This week’s featured maker is ‘doodle artist‘ Diane Chester from Hey Yeti.
Hey Yeti, which is best known for BIG cards, illustrations and prints which are all illustrated and designed by Diane Chester, a native of Salford. She is so passionate about the environment and her products are all sustainably sourced and recyclable. After spending many years working in an office in Manchester as an insurance underwriter, a few years back Diane made a giant leap from the corporate world to being self-employed to pursue her passion of drawing, painting and making things. The biggest hurdle was self-belief.
“I am passionate about what I do,’ she says, ‘but working by myself and having confidence in the decisions I make, marketing and all the ‘are my products good enough’ moments were a huge learning curve for me with plenty of ‘I’ve got this’ chanting and endless Pinterest quotes pinned to my mood board!”
Diane Chester
Her designs have evolved for sure … getting to know what appeals to her customers and not being afraid of trying new designs or being upset or too hard on herself when things don’t go so right. Diane likes the idea of her customers being pleased with their purchase and the recipients of her cards feeling that have received something unique and special that can’t be purchased off the shelf in a supermarket …. or more special to receive then a Facebook post. After all a social media post can’t be displayed or kept in a box of treasured memories.
You can see more of Diane’s work or order one of her bespoke designs from her Etsy shop Hey Yeti
Congratulations Aaron Cranfield for being our Member of the Month! You’ve been selected because you’re always an enthusiastic, active member on our Etsy Manchester Members Facebook group, and we also love seeing your smiley face at our monthly socials. Thank you for your continued engagement and involvement with our team!
Firstly, please introduce yourself! Where are you from, what are your hobbies? Who is Aaron Cranfield, of Cranfields Creations?!
My name is Aaron. I am 29 and run my little environmentally friendly and retro inspired business, Cranfields Creations, out of my flat in sunny Salford. I am the creator, maker, mover and shaker of my pop-culture cards and prints.
Alongside Etsy, I also work full-time in communications, so I guess you could say I am a part-time illustrator with a full-time passion. Running a small business and working full-time can be a struggle, so I must stay organised and on-top of my game. As an Aries, I have a strong personality and I am always determined to make things succeed.
What is your story so far, as an artist? And where would you like to see your artistic career going in the future?
I’ve always been creative and a maker of things, so when I had the opportunity to go to University and study Fine Art, I jumped at the chance. It was a life changer and the experience really opened my skillset to new and exciting things. Once I graduated, I worked in a few jobs, but never really had an outlet for my creative side, so I started Cranfields Creations to help express myself and get to know other creative people like me. I discovered Etsy Manchester a few months later: everyone has been incredibly supportive. It’s been great to see and help others going through their own Etsy journeys.
Since Cranfields Creations opened in January 2018, my “day job” has taken a significant and positive change… along with my drawing style. I’m lucky that my passion and daily routine are now so intrinsically linked. Over the next few years I would love to see my little business expand so I can move to reduce my work hours or even go self-employed full-time – what a dream!
We see loads of familiar faces (in the form of prints and greetings cards) available to purchase on your Etsy shop. Which famous people or characters have been your favourites to paint, and why?
I am a huge pop-culture fan, even ‘nostalgic’ pop-culture, and love to illustrate my favourite cult icons from it. I find it all so relatable for certain types of moods, relationships or occasions – it’s a reflection of us as humans so fits us all in some way! One fine example is my Ainsley Harriott illustration: his personality is just so resonant and iconic of the 90s that anyone can see its appeal. When I draw and think of my quotes, I try to capture that character in. I am currently working on a Britney Spears ‘circa 2007 meltdown’ design, which I think everyone can relate to!
One of my favourite illustrations is of Marsha P Johnson. She is one of the biggest icons of the gay rights movement and a prominent figure of the 1969 Stonewall riots. As a member of the LGBTQ+ community, I like to do my bit by paying homage to those who have led the way for the community by illustrating to educate and inspire others.
We get the feeling that you may enjoy watching a movie every now and then (all your incredibly accurate character artworks give that away a little bit!). Is it fair to say you’re a bit of a film buff? And if you had to play a role in a movie, which role would you play and why?
Now this is a cracking question! Unfortunately, I am one of those people who has a top 50 movie list, so yes, I would classify myself as a film buff! I don’t think I could whittle a role to play to just one, however, a few that come to mind are Sarah Connor (Linda Hamilton – Terminator), Ellen Ripley (Sigourney Weaver – Alien) and any of the cast of First Wives Club (Bette Midler, Goldie Hawn and Diane Keaton). I just admire the strong female spirit these characters possess and their bravery to rise to challenges, plus “You Don’t Own Me” is an absolute banger…
If your artworks could speak…what would they say about you?
They would say I am too much of a perfectionist, and I need to stop worrying about the detail. I used to spend a lot longer on a piece than I currently do, so I am getting better!
And finally, is there anything happening soon (such as markets, events, giveaways, celebrations, new product launches) that you’d love our readers to know about, and to add to their diaries?
