Interviews

Media Interview with Katharine Jewitt, editor of Popular Crafts

By Helen Wilson

21 Dec 2011

news@responsesource.com

Today we chat to Katharine Jewitt, who is editor of Popular Crafts magazine….

About the publication:

Who reads it and how many of them are there?
Popular Crafts magazine is written by crafters for crafters. The magazine has a circulation of 18,000.

What subjects do you cover? What stories are you most interested in covering?
Every month, Popular Crafts’ 100 pages are packed with different guides, tutorials and ideas for crafting – for both beginners and experienced crafters alike. Full of tips and techniques as well as the latest craft news.

What makes you different from the other outlets in your sector?
The magazine covers a whole host of crafts in every issue – card making, knitting, crochet, resin art, jewellery, sewing, wood craft, ceramics and glass craft, textiles, floristry, beading, paper craft, scrap booking and more besides!

The magazine has huge giveaways in every issue, craft diary of events, artist spotlights, craft challenges, craft swaps, a book club, five minute wonders for quick crafting when you are short on time.

Every month we go out and about and feature craft places to visit. New products are reviewed and tested and there’s a most wanted feature of the latest craft products on the market.

There’s more… tech talk and website reviews and even a mini magazine “Kids Crafts” for the children, with fabulous giveaways.

About PRs:

Do you work closely with PRs or do you keep them at arm’s length?
Popular Crafts works closely with PRs.

If you could make one change to the way PRs deal with you, what would it be?
Popular Crafts would welcome more communication from PRs.

How should a PR approach you about their client?
Email me, Popular Crafts editor at katharine.jewitt@myhobbystore.com

About you:

Describe a typical day at work
My days are always fun-packed and busy, working closely with crafters, discussing their work, testing new products, designing new tutorials and making things to feature in the magazine. The Popular Crafts team at HQ are the best; we work closely together and all work very hard to produce a great magazine each month. Everybody really cares about delivering the very best for each issue.

I work closely with craft suppliers, artists and our readers and crafters to learn about the latest news, events, new products, new techniques and tips. I am always tweeting @popularcrafts and on Facebook all day long to keep up-to-date and check the boards for the latest postings on our forum. I receive lots of letters and emails from readers, which is an enjoyable part of my day – to chat on the phone and by email, hearing stories and receiving pictures of craft creations. There’s always lots of post in and out with lots of giveaway prizes being posted out for magazine and website winners.

Editing the next magazine issue is always on the go; reviewing copy, discussing layout and working on the photography. Some days are spent going out to visit suppliers, artists and craft places to feature in Popular Crafts and carry out interviews for our artist spotlight. I spend commuting time reviewing the latest craft books for our book club and I’m always making something that I have on the go. I keep the website up-to-date with new craft projects, competitions, books and news.

What interests you most about your job?
The craft community is the most amazing set of people. Every day I receive inspiring stories and see the most amazing creations and have interesting conversations with crafters. I’m always in awe of the inspiring projects that come my way. I love learning something new every day from the people I meet and enjoy the ever-growing network of crafters. I involve as much craft and people as possible in each issue of the magazine. I have lots of conversations during the day about how best we can support an artist, a crafter, a craft supplier, a new craft, the heritage of a craft through our traditional crafts feature. My work is very rewarding and it is a real pleasure to meet so many lovely crafters every day who are generous, sharing and extremely talented.