June 30, 2025 • 19 mins
Replacing the rigidity of council architecture with the vibrancy of bespoke hat design.
Janice Charles is the CEO of House of Charles, a bespoke hat-design business that thrives on making the seemingly impossibe, possible.
Janice's father instilled in her a belief that she could achieve anything she set her mind to, an ethos illustrated by the unique, architectural headwear she now designs for her clients and that is featured internationally in couture magazines.
Before she got to this point, however, Janice faced a challenging period of ill health linked to workplace stress, but it was through this struggle that she experienced a 'happy accident' that pushed her towards her true calling.
Her initial foray into millinery design started as a personal project to customize a hat for a race day, which quickly got her noticed and encouraged her to further explore this side of her creativity. Drawing from her childhood experiences and her father's encouragement, Janice embraced her creativity.
Her bespoke creations, which blend her architectural background with a flair for the unconventional, have garnered attention and admiration, and in thias episode Janice encourages listeners to embrace their unique creative journeys, emphasizing that even from the depths of hardship, beauty and inspiration can blossom.
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Researched, edited and produced by Claire Waite Brown
Music: Day Trips by Ketsa Undercover / Ketsa Creative Commons License Free Music Archive - Ketsa - Day Trips
Artworks: Emily Portnoi emilyportnoi.co.uk
Photo: Ella Pallet
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Podcast recorded with Riverside and hosted by Buzzsprout
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Janice Charles (00:00):
When I was studying and I was designing all
these amazing creations, youhad like creative license,
creative flair of what youwanted to do.
But obviously when you'reworking for a company, it's then
very rigid and you have to dowhat they want.
(00:21):
That was the stress that causedmy oestrogen to go through the
roof, the stress of the job.
This was a happy accident,basically.
Me being ill was actually thebirth of my career.
You know, we've never all beencrazy.
You come to me with anythingthat seems crazy or out of the
norm, I'm right in there.
Claire. Waite Brown (00:42):
Hi, I'm Claire, founder of Creativity
Found.
For this podcast, I chat withpeople who have found or
re-found their creativity asadults.
We'll explore their childhoodexperiences of the arts, discuss
how they came to the artisticpractices they now love, and
consider the barriers they mayhave experienced between the
(01:03):
two.
We'll also explore what it isthat people value and gain from
their newfound artisticpursuits.
This time I'm chatting withJanice Charles.
Hi Janice, how are you?
Hi Claire, I'm good, thank you.
How are you?
I'm very well, thank you.
Start by telling me what yourcurrent creative outlet is,
(01:26):
please.
Janice Charles (01:28):
I'm Janice, Janice Charles, and I'm the CEO
of House of Charles.
My brand creates unique,handmade hats and headwear.
I'm actually based inLiverpool.
I've got a studio in Liverpool.
I specialise in bespoke, alsohat hire as well, for both men
and women, bridal.
In fact, anything that you canput on your head.
(01:48):
And I love a challenge.
So, you know, you come to mewith anything that seems crazy
or out of the norm, I'm right inthere.
Claire. Waite Brown (01:57):
Brilliant.
And I think we're going to findout a bit about how you got
there and how that possiblyaffects the kind of designs that
you make.
So when you were younger, didcreative activities play a part
in your life?
Janice Charles (02:13):
As long as I can remember from five years old, I
have always been creative, youknow.
My dad was a carpenter bytrade, but my dad could turn his
hand to anything also.
And my dad used to teach me allthe tools, the names of the
tools and what to do for them.
I think I was his littleapprentice.
But from early as five, I waslike designing and making me
(02:34):
Christmas cards for my mum anddad.
I had dolls that I never reallyplayed with in the traditional
sense.
I was always wrapping fabricaround them and trying to make
clothes for them.
To me, so, creativity hasalways been in my blood.
I think I was just born with itin my blood, you know.
And I was really lucky that Ihad a dad who supported me, you
know.
He just made me believe hismindset was, and that's what I
(02:57):
always stand by today.
He always used to say to methat you can do anything you set
your mind to.
And that's what I always tellmyself, you know, being brought
up with that belief, you know.
Claire. Waite Brown (03:06):
Oh, that's lovely.
When you were at the stage ofleaving school, did you have a
plan of what you wanted to doand what was your path after
education?
Janice Charles (03:16):
When I was at school, actually, I did
modelling.
Actually, where I did my dualsto begin with, to be honest, is
that I started, you know,training.
