MEET KATIE, THE ARTIST BEHIND THE BRAND
I started making baubles back in 2017 when I was looking for the perfect Christmas gift for a close friend but couldn't find anything quite special or festive enough. Being a creative and already painting portraits, I painted a little portrait of her beloved dog onto a blank ceramic bauble for her to hang on her tree. She was bowled over by the uniqueness of it and encouraged me to paint more for other people by listing it as a bespoke item in my Etsy shop. Luckily for me they quickly became popular and have been my best-seller every year since. The range has extended over the years to include baubles for everyone in the family, not just the pets!
Each year that has passed the baubles have been refined; they are now larger with stunning gold clasps at the top, the illustrations are even more festive, the ribbons are a soft luxurious velvet that co-ordinate with the colours in the painting, and I can add a personal message onto the back of every one to make them even more individual to my customers. Every bauble is completely bespoke and hand-painted by only me in my home studio, meaning I am in full control of the authenticity of the product and can capture all the extra special details that make them as beautiful and as meaningful as possible.
2022 was a new launch year for the business, re-branding under the name WINTERHART (formerly Katie Simpson Illustration) and with that came a new website, beautiful gift boxes and gift tags, and some really unique new designs. All made with the purpose of becoming nostalgic heirlooms that the whole family will look forward to adorning the tree with forevermore.
HOW OUR BAUBLES ARE MADE
All Winterhart baubles are hand-painted in Cornwall, UK by artist Katie Simpson.
The baubles are designed, sketched and worked out using good old-fashioned pen and paper. The colour schemes and co-ordinating ribbons are also worked out at this early stage.
Next they are drawn by hand on to the blank ceramic bauble. The bauble in it's raw state is referred to as 'green', where it has been fired in the kiln for the first time to form a solid round object.
The design comes to life as it is lovingly painted onto the 'green' bauble. It is a very small surface to work on so requires a lot of skill, time and patience to create each immaculate art work.
At this stage the customer can choose their wording for the front and back of the bauble, making it truly unique to them and their families.
The bauble is then glazed to give it a luxurious high-gloss shine, and it's gold cap and velvet ribbon are attached.
The finishing touch is a bespoke gift box, padded inside to ensure it has a safe journey to it's new home. It is now ready be hung on the tree and treasured for a lifetime.
OUR SUPPLIERS
We are proud to say that 100% of our materials and process are sourced & made here in the UK.
The ceramic baubles are produced in a clay works factory in Derbyshire.
Hand-painted, finished and dispatched in Cornwall.
Gift boxes are hand made in a local factory in Cornwall.
The letterpress gift tags are hand made in Devon.