There are some creative spaces that feel less like studios and more like thresholds, where something softer, older, and quietly magical begins to stir. When we step through the doorway of Fragments and Faerytales, we feel it instantly. The mellow hush, the moonlit imagery, the shelves lined with antique linens, tiny patisserie tins and intricately designed stitched pieces… it is a sanctuary woven from stories, textures, and the kind of gentle enchantment that modern life so often forgets.
Suzanne, who lives in Kirkby-in-Ashfield and grew up in Calverton, has spent the last fourteen years building a practice rooted in sustainability, folklore, and the restorative power of art making. Her work, a dreamy blend of textiles, mixed media and jewellery, is lovingly crafted almost entirely from vintage, antique, and found materials.
Each piece feels as though it has wandered out of a fairytale: soft pastels, layered textures, coastal whispers, and
a toadstool or two.
“I’ve always been drawn to things with a past,” Suzanne tells us, her hands resting on a stack of faded French linen. “Old materials have a story. They’ve lived a life before they reach me and I find that fascinating. I also spend my life trying to repurpose and recycle as much as I can, so in a way I am marrying sustainability with my love of social history.”
We discover that Suzanne’s journey into full-time artistry wasn’t a straight line. For years she worked at the Land Registry, quietly nurturing her creative hobbies alongside: jewellery making, repairing clothes, stitching small treasures for friends. The turning point came unexpectedly, when redundancy forced her to rethink her path. “I’d been running a little jewellery business on the side,” she says. “But when I made my own bridal tiara and people kept saying how beautiful it was, something clicked. I thought… maybe this is the moment. Maybe I can really do this.”
What began as a leap of faith has grown into a flourishing creative career. Her work is now sold online, in her studio, and through her highly popular workshops that regularly book up with people seeking a few hours of calm, creativity, and escape.
Suzanne’s materials are characters. She is proudly anti-plastic, avoiding man-made fibres wherever possible. Instead, she sources antique French sheets, hemp linens, vintage lace, and second-hand embellishments that carry the soft patina of age. “Those old French sheets are my favourite,” she says with a smile. “They’re strong, they’re beautiful, and they’ve got these little marks of time, a faint fade, a tiny age spot. They make wonderful needlebooks and bases for my pieces. They already have a soul.”
Her studio shelves are dotted with old patisserie tins she has collected from French fairs. Once used to bake delicate pastries, they now cradle her handmade pincushions or serve as vessels for workshop projects. “I love imagining the baker who used them,” she says. “It’s like each tin brings its own little whisper of history.”
Even her earliest toadstools, now one of her signature motifs, were born from a found object. We learn that Suzanne discovered a vintage velvet curtain in a friend’s allotment shed and transformed it into her first set of toadstools. “I just love the feel of velvet,” she laughs. “It’s so tactile, so luxurious. And that curtain… well, it was just waiting to become something magical.”
Toadstools appear repeatedly in Suzanne’s work: soft, layered, slightly mysterious forms that seem plucked from the forest floor of a Grimm tale. “Toadstools are magical but also a bit sinister,” she says. “You can look, but you shouldn’t touch. They’re fascinating. They’ve always been a source of delight for me.”
It’s clear to us that Suzanne’s love of folklore runs deep. As a child she devoured Grimm’s fairytales, believing even then that they held lessons tucked between the shadows. Today, she listens to folklore podcasts, medieval music, and ethereal soundscapes while she works, letting the atmosphere seep into her stitching. “It helps me get into that otherworldly headspace,” she explains. “I can lose hours when I’m making. It’s like stepping into a different realm.”
While folklore undoubtedly shapes the mood of her work, it is nature that provides its heartbeat. Suzanne is an earthy soul, happiest wandering through woods, tending her allotment, or beachcombing along the Devon and Cornwall coastline. Her coastal pieces - soft blues, pale sands, tiny, stitched shells - are inspired by years of family holidays. “I love the wildness of the moors and the romance of the coast,” she says. “The solitude, the space, the feeling of no neighbours for miles. It’s incredibly freeing. I collect pebbles, driftwood, and shells to incorporate into my art, and sometimes I think the natural textures almost shape the pieces. Nature is absolutely my focus. It grounds me.”
Similarly, she tells us, her other passion of spending time on the allotment is also a great source of inspiration. “Working with the earth, being at one with nature…”, she explains, “…it is hugely cathartic and I try to incorporate herbs or flowers from there also into the designs.”