Then I got into modelling and Idid some TV extra work.
So I've dabbled in all kinds ofthings, really, do you know
what I mean?
And I just...
fell into this industry byaccident because I actually
(03:37):
thought I wanted to be aninterior designer through
watching TV and seeing LaurenceLlewellyn-Bowen.
And I was like, oh, I want todo that.
You know, I'd love to do that.
It looks amazing, exciting.
So actually seeing a courseadvertised, I rang up my local
college.
I spoke to the tutor.
And actually, to my surprise,when I actually started the
course, it wasn't what I thoughtit was.
(04:00):
Because...
I was just going in for thecarpets and the curtains and all
the nice stuff, you know.
And this course was calledthree-dimensional design.
So within that course, we diddo interiors, but the interior
design was after you'd done thespace planning, the surveying,
you know, drafting the plans,drafting everything else.
(04:20):
And for the first few years,like, we dabbled.
We did the art test and spaceplanning and then for the next
year you could do projectdesign.
After two weeks of joining, Iwas like, oh no, this is like,
it's over my head, it's harderthan I thought.
To my surprise, we had ourfirst assessment.
I was getting merits and I waslike, how did this happen,
(04:41):
do you know what I mean?
It's like, you know...
What it did do is it taught meto think outside of the box, you
know, all the things that wehad to do, you know, because it
was a brief.
You had to problem solve, comeup with an original design,
draft the plans, and really gaveyou, like, real thinking skills
of what you wouldn't normally,you know, think of, how to do
things in a different way.
(05:01):
So that really surprised me.
I was getting married to myfirst assessments, and then from
then on, I continued to be inthe top three in the class, you
know, so...
And I was actually gettingdistinctions.
So I did that.
And I was actually going to goto university.
I actually got places.
And my tutor, he said to me,it's amazing that you've got
these places, he said, and youare that good.
(05:24):
He said, my son went touniversity.
My son and I was like over£20,000 in debt.
I would take your portfolioaround and go and knock on a few
doors.
Anyone, he said, would give youa job.
He says, I would give you ajob.
So...
I was like, that's a bit of aweird information coming from
you two.
So I just threw it away.
So I did actually take hisadvice.
(05:44):
Funnily enough, not long afterI'd actually seen him, they were
advertising for trainees in mylocal council for architecture.
So I actually took myportfolio.
And to my surprise, I wasactually taken on.
And then I was actually thensent, paid for on-job training
for my HND through my localcouncil.
I became an architect throughthat.
(06:06):
So, you know, the advice thatmy teacher gave me, although
probably quite unorthodox, itwas the right thing to do.
So when I was working for thecouncil, obviously when I was
studying and I was designing allthese amazing creations, you
had like creative license,creative flair of what you
(06:27):
wanted to do.
But obviously when you'reworking for a company, it's then
a very rigid structure.
And you have to do what theywant.
And unfortunately for me, theprojects I was working on in my
council was school and officerefits, which obviously didn't
have the same kind ofcreativity, you know, that I'd
actually went into this industryfor.
And it became not so excitingas I hoped, unfortunately.
(06:53):
And in the end, it justactually made me ill.
And I took time off.
I took a year off due to illhealth.
Claire. Waite Brown (07:01):
How did the ill health manifest then?
Janice Charles (07:04):
Unknown to me, the stress causes me to have an
hormone imbalance.
I had an estrogen dominance,which actually caused me to have
uterine fibroids.
And I was having periods likefor 12, 15 days at a time,
constantly in pain.
That was the stress that causedmy estrogen to go through the
roof.
The stress of the job, thestress of unfortunately having
(07:25):
had a male boss who...
I didn't like to say the wordsexist, but, you know, it was
one of them.
In fact, my partner even warnedme at the time when I started.
He actually said to me, becareful, he said, because I am
like a sponge.
I learn things really quickly.
And he said to me, peoplebecome threatened by you because
they think you come in and taketheir job.
(07:46):
And I think in the end he wasright because the mailbox that I
did have, I think he just triedto keep me down because he's
seen I was picking things up soquickly.
So I wasn't really getting...
You know, the opportunitiesthat I should have done and the
things that I was getting wasvery boring and mundane.
So it did actually take a tollon me in the end, you know.
But having said that, I dobelieve that things happen for a
(08:08):
reason, even though we can'tsee it at the time.
Claire. Waite Brown (08:11):
Janice, did you associate, you think, the
physical symptoms of yourillness with your experiences at
work?
