Artist Blog, Products, & Filming – Studio Update, June 2021
Image credit: Redbubble
I’m starting a regular artist blog here to share what’s happening and what I’ve learned. I’m calling it an ‘artist blog’ as opposed to an art blog because it’s going to be more ‘behind the scenes’ about being an artist, rather than just news or pics of art. I was full of intention with my first post, hoping to start a regular artist blog full of fun, arty content, and then I didn’t write another post until now, two years later. That was a long gap! I have no excuses except, well, 2020. 2020 has become a four letter word, and it’s still spilling its cup of kindness into 2021. But we’re in this mess together, so I love that we can keep sharing and connecting online through blogs and the like. So I’m starting (again) with a little update on what I’ve got coming up.
Lately I’ve been at complete a standstill with everything due to a shoulder injury. Now, I am not a great patient; in fact, I have no patience, so I’m going a bit stir-crazy. Thankfully, with a lot of help from family and friends, I’ve still made some progress on a few big goals! These goals have been staring at me from my pinboard for some time, but the amount of research, effort, and/or equipment required meant they were almost forgotten.
Image credit: Redbubble
GOAL #1: Creating some products with my designs/artwork. Creating fine art (which is art for art’s sake, just to be admired) is so rewarding, but it’s such fun to see your own designs on real products. I’ve recently buried myself in learning about all things print-on-demand. Some make the world of POD sound so easy, but there’s a fair bit of research involved and setup takes time. I’m well on the way to adding a few exciting products to my Etsy store!
In the meantime, I’ve opened my own Redbubble shop! Redbubble is great, but from an artist’s perspective, there’s not a lot of control over the quality of the print or products. I’ve found the print quality is still adequate, but better for hard-surfaced products or stickers. But it’s still great as a one-stop-shop for trendy products from talented artists. Their shipping is incredibly fast though – I’ve got to hand it to them, there. I’ll keep adding to my Redbubble inventory, but it will be mostly digital art and illustrations. I’m still in the process of researching other products better suited to more detailed artworks.
GOAL #2: Filming, filming, filming! I’m working on more content for my YouTube channel! There will eventually be more art videos, including time lapses of artwork, product reviews, and art tips and tricks. But there will be more – it won’t all be art-related. I’m going to add some lifestyle videos, too – yep, that’s right, yet another lifestyle YouTuber. I love watching videos on minimalism, organisation, fashion and beauty, etc, and they’ve influenced my life in so many ways. I’m so excited to join that community and share a little from my corner of the world as well. I’m very new to the world of filming, and not at all comfortable in front of the camera yet, so be kind!
GOAL #3: Blogging! Yep, pretty obvious one there because, well, here you are. My blog will have a big art focus, but might also contain a touch of what I share on YouTube. I’ll categorise the posts here so you can filter out the lifestyle stuff if you’re just looking for arty content. The art content will be anything and everything that happens in my little art studio. I’ll share my process of creating artworks, tips and tricks for drawing and painting, favourite supplies and product reviews, etc.
You don’t write because you want to say something, you write because you have something to say.
F. Scott Fitzgerald
GOAL #4: I’m rebranding! Well, still keeping the same name of course, so I’m revamping the branding now that I’ve got a bit more time to spend on it. I’m expanding to a number of different platforms, as mentioned above, so I need to be pretty comfortable with the branding. Previously, the colours weren’t right, everything was created in a rush, and it just didn’t feel like me. So far all I’ve settled on are the brand colours shown here, but that’s a good place to start.
Overall there’s a lot in the works, and I have to let this injury heal then catch up on commissions, so progress might be a bit slow. The good news is I can finally see results emerging from this long learning process. While setting up these platforms up and drowning myself in research, I’m also taking lots of notes. Eventually I’ll be able to share some tips and tricks, mistakes, successes, and favourite resources you might find helpful if you’re doing the same.
Thanks for reading, feel free to comment here on any of the above, I’d love to hear your thoughts! I hope you’ll visit again soon!