Behind the scenes at The Barn in Hawkshead village

Things are happening in Hawkshead with a major pub refurbishment, a restaurant opening and new shops, one of which is also bringing crafting to the village.

In a prime location in the main public car park, a long-established gift shop has been given a stylish makeover by Hanne Crank. Now known as The Barn, it is a haven for artisan designed and made products led by Hanne’s own original, needle-felted Herdwick hares.

Self-taught, Hanne has been making the characterful hares with their outsize ears and black bead eyes for five years. She uses only local wool sourced from Lakeland farms and pure Herdwick wool from the flock at Yew Tree Farm, near Coniston, once owned by Beatrix Potter.

She has not kept her skills to herself, however, and has been teaching adults how to make hares and other cute creatures at her sought-after crafting masterclasses in the Lake District.

Now the hares, along with owls, donkeys and more have their very own shop which they share with handmade products by other British, and often Cumbrian, artists, from candles to photography, soap to ceramics, art and textiles.

It is all part of a second life change for Hanne, who sought sanctuary in Cumbria seven years ago after burning out in her high-flying corporate job at HSBC. She was so ill at times she could not leave the house, so when her then husband John suggested they move to Ulverston and pursue a different kind of life, it offered liberation.

On giving up work, it also gave Hanne the time to get back to the art she had enjoyed at school and she took up painting and, after someone gave her a fox as a gift, needle felting. Fascinated by how the fox was made, she spent hours researching the craft and gradually perfected her practice which uses no wire or glue.

She sold her Herdwick hares at craft fairs and in the café at Brantwood, where she met Mandy Marshall, the founder of Herdwick Ltd, who offered her the chance to sell her products in her former shop at Grasmere. Herdwicks Café, co-owned by Hanne’s wool supplier Jo McGrath, was another outlet, and when the pandemic hit sales from her Etsy shop grew.

One of Hanne's Herdwick hares With natural warmth and energy, she also took well to teaching and hosted workshops at Rheged and Hare Hill Barn, on Cartmel Fell, among others.

Then, a year ago life changed again as she and John called time on their marriage. “It was amicable, we just wanted to go in different directions. For me, moving here was about healing. Once I had recovered, I thought, ‘what am I going to do now I’ve grown up?’. This is the second stage of that.”

Having got to know the Lakes well, she decided she wanted to live further into the national park and immerse herself more in Lake District life. It was Mandy who spotted a cottage for rent in Hawkshead.

The first person Hanne met in the village was Andrew Wilson, owner of The Chocolate Factory, who told her that his mother-in-law was retiring and selling her gift shop, well known as Haddows.

“I went away and thought about it but these days, opening a bricks and mortar shop is a bit, if not a lot, foolhardy and I thought it had to be something more than a shop. When I saw it I realised it was big enough to be a retail space and somewhere to run workshops.”

Hanne’s son, Callum, came from his home in Sheffield to help her get set up, and her mum and stepdad came for the launch and helped with the finishing touches. “I worked Callum so hard he went home completely broken,” she laughs. “He’s been really strong moral support, he’s my rock, and gives me a morning call every day to make sure I’m on track.”

She sourced vintage furniture to display products, the only new piece being shelving to show off Herdwick ‘tops’, wool before it has been spun into yarn that she uses for needle felting and is sold by the metre length, and Corriedale wool, which comes in a variety of colours.

The space has divided up well, with a large workshop table in one half that can be sectioned off when in use but kept open as additional retail space most of the time.

With the help of assistant Sarah Whiteside in the shop, Hanne can dedicate herself to her students.

“I want people to feel comfortable, not like they’re in a goldfish bowl, so that they can learn and at the end go home with something they’re really proud of. Everyone has loved it and enjoyed the chance to look at the other crafts in the stop too,” she says.

So far Hanne has held hare and donkey needle felt workshops, with robins and Christmas angels to come. She is also branching out into macrame wall hangings and Christmas wreath making, with a glass of mulled wine and a mince pie for participants.

Hanne can run bespoke workshops for groups, for example, on hen weekends or for groups of friends or colleagues.

For those who want a full day of crafting in Hawkshead, the Chocolate Factory next door also takes adult groups, as well as workshops for children.

Hanne works on a Herdwick hare For visitors just coming to shop, there is plenty in The Barn to browse. “Everything I sell is at recommended retail price,” explains Hanne. “Yes, the shop is in a location that attracts tourists but for me it’s about community. I wanted to be able to offer something nice for the people who live here so they have somewhere nearby to go when they’re looking for a really nice, local gift that is made with integrity.

“My workshops are about community too; they’re for tourists to try something local but they are also there for locals through the winter.”

So far it is going well with some products selling out within days and makers having to replenish.

Feather and Glow has its own scented soy wax candles in the shop along with making candle tins for The Barn’s own range.

Hanna Home large candles come in a range of sculpted shapes and in different scents, made on a family farm at Cartmel Fell which is also home to Shepherdess Botanicals. The collection includes soaps and wax melts containing homegrown and dried roses and other flowers and botanicals.

Craftsman-made Black Sheep Leather products include bags, wallets, purses and trays all crafted using traditional tools and techniques at a Kendal workshop.

Sting in the Tail is an Ulverston-based business that makes multiple products including soaps and bath soak, as well as the official Repair Shop branded range.

There are chopping broads by Wavy Grain and photography is by Pete Tasker, head gardener at Hill Top, Beatrix Potter’s former farm run by the National Trust.

Cushions are by Perkins & Morley – Jill Perkins and Jan Morley have been a design duo since 1987, and Jan lives in Cumbria. The shop also stocks their ‘collective noun’ mugs.

Gemma Keith is a Whitehaven-based designs, prints and makes tote bags and cosmetic purses.

Among the jewellery on offer are beaded bracelets by Lakeland Intentions whose names and colours are selected to match places and landscapes in the Lake District.

Professional portrait artist and illustrator Casey Allum’s fine bone china mugs, jugs and are instantly recognisable – hares, bees, deer, foxes and more. Although she lives in Scotland now, Casey is originally from the Langdale valley.

One of Callum's Land Rover prints Glencroft wool blankets come from Clapham, in the Yorkshire Dales, while GingerArts greetings cards and pictures are designed by Clare Tyas, at nearby Ingleton.

Given pride of place, of course, are Hanne’s son Callum’s Land Rover prints.

She says: “Creating The Barn has been a massive risk, a huge leap of faith and taken all my savings, but I’ve got a different perspective on life now. Money isn’t the driver it used to be when I was working in the rat race.

“Now it’s about quality of life and enjoying life and I hope people feel that when they come to the shop or join a workshop.”

The Barn, Main Car Park, Hawkshead, is open seven days from 9.30am-5.30pm Monday-Saturday and 10am-5.30pm on Sundays.

thebarnhawkshead.co.uk