I wouldn’t want to give too much away, but I have a new Christmas line coming out soon – full of more of my favourite cult Christmas villains and heroes. Plus, the new Cranfields Creations website will be launching shortly so you’ll be able to experience the full Aaron personality! You can keep up-to-date with me on my social media channels and as a bonus, get a behind the scenes glimpse of my way of working.
Check out Cranfields Creations on Facebook, follow Aaron’s work on Instagramand shop his personalised portraits and pop culture artworks over on Etsy.
Would you like to be our next Member of the Month, and be featured on our website and in our exclusive Team Newsletter? To be in with a chance, all you have to do is become an active EtsyMCR team member, in three easy steps:
3. Be ACTIVE! Ask questions, support other team members by answering their questions and joining in with conversations, share news & opportunities, tag @etsymcr on your Facebook, Instagram and Twitter posts, and come along to our monthly Socials!
Meet the latest winner of Etsy Manchester’s Member of the Month, Rebecca Bibby, aka Gizzys Gifts (and find out who Gizzy is!)
Congratulations Rebecca Bibby for being this month’s Member of the Month! You’ve been selected because we always see you supporting all of our EtsyMCR members on our Etsy Manchester Members Facebook group, and you also regularly attend our monthly socials, so we’d love to thank you for your continued engagement and involvement with our team!
Firstly, please introduce yourself! Where are you from, what are your hobbies? Who IS Gizzys Gifts?!
My name is Becky and I’m originally from Bristol but I moved to Manchester just over ten years ago. With blue hair… at the minute… I live with our four crazy guinea pigs and fiancé, and love them in that order exactly.
Becky sporting her new blue ‘do
I actually did my degree and masters in Photography; now doing a little bit of that on the side, however mostly using it to photograph the tiny replicas of people’s pets I make instead. Which is great to be honest, as I love photographing and capturing all those little details in the world. I work from home out of our spare room, occasionally escaping into the outside world where I love stepping on crunchy leaves and watching the magpies fly around attacking the neighbours’ satellite dish!
What is the story or inspiration behind your shop name, Gizzys Gifts?
I started off making miniature guinea pigs and Gizmo was one of our first guinea pigs (Quite a naughty, full of character, guinea pig). We call him Gizzy for short and so the name evolved from there really.
Gizmo the Guinea Pig, aka Gizzy
You have a wonderful array of miniature animal ornaments, cute food jewellery, personalised memorial frames, cut paper cards (and much more!) available to purchase on your Etsy shop. Which items are your favourites to make?
I love making custom pieces actually. Getting to create a unique character each time and getting let into people’s worlds. Seeing the many different cute faces of their pets and knowing I’m creating something for someone to treasure and permanently remember their furry family member by. Suppose this is also why I like sending the personalised memorial frames. Packaging them up nicely and adding little touches to make them smile during the tough time after losing their pet.
Each custom piece is created with care and exquisite attention to detail.
We’re amazed at how incredibly lifelike your tiny animal ornaments are! How long does it take you to make one ornament, and do you ever lose your patience trying to perfect all the intricate details?!
It can vary to be honest, from an hour to a few hours for example, depending upon the animal really. And sometimes they need to be put aside for a bit so I can return with fresh eyes. As with everything, things don’t always go right. Sometimes I do lose my patience especially as I’m a little bit of a perfectionist with the details, I believe in getting everything right for a customer. As an animal owner myself, I know I’d want everything to be as perfect as possible so I work as hard as I can to get it as accurate as I can. So this can occasionally lead to elements needing to be “reset” and corrected with a squish.
If the National Department of Miniature Animal Ornaments (NDMAO)* decided tomorrow that makers have to choose just ONE animal to make for the rest of their lives (let’s hope this doesn’t happen!), which animal would you choose, and why?
Just one?! That’s hard. Erm… officially I’d say guinea pigs, because they have such unique funny characters. Each one’s personality is so different and it shows in their faces. Also who couldn’t love a cute guinea pig, especially with the variety they come in. From mega fluffy crazy hairstyles to totally hairless bar little tufts on their nose. However I’d have to secretly keep making other animals on the side.
These adorable Guinea Pigs are so teeny and so detailed!
*The NDMAO is a fake organisation that we have invented for entertainment purposes of this article. ☺
If your animal ornaments could speak, what would they say about you?
I would like to think they’d describe me as a lovely person who cares about getting their little details and features perfect, then sends them off to loving homes where they are adopted by caring and friendly people. They’d probably also want to point out how embarrassing I am dancing and singing terribly around the house when no one’s around.
And finally, is there anything happening soon (such as markets, events, giveaways, celebrations, new product launches) that you’d love our readers to know about, and to add to their diaries?
Planning to add new ornament styles later this year, little creatures sat on all fours similar to the dogs I currently do. Coinciding this with some new happy faces, thinking chinchillas, rats, etc. All those unique furries that are missing out on love. Always open to suggestions of any animal people would like to see. So I’d say keep an eye out for those, will probably be a limited number to start with as well as a few custom slots.
