About The Artist

Hello, I’m Phil.

I’m a graphite pencil portrait artist from Bolton, with a passion for capturing the essence of life through the strokes of graphite pencil. In addition to my love for art, I also specialise in crafting custom wooden garden furniture and whimsical bespoke novelty animals, turning imagination into creations that bring joy and artistry to life.

My Mission

At Phil’s Arts and Crafts, I’m passionate about bringing beauty and functionality to your life. My mission is one of inspiration, dedication, and a love for creating things that bring joy to others.

The Art of Pencil Art

I’ve always been fascinated by the simplicity and elegance of pencil art. With a keen eye for detail and a passion for storytelling, I create portraits that capture the essence of life. Every piece is a labour of love, crafted to inspire and delight.

Wooden Garden Furniture

But my creative journey doesn’t stop there. Phil’s Arts and Crafts is also about creating outdoor spaces that bring people together. My wooden garden furniture is designed to be both beautiful and durable, crafted from the finest materials to withstand the elements. Every item is built to last, and made to bring joy to your outdoor living.

Artisanal Wooden Novelty Animals

Embarking on my woodworking journey has been a transformative experience, allowing me to discover and hone my skills. Creating novelty wooden animals has been a delightful extension of my creativity, combining my passion for craftsmanship with imaginative design. Each animal, meticulously crafted from high-quality MDF and pine, reflects my commitment to durability and artistry. Hand-painted with vibrant acrylics and finished with a protective varnish, these pieces are perfect for adding charm to any nursery. Whether hung on walls or propped on shelves, they’re crafted to bring joy for years, embodying the spirit of my evolving woodworking adventure.

My Values

At Phil’s Arts and Crafts, I believe in:

Quality: I’m committed to delivering only the best, whether it’s a pencil art piece or a custom garden bench.

Sustainability: I’m dedicated to using eco-friendly materials whether it be cardboard packaging for your artwork, or FSC sourced timber for your garden furniture.

Customer Satisfaction: I’m here to make you happy you chose me, and I’ll work tirelessly to ensure you’re thrilled with your purchase.

Art History

My Dad was a local artist. I’d sit in my parents’ kitchen watching my Dad recreate local scenes using oil paints; always starting off on the canvas with a rough sketch for perspective and key areas.

At 13 years old I drew a huge poster of Beethoven for the Music lessons classroom and he’s probably still sat there now, or in my Secondary School’s loft among the Christmas decorations. I’d look at him gazing out of the wall back at me while I was trying to understand dissonance in 20th Century jazz.

I’d enjoyed sketching things for several years after this, specialising in people, and more specifically, faces – and knocking around my house was an artist’s sketch pad, left untouched for years. I took that sketch pad and started initially drawing animals, then attempted my first face for quite a few years with some artists’ graphite pencils, and the rest isn’t really history yet, but we’re nearly there.

My medium is graphite; I feel more comfortable drawing in this medium. There’s something about the black and white image on paper that excites me, brings out personality, and I hope to recreate that for you too.

Woodworking History

In the very early days at school, we used to have woodworking class. I still remember the smell of the burnt wood coming from the workshop next door because some belt needed changing. Anyway, I made a cassette rack, was quite proud of it, and I thought ‘I’m reasonably proficient with a screwdriver and hammer’

Well, that woodworking class must have inspired me.

A few years ago I had a wooden gate and fence at the front of the house that looked pretty sad and battered which got replaced by metal, and all of a sudden I had a lot of wood kicking about I didn’t know what to do with. Next thing, I had a bird table, a bench and a table in my garden made out of it all.

I know. Well I couldn’t just leave it lying about and do nothing with it..

More recently, I needed a coldframe to house my summer herbs, watched a few YouTube videos, and luckily, I found some old pallets leaning against our local hospital’s wall begging me to take them home, pull them to pieces with a carjack, and repurpose them. With this old pallet wood, I made a coldframe. From that came wooden planters and a replacement head for my old bird table. However, these were just prototypes.

I wanted to build something more durable and found my local timberyard to firstly replace a sad looking bird table top, and then work out the maths for a smaller option, build my benches – then I needed planters… I couldn’t stop visiting my timber yard for the next project, such was my dedication to building practical garden furniture.

The novelty animals were developed from of an idea not to throw some old nut tree branches away. They’re now made out of treated pine and MDF which is much easier to work with than the bark – but the bark animals still take pride of place here and are the basis for their development.

This wonderful little animal family is still in its infancy but growing and the plan is for it to grow over time until I’ve got nothing but wooden animals looking at me like it’s some sort of inanimate zoo, and of course, you can own any of them too so you can have your own zoo.

Join My Journey

Thanks for taking a look!

Whether you’re looking for a unique piece of art, beautiful garden furniture, or need to have a novelty wooden animal in your collection, I’m here to help.

Explore my portfolia, get in touch, and let’s create something amazing together.