsanomadlife.com

Unique Shropshire Business Celebrates 5th Year!

January 2012 marks a milestone for Telford based Elizabeth Wilkinson, as it’s her 5^th year in what can only be described as a very unique business. 

Originally from Aylesbury in Buckinghamshire, Elizabeth moved to Shropshire when she was aged 5 with her retired RAF serving parents who’d decided to set up their own photography business in Telford.

Elizabeth’s business, ‘The Dyslexic Dyslexia Consultant’ (The DCC) came into being after years of searching for information and help with her son’s educational needs. A single mum, she took it upon herself to attend a dyslexia awareness course in the late 1990′s. After completing the course and understanding exactly each element of the complex condition Elizabeth finally knew that not only her son was dyslexic, but she was too.

Elizabeth Wilkinson, The DCC

“All through my schooling I just thought I wasn’t that ‘bright’, and even then, I knew I wanted to become a teacher. When I finally found out that I was dyslexic it was such a relief for me”.

After the course, Elizabeth was asked to join the Telford Dyslexia Academy.

Elizabeth then undertook a Post Compulsory Certificate of Education (PCCE) awarded from Wolverhampton University and gained a OCR SpLD Certificate for Teachers of Learners with Specific Learning Difficulties.

Now, Elizabeth is Academy Manager and Vice Chair of the Telford Dyslexia Academy, where every Saturday students are given 1:1 teaching which offers huge educational support to each attendee. 

Spreading the word about dyslexia is something Elizabeth is hugely passionate about. So much so that in 2008, after attending The Education Show at the NEC in Birmingham and hearing the news that each school, or cluster of small schools, would have only one specialist SpLD (Specific Learning Difficulties) teacher, Elizabeth put her frustration at this response to use rather than complaining. The day after the NEC show, faced with an education system that had failed dyslexics for too long, Elizabeth and her mum Sue (also a dyslexic) decided to put on a Dyslexia Information Day (DiD).

The ethos behind the DiD was to get all the services, organisations and companies that the family had come across during the last decade of involvement in the education system under one roof so that dyslexics could access them quickly and not have to go through the difficulties that Elizabeth had to endure whilst trying to source information and help for her dyslexic son.

The first Dyslexia Information Day was in 2008, and there have been a further 6 since then. 

Elizabeth said “our first DiD was huge success; we had over 130 people attending and we gained a lot of very positive feedback for the event”.

“10% of the population is dyslexic” Elizabeth continued “with a further 4% of that number being severely dyslexic. In short it means that there are a lot of people struggling within the education system who are not being taught the ‘right’ way to learn. They will have difficulties in the areas of short term memory, phonological awareness and automaticity. These are known as the core deficits of dyslexia”

As an ongoing project the aims of the DiD remain the same, to provide a free event for people who are interested in Dyslexia and to enable them to find out more. The future plan for DID is also to make it a charitable status.

Another facet of The DDC is to go into educational establishments and workplaces to offer support and training to staff, as well as carrying out dyslexic screening. “This work I find extremely enjoyable”, said Elizabeth. “Being able to make more people aware by imparting the knowledge that I’ve learnt and researched, as well as making a difference to those with specific learning differences is such a huge buzz. When I hear of success stories, when things have clicked into place is when I truly know that I have made a small difference to somebody’s life”. 

Elizabeth has delivered courses to the Defence College of Aeronautical Engineering based at RAF Cosford as well educational and commercial establishments in Worcestershire and Shropshire.

With tremendous support from her family and friends, as well as the business community, Elizabeth is looking forward to a very bright future.

“The DiD events will continue, we even have one being run along a similar line in Cambridge next March, after the organiser came to DiD 6 to exhibit. It is just so positive to be able to continually spread the word, offer support and educate those who are stumbling along trying to source information like I was so many years ago”.

Elizabeth at DiD 5

Elizabeth is also looking forward to offering dyslexia training to more business and educational establishments throughout the region “but, we are also looking forward to cracking open that bottle of champagne in January, and celebrating what has been an amazing first 5 years”, said Elizabeth.

