Press Release

Successful local designer to feature in Crafts in the Walled City

Thursday, 18 November 2004

Among the array of local talent to exhibit their skills and designs at this year’s prestigious Crafts in the Walled City event due to take place in the heart of the walled city at the Calgach Centre, Butcher Street, on November 20 and 21, is Co Derry based designer Natasha Duddy.

A regular exhibitor at the event, Natasha specialises in the production of a unique range of recycled glass suitable as personal and corporate gifts.

A regular exhibitor at the event, Natasha specialises in the production of a unique range of recycled glass suitable as personal and corporate gifts. Originally from Eglinton, in 1999 Natasha graduated with an Honours Degree in Craft Design specialising in Glass. She has won the Glass Category Award in the “Excellence Ireland” Design Competition and the Shell Live Wire Young Entrepreneur of the year award for 2004.

Natasha is one of the most exciting creative glass designers in Ireland. Her craft pieces focus on the production of personal and corporate glass gifts and architectural glass sculptures. Each piece is unique in character and is often used in collaboration with other materials such as metal slate or wood. The final pieces can be either functional or ornamental and she has been commissioned to produce a range of unique, individual pieces.

She explained: “Most of my sculptures are non-functional but become the focal point of any room or conversation.”

Natasha returned to the family farm to set-up her own business in the summer of 2000. The rural backdrop of the family farm in Eglinton has become the setting and workplace for Natasha's work. She has converted the family garage into her craft studio, which is open to the public.

Natasha believes the Crafts in the Walled City event provides her and other local entrepreneurs with the unique opportunity to create an awareness locally of the work they do.

“The Crafts in the Walled City event is hugely popular and I am delighted to be part of it once again this year. The event attracts consumers from all over the city and region and offers me the perfect opportunity to market my produce directly to the public. I am confident this year’s event will be another huge success and look forward to meeting with other craft producers from other parts of the North as well as the Republic of Ireland,” she said.

Crafts in the Walled City will take place over the weekend of November 20 and 21 and will feature 34 craft designers from the city and beyond. The exhibitors are from all over Ireland and will be offering the public the chance to purchase some unique gifts for Christmas and beautiful designs for the home.

The Craft Fair and Exhibition is supported by Derry City Council’s Economic Development Section and DETI’s EU Building Sustainable Prosperity Programme. The event is organised jointly by Council’s Economic Development Section and North West Marketing.

Crafts in the Walled City 2004” event will open on Saturday 20th November 2004 and everyone is welcome to attend. Opening hours are as follows – Saturday 10am-6pm and Sunday 11am-6pm. Admission is £1 and under 12’s are admitted free of charge. Further details of the event can be obtained by contacting the Economic Development Section of Derry City Council, Tel. 028 7137 6532 or by logging onto www.derrycity.gov.uk/crafts.

Notes to Editor:

Among the craft shops which Natasha supplies her products to are, the Crane Gallery, Ballymena; Foxford Woolen Mill, Dungannon; Linen Craft, Enniskillen and Black Abbey Crafts, Limerick. She has recently introduced a new range of products including greeting cards and wedding stationery.

Among the large corporate orders she has received over the past year have been from RTE in Dublin; Foyle Down Syndrome Trust, Limavady Twinning Association and Derry City Council’s Small Business Awards 2004.
One of her sculptures can be viewed locally in the window of Da Vinci’s Aparthotel, Strand Road, Derry.

Further details on Natasha can be obtained by logging onto her website at www.natashaduddy.com. Tel. 028 7181 0055.

For additional information contact:

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