Trapped by Lockdown: A Mother’s Fight for Sanity and Success

What's the Story

14 May

Guest: Anna Hamill

Anna Hamill is an artist and a mum of 4 littles, living in Belfast. She is also the owner of And Hope Designs - a business that she started just before lockdown, and grew from her need to be creative when other things in life felt like they were falling apart.

Here’s a summary of this week’s story:

Join us on this episode of What's The Story, featuring the remarkable Anna Hamill. Hear her journey from deep personal challenges to launching a thriving business during lockdown.

From Crisis to Creation: How Anna transformed severe lockdown challenges into a groundbreaking creative venture.
Building Blocks of Success: Discover the steps Anna took from battling depression and isolation to founding And Hope Designs.
Inspiration in Adversity: Learn how Anna's faith and the support of her community played pivotal roles in her success.
Entrepreneurial Wisdom: Anna shares crucial advice for anyone navigating personal crises while building a business.

Explore More:

Check out And Hope Designs to see Anna’s work.
Follow us for more stories of courage and creativity.

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Sadaf Beynon: [00:00:00] Hey there and welcome to What's the Story. We're an inquisitive bunch of hosts from the What's the Story team on a mission to uncover stories about faith and courage from everyday people. In doing that, we get the privilege of chatting with amazing guests and have the opportunity to delve into their faith journey, the hurdles they've overcome, and the life lessons they have learned along the way.
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church. They would love to connect with you. And now, let's meet your host and our special guest for today.
Anna Kettle: Hi there and welcome to another episode of What's the Story Podcast. Today I am joined by guest Anna Hamill, who is a mum of four children living in Belfast, and she's the owner of And Hope Designs. Now that's the business that she started just before we entered into lockdown, a crazy time for us all.
And it was a business that really grew out the need to be creative when various other things in life felt like they were falling apart. Anna, I know we'll get into more of that detail as we move through your stories, but shall we start at, shall we start at the beginning? Just tell us a little bit about you your background Yeah.
Tell, tell us how your early life looked. Where did you grow up, were you always a Christian?
Anna Hamill: Yeah, so I'm Anna and I was born in London [00:02:00] and lived there until I was five and I am a missionary kid. My parents moved us all me and my brother and them over to Paris in France when I was five.
And yeah, as I say, I'm a missionary kid, so they are Christians, and I grew up in a Christian household. And I would say I gave my life to Jesus. When I went to a festival in England. When I was about 12 so it's called Soul Survivor, and I went there by myself with a friend from England so having that space where it was just me and not my parents and my parents faith gave that space to explore a bit more and to make that faith my own So yeah that's when I became a Christian for myself.
I can't put a date on it really. But, so I say that my faith anniversary is on my baptism, which was Easter Sunday when I was 16, so in 2001. Okay, cool. . That, that's it really. I've gone to church my whole life and. Yeah, I've grown [00:03:00] up knowing about Jesus and being taught about him.
Yeah,
Anna Kettle: it's interesting because I am from a Christian family as well. I'm a pastor's kid, so I very much grew up in church, going to church every week as well. And, but I think it's interesting that so often talk to people who are like, even if you grow up around faith, there's still this moment or this season of, as you get a bit older, having to find it being real for yourself and Yeah, absolutely.
Absolutely. Yeah, it's interesting that you say that, because that so often seems to be the case, that people are like but there's a point moving away from your parents and finding Kind of your own faith as well, so it's really interesting you say that. I think it's brave as well just to go to a festival on your own with, just a friend of that age and just think, explore this, so that's cool.
So that's your like earliest years, and then tell us moving into adulthood then, so you came back to the UK for university, is that right?
Anna Hamill: Yeah, so I went to Edinburgh University. I grew up in [00:04:00] France throughout my teenage years. And I went to Edinburgh for university when I was 18.
And so that was the first time that it was fully by myself. And very much. And my mom came over on the airplane with me the first time I went to Edinburgh, but after that, I was on my own. And one of the first things that I did was look for a church because I knew that would be a place where I would be able to connect and get to know people who were similar to me.
