Have you ever thought about making your hobby your

second career?

Well, hats off to you if you have. And if you haven’t,

let BUZZ introduce you to one early childhood educator who has done just

that.

In 2013, Manchester teacher Christine Thompson decided

to turn her love for art and into a business.

“Yes, art was just a hobby, but I decided to see how

far I could take this,” Christine said.

“I started to experiment with acrylic water-based

medium, painting using different materials, doing abstract painting, mixed

media and realism. I found that I enjoyed this so much and that it is also

therapeutic.

She continued: “In 2016, I decided to take things a

step further and did that CAPE Art and Design examination and attained grade

two.”

Christine Thompson often experiments with colours and textures. See more of her pieces in the gallery below.

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By January 2018 Christine decided to expand into fashion jewellery. She started off with buttons, using them to make necklaces, earrings and bracelets.

“I took it a step further using different materials such as parts of a zipper, cow horn, plastic, wooden and ceramic beads, bamboo, seashells, coconut shells and the Lignum Vitae wood. I found out that wearing unpolished Lignum Vitae jewellery gets darker when one constantly wears, maybe because of the medicinal value of the plant,” he said.

Now that she has launched a jewellery business, Christine

plans to start making bamboo comb clips, pencil holders and drinking straws.

“I am hoping I will be able to do this on wider scale

shortly,” she told BUZZ.