Walk into The Craft Studio in Derby Road, Nottingham and there's a lovely sense of calm.
But it has taken hard work and some fraught moments to get the business to this point.
Clare Ireland, owner of the fabric, craft shop and workshop space, started with just £250 and a passion for craft.
The idea was born 12 years ago when Clare was on maternity leave with her and husband Brian’s first child, Ruby.
Clare, 46, says: “This idea came to me quite late. When I had my daughter, 12 years ago, I just thought 'how am I going to work this?'."
The idea of juggling work and parenthood was a daunting one.
Clare was in sales but has had a variety of jobs.
She said: “I was a visual merchandiser so I’ve always been good with colours and design.
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"And I’ve always enjoyed textiles, but I’ve also worked in sales and customer service, I’ve sold cars and worked in health clubs… which really surprises people.”
Taking the opportunity of a career pause that maternity leave gave her, Clare decided to go on a craft course.
SHe said: “A light just switched on.
"I thought ‘this is amazing’ so I went on a few more courses, then I did a teacher training course and started to teach at what was then South Notts College as a sessional tutor.”
Finding that a lot of the adults on the course just wanted to come for the fun of the practical lessons but didn’t particularly want the learning side to achieve a certificate, she spotted a gap in the market.
She gave up her well-paid sales job and set up in a little studio space above a bridal shop at the bottom of Lower Parliament Street.
“It was £200 a month rent which just seemed like so much money.“
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She started teaching weekend classes in the studio and taught at South Notts in the evening.
“I started looking at buying sewing machines and with £750 earned bought six machines.”
With more space needed and the third floor studio now impractical for some of the groups attending classes she eventually found a 500 sq ft shop at the top of Derby Road. “It seemed huge at the time.”
Husband Brian, a digital marketer created the website and the business continued in this space for the next five years until the lease was up.
By this time she had her second child, Henry, now four.
Thanks to a small business loan from EMM following what she describes as a “Dragon’s Den type interview” she moved to number 60, Derby Road in Nottingham and took on a property four times the size of the previous shop.
But the move wasn’t without its issues. From signing the lease until finally moving in two years ago there were various issues with the rentals documentation which left Clare with a £3,500 solicitors bill that she just couldn’t pay.
She said: “I thought, just what am I going to do? The money that I had put on one side was for decorating.
"My husband suggested crowd-funding which [initially] I said I couldn’t do because I didn't feel comfortable asking my customers for money when they already supported my business through attending workshops and buying fabric, but we did a crowd-funding campaign and all my customers chipped in.
"It was just lovely to hear the comments - ‘it’s amazing', 'you’re amazing', 'you so deserve it', 'I’ve just loved your classes'... it was so emotional.”
So, with the solicitor's bill paid and crowdfunding helping towards renovating costs, everything was back on track.
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But life has a way of throwing in challenges along the way and Brian lost his job, so readjustment continued as he helped with childcare and with the shop.
Now working part-time he continues to help and the business works around their family.
Pop in today and you’ll see a shop filled with not only workshop space but also fabrics including Liberty fabrics, exclusive paints, like Annie Sloan Chalk Paint and craft ideas and supplies.
Between five and six self-employed tutors work providing courses for all age groups, backgrounds and abilities and Clare says that ‘word of mouth’, the huge window and website design attracts both tutors and course attendees.
“We are still a small business. I am the business owner and I still look after the shop”, but she also has an eye on the future with plans to convert the basement into more workshop/studio space.
Clare has been nominated in the NottinghamshireLive Women in Business Awards 2019. See for details.