Welcome to The Finishing Room

Ok, I think I’ve kept you in suspense for long enough so here it is……… fan fare please……. the new name for my business is……..

As I’m sure you can imagine, choosing a new name was a difficult process, but in some ways this one was gifted to me by my new location and it just felt so right.

The space that I now occupy is a listed building that once housed workers who would inscribe geometric designs onto the blown glass before it would be acid etched – the space was one of a number of ‘Finishing Rooms’ that existed on the site. Fast forward to 2017 and you’ll find me in the same space working on the finishing touches to your home interior.

My new workshop as it was in the 1800’s

The look and feel for my new branding is intentionally bold, clean and simple. It was important for me that it felt different to my previous branding, I wanted to feel like it was a real step forward.

The new space enables me to do so much more; I have space for an interiors retail shop, space to work, space to consult on your next upholstery project and at a later date, space to run a few workshops too. All of these things will sit well with my new name.

What do you think?

I’m on track to open my doors to the public for the first time over the Bank Holiday weekend which also coincides with the 2017 British Glass Biennale so there will be a lot to see both here at The Red House Cone and also at the nearby Ruskin Glass centre. Why not come down and say hi? I’d love to show you the new space!

On the Move

About 9 months ago my workshop buddy, Dean and I noticed a pair of surveyors measuring up the building that we occupy. We thought we should ask a few questions. it turned out that our workshop and the rest of the victorian factory buildings around us were in the process of being sold off by our landlords to housing developers who have been desperate to build on the site for years. But what about our workshop??

We were told that the deal wasn’t imminent and that we would likely have 18 months before we needed to go, but in the last few months more and more of the units have become vacant and Dean and I are almost the last men standing. Now, not being a fan of a last-minute panic I decided to start looking for a new workshop location and it wasn’t long before an interesting opportunity presented itself.

Stourbridge is famed for glass and crystal with production dating back to the 1600’s and peaking in the 19th Century. So why am I giving you this whistle stop history lesson? Well it’s all to do with a local landmark – the Red House Cone. Stourbridge is home to only known complete glass blowing cone, a massive brick built chimney containing furnaces where the glass blowers would work in sweltering heat. The location of many a school trip in my childhood, the cone is now a visitor centre and museum ……. but more importantly home to a variety of local makers, artisans and crafts people. Oh, and if you hadn’t already guessed it, it’ll be my new home by the end of today too!

 

There’s no missing this local landmark (so I’ll be easy to find!!)

I’ve been fortunate enough to secure a great workshop in one of the listed factory buildings, the space where they used to quality control and check all of the glass once it had been blown. It’s a much bigger space than I currently have which means that I might even start running a few workshops in the near future. Even better is that it’s open to the public, so I can have a shop space as well as a workshop space – I’m so excited!!

Inside, the space is a very simple victorian warehouse with white painted brick walls and bare floorboards – the perfect backdrop for modern interior goodies and beautifully upholstered chairs. It’s going to take a few weeks to get set up, but I’m aiming for my first ‘open house’ at the end of August – you should come and say hi!

So it’s all change for the Cantin’ Patch, which brings me to my next piece of news……….. (but you’ll have to wait for that)

P.S. Give me a shout if you’re feeling strong this week – my sewing machines need moving and they’re REALLY heavy!

I’ve been branded!

Over the past couple of months I’ve been working with the very talented Hannah Hubbleday on the look and feel of The Cantin Patch brand. First impressions count, so I wanted to make sure that even at this early stage, my little upholstery business looks the part and continues to look that part as it grows.

Hannah, a designer with a great deal of experience has recently set up her own business, so it felt like an even better fit that we should work together and support each other at this exciting time.

I had a few things on my wish list:
1. My brand should have a slightly masculine edge – it’s very easy to go all ‘Kath Kidston’ when you think about craft and fabrics and that’s not really my style
2. My brand should reflect my Black Country location – after all, my brand name is derived from a Black Country word
3. I love shields and emblems – I just do.

And so with a good grasp of my likes and dislikes, Hannah set to work on phase 1 – my logo. She skilfully created a number of logos for me to consider and I have to say that I had underestimated how tough the decisions would be! This was something that I could be living with for a very long time, so it needs to be right.

Anyway, over a period of a few weeks I consulted some of my most trusted friends and I lived with the logos for a little while to see how they felt. There was however a clear winner (I think I knew this from the moment I saw it) and here it is…..

What Hannah has done for me here is successfully tick all the items on my wish list and then some! My new logo feels masculine, but still represents my craft through the simple, monochrome buttons and the crossed needles. Hannah has taken the pear from the Stourbridge coat of arms and added it to my own shield as a really lovely ‘nod’ to my Black Country roots. The geometric pattern in the bottom right was inspired by one of my early pieces, the large peacock-footstool. I love how the whole thing looks traditional and modern at the same time.

So with the logo agreed, it was time to start applying it to things; letterheads, cards and social media to name just a few.

One of the things we considered with the logo was whether it needed some colour and we talked quite a bit about how that might look. In the end we agreed that the monochrome logo would enable me to work with a variety of patterns and textures that could sit behind the logo, adjusting the look and feel very slightly with the logo itself providing the consistency. My new business cards show how this works and Hannah has used the same principle to make my letterheads, invoices, stickers and even postcards!

One of the other things that I really like it being able to take just one of the elements from the shield, in this case the pear, and use it to reinforce the brand without having to use the whole logo

Today we’ve applied the new brand to my Twitter and Pinterest accounts, and you’ll also find it on my newly created Facebook page . I’m just so excited to see my little business start to look so professional with an identity all of its own. I feel dead proper. I hope you like it as much as I do.