Elizabeth Wilkinson can be contacted by mobile phone on: 07807 625429 by email:elizabeth@theddc.org.uk and her website is at: www.theddc.org.uk

‘Showing Off’ in Ludlow – designer makes show their wares!

The Shropshire Guild of Contemporary Craft will be ‘Showing Off’ again, this October with their second Ludlow craft show of the year; ‘Showing Off’ to be held at Ludlow’s Harley Centre over the weekend of 22^nd and 23^rd of October.

‘Showing Off’ incorporates not only designer makers from the Shropshire Guild, but also the Worcestershire Guild of Designer Craftsmen and guest designer makers.

Sophie Eades, Chair of The Shropshire Guild said “Showing Off will offer visitors a varied and exciting array of items made by talented designer makers”. Sophie continued “we not only have a great selection of designer makers exhibiting at this free event, but we will also be having demonstrations over the whole weekend”.

Sculptor and ceramicist Caroline Bennett, who works from her studio near Bridgnorth, creates hand built and slip cast vessels as well as figurative sculptures. Caroline said ” ‘Showing Off’ is a great opportunity to really show-off what we have all been making and creating throughout the year”.

Caroline, who is also demonstrating at this year’s event, said “I will be showing people the coil building technique using stoneware clay to create pieces for the garden or for the home”.

Caroline continued “having a demonstration area alongside the stand is nice and informal for me and the visitor. Sometimes people can feel a bit intimidated and not ask questions in certain situations but within a small group around a table they may feel more relaxed.  I hope they come away with a bit more insight into the processes that I work with”.

Other exhibitors include Shropshire Guild members Martin Howard, an Oswestry based Furniture designer maker and Sara Piper Heap from Gobowen. Sara’s  jewellery and silverware is visually striking, designed using simple clean lines and regular geometric shapes.

Blake and Janette Mackinnon, based near Ludlow are exhibiting at ‘Showing Off’. Makers of ceramic designer jewellery using their own porcelain and terracotta beads, Blake and Janette’s range also includes brooches, bracelets, buttons and clocks. They are members of the Worcester Guild of Designer Craftsmen.

‘Showing Off’ is open from 10am – 5pm on Saturday and 10am – 4pm on Sunday, admission is free.

Further information about the Shropshire Guild can be found at www.shropshireguild.co.uk  

Broseley Potter’s August Bank Holiday Open Studio Event

Broseley potter, Elspeth Soper has taken a dramatic leap from her usual style of designs, as she will be exhibiting her very unusual ‘Dream Figures’ at her next Open Studio event on August Bank Holiday Monday from 10am – 4pm.

Elspeth, whose usual distinctive designs feature chickens, hares and guinea fowl has been working on a series of figures for the last 7 years depicting the elements.

 Elspeth said “I had been commissioned to make a large Easter Island head to go in a garden and I thoroughly enjoyed hand building on such a large scale. I thought about Easter Island heads and also Japanese Haniwa figures – large terracotta funerary figures from the 3^rd to 6^th century AD – which I have liked for a long time, and the idea for the figures came to me.”

Elspeth continued “the figures are, essentially, large coil pots. It was exhilarating and sometimes alarming for them to gradually take shape from the feet up.”

The figures also represent Elspeth’s life-long interest in North American Indian cultures and artifacts.

Having initially made rough drawings of the figures Elspeth said “it was very helpful for measurements but the drawings were deliberately not too detailed as I wanted the figures to sort of emerge in their own right as they went along”. Each figure is made from ‘crank’ clay and fired to Stoneware temperatures – around 1280C.

Elspeth’s initial idea was to create each figure representing a season but this gradually turned into the 4 elements – Earth, Air, Fire and Water. Elspeth said “in the end I think what they really relate to are activities and ways of being which are very important to me. Although I actually ‘do’ them to some extent, they remain elusive – always just out of reach – and as such they are ‘Dreams’ “.

The first figure Elspeth made was Air, holding a Prayer Stick with a model of a bird. Earth followed, holding bean poles and a bundle of flowerpots. Then Water, and last year Elspeth made Fire. At the beginning of this year she completed Water by making a paddle and a 12″ model of a birchbark canoe and completed Fire by making a pair of snowshoes.

Elspeth, who is a keen canoeist, continued “my admiration for First Nation Canadians and Native Americans knows no bounds. The canoe building especially is so clever – a sublime craft!”

The ‘Dream Figures’ have only been exhibited at Much Wenlock’s Twenty Twenty gallery earlier this year “so this will be a great chance for everyone to see them” said Elspeth.

The Open Days at Willey Furnace Pottery are very popular with those that know and love Elspeth’s distinctive work. Elspeth continued “I am always amazed at how many people come to the open days. I think it is usually between 50 and 100 people, so it gets quite crowded but everyone seems to be very good humoured about the crush!”

 The Open Studio is on Monday August 29^th from 10am – 4pm.  Complementary refreshments will be available.

 The pottery is also open whenever the sign is on the roadside or by appointment.

 Willey Furnace Pottery is at Barrow Road, Broseley. TF12  5JQ and will be well signposted on the day.

For more information please telephone Elspeth on 01952 885759 or mobile: 07790347007

e-mail: elspeth.wfpottery@hotmail.co.uk

Church Stretton Garden Designer wins GOLD at Shrewsbury Flower Show!

Church Stretton garden designer, Mike Russell, from ‘Designs with Nature’ is celebrating today as his show garden has won Gold at the Shrewsbury Flower Show.

The ‘Seaside Garden’, specially designed for the Severndale Specialist School at Monkmoor, was designed by Mike Russell and includes a clinker boat and a driftwood shack. Reclaimed timbers or groynes from Borth beach have been made into planters and have added a very authentic smell and feel to the seaside show garden. The planting includes plants such as trachycarpus, festuca, sempivirums, arrmeria, eryngium, scabious and osteospermum, in the ‘Borth’ planters.  

Mike said “I’d managed to source quite a few authentic accessories for the garden, including an old 1960′s Bush radio, a couple of directors chairs and a surf board, and we also have fishing nets, driftwood, shells and old rope all collected by pupils from the Severndale School”.

Judging for the show gardens took place on Thursday afternoon and judges included Frank Hardy, a previous honorary horticultural advisor to the Shrewsbury Horticultural Society.  Mike said “the garden looks incredible, we are all so pleased to have won the award – it really does go to show much hard work and dedication pays off”.  

Mike continued “this year, the Severndale Garden is sponsored by solicitors Lanyon Bowdler, who also supported the Headway Garden that we designed for Shrewsbury Flower Show last year. Staff from Lanyon Bowdler have also helped raise the plants”.

After the event, elements of the garden will be carefully ‘relocated’ to create a sensory courtyard garden at the school in Monkmoor.

A very happy Mike continued “our first day has been amazing, people have been really interested in the planting scheme that we’ve used, and the clinker boat has really made us stand out! It is alwasy hard work, but to have received another gold award is just fantastic for everyone who has put work into the garden”.

Last year, Mike and his team won Shrewsbury Horticultural Society Gold and the Mike Hough Memorial Trophy for Best Outdoor Garden at the Shrewsbury Flower Show for the ‘All Inclusive’ garden they build for Headway Shropshire.

Shropshire’s Biggest Contemporary Craft and Fine Food Event – Gorgeous 2011, this October.

Designer makers from The Shropshire Guild of Contemporary Craft and guests will be holding their annual ‘Gorgeous’ selling exhibition this October at Enginuity, Ironbridge.

The Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust and The Shropshire Guild have come together once again to organise this wonderful event to be held over the weekend of Saturday 8^th and Sunday 9^th of October.

Sunflower table by Tony Jackson of Adept Designs

Gorgeous 2011 offers visitors the opportunity to meet and buy items hand crafted by an exceptionally talented group of people mostly living and working within the county.

For the third year, Gorgeous will also feature a food hall filled with local companies offering delicacies from the region including locally produced chocolates, cakes, wine, preserves, fresh local vegetables, cheeses and meat.

