Repurposed vintage & quirky home decor, handmade in the UK
Hello, and welcome to MakerMaking.
My name is behind the shop. I am a maker, a collector, a repurposer, and, at heart, someone who has never been able to walk past something characterful and old without wondering what it could become.
The story started a very long time ago. Before this shop existed there was a career that took in printing, theatre stage work, prop-making for opera companies and entertainment parks, and eventually website design and marketing. Woven through all of it was a growing collection of vintage pieces picked up at auctions, in skips, from the backs of shops, and from businesses that were closing their doors for the last time.
When I decided to turn that lifelong habit into something real, MakerMaking was born.
What you will find here
Every item in this shop is either genuinely vintage, sourced mainly from local UK auctions and, sometimes, sadly, from businesses that have ceased trading, or has been repurposed by my own hands into something new. Some pieces are entirely made from scratch: cast terracotta mirrors, collages, and printmaking work in progress.
The common thread is character. I am not interested in the mass-produced or the generic. I am interested in things that have had a life, that carry a little mystery, and that will bring something genuinely different into your home.
You might find a Victorian letterpress type tray cleaned and mounted as a shadow-box display. Or a Dunlop tennis racket press frame turned into a hanging mirror. Or a set of vintage 16mm film canisters repurposed into a side table. Or a beautiful 1870s French print, or a set of vintage French keyrings, or something entirely unexpected that I found last week and cannot quite explain yet.
My approach to sustainability
Buying vintage and repurposing the old is, I believe, the most sustainable form of home decorating there is. Nothing here was manufactured new for this shop by anyone else. I also reuse and buy second-hand packaging materials wherever I can, so your order arrives safely without unnecessary waste.
About the making
My background, arts degree, letterpress printing, lino printing, prop-making, a couple of decades of figuring things out, means I approach each piece practically as well as creatively. When I repurpose something I want the result to be solid, well-finished, and genuinely useful, not just decorative. The quirky is important to me, but so is the quality.
I am always happy to answer questions about any item, advise on sizing or how something might work in your space, or have a conversation about what I am working on next. Just send me a message.
Thank you for visiting. I hope something here catches your eye.
