- 13 hours ago
I Made It at Market S01E02 Pottery and Fluid Art
Category
📺
TVTranscript
00:00Our country is full of incredible makers
00:03dreaming of turning their talent into money-making careers.
00:07It would mean everything to be able to do this full-time.
00:10So, with a team of fantastic professional mentors...
00:14I know your talent and I know what you're capable of doing.
00:16I run a one-of-a-kind boot camp, showing them how to do just that.
00:21Perfect.
00:21My proudest moment, I'll just show that.
00:23Yes!
00:24Now I'm on my way to catch up with those who have made their dreams come true.
00:28Hello!
00:29There he is.
00:29Hello, mate.
00:31I'll be hearing about their amazing achievements.
00:34I've been able to put down a deposit on a house.
00:36This is my full-time job.
00:37And finding out how much money they're making.
00:40A little bit under £40,000.
00:42Around £50,000.
00:43£50,000?
00:44Yeah.
00:44So, join me and meet the fabulous makers
00:47who have transformed their lives and made it at market.
00:50You can kind of say I am living the dream.
00:53I think that's fair to say.
01:02For a lot of makers who come to my boot camp,
01:05their dream is to earn enough money from their talents
01:08to make a living doing the thing they love.
01:10Today, we'll be catching up with two whose incredible skills
01:15have transformed their lives.
01:18Later, mentor Sharon will be hearing all about teacher
01:21and fluid artist Gemma's success in Essex.
01:24Over about an 18-month period, I had over 200 commissions.
01:28Wow, that's fantastic.
01:30Before that, I'll be checking in with Potter Izzy in south-west London.
01:37I first met her in the spring of 2022
01:40when she came to my business boot camp
01:42looking for help to turn her pottery into a paying profession
01:46after giving up her job at an advertising agency.
01:49It would mean everything to be able to do this full-time.
01:53I mean, it's totally my passion.
01:55It's something that I love to do.
01:56And to be able to spend all of my time
01:59making beautiful pottery pieces for people to have in their homes
02:03would be a total dream come true.
02:07Izzy, to give up a well-paid commercial job, what happened?
02:10That must have been quite a scary time.
02:12It was something that I thought about for a while.
02:15I was in the studio.
02:17When I say studio, I mean the garden shed in my parents' house.
02:20Oh, brilliant.
02:21Making pots on a wheel.
02:22But I was loving it and I just thought,
02:25if I can't give up now and try to make the dream happen,
02:28then when can I do it?
02:30To find out if Izzy had what it took
02:32to become a successful full-time potter,
02:35I gave her three challenges.
02:38First was making a volume piece,
02:40something she could produce quickly
02:42and sell for an affordable price.
02:44Izzy chose to create a set of candlesticks
02:46priced at £28 each.
02:49Standing 10 centimetres high,
02:51they were decorated with different coloured glazes.
02:56First of all, I'm going to make the base of it
02:59and then I'm going to very loosely build up the form
03:03with the two different tiers,
03:06the disc tiers that are around the form,
03:08and then I will create the opening
03:11that the candlestick will sit in.
03:14I press my fingers into the clay to create the shape.
03:34It's a little bit wobbly.
03:35It's just come off centre slightly.
03:38So I'm just taking a little bit of the moisture
03:41away from the clay.
03:43To help Izzy become a full-time potter,
03:46I teamed her up with Florian Gadsby.
03:48Hi.
03:49Hi.
03:50How's it going?
03:51One of the country's top ceramicists,
03:54Florian has millions of followers on social media,
03:57ensuring any new work he releases
03:59sells out in minutes.
04:01Izzy's chosen a candlestick.
04:03They're very good objects to make quickly
04:05because they require very minimal finishing.
04:07You know, as long as she throws the opening accurately,
04:09then they should be fine.
04:11So I think it's quite an intelligent choice.
04:12It's different and I think they're an object
04:14that I imagine people would buy multiples of.
04:18While Izzy was fully focused on her volume item,
04:21I grabbed Florian to chat through her second challenge.
04:25Before she arrived at my boot camp,
04:27I asked her to bring along a high-end, pricier piece.
04:31She chose to showcase a 10-piece serving set
04:34with an asking price of £320.
04:39I think it's really interesting, you know,
04:40the idea of having all these pots
04:42that you can lay out yourself and fill with food
04:43and then, you know, you'll have a nice meal around.
04:46At the moment, they're all kind of one beige colour
04:48and I think if she was moving forward
04:50into making it, you know,
04:51a more sustainable business model,
04:52I think it could be something that's quite fun
04:54if people are able to choose, you know,
04:56have a few of different colour
04:57or they can even customise entire sets.
04:59Izzy was hoping to get £320 for the whole set.
05:02How many pieces is it? Ten pieces?
05:04Yeah, a lot for the money.
05:05It's, I think, a bargain
05:06and, you know, she's thinking about how they interlock,
05:09how she can combine them and make different combinations,
05:10so she's putting quite a lot of thought into it.
05:16Back in the pottery studio,
05:17Izzy had moved on to making the second
05:19of her collection of candlesticks.
05:22Making the body was a quick process,
05:25but making the space that would hold the candle
05:27was a precise job.
05:29I've done a lot of testing
05:31to now I know exactly the millimetre
05:34that it needs to be measured
05:36across the diameter of the opening
05:38so that then accounting for shrinkage in the firing
05:41and when there's a glaze on there,
05:43it will snugly fit a candlestick,
05:46a standard candlestick in there.
05:47I know that I want it to be
05:50two point, about 2.7,
05:52which, luckily, it actually is.
05:55I've done it by eye.
05:56That actually has never happened to me before.
05:58Lots of practice, I see.
06:01Izzy repeated the process
06:02for the third and final candlestick of her collection.
06:06The next bit of the process
06:08is for them to dry out very slowly
06:10over a couple of weeks.