Yeah, there was a lot of other stuff that I was very nervous about, but Yeah, going to church was something that I felt like I really had to nail down early on. So yeah, it's funny though, because I ended up at one church for a term, and then ended up going elsewhere. And from then on, and throughout the rest of university, it just sometimes takes a while to find the place that you want to call home.
Yeah.
Anna Kettle: And university was a season in life where you met your husband as well, is that right?
Anna Hamill: I actually [00:05:00] met him after I graduated, but we met in Edinburgh, yeah.
Anna Kettle: And he was he still a student or? Yeah,
Anna Hamill: so I'm five years older than him. Okay. So I'd graduated and I met him and he was we started dating when he was in second year,
Anna Kettle: which seems, when you're that age, seems like it's a really big gap, but now you look back at it, yeah, 20 years later or whatever it is, yeah, it's not huge, like it's no big deal, or a few years is it?
Yeah, it's funny.
Anna Hamill: Yeah, it's just funny though, when when we first started going out, people asked me, like his friends asked me what I'm studying. I was like, Oh, actually I've already graduated.
Anna Kettle: I've got a job. Yeah. Tell us a bit about early adulthood then you graduated, what did you do work wise?
You obviously had this fellow on the scene who was a few years younger than you what did work look like in early life there?
Anna Hamill: So I studied environmental science at university and quickly realised that was I didn't want to do that, much more than that, but while I was at university, because I went [00:06:00] to school in France and grew up in France, I couldn't get a student loan, so I had to basically fund myself through university, and I, through university, I got a job.
in afterschool care, so looked after children after school and throughout the school holidays and things. So really wanted to work with children. And then I ended up getting a job in a special needs school after university. So I was a, like a learning assistant for children who had autism and other severe special needs.
So a lot were nonverbal amongst many other issues. But that was really, Really interesting, really full on. Yeah. Three or four years of doing that. I felt like I was close to burning out and needed, I just needed a break from that. So actually when Ian and I decided we were gonna get married we decided, so I each month was saving up to be able to quit that job.
Yeah. And I wanted to start a wedding photography business. Okay. So I managed to do that and that kind of, [00:07:00] I did that for the first four years that we were married so yeah, that in its own way was quite stressful and there was no small pressure to be the photographer at someone's wedding but absolutely loved it and really thrived on having that creative outlet and Yeah, just met some really cool people as well doing that.
So yeah that's really what I was doing. Yeah, just trying to work out what I wanted to do each step, kind of thing. Yeah,
Anna Kettle: and it's funny, isn't it, how one sort of thing leads you into the next, so
Yeah. And it's interesting that you found that a creative job was, I'm sure that's maybe a better fit for you, after a few years in that sort of like educational setting with special needs kids.
Like as much as I'm sure that was like fulfilling in some ways as well. But obviously it wasn't quite, looking back in retrospect now, knowing that you're running a creative business is like obviously it wasn't quite scratching that creative itch in the same way. Perhaps it's interesting. Yeah.
But it like you didn't know at then but it's like the early sort of [00:08:00] crumbs of where you're going is already there by the way. So that's like early life and sets the scene for us, which is great. But I know if we fast forward a bit to more recent times, I know you've faced some really challenging seasons as well, haven't you?
Like actually when you said you went through one period of depression, like before lockdown and stuff like that. Do you want to tell us a little bit about kind of the context of that and just like as much as you're comfortable with, but I'm really interested in this whole idea that even though life is good and you're Christian and you have a strong faith that's really central, it doesn't mean that life is always easy.
So
Anna Hamill: Yeah, and compared to other people, my life has been really quite easy. But I think I have a tendency and a personality that tends towards glass half empty. And I had in second year at university, I had a season, maybe just a [00:09:00] term where I was quite depressed and ended up going to see a counsellor for a couple of sessions which I didn't find hugely helpful because I didn't really know what was going on.
So when they were asking me questions, I didn't really know how to answer. But yeah, I think it was mainly just my hopes and expectations of university weren't realized. And that kind of led to that season of depression, and it lifted fairly quickly but then in, so 20, when was this, 2018, I had our third child, so I had three children at this point, three children, three and under.
Anna Kettle: That's a lot for a first, that's a lot.
