Bespoke: Unique items handcrafted for unique people.

Lady Maggie is a collaborative effort by husband and wife team Richard and Rebecca Clafton. We've taken our love of the quirky (and sometimes geeky) and combined old fashioned crafting with 21st century technology.

Originally, Lady Maggie started out as a sideline business for me (Rebecca) to sell handmade applique pillows and dog accessories. We named the shop after our beloved rescue Pug, Maggie.

When Richard noticed that I spent an extraordinary amount of time hand cutting each piece of applique, he thought there had to be a more efficient and less stressful way to cut the fabric. As Richard never thinks small, this soon turned into a quest. After exhaustive research, it was decided that a laser cutter would be an excellent tool for the job but also would allow us to branch into additional items we had been considering, such as dog tags and glass candle holders.

And so we bought a CO2 laser. Richard, the Techie, soon caught the bug and began experimenting with an array of materials. Not just fabric and paper, but soon slate, wood, acrylic and metal.

That first Christmas we offered custom engraved wooden ornaments with silhouettes of pets, personalized with their names as a fundraiser for the Pug rescue where we adopted Maggie. We were overwhelmed by the response and the orders flooded in. A light bulb went off! We looked for non-seasonal items to create after Christmas and hit upon engraved key chains.

Our wood key chains quickly began outselling our pillows and dog beds. We began experimenting with different woods with an array of stains. A childhood passion for painting was awakened as I learned about airbrushing techniques. We branched out into acrylic key rings, earrings and cake toppers. The business took off as people appreciated our unique designs. The next logical step was the addition of a Fiber laser, to allow easier engraving of metals. We bought a vinyl cutter and heat press so we could offer our own designs on pillowcases. Then, a sand carver was added so we could engrave stone and higher detail glass designs. We can now engrave nearly any material, and we offer everything from wooden chopping boards to slate coasters to memorial stones.

Richard, originally from Leeds, England, uses his past experience as a graphic designer and all around IT guru to use the latest software to help him bring his designs to life. While I, a former NASA geek originally from Florida, am able to bring my passion for crafting and handmade creations to the mix. Together, we make things that we like, our friends like, and hopefully our customers like too.

About our materials:

All of our wood is ethically sourced and sustainable. We use the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species and the Forest Stewardship Council certifications to ensure that we are using only sustainable resources. Whenever possible, we use reclaimed wood. As most of our items are small, we are able to use offcuts or waste products from other manufacturers, reducing the carbon footprint of these materials. We are committed to creating attractive, high quality items in an environmentally responsible manner.

We use the following wood species:

Bamboo: As everyone knows, bamboo is one of the most eco-friendly woods available. It is one of the fastest-growing plants in the world, which means it is a highly renewable and extremely sustainable resource.

Birch ply: Baltic birch ply differs from traditional plywood because the inner layers are solid birch veneers, not composite material.

Birch trees are sustainable and considered a renewable resource because they are abundant and fast growing. Birch trees can reach maturity up to twice as fast as oak. There is no destruction or disruption of biodiversity when birch is felled.

Eastern Cherry, Red Oak, Walnut, Yellow Poplar (Tuliptree): We use these woods for their grain and appearance. These are native to North America, FSC-certified and sustainable wood species.

Our finishes:

Shellac: Shellac is a natural, non-toxic and hypo-allergenic finish. Shellac is completely edible, and is in fact used in medications, food processing and to coat fresh fruit for transport. This makes it ideal for finishing wood items which might end up in the mouths of children, though we would never recommend using our wooden keyrings as teething rings! 

Polycrylic:A small number of our items require a more durable and waterproof finish. For those items we use polycrylic instead of polyurethane. This is a water-based formula, which means our clean-up involves only soap and water instead of harsh solvents.