Written by Paul Worrall
Preston is the one city in this series I can genuinly claim to know — and from two completely different angles. I studied Contemporary Music at the University of Central Lancashire, commuting in from Blackpool rather than staying in halls, which meant I got to know the city properly rather than just the campus. The Guild Hall, the Harris on the market square, the bus station that everyone had an opinion about, the stretch of Friargate that felt like a proper city centre in a way that surprised people who hadn’t been. Preston always felt bigger and more interesting than its reputation suggested.
Then in June 2012 I started what would become nearly a decade at ARTdiscount — part of Granthams, the Blackpool-based company — and the Preston connection deepened in a completely different direction. Granthams had a branch right in Preston city centre, close to the university, and I actually worked from the Preston office when I first joined. So I’ve spent time in this city as a student and as someone working in the art supplies trade, which makes writing this guide feel considerably more personal than most in this series.
I now run Discount Art Supplies — a price comparison platform used by over 36,000 UK artists every week. Here’s the honest guide to what Preston offers artists right now. If you’re planning visits to nearby cities, also check out our guide to the best art supply shops in Blackpool and the best art supply shops in Chester.
1. Inspirations by Hunkydory Crafts — Capitol Centre
The headline entry for Preston’s creative community is genuinly impressive in scale. Inspirations at the Capitol Centre is an award-winning 10,000 square foot craft superstore — the physical home of Hunkydory Crafts — stocking papercrafts, scrapbooking, knitting and stitching, hobbies and gifts across a space that dwarfs most comparable operations anywhere in the North West. Alongside the full Hunkydory product range, Inspirations stocks Tim Holtz, Sweet Dixie, Sue Wilson, Tonic Studios, Crafter’s Companion and many more, with free in-store demonstrations running regularly.
10,000 square feet of craft supplies is a genuinly significant retail operation. For mixed media artists, papercraft enthusiasts, card makers and crafters in the Preston area, Inspirations is the kind of destination that justifies a dedicated trip rather than just a passing visit. Open Monday to Saturday 10am-5:30pm, Sunday 11am-4pm.
2. The Harris Museum and Art Gallery
The Harris Museum and Art Gallery sits on Preston’s market square and is the building I remember most clearly from my UCLan years — a grand Victorian neoclassical structure that felt slightly too impressive for the square it dominated, in the way that genuinly good civic buildings often do. Reopened following major renovations in recent years, the Harris holds a permanent collection of fine art, decorative art, costume and social history alongside a programme of temporary exhibitions. The collection includes work by Lowry, Degas and Hepworth — not a minor regional collection but a genuinly serious one with proper national and international representation.
For Preston artists, the Harris is what it always was when I was at UCLan — the place you go to see serious work in a free, open building in the middle of the city. Unchanged in that respect, and better for the renovation. Free entry.
3. Hobbycraft Preston
The Preston Hobbycraft earns particularly positive reviews — described as one of the better branches in the chain, spread across two floors with a range that reviewers describe as impressive in breadth and reasonably priced. The honest version, consistent with every guide: not specialist, not deep in professional-grade fine art materials, but genuinly comprehensive for everyday art and craft consumables and one of the better stocked branches I’ve come across in researching these guides. Check our Hobbycraft discount code guide before visiting.
4. The Works — Preston
The honest version of The Works, consistent with every guide: starter sets, sketchpads, pencils and craft kits at prices that make experimenting genuinly risk-free. In-person only since The Works stopped selling online nationally in March. For parents, teachers and complete beginners it earns its place — and UCLan students on a budget would have found it useful in my day too, though it wasn’t there then.
A Note on Art Supplies in Preston
Preston’s specialist fine art materials scene is thinner than a city of its size and university population deserves — a gap that’s been noted by local artists for years. Inspirations fills the craft and mixed media space impressively at 10,000 square feet, and the Harris is a genuinly world-class free institution for any artist wanting to spend time with serious work. For professional-grade paints, papers and drawing materials specifically, the honest recommendation is to use our live price comparison and order online — every major UK art retailer delivers to Preston and next-day options are widely available. The UCLan fine art and design students deserve better local provision than they currently have, and I say that as someone who studied in the city and later worked here in the art supplies trade. The Granthams Preston branch served that community for years — its absence is felt.