Were you recognising stress?
Were you putting thingstogether?
Janice Charles (08:22):
You don't automatically think that that's
what's causing your illness.
It wasn't until I got diagnosedand then they said, it's the
stress that causes you certainlevels to go through the roof.
Obviously then it made sense tome, you know, that it was
actually that.
Is there treatment for thephysical symptoms?
Is
Claire. Waite Brown (08:37):
that how it gets better?
Janice Charles (08:39):
Well, yeah.
So I went all around the housebefore I actually got it.
First of all, they put me on aprogesterone.
That actually made me worse.
Like, I was putting on weights.
I really had bad headaches.
I was feeling sick with it.
They were told my hysterectomy.
Obviously, I didn't want one,do you know what I mean?
So I did actually do myresearch then to try and find
out, you know, which treatmentsfor it.
(09:00):
It took me years.
When I first had it, I had amale doctor who didn't really
take me seriously.
So that was a battle in itself.
You know, I was complaining tohim about the pains and the
periods.
And he had me on all these...
treatments beforehand, thehormone therapy, you know,
before he actually agreed tosend me to the consultants.
(09:21):
That in itself was a battlejust to get to the consultants,
you know.
Claire. Waite Brown (09:24):
Yeah.
Let's move on to the morecheerful side of things then.
How did you start making hats?
Janice Charles (09:33):
Where did that come from?
This is one of the good thingsthat actually came out of me
working for my local councilbecause we actually went to
Ladies Day, our group, Withinthe council, I'd never been in a
race before.
I was looking for a hat formyself.
I couldn't actually findanything that I liked.
So I bought a plain black hatand I customised it.
(09:53):
Everybody was like, oh my God,your hat's amazing.
Because of my illness, I wasreally bored.
When I started feeling a bitbetter, I'm a very spiritual
person.
I do believe being creativefeeds yourself.
So it does actually try andmake you feel better.
So I already had the sewingmachine.
Because of course I used to do,I actually have like materials
(10:14):
left over.
And one day I just opened thecupboard.
I've seen all these materialsleft over from the courseworkers
that we used to have to designit.
But we used to have to doscaled models of our design.
So I had all the materials, Ihad like fabric, wire, you name
it, I had all that left over inthe cupboard.
And I don't even know wherethis came from.
(10:35):
I just looked at it and I justthought to myself, I can make a
house out of that.
I don't even know where I camefrom because I've never made a
hat in my life.
I thought, you know what, I'mgoing to try.
You know, I'm going to have ago at this.
So I actually made two hats, myexperiment hats.
Well, they were more likeheadpieces then.
So I said to my partner, do youlike my hats?
(10:55):
And he went, oh, he said,they're amazing.
And we said, have they justcome to town?
I went, no, I made them.
He went, you made them?
I went, yeah.
He said, get them on eBay, hesaid, to test them all, OK, you
know.
So I put them on eBay.
I put them on for three days,and within that time, I had over
700 views on them.
And both of them sold for£23.50 each.
(11:18):
And I was absolutely made up.
A couple of years later, I'dseen a competition advertised,
called Who Wants to Be aMillionaire?
They used to create some uniqueheadwear.
So I made a piece.
You had to take a photographand send it.
And then I received a phonecall saying to me I'd entered
(11:38):
the competition, I'd beenshortlisted.
My designs being shortlisted, Iwas 2,500 to the final 12.
And I cut the screens.
I couldn't believe it.
I couldn't believe it, youknow.
So as part of the competition,the piece that he designed was
then actually put into JohnLewis's in Oxford Street.
So it was for Ascot.
I'd never been to Ascot.
So obviously, my partner was asexcited as I was.
(12:00):
And he actually bought ustickets for Ascot that year.
And we actually went to London.
But I actually went to JohnLewis's the day before.
hoping to see my hat.
And I was so disappointed thatit wasn't there because it was
being sold.
So I was like, I wanted toactually see it there, you know.
And that was the start of it.
And I thought to myself, it wasonly ever a hobby because
(12:24):
through maleness, it wassomething trying to take my mind
off being ill and to keep myhand in creativity because I've
always been creative even as achild.
So it was a hobby.
And this was still in hobbymode, all this was happening.
And then that made me realise,well, actually, if I can, out of
all those people, I was anamateur, self-choice.
And I've managed to beat suchstiff competition.
(12:46):
And then it was actually soldin John Lewis.
