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Helen Barrett Bright Ideas Awards: Verity’s puppets
Hi Verity, can you tell us about yourself and your business?
My name is Verity and I am a British-Canadian artist. I’ve been living in the UK for about 12 years, and I currently work at Aardman as a puppet maker. My small business is called CreatureCave, and for the past 10 years I have been making custom handmade puppets for clients all over the world. I also make sculptures and puppet-making tools for people, and I run sculpting classes and create other resources for people. My passion for creatures and fantasy have allowed me to create the most wonderful puppets and projects, and it is something I hope to bring into a full-time business very soon.
What led you to apply for a 2023 Helen Barrett Bright Ideas Award?
I had always wanted to apply to the award, but every year I kept getting distracted by work or something else so I kept forgetting! But for 2023, I had put the end date in my calendar and made a note to not forget to apply. I really want to expand my CreatureCave work beyond a side hobby, and because I had a feeling that my film industry work might not be as stable in 2024 as I thought, I figured this is the year I need to seriously up my game. If I could get a boost in funds for new equipment to expand my production at home, it would be crazy of me not to apply!
How will working for yourself help you balance work and your CF?
Having more control over my daily schedule will allow me to focus on my health more than I can currently working fulltime away from home. I am getting much more serious about my physical health, but there are only so many hours in the day – and the time of travel to and from my place of work is draining. I’d like to have more freedom of working remotely, which would allow me to also focus on my mental health by being more flexible with my time. I want to spend more time with my family, who live in various places around the UK and also in Canada, so working remotely would also help solve this problem. My current fulltime job is not at all flexible in working remotely and it’s something I really wish I could do more of, especially since the pandemic.
What might the challenges be for your business?
A big challenge will be making sure I have enough (and varied) work to keep me going year after year, as well as generating enough income to survive. I may have to work longer hours initially to get the business up and running, but hopefully it will even out over time. Another challenge is being able to retrofit my workshop with high quality health and safety equipment as the chemicals and materials I work with aren’t exactly the safest things to be around, especially not for someone who has CF!
What are you going to use the grant money for?
This award has been applied already to the purchase of two new 3D printers and printer materials, which will help me expand my production line in my home workshop. I’ve also purchased some new equipment that increases the health and safety standards in my studio, such as industrial extraction/filter units, chemical storage, gloves, masks, and new filters for one of my old paint booths. The rest of the funds will be spent on new materials as I get through the current stock I have, as well as advertising and online shop/web hosting fees.
What are your future plans for your business?
My plan is to be able to fully dedicate 100% of my time to this job, rather than stuffing in as much time as I can around my current full time job. I want to expand into larger scale puppets, costume pieces, and sculptures – and hopefully work with a lot of amazing clients to bring their designs to life!
What would you say to someone who is thinking of applying for an Award?
Even if you feel like you aren’t 100% ready with your business idea, just apply! You’re only limiting yourself by not applying, and you really need to take any chance and help you can get to boost your idea into a realised dream. The support I’ve received already in the early days of this award have been amazing, and I’m really grateful for everyone involved in the Helen Barrett Bright Ideas award.
Where can people find out more?
You can find my work across various platforms:
Instagram: @creaturecave
X/Twitter: @Creature_Cave
Website: creaturecave.co.uk
Email: [email protected]
Patreon: patreon.com/creaturecave
Cystic fibrosis (CF) is a genetic condition which causes sticky mucus to build up in the lungs and digestive system. It affects more than 11,000 people in the UK. One in 25 of us carries the faulty gene that causes it, usually without knowing.
The Helen Barrett Bright Ideas Awards are available for anyone with CF over the age of 18 to help support your dream career or hobby. Whatever you need to make your lightbulb moment a reality, a Helen Barrett Bright Ideas Award can help you on your way.