06:11Once they've dried out,
06:13I might give them a once-over with a sponge
06:15or a sanding pad
06:16just to make sure that there are no rough edges
06:18and then I put my Maker's Mark stamp in on the bottom
06:22and then they are ready to be fired.
06:27Excluding drying, firing and glazing time,
06:31Izzy's candlesticks took around 15 minutes per piece to produce.
06:35With material costs of £18 for the free,
06:38she priced them at £28 each.
06:41I feel like you make these really quickly.
06:43Yeah, I mean, how long does it take you at the moment?
06:46Between 10 to 12, 15 minutes or so.
06:49OK, so, I mean, the only thing I might say is
06:52if you were to push this
06:53and really try and make them as more of a volume piece,
06:56you could try and get that to five minutes or less,
06:58three minutes per piece.
06:59Yeah.
06:59Three minutes?
07:01Well, you know, there are things you can do
07:03to help speed up the process quite dramatically.
07:05Yeah.
07:05Maybe making a jig that you can insert into the soft clay
07:08to make the well faster.
07:10How about the price?
07:11They're quite a bespoke object.
07:13You know, they're table centrepieces,
07:14so I think people are probably going to buy a couple.
07:18So, yeah, I think it's fair.
07:20Both of Izzy's first two challenges
07:22got her a thumbs-up from Florian and I,
07:25and for her final task,
07:26I asked her to make her favourite piece
07:28to see if the product she relished making the most
07:31could also make her big money.
07:35Izzy chose to make a plinth,
07:37a large bowl on a pedestal foot.
07:39It was something that could be used
07:41as a centrepiece for a dinner party
07:43or a large fruit bowl
07:44and was priced at £180.
07:47First of all, I just have to check
07:49that this large patty of clay I've got
07:52is the right size.
07:54So I've made these before
07:55and I know what it should be.
07:57So we need 28 centimetres,
07:59which is about right.
08:00And now I'm going to open up the middle.
08:07After opening up the centre of the clay,
08:10Izzy's next job was to raise the walls
08:12to create the bowl.
08:18This is where I use the mirror
08:20to really check the form
08:22and the shape of the bowl
08:23as I'm pulling it out.
08:26Now I need to measure the width of the bowl
08:29now that I've shaped it out a little bit,
08:31which is pretty bang on.
08:35I want to make sure
08:36that they're all the same size across
08:39because then if I'm making a batch of them
08:40and selling them,
08:41then all the customers will be getting the same.
08:45Izzy was making good progress on her final piece,
08:48but she was keen to talk to Florian
08:50about marketing her work.
08:52Something that I know I need to develop
08:54is finding an audience for my work.
08:57And I know social media can be brilliant with that,
09:00but is there any...
09:02Other ways.
09:03Other ways,
09:04or would you say social media
09:06is the best way to do it
09:07or do you go through stockists or what's...
09:09I think stockists can be really, really good.
09:11You just need to find some that you really love
09:14and you think your work would sit
09:16into their range of products.
09:17You want them to be relatable to you
09:19and you want to actually really like the person.
09:22If you don't get on well with the person
09:23you're selling with,
09:24it's not really going to work.
09:26After chatting to Florian,
09:28Izzy headed straight back to her potter's wheel
09:30to work on the base of the bowl section of her plinth.
09:34I'm going to trim off all of this excess clay here
09:37and shape into a nice rounded bowl.
09:40I really love this bit.
09:42It's very soothing
09:43and I love seeing these ribbons of clay
09:46come out of the turning tool.
09:50Having trimmed off the excess clay,
09:53Izzy scored the bowl
09:54in preparation for joining it to the pedestal.
09:59That works well, I think.
10:00Now I've got this lovely concoction of slip,
10:04which is water and clay,
10:06but I've added in a little bit of vinegar as well,
10:08which hopefully will make the two pieces
10:11stick together a little bit more.
10:13And now I'm going to lightly place it on
10:17because I want to just make sure that it's centred.
10:20That looks good.
10:21The last final little small step
10:23is just to use the vinegar and the slip
10:27just to go around the edge
10:28to make sure that all of these little small gaps are filled in.
10:32After that, dry it really slowly
10:34for maybe two weeks or so
10:36because I want it to dry nice and slowly,
10:38prevent any cracks.
10:39And then it will go in the kiln for a bisque firing
10:42and after that I would glaze it
10:44and it would go in the kiln for a second firing
10:46and then it would be finished.
10:49Izzy's plimp finished with a tasteful green glaze
10:52was a real statement piece.
10:55It had a make time of two and a half hours
10:58and an asking price of £180.
11:02They're a nice statement piece,
11:04you know, they sit on the table,
11:05they're the centre of attention,
11:06but I think there are a few things
11:08that I think we could improve on.
11:10I think glazing on the bottom near the foot,
11:12the ring, it's not quite at the bottom,
11:15you know, a little bit up
11:16and I think there could be maybe a motif
11:17or a finish you could add
11:19to make it finish around the bottom
11:21a bit more comfortably.
11:23Yeah.
11:23And then just things like the underside,
11:25I know you said it took you two weeks to dry them,
11:27so we could talk about ways of artificially,
11:29you know, drying the underside
11:31at the same time as the rest of the pot
11:32just to speed things up.
11:34What about the price?
11:35It's quite a sculptural piece,
11:36it's a centrepiece, I think it's fair.
11:39To help Izzy make it as a full-time potter,
11:42we gave her an action plan to take back to London.
11:45First, she needed to promote herself on social media
11:48to boost her profile
11:49and draw in potential buyers.
11:52Next, she needed to work
11:53at producing her pieces quicker.
11:56And finally,
11:57if she was going to collaborate with a stockist,
11:59she needed to find one she liked
12:01and could work with.
12:05For the next two months,
12:07Izzy had Florian's continued support
12:09as she worked to get her business off the ground.
12:12And she started by visiting his studio
12:14to get his top tips
12:16on promoting herself on social media.
