About me

Rachel Stewart is a narrative illustrator and personal historian based in Edinburgh. She collaborates with individuals, families, and communities helping to preserve their stories. Her work features in several private autobiographical publications, children's books and as puzzle concept art for escape games.

Concurrently, Rachel works as a mixed-media craft maker and is regularly commissioned to design bespoke textile based learning tools, scenic designs and props for science centres and global community outreach projects.

Rachel is the founder of Woolly Gran, a community interest company supported by the Prince's Trust, which uses traditional crafts, such as knitting, to help elderly artists keep their brains and hands active. Woolly Gran offers a platform for social interaction, a sense of creative purpose, the chance of financial gain to support creative hobbies through a range of retail outlets, but above all, champions good mental health and positive, inter-generational artistic collaboration. Woolly Gran is built on the importance of celebrating, supporting and remembering older creative family members and friends. In line with Woolly Gran's inter-generational crafting ethos, Rachel is currently developing a range of bespoke family-tree portrait dolls.

Skills

Business Development, Character Design, Communications, Crafts, Creative Direction, Customer Services, Digital Art, Entrepreneurship, Illustration, Music, Painting, Performing Arts, Photoshop, Planning, Problem Solving, Product Design, Product Development, Project Design, Prop Design, Public Speaking, Quality Control, Retail Design, Sculpture, Set Design, Singing, Staff Training, Storyboarding, Teaching / Lecturing, Team Management, Textile Design, Toy Design

Sector Experience

Arts, Communications, Crafts, Creative Services, Design, Education, Public Sector, Retail, Social Enterprise, Social Network / Community, Textiles, Theatre