Anna Hamill: Place together. Yeah. I was very much kind of head just above the water, just about keeping going and yeah. Everything was just about Okay. And then when he was six months old, I found out I was expecting a fourth child, which was not expected.
Yeah. And at that point I felt, oh, I'm going to sink. My head is no longer above the water. I really [00:10:00] struggle in pregnancy, so I get really sore pelvic bone and hips and things, which means that I can barely walk. So with three small children, that's not ideal.
That's
Anna Kettle: basically, you did it three times already do you know what I mean? You said four wasn't planned, but yeah, I'm afraid to keep doing it. Just
Anna Hamill: decided no, three, three is the limit. I can't really do much more, but God had other plans. And so at that point. And I went to the doctor and said, look, I am not coping with this.
This is not ideal. Is there anything that you can do? But because I was breastfeeding and pregnant, I couldn't, they couldn't give me any kind of medication or anything. So I just said you're going to need to, look for alternative ways to be able to cope. And my husband had mentioned in passing a few times, oh, we should, what do you think of moving to Northern Ireland?
And every time I said, no, I don't want to move to Northern Ireland. But this time he said what do you think? And I was like, okay, fine, let's go. So his parents live in Northern Ireland and they both have, at the time they both had jobs that enabled [00:11:00] them to be able to come and help and to give that assistance, etc.
And was that the thing that kind
Anna Kettle: of swung it for you, like feeling like you needed extra help with the kids and you were drowning a little bit?
Anna Hamill: Yeah.
Anna Kettle: Practically?
Anna Hamill: Yeah, I would have their support like they're really wonderful and supportive and just basically just do anything that they needed.
think will help. And so they were keen to have the children over for sleepovers, and even just coming over for an afternoon and just an extra pair of hands. And that was really appealing at that time, especially because Yeah, I knew that in the next four or five months, I'd barely be able to walk.
And so we moved over and we decided, I think, in the November, my husband got a job in the December and we moved over in the beginning of March. Wow, so
Anna Kettle: that's
Anna Hamill: quite short, not much time difference. It was really quick. It was really quick. How long had you been
Anna Kettle: in, because you were living in the northeast of England before that, right?
Anna Hamill: Yeah, we were in Newcastle at this point. How long had [00:12:00] you been in that area? I think we lived there seven years. Yeah, seven years. Yeah. So my parents lived about an hour away from us there. But they both had jobs, which meant they could barely help. My mum's a palliative care nurse and she works shifts.
She can't say in advance when she can work. And my dad was caring for church. Yeah, it was the complete opposite. Whereas my in laws could help and could come, like they were fairly reliable in terms of when they could come and when they're available. Whereas my parents were the complete opposite when they just didn't know when they could come and help.
So yeah, we, we decided to move and when I realized just how soon it would be, I best into tears. 'cause I, yeah, I needed a bit more time to process. Yeah. But actually that worked out really well because we moved in March and I was six months pregnant and that was the point where. I really barely could walk.
So yeah, we ended up living with my in laws for six months. So Daniel was born whilst we were there.
Anna Kettle: That really is close, isn't it?
Anna Hamill: Yeah, it was yeah, it was [00:13:00] it was insane. But it turned out incredibly because Daniel was quite poorly. He had colic, which, is a medical name for goodness knows whatever is going on with his tummy.
So he cried a lot and didn't settle very well. Which means you're not getting a lot of sleep, right? Exactly. And yeah, so that was a really tricky time. And we finally moved into our house in September 2019. And within a couple of months, Daniel developed a rash. Which I think is potentially his 16 week vaccine related because it was the day after his vaccines but we have no idea what it is or what it was, and it just caused his skin to go extremely dry and cracked and very sore and painful for him so that continued on until he was diagnosed with SARS CoV 2.
Until Covid happened, because I remember going to the hospital and feeling like I really shouldn't [00:14:00] be there because there were other people who had so much worse things going on, but they said you need to go to the dermatologist, so we did. And they gave him some creams and a week long treatment.
regimen of putting it on twice a day and eventually that did help. But yeah, so it was a, I don't know, a deep dive straight in the deep end of parenting with four children then. Yeah, you've got
Anna Kettle: on, you've got one child who's got some health problems, you've had quite difficult pregnancies, and then you've got like this major relocation, so quite a fast change as well, so you've not had much time to you know, close off and say bye to everyone in the Northeast and then you're suddenly trying to get to grips with a whole new life.
