I feel like it is probably too late to say Happy New Year now, I am usually good at doing the first blog post of the year, but obviously not this time.
So what has been happening? As usual, lots and not much at the same time. I have had some steady sales of mugs, puzzles and cushions as well as the odd belated calendar. 'Barbados' has also gone on holiday for a trial at a potential new owners house. I am assuming they won't be able to say no once it has been in their house for a while, so that should be off the market at the end of the month. I have also been interviewed for an art blog in New York (!) so I will share that article once it is up.
Painting wise it has been a bit slow this year so far, I made the decision to finally overpaint 6 works I have never been satisfied with. Two are complete already and I had intended to do the next one this weekend just gone but it didn't quite happen. In the pipeline I have a new painting of Cuba to do and some sunsets from my beginning of the year trip to Gran Canaria. So lots of potential. I have also just been reviewing my accounts. I realised I have signed up to lots of art things with annual bills and I need to make them work a bit better. If there is anything I can cancel, amalgamate or lose if it isn't working then that is all good. It is also a time to double check my stock, what is selling reliably, what is too much and maybe to sell out the current stock and refresh the merchandise. I am working on making my website more 'exclusive' and thinking of maybe using Folksy or Etsy as a kind of outlet store. The trouble with that is then making sure my website is 'seen' so that is still a thought in progress.
I am finding it difficult at the moment to grasp the direction and list of things I need to sort out. It seems like there are too many things and they are all over the place. I want it to be more organised and easy for 2025. As part of this I have just set up a habit tracker for the month. Theoretically this should encourage me to keep an eye on my schedule and tasks. For example, blogging once a week and sharing a reel, completing a painting once a week and getting up early everyday, drinking water, eating well etc. It feels like I shouldn't have to do this really, but somehow it feels like it is easier to maintain and manage if it is written down and fixed. The trouble with being self employed is time management, as you never really have to do anything, so then sometimes by the time you have thought about what you need to do the day is over. I am hoping this way, with fixed weekly deadlines and tasks I will start to be more productive and more importantly consistent. Let's see how it goes, either way it will be worth a try.
So after all those updates, I had better share the first painting of the year! So please watch below and see 'Fall' become 'Roots' as it was the first one I felt like I needed to alter.
I feel like it was quite a big improvement, so I hope you do too.