Companies in the food hall include Riverford Organic vegetables, The Whiskey Tasting Company and preserve and chutney makers, Heathers Harvest.

Chairwoman of the Guild Sophie Eades said “visitors to Gorgeous will be treated to a multi sensory experience – not only from when they first walk into the food hall to be greeted by delicious smells and tastes, but then to move onto the exhibiting designer makers and see the quality and diversity of work”.

Sophie continued “Shropshire has a wealth of innovative creative talent, and on show at Gorgeous 2011 will be over 35 creative and imaginative designer makers from the region”.

From hand crafted designer furniture to inventive, creative ceramics, finely made jewellery in silver and gold featuring semi and precious stones and hand woven textiles – Gorgeous 2011 will be a proverbial feast for those who appreciate design led crafts.

We will also have a series of demonstrations running over the weekend”, Sophie said “which is a great way for people to actually see and understand the creative process”.

Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust’s CEO, Steve Miller commented “Gorgeous is one of the highlights of the Ironbridge calendar of events and we are very much looking forward to welcoming some of the region’s best artists, makers and food producers to Enginuity where they can showcase their remarkable products”.

Steve continued “the Food Hall has now established itself as a great location to give yourself an affordable treat, whether it’s a portion of artisan cheese, a jar of homemade chutney or a tempting cake, it can all be found there. Across in the main Craft Halls I am always thrilled to see the quality of the work on display. Whilst our artists and makers work with many different materials and use different skills their passion for their work, innovation in their designs and mastery of their craft always shines through.

It is wonderful to be working with the Shropshire Guild of Contemporary Craft once again, especially in this the 25^th Anniversary Year of Ironbridge Gorge being designated as one of the UK’s first World Heritage Sites . I am very proud that the Museum and the Guild work together to promote the spirit of creativity and innovation that helped make this part of Shropshire as important to the world as the Great Wall of China and the Pyramids”.

New member of the Guild and first time exhibitor at Gorgeous, Sara Piper Heap from Gobowen said “I’m really looking forward to the show, it’ll be my first time exhibiting at Gorgeous. I’ve visited the event before and thoroughly enjoyed the diversity of exhibitors and crafts”.

Chunky Rings by Sara Piper-Heap

Metalsmith Sara continued “I come from a mathematical background and this shows in my work - I practically struggle to make work which doesn’t involve circles. I love simple clean lines and regular geometric shapes in both my jewellery and my metalwork pieces”.

Sara’s aim is to create display pieces for the table that are visually striking, designed using simple clean lines and regular geometric shapes.  Whilst endeavouring to be sculptural, the aesthetic appeal and clarity of form is of primary importance in her work, however an element of function must also be present.

Sara has been working with metal for the last five years.  She graduated in applied Arts specialising in Jewellery and Metalwork from Glyndwr University in 2010.

Another exhibitor at Gorgeous 2011 is Jennifer Colquitt from Dudley. Jennifer makes finely decorated and textured porcelain panels coloured with oxides and lustres.  Jennifer said “the themes I use are trees, leaves and flowers derived from either direct observation or images I’ve discovered in medieval manuscripts. The variations are endless with these topics”.  Visiting France on a regular basis has given Jennifer the opportunity to study richly decorated carvings that she has observed in the Romanesque churches.

A Jennifer Colquitt brooch

Jennifer continued “my main preoccupation is with making decorative wall panels and firing them successfully. Currently fine quality porcelain clay is used; it is fascinating as a material as it combines fragility with great strength as it has to withstand high firing temperatures”.

Entrance to Gorgeous is £2.50 per person, under 12′s go free. Gorgeous will be open from 10am-5pm on Saturday 8^th and 10am-4pm on Sunday 9^th of October.

Further details are available from the Shropshire Guild’s website at: www.shropshireguild.co.uk or the Ironbridge Visitor Information Centre on

Tel: 01952 884391 or visit www.ironbridge.org.uk

Church Stretton Designer to WOW visitors to the Shrewsbury Flower Show with a very quirky Fish!

