These women's work: spotlight on four women turning ideas into industry

Lockhart is the skilled dyer behind Ripples Crafts, which sells yarns online to customers around the globe. She runs the business from the former crofting house she shares with her husband, Stevan, seven miles from Lochinver in the north-west Highlands. Around them are the hills, heathers and lochs that inspire Lockhart's colour palette and wind their way into the garments knitted by customers from New Zealand to the United States.

"Often people will come back and say: 'Can I have another one of these?'" says the 50-year-old. "Sometimes it's not possible because of the technique I use to dye."

She spends anything from a couple of hours to a full day dyeing yarn, depending on whether she has to prepare for a show. Besides her online shop, Lockhart relies on such events as Wool Fest in Cumbria and Gardening Scotland in Ingliston for selling her wares.

The Lockharts moved to Assynt from Hampshire in 2008, having fallen in love with the area and visited it for more than a decade. She spent her childhood, though, in another place of natural beauty, thousands of miles away – the Western Cape of South Africa. The daughter of missionaries for the Samaritans, she was born in Zimbabwe but moved to the wine-growing area of Stellenbosch at the age of nine. She sees parallels between Scotland's highland scenery and the landscapes of her youth.

"There's quite a similarity between the landscape where we are now and parts of the Western Cape," she says. "A lot of the flora is similar." She mentions erica, which can resemble Scottish heather. Was this one of her inspirations? "It's inevitable you are influenced by colours and landscapes that surrounded you in your youth, but it's mostly the colours around me now," she says.

Take a quick trawl around the Rippling Crafts website and you'll discover names of yarns that sound like paint colours – Emeralds By Assynt Moonlight, Mulberry Delight and Crushed Blackberries. You'll also find information about the knitting clubs Lockhart runs for enthusiasts across the continents. Most recently, Lockhart has launched a knitting retreat, planned for this summer, after floating the idea online and receiving an overwhelming response.

"I teamed up with the folk on the island of Tanera Mor in the Summer Isles," she explains. "Well, to our delight and surprise the retreat sold out within 24 hours. As a result we have arranged a second retreat the following week."

The initiative will bring economic as well as artistic rewards. "Tanera will have to employ some staff, and it brings folk to the area who may never have come here. We have folk coming from the US, the Netherlands and Spain, as well as the UK."

A former secretary and human resources worker who now practises reflexology besides running her yarn business, Lockhart is an entrepreneur – something Assynt isn't short of. She is one of a group of craftspeople who unite under the banner Made In Assynt to sell their products.

As the interview winds up, she explains her yarns were used in garments shown at fashion weeks in London and New York last year. Frustratingly, she isn't able to reveal which designers use her products. Either way, it is wool, not fashion shows, which motivates her. Irrespective of who shimmies down the catwalk in her unique yarns, she is likely to be found hanging lengths of the vibrantly coloured wool on her washing line. West Highland weather permitting, of course.

Visit www.ripplescrafts.com and www.summer-isles.com.

SHEILA LOGAN – BAG DESIGNER

Lifting a shiny black bag secured with a sparkly heart-shaped button, Sheila Logan could be putting the final touches to her outfit for a day out with her friends. The bag looks like a fashion accessory, contrasting with her striking red top, but it is far more than that. A cross between a comfort blanket and a shoulder bag, it is also a business product that is winning Logan recognition – and giving women with breast cancer literally something to hold on to.

Minutes later, Logan is contemplating a pastry at a coffee shop near the river Clyde, a short drive from her home in Renfrew. Brightening up, the 53-year-old talks enthusiastically about the business she launched months after beginning her own fight against breast cancer. TenderCush bags are designed by Logan for women who have had surgery for breast cancer. Besides holding the obligatory lipstick and wallet, they help the wearer feel protected and comfortable.

Logan, who was diagnosed with the disease in 2009, describes how she was motivated by her own feelings of vulnerability after surgery to remove the tumour, surrounding tissue and lymph nodes, followed by chemotherapy and radiotherapy.

"The lump they removed was a grade-three tumour, said to be aggressive and unpredictable," she explains. "The surgery had left two wounds close together underarm, which both proved painful. I found it difficult to sleep – it was too painful to lie on the wounded side but lying on the opposite side meant the weight of the breast was pulling against the wounds. Travelling in the car was an anxious time as I was continually trying to protect myself against sudden stops. In crowds I was terrified of anyone bumping into me. I searched for items to help alleviate the situation but there was nothing really I could buy, so I designed and made three items at home on my 35-year-old sewing machine."

The TenderCush shoulder bag is cushioned and can be positioned where protection is needed. "The great thing is nobody knows it is anything other than an ordinary shoulder bag," says Logan.

