MEET THE MAKER – ARTCUTS

Artcuts is a family-run business who specialise in designing handmade wooden craft shapes, gifts and decorations with a contemporary style. They have also curated a high quality range of complementary craft accessories including Japanese Chiyogami papers, intricate rubber stamps and specialised ink pads. Their products are perfect for special occasions including Christmas, birthdays, weddings and Easter as well as for the homemaker and lovers of craft. Take a look at our interview with Ellie from Artcuts to find out more… 

How did it all start?

Our business kick-started back in 2012 with mission to design and create the highest-quality wooden laser-cut craft shapes and decorations and to source really good quality craft accessories.

The story behind the name…

We laser-cut wooden shapes that appeal to creatives and so we wanted to have a name that communicates this.

Where are you based?

Our studio is based in rural Surrey, England where we produce all our handmade products from start to finish. Here, we have an ever growing space for our workshops, office and retail shop! We also love to travel up and down the country with our pop-up shop to meet our lovely customers at crafting shows and events like Country Living Fairs.

What inspires you?

We are inspired by contemporary designs that are true to their natural form. All our craft shapes are based on classic motifs to encourage creativity for the crafter. We like to

What is your creation process?

We usually begin by gathering visual inspiration, anything from colours, patterns, shapes and we will start to create a mood board of ideas. We will also consider what’s trending at the time and from here our theme or collection naturally begins to form. The design process starts with hand-drawn sketches that are transformed digitally, tested and reworked until they are ready to be laser-cut. We’re always considering the end use and create shapes that can be mixed and matched across our whole range. We love bringing new shapes to the market and customer feedback is king, we always love to hear what new products our shoppers are after!

What makes you, your brand or products unique?

The importance of our products is our Birch wood. Milled from deep within the forests of Finland, our plywood sheets are made by hand and according to our own specification, therefore, it is exclusive to Artcuts. Once we’ve laser-cut our products, the wood is sanded to a smooth, blemish-free natural finish ready for our customers to start crafting! We have spent years sourcing complementary craft accessories and identify great suppliers to support us.

What is your next project?

Christmas! Whilst we’re already working on festive products for 2020, we’re currently getting ready for the launch of our Christmas campaign of this year, which we’re very excited for. Throughout the upcoming months, we’ll be inspiring our customers with fun craft projects for Christmas on social and on our website. We’re focusing on three trendy themes and covering everything from card making and wrapping to decorations and kids craft!

What is your biggest achievement?

In June of this year we extended our studio and opened our first outlet shop. This was an amazing milestone for the business as it has allowed us to become closer to our local customers and host events and workshops in the heart of where we work.

What are your plans for the next 12 months?

We’re launching new designs for each seasonal event and hoping to have more events in our pop-up shop here in Surrey. We will also continue with our very busy trade business as we supply many retailers with our gift-ware products.

What is your best-selling product/line?

Our best-sellers are our popular collection of Mini Craft Kits, which are great projects for both beginners and more experienced crafters. Each season we continue to add to the collection, which ranges from Bee Bunting, Flower Bunting through to a series of “make your own” Christmas decorations.

What do you love about Country Living Fairs?

Country Living Fairs always has a fantastic atmosphere that immediately gets us into the festive spirit. It’s a lovely shopping experience and a great opportunity for us to meet our customers and other crafters a-like.

Your three top tips for crafters and makers…

1. For Christmas craft, start early!
2. The end result will always be of a higher standard when you use the best quality craft products.
3. Have fun!

Any advice for fledgling businesses…

Do your research properly – make sure your product is relevant for the market. Be persistent and know that it takes years to become an overnight success.