Celebrate Your Success

Selling A Drawing And Feeling That Buzz Of Excitement  

The start of the year was tough. Like many I wasn't filled with excitement for the new year ahead, more a feeling of anxiousness and a worry that I was somehow failing at life. I'd had an exciting 2016/17 and now had to face facts, the money I'd saved had gone and in order to support myself I'd have to go out and get a job. I couldn't work out if I'd made a mistake by abstaining from the 'job hunt' for so long, now the idea of returning to employment filled me with a rush of queasiness; I felt a distinct knot in my tummy and a flush of red to my cheeks every time the thought entered my mind. Over the past five months I'd cultivated a life that suited me down to the ground. I'd wake up when I felt ready, eat breakfast and drink tea leisurely before getting started with a drawing in my makeshift studio. I'd write a little bit or record a video for Instagram. I'd sit in the quiet listening to the starlings fight over the last of the sour grapes on the vine outside and contemplate what I was going to make next for my next exhibition. I liked working alone. Having no one else to answer to and no small talk to make around a coffee station was ideal. Every action I took in a day was down to me, I wasn't working to anyone else's schedule or fulfilling anyone else's dream. I was doing things for myself. To know that my luxurious existence was coming to a close was difficult. 

I didn't handle this idea of change very well. I felt teary a lot and resentful that others got to live their dream and I didn't. I knew that my circumstances were completely different to those I felt jealous of too, they'd worked hard for years to get where they were. I'd spent those years travelling, studying and working temp jobs because there were no art based opportunities in my area that filled me with joy and I wasn't prepared to commute or relocate for them. After feeling like I was walking around with a cloud of negativity around my head I decided to change my mindset. I gave myself some time to relax, to forget about it all. I binge watched Friends on Netflix eating leftover Christmas chocolate and tried to free myself from all the guilt, negativity and the feeling of January blues. 

I started looking at the positives. And there were so many that I'd overlooked. I noticed that little things were going right in my art business. I'd reached 1000 followers on Twitter and much more importantly I'd found a network of supportive online friends who shared my work, complimented my drawings and sent me ‘happy dance’ gifs when I'd made a sale. And talking of making sales, I'd made quite a few. December had been a tough month in my online shop. While I watched lots of other artists and makers make lots of sales in the run up to Christmas I'd made none until just before New Years Eve. Then after I updated my shop with the remaining postcards from my 100 Day Project I made a sale, and then another, and then another. By the 11th of January eight of my drawings had been sent to new homes and I felt a resounding sense of relief and pride in myself. I'm not one for bragging but I couldn't help but share my good fortune on social media. I'd made something with my own fair hands and people liked what I'd made so much that they spent their actual money on it. I made a pact with myself there and then that I would always celebrate a sale and always make a big deal of it. With a new feeling of accomplishment I tweeted that you should always celebrate your successes. When you make a sale no matter how small, when you get your first commission enquiry, when your website reaches a few more people than the week before. Not every day will be one that you want to shout about, I for one have more off days than great days but when there is something (no matter how small) to celebrate make sure that you do. Just the act of creating and being brave enough to share it with the world is worth shouting about. 

What have you done recently that is worth celebrating? Did you make a sale of your art work or write a blog post that you’re super proud of? Let me know in the comments below and remember to give yourself a pat on the back for doing what you do and not giving up.

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2017: In Review

Drawing While On The Road

If you've been following along with my online journal then you'll know that I spent the first half of the year oversees backpacking from country to country. You'll have seen that nearly all my writing from the past year and a bit has been travel themed, in fact I've written 69 blog posts covering in detail the places I've been and the sights I've seen. I wanted to do a short review of my 2017 but I didn't want to recap on all of the travel adventures I've had this year because frankly I'm sure those of you who have followed along are probably sick of hearing about it and I have toed the line of becoming a real travel bore. Instead I wanted to spend a few sentences reviewing my time since returning home in July and the small but significant things I've acheived.