12:18Welcome to the studio.
12:20Oh, wow.
12:21This is it.
12:22This is it.
12:24Florian talked me through
12:25how he captures his footage in the studio.
12:27So he showed me the equipment that he uses,
12:30the software he uses
12:32when he's editing his footage,
12:34and also gave me an insight
12:36into how much he posts on social media
12:38and how he writes the captions of his posts as well
12:42to really keep his audience engaged.
12:44So that was all really useful.
12:46Izzy also worked on developing her collection
12:48to include different colours.
12:50I've been thinking a lot about glazing
12:52and developing a range of glazes.
12:55So my next port of call
12:57will be doing a batch of glaze testing
13:00to see what I like
13:01and see what works well
13:02with different clay bodies.
13:04Up until now,
13:04I've just used the same old white stoneware,
13:07which has served me really well.
13:08But actually,
13:10I think it's time to see what else is out there
13:12and do some testing for clays as well.
13:16Izzy threw herself
13:17into acting on every suggestion we gave her.
13:20And two months later,
13:21she came back to see us with impressive news.
13:24I made £5,200.
13:28No way.
13:28Wow.
13:29Stop.
13:31Yeah.
13:31It's amazing from this point in your career.
13:34That's an awful lot of money.
13:36I can't quite believe it.
13:39Even after taking off her costs,
13:41Izzy was well on her way
13:42to having a fully-fledged pottery business.
13:46Just over three and a half years later,
13:48I've come to her studio in southwest London
13:51to see how she's built exactly that
13:53and how much money she's making now.
13:56Izzy, hello.
13:58You OK?
13:58Good, thanks.
13:59Welcome.
13:59Come in.
14:00It's good to see you.
14:02Izzy's setup has moved on a lot
14:04since I last saw her.
14:05This place is absolutely beautiful.
14:08How has it come about?
14:09You started in your parents' sheds, didn't you?
14:11I did.
14:12Yeah.
14:13So that was my first studio
14:15and then I moved on to a slightly bigger space
14:18but I outgrew that actually quite quickly.
14:21I'd also decided I wanted to start a teaching business as well.
14:25OK.
14:25I wanted some space to have more pottery wheels
14:27and perhaps some more kilns
14:29and just, like, grow in that way.
14:30That's quite different to making, though,
14:32to go into teaching.
14:33What brought that on?
14:34I had kind of got to where I had always hoped I would be,
14:37which is being in a lovely studio, making pots.
14:41I had orders from stockists
14:43and I was selling on my website a lot.
14:44That's the dream, isn't it?
14:45It was the dream
14:47and that is what I'd been aiming for
14:49but actually I was a little surprised
14:51that I started to feel a little bit lonely, actually,
14:54and knew that I needed to make some kind of change
14:57to bring in some more social aspect into my life.
15:02Yeah.
15:03Good on you for actually shifting things around.
15:05Moving into this larger space
15:07shows just how much progress Izzy's made
15:10but it's great to see she's still making the candlesticks,
15:13which were her volume piece at the boot camp.
15:15They are my bestseller now.
15:17They're what I make the most of,
15:19they're what I sell the most of,
15:21both into shops but also on my website.
15:24The biggest retailer that I was really excited to work with
15:27was Fortnum & Mason.
15:28Oh, wow.
15:29Who, I know, I was...
15:30That's huge.
15:31It was a bit of a dream come true, really.
15:34It was what I had always dreamt might happen
15:36but thought it would be much later down the line in my career
15:39so when that call came in,
15:42I was just, yeah, really over the moon.
15:44Couldn't really believe it.
15:45Having her candlesticks stocked by such a well-known high-end shop
15:49is a massive achievement for Izzy.
15:52At the boot camp, they sold for £28
15:56but her more polished versions now sell for £34 for the small ones
16:00and £40 for the larger ones.
16:03And they're not the only thing driving her business forwards.
16:07Tell me about the courses.
16:08Which courses do you run?
16:09We do a beginner course,
16:11which is one session each week for five weeks
16:14and that takes you through the full process of making pots.
16:18And then after that, we've got a developer course,
16:21which is like an intermediate course,
16:23so that's ten weeks.
16:24And then we have a few other kind of sessions
16:25like taster classes and we have full-day courses as well.
16:29It must be a lot for you to do.
16:31It is a lot, but it's not just me anymore
16:33because I've got a couple of teachers
16:36and actually hiring a couple more at the moment
16:38and also I've got some studio assistants
16:41who help me keep everything running,
16:43so it's not only me.
16:45Wow.
16:46Things have grown so much.
16:47You've now got people helping.
16:48Yeah, it's escalated for sure.
16:51A growing staff, high-end stockists and courses,
16:55things really are going well for Izzy.
16:58Her five-week beginner courses are priced at £270
17:01and she charges £450 per person
17:05for the ten-week developer course.
17:07It's great to see her diversifying her business
17:10and she's set up a mug workshop
17:12so that I can try out one of her courses.
17:16I'm ready.
17:17I'm ready.
17:17Apron's on.
17:18Yeah.
17:19Let's do it.
17:20We start by throwing our clay onto the wheel.
17:24Controlled by a foot pedal and with wet hands,
17:26press the clay down
17:27before we start to form an upside-down cone shape.
17:31You want the top of this to be slightly domed.
17:34Or up.
17:34So if you can squeeze the clay
17:36and just try and bring a bit of a curve shape on the top
17:40because then we're set up to go into our cone.
17:42Yeah.
17:43Very nice.
17:44Yes.
17:44Yeah, lovely.
17:45Lovely.
17:46And you're going to start pushing through the middle of the clay there,
17:49leaning into the side
17:50and you're squeezing the clay between those two hands
17:54and rising them up.
17:56And maybe let's get a little bit more water on your clay,
17:59but looking really nice.
18:01Good.
18:01To remove any air bubbles trapped in the clay,
18:04we push it back down and repeat the process
18:06before creating a donut shape.
