The acts of teaching and making are from the heart and woodturner, tutor and toymaker Liz Pearson makes her work feel right at home.
Pearson is the owner of Love Heartwood Ltd. in Reading, West Berkshire, United Kingdom where she handcrafts wooden children’s toys, decor, and more using natural materials.
“I was originally inspired by my experience as a mother to three children. I wanted to make traditional open-ended toys from natural, sustainably sourced materials,” explains Pearson.
According to her website, Pearson grew up in the rural woods of Fife, Scotland, and has always been inspired by the familiarity of the surrounding trees. These early influences combined with her dislike of mass manufacturing with synthetic materials has led her towards her mission of sustainability and quality as a woodturner.
Understanding the sentimental value of some of our favorite wooden playthings, Pearson also offers a wooden toy repair service where customers can submit their broken toys via web form and have their beloved treasures repaired.
For those not content to just play with toys Pearson also teaches others how to make their own. She offers courses specifically for kids and women, and is an accredited Association of Woodturners of Great Britain Woodturning Tutor.
“As a woodturning teacher my mission is to support diversity by encouraging as wide a variety of people to try woodturning as possible. I go out of my way to make it clear that all genders, ages and ethnicities are welcome,” says Pearson.
She has also recently launched a Woodturning Membership Scheme to provide access for local makers to professional woodturning equipment and materials.
Pearson’s website www.loveheartwood.co.uk is where you can find out more about Liz and her work, including this fantastic video. She is also active on Instagram at @love_heartwood and on Facebook at @love heartwood.
Images provided.
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