But that's quite tricky as well when you're, like, I know what it's like being at home with a little person when you've got several of them that all need you. It doesn't make it particularly easy to get to grips with a new place and find friends. Also, deep friendships [00:15:00] anyway, that that takes time, doesn't it?
I can imagine. Yeah. Lonely at points, but quite challenging. So it's a brave thing to
Anna Hamill: do. Yeah. And I think having moved quite a lot in my life, so moving from England over to France, and then we moved a few times when I was in France, and then over to Edinburgh and then to Newcastle. I'm just used to somewhere not being home.
I've never really felt like somewhere is home. And so in that kind of way, settling. Was quite quick.
Anna Kettle: Yeah,
Anna Hamill: and maybe
Anna Kettle: moving is like not such a big deal because you're not so attached.
Anna Hamill: Yeah. Yeah, I mean I have no friends from primary school at all, or secondary school my oldest friends are from university so yeah, I feel like it is in some senses easier to move somewhere and settle because I don't have that many routes to pull up from elsewhere.
Yeah. But
Anna Kettle: then, all of that happened, and then, obviously, as you just alluded [00:16:00] to, quite soon after you'd moved, and you were just getting to grips with your new life in Belfast, COVID happened and we were suddenly we found ourselves in that really weird time where we weren't really allowed to socialise, we spent a lot of time at home, suddenly quite isolated all of us, and I think that wasn't an easy time for anyone's mental health, I don't think, it was just so out of the normal for all of us, but I'm guessing that meant you spent a lot of time at home with little ones, and, yeah.
Like, how was that a season? Because you said you were struggling a bit even before that,
Anna Hamill: yeah it was horrendous. It was absolutely awful. And when people now, these days, sometimes say, oh, I wish lockdown I loved lockdown. Lockdown was amazing. No, it was not. I had to look after, so I had to do primary school for a P2 and a P1, so that's reception and P1 in England, but P2 and P1, and have a toddler and a baby at home, and my [00:17:00] husband was also suddenly working from home as well, so we needed to be quiet for this work, and yeah, it was intense work.
One silver lining from that time, though, was because. We had Church Online. We didn't really know very many people at all, but because everyone had their names on the screen, we got to know people's names quite quickly and recognize people in church. And then when we saw them in real life, it was amazing.
It was like, Oh, hello. And I actually knew their names. So that was one silver lining. Obviously Church Online got old quite quickly. But yeah, so that was actually really helpful. And then when we went on our. Daily walk, running into people that we'd seen on a screen was really nice as well, and I don't know if it made us settle faster, but it certainly felt like that kind of eased the process slightly so yeah, and we also live an eight minute walk from church.
Meaning that a lot of people from church also live really close by and that was, I think that is definitely something that helped us to settle a lot faster. Yeah, that's good. But yeah, the reason that we [00:18:00] moved was to get extra support and that we weren't allowed to see them. Because you didn't have that
Anna Kettle: extra support that you'd moved for quite a while.
Anna Hamill: No. So yeah, it was, yeah, I think I've blocked out quite a lot of it, to be honest.
Anna Kettle: I think when all that, I feel like I was working as a key worker a little bit during the pandemic, but I also had a, I only had one job. I had a receptionist child, aged child in the house who was supposed to be teaching at the same time.
So we did very little I think within the first week I decided no school was happening in this house. It's just not going to happen. Yeah, we did very little school as well. We struggled at times just with one, so I can't even imagine what it's like to have four or different needs. Yeah. But
Anna Hamill: I think they definitely kept each other entertained and each other company which again was such a blessing because, yeah, single children maybe struggled more in that sense.
But yeah.
Anna Kettle: And then obviously the other big [00:19:00] sort of change is like in your work. So obviously you're working before that as a wedding photographer. When you were still in the Northeast in Newcastle, and obviously that's not happening in COVID. There's no one having weddings, or certainly not weddings you want to take photographs of anyway.
