Shoemaker James Roberts trims excess leather from a shoe last (model). The most difficult thing about the process, he says, isn’t the sewing or gluing or pattern making. “When someone says they don’t like how a shoe fits on their foot, you need to understand what that means. It’s sort of translating that feeling into something that is a shape or a style.” 

Beveridge-based cooper (makes wooden vessels) George Smithwick can turn his hand to many things. Although he is working much less these days, he still likes to keep busy – his next big project will be the restoration of an E83W panel van, the chassis of which is pictured here in his shed. George plans to build the back of the vehicle out of wood.

George, a coooper, says the step that most people struggle with when building a bucket is often the tying and platting of the rope. For George, however, it’s as easy as tying his laces – from start to finish, making a bucket takes him less than an hour (with a few cigarette breaks wedged in). 

If George is ever at a loss of how to build something, he turns to books. In this way, he taught himself how to construct wares such as pitchforks, carts and even cart wheels.  “I’m not good at reading, all right,” he says. “So I looked at the pictures and thought ‘It’s not that hard.'”

Chairmaker Glen Rundell entertains the crowd at the Lost Trades Fair in Kyneton. Sharing skills and knowledge is something he is incredibly passionate about, which is one of the reasons he began teaching chairmaking workshops. He encourages his students to pass on what they learn. “You don’t learn to play the guitar and then just go and stick it in the corner and never play it again, he says. “What’s the point?”

Printmaker Lawrence Finn helps demonstrates the art of letterpress on his Kelsey machine. This easy-to-use desktop press is a favourite with children, who love to have a go at creating their own prints, says Lawrence. 

The cooper’s station was a firm favourite at the fair. “Noise is a funny thing,” George says. “People hear something and they come round, like bees to a honey pot. You tend to get a little worn out. I have to stop to take a breath. I try to find something easy to do for 10 minutes and someone comes up and says ‘When are you going to make another bucket?’ And I think, ‘Right, okay, here we go again.’ And that’s what we were there for. We weren’t there to sit and look pretty. That’d be pretty hard to do.”

Bespoke shoemaker James Roberts is enamoured with old hand tools and machines – a fondness for mechanics and the inner-workings of things was what pushed him towards cobbling in the first place.

Young stonemason Tom Henderson uses a hammer and chisel to carve letters into a cenotaph at Mentone RSL, Melbourne. “There’s a high level of skill in the finer points of [the trade],” says Tom’s boss Huntly Barton. 

Pictured here at Melbourne’s Victoria market with a 36-piece monument he helped to build, stonemason Huntly Barton says a good knowledge of materials is vital for a tradesperson. “Each stone presents a different problem,” he says.

Hedgelayer Kate Ellis builds garden structures, such as the tree guard pictured here, out of recycled materials. Her motto is “local, sustainable, beautiful”.

More than 7000 people visited the Lost Trades Fair, Kyneton, Vic in March 2014. The response was incredible, says organiser Glen Rundell. “And we’re only scratching the surface with the talented people we have in the area.” Here spectators gather around the stall of coachbuilder Steve Barnett. 

On display at each stall at the fair were the tools used by each tradesperson. Fairgoers were able to handle the equipment and ask questions, gaining valuable insight into the inner-workings of some of our oldest manual trades. Pictured here are metal letters and a key belonging to printmaker Lawrence Finn. 

Toolmaker Colen Clenton has been crafting exquisite hand tools, such as this recalibratable square, for more than 20 years. Originally a furnituremaker, Colen began making tools because he was frustrated with the quality of those he was using. 

The purpose of the Lost Trades Fair, held in Kyneton, Vic in March 2014, was not only to reach out to the public, but also to connect tradespeople themselves. The 2013 fair hosted 35 artisans – next year’s is likely to display the work of up to 100.