Most people crave chocolate, cake or junk food, but Christine craved the time to sketch!
Following a few years of not being particularly creative, Christine started sketching again, during her pregnancy and shortly after the birth of her son Charlie (now 4). She tells me, “It was possibly due to having a little more time to chill, which also coincided with my move from Birmingham to the pretty and inspiring countryside of North Yorkshire. It was a breath of fresh air.” She also enjoyed visiting the quaint galleries and artists in the local area, which she found inspiring too.
Soon she managed to get a stall at the local crafting and farming market in Hovingham where she started to sell her prints of pencil sketches, them sketches are now forming the design of her first fabric, which features: a stag, a hare and a pheasant. After two years of market fun, Christine decided to take her business to the next level where it would naturally evolve.
Christine with her current shop
Christine and her husband (both ‘creatives’) have always had a bit of a dream of opening a gallery of their own and with her business of sketching and fabric design going so well, they felt the time had come. So it needed a name and Christine wanted to name it herself; one night, she sat down and made time think about what it could be called, she started linking random things together…Obviously, paper being one of Christine’s main mediums to work on she incorporated that. Then because Christine and her husband also quite like the idea of one day combining a gallery and coffee shop, keeping this in mind, she chose spoon for her second word. Paperspoon. It sounded quirky, she liked it, the name was born. Handily, Christine’s husband is a graphic designer and illustrator, so he designed the logo for her.
Four years on, I’ve asked Christine what she’s most proud of; this is what she told me:
“It has to be, taking a leap of faith to move to North Yorkshire. My job wasn’t what it used to be and I hated the commute, also getting pregnant was like fate as it gave us the opportunity to move to Yorkshire! Unbelievably, we sold our house within 3 days and desperately had to find a new one. We found the perfect pad, luckily, to settle our new family into. I’m also proud of my husband, he inspires me everyday and supports my crazy ideas.”
Christine told me about her favourite 'make' so far, it happens to be a custom made collective range she made especially for one client. She was commissioned by one of her customers, who’s surname happens to be Heron, she asked Christine to sketch a heron for her. After completing renovations on her house, she thought it would be the perfect touch to finish it off. Christine enjoys a challenge and working directly with her clients, this one in particular has now become a friend.
See for yourself what a great job Christine did of the sketch and then how a sketch can became a fabric and how fabric can dress a house…
When you have two young children, a dog and a business I was intrigued to find out what keeps her going.
“All the lovely feedback and comments from passers by looking into my tiny shop window, they often don’t know I’m hidden in the corner and can overhear them. This inspires me to carry on doing what I love, I’m very lucky to be able to do a job I have so much passion for, something I can thank my husband for.”
Christine stocks other local crafters and artist's work in her shop too such as Periwinkle Jewellery
She's turned her sketches in to products too, here are some mugs and some coasters she designed.
Toiletry/makeup bags made with Christine fabric by a local seamstress.
Christine is currently working on a new product range, of which she would like to be ready in time for Malton Food Festival in May. She’s also frantically working on a new creative space, where she will eventually be moving her gallery. So keep an eye on this one, things keep getting better and better!
Follow her on Facebook to see how her journey carries on and visit her website www.paperspoon.co.uk to see her range of products and designs.
All the photos were taken by Anoif Photography