It was actually £220.
And that was in 2010.
So then I kept on upskillingmyself.
YouTube, best classroom in theworld.
You know, things that Icouldn't work out how to do, go
and have a look at, you know,YouTube videos.
And again, in hobby mode.
I was seeing a photographeradvertising for designers.
(13:08):
And I messaged her.
I sent some photographs of mystuff.
She was like, oh, they'reamazing.
So she had a photo shoot withher.
Those were actually featured ina magazine.
And that was before I'd evenlaunched my business.
So these are all obviouslypositives, you know, that were
given me at the conference.
This was a happy accident,basically.
Me being ill was actually thebirth of my career.
(13:28):
You know, we've never all beencreative.
And the first I had...
an influencer from Liverpoolwho's seen me on Twitter and
asked if she could wear mypiece.
And the very first year, it wasLadies' Day, and it was
actually in the middle of PearlEcho.
We were there wearing it.
So that was my very first year.
And then I've been blessed andextremely grateful that since
(13:51):
then I've had my designsfeatured in magazines, local
press, and international pressup to now, you know.
So that's the amazing thingabout it, you know.
It's like, you know.
You have a style.
Tell me a bit about your actualcreations.
Well, yeah.
So once again, obviously,because with me doing the
architecture and this isn't evena conscious decision, everybody
(14:13):
recognises my piece becauseI've got my own style because
they are very architectural,very structural.
I've always loved beingdifferent and unique.
I think the architecture, whatit did and that course was
basically teaching me to thinkoutside of the box.
So they're completely differentfrom what you'd But see, I
don't actually call myself amilliner.
I call myself a hat designerbecause, you know, my piece of
(14:35):
people say that they're wearableass, you know.
They can say they immediatelywant to tell me background.
It all makes sense becausethey're architectural, you know.
I think all those disciplinesreally fused into my design
style, you know.
Claire. Waite Brown (14:48):
Yeah.
You've been explaining thesuccess that the brand has had.
And this is a question quiteoften asked of my guests,
especially those who take whatwas a hobby or something that
was good for their well-beingand then put the business side
(15:09):
on top of it.
Do you find now that Thebusiness element of having a
business gets in the way of thecreative process and the
benefits you get from creatingyour designs.
I think
Janice Charles (15:23):
it does because, unfortunately, I mean, it's
always been like this.
Even when I was an architect, Ihated the technical side, which
sounds really weird.
I just wanted to get to theactual design.
Nothing's changed, you know,I'm still the same.
I love to design.
I think I can design with myeyes closed, basically.
I love that side.
And the business side, themarketing and accounts and all
(15:45):
that kind of thing, and tryingto draw my customers, you know.
Obviously, I need to do, butthat is a bit more difficult for
me because it's not natural tome the way design is.
Claire. Waite Brown (15:54):
Yeah, I think a lot of people will say
exactly the same thing.
And how are your stress levelsand how is your health now?
Janice Charles (16:04):
So much better.
I mean, obviously you'll alwaysbe stressed if you've got your
own business.
It comes with the territoryreally, you know, but I think
especially working for yourselfis stressful, but I wouldn't
change it for the world.
I think once you change, onceyou work for yourself, I don't
think you could ever go back andwork for somebody else.
And, you know, I control what Iwant to do, the projects I want
(16:24):
to take and the customers, youknow, I've still got that
controlled.
And yeah, Things can go wrongand often do.
Do you know what I mean?
And then you end up having torestart or it's taking you
longer.
And I can be there until fouro'clock in the morning
sometimes.
And I've been workingthroughout the day trying to
meet the deadline for thecustomer.
That is stressful.
(16:45):
But having that said, when mycustomer actually comes to pick
her up, the reaction on theirface, that's what makes it all
worthwhile.
Oh, good.
Claire. Waite Brown (16:55):
Fabulous.
Thanks so much, Janice.
How can people find you andconnect with you and see your
designs?
Janice Charles (17:01):
Thank you.
You can find me on Instagram,House of underscore Charles.
You can also find me on Google,House of Charles.
I'm based in Liverpool.
And anything, you know, even ifyou think in your head it's not
possible, the crazier thebetter.
You know, I'm all for fullapproaches, you know.
I will...
You know, design anything thingput on your head, basically,
(17:22):
men or women.
Well, within reason, obviously.
But yeah, I love a challenge,you know.
But I do specialise in bespoke.
