Q&A with Amy Dolan of Ziggy Sawdust

 Who are you and what do you do?

My name is Amy and I am the creator and maker of Ziggy Sawdust furniture.

 What is your main inspiration?  

      Seeing the potential in the furniture of yester-year and saving it from landfill.

      Where do you work from?

      I am very lucky in that I am able to work from my garage at home. There is enough space to work and store furniture and it means that I can literally crawl into bed after working late. It can get a bit chilly, but wearing at least 3 woolly jumpers solves that problem!

      What do you do to relax?

      My friends and family are really important to me and so any spare time I have is spent with them. I have also recently become addicted to watching Breaking Bad (a few years later than the rest of the world!) so that has become quite a time consuming past-time!

     Tell us something surprising about your studio space/education/life experiences.

     I gave an elephant a bath once.

     Where did you study?

     I studied at The Glasgow School of Art. I loved my time there and would do it all again if I could!

     What’s the best advice you can give to other makers or have received?

     You have as many hours in a day as Beyonce. 

     Where do you see your creative practice going?

      I would like to get more involved with interior design and I would also love for Ziggy Sawdust to grow, to teach and encourage others how to 'Ziggy-fy' their furniture. 

     Who would you like to have over for dinner?

     David Bowie. No question about it.

     What is the best thing about being an independent maker?

     Working for yourself and doing what you love. Also being able to liaise directly with your customers and build a personal rapport with them. 

The upcycled furniture of Maker of the Month artist Ziggy Sawdust is selling fast at Concrete Wardrobe. Here's a picture of our current window display piece, before it got Ziggy-fied. Come and check out its new incarnation as 'Twiggy', in the flesh at Concrete Wardrobe, 50a Broughton Street, Edinburgh, EH1 3SA. You won't believe it's the same piece!

Due to popular demand, more Ziggy Sawdust products will be arriving tomorrow, Sunday 17th March 2013. Here's a sneaky preview of somethings that may well be coming our way...

Check out a great article about Ziggy Sawdust on the local STV website here.
What a cute photo of Amy! Come and see her lovely furniture and household accessories at Concrete Wardrobe. There are cake stands made from old vinyl records.

For those of you who can't wait the 36 hours to see Ziggy Sawdust's display at Concrete Wardrobe for her March Maker of the Month exhibition, here's a sneak preview of a couple of the pieces. Cute or what?!

News Release: Immediate Release                                                                                                        

Furniture Heroes and Alter-Egos

The eclectic up-cycled furniture of Edinburgh based Ziggy Sawdust is on display at Concrete Wardrobe this March 2013.

Ziggy Sawdust is the brainchild of GSA Sculpture graduate Amy Dolan. Dolan set up her furniture design company in 2011 to turn quirky, vintage and unloved pieces of furniture into one-off collectables you’ll use and love for years to come.

Dolan focuses on transforming furniture from the 1950s-1970s. She carefully sands back the chipped and scratched original surface to get the piece back to its bare bones. It is then cleaned and primed. Dolan uses colour to bring out the structural detail and add a fun, contemporary twist. By keeping in mind a retro musician or film star for each item, she ‘Ziggy-fies’ each piece, bringing out its flamboyant alter-ego. The finished look is unusual and unexpected, yet perfectly fitting.

Dolan’s mission is to mix the solid quality of yester-year with a fresh, contemporary-meets-retro aesthetic. It is an antidote to the flat packed furniture of today. Alongside their furniture, Ziggy Sawdust is also exhibiting their range of redesigned home accessories, including retro vinyl wall clocks.

With ongoing support from The Scottish Princes Trust, Ziggy Sawdust has grown from strength to strength, receiving its share of media attention along the way. 2013 sees Ziggy Sawdust receive a BT Scotland Young Entrepreneurs Award for their eco-friendly business model, among other accolades.

Of her exhibition at Concrete Wardrobe, Dolan explains “This is extremely exciting for me. Concrete Wardrobe is known and loved for supporting wonderful local designers, and I am honoured to be a part of that. It is a real privilege to be showcasing my work in such a design led environment, to a design loving audience.”

Fiona McIntosh, Co-owner of Concrete Wardrobe added, “due to the floor space at Concrete Wardrobe we don’t always have the opportunity to showcase large hand crafted pieces. Having Ziggy Sawdust as our March Maker of the Month enables us to showcase Dolan’s beautiful and original designs, and for our customers to see the diversity of craft in Scotland today.”

Ziggy Sawdust is on display at Concrete Wardrobe from 1^st to 31^st March 2013.

Concrete Wardrobe is open Monday to Saturday 11am to 7pm. (Sunday 12 - 5pm.)

Concrete Wardrobe 50a Broughton Street, Edinburgh EH1 3SA

ENDS

PR: Katherine Emtage. Co-Owners: James Donald & Fiona McIntosh.