The restorative nature of her work is not lost on us as we browse the pieces, and we are drawn into a deep state of calm and mindful imagination. It’s this delightful escapism and the way that each piece awakens our imagination that is part of Suzanne’s inherent magic.
Suzanne’s new Thoresby Courtyard studio is the physical embodiment of this ethos: gentle, magical, and deeply welcoming. Designed as a space for self-care and creative therapy, it is filled with moon imagery; a symbol she finds powerful and energising.
Workshops are held monthly, with groups kept intentionally small (between two and seven people) to preserve the intimate, mindful atmosphere. Half-day sessions run for four hours, full days for six and a half, and always include refreshments and homemade cake. “People step into the workshop and they’re in a different space,” she says with a smile. “It’s escapism. It’s relaxation. It’s creative mindfulness.” Participants work with repurposed materials — old tins, birdcages, vintage fabrics – carefully chosen by Suzanne for the activity.
We were curious to see how each item is planned out – both her own collections and ideas for the workshops. “I do sketch out the workshop designs in advance and have a plan of how we can create something delightful together”, she explains, “but I rarely sketch my own pieces. I prefer to work more intuitively and see where the material takes me. It’s a journey. Immensely rewarding.”
We can see that Suzanne’s style is perhaps unorthodox. “My approach isn’t how everyone does it,” she admits. “I go rogue sometimes. I’ll sew the whole piece together first, then decorate it afterwards, which is the opposite of how you are told to make things in, say sewing kits. I follow what feels right and that’s how I demonstrate in workshops. The main thing is that people enjoy handling the materials and escaping into the making.”
The innate creativity runs in Suzanne’s blood. She tells us that her mother was a seamstress who made her own clothes and taught Suzanne to sew on an old Singer machine. Those early lessons: the hum of the old Singer sewing machine, the thrill of making something from nothing, shaped her future more than she realised at the time. “I always wanted to make things,” she says. “I did art and textiles at O-level, but I never had formal training beyond that. I’ve just learned by doing, experimenting, and following what I love.”
That instinctive, heartfelt approach is so clear. Her work is richly layered, soft on the eyes, and full of texture — the kind of art you want to touch, hold, and explore, and just like a fairytale you want to delve in deep and discover more…
Suzanne’s collections include key keeps, toadstools, needle cases, brooches, pouches, pin cushions, and jewellery. Many pieces incorporate seashells, pearls, recycled beads, or tiny botanical elements.
Some include sequins, but only when repurposed from other items. “I regularly raid thrift stores!” Suzanne laughs. “Sustainability is key for me. I will always love our planet and cherish and respect nature. There is no need to buy new if you can repurpose something old.” Suzanne’s eco-stance is echoed in her packaging, with her choosing to use only paper or card, often recycled, and limited to what is necessary.
As we chat more with Suzanne and enjoy the studio, we can see that, in a world that often feels overwhelming, Suzanne’s work offers a quiet refuge — a reminder that beauty can be found in the worn, the weathered, the once-forgotten. Her art invites us to slow down, breathe deeply, and reconnect with the stories woven into the materials around us. Her pieces are charmingly whimsical without being frivolous, magical without being childish. They feel like heirlooms from a world just slightly out of reach and deep in our imagination.
As our conversation draws to a close, Suzanne reflects on what keeps her creating after all these years. “I think people need a bit of enchantment,” she says. “Life can be hectic and challenging. If my work gives someone a moment of escapism, a little spark of joy… that means everything. And for myself, it allows me the scope to immerse into the other world, one full of magic and wonder, a true privilege.”
It certainly feels that this is the essence of the Fragments and Faerytales creative art studio: a gateway into a gentler world - one stitched together from stories, nature, and the quiet magic of things once loved. We heartily recommend a visit and it is open most Saturdays (check Suzanne's social media or her website) and whenever other events are taking place at Thoresby Courtyard.
Go discover the magic!
Workshops
For further workshop dates and details, visit:
www.suzannecurtisart.co.ukCouples or groups can also arrange bespoke sessions or private parties on other dates.
Call: 07552 626214
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Suzanne’s beautiful ethereal items can be purchased through her website: www.suzannecurtisart.co.uk or in person at the studio. Gift vouchers are also available.
The Fragments & Faerytales creative art studio. Thoresby Courtyard at Thoresby Park, NG22 9EP.
