Welcome

I am originally from a small village near Sandwich in Kent, I went to Sir Roger Manwood’s in Sandwich, where they had a 3D art department & here started my love of sculpture.
After my A-levels, I did an HND in engineering, but I struggled with the Physics & my Mum suggested I go back to what I loved, so I took up a degree at Christ Church College in Canterbury, the single honours didn’t start until the following year, so I did 1 year of the joint honours & then re-applied and became the 1st single honours sculpture student to graduate from here. My ceremony was in Canterbury Cathedral.

During the 2nd year of my degree a stonemason, Heather Newton, from Canterbury Cathedral gave some of us a 6wk course in stone carving & in 1998 I started (crudely) to carve stone. I finished my degree in the Summer of 1999 and spent with Canterbury Cathedral doing work experience. Unfortunately, the apprenticeship had already been allocated but the Cathedral masons urged me to apply for one of 2 that were available at Gloucester Cathedral.

I moved to Gloucester with just a small suitcase in 1999 & started my apprenticeship. Part of it was at Weymouth College in Dorset, I love being by the sea, but what I learned actually working on the Cathedral was incredible. I carried out conservation & restoration on this beautiful building, cutting away the cement and rotting stone. Making technical drawings and creating the templates, I carved & installed numerous new stone pieces to build back into the Cathedral.
Unfortunately in March 2000, a 70kg block of limestone crashed down onto my hand and I spent 3 months recovering from smashed fingers. I didn’t give up though and my first carving when I returned to work was at a stonemason’s festival at York Minster in the Summer of that year. I struggled alot for the rest of my apprenticeship, forced to take more time off, but I learned to overcome the difficulties. I learnt how to use a stone axe and spent a most of my time in the workshop carving new pieces to be built back into the Cathedral. 

We took part in several stonemasonry festivals & I even won a few prizes for my carving.

In 2003, I started working in the commercial side of stonemasonry but due to the injury that I had sustained, I had to give this up. I couldn’t waste all those years of training & studying & I decided that I could go it alone. In November 2005 I set up Cat’s Eye Carving, the Cat’s Eye is my stonemason’s mark taken from my A-level sculpture project, all about Egyptian cats.

I have organised & run 5 stonemason’s festivals to help raise money for a variety of charities & in 2015, I was honoured with the title of Yeoman Mason by the historic Livery Company, The Worshipful Company of Mason’s for my charity work & raising the profile of stonemasonry.

Key projects both when I was employed; Conservation & restoration at Woodchester Mansion near Stroud.
And Self-employed; Restoring a statue near Worcester, carving & installing heraldry at Penhow Castle in South Wales, designing & carving a brand new War memorial for Mitcheldean & Abenhall, carving a new lintel piecing for a house in Sandwich, Carving a commemorative plaque and a Puffin for the Lady Mayoress of the City of London.

I have just been awarded a lifetime job for the Worshipful Company of Founders. This involves carving and painting the names of the outgoing Master in their hall near Smithfield market, they are one of the oldest London Livery Companies, originally set up in the 12th century to protect the quality of metalwork, they are now a charitable foundation involved in the sciences and they sponsor a prize for bronze sculptures.

I continue to develop my skills in order to design & carve beautiful sculptures, exact copy portraits of both animals & people & a variety of letter cutting using calligraphy styles. I have also developed my own style of lettering which can be developed for a specific commission or to compliment a carved word or sound.
After 24 years in Gloucestershire, I have moved my small business to Sandwich, I have a lovely shop in the middle of this wonderful Medieval market town in Kent. You can contact me here

Please keep an eye on my opening times page for updates & always get in touch before setting off in case I am at a quarry, working off site or heading to Gloucestershire.

I give talks and run children’s activities in my studio and at heritage sites. Please visit my events and talks page for updates.

I create reproductions of some of my clay models & plaster/stone carvings in order to offer a less expensive range of my own unique designs, these are cast using a weatherproof material.
For my carvings I use Limestone from Portland in Dorset, Tetbury in South Gloucestershire, Bath in Somerset & Lavoux in France, Kentish Ragstone from near Maidstone in Kent, Slate from the Horseshoe Pass & Penrith in North Wales & Delabole or Newquay in Cornwall. Sandstone from St Bees in Cumbria & sandstone from the Forest of Dean.

As you enter my shop you will find yourself surrounded by a wide selection of my carvings & creations, these are available to buy off the shelf. I design & hand carve the Green Man & grotesques, bookends, clocks, carved words & individual letters. I design & make sterling silver & Welsh slate jewellery. All of which can be personalised for a special present, anniversary, birthday, wedding, births & christenings or just as a treat for you.

I am proud to say that all my sculptures, jewellery & reproductions are made by me to a very high standard. I also stock notebooks with paper made from crushed stone & cotton tote bags made from eco friendly cotton.

Hand carved house signs are my speciality & I can personalise them with an image of your choosing, colour of paint or gold leaf using sandstone from the Forest of Dean in Gloucestershire, Slate from North Wales, Kentish Ragstone from Kent, among other stones from around the UK.

Please have a read through my blog which details my ideas & processes. I would love it if you could leave feedback on any one of my posts that interests you.

I look forward to meeting you.

Thank you,
Carrie.

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