This is your chance to directly influence the series, and to give a platform to a craft or skill close to your heart. It’s all rather exciting, quite frankly.

Post your craft suggestions in the comments form below, and they could feature in series two of Kirstie’s Homemade Home…

Stool By Howcroft & Jordan

The terms ‘cutting edge’ and ‘crafts‘ are rarely seen in the same sentence, but they should be. If this event proves anything it’s that there’s a wealth of new and established talent out there, making high quality, bespoke contemporary craft items.

Ceramics by Virginia Graham

Furniture, ceramics, jewellery, glassware and textiles will be on show, and all work is selected by a panel of craft experts so that only the hottest design talent makes the grade.

Glass Vase by Kathryn Pearce

With the recession biting and people like Kirstie Allsopp and Perri Lewis of the Guardian (amongst others) on a crusade to promote British-made quality craft products, the Great Northern Contemporary Craft Fair should be a huge hit.

The Great Northern Contemporary Craft Fair runs from 23rd – 25th October 2009 at Spinningfields in the heart of Manchester. For more information, visit www.greatnorthernevents.co.uk or email press@greatnorthernevents.co.uk

Kevin McCloud says, ‘It’s never been more important to celebrate design excellence than in the current economic climate. The architects who produce bespoke, responsive buildings, the people designing innovative product, self-builders, and those brave souls who commission exemplary architecture, are the design heroes of our economy. They’re out there, still challenging perceptions, pushing at the boundaries of engineering, aesthetics and invention, and they need to be celebrated and given their moment.’ For entry details, go to www.granddesignsawards.com.

There were various chairs and tables from the Charles & Ray Eames and Le Corbusier, as well as the latter’s architectural imaginings. Even the regular furniture section at the V&A includes work by Eileen Gray, Alvar Aalto and Phillipe Starck. Well worth a look if you’re in London or just fancy a day out in the capital. The exhibition runs until January 11th, so you’ll have to be quick…

Mainly, it must be said, because I find Ruth Watson brilliant to watch. Her blunt, money-driven brain makes her at times seem unsympathetic to the traditions and heritage of the properties she’s trying to transform. But it’s quite simply a case of being cruel to be kind, with her sole aim being to ensure these wonderful properties can pay for themselves, preserving them for future generations to enjoy and admire.

Tonight’s country house owners, Mary-Ann and Alistair, have the dubious privilege of owning savings-swallowing Cothay Manor, a sprawling 15th-century manor house with impeccable gardens in deepest Somerset. Shrill, eccentric and painfully posh (their eldest daughter doesn’t want to inherit Cothay because she has her husband’s 900 acre estate to care for) makes this pair essential viewing. The work they’ve done to restore the once-dilapidated gardens is simply magnificent, while fiery Ruth’s profiteering advice doesn’t always sit well with our protagonists, meaning good telly all round.

Watch out for refined country granddad Alistair’s description of their 500-year-old wall paintings as ‘old-world bling’. Priceless.

Country House Rescue begins tonight at 9pm on Channel 4.

Without giving too much away, the premise of the show will be that Ruth tries to help the owners of large country estates that are losing vast sums of money and are simply too expensive to maintain. Ruth’s job is to help these people develop new revenue streams so that the houses don’t fall into disrepair and their owners aren’t bankrupted trying to maintain the period magnificence of their properties.

Ruth Watson assures me that the homeowners are generally real characters and make for great viewing. Although I haven’t seen any episodes yet, I have seen countless photos of the featured properties and they are all amazing – beautiful, huge period country houses with fantastic gardens, acres of grounds etc. I think this show could be a very good one, and with Ruth on board the potential for laughs is always there.

You can read more about the show and get top tips from Ruth Watson and an exclusive interview about the series on the new Country House Rescue website.

Country House Rescue starts on 9th December at 9pm on Channel 4.

George Clarke and The Home Show team are currently looking for new projects for the programme. You can find all the information you need on the Appear On The Home Show page within 4Homes.

Thanks for the interest all, hope you see you on my tellybox in the near future…

Click here to find out how you can appear on The Home Show