What's On In Craft This Edinburgh Festival Season

As the festival season kicks off in Edinburgh this month, we’ve been on the lookout for exhibitions, events and activities for craft enthusiasts. Read on to discover our top picks of What’s On across the city in August.

Kiltmaking Craft & Couture: Dye, Weave, Pleat

25 Jun - 30 Aug

Scottish Textiles Showcase, St Mary's St, Edinburgh

Championing the art and craft of kiltmaking, this collaboration between Scottish Textiles Showcase, bespoke kiltmaker Andrea Chappell of Acme Atelier and the Dye, Weave, Pleat collective, celebrates the now endangered craft of kiltmaking; exploring the heritage of the traditional Scottish garment through a contemporary lens. Scottish Textiles Showcase on St Mary's St is displaying a selection of kilts created by Dye, Weave, Pleat, allowing visitors to enjoy these exceptional garments and gain an insight into how they are designed and made.

Accompanying the exhibition will be two evening talks with Andrea Chappell on 17 and 18 Aug. Andrea will be joined by fellow Dye, Weave, Pleat collective members, natural dyer Cavan Jayne and hand weavers Vevar, to talk about their work. Book through the Edinburgh Fringe website.

Images (above): Andrea Chappell, Dye, Weave, Pleat Collective, kilt pins by Kristin Beeler / Photography by Julien Borginho

Brooch by Rachael Plassard / Photography by SCastillo

DAZZLE

7 - 30 Aug

Dovecot Studios, Infirmary St, Edinburgh

DAZZLE is one of the UK's leading contemporary jewellery exhibitions, and since its first Edinburgh Festival exhibition in 1983, has become a destination for collectors, design enthusiasts and those seeking distinctive, wearable works of art.

Renowned for championing innovation and originality, DAZZLE provides a platform for some of the most exciting voices in contemporary jewellery. Each year, a carefully curated selection of makers pushes the boundaries of materials, technique and form. The 2026 exhibition will bring together 55 contemporary jewellers presenting more than 2,000 unique pieces.

Alongside the jewellery collection, there will be a selection of limited-edition prints by artist Bronwen Sleigh and contemporary knitwear by designer Carolyn Sara, creating a rich and inspiring showcase of exceptional contemporary craft.

Also at Dovecot Studios, through August and beyond, you can visit the exhibition Costume Couture: Sixty Years of Cosprop, which brings together an inspiring selection of period costumes created for film, television and theatre. 

Dress worn by Liv Tyler in Onegin © Cosprop / Jon Stokes, Julia Buckmiller

The Jewellery Pop Up Shop: Made in Scotland

12 – 16 Aug

Shop With No Name, Broughton Place, Edinburgh

More exceptional contemporary jewellery can be found at this exclusive Pop-up Shop. For five days, five independent jewellers, Hannah Bourn, Ruth Leslie, Balint Samad, Manom Jewellery and Olivia Taylor, will come together to present curated collections. Explore sculptural forms, timeless heirlooms and one-of-a-kind pieces in an intimate setting. You can also meet the makers behind each collection and shop directly from them.

Necklace by Ruth Leslie / Photography by Chantelle Gomez

From Sheep to Shop: Crafting Ethical Scottish Knitwear

3 – 31 Aug

Woolkind, Thirlestane Lane, Edinburgh

Join award-winning Scottish designer Laurence Di Sotto at his studio shop, Woolkind, for a talk/story-led discussion unravelling the wonderful world of wool. Discover where Woolkind's yarn comes from, how thoughtful design decisions are made, and what really happens inside a contemporary knitwear studio. From fibre types and spinning techniques to sustainable sourcing and a fully traceable supply chain, Laurence describes his colourful quest to create sustainable modern knitwear, questioning how fashion can put people and the planet before profit on the journey from fleece to finished piece. Book through the Edinburgh Fringe website.

Laurence Di Sotto / Woolkind

Terrane

7 – 31 Aug

ætla, St Stephen St, Edinburgh

This August, ætla presents Terrane, a contemporary jewellery exhibition curated by luxury writer Kate Matthams. Bringing together 11 international jewellers whose practices are shaped by place, Terrane explores the subtle ways landscape informs making. Inspired by lived and remembered environments, the work reflects the influence of place through surface, palette and material choices.

Themes of land, movement, and memory are present and the exhibition considers how place continues to influence contemporary craft, revealing the quiet connections between the world around us and the objects we create.

The exhibition has been conceived in collaboration with local design studio BARD, who have curated the interiors around Kate Matthams' vision, including sculptural furniture and objects by Oliver Spendley.

Image: Ring by Ruth Tomlinson / Photography by Jess Ellis

Craigmillar Tapestry

24 Jul - 31 Aug 

Scottish Storytelling Centre, High Street, Edinburgh

The Craigmillar Tapestry Project is a community initiative to create a series of tapestry panels representing the rich history of Craigmillar. Designed and stitched by local people with artwork and guidance from artist Andrew Crummy, there are now twenty panels stitched by over five hundred contributors which can be seen displayed at the Scottish Storytelling Centre this summer. The panels are stitched to an incredibly high standard by local residents in Craigmillar and Niddrie, incorporating elements of their own stories, from traditional Syrian stitching to names of local activists and important landmarks.

Patriothall Fringe Exhibition

8 - 23 Aug

Patriothall Gallery, Hamilton Place, Edinburgh

Set within Patriothall’s striking industrial gallery space, this exhibition showcases the work of 32 artists and makers based at Patriothall Studios. With ceramics, jewellery, mosaic, painting, printmaking, weaving and tapestry on display the result is an immersive visual experience that celebrates the diversity, skill and innovation thriving within Edinburgh’s artistic landscape. Discover original work, meet the makers, and explore one of Edinburgh’s longest-running artist studio complexes.

Adding a compelling dimension to the exhibition, photographer Alix McIntosh presents a series of intimate studio portraits capturing the artists and makers within their working environments. The project reveals the creative processes, tools and spaces behind the work on display, offering a rare behind-the-scenes insight.

Image: Tokes Sharif, Studio Brae / Photography by Alix McIntosh

Art in Glass: Alison Kinnaird Open Studio Exhibition

1 - 30 Aug

Art Glass Studio 34, Ferry Road, Edinburgh

Internationally respected glass artist Alison Kinnaird MBE works with wheel-engraving, a technique now on the Red List of Endangered Crafts, with only 6 people in Britain still practicing. Her public glass works can be seen in the Scottish Parliament, the SNPG and the Royal Museum on Chambers Street.

Throughout August Alison is holding an Open Studio Exhibition, which will feature a range of pieces, from small intimate creations to architectural scale work, and the chance to meet and hear from Alison herself each day.

Image: Alison Kinnaird / Photography by Robin Morton

Festival Bindings

10 - 29 Aug

National Library of Scotland, George IV Bridge, Edinburgh

This pop-up display at the National Library of Scotland features the work of 28 contemporary bookbinders and is presented by Designer Bookbinders, a group dedicated to preserving, promoting and improving the craft of contemporary bookbinding by hand. The works on show demonstrate binding techniques using leather and gold leaf alongside a wide range of other materials.