Meet the Maker - A Lasting Impression

We asked some quick-fire questions to Hannah Eustace-Raw about her business 'A Lasting Impression, here is what she had to say.

How did you decide on your business name? 

I wanted it to describe what I do so I wanted impression in there & I wanted to use the dots of the 'i's as a hand paw and foot print so I needed 3 'i's! 

What led you to create your business? 

Wanted to something other than be a full time Mum & we had to travel an hour to get casts done for my second son as the lady who used to do it in Harrogate had stopped. 

Is there one item that you’ve created which is more memorable than others?

My family hands raised impression as it took ages and was a huge experiment. I't now framed above my fire place so I look at it a lot!

What’s your most expensive item? 

The family hands raised impression at £250

What’s your most affordable item? 

A small fingerprint charm at £42

What are your plans for your business this coming year? 

Advertise & become well known in Harrogate

... a few FUN questions

What’s your most favourite BBQ food? Sausages

Which celebrity would you invite to a BBQ & why? 

Brian Cox as he's really made physics popular & he'd be interesting to talk to.

What’s your favourite drink on a summer’s evening? 

Oyster Bay Sauvignon Blanc 

Shorts or skirts? Skirts

Wedges or ballet pumps? Wedges

Day on the beach or a day shopping? Beach 

Favourite place to visit? Devon

If you want to see more work by Hannah, check out her Facebook page - A Lasting Impression Harrogate

Meet the Maker - Mini Treasures

We asked some questions to find out more about our Member Nicola Broom and her business 'Mini Treasures'.

How did you decide on your business name and how long did it take? 

About a week maybe slightly longer. I was aiming at babies & children as first but have taken another direction since & tend to be taking more adults prints & pets too.

What year did you establish your business? 2009

What led you to create your business?

Having had 2 ectopic pregnancies & losing both fallopian tubes, I had to undergo IVF in order to have my first baby in 2005. I wanted to capture as many memories as I could of my baby daughter as she grew over the years. I came across the fingerprint jewellery range & had one made for my birthday. I looked into a franchise but this wasn't for me so I found out about the training and Mini Treasures was born in 2009.

Is there one item that you’ve created which is more memorable than others?

I have created many memorable items for customers who have celebrated the birth of a baby or a much loved keepsake after the loss of a loved one. Whilst typing this I am looking at a fab keepsake of my own, my 2 daughters 2D prints. I never thought I would be able to have one child so to have two is a miracle.

What’s your most expensive item?

The single most expensive item would probably be a framed sibling casting like mine or a 3D casting I did of 3 sisters (it depends how many children). With the jewellery a customer may purchase an item & add to it as they have extra children so the cost can vary, you may also have a couple of customers buying a joint gift for a grandparents special birthday so they order a number of charms with the grandchildren's prints on.

What’s your most affordable item?

£7.50 for a newborn hanging heart plaque.

What are your plans for your business this coming year? 

Looking for a new logo but at present I don't have any ideas how I want it to look.

And now for the fun questions...

What’s your most favourite take away?

Love Indian takeaway, just had it this evening for our wedding anniversary meal whilst the children are asleep.

Which celebrity would you like to deliver your take away?

Ooooo that's a hard one lol.....David Beckham or Ian Somerhalder 

What’s your favourite drink on a summer’s evening?

Baileys with lots of ice

Trousers or skirts?

Trousers. I will wear skirts in the summer but you generally find me in trousers.

High heels or flats?

I do love a heel but most of the time I am in flats due to being a mum to a 3 year old & 9 year old, I have a lot of running around

Favourite time of year?

I do love to snuggle up in the winter but I would say summer as its nice to wake up to the lighter mornings, the warm weather cheers everybody up. You have more daylight hours.

Favourite place to visit?

Abroad I would choose Florida. We have been 3 times now. In the UK I love Leeds Castle, the gardens are lovely we purchased tickets in the Easter holidays & have been twice recently. Also love North Wales, we have family there & the mountain scenery is beautiful, especially around Snowdonia.

Want to see more work by Nicola, then stop by the website www.minitreasures.co.uk or the Facebook page 'Mini Treasures'

Meet the Maker - The Little Drawing Company

Danielle Freeman of 'The Little Drawing Company answered some of our questions about herself and her business.

How did you decide on your business name?

The business name took a while, at first I thought I would sell personalised items for the home, this developed into pictures OF people's homes and then onto portraits. "crafty & paintpot" seemed to umbrella lots of artistic ideas so it stuck. 

What year did you establish your business?

