The International Craft Awards 2018 is well and truly underway! If you need a little help deciding who to vote for, or just want to learn more about the brands nominated, then read on! We’ve sat down with some of this year’s nominees to learn about the history behind the brands, what makes them unique and what’s in store for the future. Don’t forget to vote once you’ve finished!

1 Hunkydory

Why should readers vote for you in the craft awards?
Hunkydory is a family run, British papercraft brand. We design and produce our products in-house in Preston, and although we are an established business, we are always looking to move with the times and create exciting, innovative craft products that our customers will love.

What effect do the awards have on the company?
The awards are a fantastic boost for the team here as we design everything in-house – it’s really lovely to know that customers appreciate our work!

What support do you offer to your customers?
Our customer service team is always happy to answer any questions and know all our products inside out. We are also very active on social media and make sure to answer any queries and help people make the most out of their products. We provide lots of video content online through our free Club Hunkydory, and also have a range of handbooks that provide step-by-step instructions and inspiration!

What are your plans for the future?
In the last two years we have added For the Love of Stamps sets to our range, producing hundreds of designs in the UK that have been designed in-house. These have been so popular that we recently added Prism ink-pads to our burgeoning stamping platform!

Moving on from papercraft and stamping, we have the award-winning Adorable Scoreboard, which is now available not only in Hunkydory purple but in a limited edition pink! The scoreboard enables perfect scoring of cards and easy box making. Following on from this amazing gadget, we also have a huge new range of Premier Craft Tools! As you see, we don’t stand still and there is certainly more to come from Hunkydory in the future!

2 Janome

Give us a brief background to Janome
Janome UK was founded in October 1968 and is now celebrating its 50th anniversary year. Japanese entrepreneur Yosaku Ose founded the PINE sewing machine factory in 1921. He took the conventional oblong ‘shuttle-type’ bobbin and replaced it with a round bobbin. The innovative design improved efficiency and speed of the traditional sewing machine significantly. The new bobbin soon gained ground, and users affectionately called it Janome (Pronounced: J- No-Mey) meaning ‘the Snake’s eye’ in Japanese. The name stuck, eventually becoming an official trademark JANOME in 1935 and formally adopted as the company name Janome Sewing Machine Co., Ltd., in 1954.

Why should readers vote for you?
Quality and customer service are paramount to us at Janome. Our brand has been synonymous with quality sewing machines for nearly a century and Janome products have been at the cutting edge of sewing technology since the earliest days of our founding.

How have Janome products evolved since 1968?
Janome was the first to develop a computerised machine for home use (the Memory 7, in 1979), the first to offer professional style embroidery to the home market (the Memory Craft 8000, in 1990) and the first to offer a long-arm quilting machine for home use (the Memory Craft 6500P, in 2003). The long-arm quilting machine has also evolved to the fourth generation with the introduction of the Horizon Memory Craft 9400QCP, which features 11 inches of arm space, removable AcuFeed Flex dual feed, and a high-resolution LCD touch screen with jog dial control.

What makes your products and team stand-out from the rest?
Our flagship model, the Horizon Memory Craft Quilt Maker 15000 is the first-ever
wireless-enabled sewing machine. It is now possible to send designs or monitor stitching using an iPad or PC. Our team are always here to chat through your sewing needs and help find the right model for you. The amazing Quilt Maker MC15000 with built-in ruler work and embroidery will take you anywhere you want to go. There are long arm models to help make sewing bulky items easy, the MC6700P Professional, the 210mm arm Atelier series, the M Series, CoverPro, Overlockers and more. Sew with power, precision and confidence. Janome have machines to grow with your skills and are suitable for beginners and more experienced sewers.

3 Brother

What products do you specialise in?
At Brother, we specialise in sewing and craft machines for all abilities – from beginner to expert and everything in between. This involves listening to the crafting community and developing new machines in response to the feedback we get. We’re so pleased to be nominated in the ‘Best Sewing Machine Brand’ category and for ‘Best Craft Gadget Machine’ with the ScanNCut, our popular home and hobby cutting machine.

Give us a glimpse into your plans for the future…
We’re going to continue to provide quality products for those who love to craft – whether it’s as a hobby or within a small business – and have just launched five new models onto the market. The new Luminaire XP1 is our most innovative home sewing, quilting and embroidery machine to date, packed with a host of new features that can’t be found together on any other sewing machine in the world! Our Innov-is A-series is made up of four models with easy-to-use features and user-friendly functionality. All are ideal for both beginners and experienced sewers.

Three fun facts no one knows about you…

1. Our Japanese founders were brothers, hence the name “Brother”

2. As a company, we’re celebrating our 110th birthday this year with lots of celebrations planned across the globe!

3. We now sell over 70 different models and last year manufactured our 60 millionth home sewing machine

4 Claritystamp

Let’s start from the beginning and explain how Claritystamp came to life!
Claritystamp began when Barbara Gray struck gold with an idea for a transparent stamp - and this year, we celebrate our 25th anniversary!

Tell us more about the Claritystamp community and why it’s been nominated in the ICAs 2018?
Innovation is at the heart of our family business, and we continue to provide excellent quality crafting products and award-nominated customer service to our devoted community. It is one that Barbara has built through her very own daily craft blog ‘One Day at a Time’, frequent demonstrations on YouTube, HOCHANDA TV, our ever-expanding Facebook groups, and even in person at craft events across the country.

Where do you find a passion for the brand’s innovative products?
Barbara says that her passion “comes from motivating people. People trust us, and I motivate them to do achievable art. Whether they craft for diversion or escape, they really appreciate what we do. Above all, we always try and educate, inspire, and entertain.”

What can we look forward to in the future?
As well as transparent stamps, we specialise in stencils, Groovi plates, and Pergamano. We’re excited to develop and expand on our most recent success - Fresh Cut Dies, a brand-new medium which helps people to create professionally cut designs with the greatest of ease.

5 Tattered Lace

Why should the readers vote for you?
We put so much hard work and dedication into giving our customers the absolute best in quality every time, and we hope that that shows in every product you see as well as at every one of our consumer shows. When you see our brands represented, customers can know that it has the stamp of approval from some of the best creative minds in the industry.

What effect do the awards have on you?
Who doesn’t like to get a pat on the back sometimes? Everything we do is to make our customers happy, and these awards are one of the ways to say ‘Thank you’ to us in a non-monetary way. Even if you can’t afford to buy every product or come to every show, this is a chance to let us know if we are doing things right. Plus, the awards are something that we proudly display in our office and can share with everyone involved in bringing the products to life.

What support do you offer to your customers?
For us, education is key. We provide tutorials, instructions, demo videos and ongoing customer support through Create & Craft’s amazing customer service team as well as our active social media pages.

Give us your five top tips for crafting…
1. There is a quality difference between bargain and luxury brands, so you should decide what items are worth investing in.

2. Take care of your stash! Staying organised and taking care of general maintenance will extend the life of your products dramatically.

3. It’s ok to make mistakes. We are all still learning and developing our skills. Use every ‘oops’ as a learning tool instead.

4. Try something new… you may surprise yourself!

5. Remember to craft for your own enjoyment! It should be fun.

What trends have always been prominent in your world of craft? And, what should crafters look out for in 2019?
This year, 3-D elements have been a big deal! I definitely think we will see more of that in 2019. Also, projects that have an element of surprise to them or can be used in new and unique ways. Hopefully we will have some exciting surprises for you in the near future.

What are your plans for the future?
We hope to continue to grow with our customers and develop new designs and techniques for crafters around the world.

Now you’ve read more about this year’s nominees, it’s time to vote!