Adventures in Sign Painting: Tozer's Secret Santa

The tradition of Secret Santa is well-established in workplaces and larger families, but one group that misses out on all this fun is the self-employed; just as they’re deprived of the joy of the office Christmas party.

As a trade that is dominated by sole traders, sign painting has missed out more than most, but Tozer at Bristol’s Tozer Signs was having none of it when she floated the idea of a sign painter’s Secret Santa in 2022. The format was simple: each participant pulled a name out of a virtual hat, and hand-painted a custom gift to travel on Santa’s sleigh to its lucky recipient.

Being creative types, the 30 sign painters across the UK produced a wonderfully diverse set of painted panels, including many embellished with a festive sparkle of real gold leaf. While an open brief can often be suffocating for creatives, the absence of a paying customer set these sign painters free.

Following the success of this first edition, Tozer saw uptake for the 2023 sign painter’s Secret Santa increase to 45 UK participants. And it has also inspired overseas editions with the existing network in the ‘Benelux’ countries (Belgium, The Netherlands, and Luxembourg) setting up their own panel swap, and Jess DeMoss in New Mexico coordinating things for US painters.

Just like the Letterheads movement (see Signlink 251, February/March 2024), sign painters are doing it for themselves, with Tozer’s initiative fostering new connections and relationships between geographically dispersed craftspeople. And she’s been blown away by the enthusiasm for her idea, and the creativity it has produced: 

“In 2023, I kicked it off a little earlier in hopes to keep the stragglers in line (fat chance there), and we ended up with everything from acid-etched, water-gilded hanging signs, to bespoke leather wallets and giant fairground style panels. People are always ecstatic about what they receive, and I’m going to keep the cheer going in 2024!”