Toy Makers and why they Paint
Our customers and readers tell us the reason they paint toys and how they came to make toys and we are pleased to feature some of their stories.
Although some go on to make all or some of their income from painting toys, most started because of people in their own family or someone they knew. There are those who always intended to make toys for children to play with and those who wanted to paint them for adults as keepsakes, purely for decoration, amusement or for inspiration and went on to make toys for children.
The Why
The one thing that is common to all the toymakers we have come accross is a desire to make someone happy.
Events of 2020 and 2021 made a big difference to many, affecting the time they had to paint as well as their ability to earn a living. Of those artists who sell their work, some have become full-time businesses and others are supplementing their normal income.
Stories From Toy Makers
Cally Russon of Lunarue
Cally is an artist who had been successfully selling paintings and whimsical characters for several years and when Cally and her husband started a family, her attention shifted to being a full time mother.
As her son grew, she found she loved having wooden toys for him. Soon she began have ideas about making her characters as dolls and toys.
Her dream of being an artist and maker is now a reality with the business she and her husband have created making and selling hand painted wooden dolls for children and adults.
She makes many dolls to order, some customised with a personal touch and she has more new ideas on the way.
Cally’s Lunarue lavender blockhead doll
Cally’s doll collections at Lunarue
Cally’s minidoll can be personalised at Lunarue
Cally loves seeing her toys being played with and making people happy. The support and encouragement of her fans and customers is a big contribution to her constant development of new products.
You can see Cally’s work on her website ‘Lunarue.co.uk‘
Kerri Fullerton of Everdolls
Kerri sent us the story of her first three decorative dolls and hopes soon to add more to her collection, both decorative and eventually toys, once UKCA testing is complete.
Kerri was always quite creative so it was inevitable that she would start painting peg dolls as toys for her children. When her eldest daughter’s third birthday came around she wanted to add little characters to enhance the stories her daughter, an avid reader, already loved. The toys continue to be played with and her little sister who is 11 months also loves them. Kerri says ‘I find she has a better attention span for the story if we get the peg dolls out as she has something to keep her hands busy and interact with!’
The success of the dolls with her own children and the joy of watching them play inspired her to make gifts for friends and family. A little Bride and Groom wedding set for an anniversary and a gift to mark a new Mum’s journey into motherhood made Kerri think about her own journey as a Mum.
The following is the background of each of Kerri’s first three decorative dolls, in her own words.
For the past 3 years I have been either pregnant, breastfeeding or both! Being a Mum is all consuming right now and I feel very defined as a Mum before anything else, though I wouldn’t have it any other way. This inspired me to create my first 3 dolls that are for sale.
‘The Elsie’ – Rainbow baby
Everdolls Elsie rainbow doll
My first daughter Elsie is a Rainbow Baby as we sadly suffered an ectopic pregnancy and loss prior to her arrival. We are so lucky to have had her so quickly after this loss and she brought us so much joy and taught me how to be a Mum. A portion of my profit for this doll is also donated to Kicks Count, the charity.
‘The Brianna’ – Babywearing
Brianna babywearing doll
I have worn both my daughters in slings and carriers way more than they ever went in a pram as neither was a fan of being put down. I was carrying my eldest in a carrier for her naps while 6 months pregnant with my youngest! Both my girls have loved being carried and I’ve loved carrying them and keeping them close. They grow up so fast and I already don’t remember the last time I carried Elsie in the sling. This is such a big part of who I am as a parent and it was only fitting to create a babywearing doll. My lovely little neice is also a fan of her sling and her wonderful Mummy carries her all the time too. Our journeys have been so similar with our girls and therefore my babywearing doll is named after her.
I paint most of my peg dolls while my youngest is napping on me in her sling – another reason I had to make a babywearing peg doll!
‘The Evelyn’ – Breastfeeding
Everdolls Evelyn breastfeeding doll
Breastfeeding is one of the most rewarding things I’ve ever done and something I’m really passionate about. I fed my eldest for 20 months and am currently still feeding my youngest. I love breastfeeding and the bond it gives me with my girls. I hope I can feed for even longer this time. I’m extremely passionate about normalising breastfeeding, especially ‘normal term’ feeding into toddler and childhood years. Breastfeeding has been such a big part of my life and hopefully will continue to be for a while yet. I love the idea of a gift to mark this amazing journey and that was the inspiration behind my breastfeeding doll, named after my youngest.
I paint my dolls with your lovely acrylic paints (Outlines paints!) then seal them. I use wool to create the wraps around them.
You can find kerri’s dolls in her Etsy shop, Everdolls, which is sure to expand to show her full range before very long!
Note: The UKCA mark verifies that a toy meets the essential safety requirements laid out in the Toys Safety Regulations 2011 or Toy Safety Directive. UKCA stands for UK conformity assessed marking. It has replaced the old CE marking for New Toys now that the UK has left the European Union. It is a legal requirement for all new toys made in the UK to bear the UKCA mark.
Amy Ball of AmyMade UK
Amy is a freelance artist who creates and sells hand crafted items, including her ‘Noeli’ peg doll people.
Amy worked in education for over a decade and, after becoming a mummy to two little boys, she found that the lack of bespoke educational resources to help teachers and parents opened up the opportunity to use her imagination and creativity to create her own.
Her little boys brought massive inspiration. Amy says they are little sponges, always learning and exploring, ‘I wanted to create colourful, engaging characters for my boys to play with and explore’
Tortoishell cat portrait
Black and white dog portrait
A pair of terrier dog portraits
Having created personal gifts for family and friends for many years and seeing how much they were appreciated, Amy has expanded her business and creates pet portraits. The examples shown are dogs and cats but she is willing to consider painting portraits of other animals.
You can find her current work in her shop at AmyMadeUK.
https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/AmyMadeUK
Jenny Bunty of Jellipegs
So often I have heard of painters inspired by their own children and grandchildren having started by making gifts for adult friends and family, and Jellipegs is one of those.
Her little wooden peg dolls have been extremely popular and she has many loyal and enthusiastic customers.
Jenny’s Framed family group
Uplifting Bees set, Happy, Kind and Positive
Success takes it’s toll and when Jenny discovered that her son thought she loved painting dolls more than anything in the world she decided to take a break. She is determined to spend quality time with her son and re-structure her business to make better use of her time.
She is by no means closing down and will be back as soon as can be.
She may even have already returned! You can find her shop at Numonday Jellipegs.
Jolene and Pete of Babipur
Babipur is an online shop selling fair trade toys and clothes for babies that are responsibly made and free from exploitation.
Jolene has long had a dream of creating a fair trade shop and working for herself at her home in North Wales. She and her husband thought perhaps they could make a real difference! This widely inclusive inspiration is impressive and we believe they have made a difference, both to their customers and their artists.
They now provide local flexible working opportunities and have several warehouses to house the goods. Many of their toys are hand made and you can see the results at their babipur shop.
More about Peg dolls
Click here to read about Sue Bashall and Debbie Churcher, peg doll painters who have sent us their stories and photos.
All images are copyright of the artists
Acrylic paints are used by all sorts of artists inspired by many differnt things. You could be the next artist featured in our ‘Inspiration‘ section. We would love to know what inspires you and see your work and would be delighted to know whether you use our Outlines acrylic paints!