Meet the Maker: Shelley Busby
At Woolyknit, we love to see your amazing yarn creations on social media, and each month we like to get to know a small business owner and celebrate their incredible talent. One of our favourite yarn artists to look out for on Instagram is our next guest in our Meet the Maker series, Shelley Busby.
Owner of Made by Busby, Shelley is a small creative business owner and mum who creates the most beautiful, colourful wall art. She’s a multi-talented fibre artist and creates pom poms, weavings and punch needle projects for her Etsy shop.
Keep reading to learn about how she started her own business, as well as her advice for punch needle beginners and fledgling creative business owners.
Tell us a bit about yourself
Hi, I’m Shelley; a full-time mum, full time small biz owner & part time blogger. I clearly like to keep myself busy! I run MadebyBusby which I started whilst I was in that nesting period of pregnancy. I decided to get crafty again and make some bits for my son’s nursery and caught the bug. Then in November I decided to take it seriously and open an Etsy.
Describe your work in 3 words
Colourful, fun & customisable.
What was your first punch needle project?
Oooh my first punch needle piece was actually a kit from Wholepunching who is a wonderful punch needler. I made her abstract hoop that she’s since updated, and it went from there. I think my next piece was my son’s initial hoop that I’ve only just finished.
What product design are you most proud of?
I am most proud of my punch needle hearts. I know they are a lot simpler than some of my other designs, but I just love them, and they’ve evolved a lot in such a short time.
What is your favourite technique to do?
I really love punch needling. It’s very therapeutic and I just find it comes quite naturally for me. I really like my cow print hoop because each one ends up a little different.
What inspires your designs and what is your creative process?
I think I take a lot of inspiration from my son and what I would like to add to his room or what he likes. I’ve got lots of punch needle designs I’d like to create for him. Other than that, I follow a lot of amazing artists who share such beautiful techniques. I always try to ensure I don’t take inspiration from one piece. For example, my three-tiered rainbow is a design I came up with because I wanted to make something that was original but was also made from poms. I tend to jot down all my ideas and then hopefully work on them one day!
What are your top tips for weaving or punch needle beginners?
Do your research. There’s so many tutorials and e-books out there for you to learn. Also just experiment because you’ll find your own way of doing things. And enjoy it! Let it be a hobby if you want it to be. Not everything needs to make you money.
What do you watch/listen to while you work?
I either watch the latest junk TV I’m bingeing or I listen to comedy or murder podcasts.
What are you doing when you’re not making products for Made by Busby?
I am pretty much just living the mum life and looking after my son. Or I’m in work. Sometimes I’ll find time to blog but that’s only very recently.
Do you have any advice for newbie creative businesses?
Find what you love to make and enjoy it. Take inspiration from your life and try new things. Nothing comes easy so don’t be discouraged at first. Once you find your own style, your people will find you and it’ll grow.
If you love Shelley’s work as much as we do, you can find her Instagram at @MadebyBusby and her beautiful Etsy shop here.
If you want to be a part of our meet the maker series, make sure you tag us using @Woolyknit on your Instagram photos.
All images are taken by Shelley Busby (@MadebyBusby) – top image by Kaye Ford (@fordtography)
