A fortnight to celebrate traditional and contemporary making skills, with a focus on sustainability, was the focus of Helston Makes It this year.

It began with a brilliant short animation made by Year 5 pupils at Nansloe Academy called Recyclemation for our Nation, urging us all to reduce, reuse and recycle.

Then followed a series of talks, workshops and demonstrations (how to make coloured dyes from plants, button making and print-making, talks about the Millet-Grylls monument, inventiveness and the Cornish Pasty, to name only a few).

Sara Price, The Quilt Lady and spinner Zehra Anderson visited local schools to show their skills to pupils.

Saturday was the final day and the newly-renamed Museum of Cornish Life, Helston, was buzzing with activity both inside and out.

Amongst the many crafts and skills on show were demonstrations by blacksmiths, crab pot maker, serpentine worker, metalsmith, guitar-maker and even a bee-skep maker – over 25 crafts in all, plus members from the Repair Café in Falmouth who were on hand to advise about mending; Lunch was created outside by Dominic Bailey of CAST café and a nest building workshop was held at CAST, linked to the Groundwork films being shown there. Makers and visitors alike had a great day.

The rain poured down outside but organisers were pleased that so much interest was shown by so many people in the talent and skill of makers in the area.