If you were to bring youramphoterium fabric, I'd create
your piece just unique to you.
Brilliant.
Claire. Waite Brown (17:36):
Thank you so much, Janice.
It's been really lovely to chatwith you today.
Oh, you too, Claire.
Thank you so much.
You're welcome.
I hope you enjoyed thisepisode.
If you did, perhaps you'd liketo financially contribute to
future episodes atbuymeacoffee.com/
creativityfound.
There's a link in the shownotes.
(17:57):
If you are listening on a valuefor value enabled app, such as
Fountain, True Fans or PodcastGuru, feel free to send a few
sats my way.
And if you have no idea of whatI'm talking about, you can find
out more by listening to mysister podcast called Podcasting
2.0 in practice.
When I was studying and I was designing all
these amazing creations, youhad like creative license,
creative flair of what youwanted to do.
But obviously when you'reworking for a company, it's then
very rigid and you have to dowhat they want.
(00:21):
That was the stress that causedmy oestrogen to go through the
roof, the stress of the job.
This was a happy accident,basically.
Me being ill was actually thebirth of my career.
You know, we've never all beencrazy.
You come to me with anythingthat seems crazy or out of the
norm, I'm right in there.
Claire. Waite Brown (00:42):
Hi, I'm Claire, founder of Creativity
Found.
For this podcast, I chat withpeople who have found or
re-found their creativity asadults.
We'll explore their childhoodexperiences of the arts, discuss
how they came to the artisticpractices they now love, and
consider the barriers they mayhave experienced between the
(01:03):
two.
We'll also explore what it isthat people value and gain from
their newfound artisticpursuits.
This time I'm chatting withJanice Charles.
Hi Janice, how are you?
Hi Claire, I'm good, thank you.
How are you?
I'm very well, thank you.
Start by telling me what yourcurrent creative outlet is,
(01:26):
please.
Janice Charles (01:28):
I'm Janice, Janice Charles, and I'm the CEO
of House of Charles.
My brand creates unique,handmade hats and headwear.
I'm actually based inLiverpool.
I've got a studio in Liverpool.
I specialise in bespoke, alsohat hire as well, for both men
and women, bridal.
In fact, anything that you canput on your head.
(01:48):
And I love a challenge.
So, you know, you come to mewith anything that seems crazy
or out of the norm, I'm right inthere.
Claire. Waite Brown (01:57):
Brilliant.
And I think we're going to findout a bit about how you got
there and how that possiblyaffects the kind of designs that
you make.
So when you were younger, didcreative activities play a part
in your life?
Janice Charles (02:13):
As long as I can remember from five years old, I
have always been creative, youknow.
My dad was a carpenter bytrade, but my dad could turn his
hand to anything also.
And my dad used to teach me allthe tools, the names of the
tools and what to do for them.
I think I was his littleapprentice.
But from early as five, I waslike designing and making me
(02:34):
Christmas cards for my mum anddad.
I had dolls that I never reallyplayed with in the traditional
sense.
I was always wrapping fabricaround them and trying to make
clothes for them.
To me, so, creativity hasalways been in my blood.
I think I was just born with itin my blood, you know.
And I was really lucky that Ihad a dad who supported me, you
know.
He just made me believe hismindset was, and that's what I
(02:57):
always stand by today.
He always used to say to methat you can do anything you set
your mind to.
And that's what I always tellmyself, you know, being brought
up with that belief, you know.
Claire. Waite Brown (03:06):
Oh, that's lovely.
When you were at the stage ofleaving school, did you have a
plan of what you wanted to doand what was your path after
education?
Janice Charles (03:16):
When I was at school, actually, I did
modelling.
Actually, where I did my dualsto begin with, to be honest, is
that I started, you know,training.
Then I got into modelling and Idid some TV extra work.
So I've dabbled in all kinds ofthings, really, do you know
what I mean?
And I just...
fell into this industry byaccident because I actually
(03:37):
thought I wanted to be aninterior designer through
watching TV and seeing LaurenceLlewellyn-Bowen.
And I was like, oh, I want todo that.
You know, I'd love to do that.
It looks amazing, exciting.
So actually seeing a courseadvertised, I rang up my local
college.
I spoke to the tutor.
And actually, to my surprise,when I actually started the
course, it wasn't what I thoughtit was.
(04:00):
Because...
I was just going in for thecarpets and the curtains and all
the nice stuff, you know.
And this course was calledthree-dimensional design.