She speaks candidly as she sips her coffee in the middle of Xscape, Braehead, a 21st-century leisure centre. Around her, thrill seekers head for artificial snow slopes and frazzled parents guide their children towards soft play adventures. These days, Logan gets her kicks knowing her business is gaining momentum. Days before we speak she was named joint winner of the Glasgow's Got Business Talent awards – a Dragons Den-style competition for entrepreneurs. The prize included £5000 to invest in the company, six months' free office space and, crucially, access to business mentors.

In a pleasant, matter-of-fact manner, she describes a catalogue of life-changing events culminating in her diagnosis. "My mum passed away in August 2006 and my marriage broke up that Christmas. Eighteen months later I was made redundant and less than a year later I was diagnosed with cancer. Four of the top five most stressful life changing events in under three years. I'm only missing going to jail to complete the set. There's time yet, I suppose."

The quip is characteristic of Logan, a mother of two who once dreamed of being a comedy writer. She got as far as contributing regularly to the Radio Scotland sketch show Watson's Wind-up, helping to write an episode of the sitcom Chewin' The Fat and winning a place on a BBC stand-up comedy workshop. Chatting to this bright, feisty character, though, suggests she could go further if she put her mind to it.

"We were instructed to turn up on the first night with two minutes of material and be prepared to stand up and deliver it in front of the group," she says, describing the comedy workshop. "My two minutes started with: 'I was married for over 20 years. We split at Christmas. He said we were going in different directions. I should have guessed with the presents – I got him a pair of walking boots and he got me a sat-nav.' Looking back I can't believe I put myself through that only a matter of weeks after it happened. Being able to look for a funny spin on it was probably the nearest thing to self-help therapy for me."

Logan cites her children – Cheryl, 21, and Scott, 19 – as major sources of support following her diagnosis, which came a few weeks after a visit to a mobile breast screening unit at a nearby supermarket. She also mentions Maggie's Centres, named after the late Maggie Keswick Jencks, who founded the first centre in Edinburgh with her husband Charles during her own battle with cancer. The centres provide comfort, support and tea by the bucket to anyone affected by the disease. Now, with Logan feeling healthy and focused on the future, she regards this as payback time – a £1 donation will be made to the Maggie's in Glasgow with every TenderCush item sold.

With Logan concentrating on developing her business, as well as holding down a day job and being a mother, surely there is little time for any other challenges. Wrong. "I've watched while Cheryl, Scott and all my friends took part in many fundraising events for cancer. Now I'm now ready to do my bit and am looking forward to taking part in the Ben Nevis Challenge in 2012 for Breast Cancer Care." If making molehills out of mountains is the secret of business success, Logan will go a long way.

Visit www.tendercush.co.uk.

KAROLINA KUBISZ – CONSERVATOR

If her skills as an art conservator help Karolina Kubisz stand out in Scotland's world of entrepreneurs, her infectious laugh is equally noticeable. It punctuates her story as she tells of her journey from her native Poland via several European countries to north-east Scotland, learning her trade and falling in love along the way.

"I got the opportunity to come to Scotland in 2006 to take an English course at St Andrews University," explains the 27-year-old, who is based in Elgin. "This is when I fell in love with Scotland, and wanted to come back to try to do some work on Scottish buildings. For me Scotland is a country of opportunities – to get help to start your own business and become successful."

Her passion for Scotland didn't stop at the nation's buildings, which she describes as plain but fascinating since they are "so connected to history". She and a friend were on their travels through Europe when she found another reason to put down roots. "My life was to move from country to country because this way you can learn so much, but I met a Scotsman, Andy, and so I stayed here," she says.

The couple met while working for the same company and are now engaged. "I joined a masonry conservation company in the north-east of Scotland and worked there for two years," she says. "I progressed quite quickly from a building conservation trainee to being the main conservator for the company and looking after projects on my own. I was quite often the only female on site, working with stone masons and apprentices." Kubisz quickly gained confidence and decided to strike out on her own, launching KK Art & Conservation. She and her fiance, who still work on some projects together, see their work from rather different perspectives. While Kubisz is a conservator, he is a stonemason. "I want to fix something and he wants to make it new," she says, laughing warmly.

Difference is something Kubisz relishes. Brought up in a village near the city of Wroclaw in south-west Poland, she knew she was going to choose a different path from her parents. "My dad is one of the managers in a copper mine – he is basically a sparkie," she says. "My mum gave up work when I was born but draws plans for the mine. My grandparents were doctors and my brother is one of the managers in a telecommunications company. I'm quite different from my family because I'm into art, and they are more serious, I would say."