Costa Rica III, 21cm x 29.7cm, pen on paper

Costa Rica IV, 21cm x 29.7cm, pen on paper

When I came home I was tired, and when I say tired I mean exhausted. Despite the travel fatigue I was itching to get back to drawing. I'd managed to make several small postcard sized drawings while away as well as some watercolour experiments in a sketchbook and I was dying to translate all my travel inspiration onto paper. I made a series of drawings in pen inspired by the postcards I'd made while away, experimenting with different paper types and materials. Simultaneously I decided to open an online shop on my website for the very first time. I'd had a go at Etsy in the past but it was half-hearted and I had never made an online sale. The drawings I listed were from the 100 Day Project that I'd completed in 2016, I'd made 100 postcards; one each day that included detailed landscapes in pen, ink splatters, sketches in pencil and a few with coloured watercolour. Instead of letting them lie in a box I thought I'd list the first 50 at £20.00 each to try and generate a little bit of income and to see my art go to good homes. I was surprised to sell 3 postcards in the first 3 days and reassured to know that the postcards while not perfect were valuable enough to offer. 

A Sold Postcard

A Sold Postcard

I'd always said that I wanted to avoid finding employment until at least September to give myself a bit of breathing space after a hectic 11 months away. When I went backpacking the first time I was away for eight months and then once home I was back in work the following Monday which was a shock to the system. This time around I'd managed to keep some savings intact and knew I had enough to be comfortable and pay bills for a good couple of months. September rolled around and I'd made 3 more postcard sales, my savings were still looking healthy and I was really relishing the freedom to create although the enquiries from well meaning family and friends regarding a job was becoming tiresome and leaving me feeling somehow that I was being lazy by not actively seeking work in the traditional sense. 

A long weekend in Cornwall in September to visit my dad was a highlight of being home, Craig and I also decided to become National Trust members which had been a dream of mine for many years. Yes, I've always been a little old before my time! In September I'd made a drawing inspired by a sketch from my travels of a crumbling leaf, I posted the drawing on Instagram and was surprised to receive an enquiry to buy it which led me to make four more drawings in the same vein, one of which sold the day I posted it on Twitter to a buyer in the United States. 

Tatty Leaf 3

Tatty Leaf 4

I'd established a routine for the week and tasted what life could be like as a full-time artist. Each week I'd spend a morning making to-do lists in my new bullet journal and writing in my online journal, catching up on my travel tales. The rest of the time I'd draw, make short time-lapse videos of my process and occasionally use Instagram Live to connect with my followers. I also started taking part in weekly Twitter chats which not only gave me a community to be part of but also helped me grow my Twitter following substantially from roughly 300 followers to 900+. I worked on improving my website by researching SEO (search engine optimisation) techniques and by making my site look as uniform and professional as possible. When the odd sale did come through I'd carefully package the drawing, write a thank you note and take a stroll to the post office. Evenings were spent making dinner for the whole family once they'd all returned from work and I'd taken the initiative to make most of the household chores my responsibility. 

I booked a local gallery space for July 2018 to exhibit work inspired by my travels and so a large portion of my time was devoted to making drawings that could be framed and exhibited, knowing there was a goal in mind pushed me and kept me going with my drawing. While my travels were of course a huge inspiration I also started to find that the British countryside was catching my attention again. In November Craig and I celebrated 11 years together with a trip to the Forest of Dean, my favourite place from childhood and I made a series of drawings inspired by the woods there. One of the drawings was made into a giclée print after a few trials, I was pleased to sell 3 prints at the tail-end of the year and felt hopeful that more would sell in due course. 

Woodland Study I, 14.8cm x 21cm, pen on paper

Woodland Study I, 14.8cm x 21cm, pen on paper

I also worked on a five day project where I drew a tree native to the U.K each day using images sent to me by the public via Twitter or images found on social media that I sought permission to use. The mini-project was not only a lot of fun it generated some interest in my work and led to an enquiry for a possible tree related commission. I'd been approached in October by a prestigious British fashion brand to work on some drawings that could be used in their new line but unfortunately after a few emails back and forth this never came to anything. To be approached again by a different company to possibly work on something tree related was a huge confidence booster, I can only hope the opportunity does come my way for certain in January.

Oak, 25.4cm x 17.8cm, pen on paper

Ash, 25.4cm x 17.8cm, pen on paper

Ending 2017 with 13 sales made, a huge growth in website traffic, a tripling of Twitter followers and a couple of confidence boosting commission enquiries were all fairly small steps to hopefully bigger things. I have had to start applying for jobs in order to fund my practice and to make sure I can keep paying my bills but I have decided to take the step to only work a maximum of 30 hours a week if possible to allow time for art and creative pursuits. Craig and I hope to be able to buy our own home this year and so the temptation has been to find a job that works a lot more hours to save but I don't want to corner myself into working so much in a day job that my art practice gets left behind as it has done in the past. 