Yeah. So what is that kind of where the seeds of your new business came from? Tell us how did your business start? Tell us a little bit more about it then.
Anna Hamill: Yeah, so I paused wedding photography. And figured I would pick it up again when Daniel was a little bit older, when I was more settled in Northern Ireland, because obviously my website is keyworded to Newcastle.
So I had to restart all that kind of marketing stuff all over and I just did not have the energy to do that, nor really the time to actually photograph any weddings. So I put it on pause for a while and figured I would wait until he's maybe one and then start up again. When he was nine months old, [00:20:00] COVID happened.
So that paused that for longer. But actually, even before that at the end of 2019, I was getting antsy and really needed to do something creative to get some brain space and get out of, everything that was going on and just give myself some time for me, some time to do something that I enjoyed rather than looking after a poorly baby who I didn't know how to help.
So I actually was thinking earlier on, I don't actually know where these paints came from because I don't remember buying them or anyone getting them for me, but I had a little set of watercolour paints. So I took that, picked those up and started just doodling and I'd always seen, the really nice hand lettered things and thought that would be so amazing to be able to do.
But every time I picked up a brush, it just looked horrendous and I just gave up. So I just painted like watercolor illustrations instead. The first one that I did was like an elephant and I was really pleased with it. So I thought, Oh, this is actually quite fun to do [00:21:00] something.
And actually like the result as well is positive. So that kind of spurred me on and I kept going with that. And then I still really wanted to do the hand lettering, but yeah, I couldn't do it just on paper. So I invested in an iPad and practiced on that, and that process was a lot faster, just the way you press down, etc.
It's much easier to know, yeah, get to do what you actually are wanting the pencil to do, whereas a brush kind of, it can go wherever it wants to but on the iPad it's much more controlled so that improved quite quickly. And I was really pleased with that as well. And then, so over maybe a period of three or four months, I came up with some designs that I thought, oh, these would be quite nice as greetings cards.
So I thought I may as well just put them on Etsy and see what happens. So I printed some of these off and yeah, put them on Etsy and actually I meant, I think I must have mentioned them on my Facebook page or like my Facebook profile. And a few of my [00:22:00] friends bought them and then one, one of my friends bought 10.
I was like, oh, this is actually something that someone really wants. Yeah. So it was a quote by Curry boom. That says never be afraid to trust an unknown future to a known God and little did I know that would be the perfect card to send what was about to come. So yeah, I felt in retrospect, I definitely feel that God was moving me towards this and changing my path and career. And yeah, so that's really how it came about, was partly intentional and partly by accident moving towards a different form of creativity. And yeah, that it's, just grown from there in the last four and a bit years.
Anna Kettle: Yeah.
Anna Hamill: And so
Anna Kettle: your business is called And Hope Designs.
Yeah. And that's what it grew into, like this, just initially doodling on an iPad, as it were, and selling a few bits and pieces on Etsy. So it's grown [00:23:00] into this whole business and Hope Designs, which does, I've had a look at the website, it's beautiful, so everyone check it out.
Great stuff on there. But what was the inspiration? Like, where did that name come from? Did it yeah.
Anna Hamill: Yeah. From the 1st of January 2020, I decided that I was going to read a page of the Bible a day, and that's how I was going to read the Bible, because I didn't, I could not find any notes that I really wanted to go through or anything like that.
So I decided I'll just read a page of the Bible a day, and I started in Romans. I don't really know why, but I just did. And then in Romans 5, it says, we also glory in our sufferings because we know that suffering produces perseverance character and character hope. And hope does not put us to shame because God's love has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.
So those words and hope is where it came from. And really it's because of suffering and those words. Tough times. I felt that's what had brought about this business. So I wanted to yeah, include that [00:24:00] in, in the name. And really, yeah, it's funny because I remember as a teenager praying that God would change my character and make it more like his and all these kinds of things.
And then reading that, I realized, ah, that's how he makes characters, by suffering. And then the character produces hope. Which I've read that verse before, so I must have somehow assimilated it into my brain, but it really hit home then. Oh, this is how character is going to build is through these times of suffering, big or small.
But that is, that's how God works and how God changes us.
