BEAUTIFULLY crafted textiles and handmade furniture created a Dickens of a display in a hotel that is artistically linked to the great author.

Needlework expert Lone Grinter and woodworker Chris Helliwell put their work on show yesterday in the Morritt Arms, Greta Bridge, near Barnard Castle, County Durham, famous for a 1946 Dickensian mural in its Dickens Bar.

The exhibition raised money for Brignall Church and included Amish quilts collected during hotel proprietor Barbara Johnson's years in the US.

Danish-born Ms Grinter, from the Teesdale village of Forcett, is a textile artist who specialises in applique and wall hangings.

As well as making curtains for country houses and hotels, including the Morritt, she runs workshops to pass on her skills to fellow enthusiasts.

She has more than 25 years' experience in textiles and grew up surrounded by fabrics and designs. Her mother was a tailoress and her father was a costume maker for the Royal Danish Ballet.

Mr Helliwell built up his own furniture-making business and also teaches his trade to college students.

At the exhibition, he gave demonstrations on his hand-made lathe and showed some of his work.

Mrs Johnson said there had been a huge amount of interest. She said: "We had a lot of visitors. We had such an enthusiastic reaction that we are going to do it again. It was lovely."