18:09This is looking great.
18:11OK.
18:11You've jumped two steps.
18:13I love it.
18:14Have I?
18:14You have.
18:15This is the advanced class.
18:16No, no, no.
18:17It's brilliant.
18:18All down knowing.
18:19It's brilliant.
18:20Now we're going to compress the base.
18:22So this is the bit that's smoothing out the floor up and down
18:28until you're happy that the floor is nice and smooth.
18:31To pull up the walls,
18:33your middle finger is doing most of the heavy lifting.
18:35Just gently squeezing
18:36and keep on going all the way up to the top.
18:39In one.
18:39Don't stop.
18:40Once you start.
18:40In one.
18:40Yeah.
18:41And when you get to the top,
18:42you're just gently going to release the clay from your hands.
18:46Gently come away.
18:48And breathe.
18:49How did you know?
18:52It's a bit of a nerve-wracking moment.
18:54That first pull-up thinking, oh, my goodness.
18:56Me.
18:58OK.
18:59OK.
18:59This is good.
19:00This is good.
19:01Really good.
19:01Once I've pulled it into something
19:03that almost looks like the shape and size of a mug,
19:06Izzy's got a trick to help me tidy up the sides.
19:09We can use one of these kidneys
19:11to kind of create a nice straight edge.
19:13Oh, nice.
19:14You're going to have your hand in there in the middle.
19:16Yeah.
19:17And you're really gently pushing the clay.
19:21So get a...
19:22Tilt the tool a little bit in.
19:24Yeah.
19:24And then you can push out at the base, really.
19:27Yeah.
19:27I think we leave it there.
19:28Perfect.
19:29I'm happy with that.
19:30Beautiful.
19:30I'm more than happy with that.
19:31OK.
19:31You should be.
19:33Normally, our mugs would be allowed to dry for a few days.
19:36But Izzy has helped mine by drying it with a heat gun
19:39so we can move on to making the handle.
19:42Put this hand just behind here
19:44and you're going to push it on
19:45and give it a bit of a, like, wiggle almost,
19:47pressing with your thumb
19:49just to splend those pieces in.
19:53Now you're going to wet your hand
19:55and this very gently,
19:56just kind of gently pull down.
20:00After attaching the handle,
20:02my mug actually looks like a mug.
20:04I love it.
20:05So do I.
20:06I love it.
20:06I will treasure that.
20:08I really will.
20:08I'll keep that for a long time.
20:10Good.
20:11Izzy's going to get my mug fired and glazed
20:14so I can enjoy a cuppa from it soon.
20:16Aside from collaborating with stockists,
20:19which she's been hugely successful with,
20:21I'm keen to find out
20:22how much the rest of the advice we gave her at the bootcamp
20:25has helped her to build her business.
20:29Izzy, when you came to the bootcamp,
20:31Florian and I gave you an action plan
20:32with some key pointers
20:33to try and help you build this business.
20:35One of the pointers we wanted you to work on
20:37was your social media
20:38to gain a following
20:39and hopefully gain customers.
20:40This was something that Florian
20:42really helped me a lot with actually
20:43and he gave me a few really good tips
20:46around posting more regularly,
20:48the kind of content I was posting,
20:50telling a bit of a story
20:51behind the making process
20:53and I did see a big increase in my followers.
20:56Did you?
20:57I did.
20:57I'm now on around 44,000.
21:0044,000?
21:01I think.
21:01Around that.
21:02And where were you before?
21:03One or 2,000 maybe.
21:04So you've gained over 40,000 followers?
21:07Yes.
21:08Yeah, yeah.
21:09That's impressive.
21:10Thank you so much.
21:12Florian was very keen
21:13for you to increase your efficiency
21:15and the speed you can make things.
21:17I was making the candlestick holders
21:19in about 15 minutes, I think.
21:22Yeah, and he wanted under five.
21:23And he wanted under five,
21:24which honestly at the time
21:26I kind of didn't know
21:27if that could even be done.
21:30Yeah.
21:30Are we under the five minutes though?
21:31I think four or five minutes
21:33is kind of how quickly
21:35I'd throw a candlestick holder now.
21:36I'm blown away by that.
21:37Four minutes.
21:38From having thrown so many.
21:41Izzy's nailed every part
21:42of her action plan.
21:44By establishing a successful
21:45teaching business as well,
21:47she's gone even further.
21:48And I'm excited to find out
21:50how much money she's now making.
21:52Do you mind if we talk figures?
21:54How much is this all earning you at home?
21:56Based on both the teaching
21:58I've been doing
21:59and running the business
22:00and then also my own making,
22:03I've made around 50 grand
22:05is my earnings.
22:08Around that.
22:08That's a lot of money.
22:10Yeah.
22:10Well done.
22:11Do you know what?
22:12You deserve every penny of it.
22:13You're making it work.
22:15Yeah, I can't quite believe it
22:16because I'm now in a position
22:18where I'm earning more
22:19than I did in my corporate job before.
22:21But I love what I do.
22:23So I'm, you know,
22:24I'm just, I'm over the moon.
22:25That was the dream.
22:27Yeah.
22:27Three and a half years ago,
22:29Izzy's decision to leave
22:30a well-paid advertising job
22:31to pursue a career in pottery
22:33felt like a big leap.
22:35Now, with an income
22:36of £50,000 a year
22:37from making and teaching
22:39after taking off her costs,
22:41it's a leap that's paid off
22:43magnificently.
22:44The last three years
22:45has been amazing.
22:47It's definitely been
22:48a lot of hard work,
22:49but I love that I get to work
22:51with clay every day
22:52and it's something
22:54that I'm really passionate about
22:55and I'm able to share that
22:56with other people.
22:57And so overall,
22:59it's been really amazing.
23:05The next maker
23:06whose progress
23:07we're going to be checking up on
23:08is teacher and fluid artist
23:10Gemma from Essex.
