From A Small Spark

The idea behind treasure+keep came not from a sudden vision, but from a small spark that glowed gently through the early years of motherhood and grew slowly over time into a flame.

My love for handcrafted art, jewellery, glass, ceramics and interior accessories developed when I worked for Clarion Events as head of marketing on their retail portfolio of shows - Top Drawer, Home & Gift, Scotland's Trade Fairs, Pulse, Spirit of Christmas and House & Garden. 

I worked with top retail buyers, journalists and design organisations including Liberty, Selfridges,  House&Garden, Elle Decoration, Livingetc, Cockpit Arts, New Designers, Design Nation and Crafts Council. I met some truly talented makers, crafts people and artists along the way.

I took a career break to raise three young boys, but my passion for all things handcrafted never subsided.  In my spare time I am drawn to open studios, art, craft and design fairs often dragging a reluctant child or husband alongside me.

It is during these visits that the idea behind treasure+keep emerged.  I see so many beautiful and affordable pieces and meet so many wonderfully creative people, but it saddened me that my circle of contacts, friends and family members had no idea of their existence.

The idea behind treasure+keep is threefold. To connect people with designers makers and artists who do not visit open studios and small fairs and would therefore have never discovered them. To persuade people to buy handcrafted over mass produced. To educate people that by buying handcrafted, they are not only supporting small businesses but they are buying thoughtfully and sustainably.  They are buying pieces that have been made by hand, that have been made to treasure and to keep.

In the early stages, treasureandkeep.co.uk will be a blog - an edit of trends, news and hot picks from the fairs and open studios. Then, it will evolve into an e-commerce platform through which people can buy from artists and makers direct.

Stay tuned . . .