Scotland is packed with brilliant creators and some of them are keeping our country’s traditional crafts alive. Our indigenous art forms reflect the kinds of materials and tools that were available to our artisan ancestors, before all kinds of resources, techniques and machinery were imported to Scotland from across the world. They connect us to our past.
These makers create items using the best of native Scottish materials and practices that might just make the perfect Christmas presents for your loved ones. And we’ve more to offer than tartan: think willow-weaving, blacksmithing and traditional Orkney furniture-making!
Anna Liebmann, WILLOW WEAVING
Willow weaving has been a craft in Scotland for thousands of years, with the oldest Shetland willow basket in the National Museum of Scotland being a whopping 1,500 years old. Living and working from a Lanarkshire housing cooperative, Anna was inspired to start making with the willow that grew on the land. She now grows, cuts and prepares eight different types of willow to weave with, crediting the different types for their different “hues, colours and elasticity”.
After starting to sell her items at the Portobello farmers’ market, she now sells on Etsy and her own website, and teaches the craft across Scotland. She has smaller items available on her Etsy, too, including a woven baby rattle (£16) and woven Christmas decorations.
Laundry basket made from organic Scottish willow £340
James Ritchie, BLACKSMITHING
A graduate of Dundee’s Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design, James Ritchie now focuses on creating both practical and sculptural items using wood and metal. Did you know that blacksmiths around the world wear kilts? Inspired by tartan-kilted Celtic blacksmiths, people across the world now wear “utility kilts” while working with metal which protect the wearers from sparks and heat.
Today, James Ritchie works from Muir of Ord and produces items such as this one-of-a-kind hand-forged cheese cutter, sure to add flair to any Christmas cheeseboard.
Mild Steel Handle Wire Cheese Cutter, £40. www.highlandhiddle.co.uk
Katie Watson, SILVERSMITHING
Originally brought to Scottish shores by the Romans, silver is used by Scottish artisans to create beautiful tableware and jewellery. Katie Watson, a graduate from the Glasgow School of Art, handmakes the tools she uses to carve fine illustrations into her silver pieces. Her inspiration comes from walks in her home town of North Berwick and the Isle of Arran, during which she will pause to study or draw whateverr catches her eye. The result? Stunning pieces of jewellery and tableware that incorporate flora and fauna, and always invite a second look. She offers free shipping to the UK on purchases made from her online shop and can also be contacted for commissions.
Circle of Life Dish, £6,700. www.katiewatsondesigns.com
Fraser Anderson, FURNITURE MAKING
How do you relax after a long day of work? Fraser Anderson is a furniture-maker from Orkney who specialises in making traditional Orkney chairs that were once the seats of Orkney workers after a day of outdoor graft. These chairs are made using traditional straw-craft techniques and Scottish wood including, when possible, driftwood collected from Orkney’s shoreline.
Straw backs keep the chairs warm by retaining the heat of an open fire, some have hoods that offer shelter from drafts, and an in-built drawer is traditionally used to store personal belongings or whisky. His website has an “available now” section where you can buy ready-made items or commission a piece of your own. He also makes other furniture, such as driftwood tables.
Orkney hand crafted round-backed chair, right. From £1690
www.orkneyhandcraftedfurniture.co.uk
Cally Booker, TEXTILES
Living and working on the east coast, every item that Cally Booker produces is inspired by Scotland’s skies and shores. Contributing to Scotland’s long history of textiles, Cally uses hand-dyed yarns in a unique combination of colours and weave, meaning every piece is one-of-a-kind. Often improvising at the loom, Cally produces a range of experimental and geometric designs in addition to the micro-collections sold under her Bonny Claith label. On her website you’ll find scarves woven in rich colours using exciting blends of materials, such as this wool and silk wrap inspired by La Vie en Rose.
Light olive hand-painted handwoven scarf in merino, silk and yak, £140
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