40 Best Artisans Awards 2025 with Country Living & Dame Emma Bridgewater
Last week, Richard was named by Country Living magazine as one of their 40 Best Artisans, an honour that celebrates not only his craft, but the values at the heart of our workshop: care, integrity, quality, and a love of making things that last. We’re especially delighted that eight of the selected artisans, including Richard, will receive personal mentoring from Dame Emma Bridgewater, a creative powerhouse and one of the most influential makers of our time.
While this award recognises Richard’s skill at the anvil, it also marks the journey we’ve built together. From the early days in a tiny workspace, unsure if anyone would ever find us, to seeing our pieces in homes across the country, it has been anything but glamorous. It has been hands-on, exhausting, exhilarating, and deeply meaningful.
No business grows on the strength of one person alone. Over the years, we’ve had the privilege of working with an extraordinary group of people: makers, designers, artists, writers, videographers, photographers, and friends whose encouragement arrived at just the right moments. Each contributed something unique and helped shape who we are today.
At the centre of it all is our forge team, our blacksmiths, skilled craftspeople who stand beside us day after day. Their dedication and steady hands have carried this business through every chapter. They help transform raw steel into pieces we’re proud to sign our name to, and their craftsmanship remains the backbone of Made by the Forge.
Equally important are those who work quietly behind the scenes. Our website was built by a gifted developer, and the people who manage our Google Ads and digital presence are masters of their craft, too. In an age where visibility matters, their expertise keeps Made by the Forge front and centre, helping customers discover who we are and what we believe in. We truly wouldn’t be here without them.
Yet at the core of Made by the Forge, the heart, the vision, the relentless daily graft, is our own shared commitment. It’s been shaped by early mornings, late nights, long weekends, mistakes, experiments, sparks, ideas, and sheer determination. This award feels like recognition for all those hours, decisions, and moments of passion.
To everyone who has been part of our journey, whether you’re with us now or supported us along the way, thank you. Your contributions, large or small, have meant so much. And most of all, thank you to our customers: those who believe in handmade craft, who value the work of skilled hands, and who allow us to keep the forge burning brightly.
Juliet and Richard.
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