Church Stretton garden designer, Mike Russell, from ‘Designs with Nature’ is getting his show garden ready for this year’s Shrewsbury Flower Show. The ‘Seaside Garden’, specially designed for the Severndale Specialist School at Monkmoor, will feature a very unique fish!

Mike said “the show garden I’ve designed will feature a very querky copper ‘Blenny’ fish set into a rock pool. The fish has been designed specifically so the weight of the water in its stomach will make it rock. The garden will also include a traditional clinker boat and a drift wood surf shack”. Mike designed the unique water feature, and had it made by coppersmith Richard Taylor from Llandrindod wells with the help of children from Severndale Specialist School.

Mike Russell and the copper Blenny Fish

Pupils from the school have been closely involved with the project and have been beachcombing for driftwood, shells and old rope for decorating the garden, as well as taking part in coppersmithing workshops with Richard. 

The planting will include plants such as trachycarpus, festuca, sempivirums, arrmeria, eryngium, scabious and osteospermum, in planters made from reclaimed sea worn timbers from Borth.

Mike continued “this year, the Severndale Garden is sponsored by solicitors Lanyon Bowdler, who also supported the Headway Garden that we designed for Shrewsbury Flower Show last year. Staff from Lanyon Bowdler have also been helping raise the plants”.

“We are very fortunate to have help from a lot of varied local businesses, who provide equipment and materials and without all of this help the gardens couldn’t be created” said Mike.

After the event, elements of the garden will be carefully ‘relocated’ to create a sensory courtyard garden at the school in Monkmoor.

Last year, Mike and his team won Shrewsbury Horticultural Society Gold and the Mike Hough Memorial Trophy for Best Outdoor Garden at the Shrewsbury Flower Show for the ‘All Inclusive’ garden they build for Headway Shropshire.

Mike said “we are all hoping that the seaside garden will be fun for visitors to see and hopefully inspire them for their own garden”.

With a gardening style that has been described as ‘sensitive and natural’ Mike’s impressive local list of clients include the Shropshire Wildlife Trust, Hope House Hospice, Fordhall Farm, and recently the creation of a kitchen garden for the Longmynd Hotel in Church Stretton.

Unique Free Business Event ‘The Creative Business Conference’.

Creative Shropshire, the networking group run by the membership who work to promote Shropshire as a centre of creative excellence, have teamed up with Shropshire Council and ‘Cogs’ to offer a unique free business event entitled The Creative Business Conference.

The ‘Profit from Ideas’ event is being held at Shrewsbury Town Football Club on Tuesday July 19^th and will be opened by Councillor Mark Pembleton, Head of Economic Development at Shropshire Council. Other speakers will include Lee Rolston, Marketing Director of Muller Dairies, and Helen Mitchell from Ascendency Internet Marketing in Shifnal. 

Chair of Creative Shropshire and owner of Phoot Creative, Steve Ashdown said “Shropshire is a melting pot of world class creative businesses. This event is a fantastic opportunity to harness those local skills that can really take businesses forward and make it a success”.

Shropshire Guild of Contemporary Craft’s Chair, Sophie Eades said “this event will be invaluable to creative businesses, be them commercially creative or more ‘hands on’ creative such as the design-led work produced by the members of the Guild.” Sophie, who is also a committee member for Creative Shropshire and owner of Lilac Sky Marketing, PR and Photography continued “there are so many extremely talented businesses within the county that offer a whole gamut of creative services, it really isn’t necessary to go outside Shropshire to source creative quality”.   

The main focus of the event is offer encouragement and advice to creative businesses by way of a series of informative and lively workshops throughout the morning.

During the afternoon, the whole business community will be invited to an exhibition to not only fully appreciate the creative talent within the county, but to also network and source local web developers, marketing and advertising experts, photographers, copy writers and more.

The afternoon will consist of workshops including: social media, engaging the media with confidence and sourcing local services. All of this alongside an array of exhibiting organisations to offer business support and advice on issues such as: exporting, expanding your workforce and high growth business support initiatives.

To register for this free event please go to http://profit-from-ideas.eventbrite.com/

or contact delia.yapp@shropshire.gov.uk 01743 252597.

