Interview: Nicola the Artist

As I mentioned recently, I feel like I’m coming to the end of the road when it comes to talking about the sustainable swaps that I’ve made myself. So, what better way is there to branch out than to speak to other people about the changes they’ve made? 

Nicola Howell Hawley runs an illustration business, Howell Illustration from her home in the countryside. We worked together recently on The Bird Book: A Curious Compendium of 50 Wild Birds, which is available now! 

Right from the word ‘go’, she decided that she would prioritise being sustainable. I spoke to her about how she has gone about this, and our chat took us from paintbrushes and packaging to second-hand jumpsuits and the power we have as consumers. 

And of course, this post is beautifully decorated with examples of Nicola’s drawings, maps and paintings of our natural world. Grab a cup of tea. I hope you enjoy our conversation.  

Nicola Howell Hawley shared her sustainability tips with me.

The Bird Book, illustrated by Nicola, shows beginner
birdwatchers how to identify 50 wild birds
commonly found across Europe.

When did you decide that you wanted to be more sustainable in life? Was there a lightbulb moment?

I can’t remember if there was a lightbulb moment, but I do remember gradually becoming more aware of things and thinking, ‘hang on, this isn’t right.’ Also, I’m a very organised kind of person, and I like things to be minimal… so I started watching videos of Kate Arnell on her Eco Boost YouTube channel. I started getting into minimalism and she really inspired me.

David Attenborough was a big moment as well – Blue Planet, and the whale. That sort of kicked it all off, and then as I learnt more and more and more, I started changing my lifestyle. 

I knew it was always going to be a long journey, so I started with little things, like the kitchen. When I replaced stuff, I replaced it with non-plastic. 

And then when I started Howell Illustration, I knew from the start that I wanted it to be as sustainable as possible. Whenever I bought something for Howell Illustration, I researched for hours to find the most sustainable stuff I could. 

I love that you made your business sustainable from the start. What did that involve? Was it mainly around materials and packaging?

Yeah, so that’s the easiest thing to do, as far as I’m concerned, is to make it zero waste for the customer. But it’s harder to make it sustainable when it comes to the art supplies coming in. It has taken until just this year, but I have found an art shop that’s now shipping things in recyclable packaging: jacksonsart.com. I’ve got a packet of paintbrushes from them, and the plastic on them is biodegradable. And it’s taken ages for that to happen.

Packaging is a lot easier. Things like poster tubes… I researched ones without the plastic on the end, so I now use these triangular cardboard ones from Kite packaging. All my frames are glass frames with wood, not plastic. Everything I send out is completely biodegradable. 

And with your art supplies, does that extend to things like inks?

Yeah, that is a problem. Mostly, inks are OK, because they’re in little glass bottles. I try not to buy ink in plastic bottles. And they also have a little rubber pipette, with a plastic bit around the pipette. 

I used to use a lot of fine liners, and now I’ve moved to using a dip pen and ink (from Cross). I try not to replace my fine liners any more when they run out. And I’ve got a refillable ink pen… you can buy thinner nibs for it, so I really want to try getting some thinner nibs. So, sustainability literally extends to everything I do. 

Nicola draws using ink and a nib pen, which is
more sustainable than using plastic fine liners. 

I never thought of that! I did a lot of colouring in during winter, and I’ve got all these felt -tip pens, which are obviously plastic, and they’re one of the things in my life that it has barely crossed my mind that they’re plastic. There must be something that I can do, so that I’m still keeping up my hobby without using constant plastic felt-tip pens.

That’s the thing, isn’t it? A lot of the stuff that we need to be more sustainable with, you just don’t question it because it’s a part of everyday life. We’ve never lived any differently, so things like pens I didn’t question at all, until about a year and a half ago... I was throwing one away and I was like – ‘wait a minute!’

That’s it! I found that looking at what goes in the bin is a great way of noticing what isn’t sustainable in my life.

Have you ever tracked it? Have you got any stats or fun figures? 

I haven’t, actually.

I suppose it’s been a bit more organic than that, something that you’ve always been constantly doing in the background.

Yeah, and obviously you can’t just go, ‘plastic is the enemy’, and then chuck out all the plastic in your house and replace it all, as that’s just even less eco-friendly! 

So, it’s more like, as things run out, I try to find replacements. So yeah, it’s been quite an organic thing. 

And I haven’t ever put pressure on myself. You know how some people were collecting all of their waste for a year in a jar? I haven’t ever wanted to put that kind of pressure on it, because it becomes really hard then, and really overwhelming.

There are so many different approaches to it aren’t there? And you have to find whatever works for you.

What was the easiest thing – perhaps the first thing – that you did to make your business sustainable?

In my business… none of it was necessarily easy, because when I started my business, there weren’t as many options as there are now. It’s now only four years later, something like that… that there are a lot more options and you can find stuff quite quickly. 

But at first it wasn’t that easy, as I had to Google and Google and Google, and I’d just fall down a rabbit hole for hours… then order something and it would come wrapped in plastic. But now, there are a lot of companies that cater specifically for sustainable stuff. There’s a lot of companies doing recycled boxes (see Tiny Box Company). So, the easiest thing for me I think was changing the packaging. 

I started writing to people during lockdown and 
am making my way through Nicola's British
Wildlife Letter Writing Set!

It sounds like the whole area has come along so much in actually quite a short space of time. That’s quite encouraging, isn’t it? Naturally, you can see the progression, because it has gotten easier to do. And it’s almost down to people like you, who have been searching and going down these internet rabbit holes, as it creates the demand, doesn’t it? And the companies have to keep up. By wanting this stuff, you make it happen. 

