Sneak Peeks & Refreshments – Monday Minutes.

Hello Friends!

If you’ve clicked through my website in the last few days you will have noticed some changes! For quite some time, I’ve been wishing to freshen things up… so last week I went rogue on my ‘to-do-list’ and did just that. ;p

I ended up condensing the Welcome page & Shop Front. I also ‘prettified’ the Blog page in the hopes of attracting a bit more action here. I really enjoy creating my Monday newsletter so would love to gain some more readers. (Additionally, I’ve been making some big edits to the Commission Requests page as I have products to add to this spread, but I am attempting to include costing estimates, so this page is taking a bit longer.)

Making a Mess

I was very pleased with the progress I made last week … up until Thursday. Things derailed considerably that day, and as a result, the week ended on a sour note. This left me feeling very flat and I spent the next few days lacking motivation or spark. I didn’t do anything much except work (my actual job), eat and sleep. Consequently, this morning I felt some trepidation towards the next few days, worried I would botch the ‘working week’ up with low energy and an unfocused plan.

At that point, I should have sat down and made a list, but NOPE, instead I bumbled around, dragging my feet from task to task, leaving a complete mess in my wake. I gave the #MondayMerger a half-hearted attempt but that certainly wasn’t the solution.

I tested out some new paper (in a rushed manner), washed my hair, ate some stale weetbix, sorted half my emails, then settled on finishing up the mock up of my latest design – the first illustration for my mini Halloween collection. This was approached in a frazzled manner, but I’ll share with you what I’ve ended up with.

Feeling Froggy

Now, I had planned to keep these a surprise, but I really wouldn’t mind some feedback on what you think of this design. I wanted my halloween collection to have a vibrant colour palette, and a more witchy take than pumpkins & vampires, hence the poisonous, but in my humble opinion, pretty cute frogs.

If you remember my first mock of a decoration, you will see that I ended up ditching the paper idea to create the 3D effect. Why? It simply ended up being more fiddly than I anticipated. Turns out it’s a lot less time consuming to use thin slices of balsa wood to create depth. Using squares of painted balsa means almost zero off-cuts, as opposed to attempting to cut the entire shape from wood, my initial idea.

Balsa is very light weight and still thin enough to post in an envelope. It also feels sturdier than the folded paper used on the fish. I tested both 3mm and 6mm wood, but concluded 3mm is easier and I think produces a neater finish.

The frogs are printed on MIR-Aus Double Sided Glossy 250g Paper. A new paper for me that I am very happy with.

I think with future designs I’ll consider how to add a few more 3D elements, beyond the base illustration, simply because that would be fun. (I don’t know how to explain that clearly, but you’ll know what I mean if it works out in the future :P)

Upcoming

With the remainder of this week, I hope to finish off a few pieces that are yet to make it to the shop. I think this will make me feel like I have actually achieved something.

Also, I almost forgot but I did deliver my first sticker commission last week and it was very well received – which was lovely to hear! It was also my biggest print job to date with a request for 50 stickers!

Smug Git

Finally, it turns out my laptop choking up was a blessing in disguise! Ever since I emptied out most of my macs contents, I’ve been ACTUALLY NAMING AND FILING stuff. This is unheard of on my personal computer so brownie points for that! It makes assembling these posts feel so much more organised! Yay!

Talk Soon!

Fiona x