I can honestly say that I'm so happy I gave myself the last five months to make art and experience life as a full-time artist and small business owner. My hope is that in 2018 I can work on my first commission, make more prints for my online shop, sell more originals, have a successful exhibition in July, increase my website traffic and not let self doubt get in the way of my dreams. 

Have you written a review of your year or hopes and goals for 2018? I'd love to read if so, let me know in the comments below. 

If you enjoyed reading then please click the heart at the bottom, share or better still leave me a comment, I love reading them. ❤️

The End Of The Road

We waved goodbye to Pokhara and made our way back to Kathmandu by bus. The journey was long but I made sure to take notice of the landscape as we passed. As we left the verdant green countryside behind the air became heavier, dustier and the roads were clogged with slow moving traffic. We had a couple of days to kill until our flight on July 22nd which we spent walking between each of the many souvenir shops buying a myriad of colourful felted coasters, vegan soaps, rucksacks made of hemp and soft scarves. Kathmandu was just as vibrant as it had been when we first arrived a few weeks ago, it was so strange to think that home was just a short couple of days away.

A Chipmunk In The Garden Of Dreams, Nepal

Lillies In The Garden Of Dreams In Kathmandu, Nepal

We ate our last helping of Nepalese fired momo's at a local restaurant and treated ourselves to our 'last supper' at Fire and Ice, the amazing pizzeria we had found when we first arrived. Our last activity of travelling was a couple of hours spent at the Garden of Dreams; a pristine garden filled with lily-ponds, fountains and mischievous chipmunks.

An Urn In The Garden Of Dreams In Kathmandu, Nepal

Chipmunk In The Garden Of Dreams In Kathmandu, Nepal

Our clothes were worn, frayed and stained. Our hair long and unruly, mine hadn't been cut in all the time we'd been away while Craig had only had two haircuts in 11 months and would be returning home with a beard. We'd started our journey in Rio de Janeiro in Brazil after a huge 12 hour delay not knowing where we'd be travelling to or how. We made up the trip as we went and learned the hard way how winging it can cause unforeseen problems but also how exciting an unplanned itinerary made our adventure. Over just under 11 months we'd travelled to 21 countries (22 if you count our 12 hour delay at a hotel in Germany) and experienced all the highs and all the lows that are associated with long term travel.

Not every moment will be one that we'll add to the photo album; being eaten alive by mosquitos and bed bugs, the sleepless nights in a hostel with somebody snoring in the bed next door, the instant noodle dinners to save money and the 36 hour coach ride from the tip of Argentina to Chile. But alongside those moments were seeing Machu Picchu and finishing the most challenging trek of our lives in Peru, finally travelling India by train and having a week of adventures in New York City with family. 

We left our hotel in Kathmandu at 6am and arrived in London at 5pm, both our mums ran towards us as we walked through the arrivals gate. As we got in the car to drive home to Hampshire it felt almost like we'd never left, so quickly does your life get 'back to normal' that the previous months felt like a hazy blur. When we went backpacking for the first time in 2011 for eight months we always knew that we'd go again. We had to. When you're a traveller you'll never 'get it out of your system'. Even with the low moments you always want to see and experience more. As I write this, my final backpacking post we've been home for nearly six months, and although we have other goals in mind like owning our first home together our travelling days are certainly not behind us. We may not travel in the same way again, on one long backpacking trip but we will always want to put adventure and exploration at the centre of our lives because it is what makes us who we are. 

One Of The Last Photographs Of Us From Our Trip In Kathmandu, Nepal

So, now we've reached the 'end of the road' I just want to say a big thank you to those that have followed along with our adventure. That very first post I wrote back in September 2016 while sitting in our Rio de Janeiro apartment sure feels like a lifetime ago. If you've been reading since then, have left me a comment or pressed that little red heart then thank you so much, I'm sending you so much love. 

If you enjoyed reading then please click the heart at the bottom, share or better still leave me a comment, I love reading them. ❤️

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