About the Smiddy
A contemporary craft space rooted in people and place
The Smiddy is a contemporary craft space based in Banff, North East Scotland.
It exists to provide a welcoming and professional environment for making, learning, and community activity, grounded in care for materials, process, and people.
The Smiddy brings together jewellery and silversmithing, education, studio practice, residencies, community programmes, and a public gallery within one shared space. Everything we do is shaped by clarity, inclusion, and long-term thinking.
Why the Smiddy exists
The Smiddy was created to make skilled craft accessible without intimidation.
We believe that professional standards and welcoming environments can exist together. Skilled making can be taught properly while remaining calm, supportive, and inclusive.
The Smiddy exists to support people encountering making for the first time, returning after time away, or deepening an established practice. All forms of engagement are welcomed, without pressure to progress or perform.
What guides our approach
The Smiddy is guided by a small number of clear principles:
People come first
Access matters
Quality is protected through care, not pressure
Growth happens only when capacity allows
We prioritise clarity over persuasion and transparency over hype. People are trusted to decide how, when, and whether they want to engage.
Banff and silver
A place shaped by silversmithing
Banff has a long relationship with silversmithing and metalwork, and the wider area is associated with skilled making traditions. This heritage forms part of the cultural fabric of the town and is best understood through surviving objects, records, and collections.
Examples of historic Banff silver can be seen locally, including within the collections held by Banff Museum. These objects offer insight into the forms, functions, and standards of silver associated with the area.
Wider examples of Scottish silver and related decorative arts can also be found within regional and national collections, helping to situate Banff within a broader context of skilled metalwork and material culture.
The Smiddy does not seek to recreate the past. Instead, it acknowledges that contemporary making exists within a place shaped by long-standing craft practice.
The Smiddy today
Living practice, not historical authority
The Smiddy exists in conversation with this heritage, not as a historical authority, but as a living workshop and learning space.
Our focus on process, material understanding, and professional standards reflects values that have long shaped silversmithing practice. At the same time, the Smiddy responds to present-day makers, learners, and changing ways of engaging with craft.
By bringing together education, residencies, studio access, community activity, and a public gallery, the Smiddy supports skilled making as something active, relevant, and shared.
How people engage
There is no single way to be part of the Smiddy.
Some people visit once for a gallery exhibition or an experience. Others attend courses, take part in community programmes, become members, or undertake residencies. Some engage in more than one way over time.
All forms of engagement are valid and welcomed.
To explore current activity, you may wish to see:
Organisational context
Vanilla Ink CIC
The Smiddy operates as part of Vanilla Ink CIC, a community interest company working across craft, learning, and access in Scotland.
While the Smiddy sits within the Vanilla Ink CIC structure, it operates with a strong local focus. Any surplus generated through Smiddy activity is retained within the Smiddy and reinvested locally, supporting the space, its programmes, and the North East Scotland community it serves.
This structure allows the Smiddy to operate with care, accountability, and long-term commitment to people, place, and practice, while ensuring that income generated through the Smiddy directly benefits the local environment in which it operates.
Looking ahead
The Smiddy is designed to grow carefully and responsibly.
New activity is introduced only when it can be supported without compromising the quality of the space or the experience of those using it. Expansion is shaped by need, care, and sustainability rather than scale.
The aim is continuity, not acceleration.
Our long-term ambition is to support the return of a silversmithing and jewellery presence in Banff through future partnerships and advocacy, shaped by feasibility, regulation, and community need.
Getting in touch
If you would like to know more about the Smiddy, or have questions about its work and values, you are welcome to get in touch.