"Present at each stage of production are the standards and inimitable know-how accumulated over the last 150 years. Over that time, a few things have changed — some faster than others — but it’s still the precise same product off the line, same portraits of the founders in the entrance-way, and the same name above the door."
A characteristically well put together piece on the last horn button factory in the UK, in the West Midlands, from S.E.H Kelly. I sometimes struggle to keep up with their output, so I suggest you peruse their site's 'Makers' section in its entirety.
(Picture above from S.E.H Kelly)
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"The project was inspired by an attraction to the aesthetics of these workplaces, but also by an interest in what the practices of fixing, mending, repair and renewal could reveal about the way people value things, and each other."
I came across this site, Celebration of Repair, a little while ago. Delighted to see the research is now available in book form, entitled Visible Mending
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Are British hops the new grapes? (SIBA)
Though, according to this excellent radio programme, there's only 60 hop growers left in the UK (BBC Radio 4)
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"In this two part series, Steph McGovern looks at both the bigger story of silk production, but also takes a close look at how silk shaped one particular town - Macclesfield in Cheshire. Here, silk has been processed, woven and printed for four centuries, and had a profound effect not just upon the built environment but also the social world in which its inhabitants lived."
Another great bit of radio here, on silk weaving (jump to 22.28 to hear about the goings-on at RA Smart near Macclesfield) (BBC Radio 4)
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"Sheffield is one of the best places in the world to get a sense of how new thinking allied with clever technology and global marketing can transform traditional industries"
An insightful article by Peter Marsh on The New Industrial Revolution (The Global Journal)
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An aptly named retail site that highlights where things are made (Provenance)
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An interview with Adam Atkinson of Cherchbi (Grey Fox)
Though, according to this excellent radio programme, there's only 60 hop growers left in the UK (BBC Radio 4)
—
"In this two part series, Steph McGovern looks at both the bigger story of silk production, but also takes a close look at how silk shaped one particular town - Macclesfield in Cheshire. Here, silk has been processed, woven and printed for four centuries, and had a profound effect not just upon the built environment but also the social world in which its inhabitants lived."
Another great bit of radio here, on silk weaving (jump to 22.28 to hear about the goings-on at RA Smart near Macclesfield) (BBC Radio 4)
—
"Sheffield is one of the best places in the world to get a sense of how new thinking allied with clever technology and global marketing can transform traditional industries"
An insightful article by Peter Marsh on The New Industrial Revolution (The Global Journal)
—
An aptly named retail site that highlights where things are made (Provenance)
—
An interview with Adam Atkinson of Cherchbi (Grey Fox)