I registered the website last year and the domain names and have built things slowly. 

What led you to create your business?

I love drawing. I work part time in an architectural office as well, drawing and designing extensions and houses. I sometimes develop those drawings into watercolours, particularly if the design needs planning permission, as colour and 3D perspective help others to visualise the scheme. I've drawn all my life and its something I can just melt into. When I draw and paint the time seems to fly, I'm a bit of a night owl so usually my husband has to tell me to stop and go to bed! 

Is there one item that you’ve created which is more memorable than others?

The first picture that comes to mind is a watercolour I painted of a friend's house. My confidence was quite low at the time, I was looking to start work again and money was tight. My friend gave me some great advice and switched my motivation back on. As a thank you I painted a picture of his beautiful house. It was the first thing I had drawn since before my children were born and every time I look at it, I smile and feel motivated all over again. 

What’s your most expensive item?

An A3 Pencil & Watercolour painting is most expensive but I am looking to simplify my product range and look a bit more closely at branding... 

What’s your most affordable item?

We are currently about to launch our first 'Baby Event' an A4 pencil drawing of a your child for only £22 with free P&P.. 

What are your plans for your business this coming year?

Oooohh, I have sooooo many ideas, prints of celebrity faces, work on business branding and packaging, summer fairs, loads more competitions and prizes and obvious TONS more drawing etc. My brain sometimes buzzes at 100mph but I may have to invent a time machine that actually produces 'extra time' first.... 

A little bit of fun...

What’s your most favourite BBQ food?

Anything BBQ is a yes from me. Although nothing says summer like barbecued steak with crispy salad and an ice cold fruit cider....mmmmm!

Which celebrity would you invite to a BBQ?

Mmm, maybe James Corden, anyone that can make me laugh. 

What’s your favourite drink on a summer’s evening?

Has to be Kopparburg, chilled with some dry roasted peanuts... simple things. 

Shorts or Skirts? Skirts. 

Wedges or ballet pumps?

I have to be awkward here, I have a hybrid of both, slight wedge, open toe, ballet style feel and I love them. So I'm going for hybrid! 

Day on the beach or a day shopping? Day on the beach. 

Favourite place to visit?

My favourite place to visit has to be London. Its beautiful. Busy, vibrant, exciting and you never get bored. Don't get to visit enough so maybe I should plan more trips this year....where's that time machine.....

Meet the Maker - Elanique

We asked Sharon Barker of Elanique Jewellery a few questions to help us get to know her...

How did you decide on your business name?

The company is run by myself and my daughter Danyell. We played with lots of words associated with jewellery, we ended up with elegant and unique and came up with the name Elanique.

What year did you establish your business? 2013

What led you to create your business? 

My husband who lost his battle with cancer last year. He wanted Danyell and I, to continue and pursue our dreams.

Is there one item that you’ve created which is more memorable than others?

Yes, a finger print pendant for a lady who lost her son. It was an honour to create a memorable piece for her that would bring her comfort in the years to come.

What’s your most expensive item?

A triple heart pendant.

What’s your most affordable item?

As you will see from our Facebook page and website, we don't just create and sell silver items, we have a crystal range also, the crystal butterfly earring are probably our most affordable, in the silver range it would be a small fingerprint charm.

What are your plans for your business this coming year? 

I have just passed art clay level 1 diploma, and taking level 2 hopefully in October this year. I would like to create and make more bespoke and commissioned silver items, and we both want to grow the business further.

Some questions just for fun...

What is your dream holiday destination? 

I would say somewhere like Barbados, but I hate flying so that probably will not happen.

If you could take a celebrity on holiday with you who would you choose?

It would have to be Comedian Alan Carr, he would certainly take my mind off the flight!

Bikini or swimsuit? Swimsuit

All inclusive or self catering? Self Catering

What’s your favourite flavour of icecream? Ohh that would have to be rum and raisin.

One thing you couldn’t live without on holiday? Most definitely makeup.

Relax or explore? It would have to be a bit of both.

Want to see more from Elanique, visit the website www.elanique.co.uk or the Facebook page 'Elanique'

Meet the Maker - Maria Made It

Here we have another quick interview, this time with keepsake artist and jeweller Maria Bateson of Maria Made It. 

How did you decide on your business name?

I was making things for friends and they kept saying "Maria made it" it seemed to work!

What year did you establish your business? 

I started making things as presents when my son was little and I was living in Ukraine. I started my business when I returned to the UK in 2013.

What led you to create your business? 