So within that course, we diddo interiors, but the interior
design was after you'd done thespace planning, the surveying,
you know, drafting the plans,drafting everything else.
(04:20):
And for the first few years,like, we dabbled.
We did the art test and spaceplanning and then for the next
year you could do projectdesign.
After two weeks of joining, Iwas like, oh no, this is like,
it's over my head, it's harderthan I thought.
To my surprise, we had ourfirst assessment.
I was getting merits and I waslike, how did this happen,
(04:41):
do you know what I mean?
It's like, you know...
What it did do is it taught meto think outside of the box, you
know, all the things that wehad to do, you know, because it
was a brief.
You had to problem solve, comeup with an original design,
draft the plans, and really gaveyou, like, real thinking skills
of what you wouldn't normally,you know, think of, how to do
things in a different way.
(05:01):
So that really surprised me.
I was getting married to myfirst assessments, and then from
then on, I continued to be inthe top three in the class, you
know, so...
And I was actually gettingdistinctions.
So I did that.
And I was actually going to goto university.
I actually got places.
And my tutor, he said to me,it's amazing that you've got
these places, he said, and youare that good.
(05:24):
He said, my son went touniversity.
My son and I was like over£20,000 in debt.
I would take your portfolioaround and go and knock on a few
doors.
Anyone, he said, would give youa job.
He says, I would give you ajob.
So...
I was like, that's a bit of aweird information coming from
you two.
So I just threw it away.
So I did actually take hisadvice.
(05:44):
Funnily enough, not long afterI'd actually seen him, they were
advertising for trainees in mylocal council for architecture.
So I actually took myportfolio.
And to my surprise, I wasactually taken on.
And then I was actually thensent, paid for on-job training
for my HND through my localcouncil.
I became an architect throughthat.
(06:06):
So, you know, the advice thatmy teacher gave me, although
probably quite unorthodox, itwas the right thing to do.
So when I was working for thecouncil, obviously when I was
studying and I was designing allthese amazing creations, you
had like creative license,creative flair of what you
(06:27):
wanted to do.
But obviously when you'reworking for a company, it's then
a very rigid structure.
And you have to do what theywant.
And unfortunately for me, theprojects I was working on in my
council was school and officerefits, which obviously didn't
have the same kind ofcreativity, you know, that I'd
actually went into this industryfor.
And it became not so excitingas I hoped, unfortunately.
(06:53):
And in the end, it justactually made me ill.
And I took time off.
I took a year off due to illhealth.
Claire. Waite Brown (07:01):
How did the ill health manifest then?
Janice Charles (07:04):
Unknown to me, the stress causes me to have an
hormone imbalance.
I had an estrogen dominance,which actually caused me to have
uterine fibroids.
And I was having periods likefor 12, 15 days at a time,
constantly in pain.
That was the stress that causedmy estrogen to go through the
roof.
The stress of the job, thestress of unfortunately having
(07:25):
had a male boss who...
I didn't like to say the wordsexist, but, you know, it was
one of them.
In fact, my partner even warnedme at the time when I started.
He actually said to me, becareful, he said, because I am
like a sponge.
I learn things really quickly.
And he said to me, peoplebecome threatened by you because
they think you come in and taketheir job.
(07:46):
And I think in the end he wasright because the mailbox that I
did have, I think he just triedto keep me down because he's
seen I was picking things up soquickly.
So I wasn't really getting...
You know, the opportunitiesthat I should have done and the
things that I was getting wasvery boring and mundane.
So it did actually take a tollon me in the end, you know.
But having said that, I dobelieve that things happen for a
(08:08):
reason, even though we can'tsee it at the time.
Claire. Waite Brown (08:11):
Janice, did you associate, you think, the
physical symptoms of yourillness with your experiences at
work?
Were you recognising stress?
Were you putting thingstogether?
Janice Charles (08:22):
You don't automatically think that that's
what's causing your illness.
It wasn't until I got diagnosedand then they said, it's the
stress that causes you certainlevels to go through the roof.
Obviously then it made sense tome, you know, that it was
actually that.
Is there treatment for thephysical symptoms?
Is
Claire. Waite Brown (08:37):
that how it gets better?
Janice Charles (08:39):
Well, yeah.
So I went all around the housebefore I actually got it.
First of all, they put me on aprogesterone.
That actually made me worse.
Like, I was putting on weights.
I really had bad headaches.
I was feeling sick with it.
They were told my hysterectomy.
