A Really Big Update!
Its been a while hasn’t it?!
In my last newsletter, in April, I was all hyped about planning my Etsy shop’s big relaunch and update. And I still am super excited about it… but it is not ready yet. I mean, it was mostly ready. Prints were created, photos nearly finished, everything progressing really well…
But then we moved! Across the country! To a city we’d never been to before! Just because!
So, now THAT is the really big update!
Goodbye Midwest! Hello Southeast!
My job quickly became packing or donating or throwing away all the stuff we have acquired over ten years in our home. It was A LOT. Eventually I had to pack my beloved art supplies too, including everything I had prepped for the shop.
I still tried to make some time for art, as best I could. I picked up a few courses on Domestika — one on Posca pen illustrations, one on watercolor and gouache illustrations, and another on character design.
I found I could easily watch a lesson or two after packing for the day, and work in my sketchbook with a selection of Poscas, colored pencils, or in Procreate. I was able to bring them with me during the move too. But the rest is still packed, so I’m saving the painting course for when we get our stuff at the new house!
While I was on hold with work, I thought the courses could give me a sort of direction for my sketching. I like the assignments, and they are helping me push my work to be a bit more illustrative, having a bit of a story to them. Creating my comics and characters has really pushed me in that direction already, but I’m hoping I can start incorporating in into the rest of my art as well.
So I created this little guy while working on the Domestika course for characters. The class is more about branding and product design with characters. But I used the course exercises as a jumping off point for my own project – a full illustration instead. I was initially inspired by the “mermay” instagram art thing that I don’t really know much about…I cant decide if its a “cali-koi” or just a “cat fish.” Hmmm.
Since I have no idea how long it will take our stuff to deliver here, I’m definitely grateful for the supplies I’ve got right now. I figure my days will be spent drawing in my sketchbooks or in Procreate. Either working on the courses I’ve started or developing ideas for the NEXT shop update (assuming I get to do the first one!)
I also now have the super fun task of setting up my business in a new state. I’ll need to get that all set up before my shop update. Yaaaay…But from what I can tell so far, it looks way easier than it was where I used to live. So yay!
While it certainly seems like my days recently have been all about moving, all the time, I have found some time for hobbies. We followed the end of the Premier League season. We just started watching tennis again with the French Open. Oh! I finally found a sport I just won’t watch — competitive tag!? I’m usually up for watching any sport at least a little. But it turns out I can’t watch people play tag on TV. Who knew?
I also realized that I have a sort of ritual for the start of summer – watching a baseball movie! I don’t watch the sport much as an adult, but I still love the movies I grew up watching. Usually I know it is summer when I’ve watched The Sandlot, in early July. Maybe since I’m now in the Southeast, where it is already a bit warm, I found myself watching Field of Dreams this weekend and was like— yeah I guess it is summer now? So exciting!
So that got me wondering — how do you mark the start of summer? Is it the pools opening? End of the school year? Does it depend entirely on the weather? All of the above? Something else completely? Let me know in the comments!
Thanks for joining me in The Shallow End!
Summer Child Designs 