We first started Dalescraft fifteen years ago as a mail order craft business, making a range of sycamore craft blanks for Pyrographers and Folk art Painters. Our business is very small and operates from a purpose built workshop adjacent to our home - (at the bottom of the garden really). I make all of the Pyrography blanks and maintain the website, whilst my wife (Jo) runs the office and also looks after our five young children.

We purchase our sycamore from a local timber merchant (John Boddy Timber at Boroughbridge) and have dealt with them for almost all of the time that we have traded. The Sycamore that we buy is all sourced from managed woodlands and plantations in the UK, and is especially selected for us for the purpose of making Pyrography blanks.

Most recently, the cost of sycamore has rocketed as developing countries in the Far East have been buying up stocks of everything, to satisfy the needs of their huge manufacturing output. However, John Boddy’s have helped us and our customers by keeping the raw material cost as low as possible, which has resulted in our Pyrography blanks costing little more than they did several years ago.

Nearly all of the products that we sell are made by hand in our workshop (by me). Although we have a lot of machinery for planing, cutting, routing, sanding, drilling etc. none of the machinery that I use is automated, so every piece that you use has been individually (and lovingly) hand shaped and sanded by my hands. The only products that we buy in are a few shapes and small birch boxes, which come from the USA. We try to be clear on our web site which items these are.

Many of our customers have been buying from us repeatedly for many years. A great many of them earn part (or all of their living) from selling their Pyrography. I have learned from my customers over a period of years, that their customers prefer the quality sycamore items over the plywood, and are prepared to pay that bit more for the Pyrographed solid Sycamore pieces.

Several years ago, one of our customers was invited to Windsor Castle to meet with Prince Edward to discuss purchasing some of her decorated pieces. Upon arrival, she was greeted very formally and escorted into a lift to be taken up to the private quarters. When the lift doors opened she was welcomed by the Queen and Prince Philip (quite an unexpected shock!) They proceeded to order many of my products, and actually requested quite a few special items to give as gifts. I think that this is a fair testament to the quality of the goods that we make.

Last Updated: August 28, 2008