Obviously, I didn't want one,do you know what I mean?
So I did actually do myresearch then to try and find
out, you know, which treatmentsfor it.
(09:00):
It took me years.
When I first had it, I had amale doctor who didn't really
take me seriously.
So that was a battle in itself.
You know, I was complaining tohim about the pains and the
periods.
And he had me on all these...
treatments beforehand, thehormone therapy, you know,
before he actually agreed tosend me to the consultants.
(09:21):
That in itself was a battlejust to get to the consultants,
you know.
Claire. Waite Brown (09:24):
Yeah.
Let's move on to the morecheerful side of things then.
How did you start making hats?
Janice Charles (09:33):
Where did that come from?
This is one of the good thingsthat actually came out of me
working for my local councilbecause we actually went to
Ladies Day, our group, Withinthe council, I'd never been in a
race before.
I was looking for a hat formyself.
I couldn't actually findanything that I liked.
So I bought a plain black hatand I customised it.
(09:53):
Everybody was like, oh my God,your hat's amazing.
Because of my illness, I wasreally bored.
When I started feeling a bitbetter, I'm a very spiritual
person.
I do believe being creativefeeds yourself.
So it does actually try andmake you feel better.
So I already had the sewingmachine.
Because of course I used to do,I actually have like materials
(10:14):
left over.
And one day I just opened thecupboard.
I've seen all these materialsleft over from the courseworkers
that we used to have to designit.
But we used to have to doscaled models of our design.
So I had all the materials, Ihad like fabric, wire, you name
it, I had all that left over inthe cupboard.
And I don't even know wherethis came from.
(10:35):
I just looked at it and I justthought to myself, I can make a
house out of that.
I don't even know where I camefrom because I've never made a
hat in my life.
I thought, you know what, I'mgoing to try.
You know, I'm going to have ago at this.
So I actually made two hats, myexperiment hats.
Well, they were more likeheadpieces then.
So I said to my partner, do youlike my hats?
(10:55):
And he went, oh, he said,they're amazing.
And we said, have they justcome to town?
I went, no, I made them.
He went, you made them?
I went, yeah.
He said, get them on eBay, hesaid, to test them all, OK, you
know.
So I put them on eBay.
I put them on for three days,and within that time, I had over
700 views on them.
And both of them sold for£23.50 each.
(11:18):
And I was absolutely made up.
A couple of years later, I'dseen a competition advertised,
called Who Wants to Be aMillionaire?
They used to create some uniqueheadwear.
So I made a piece.
You had to take a photographand send it.
And then I received a phonecall saying to me I'd entered
(11:38):
the competition, I'd beenshortlisted.
My designs being shortlisted, Iwas 2,500 to the final 12.
And I cut the screens.
I couldn't believe it.
I couldn't believe it, youknow.
So as part of the competition,the piece that he designed was
then actually put into JohnLewis's in Oxford Street.
So it was for Ascot.
I'd never been to Ascot.
So obviously, my partner was asexcited as I was.
(12:00):
And he actually bought ustickets for Ascot that year.
And we actually went to London.
But I actually went to JohnLewis's the day before.
hoping to see my hat.
And I was so disappointed thatit wasn't there because it was
being sold.
So I was like, I wanted toactually see it there, you know.
And that was the start of it.
And I thought to myself, it wasonly ever a hobby because
(12:24):
through maleness, it wassomething trying to take my mind
off being ill and to keep myhand in creativity because I've
always been creative even as achild.
So it was a hobby.
And this was still in hobbymode, all this was happening.
And then that made me realise,well, actually, if I can, out of
all those people, I was anamateur, self-choice.
And I've managed to beat suchstiff competition.
(12:46):
And then it was actually soldin John Lewis.
It was actually £220.
And that was in 2010.
So then I kept on upskillingmyself.
YouTube, best classroom in theworld.
You know, things that Icouldn't work out how to do, go
and have a look at, you know,YouTube videos.
And again, in hobby mode.
I was seeing a photographeradvertising for designers.
(13:08):
And I messaged her.
I sent some photographs of mystuff.
She was like, oh, they'reamazing.
So she had a photo shoot withher.
Those were actually featured ina magazine.
And that was before I'd evenlaunched my business.
So these are all obviouslypositives, you know, that were
given me at the conference.
This was a happy accident,basically.
Me being ill was actually thebirth of my career.
(13:28):
You know, we've never all beencreative.