Anna Kettle: Yeah, that's beautiful. I really like that scripture. And and I just think it sums up that season of life so well, doesn't it? I just think it's amazing that God had that plan in mind for you, that he turned what was like, essentially really hard and in some ways quite hopeless season not just for you, but for like lots of people around you as well, [00:25:00] for lots of us into this business and ministry that it's all about.
Spreading hope to others, essentially. And I love that God does that. Like you say, he takes our suffering and he turns it into something that we can do. It's hopeful and actually can spread hope to others and if we let him engage in our stories. So yeah, I just love the fact that you've got such a clear example of that kind of redeeming thing that God does with our suffering.
It's amazing.
Anna Hamill: Yeah.
Anna Kettle: I wanted to unpick a little bit more as well about this whole idea of art because it's a theme through your life and I just wondered about like that whole sort of idea of art as therapy because initially we were doing it, just, fiddling about and stuff to help you express stuff, for you to process stuff during a difficult season.
Thank you. Have you always used art in that way, or is that something new, or I'm just interested in art really as an outlet, creativity as an outlet really, [00:26:00] in terms of helping us manage mental health and process life, and yeah, just interested in that.
Anna Hamill: Yeah I've always been creative, and I remember as a child I enjoyed making things out of beads and then as a teenager I always had a friendship bracelet attached to my jeans that I just do as and when.
I love to scrapbook and yeah, so I've always been creative and it is definitely something that I lean towards and just do. I don't know if I always did it to process things, but it definitely calms me and it gives you space to focus on something, but you can be thinking about something completely else.
So it keeps your hands busy whilst your brain is working on something else. So yeah, definitely, it is definitely a way to process things. I would also journal but interestingly, I have no journals from 2019 or 2020. There's nothing. I just. I don't think I [00:27:00] could bring myself to write anything down.
It was just too much. So yeah, just used art instead. And none of it has anything to do with anything that I was going through, apart from some quotes that I practiced hand lettering. But all the paintings and things that, yeah, completely unrelated. It's just scottish mountain scenes. So yeah I know you write and you use that.
I can't say that I would do the same, but I'm sure kind of different creative outlets have the same impact and the same effect on mental health. And
Anna Kettle: I think so much of it is about the way you use it. God wires us each, doesn't it? So for you, God's wired you as an artistic, creative person. Like I'm creative, but I'm not an artist.
Like I wouldn't dream of trying to draw anything. Like it would be horrible. That is not my gifting at all. But that's something God's made you to love and to be good at. And so of course it figures that's how you would, one, process a hot season, but two, just enjoy doing.
Yeah, enjoy it as a business, enjoy [00:28:00] blessing others through it, connect with God even through it yeah, whereas, as you say, I use writing quite a lot, that's my creative outlet, but it's interesting, isn't it, that God will use and connect with us through whatever, however he's made us, and what he's made us good at
Anna Hamill: yeah.
Yeah, I went to a place called Hutchmoot last year, and there are a lot of songwriters and it made me think as well, like a lot of people do write songs or write music as a form of therapy as well, just to process things. And there are a lot of songs, sad songs and whatever, which probably people are using for that as well.
Anna Kettle: Yeah, it's really true. My husband, Andy, is a musician and he spends a lot of time just tinkering away. I think music's the way he processes and just yeah, scratches that creative itch really. So that's his thing. So I think, yeah, you're absolutely right. So I wonder then, can you tell us a bit more about, so that was how your business started and all of that, where are you to [00:29:00] now? Like, how's it? Because it's gone from strength to strength, hasn't it? So can you tell us a bit more about what you've been doing more recently, what's next for Unhope yeah, tell us a bit more.
Anna Hamill: Yeah so I've done quite a lot of commissions which has been really fun, actually, to get an email from someone saying, I would like to do this. I don't really know exactly what if you have any ideas, and to collaborate that in that way with someone, and to come up to use their ideas and their situation and be able to bring something into that.
So yeah, a lot of collaborations and commissions of both. So I paint houses these days, which again, I don't really know how it came about. But yeah, it's been really fun as well to there's been a lot of church paintings to commemorate and celebrate baptisms and weddings which has been really nice.