23:12She also came to my boot camp
23:14just over three and a half years ago
23:16and like Izzy,
23:17was hoping we could help her
23:18with a career change.
23:20I'm a teacher
23:20and I've been a teacher
23:21for 13 years
23:22and I love it,
23:23but it happened a bit by accident.
23:25I would have really loved
23:26to have had a career in art,
23:27but when I was applying
23:29to university,
23:29I was given some advice
23:30from a career advisor
23:31who said that there was
23:33no chance of making
23:34a career in art,
23:35so why bother doing it
23:36at university?
23:37So that really set a course
23:38for where I am now.
23:40Gemma's work was a wonderful mix
23:42of chemistry and creativity.
23:44Using different oils,
23:46paints and water,
23:47she created flowing,
23:48multi-layered abstract pieces
23:50and had dreams of it
23:51helping her to live
23:52a more creative life.
23:54I'm looking to completely
23:55change my life.
23:56I'm looking to start again
23:58and create a business
23:59that will carve out
24:00a future for me in art.
24:04To help Gemma make
24:06the new start she was hoping for,
24:08she was mentored
24:08by professional artist
24:10Sharon Walters.
24:12Sharon has collaborated
24:13with the Tate
24:14and the National Portrait Gallery
24:16and was keen to help Gemma
24:18turn her talent
24:18into a successful business.
24:21You can see with Gemma
24:23she's actually passionate
24:24about what she does.
24:25Her work is so beautiful.
24:27It incorporates nature
24:28and I think she has
24:30a great approach
24:31to creating unique work
24:33in an abstract way.
24:35For her volume piece,
24:36Gemma made three sets
24:38of fluid art coasters
24:39on slate,
24:40porcelain and wood
24:41priced at £18 each.
24:44I love the uniqueness
24:45of this work.
24:46Can you talk me
24:47through the process?
24:48Yeah, so this is a base
24:51of just a pouring medium
24:53which will dry clear.
24:55Yeah.
24:55So think like PVA glue.
24:56That sort of.
24:58And when this dries clear
24:59you'll be able to see
25:00the wood underneath.
25:01So now I'm building up
25:02the different layers.
25:03This paint,
25:04I've mixed it already
25:05so it's got paint conditioner
25:07in which creates
25:08the fluid movements
25:09and also means
25:11that they don't
25:12cross over and blend
25:13unless I make them blend
25:14which keeps the distinction.
25:16How are you getting
25:16on business-wise?
25:17At the moment
25:18I think I've got
25:19a hobby which pays
25:21for itself
25:21and gives me
25:22a bit of extra pocket money.
25:23I don't think I've got
25:25the makings of a new life
25:26yet or a career.
25:29Whilst Gemma pushed on
25:30with her volume piece
25:31Sharon and I sat down
25:33to talk about
25:33her high-end item.
25:35She'd upcycled
25:37a small chest of drawers
25:38she'd bought for £20.
25:40Decorated with a fluid art design
25:42it had a price tag
25:43of £200.
25:45I love the idea
25:47of using her paint work
25:49on a piece of furniture
25:50but I'm not sure
25:52that's the right piece
25:52of furniture.
25:53You know what
25:53I completely agree with you.
25:54When I saw the canvases
25:55I just thought
25:56that would be brilliant
25:57on some furniture
25:58just not that bit of furniture.
26:00No, not that bit of furniture.
26:01Mid-century cleaner design
26:02slicker could just be
26:03on a piece of plywood
26:04set in to a panel
26:05or something like that.
26:06There's a lot more
26:07to think about
26:07I think around
26:08the furniture side of things.
26:12Back in the artist's corner
26:14Gemma had reached
26:15a delicate stage
26:16in producing
26:16one of her coasters.
26:19The pipette
26:20is going to create
26:21a slightly different effect
26:23particularly
26:23because this is thinner.
26:25This looks like
26:25such a therapeutic process.
26:28It's incredibly therapeutic.
26:30I'm going to manipulate it
26:31and move it around
26:32in this case
26:33just using a toothpick
26:34but you can do it
26:35with lots and lots
26:35of different things.
26:37Allow a certain amount
26:38of blending
26:39so you get this
26:40kind of marbled effect.
26:43Once Gemma was happy
26:44with the design
26:45she gave it a helping hand
26:47to set.
26:52The blowtorching
26:53is going to just
26:55help it to set
26:56and also start activating
26:57in the looser paint colours
26:59some of the cells.
27:01So you can see
27:02that one's already
27:03splitting
27:04and that one
27:05and that will continue
27:06over the next hour or so.
27:08So how long
27:09do they take to set?
27:10To get completely dry
27:11before I can put
27:11a second layer on
27:13which will be resin
27:14somewhere about two days.
27:16Plain resin
27:17which will protect
27:18the coaster
27:18but also make it
27:19really glossy
27:20and really shiny.
27:24Excluding drying time
27:25Gemma's coaster sets
27:27had a make time
27:27of three and a half hours
27:28material costs
27:30of £6.50
27:31and a price tag
27:32of £18 per set.
27:35I actually love coasters
27:37I can't believe
27:37I'm admitting this
27:38but I really really
27:39love coasters
27:39and I think these
27:41feel like more
27:42of a luxury item
27:43but I would suggest
27:45possibly having
27:46a different kind
27:46of storage for these
27:47in terms of your packaging
27:49if you had maybe
27:50a wooden type storage
27:52where these could
27:54actually sit
27:55and be stored
27:55in a really good way
27:56I think that would
27:57work really well
27:58and you could charge
27:58slightly more for them
27:59that way.
28:00That's a brilliant idea.
28:02I definitely feel
28:03that I can learn
28:04a lot from some
28:05of the feedback
28:06that I got
28:07especially from Sharon
28:08but it was lovely
28:09to hear that they
28:09liked them
28:10because when your
28:10heart and soul
28:11has gone into something
28:12it's good to know
28:13that that's being
28:13reflected and shown
28:14to other people.
