2019 was an incredible year for both my personal life and my creative business. Actually, 2019 was the year for my studio, as I finally knuckled down and decided to take the leap to create a business out of my artwork.

MY BIGGEST LESSON

I do, in fact, have a breaking point. I may have pushed myself a little bit too hard in September and October this year. I worked 38 hours a week at my 9-5 and adding another 25-30 hours a week into my studio practice in order to finish commissions on time, complete my 30-in-30 challenge and create a new website from scratch after I lost my old one. I pushed myself too hard, too fast, and every other area in my life suffered for it. I need yo find a balance this year between work, studio and my home life.

a year of LEARNING

This past May I joined an online creative business masterclass “Making Art Work” by the amazing Emily Jeffords, and in September I joined her yearly subscription to “The Collective”. This was arguably the best decision I had made for myself this year, and ultimately the decision that lead me to dive head first into focusing on my creative business. I learned not only about selling and marketing my artwork, but it also made me take a deeper look inside myself on whether or not I actually wanted to turn my artwork into a business. The answer was yes, so with her guidance I was able to set up my website, email list, social media platforms, and set some amazing goals. I learned that progress is quiet and slow, and to enjoy the process of my artwork and growth.

COMMISSIONS

There were some amazing commissions I had the honour of bringing to life this year, with quite a diverse range as well - from a pair of conure birds to a huge pet portrait with no less than seven dogs and cats! Every commission has it’s unique challenges, whether that be blurry reference photos, a white dog on a white background, or a tight timeline for completion, but ultimately the outcomes outweighed any frustrations and challenges i had faced. There was not a single pet portrait I created this year that didn't bring it’s owner joy, and that's all that I wanted from my work - to help people hold onto that beautiful connection with their pet.

A QUICK REVIEW IN NUMBERS

(because I'm a nerd and I like numbers)

Pet Portrait Commissions – 6

Original Pieces - 13

Coffees Consumed – 1,825

Mental Breakdowns Over Loss of Website – 2

Instagram Followers – 727

Facebook Followers – 738 (hi mom!)

MOVING FORWARD

2020 will be bigger and better than 2019 - I have so many plans and goals moving forward into the new year (not all of them I can share with you here - yet!). I plan on picking up my paint brushes again (yay!) to produce a handful of original pieces this year in acrylic, on top of my coloured pencil pieces. The Minis (5 inch by 5 inch pieces) will continue into 2020.

This blog has also started! Expect a new post every week, with everything from exciting news and updates from my studio to my own (hopefully entertaining) ramblings. I've also been playing with the idea of starting a YouTube channel for videos and vlogs of my process and studio life. Is that something that anyone else would be interested in watching?

I’ve created a PDF guide for you on how to take beautiful photos of your pet! I’ll include a link to it here. I know how hard it can be to capture great photos of your dog (or cat, oh my goodness they can be hard to photograph!) so this guide will make it a little bit easier for you! If there are any other guides or processes you would like to know about, let me know in the comments below and I can look into creating one for you!

My commission doors have re-opened for 2020, starting in February! I know it’s crazy, but now is a great time to be thinking about Christmas presents, Mothers day gifts, birthday gifts - it’s always better now than last minute! If you need more information on pet portraits, follow the link here.

GOALS FOR 2020

1. Use my planner and business journal every day to stay on top of life and business.

2. Produce six new original pieces and 25 mini series original pieces

3. Create some kind of work/art/life balance so I can stay somewhat sane this year!

What are your plans and ambitions for 2020? Let me know in the comments section below!