And people's houses, people moving home, first home, the memories from childhood. So someone who's recently lost a granny [00:30:00] wanted a picture of the granny's home because they were selling the house. So yeah, a lot of things like that. And then I have over 200 card designs now, starting from five.
I have more than 200 for so many different situations and like birthdays and baptisms and ordinations and condolence cards, new home, new baby, just.
Anna Kettle: Yeah, so
Anna Hamill: many different things. And I've taught myself to pour candles. Wow. So
Anna Kettle: I have
Anna Hamill: a range of, currently three, but soon a fourth candle.
So the soy wax candles. And I've used different words. That I felt both matched the scent of the candle and also the feeling that I want people to have when they have it. There's one called Comfort, which is, I want it to be homely and welcoming and a memory of Yeah, it's warm apple pie scent.
So that would bring that kind of yeah, hospitality into it. Anyway yeah, so there's loads of things. It's verging more on homeware these days, as well as stationery. And it's been so [00:31:00] exciting. I've had people asking if they can stock my things in their shops so I'm stocked in, I think, 16 different shops across the world some in America, some here and my first one in Northern Ireland, which was really exciting.
And then I'm going to a thing called Big Church Festival next month, so I'll have a stall there which I'm really excited about. I'm really nervous because apparently 30, 000 people go to this festival so yeah, that's really exciting. Yeah, things are increasing year on year and pretty much any time I come up with an idea, I just jot it down and work with it and sometimes it becomes something and sometimes it doesn't, but it's still definitely working for me is being creative.
And yeah, it's, I love it. It's really exciting. And I've met so many people, both customers and other small business owners. And it's just, it feels like a really lovely community to be a part of. So yeah, I think in a way, it's also helped me [00:32:00] settle here and feel like I'm a part of life here.
So yeah, it's just been fantastic. I love it.
Anna Kettle: Yeah, it really comes across I think, when people are looking for a card or whatever it is, a commissioned piece of work, it's I think that kind of passion and love for what you do really comes across in it. That's what people are looking for quite often, isn't it, rather than just something that's been mass produced and perhaps not made with the same kind of, connection by the artist and the same kind of, yeah so I really love that.
I love the fact that the intention is to bless each individual through, bring some of that hope into each person as you sell stuff and create stuff for them. So yeah it's really beautiful what you're doing. And if anyone's going to, what is it called? The Big Feast, or did you say?
Anna Hamill: Big Church Festival,
Anna Kettle: yeah. Yeah, so if anyone's going there, obviously look up Anna. If you happen to be going, but check out her website. Yeah, there's a
Anna Hamill: few small businesses in the tea [00:33:00] garden. So yeah, there's a bunch of us
Anna Kettle: going. Brilliant. So look out for her there or just check out her website if not. So that's a little bit about your business, Anna.
I suppose the other thing I'm interested in is what's your takeaway? So you've been through this journey where you've had some big upheavals in life, a big relocation a difficult season, some struggles with your mental health through that, and that whole season of overwhelm, like pre and during lockdown and then this whole new sort of calling, as it were, because it is a calling really, isn't it, and business growing out of that God's really clearly led you into.
So what's the learning out of all of that? What's the takeaway point? What's the thing you've learned through it all, if you could pull out one thing? I know that's a tricky question, but we always ask it.
Anna Hamill: Yeah I think that quote by Corrie ten Boom, never be afraid to trust an unknown God, an unknown future with, to a known [00:34:00] God. This is not the life that I would have chosen if I'd been given, okay, what do you want to do? I would not have moved to Northern Ireland. I would not have had four children, I would not have homeschooled for a season, and those are three things that I said I wouldn't do, and God has clearly moved me to do those things and to be here, and he knows best,
yeah, I've been thinking about this a lot, and I don't think I would be as happy and as fulfilled if I was doing the things that I do now would have chosen for myself. And, that image of the tapestry and all we see is the back of the tapestry. And, but God sees the front of the tapestry, and he knows what he's doing, and he is making something beautiful.
And, yeah, I think it's taught me to just trust him. Even though that's hard and you can ask questions.