Yeah, and I think it’s important as well, that one of things you can do is let companies know why you’re not shopping with them any more. You can do it in a really nice way. 

I stopped shopping with an ink cartridge company because they sent me out a free plastic pen every single time I ordered. I was just getting a pile of them and I requested that they stop doing it, and they didn’t. 

Then I wrote them another email saying, ‘could you please stop?’ And they said, ‘we’ve added a note to your account’. Then they just carried on sending the pens, and I said, ‘I’m not shopping with you any more, you must create tons of waste sending out a free pen every single time!’ 

I’m sure you won’t be the only person that has communicated that to them, and hopefully when more people do that sort of thing, then the message will get back to someone in the company who will suddenly realise, ‘oh hold on, not only is this bad for the environment, but actually this isn’t what our customers want.’ And that’s what they care about, isn’t it? 

We have a lot of power as consumers. People think that one person changing something won’t do anything, but with lots of people changing… 

I read in the Guardian the other day something that was really interesting. Apparently, grassroots projects – community projects – are doing a huge amount to combat environmental issues. It’s by trying to help people in the community, perhaps people who can’t afford much food, that communities are becoming more environmentally friendly. 

Communities are buying wind turbines so that they make money from generating electricity. It’s insane. And apparently this could make a huge difference. (Article: Community Projects)

It’s basically an example of power of the people, isn’t it?

Yeah! We have so much power. If everyone stopped shopping at Primark… I know people say they can’t afford it, but there are other options. I go on Depop and buy second-hand. I’ve got stuff that is basically new! 

Apparently in the West, people wear their clothes an average of five times before they get rid of them. If someone has only worn an item five times, you’re getting basically a new item of clothing. So, there are ways of doing it that are cheap.

I did a similar thing recently, I went onto Vinted, a second-hand clothes website, and bought myself a red jumpsuit! I was so excited. I can’t wait to have an occasion to wear my red jumpsuit. 

What has been the most challenging thing to replace for your business?

Art supplies, for sure. And when I get prints made, print companies often wrap them in tonnes of this clingfilm stuff. And I always request that people don’t do that. What comes in to me is much more waste-heavy than what goes out. 

But there’s just no other option for me other than to get things delivered. I live in the countryside… I don’t live near any kind of craft shop. 

One of Nicola's pen and ink drawings. 

Makes sense. Since you started your business and made sustainability a priority, have other people reached out to you who are doing a similar thing?

Yeah, a lot of people ask me where I buy my packaging from, which is a shop called eco-craft.co.uk. And I always tell them. I’m happy to help! Have all the information! If I can tell ten people and they each tell ten people… 

I find that a lot of small businesses actually are very aware of what they’re doing to the environment. As a business, it’s up to you from the start to be adaptable and sustainable, because that’s the way things are going. And a lot of small businesses adapt a lot quicker than the larger ones, and it’s great!

Especially artists. I follow loads of small art businesses on Instagram… and all of them say, ‘biodegradable packaging, recycled card’. It’s wonderful, I love it. 

That’s so great. And I suppose one of the nice things is that it’s in your control, isn’t it? That must feel really satisfying.

Do you think you’ve gained customers because of it?

I’d like to think so. But I think at the moment being sustainable might just be more of a bonus. People don’t necessarily search for ‘sustainable artist’. I think they probably search for art, find art they like, and then if I’m sustainable and the other person isn’t, maybe that might give me the edge on someone else.

That’s probably how I shop, actually. Sometimes I will look for specifically sustainable stuff, but probably not art, as it isn’t something I would associate with sustainability. I wouldn’t necessarily think it was an option. But as this is stuff that I care about, when there is a sustainable option, I will choose that. 

What would be your top tip for people who are starting their own business and trying to be sustainable?

A top tip is hard, as there’s so many little things you can do… I would say try to focus on one thing. There are so many options now that it can become very overwhelming very quickly. When you’re at the start of your business you discover what you need and search for something that is sustainable as you go. 

But if you’re already in business and you’re looking to become more sustainable, it can be a daunting task, as there’s so much stuff that you need to do and think about. So, I would say just start with one thing. Maybe you currently use plastic packaging for your cards… maybe you just take away that plastic packaging, and automatically that’s a lot of waste gone. So yeah, just start with one thing. And then go from there.

That’s a good slogan. ‘Start with one thing.’ I think that’s quite motivational for all areas of life!

Yeah! I’m going to make a print-out of that! ‘Start with one thing.’ 

That can be your next card.

What kind of sustainability changes have you made at home?

Loads! Things like… all my bathroom stuff is in glass now, it’s all refillable. My shampoo and conditioner is Ksoni, my face wash is Conscious Skincare, my metal razor is a Merkur 23C long handled safety razor (possibly my favourite sustainable swap I've ever made), and there's a bar of hand soap, which is actually a Simple bar, but I normally get my soap from Baburu and Blake. You can find metal razors all over the place now though. A few of my favourite eco friendly shops where you can find metal razors are &Keep, Wearth London and Acala. 

Some of Nicola's sustainable bathroom swaps.

In the kitchen we get biodegradable bin bags and we use stainless steel instead of plastic. And when I go food shopping, I buy all the things that aren’t wrapped in plastic and I take cloth bags. Loads of things like that add up. 

And household cleaners – you actually only need one cleaner. You don’t need the millions that do all different things. We have one cleaner that you refill with these sachets that you dissolve in water (Iron and Velvet). There’s loads you can do!

That’s brilliant! Thank you so much for chatting to me.

You’re welcome!