Thank you for taking the time to answer our questions, Rebecca. We look forward to seeing more of your adorable miniature animals soon!
Check out Gizzys Gifts on Facebook, Follow Rebecca’s work on Instagram and shop for Rebecca’s adorable mini ornaments over on Etsy.
Would you like to be our next Member of the Month, and be featured on our website and in our exclusive Team Newsletter? To be in with a chance, all you have to do is become an active EtsyMCR team member, in three easy steps:
3. Be ACTIVE! Ask questions, support other team members by answering their questions and joining in with conversations, share news & opportunities, tag @etsymcr on your Facebook, Instagram and Twitter posts, and come along to our monthly Socials! Our next Social is on Thursday 25th July in Manchester, from 6pm. See you there?
Meet Etsy Manchester’s first winner of Member of the Month, Lindy De-Melo Garner, aka Black Dog Pottery…
Congratulations Lindy, you have been selected as our FIRST EVER Member of the Month! You were chosen because you consistently feature in our monthly “top 10 contributors” stats on our Etsy Manchester Members group on Facebook. Thank you for being an enthusiastic, active member of our team, and we’d like to celebrate by getting to know you better!
Firstly, please introduce yourself! Where are you from? What are your hobbies? Who IS Black Dog Pottery?!
Hello and thank you for choosing me to be the first ever Etsy Manchester Member of the Month! I’m Lindy but you already knew that. I’m originally from the US – met a Brit and followed him over. Luckily I’m a dual national (Portuguese) so I could come over without any issues ☺
My hobbies are… sunset walks on the beach and pina coladas and puppy videos. Just kidding – a glass of red every time.
Lindy loves walks on the beach… Or maybe just a nice glass of red wine.
I’m pretty much a self taught potter. I took hand building classes for about a year and set up a home studio where I would experiment and try things I didn’t have time for in the classes. Then my studio slowly developed as I acquired more and more things. I’m based in South Manchester and my studio is in our spare bedroom. One day I’m have a large sunny shed in the bottom of the garden but for now I am super grateful for that I have.
I love everything about clay and it really is my happy place. I’ve got big big plans for this year (talking business plans and appointments with bank managers- eek!), I won’t go into it here because I don’t want to jinx anything but I hope my dream will be something I can share and involve some of the amazing EtsyMCR makers I’ve met.
We absolutely love your bold, colourful pottery style! What, if anything, does your pottery style say about your personality?
My aim is to make people smile. I’m not sure what that says about my personality – maybe that I just want people to be happy. I love it when I’m at a market and someone walks by stops and starts to laugh when they see my funny face pieces – goal achieved! Next goal is to get every one of them to buy what makes them smile! (LOL).
What is your favourite part of the pottery-making process?
My favourite thing to make are my embossed pieces and it’s a tricky process – too wet and everything sticks and rips too dry and it cracks. When I get that sweet spot and the embossing comes out perfect I do a little dance. I actually love everything about pottery – from wedging to making to glazing.
Eeerm – cleaning up. The super fine silica dust is very dangerous and it gets in your lungs and stays there, so I get a bit freaked out about that. We clean everything always but it still freaks me out.
If, for some crazy reason, you couldn’t make pottery… but HAD to make something else to sell on an Etsy shop… what would it be?
I would love to learn stained glass. I don’t know if anyone would want to buy stained glass but it’s something I’ve always wanted to try.
You have lots of beautiful planters and vases in your product range. What is your favourite plant or flower?
My favourite is begonia maculata – it’s a gorgeous spotty plant, green with white spots on one side and red on the back side.
Do you have any top tips for someone who wants to start out in the pottery world? Any courses or people you’d recommend them checking out?
Just go for it- find a community studio somewhere and have a go. I would say 7 Spot at Islington Mill and Clay Studio in Hulme are amazing friendly people and have a range of classes you can try, as well as membership options.
And finally, is there anything happening soon (such as markets, events, giveaways, celebrations, new product launches) that you’d love our readers to know about, and to add to their diaries?
I’m all over the place as I try to do a market at least 3 times a month – check on Instagram if you want to know where I am. I’m focusing on vases so watch this space for new shapes and designs – I’m still a big fan of embossing and stamping clay so that will feature heavily. I’m also a big big fan of my lava range – I have a glaze that bubbles and runs and drips in awesome amazing ways. More of those are on the way too.
Thank you for taking the time to answer our questions, Lindy. We look forward to seeing more of your beautiful pottery creations soon!
Check out Black Dog Pottery on Facebook, Follow Lindy’s work on Instagram and shop for Black Dog Pottery ceramics over on Etsy.
Would you like to be our next Member of the Month, and be featured on our website and in our exclusive Team Newsletter? To be in with a chance, all you have to do is become an active EtsyMCR team member, in three easy steps:
3. Be ACTIVE! Ask questions, support other team members by answering their questions and joining in with conversations, share news & opportunities, tag @etsymcr on your Facebook, Instagram and Twitter posts, and come along to our monthly Socials! Our next Social is on Thursday 30th May in Manchester, from 6pm. See you there?
