MAKING MEMORIES - Inspiring people is the key for me

TV restoration expert Dominic Chinea on how crafting helps our health and the planet

- JEN PHARO

Star of The Repair Shop Dominic Chinea is never happier than when he’s in his workshop, tinkering away with his latest project. But while restoration work is his livelihood, Dominic, 38, has discovered that the therapeutic nature of crafting can be lifesaving for those battling poor mental health.

“With craft and mental health there’s a real big link,” Dominic tells OK!. “Mental health is a big thing and craft can help anybody. Crafting doesn’t have to be a career. There are so many people whose lives have been affected and saved and changed by doing a craft.”

As well as being a much-loved face on The Repair Shop, Dominic also has his own BBC show called Make It At Market, which sees amateur craftspeople learn how to profit from their hobbies. Talking to the contributors on his show has opened Dominic’s eyes about how vital crafting can be for people going through tough times.

“Lots of people on Make It At Market have been through horrendous things in their lives, then they picked up the craft as a way of dealing with what they’ve gone through, to calm down and relax. It has literally saved their lives,” explains Dominic. “They’re not trying to make millions of pounds from it, it’s just about doing and making something.”

Dominic studied graphic design at degree level but feared ending up in an office. Instead, his Saturday job working in a classic VW garage opened up a different career path for him.

Now, even at the weekends, he can be found in his workshop. “I cannot think of anything better than a Sunday afternoon just being in the workshop pottering around,” says Dominic. “It’s not work. I just enjoy being there. And it’s a nice quiet space where you could just be yourself.”