A Liverpool model maker is creating miniature Goodison turnstile replicas for Blues fans

A model maker from Liverpool is creating miniature replicas of Goodison Park turnstiles and seats so fans have a unique memento of Everton’s historic home.

With the final season now halfway, life-long Evertonian Rhiannon Hodgson has been busy custom-making 3D models of specific parts of the ground which mean the most to Blues.

She spends hours researching, photographing, sketching, and creating templates before developing a scale plan to make sure everything is in proportion and even the tiniest detail is featured. 

Rhiannon made the first Goodison models for herself after suffering a sudden life-changing hearing loss two years ago. 

She posted one on social media and has been inundated with commissions ever since.

Most have come from season ticket holders who want a special keepsake of their regular matchday turnstile or seat before the club makes the move to Bramley Moore for 25/26.

Rhiannon says:

“I started making the turnstile models originally just for me, and my family who are all Blues loved them. Then one day about a year ago I posted on Twitter and it went crazy, everyone was sharing and liking them. I was absolutely bombarded with thousands of messages, so I had to learn how to make a website and launch a business in a week.”

For 38-year-old Rhiannon, who grew up minutes from Goodison and went to Gwladys Street school, model making has been a passion since she studied visual communications at Leeds Arts University. 

While other students on her course concentrated more on photography and graphic design, she fell in love with the hands-on craft of model making and sculpting.

After graduating with a first in 2020, she moved into scenic painting, working with the Royal Court Theatre in Liverpool, freelancing in theatres, festivals and events and on Hollyoaks.

That was until summer 2022 when her career plans had to suddenly change.

“I lost my hearing overnight,” she explains. “I went to bed one night, woke up and I was deaf. They think it was caused by a virus called labyrinthitis.

“It left me profoundly deaf on my left side, and with that hearing loss came tinnitus and dizziness so it was too dangerous for me to work in busy workshops or on a set. 

“It was difficult to go through something so life-changing, and I spent about six months not knowing what to do, but I started picking up my model making again. 

“I developed agoraphobia through the hearing loss and I thought I wouldn’t get to see Goodison again if I couldn’t go to the match, so I decided if I couldn’t go I’d make it in my house.”

When she shared the finished pieces on social and orders came flooding in from fellow Blues, Rhiannon went accompanied by a friend to Goodison to take hundreds of photos for research.

The more carefully she looked at each individual turnstile, the more she realised just how quirky they were.

“Goodison is so inconsistent, one door might be a bit slimmer, one post in the middle might be bigger, every turnstile is different in some way, and there’s much more intricate detail on The Bullens side.”

Rhiannon uses a variety of materials for her models including cards, papers, foam, plastics, and lightweight woods, and each one takes around 40 hours to complete.

“The fun part is the sculpting, texturing and adding detailing,” she says. “This is what brings the model to life, and my aim with every build is to get it as realistic as possible.”

Although she does other commissions through her business, I Make Small Things, including people’s homes, the past 11 months have been pretty much dedicated to Everton.

“I’ve heard the most amazing stories, including from people who’ve met at Goodison, and I did one commission for someone as a gift for their grandad’s 80^th birthday, he’d had a season ticket since he was a kid.

“Personalised seats are my newest models, I only launched those a few weeks ago and they’ve been a massive success over Christmas which has been brilliant.

“Once we move, the next thing I’m planning to do is double frames with fans’ Goodison seat and their new Bramley Moore seat next to each other.”

You can get your own Goodison Turnstile here.

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