Claire Henley always loved colouring and painting as a child and she still can’t believe that she can now do it and earn money at the same time. Attaining a graphic design degree at college, Claire’s first job was as designer of kitchen textiles, among which were numerous animal-shaped oven gloves and sea creature bathmats! After four years of this madness, as enjoyable as it was, she left to become a freelance illustrator.
Today Claire lives in Stratford upon Avon, England with her husband and two daughters, and divides her time between creating images for licensing and illustrating books for children. Her designs have appeared on everything from toys, textiles, greetings cards and Christmas decorations. Claire particularly loves experimenting with lots of different techniques and styles, among her favourites are acrylic paint, pen and ink and collage.
Claire often visits schools to talk about illustration or book design, enjoying the break from her drawing board to join the real world occasionally! Most of Claire’s time is spent in her workroom, listening to the radio and enjoying the freedom of creating something brand new every day.