Kubisz discovered her talent for art early on and developed her interest during some difficult years at primary school. She talks briefly about this unhappy period, during which she developed a stutter that still affects her, intensifying when she feels tired or stressed. "When I was four or five, I was bitten by a dog and my primary school time was just awful," she says. "The stutter is mainly because of the dog. It's a really strange thing because some days are fine but sometimes it's really challenging."

Her parents were initially sceptical about the young Karolina wanting to devote her life to art and advised her to choose another path. Gradually, she realised conservation could satisfy her creative urges while offering her a more secure future.

"I loved castles and old houses and I was good at chemistry, so I thought conservation would be perfect for me," she says. She earned a BA in conservation at a Polish university, later taking a two-week course with Historic Scotland to hone her skills.

Kubisz's work has included conserving architectural details at Craigievar Castle in Aberdeenshire, restoring a 14th-century tomb beneath the floor of Cromarty East Church on the Black Isle, and breathing new life into the mercat cross at Banff. During the winter, when it is impossible to carry out conservation work, she concentrates on drawing and painting, something she hopes will strengthen her business portfolio.

The secret of success, says Kubisz, is to recognise your talents – and your limitations. "I am a perfectionist," she adds. "I won't leave the project until I am 100% happy. I know my capabilities and I'm always honest about what I can and can't do. I always want to improve, to be better at my work."

Kubisz admits she misses Poland, though she enjoys life in the north-east. One thing is certain – with her future firmly rooted in history, Scotland should give her plenty of raw material to work on.

Visit www.kkartandconservation.com.

MORAG YOUNG – MILLINER

Running four independent hotels in the Highlands while bringing up five children would be challenging enough to satisfy most ambitious types. Morag Young had been heavily involved with her family-run hotel business for two decades when she began to notice a creative itch. Soon afterwards, she switched hats from hotelier to milliner and Momo Chapeaux was born.

"I've always been creative and when we had the hotels I did all the interiors," says Young, who is 46, speaking from her house in Ballachullish, a short distance from the hotel she ran with her husband Laurence. "That urge to create something was satisfied with that. When we sold [the business], after a year of pottering and doing nothing I thought I wanted to do something creative.

"I had five kids so the role I had taken was in the maintenance and furnishing of the hotels," adds Young, whose children are aged between 14 and 30. "I didn't have to be on shift and it fitted in with family life. When it stopped being fun it was time to do something different."

Young began studying at Edinburgh College Of Art under the textile designer Jeanette Sendler, who co-runs the Hat In The Cat shop in Perth. Afterwards, Young completed a two-year millinery course at Telford College, Edinburgh, before taking an embroidery textiles course. While her mentor concentrates on felts, Young found herself drawn to velvets and tweeds, which have become the foundations of Momo Chapeaux. Besides artistic skills, she wanted to hone her business sense and approached Business Gateway, an agency backed by the Scottish Government, which helped with funding, support and advice. With its help, she launched a website for Momo Chapeaux, which she regards as a window to the millinery experience.

"Everyone always asks for your website," says Young. "I don't suspect they are going to buy hats off my website, but I think if they can see them there they will come and see me. You have to try on a hat to buy it."

And what hats these are – everything from cocktail hats and formal headpieces to casualwear made from Scottish wool and lined with silk. Originally from Eriskay and the daughter of a forester, Young takes her inspiration from the landscape surrounding the house she and Laurence recently built and moved into.

"We can see the loch out one side [of the house] and the hills and woods out the other," she says. "You can't help but be influenced by what's around you in terms of the colours, but you also have fantastic materials in Scotland." She mentions the Harris tweeds she shapes into various styles of hat. "It makes sense to use what's beautiful."

Young's new home includes a studio workshop which is flooded with light, perfect for designing and sewing. While their home was being built, the family rented a house for 18 months, during which Young used the dining-room table at the centre of the house to create her headpieces and hats.

"The studio is very messy but I have fantastic light and huge windows," she says, describing her new workshop. "That's important for when you are choosing colours – a lot of good daylight. A colour can look right in the evening, then when you wake up in the morning it looks mad."

I ask who inspires her creations. Interestingly, Young chooses a lover of hats, rather than a designer of them. "Isabella Blow," she says, name-checking the late fashion editor. So, do Young and her family wear her produce? "Of course I wear my own hats. I wear little brimless, casual hats made of wool and cashmere you can just pull on. My children are not really into hats, but my two girls model for me – Katie, who is 15, and Jessica, 18. Andrea, who is 30, was a make-up artist and does the girls' make up if they are modelling."

When Young is busy, perhaps preparing hats and bags for a craft show, she teams up with a seamstress, who taught the designer some of her hat-making skills. Young's dream is to make enough money to concentrate on designing and branding hats while others make them.

Either way, it looks like the road to Ballachullish is lined in velvet and tweed.

Visit www.momochapeaux.co.uk.