And the first I had...
an influencer from Liverpoolwho's seen me on Twitter and
asked if she could wear mypiece.
And the very first year, it wasLadies' Day, and it was
actually in the middle of PearlEcho.
We were there wearing it.
So that was my very first year.
And then I've been blessed andextremely grateful that since
(13:51):
then I've had my designsfeatured in magazines, local
press, and international pressup to now, you know.
So that's the amazing thingabout it, you know.
It's like, you know.
You have a style.
Tell me a bit about your actualcreations.
Well, yeah.
So once again, obviously,because with me doing the
architecture and this isn't evena conscious decision, everybody
(14:13):
recognises my piece becauseI've got my own style because
they are very architectural,very structural.
I've always loved beingdifferent and unique.
I think the architecture, whatit did and that course was
basically teaching me to thinkoutside of the box.
So they're completely differentfrom what you'd But see, I
don't actually call myself amilliner.
I call myself a hat designerbecause, you know, my piece of
(14:35):
people say that they're wearableass, you know.
They can say they immediatelywant to tell me background.
It all makes sense becausethey're architectural, you know.
I think all those disciplinesreally fused into my design
style, you know.
Claire. Waite Brown (14:48):
Yeah.
You've been explaining thesuccess that the brand has had.
And this is a question quiteoften asked of my guests,
especially those who take whatwas a hobby or something that
was good for their well-beingand then put the business side
(15:09):
on top of it.
Do you find now that Thebusiness element of having a
business gets in the way of thecreative process and the
benefits you get from creatingyour designs.
I think
Janice Charles (15:23):
it does because, unfortunately, I mean, it's
always been like this.
Even when I was an architect, Ihated the technical side, which
sounds really weird.
I just wanted to get to theactual design.
Nothing's changed, you know,I'm still the same.
I love to design.
I think I can design with myeyes closed, basically.
I love that side.
And the business side, themarketing and accounts and all
(15:45):
that kind of thing, and tryingto draw my customers, you know.
Obviously, I need to do, butthat is a bit more difficult for
me because it's not natural tome the way design is.
Claire. Waite Brown (15:54):
Yeah, I think a lot of people will say
exactly the same thing.
And how are your stress levelsand how is your health now?
Janice Charles (16:04):
So much better.
I mean, obviously you'll alwaysbe stressed if you've got your
own business.
It comes with the territoryreally, you know, but I think
especially working for yourselfis stressful, but I wouldn't
change it for the world.
I think once you change, onceyou work for yourself, I don't
think you could ever go back andwork for somebody else.
And, you know, I control what Iwant to do, the projects I want
(16:24):
to take and the customers, youknow, I've still got that
controlled.
And yeah, Things can go wrongand often do.
Do you know what I mean?
And then you end up having torestart or it's taking you
longer.
And I can be there until fouro'clock in the morning
sometimes.
And I've been workingthroughout the day trying to
meet the deadline for thecustomer.
That is stressful.
(16:45):
But having that said, when mycustomer actually comes to pick
her up, the reaction on theirface, that's what makes it all
worthwhile.
Oh, good.
Claire. Waite Brown (16:55):
Fabulous.
Thanks so much, Janice.
How can people find you andconnect with you and see your
designs?
Janice Charles (17:01):
Thank you.
You can find me on Instagram,House of underscore Charles.
You can also find me on Google,House of Charles.
I'm based in Liverpool.
And anything, you know, even ifyou think in your head it's not
possible, the crazier thebetter.
You know, I'm all for fullapproaches, you know.
I will...
You know, design anything thingput on your head, basically,
(17:22):
men or women.
Well, within reason, obviously.
But yeah, I love a challenge,you know.
But I do specialise in bespoke.
If you were to bring youramphoterium fabric, I'd create
your piece just unique to you.
Brilliant.
Claire. Waite Brown (17:36):
Thank you so much, Janice.
It's been really lovely to chatwith you today.
Oh, you too, Claire.
Thank you so much.
You're welcome.
I hope you enjoyed thisepisode.
If you did, perhaps you'd liketo financially contribute to
future episodes atbuymeacoffee.com/
creativityfound.
There's a link in the shownotes.
(17:57):
If you are listening on a valuefor value enabled app, such as
Fountain, True Fans or PodcastGuru, feel free to send a few
sats my way.
And if you have no idea of whatI'm talking about, you can find
out more by listening to mysister podcast called Podcasting
2.0 in practice.
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