28:16Sharon believed
28:17that with some tweaks
28:18Gemma's first two items
28:20had the potential
28:21to be popular
28:21and profitable products.
28:24For her third challenge
28:25we asked her
28:26to produce her favourite piece
28:27to discover
28:28if what she loved
28:29creating most
28:30could win over
28:31customers too.
28:33She chose to make
28:34a seaside triptych
28:36a painting
28:37made up of
28:37three separate
28:38and in this case
28:39identically sized
28:40canvases
28:42showcasing a seascape
28:43priced at £130.
28:46This is base coat
28:48this has to be
28:48more fluid
28:49than the rest
28:49of the paint
28:50that I'm going to put
28:51on because
28:51this is going to be
28:52the medium
28:52through which
28:52everything else happens
28:54so if this bit
28:56isn't the right
28:57chemical makeup
28:58and isn't the right
28:59viscosity
28:59the rest
29:00will not
29:01behave the way
29:02I want it to.
29:03With her base layer
29:05complete
29:05Gemma started
29:06to add extra
29:07layers of paint.
29:08This is called
29:09a Dutch pour
29:10so we're going to
29:11essentially cover up
29:12the paint
29:13and then use
29:15the hairdryer
29:16to reveal the paint
29:17which has this
29:18poetry with
29:20the actual ocean
29:21and the sand
29:21because the wind
29:23would blow
29:24the ocean
29:25and the sea
29:26spray.
29:28As Gemma's
29:29process was so
29:30unique
29:30Sharon was keen
29:31to take a look.
29:32Hi Gemma.
29:34Hi.
29:34How's it going?
29:36Really well
29:36just creating
29:38this sea effect
29:39but it needs a bit
29:40of manipulation
29:41and playing with
29:42now so I'm going
29:43to use my mouth
29:44and the straw
29:44to kind of move
29:45that around
29:45and then to move
29:46these around as well.
29:47You can feel
29:48the movement
29:48in the piece
29:49and I love the use
29:50of colours in this
29:50work.
29:52I really love
29:52the use of colours.
30:00I think she's
30:01kind of holding
30:02on to it like
30:02oh it's a bit
30:03experimental
30:04and it's
30:04but experiments
30:05can be art.
30:08She needs to
30:09place some value
30:09on what she's
30:10actually doing
30:11and believe in
30:12herself more.
30:14Gemma's seaside
30:15triptych was a
30:16beautiful piece
30:17of abstract art
30:18and she gave it
30:19an asking price
30:19of £130.
30:21I think it's
30:22a brilliant piece
30:23of work and
30:23really exemplifies
30:24the work that
30:24you've been doing.
30:25Just wonderful.
30:26Really well done.
30:28How about the price?
30:29I think that's
30:30a really reasonable
30:30price for an
30:32original piece
30:32of artwork.
30:33In terms of
30:34where you would
30:34sell it I really
30:35think that it
30:36would do really
30:36well in a gallery
30:37so maybe a
30:38smaller gallery
30:39type space.
30:40By the sea?
30:41Yeah by the sea.
30:42Yeah.
30:42Yeah you'd get
30:43a really good
30:43market there.
30:44So useful and
30:45just ready and
30:46raring to go.
30:48As she headed
30:49home to Essex
30:50we gave Gemma
30:51an action plan
30:51to help make
30:52her dream of
30:53becoming a
30:53full-time artist
30:54come true.
30:57First she needed
30:58to work on more
30:59luxurious packaging
31:00for her wooden
31:00coasters to help
31:02boost their prices
31:03and profits.
31:04Next we wanted her
31:06to contact
31:06Seaside Galleries
31:07to sell her seascapes.
31:09Finally she needed
31:11to believe in herself
31:12and put her art
31:13out there to sell.
31:18For the next two
31:19months Sharon
31:20supported Gemma
31:21as she worked
31:22around the clock
31:23to get her business
31:24off the ground
31:25starting with
31:26contacting galleries.
31:27I've been really
31:28inspired by the advice
31:30about creating more
31:31seascape work
31:32and targeting
31:33galleries
31:34along the
31:35seafront
31:35for those.
31:36So I've been
31:37working on a few
31:38new techniques
31:39for example
31:39using resin
31:40split with
31:41silicon oil
31:42to create
31:43some really
31:43exciting bubble
31:44effects
31:45in artworks.
31:47I also have been
31:48thinking about
31:48how I can make
31:49my coaster range
31:50more upmarket
31:51for shops.
31:52So this is quite
31:53difficult because
31:54I've been working
31:55on a few different
31:55styles of boxes
31:56but they do come
31:57out quite expensive.
31:59To try and sell
32:01her work
32:01Gemma travelled
32:02to an upmarket
32:03makers festival
32:04in Oxfordshire.
32:05It was a real
32:06test of the
32:07self-confidence
32:07she needed to
32:08develop to build
32:09her business
32:10and after the
32:11first day
32:11she had good
32:13news.
32:14Sold my
32:15big triptych
32:17which is great
32:18really excited
32:19about that one
32:19also lots of
32:20coasters sold.
32:22Over the next
32:23three days
32:24the good news
32:25kept on coming.
32:26The coasters
32:27have been selling
32:27really well
32:28and a few
32:28smaller pieces
32:29of art.
32:30It's been quite
32:30a good art day
32:31today.
32:31It's sold lots
32:32of art.
32:33It's sold out
32:33of trays,
32:34sold out of
32:34small pots
32:36so it's been
32:37really good.
32:39In the eight
32:40weeks after my
32:41boot camp
32:41Gemma tackled
32:42her action plan
32:43with real
32:44drive and
32:44determination
32:45and when she
32:46reported back
32:47she blew us
32:48away with her
32:49progress.
32:50How much
32:50have you made?