You can say, why God? Why are you doing this? What are you doing? Where are you taking me? But ultimately there is, there needs to be a [00:35:00] deep seated trust that he knows best and that, he is doing something good and he has a purpose and a reason to take you where he is taking you and to do the things that he is doing and yeah, I know I'm saying this from a life that is quite difficult, quite comfortable. But even in those dark seasons when I felt really depressed and really down and there was no way out, looking back, I can see that there was a way out and that he was working in those times and that he has, he's made something beautiful, not just for me, not just for us as a family as well, but for the people that get in contact with me and say, oh, I need help with this. Or could you do this? There have been some really cool. I felt really privileged to be a part of some of the messages that people have sent to each other. And I was sending cards directly to people as well. So I had a lady last week who was in hospital, so couldn't write the card herself physically, but really wanted to send a [00:36:00] card to a friend who just lost her dad and said, are you able to do that for me?
I said, absolutely, of course I can, just let me know what message. And I was able to do that for her. So yeah, just to be able to be there for other people and bless other people and encourage them. Yeah, it's just amazing. Incredible what God has done, really, just looking back. Yeah, I love it.
Anna Kettle: Yeah, it really is. I love that quote from Corey 10 Beam. It's really cool. And I think it's really clear, like what you're saying, in terms of you wouldn't have picked what you're doing right now, or you wouldn't have, it's not the life you would've chosen necessarily, but Yeah.
Actually really love it and, yeah. Yeah. I think it's so challenging, but so encouraging to hear, and I think it's really encouraging. Maybe for listeners who are still right in the middle of something really difficult right now to hear that, you couldn't necessarily see it in the middle of the pain and the mess and the darkest days.
But he didn't know what he was doing, even in the middle of it. And now you at the other side, you can see more of that. And I [00:37:00] think you're right. It's that thing of we can trust God to Yeah, he, because he knows us, and actually he's quite often, like you say, he knows us better than we know ourselves, and he knows what's good for us probably better than we know, or choose better things for us than we would choose for ourselves sometimes, and that's so challenging, isn't it, when you're in the middle of it.
So encouraging to hear your testimony, though, to hear that's your experience. Yeah.
Anna Hamill: He is good.
Anna Kettle: Yeah, no, it's really good. And that's what, why we do What's The Story, really, we want to share these stories and encourage people who are facing challenges. So yeah, it's really good.
So tell us then, just to finish, where can people reach out to you if they want to connect? Like, how can they find out more about your business? Tell us about, website, social links tell us all the things. Where do people find you?
Anna Hamill: Yeah my website is andhopedesigns. com and I am at andhopedesigns everywhere [00:38:00] you could think.
I've probably got some kind of profile but you're more likely to get in touch with me if on Instagram or Facebook the others are just more like placeholders. You'll probably not find me on LinkedIn, I'm afraid.
Anna Kettle: Yeah.
Anna Hamill: Yeah.
Anna Kettle: Yeah. Yeah. Fair enough. Brilliant. That's so great. And I definitely encourage anyone who's listening to, to check it out if you're interested.
Looking for any art, or cards, or candles, or anything else, just go and check it out because it's some beautiful stuff and it makes great gifts yeah thank you so much for joining us today, Anna it's been really great to hear your story, thank you for giving up your time and sharing a bit of your story with us, appreciate that, and guys, thank you for listening in today, and we'll see you again soon on What's The Story.
Sadaf Beynon: And just like that, we've reached the end of another fascinating conversation. Remember to check out Crowd Online Church at www. crowd. church. Don't forget to subscribe to What's the Story on your favourite podcast app. We've got a treasure trove of inspiring stories coming your way and we'd hate for you to miss any of them.[00:39:00]
What's the Story is a production of Crowd Online Church. Our fantastic team, including Anna Kettle, Matt Edmundson, Tanya Hutsuliak, and myself, Sadaf Beynon, work behind the scenes to bring these stories to life. Our theme song is a creative work of Josh Edmundson. If you're interested in the transcript or show notes, head over to our website, whatsthestorypodcast.
com. And while you're there, sign up for our free newsletter to get all the goodness delivered straight to your inbox. That's all from us this week. Thank you so much for tuning in and we'll catch you in the next episode. Bye for now.