First Blog Post!

I feel as though most people that have known me for a while have noticed my pattern of posting. Or of not posting, rather. I'll have high motivation for a couple months, and then tend to fall off. The pattern is usually coming out of winter high motivation, and then it drags downward from there. The excuses probably feel pretty tired to a lot of people at this point. And I need to stop commenting on it, and just do the things.

So... On to the things…

Some people who have known me for more than 5 years may also remember my flea market days. I had a dedicated selling space, a reason to post, and a greater cause that I was supporting... AKA the Dusty pug / The Flea. I was much more active online at that point. I constantly posted pictures of what I was eating while I was there, pieces I was working on, what my booth looked like, etc. It was much easier for me to post when I had a dedicated time that I was selling, a dedicated time that I was producing, and more motivation than just self-promotion. Because I suck at self-promotion. It's hard for me to even update my friends and family on everyday life… let alone tell them, in addition to strangers, to visit my website and buy my stuff.

I'm saying all of this because... I have some very exciting news. I was accepted into the Tanana Valley Farmers Market!!! I have a basic structure and website that I began working on last year for my business before I fell off posting, so I'm revamping everything and getting prepped for sustained motivation. I have a few constant window clients now, which is wonderful. But any growth beyond the occasional “hey, I paint windows” has been very limited to non existent. This is complicated, of course, by the now toddler that I'm attached to. She's been an absolute joy but it's also been very difficult to dedicate meaningful time to getting my business up and going in earnest. I was actually doing pretty good last spring, and then a sleep regression and kicked my ass. I was a zombie for a couple months going into the fall and the crushing guilt of following my usual pattern kept me from getting back on top of things.

So I decided going into this year, that I was going to apply for the farmers market. Applications opened in March, and I got it in a couple days after that. I figured why not it's a step in the right direction. It at least shows that I'm trying and gives me a reason to keep pushing. I heard back in April that my application been accepted! And then I only had a month to prepare, so I have been trying my darnest to get everything put together and squared before the opening day. That motivation alone has allowed me to be more creative in the last month then I had been for a long time.

I also had a huge change in my creative space. When Bruce and I moved into this house, we decided that my art and creative space would be downstairs in a separate room. It seemed like a good spot. But after having Nyssa, It became too hard to slip away into my own little area to work on anything. It became more of a glorified storage closet that I just called the art room. So about a month ago, Bruce asked if I wanted to switch areas. He had a desk and space upstairs that he used to display his card collection, store extra cards, and organize his binders. I jumped on the opportunity, and we did it a couple days after he suggested it. We've both really enjoyed the change. He now has his own room that he can chill out in away from the noise of the rest of the house, and I have an area in a high traffic spot. My art is in my face every moment of every day now, and I am set up in a way that even if it's only for a couple minutes, I can stop to work on things.

Nyssa is also starting to get to that age where she's fairly self entertaining, so it's much easier for me to just check in on where she's putting all of the spices from the spice drawer instead of following her around making sure that she's not eating everything she finds on the floor. I can pretty easily make her breakfast, and feed her while I'm editing photos on my laptop or painting bags.

Which brings me to what I'm going to be selling at the farmers market! I suppose I should probably give an indication of what I'm going to be doing. I think most obviously, original canvas paintings. That's what I've always sold and what's always done well for me. But those will actually be taking a slightly further back seat to other things. I was able to order some high quality prints with the help of an investment from Bruce. I chose a selection of five of my macros and five of my original pieces of artwork. Those will be open edition. I'll also be doing a limited edition series of window painting prints. A portion of the sales from that will be going to local charities. Annnnnd I'll be selling hand-painted insulated bags, which I'm very excited about. They're turning out fantastically, and the whole point is the utility. I have three different sizes ranging from lunch bag, all the way up to Costco trip of perishables. And I'll be selling some of my mom's fused glass jewelry and stained glass home decor items for her. And then, to round out my price points and display, some miscellaneous products, like greeting cards.

Thanks for reading if you got this far! I appreciate all of the support that I've been getting for years, and all of the support that I still have and will be getting in the future. I love you all.