32:52I've taken
32:52£4,300
32:53which is
32:54incredible.
32:55No!
32:55So good.
32:56Well done.
33:00Gemma had
33:01to deduct
33:01her costs
33:02from her
33:02brilliant
33:03sales figure
33:03but she'd
33:04put herself
33:05on track
33:05to having
33:06real success.
33:08Three and a
33:09half years
33:09later
33:09lots has
33:10changed
33:11in Gemma's
33:11life.
33:12Almost
33:13two years
33:13ago she
33:14gave birth
33:14to daughter
33:15Wren
33:15and she's
33:16very recently
33:17moved house.
33:18She's also
33:19been working
33:20hard on her
33:20business and
33:21I've asked
33:22Sharon to pop
33:22along to find
33:23out what she's
33:24achieved and
33:25how much cash
33:25she's bringing
33:26in now.
33:27Hi.
33:28How are you?
33:30Good to see you.
33:32Come in.
33:33I can't wait to
33:33see.
33:35Up until a few
33:36days ago Gemma
33:37was working from
33:38her dining room
33:38table but after
33:40moving house she
33:41now has her own
33:42studio and it's
33:43already looking
33:44fabulous.
33:46This is
33:47beautiful.
33:47Thank you very
33:48You must be so
33:49happy here.
33:49I love the
33:50space.
33:51How has this
33:52changed your
33:53practice?
33:53Having lots more
33:54space to be able to
33:55work on multiple
33:56things at once is
33:57going to be a
33:58game changer.
33:58I can do big
33:59pieces, leave them
34:00and then work on
34:00other things and
34:01then hopefully once
34:02I'm embedded have
34:04more workshops.
34:05I've done one
34:06but in a hired
34:08village hall space
34:09which is great but
34:12the problem is the
34:13artwork has to dry
34:14for quite a few
34:15days laying
34:16completely still so
34:17you're having to
34:18hire a space for a
34:19much longer period
34:19afterwards while
34:20everyone's work is
34:21drying.
34:22Here I'm going to
34:22be able to have
34:2410, 12 people in
34:25leave the work to
34:26dry, post it to
34:27them afterwards.
34:29Those things are
34:29going to mean that
34:30I can step back a
34:31little bit from the
34:32school side.
34:33That's the long term
34:34goal.
34:35After you left
34:35boot camp how did
34:36you manage to grow
34:37the business?
34:39It was a really
34:40steep learning curve.
34:41I have so many
34:43commissions.
34:45Over about an
34:4618 month period
34:47over 200
34:47commissions.
34:48Wow that's
34:49fantastic.
34:50Yeah I've been
34:51selling everything
34:52ranging from kind of
34:5350 or 60 pounds the
34:54cheapest pieces right
34:56the way up to over
34:57a thousand pounds
34:57some of my
34:58commissions.
34:59Both Dom your
35:00advice the kick
35:02start that it gave
35:02me made such a
35:04difference.
35:04So what pieces are
35:05selling the best for
35:06you?
35:07Art wise the smaller
35:09pieces the 30
35:09centimetre 20
35:10centimetre panels
35:11they're kind of 50
35:1360 pounds and
35:14coasters I was
35:15selling them in
35:16fours but I've
35:17moved to twos of
35:18those and I sell
35:19them for about 18
35:19pounds for a pair.
35:21It's great to hear
35:23that the coasters
35:23Gemma made for her
35:24volume piece are
35:25proving popular.
35:27Along with her
35:28commissioned work
35:28like this triptych
35:29which has recently
35:30sold for 385
35:32pounds and the big
35:34blue wave canvas
35:35for 442.
35:37She's also been
35:39busy developing new
35:40pieces and now
35:41makes 3D art
35:42priced between 80
35:43to 800 pounds
35:44depending on size.
35:46Gemma's going to
35:47show Sharon how she
35:48makes one called
35:49droplets on petals.
35:51She starts by
35:52rolling out air
35:53drying clay
35:54wets the board
35:55which forms her
35:56canvas with water
35:57and begins to
35:58create the petals.
36:00The idea is that
36:01you essentially see
36:03what happens organically
36:04with the clay.
36:05You're kind of
36:06going to have a bit
36:07of a play.
36:08Play with the clay.
36:09Yeah.
36:10I'm seeing kind of
36:11how things feel as
36:12I'm moving it around
36:14and because I'm going
36:15for petals with water
36:18that's going to sit in
36:19them I want it to
36:21take this kind of
36:22organic shape.
36:23I'm going to take
36:24some parts out and
36:26then this is me
36:26moulding it then to
36:28the board.
36:29I have to make these
36:30little grooves which
36:31I'll sand down because
36:32otherwise the resin and
36:33the paint will just
36:33all pour off.
36:34If I want this area
36:36to pull paint and
36:37resin then this needs
36:38to be lower.
36:39What have been your
36:39biggest successes since
36:41boot camp do you
36:41think?
36:42I've had successes
36:43with major commissions
36:46selling things that
36:48are four figures
36:49having people come
36:50back purchase again
36:51and again.
36:52Successes like being
36:53able to move into
36:54the studio this is a
36:55pretty massive success
36:56because being able to
36:57run workshops for
36:59larger groups of
37:00people I've got 20
37:0028 people at the
37:02moment on a waiting
37:02list.
37:02Fantastic, so good.
37:04But obviously like the
37:06biggest success that's
37:07happened since I saw
37:07you last was I had my
37:08daughter, it wasn't
37:10even an art thing.
37:12As the clay needs
37:13around a week to dry
37:14Gemma's prepped one
37:16that's already dried,
37:17sanded and primed with
37:18a water repellent layer
37:20ready for painting.
37:22The next stage is to
37:23paint the background
37:26which is this nice kind
37:27of neutral colour.
37:29The paint has to be
37:30mixed with various
37:31different paint
37:32conditioners if you want
37:33to create different
37:35effects.
