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Midtown Makers Gift Shop - BLOG



Midtown Makers gets a Make-Over
Thank you Ballymena Means for the fabulous video, we are all super happy with our make over, hope all our Members and customers like it too.

Amanda Jones
2 days ago1 min read


Bertie the Ballymena Bear: A Little Bear with a Big Heart
In 2015, Ballymena’s town centre was introduced to a small, cuddly character who would go on to win hearts across the globe—Bertie the Bear. Commissioned by the Ballymena Business Improvement District (BID), Bertie starred in a four-minute Christmas short film that quickly became a viral sensation. What started as a local festive project soon grew into something much bigger, a story that captured the heart and soul of Ballymena and proudly placed it on the world map.

Jim Stevenson
Nov 153 min read


Discover a Land, Shaped by Sea and Stone
This September, the team at Midtown Makers were invited to join the new Mid & East Antrim Neighbourhood Tourism Hub's familiarisation tours, led by Patricia McEldowney of Mid and East Antrim Borough Council.
Catriona, Jim and I were joined by Hub Members from Carrickfergus, Larne and Cullybackey to explore some of the many places of interest in the Borough.

Amanda Jones
Oct 213 min read


Retail Ready - September 2025
"Retail Ready" is a pop-up-shop initiative managed by Ballymena Business Centre in partnership with The Gallaher Trust. This initiative...

Amanda Jones
Sep 103 min read


Life in Focus - Nicole Getty Photography
Ballymena Photographer, Nicole first started her Midtown Makers journey a year ago when she nervously came into the shop asking for help selling her photography. She signed up for the Retail Ready Programme, which gave her 2 months free test trading and vital advice from Ballymena Business Centre. With a lot of hard work and expert printing from Ryan at Woodside Photographic, Nicole displayed her pictures in the window of Midtown Makers and made her first sale in a retail env

Jim Stevenson
Aug 283 min read


Tell It To The Bees - Make My Day - Fiona Doherty
🐝Tell It To The Bees 🐝
NEW Blog Post - Every month we talk to one of our fabulous Makers, and August is the turn of Queen Bee Fiona Doherty from HoneyComb.Cabin . From her kitchen table to her own workshop shed and winning awards, Fiona takes us on her un-bee-liveable journey of becoming a beeswax crafter.

Amanda Jones
Aug 150 min read


Make My Day...Linda Wray
Interview with Midtown Makers Member Linda Wray.

Amanda Jones
Jul 250 min read


August Craft Month 2025 at Midtown Makers
Join us this August Craft Month for a programme of textiles workshops including crochet, felting, embroidery and quilting.

Amanda Jones
Jul 21 min read


Make My Day with Catriona McCarte
This month we talk to Catriona McCarte of Crafty Treasures. Catriona shares her crafting day and what goes on behind the scenes of faux flower wreath making.

Amanda Jones
Jun 270 min read


Retail Ready - Grain and Glory
Welcome to Richard from Grain & Glory, who is trading here for 2 months on our Retail Ready Programme. "Hi, I'm Richard Fleck, Over the...

Amanda Jones
Jun 111 min read


10 Years of Midtown Makers
Ten years ago, the idea emerged to open a shop in Ballymena to accommodate growing art and crafts businesses.

Amanda Jones
Sep 10, 20242 min read
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