In this episode I am joined by Paul Mowbray, a Scottish award-winning craftsperson and artist who specialises in fine art, sculpture, wood carving and applied art. He has a comprehensive knowledge of the decorative arts, as well as a professional career working on many highly skilled craftsmanship projects and has crafted ornate decorationfor many renowned historic buildings. Paul has also featured in Country Life, The Guardian, The Times and Scottish Field magazine to name a few, and some of his decorative projects have featured on More4 and the BBC.

Paul shares his journey into the industry and how his interests started at an early age and grew as his skills developed working with some incredible mentors and how some of his work ended up in America. It is inspiring how his hard work and dedication led him to work on some amazing projects in a multitude of disciplines.

We talk about the importance of understanding the provenance of a piece and how it was crafted and thereforehow it should be cared for so that it remains relevant in today’s world.

Paul and I talk about training opportunities, and the lack of them in some cases and how hard it can be to find opportunities to gain hands on experience but also some top tips.

We also discuss the usual challenges, common themes andmisconceptions working in the heritage sector along with top tips when working with an older property.

It will be an interesting listen for anyone embarking on aproject and is looking for some guidance and anyone generally interested in older properties.

In this episode I am joined by Jim Whitson, owner and blacksmith at The Blazing Blacksmith based in Peebles. Theethos of the Blazing Blacksmith has always been to give clients the choice to enrich their homes, gardens and lives with innovative and exciting work which is created to suit their practical requirements whilst being sympathetic to thesetting of the piece. Whether it is a practical piece or purely sculptural Jim strives to create work which is individual and striking.

We talk about how Jim became a blacksmith, the training he undertook and how he approaches a project and thevariety in the work he is commissioned to produce. From things like strawberries to gates and anything in between.

We also discuss the usual challenges, common themes andmisconceptions working in the heritage sector along with top tips when working with an older property.

It will be an interesting listen for anyone embarking on aproject and is looking for some guidance and anyone generally interested in older properties.

In this episode I am joined by Angela Nicholls, a historianand published author whose interest lies in the provision of housing for the poor in early modern England, in particular the nature and variety of post-Reformation almshouses from the 16th century onwards. Angela’s book “Almshouses in Early Modern England”, addresses a neglected element of English welfare history, examining the role and significance of English almshouses in the period 1550 - 1725 and the contribution they made within the developing welfare systems of the time.

We discuss the differences between history and heritage andhow they are both important when working on older properties. Angela explains the types of accommodation provided to poor people and how taxes paid for it. How the almshouses have changed and people’s attitudes to them and who might qualify for an almshouse plus parish houses and workhouses. We talk about the welfare system, particularly during the Victorian period and how Parishes looked after the poor and the physical boundaries they set around it.

We also discuss the usual challenges, common themes andmisconceptions working in the heritage sector along with top tips when working with an older property.

It will be an interesting listen for anyone wanting to knowmore about almshouses or you are embarking on a project and are looking for some guidance and anyone generally interested in older properties.