37:36So imagine you wanted a
37:37blue paint to sit slightly
37:38on top of a white paint,
37:39it would need to be a
37:39different thickness.
37:41So I think I'm pretty
37:42much there with the
37:43background so I'm going
37:44to add the colour now.
37:46Do you feel excited
37:47with this bit?
37:48I do feel excited but
37:50it's the scary bit.
37:50You can't do this bit
37:52again if it goes wrong.
37:53You can lift the clay
37:54back up, you can clean
37:56resin off but this is a
37:58do or die moment really.
38:00And here I am peering
38:02over your shoulder.
38:03No pressure Gemma,
38:04just do it really well.
38:05Yeah, just stoke myself.
38:07Gemma, I'm wishing you
38:09well.
38:10A combination of
38:11pre-mixed coloured
38:12paints are poured into
38:13a mini tray and then
38:14applied to the clay
38:15shapes.
38:18She then uses a
38:20hairdryer, straw and
38:25palette knife to move
38:27the colours across the
38:28canvas to look like
38:29petals.
38:30Interesting seeing this
38:32process.
38:34Finally a blowtorch
38:36helps pop any air
38:37bubbles that have formed
38:38in the paint.
38:39This will have to stay
38:41completely still for a
38:43week until it dries.
38:45I've had artworks that
38:47I've laid down to dry
38:48gone to bed, go up in the
38:48morning and they weren't
38:49completely flat and all the
38:51paints just slid off
38:52destroying it.
38:53And all that work's gone.
38:54Yeah, exactly.
38:56To show Sharon the
38:57finishing touches, Gemma's
38:59prepared another piece
39:00that's already dried and
39:02adds silicone oil and
39:03resin to create the
39:04effect of water droplets.
39:07What the silicone oil does
39:08is repels the resin, like water and
39:11oil basically, so that it creates
39:14this bubble effect.
39:18After all of the tiny droplets
39:20have been placed meticulously, it's
39:23going to take a few days for the resin
39:25to cure and after that you have a
39:29finished piece.
39:31Gemma's droplets on petals 3D canvas has
39:34material costs of £42, a make time of
39:37around three weeks and is priced at £340.
39:41It's great to see her having the
39:44confidence to produce new work as
39:45well as hearing about all her success.
39:48And I'm keen to find out how the
39:50action plan we gave her at the boot
39:52camp three and a half years ago has
39:54helped to build her business and
39:55improve her bank balance.
39:57One of the things we asked you to do
40:00was to maybe upscale your packaging
40:02for your coasters.
40:04Have you stuck to that?
40:05What I ended up doing was upscaling
40:07for different environments.
40:09So I package them in different ways
40:10depending on where they're going to.
40:13But the actual full-blown boxes
40:15worked out quite expensive.
40:17So I moved away from that
40:19eventually, but yeah, I've still
40:21taken that message on board and
40:22created different packaging overall.
40:24Another thing that I mentioned to you
40:26was that it was really important that
40:28you started to believe in yourself more.
40:30And to really put your art out there.
40:32It looks as though you've done that.
40:33Having worked with lots of people
40:35for commissions now, I have confidence
40:36in that process in getting positive
40:38feedback from people.
40:40That's really supported that confidence.
40:42I think when you try something new,
40:44it knocks you down a peg.
40:45You have to rebuild the confidence again.
40:47So ebbs and flows with that.
40:50Of course.
40:50I do think even if you don't realise it,
40:53you are far more confident than you were.
40:56So it's great to see.
40:57Really good to see.
41:00I agree with Sharon.
41:02Gemma's built her confidence
41:04and a business with old favourites,
41:06new pieces and workshops.
41:09I can't wait to find out
41:10what it all means for her finances.
41:12When you were at bootcamp,
41:14one of the main things you wanted to do
41:15was to make money.
41:17How have you gotten on with that?
41:18Obviously, I had my first year
41:20after bootcamp, then I had my daughter.
41:22So I've really only returned this year
41:24back to full pelt, next phase of the business.
41:27And I'm on track this year after cost
41:31to pay myself about £35,000.
41:34That's fantastic.
41:34How do you feel?
41:36I feel delighted.
41:37I was really nervous post-maternity
41:39because it went so well before.
41:41I was like, you know, the belief thing.
41:45You think, am I the same?
41:47Are people going to buy back into me?
41:49And so after maternity leave,
41:51having things pick back up incredibly,
41:54it's felt really exciting,
41:56but it's validating that the art has worth.
41:59It has worth for me
42:00and it also has worth to other people.
42:04Earning £35,000 a year after costs
42:07so soon after returning to work
42:09following the birth of her daughter
42:11is a phenomenal achievement for Gemma.
42:14She currently still works
42:16three days a week as a teacher
42:17but is on course to fulfilling her dream
42:20of becoming a full-time artist.
42:23The last three and a half years
42:24have been a bit of a rollercoaster.
42:27Post bootcamp I had.
42:29The most amazing pick-up in business
42:31and it was such a steep learning curve.
42:35Since having my baby,
42:37I've had to start all over again
42:38and coming to where I am now,
42:40starting this next phase
42:41is just, it's up from here.
42:44That's how it feels.
42:46Building a creative business
42:48takes more than just talent.
42:49You need resilience,
42:51an ability to think on your feet
42:52and a real focus on exactly
42:55what you want your business to be.
42:57Over the past three and a half years,
42:59Gemma and Izzy have proved
43:00that they've got all of these things in spades
43:03and I've absolutely no doubt
43:05they'll both go on
43:06to even bigger and better things.
43:10Want some help building a business that lasts?
43:13Visit the Open University's interactive guide
43:16for practical help
43:17to sustain and grow your business.
43:19Scan the QR code on screen
43:21or visit connect.open.ac.uk
43:25forward slash I made it at market.
43:57We'll see you next time.
43:58COVID-19
43:58COVID-19
43:58COVID-19
43:59COVID-19
Comments