Traditional Art Shop and Unique Attraction in a 17th Century Town House in Appleby

+44.1768353530

Pure Pigments 
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    • Shop
    • Experiences
      • Daily Demonstrations
      • Natural Earths Exp 1
      • Calcining Experience 2
      • Blues & Greens Exp 3
      • Alchemy Master Exp 4
    • About
      • Discover
      • Pigments and Mediums
      • The Artist
      • Colour Makers House
      • The Book
    • Colour Makers Blog

+44.1768353530

Pure Pigments 
at
The Colour Makers House

Signed in as:

filler@godaddy.com

  • Home
  • Shop
  • Experiences
    • Daily Demonstrations
    • Natural Earths Exp 1
    • Calcining Experience 2
    • Blues & Greens Exp 3
    • Alchemy Master Exp 4
  • About
    • Discover
    • Pigments and Mediums
    • The Artist
    • Colour Makers House
    • The Book
  • Colour Makers Blog

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Welcome To

Earth Pigments, Alchemy, & the Magic of Colour

Earth Pigments, Alchemy, & the Magic of ColourEarth Pigments, Alchemy, & the Magic of ColourEarth Pigments, Alchemy, & the Magic of Colour

Traditional art shop in the heart of Appleby sells and produces a range of local ochres, umbers and and metal-based pigments

Discover the magical world of Colour

Discover The Colour Makers

Orange clay for ochre

Handmade Natural Earth Pigments

Unlock the captivating essence of nature with our traditional art shop, where every handmade earth pigment tells a story. 

Sourced from the stunning palettes we discover during our inspiring walks and drives, these exquisite colours are meticulously refined by skilled artisans using age-old techniques passed down through generations. 

Exposed Soil for red ochre

Lake District Colours

The world of colour is influenced by metals. 

Ochres are simply clay and sand stained by rusty iron, while greens and blues come from copper. White pigments are derived from lead and titanium.

You are welcome to come and see how the raw materials are transformed into vivid colours for artists and decorators.

See How Pigments Are Made

See how artists have made pigments and colours for paintings that have inspired the world and transformed the human experience. 

We give 45-minute demonstrations as a quick overview and specialist experience workshops that last a half or full day

Talks, Interviews and Demonstrations

Discover what artists and Visitors Say

Engaging and Fascinating

Highly Recommend The Workshop

Conveys Passion Effortlessly

 The six-year-old was so engaged, and the 13-year-old daughter enjoyed it; it was such a fascinating afternoon. We were all fascinated - Sarah & Andy, Bowes.

Conveys Passion Effortlessly

Highly Recommend The Workshop

Conveys Passion Effortlessly

 Mark generously gave his Christmas Eve to give my partner and me the opportunity to experience his Pigment workshop. I am by no means an artist, but I must say I was completely absorbed.
This was an excellent workshop led by Mark, who clearly is very passionate about Colour and pigment and conveys that passion effortlessly. Mark himself is extremely easygoing, friendly, and a breeze to listen to, making it so easy to take it all in.
Brilliant. I cannot recommend it enough. We will be back! - Bri & Alex, Surrey 

Highly Recommend The Workshop

Highly Recommend The Workshop

A Special Workshop Around Egg Tempura

 "Thank you, Mark and Phil, for today's unique and special colour-making experience. I so enjoyed my day, I learned so much about the history, alchemy and processes involved in making pigments from local rocks and earth. Your step-by-step instruction will spur me on. I'd highly recommend one of your workshops and visit to your shop to anyone curious about the colour around all around us."
- Fiona Creative Wellbeing Occupational Therapist, from Edinburgh.


A Special Workshop Around Egg Tempura

A Special Workshop Around Egg Tempura

A Special Workshop Around Egg Tempura

 I was very privileged to meet fellow artist Mark Hilsden on our travels in the Lake District today.

I stumbled upon his workshop in the quaint town of Appleby and he was kind enough to demonstrate the age-old technique of Egg Tempera after I admitted to him that it was something I have struggled with.

Mark makes some of his own pigments and his workshop displays a multitude of rainbow-coloured jars.

Thank you so much for the art lesson Mark, it was lovely to meet you!

 Heather Stuart Kent 

Fantastic Experience

A Special Workshop Around Egg Tempura

Stumbling across Magic

Would like to say a big THANK YOU to Mark, at The Colour Makers House. My Granddaughter and I thoroughly enjoyed finding out how to make paint! Would highly recommend a visit here! 

Harper's mum has said she's not stopped talking about the time spent learning how to make paint! We had a fantastic, and very interesting time. We both learnt so much. Thank you so very much! 

Sue Hope, Wild Rose, Ormside

Stumbling across Magic

A Special Workshop Around Egg Tempura

Stumbling across Magic

 Sometimes you stumble upon magic. Today was such a day.
I’m away for a lovely treat trip with my eldest, we’re in Appleby in Cumbria. Pottering through the pretty gift shops we saw a sign for ‘Alchemy at the Colour Makers House’. So we popped in. The little shop, 17th-century beams and fireplaces, is filled with bottles and tubes of handmade paint pigment. The vibrancy of the colours takes your breath away.

We then stayed to observe how the pigments are created and how they are transformed into paint. It was magical, memorable, a gift of knowledge given so generously by @markhilsden
Joanne and Elizabeth, Scotland

Read The Book, Discover The Story, Experience The Reality

 Welcome to The Colour Makers House in Appleby-in-Westmorland, where molehills and alchemy create beautiful colours for art and home. Read the inspirational story of a young artist becoming a colour maker and confident artist. Discover her story through specialty workshops. 

Find out more about the book

Featured Products

Explore our vibrant gallery of handmade pigments

Collection of foraged soil and clay
Crushing yellow stone into ochre
Examples of watercolour
Red Sandstone
Processing colour earth
Making Watercolour

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The Colour Makers House

2 High Wiend, Appleby-in-Westmorland CA16 6RD

+44.1768353530

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09:00 – 16:00

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The Colour Makers House

2 High Wiend, Appleby-in-Westmorland CA16 6RD

+44.1768353530

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