Christmas is a period in time where we all get to suspend our disbelief and allow our imaginations to run wild. When I was a kid I used to wonder what the world would be like if we allowed this creativity to extend the whole year... and that thought in turn planted the seed in my head that eventually grew into Bright Stem.

"Bright Stem was set up to create an environment in which I can naturally function within. Where different things can come into contact with one another allowing ideas to develop across multiple disciplines. It's also somewhere for me to present these different projects alongside one another. Allowing the public to see the connections made between them." 

Andrew Wood

Artist/Designer and Founder of Bright Stem

The project came about through a period of creative experimentation. It began with my pop out baubles and tags which inspired me to make a pop out sculpture. In turn, this led to the design of a small pop out model rocket and later a 15ft high piece of public art.

When I started Bright Stem I was already running another small family business called Badger Designs and Prints where I created handmade fabric sew on badges. So it was natural for one of the first products to be a set of badges. Because of this I know from first hand experience the skill, time and effort involved with making a quality product. So from the outset the ethics of how things where made where important to me. I wanted to make sure that other people who made Bright Stem products would also be paid a fair wage and have good working conditions.