Meet Becka Griffin
This week’s Featured Maker is illustrator Becka Griffin, whose hand-drawn skylines capture the character and charm of towns, cities and neighbourhoods across the UK and beyond. From her Liverpool home studio, Becka creates witty greetings cards, prints and wrapping paper – all rooted in her love of drawing and a sharp eye for detail. With over 270 skylines to her name (and counting), a talent for celebrating blended families in her card designs, and a business she’s shaped to suit her life, Becka’s work is thoughtful, personal and full of heart. We caught up with her to talk about her journey, her inspirations, and the joy of drawing buildings by hand.
Get 15% off Becka’s products until 6th October with the code SHOPEARLY
Tell us a bit about your background and why you started your creative business.
I studied Illustration at university, but I chose a different career path once I graduated. I started drawing again as a hobby, around ten years after leaving uni. I never planned to start a business, but as friends and family started asking me to draw things for them, I realised it might be a side-hustle to my day job. I started selling my greetings cards and prints online, and taking part in local craft fairs. Within a few months, I was so busy I asked to reduce my hours in my day job, and a few years later I ended up going full-time as an illustrator. My business grew at a rapid rate, and I moved into a studio space. I had several part-time staff members, I was VAT registered, and everything was going really well – but I had barely any time to draw, and was spending a lot of my time on admin and logistics. In 2019 I actively took the decision to downsize my business (by discontinuing my non-paper-based product lines), and in 2022 I moved house and gave up my studio space. At the moment my business is at just the right size for me – I work from home, on my own, and I have just enough time to draw as well as all of the day-to-day tasks I need to keep on top of to enable the smooth running of my business.
What do you make and how would you describe your style?
I am an illustrator. All of my products are paper-based – greetings cards, prints and wrapping paper. I’d like to think that my products are observational, and many have a sense of humour.
What inspires your work?
I am obsessed with drawing buildings. For almost ten years, I have been drawing composite skylines of different towns, cities and neighbourhoods. I have drawn over 270 to date, including every city in the UK and many international locations too. In the past few years, I have been drawing neighbourhoods local to my home in Liverpool. I love the idea that you could curate your own bespoke collection of skylines for your major life events.
Tell us about your creative process
For each skyline, I start with researching the location. I do this via social media and by doing my own online research. I don’t visit each town or city, but I do make sure that I reach out to people who know the location and ask for their informed advice. This is the best way to make sure I have included the most iconic statues, buildings, and monuments in a place. I then collate a list of the landmarks that have been identified, and work out which are the most popular things. I then look each of them up online and work on a rough layout for the new skyline. I document this process on my social media, so that the people who have contributed can see that the final image is on its way! After I have settled on a final layout, I draw the image in pencil and then fine liner pen. This is my favourite part of the process, and I love spending an afternoon drawing and listening to my favourite podcasts!
What’s your workspace or studio like?
My studio is the front bedroom in our Victorian terraced house. It’s got a bay window overlooking the whole street, and I have a great view of everything that’s going on. It’s crammed full of drawings, packing materials and art stuff… but I have a big clear table in the middle of the room for packing on.
My partner often works from home too, so we normally stop for lunch together. When I was first self-employed I lived on my own, and I really struggled with loneliness, which is why I moved into a shared studio space. Now I live with my partner and his kids. I’m never lonely!
What’s your favourite thing to make – and why?
I love getting orders for any of my step-family cards. I’m a stepmum (and I have a stepmum too) and I have made a point of creating a whole range of Mother’s Day and Father’s Day cards suitable for blended families. I feel especially happy when I get an order for my Personalised Adoption Cards.
What’s something people might not know about your craft or the skills involved?
Often people don’t realise that all of my skylines are drawn by hand, with a pen. I have tried drawing digitally, but I just prefer working with a pencil and an ink pen.
What does creativity mean to you?
Creativity is so important in my life – not just in the artistic way, but also in the way I have created my business and the way I work. I love having the freedom and flexibility to try out different ideas and different ways of doing things.
What does Christmas look like for you?
Christmas for me is all about the food. As a blended family, Christmas doesn’t look the same every year, but I try my best to stick to our food tradition no matter who is here. Our Christmas Eve baked Camembert is not negotiable, and similarly, I will not back down on having a homemade cauliflower cheese as part of the Christmas Dinner line-up. Cheese plays a big part in our Christmas!
Do you have any festive products you’re particularly proud of this year?
Which three Folksy things are you buying for, or Folksy shops are you buying from, this Christmas – or would love to receive?
I bought some crocheted Christmas Cracker Party Hats from The Stitchy Room last year and will need to order more for our guests this year. I am a huge fan of the Folksy Seller ‘Stained Glass Flowers’ and I’d be so pleased to receive a bunch of these stunning everlasting wildflowers for Christmas. Finally, I love a simple silver stud with a bit of pattern or texture so these gorgeous earrings by Nyaki Punk Jewellery would make me extremely happy!
What’s one piece of advice you’d give to someone thinking about starting a creative business?
I think it’s really important not to put off starting your business by overthinking things. You will make mistakes along the way, but you will learn more by getting started and learning as you go, rather than putting things off until you think it’s all perfect.
What is a quote you live by?
“Remember that once you dreamed of being where you are now” – a reminder to appreciate the present instead of always looking to the future.
Previous Maker of the Month – Pippa’s Pottery
To find out more about Pippa’s Pottery head to:
