Evening Telegraph (First Edition)
Thief makes off with hand statue
A DUNDEE business owner has blasted a crook who made off with a hand casting from her new store – saying he could have robbed someone of a “priceless” family memento.
Lucy Milne opened Lumilo Casting Studio, on Meadowside, at the beginning of April.
She creates unique gifts and sculptures for customers by creating casts of body parts.
Common casts are of torsos, pregnant bellies, hands and faces – with newborn babies’ hands a popular choice.
Lucy said many of her pieces are made when people are nearing the end of their lives – so that family members have something to remember them by.
However, Lucy was dealt a blow after a hand sculpture – the first sculpture she ever made – was stolen from the shop.
Lucy said the culprit walked into the shop on Friday and at first acted as if he was interested in commissioning a piece.
She said: “I was in my studio on Friday and a guy came in and asked me what I did.
“He asked me how much it would be for a cast of him and his partners’ hands – but prices are different for every piece.
“I explained that and then he offered to sell me perfume from a plastic bag – but I said that I was OK.”
Lucy said she was then distracted for a second after a delivery came – and she later realised the man had taken the chance to make off with the sculpture – which retails about £220.
She said it was lucky the item taken had been castings of a model’s hands – rather than ones of her grandmother and son which sat on either side of it.
But the item was nevertheless of sentimental value, as it was the first sculpture she made at the start of her career.
The mum-of-three said: “These aren’t valuable unless it is to the person that it is being made for. It is priceless in terms of sentimental value.
“I am just really grateful that it wasn’t one that was really special to someone that was taken.
“We sometimes have people come in when they are at the end of their lives. This could have been someone who was dead now, it would be irreplaceable.”
Lucy said she hopes that CCTV cameras across the road from the store would have caught the culprit leaving the premises.
She said: “It is frustrating because I have only been here since April.
“I don’t think that we will be able to get the casting back but it could maybe prevent something like this happening again.
“Each casting takes six weeks of work, and when you’ve got three young kids that time is quite precious to me.
“I don’t think that we will be able to get it back now.”
Anyone who sees the hand sculpture can contact Lisa by email hello@ lumilocastingstudio.com or on 07805545983.