I wanted something to do whilst my son was napping, it was -30 outside so needed to be an indoor activity. I didn't speak any Russian so buying clothes and jewellery was tricky and I had a number of friends who wanted to be able to choose colours etc. I did a mini prints course at the London jewellery school last June and my fine silver work just grew itself from there.

Is there one item that you’ve created which is more memorable than others?

Probably the cufflinks I made for my husband with our children's prints on. They were some of the first cufflinks I made and he loves them.

What’s your most expensive item? 

Cufflinks with hand/footprints on £110

What’s your most affordable item? 

I have fine silver charms starting from £10, with fingerprints from £20 and hand/footprints from £40

What are your plans for your business this coming year? 

I am doing a new course in the next few weeks, hopefully I will have some news after that but I don't want to say too much in case it doesn't happen. I also have lots of ideas for new products and collaborations etc. I am also hoping or have a stand at a big local event.

...and the fun questions!

What is your dream holiday destination? 

I'd love to go back to NZ and I'd love to take my children on safari but I would be happy anywhere as long as my family are there with me.

If you could take a celebrity on holiday with you who would you choose & why? 

Miranda hart (going to see her on Friday night...)

Bikini or swimsuit? Tankini to cover my mummy tummy.

Relax by the pool or explore the area ? Explore always.

What’s your favourite flavour of icecream? 

Our local Italian does panna cotta ice cream yum, but I usually have to share with my daughter so am getting less and less....

One thing you couldn’t live without on holiday? Camera.

If you want to find out more about Maria Made it, please visit the Facebook Page

Meet the Maker - Cobweb Creations

We spoke to Clair Craig from Cobweb Creations about her business selling personalised wooden keepsakes and gifts.

How did you decide on your business name? 

The business name came from a tiny heart shaped cobweb that I found while clearing out my very messy bits and bobs box

What year did you establish your business? January 2013. I am self-employed and Cobweb is my main job.

What led you to create your business? 

Ill-health meant giving up the day job and I had always made painted or sewn gifts for family and they encouraged me to get started, needless to say I am loving every minute, working from home. 

Is there one item that you’ve created which is more memorable than others?

The memorable creation is the hanging heart - My family is tied together with heartstrings. A heart shaped plaque with mini hearts round the edge, all joined together with string and family's names on each heart. It came from knowing what a supportive and loving family I have.

What’s your most expensive item? 

The most expensive item would be a set of wedding table display made to colour co-ordinate with wedding theme.

And now some quick-fire questions...

What was your new year resolution? 

New Year's resolution was to be positive and laugh loads.

What is your dream holiday destination? Lanzarote

What’s your favourite cake? Chocolate cake

What’s your favourite flavour of crisps? Sweet chilli crisps

What was the last film you went to watch at the cinema?

Haven't been to the cinema for over 20 years, prefer to watch a dvd in the comfort of my snuggle sofa.

What’s your favourite time of year? Summer

How do you like to unwind? I unwind by spending time with my lovely grown up daughters and especially my granddaughter.

If you want to see more work by Cobweb Creations you can visit the Facebook Page

Meet The Maker - Barbra Stretch

We caught up with designer-maker Barbra from Joosey Bee Designs, Guild member and Ambassador.

Hi Babs, Nice to meet you, tell me what is the nature of your keepsake business? 

I design bespoke greetings cards, stationery and artwork using Joosey Bee imagery (line drawings, painting and photography) and a little computer magic!

So, who are you and how did you start your business?

My name is Barbra, wife and mum to 3 kids, living in York. I am a Design Communication graduate. I had my first baby 7 months after graduation! I started my business when my youngest was just over 1 year old, after I'd made a few cards for family and friends. I realised how much I wanted to get back into designing and illustrating and decided to go for it and open a page.

What do you think is the best thing about selling keepsakes?

It has got to be the lovely feedback, I treat each card as a design brief, I research so I can convey as much meaning I can through that image. The cards are so personal to the customer and recipient. Its wonderful to know you have created something special for someone!

What are your short term plans for Joosey Bee Designs?

In the next few months I am planning to create my website. I also have a few products I'd like to work on. I would love to do some craft fairs but need to sort out my stock first!

And...what are your long term goals, where do you think you will be in 5 years time?

In 5 years time I hope I am designing and illustrating as a job. All my children will be at school so my ultimate goal is to be able to work around school hours and holidays, creating wonderful things.

Finally, Do you have any valuable information, tips or advice about being successful?

Believe in yourself, if in doubt, stop, step away and pour a glass of wine! xx