Welcome to the Craft Arena website!

At Craft Arena we sell needlecraft, knitting, crochet, mixed media, craft supplies, Brother sewing machines, wool, threads, haberdashery, beads, craft books, gifts and textile art. You can access our online shop by clicking the Shop menu item above.

We have a wide range of Brother Sewing and Embroidery machines on demonstration, and offer a full personal consultation so that you can choose the right machine for you. We give FREE training on most machines.

We hold workshops and training classes in needlecraft, knitting, crochet, mixed media, printing and textile art design in our large workshop area. You can see details of upcoming workshops and training classes below or click here for a full list.

We showcase the work of local artists and design groups in frequently changing exhibitions in Alchemy, our dedicated Textile Art Gallery.

We publish a regular newsletter containing special offers, details of upcoming workshops and everything Craft Arena. If you would like to subscribe, simply click on the blue "Subscribe" icon below. Our newsletters are usually sent out weekly.

We look forward to seeing you in the studio soon.

Craft Arena is upstairs at the Barleylands Craft Village, Billericay, Essex, Studios 49 - 51. We are open 10am - 5pm Tuesday to Saturday, and 10am - 4pm Sundays and most Bank Holidays.

We either use or personally recommend the items we sell. If you have a specific requirement please contact us and we will do our best to help.

Click here to subscribe to our Newsletter!

Featured

Brother Event

Come along to our special Brother event in conjunction with Dowling’s Sewing Machines.

  • Friday 21st September at Dowlings Sewing Machines, Orwell Court, Hurricane Way, Wickford, SS11 8YJ
  • Saturday 22nd & Sunday 23rd September at Craft Arena

We have the new Innovis XP1 Luminere in pride of place on demonstration at Dowlings on Friday 21st, and at Craft Arena on Saturday 22nd and Sunday 23rd.

The XP1 is the big sister to Brother's XV machine, and comes with a longer sewing arm and a projector which can show where your design will be stitched actually on the fabric!

It is jam packed with tons of new exciting designs and features!

This is your chance to be one of the first in the UK to see this exciting new machine in the flesh.

Rachel from Brother will be on hand on Friday 21st at Dowlings to answer your questions on the XP1 or any of the Brother range and Denise will be showing you the features of this fabulous machine on Saturday and Sunday at Craft Arena.

Workshops - coming soon

Powertex Figure with Denise Saturday 29th September

Saturday, 29 September 2018 - 10:30am to 4:00pm
Saturday, 13 October 2018 - 10:30am to 1:00pm

For those who have had some experience of using Powertex and mixed media, join us to make a figure using a form for the base of your figure, fabric, paint and Powertex.

All materials are provided for you in this workshop, but please feel free to bring your own embellishments to add to your work.

You will be able to pose your figure into position and use your choice of a selection of Powertex colours to get the feel you want. As the figure takes a while to dry, we will be constructing it on the first session and finishing off and enhancing with colour on the second. You will also get the chance to construct your own armature using wire.

Although Denise is not an accredited Powertex trainer, she enjoys using and exploring the possibilities of this versatile medium, incorporating different media to expand and extend its potential

Please note, in some issues of our newsletter and workshop programme, the date of the second session is incorrectly shown as Sunday 14th October

Price: 
£75.00

Simple Goldwork Flowers with Wendy morning session - Saturday 6th October

Saturday, 6 October 2018 - 10:30am to 1:00pm

On these workshops, Wendy will be showing you how to stitch beautiful Goldwork flowers.

You can join her for the morning, afternoon or stay all day. All materials will be provided.

This class is suitable for complete beginners or those who wish to refresh their skills. Project may differ from those illustrated.

You can also book for the all day workshop or the afternoon only session

Price: 
£35.00

Simple Goldwork Flowers with Wendy all day workshop - Saturday 6th October

Saturday, 6 October 2018 - 10:30am to 4:00pm

On these workshops, Wendy will be showing you how to stitch beautiful Goldwork flowers.

You can join her for the morning, afternoon or stay all day. All materials will be provided.

This class is suitable for complete beginners or those who wish to refresh their skills. Project may differ from those illustrated.

You can also book for the morning only session or afternoon only session

Price: 
£60.00

Simple Goldwork Flowers with Wendy afternoon session - Saturday 6th October

Saturday, 6 October 2018 - 2:00pm to 4:00pm

On these workshops, Wendy will be showing you how to stitch beautiful Goldwork flowers.

You can join her for the morning, afternoon or stay all day. All materials will be provided.

This class is suitable for complete beginners or those who wish to refresh their skills. Project may differ from those illustrated.

You can also book for the morning only session or all day workshop

Price: 
£35.00

Machine Embroidery Group - Sunday 7th October

Sunday, 7 October 2018 - 10:30am to 1:00pm

A series of informal monthly sessions to help you get the most from your embroidery machine.

A different machine embroidery technique will be covered each month. This month we will be covering stabilisers and working on towelling.

Bring along any challenges or questions you have, and there is bound to be someone here to answer them.

Price: 
£10.00

Crewelwork for Beginners with Marion Wood - Friday 12th October

Friday, 12 October 2018 - 10:30am to 1:00pm

Learn the basic stitches used in traditional crewelwork with a modern twist.

You will be using fine wool yarn to stitch a pretty sample which can be used in further work or added to your sample book.

Suitable for complete beginners and those who wish to expand their skills.

Price: 
£45.00