Bornholm, Denmark is a small, cold-water island home to a cluster of craftartists whose practices and ambitions contribute to the idyllic rural image of the island. These craft-artists formed an association in the wake of rural tourism development and its process of commercialisation to preserve values of professionalism, quality and rural authenticity in their crafts. This article discusses how the high standards of quality in their association gives them agency to define their interactions with tourists in a way to simultaneously preserve their artistic integrity and make profit from their industry. These actors thereby harness tourism to their advantage, contributing to the redefinition of their island’s rural authenticity. During two periods of fieldwork on Bornholm, 19 local craftartists were interviewed and participant observations were carried out. This article provides insight into aspects of perceived spatial identity and agency in the context of cold-water islands with rural landscapes.