Craftspace

About Craftspace

Curious about craft? Stories of makers and making. Craftspace is a charity creating opportunities to see, make and be curious about exceptional contemporary craft. We are based in Birmingham, UK and work collaboratively regionally, nationally and internationally. We build relationships between artists, people and organisations and encourage the sharing of ideas, skills and knowledge. Cover art: Pin and thread drawing by Debbie Smyth.

Publisher

Craftspace

Category

arts

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

21 Jun 2023

Latest episode

10 Jun 2025

Latest episodes

10 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   10 Jun 2025

   Stories of Making and Migration: Zohra (Kurdish Sorani)

   Zohra, a Kurdish artisan, shares her story of reinvigorating traditional Kurdish women’s caps using repurposed materials after seeking asylum in Birmingham, highlighting the influence of migration on craft, in this interview.

2. 

   10 Jun 2025

   Stories of Making and Migration: Zohra

   Zohra shares her story of reinvigorating traditional Kurdish women’s caps using donated materials after seeking asylum in Birmingham, showcasing resilience and creativity through craft in this interview.

3. 

   10 Jun 2025

   Stories of Making and Migration: Smashing Metal

   Blacksmithing group Smashing Metal, led by Alex at Newbigin Community Trust, teaches new skills and mindfulness through metalwork, recycling surrendered knives and creating community projects.

4. 

   28 May 2025

   Stories of Making and Migration: Rosie Taheem

   Rosie Taheem shares how she learned to crochet from her mother during lockdown and now creates dolls and baubles from Indian fabric remnants, celebrating her heritage through craft; this is an interview.

5. 

   28 May 2025

   Stories of Making and Migration: Haleema Bibi

   Haleema Bibi discusses learning embroidery and crochet from her mother and mother-in-law, who were from Pakistan, and how these skills were used to embellish scarves in this interview episode.

6. 

   28 May 2025

   Stories of Making and Migration: DOSTI

   Ravinder Tagga, manager of the DOSTI group, discusses how women meet weekly to share skills like knitting and embroidery, fostering friendship and celebrating cultural diversity in the Midlands in this interview.

7. 

   13 Jul 2023

   YARNING: Tales from Birmingham. Episode 4 - Sarah

   Textile artist Sara Fowles interviews Sarah S. Sammy, a scientist and maker from Trinidad and Tobago, about how crafting and creating has always been a part of her life.

8. 

   6 Jul 2023

   YARNING: Tales from Birmingham. Episode 3 - Venetia

   Textile artist Sara Fowles interviews Venetia Headlam about her knitting and crochet heritage, exploring the influence of Caribbean culture and family traditions in Birmingham.

9. 

   29 Jun 2023

   YARNING: Tales from Birmingham. Episode 2 - Selina

   Textile artist Sara Fowles interviews Selina Cheshire, who shares her journey from learning to knit with bicycle spokes in Zimbabwe to using knitting as therapy during cancer treatment.

10. 

    21 Jun 2023

    YARNING: Tales from Birmingham. Episode 1 - Sara

    Textile artist Sara Fowles shares her personal story of knitting, family memories, and how the craft became a passion in her life and work, highlighting the heritage of Black textile makers in Birmingham.

Who has been a guest on Craftspace

Names identified in recent episode analyses. Showing up to five guests.

• Zohra
• Alex
• Smashing Metal
• Rosie Taheem
• Haleema Bibi

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

YouTube views

67,501

Score snapshot 15 Sept 2025

Podcast Authority Score: 24 / 100

A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.

Quality

18

Social presence

0

YouTube

76

Engagement

0

Contact Craftspace

Guest appearances

Books guests

Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.