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Joanne Eschrich
Master Keepsake Designer

On Wednesday, September 30, Hallmark Master Designer, Joanne Eschrich chatted with collectors via Facebook. Here is a synopsis of that chat that highlights most of the questions and responses. Please note the chat is not in chronological order and has been grouped by subject and edited for brevity.

Father Christmas

Joanne: Great question. For Father Christmas I start with the message, since each one represents a different meaning. I brainstorm with the editor and we start with a word or theme, like Hope or Harmony and that is where I start looking for inspiration and color.

Joanne: I do love adding animals to Father Christmas. Not sure if everyone knows this, but I was raised on a farm back East so I love to add in animals when I can and if it fits with the theme.

Father Christmas
12th in the series.

Joanne: Love it! Not quite sure how an aardvark would work in, but there is always next year. Maybe Sharon can take this one.

Joanne: I have never thought of doing a Mother Christmas how unique. My angels keep me pretty busy though and haven’t thought about a female companion to Father Christmas.

Joanne: The heart represents the love of Christmas, the white bear is from my premium Precious Firsts Ornament that comes out at Debut and the present is for the gifts of Christmas.

Diana St James: Is it a universal shrinkage, or does it reduce more in some places than others? It sounds tricky but maybe there is a fast learning curve?

Joanne: It reduces proportionately in the firing.

Joanne: Honestly we don’t know yet, but I did have so much fun working on this one.

Joanne: It is always a collaboration. Edythe, myself and other artists have ideas for ornaments themselves and we work with the merchant teams to add breath to the line and this seemed like an area we could expand.

Joanne: Fabric is always an interesting part to add and I often have trouble if the fabric does not stretch.

Other Work

Snowball and Tuxedo
15th Anniversary

Joanne: Unfortunately the stick arms became too difficult to manufacture and we were concerned about breakage.

Joanne: I was trying to capture “toys ” from the past that felt nostalgic and special.

Career

Joanne: Hi Anna (Joanne’s daughter), you should be in class. I knew I wanted to be an artist in the 3rd grade when all my friends would ask me to draw for them.

Joanne: To be honest, no! I wasn’t even aware did ornaments but so happy to be part of such a great studio.

Joanne: Not at all I am just busier! But it has been fun to work with different teams at Hallmark.

Other

Joanne: Myself and the other artists work hard to come up with new ideas and look for inspiration which we share with the teams. I love getting inspiration from my fellow artists and from just being out and about.

Joanne: We always start with a sketch. The hardest part is the idea itself, but once we have the sketch the rest is the fun part.

Joanne: It depends on how complex it is, it generally takes me two weeks for each sculpt.

Joanne: I’ve been trying to do a Caucasian male angel for years! I haven’t given up yet!

Joanne: I have to say Sharon Visker because she is sitting right here!!!! And because she is one of my favorites!

Sharon: What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas.

Joanne: We sit right next to one another and have been friends for over 30 years! We’ve had a lot of great times!

Joanne: Of course!!! I have a mix of everyone’s ornaments on it from the studio, including the small frames from the Family Tree gift collection with photos of my family and friends.

Joanne: The angels I do always hold a special place in my heart, especially this year’s premium Timeless Angel with the metal wings and flowers.