If you are a Shropshire based creative company interested in exhibiting your work for free during the afternoon, please contact Delia Yapp.

Further event information is available at : www.creativeshropshire.org/profit

 

Church Stretton Garden Design Comapny WIN Silver Gilt Medal at RHS Show!

A Church Stretton based garden design company are celebrating as they have arrived home from the Royal Horticultural Malvern Spring Gardening Show with a Silver Gilt Medal.

The ‘Designs with Nature’ team, along with pupils from Telford’s Ercall Wood Technology College and associate garden designer Rachel Phillips created the award winning garden at  the show ground, called ‘the Budding Scientist Garden’ over a 4-week period. 

The stunning ‘outdoor classroom’ garden demonstrated how a small space can be transformed for young enquiring minds to explore, with edible, sensory and wildlife friendly planting. A circular sedum roofed learning pod, Van de Graff inspired water features and sculptural atom inspired steel work.

With donations and help from a varied group of local and national businesses as well as many local craftspeople including Jack Taylor’s steel work, Shropshire Building Supplies at Leebotwood and Dingle Nurseries near Welshpool, the garden at Malvern was built.

Mike Russell, owner of Designs with Nature said “this is the second time I’ve worked with Rachel on a show garden, as she helped me create the Gold Medal and Best at Show, ’All inclusive’ garden for Headway Shropshire at last year’s Shrewsbury Flower Show, and she’s proving to be a budding garden designer”.

Rachel, from Ironbridge said “I designed the Budding Scientist Garden for Malvern as part of the application process for the Chris Beardshaw Mentoring scholarship, as the theme was ‘atom’. It has been a busy, challenging few months preparing for the show, but I have learnt an incredible amount in the process”.  

Rachel continued “Mike and the team have been a fantastic source of support, and I couldn’t have built the garden without them. Mike is always full of inspirational advice, and has helped me gain the skills that I need to make a career change into the world of Garden Design.”

As well as winning Gold and Best at Show at last year’s Shrewsbury Flower Show, Mike’s company, Designs with Nature, have also scooped two other RHS Silver Gilt Awards in the past at BBC Gardeners World Live.

“Another Silver Gilt and Gold so far”, said Mike “which is just fantastic. It goes to show all the effort that is put into a show garden is appreciated”.

Mike said “the next show garden we are now planning is a ‘sensory seaside garden’ for the Severndale Specialist School in Shrewsbury”. Mike has been designing the garden and aims to show it at this year’s Shrewsbury Flower Show. After the event, the garden will be ‘relocated’ to the school in Monkmoor.

Previous clients for Mike have included The Shropshire Wildlife Trust, Hope House, Fordhall Farm and The Longmynd Hotel. Mike’s style of work has been described as ‘sensitive and natural’.

Shropshire’s Wilstone WIN the ‘Product of the Year Award’ At Chelsea Flower Show!

After a nerve racking few weeks, Shropshire company, Wilstone, are thrilled to announce that their Kadai Charcoal Maker has won the prestigious Royal Horticultural Societies Chelsea Flower Show Product of the Year Award of 2011.

Company owner, Christo McKinnon, said “we’ve had to wait about 3 weeks for the judging, but we are now absolutely bowled over with the news”. Christo continued “we exhibit at Chelsea quite often, and we win awards for the presentation of our stand, but this year to win ‘Product of the Year’ has just made it such a fantastic show for us to be exhibiting at”.

This is the first year the RHS have decided to put on this award for over 240 traders at this year’s Chelsea Flower Show. Wilstone’s Kadai Charcoal Maker will be displayed alongside the 16 items entered on a dedicated Product of The Year stand for the duration of the Chelsea Flower Show.

Shropshire’s Wilstone developed the unique Charcoal Maker, the first of its kind, to enable the affordable production of ethical, environmentally friendly charcoal at home. A panel of judges including Nicola Gidlow, central buyer for John Lewis, Chris Harrop from Marshalls as well as RHS experts judged the Product of the Year Award entries at the show on Sunday 22nd May.