Upcycled headboards feature in a station ident we made for ITV in partnership with local artist Hermione Allsopp
Some of the HFS team spent a day at a London TV studio helping Hermione put together the padded upcycled headboard structure and make the lampshade that features in the ident, used in-between programmes during February.
The structure is also on display in the shop window at our Bexhill store.
If you missed it live, you can see the film and more about the project on the ITV website here.
The stylish modernist lobby of the De La Warr Pavilion in Bexhill is adorned with a striking upcycled Christmas tree this Winter. Bearing the message “no-one should be without a comfy bed”, the bedslat tree is the work of local charity Hastings & Rother Furniture Service.
The plinth doubles as a collecting pot for donations to help the charity provide essential furniture for local families in desperate need.
“We’ve seen families that have had to pile old cardboard on the floor for their kids to sleep on, and been really proud to deliver affordable reused beds for them.” says Pea Crabtree, the creative behind the tree and a full-time worker for HFS.
Pea Crabtree
The tree is made from broken and bowed bed-slats we can’t reuse. We hope it will make people think about how furniture poverty affects families in our area. No-one should be without something as crucial as a bed.
In recent years the government has slashed funding for Local Welfare Assistance schemes. In East Sussex, support to help families in crisis set up home fell from £1.2m in 2013 to £166,000 in 2018. This drastic cut (over 86%) means charities like HFS are no longer funded to provide furniture for people in crisis, such as families moving on from temporary accommodation, Refuges or homelessness.
The report published this week by Sussex Community Foundation underlines the
need for services like these. The report, Sussex Uncovered, says 37,000
children in Sussex are living in poverty and reports massive increases in
homelessness in Hastings and Rother.
We hope people will donate to help HFS meet the needs of people in our community. Please pop a donation in to the tree at DLWP, into your local HFS store, and please think of us if you are replacing furniture or electricals at home. We provide a free collection service for good, reusable home items throughout Hastings and Rother.
HFS has been asked to make use of an empty building in Western Road, Bexhill, while the owner looks for a long-term tenant.
The ground floor shop will offer music and films on a pay-what-you-feel basis, run by volunteers. We’re recruiting volunteers for this project at the moment; get in touch if you’d like to help out.
Upstairs will be pop-up workspace for local creatives. There are rooms for studios, offices and other spaces. There could also be exhibitions, open studios and other events.
This is a temporary project which we hope to use to prove there is a local need for permanent, affordable workspace for creative enterprises.
We’re celebrating 30 years of furniture reuse with a whole day of community activities at the Hastings Centre on the Ridge (opposite Conquest Hospital).
Please join us and have fun making, doing and trying new activities that don’t cost the earth!
Free advance tickets are available until the end of Friday on Eventbrite, or you can pay just £1 per adult on the door.
The programme and ticket link are on our website here.
Book your place today for our free / low-cost workshops in Hastings & Bexhill. We are offering:
Furniture Restoration
Beginners Carpentry
Advanced Carpentry
Paint Effects on furniture
Mixed Crafts with upcycled materials
Upholstery for Beginners
Our workshops are a great place to learn new, practical skills in a small friendly group. All courses are 20 hours, over either 4 or 6 days, and usually run on the same day each week.
Book your place today for our free / low-cost workshops in Hastings & Bexhill. We are offering:
Our springtime workshop dates are now available!
