Painter · Devon
Trees with words hidden in their branches
Charlotte Wakefield paints trees whose twigs turn into letters, on canvas and in miniature, alongside British birds and flowers small enough to sit inside an antique locket. Every design is painted once.
- Painting since
- 2013
- Studio
- Tiverton, Devon
- Etsy rating
- 5.0 from 28 reviews
- Every piece
- One of a kind
The name
Trees that speak
Look closely into the branches and the twigs turn into letters.
Some of Charlotte’s trees carry a line of scripture, some a single word such as Loved or Be kind, some a name chosen for the person who will wear it. That is where Treespeake takes its name. She never repeats a design, so each tree keeps its words to itself.
Shown: Let all that you do be done in love, acrylic on canvas, 44.5 × 60 cm. Available now.
Look closer
Paintings
Charlotte’s trees on canvas, each with words hidden in its branches. Click a painting to see it larger.
Miniatures
Miniature paintings, kept in antique lockets
Charlotte paints British birds, flowers and trees with hidden words, each small enough to sit inside a Victorian or Edwardian locket. Every design is painted once.
Each locket is antique or vintage, chosen one at a time, and holds a single painting. Many of these have already found homes.
Smaller than they look
Photographs make these paintings look large. Most are about the size of a coin: this robin is painted on a disc about 25 mm across.
Shown enlarged.
Commissions
A painting of your own
Charlotte paints commissions from your own photographs and words: a favourite bird or garden flower for a locket, or names, dates and verses hidden in the branches of a tree.
- Send a message through her Etsy shop or by email, with your photographs or words.
- Choose a locket or a canvas. For a locket, she will suggest an antique piece to suit the painting.
- Receive a one-off, painted for you and never repeated.
Commissioned trees
Wedding trees, favourite verses and celebrations, each painted to order.
Available now
Original work and cards currently listed on Etsy. New lockets are added as they are finished.
Kind words
“When I received it, my heart skipped and eyes watered. It is exquisite.”
“No words can describe how gorgeous this tiny piece of art is.”
“All these items of jewellery are little works of art.”
About
Charlotte Wakefield
Charlotte has painted as Treespeake since 2013, from Tiverton in mid Devon. She finds her lockets one at a time: Edwardian rolled gold, Victorian fobs, lockets ringed with paste stones, Art Deco watch bezels.
Her subjects are the birds, butterflies and flowers of a Devon garden or hedgerow: robins, wrens, redwings, a small copper, holly, hellebores and forget-me-nots, alongside the word-filled trees that gave Treespeake its name.
Follow new work on InstagramIn the studio
Work in progress
Old lockets waiting to be filled, paintings half done, and the brushes she paints them with.
Questions
How big are the paintings?
Most locket paintings are about the size of a coin. The tree paintings are on canvas: Let all that you do be done in love is 44.5 × 60 cm.
Will a design ever be painted again?
No. Every design is painted once, so each locket is one of a kind.
Where do the lockets come from?
Charlotte finds each one herself, one at a time: antique and vintage lockets, Victorian fobs, Edwardian rolled gold and Art Deco watch bezels.
How does delivery work?
Everything is sold and posted through her Etsy shop, where delivery options and costs are shown on each listing.
How do I ask about a commission?
Send Charlotte a message through her Etsy shop, or email charlotte@treespeake.com, with your photographs or the words you would like. For a locket, she will suggest an antique piece to suit.