Sunday, 13 November 2011

An interview with Hipp

This week's interview is with the lovely Julie Cunningham, owner of Hipp. I asked her a few questions about her business and what she has to offer....

Where are you based?

I am in Hipperholme, West Yorkshire.


When did you become a crafty person?

From being a toddler, sticking shells to margarine tubs with plaster of paris!


Where can we find your handmade products?

You can get my products from a variety of really lovely stockists listed on my blog


How did you start out doing what you do?

I found some fabric on holiday in the Algarve and loved how modern it looked and how quickly I could make a finished product. I sold the accessories I made to retailers and on my own stalls, and people asked me how they could make them. The logical way forward was to create The Hipp Kit.


Tell us a bit about your materials and processes.

The current Hipp Kit is made out of upcycled cotton jersey selvedges from clothing factories. It has been used for crafting in the Algarve and Netherlands for years and is just taking off in the UK.



Do you attend any markets and fairs we can visit, or that we may have seen

you at before?

You may have met me at Reetsweet at the Corn Exchange before. You can meet me next at the Knitting and Stitching Show, Harrogate 24-28 November. I am showcasing The Hipp Kit there with Create Cafe, Ilkley, one of my stockists.



You offer craft classes, tell us a little bit about these?

I run classes at DEAN CLOUGH and Cakewalk Vintage and some more venues are planned. You can learn how to make the current Hipp crochet bag, or you can attend a session of crochet classes learning a variety of stitches and follow a pattern.



How can we get involved?

I keep all my movements on my blog and my Facebook Page 'Hipp'. You can email me to express your interest in a class cunninghamjulie@yahoo.com


And finally, where do you plan to see yourself and Hipp in the next

few years?

The Hipp ethos is 'making traditional crafts modern'. I am constantly looking for new fabrics and yarns. In a few years Hipp customers will be wearing a number of contemporary wearable accessories that they have learned to make themselves.


Thank you very much Julie, don't forget to catch Julie at the Knitting and Stitching Show, Harrogate 24-28 November!

If you are an artist or designer maker and would like to be interviewed for this blog please feel free to email me at alexia@alexiaclaire.com

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