Christine Goonrey has always been a creative person. Living on the beautiful Far South Coast of New South Wales, Australia, she has spent years writing poetry and novels while nurturing a lifelong love of art. Creativity has always been present in her life, but bringing the ideas in her imagination into physical form often felt frustratingly out of reach.
When Christine enrolled in Unbound, Toni Hartill's online course with Take Two, she was looking for practical skills to help her make artist books. What she discovered was far more significant. The course gave her the confidence to trust herself, the technical knowledge to realise her ideas, and a completely different relationship with her own creative practice.
For many years Christine described herself as someone who loved art but struggled to make it. Ideas were plentiful, but translating them into finished work often felt impossible. She regularly abandoned projects because they never became what she had imagined, leaving her feeling frustrated rather than fulfilled.
Looking back, she now recognises that the problem was never a lack of creativity. It was simply a lack of the practical knowledge that would allow those ideas to take shape. As she reflects, “Before I took this course, I saw myself as a bit of a klutz.”
That honest assessment shaped the way she approached her work. Rather than seeing challenges as skills that could be learned, she assumed they were evidence that she simply wasn’t capable of creating the kind of work she admired.
One of the biggest shifts came as Christine realised that making artist books was not about having natural talent. It was about understanding materials, learning processes and using the right tools.
As Toni introduced folding techniques, structures and construction methods, complicated ideas became manageable. Rather than feeling overwhelmed, Christine began to see that every technique could be learned one step at a time.
She describes the experience as retraining the brain. Instead of believing certain forms of artist bookmaking were beyond her, she discovered that confidence grows through understanding, patience and practice.
Every artist remembers the moment when something suddenly clicks. For Christine, that moment arrived during the lesson on tunnel books.
Her first reaction was immediate. She was convinced it would be far too complicated. Instead of giving up, she followed the resource guides, watched the demonstrations carefully and trusted the process.
The result surprised her completely. She finished her first tunnel book and realised she had created something she once believed was impossible. More importantly, she no longer saw complexity as something to avoid. It had become an invitation to learn.
That small book became much more than a successful project. It represented a new belief about what she was capable of making.
The course also transformed Christine’s daily creative habits. Before Unbound, making art often competed with self-doubt and hesitation. Now her practice has become part of the rhythm of everyday life.
She makes a point of sitting at her worktable every day, even if only for half an hour. Those regular moments of making have become less about productivity and more about maintaining a relationship with creativity.
The greatest change is not simply that she spends more time making art. It is that she now feels good about calling herself an artist and giving that part of her life the attention it deserves.
As Christine’s confidence grew, something else began to change. Her work started communicating more clearly with other people.
Instead of creating pieces that remained private experiments, she found herself producing work that carried meaning and invited conversation. Friends and viewers began responding to her work in ways she had never experienced before, offering genuine encouragement and recognising the ideas she was trying to express.
That external response confirmed something she had only recently begun to believe herself. The skills she had learned were allowing her creative vision to become visible to others.
Among Christine’s unfinished projects was a poetry book she had attempted more than fifteen years ago. Although the poems themselves remained deeply important to her, the book never became what she had hoped, and eventually it was put away.
Today she sees that unfinished project very differently. Equipped with new techniques, stronger design skills and a much greater understanding of artist book making, she is preparing to revisit it.
Rather than starting again from disappointment, she is returning with confidence. Her goal is to create a book where the words, structure and imagery work together to honour the poems she has written throughout her life.
Alongside that project sits another exciting idea, a book inspired by the extraordinary skies of the Bega Valley. The changing clouds, shifting light and expansive landscape continue to inspire her, and she now has the skills to imagine how those experiences might be translated into the pages of an artist book.
More than lessons, a creative community
Christine also found enormous value in the wider Take Two learning experience. The detailed resource guides gave her confidence before each lesson by clearly explaining what materials were needed and where each project was heading.
The live sessions brought Toni’s teaching to life, creating genuine opportunities for connection and questions. Equally important was the online community, where artists from around the world encouraged one another, shared ideas and celebrated progress together.
For Christine, this combination of thoughtful teaching, practical resources and an engaged community created an environment where learning felt both accessible and deeply rewarding.
Looking ahead with confidence
Today Christine no longer sees herself as someone who struggles to make art. Instead, she sees an artist with ideas worth pursuing and the skills to bring them into the world.
There are still ambitious projects waiting to be made, but they no longer feel beyond reach. Each new idea is approached with curiosity rather than hesitation, knowing that careful learning and steady practice can turn imagination into something tangible.
Perhaps the greatest transformation has been internal. The confidence to trust her own creative instincts now sits alongside the practical skills she has gained, allowing her work to carry both personal meaning and technical strength.
Christine’s advice to future students
Christine encourages anyone who is hesitating to simply begin.
She believes the course genuinely delivers on its promise by giving artists both practical skills and creative confidence. Rather than feeling overwhelmed by techniques that once seemed impossible, students are guided through them with clarity and encouragement.
As she says, “It’s a game-changer. It actually does what it says on the box. It lifts you out of being ordinary and a little bit cautious into actually knowing how to achieve your goals, your dreams.”