Journal Bliss

I've been soooo bad at keeping a daily/weekly journal of life events in the last six months so yesterday I decided to dedicate (& rescue) an abandoned journal and turn it into a 'calendar' journal. I'm sure you feel the same way as I do when I say I don't feel any pressure to produce art when I just.get.to.play.....

BUZZ: Our local Art Gallery asked me if I'd like to offer artsy gifts like journals/ small pieces of original art, etc. for the upcoming Fall & Christmas season, (yeah I know, but this is the time of year to think about that).

That got me into creative mode and thinking of the possibility of reproducing my original art & design for a fill-in calendar journal for those of us who are too busy/intimidated/not sure where to start/ just wanna have a quiet & safe place to vent. I don't know about you, but I find that having an inspiring, easily accessible place to write down even just a few words or what I'm dealing with that day to be a great release - one filled with intent, vindication & purpose.

Anyhow, I'm searching out a professional printer to re-create a 2011 calendar journal with my original illustrations & favorite quotes for each month. I'm hoping to eventually add them to my new Etsy shop. My grand opening will be sometime in June.....

Stay tuned for updates - be well.

Show and Promotion

I participated in a local Arts & Crafts Extravaganza last weekend so trying to catch up with things here. I had literally 2 days to get ready for it and was scrambling to get things together. I didn't have much for display either - I need to find a more professional looking rack, maybe I'll just spray paint the yellow one gloss black for now. If you have any display ideas or links to suppliers, please do tell!

My sweet & lovely friend Vanessa shared the table with me, although she ended up not being able to make it. I had a lot of fun meeting & chatting up people about my work and art in general with a few kindred spirits. The turnout was fair considering the size and location and my work was well-received (especially my Cowgirl piece, a few more like her are in the works)

Ok, time for some shameless promotion - my Etsy shop has now been updated. I'm working on getting more fine art prints in there as well as some digital photography. I've been having much (ok too much) fun with my camera and Adobe Photoshop lately. I actually had some visitors at my table who though they were 'paintings' :>

So much to do and learn right now, but I'm enjoying it immensely. Have a great week y'all!

It's beginning to look a lot like......Winter!

And what better time to finally open up my Etsy shop as the snow and holidays are upon us here!!! Yup we got quite a bit of snow this past week, about 4 feet! It definitely put me in Christmas & crafting mode! :)



I've been busy creating all kinds of items for a local Art & Crafts event this weekend and decided to list a few items in my shop, I've got more I'm finishing up so they'll follow soon.

I can't believe that I joined Etsy over a year ago and just getting around now to listing some of my creations! It's a huge (scary) step for me to put something I've created out into the world no less with a price tag on it!! lol However, I am working my way confidently towards getting some original sketches or paintings up there in the new year too.

My shop is listed under lauratmdesigns but I've linked to my blog here and also have a new website for a tailored line in the works - phew! As much as I think I haven't progressed in my work/journey this past year, I do believe things happened as they should for me and in the process I realized this: what seemed like setbacks at times were really blessings in disguise :)

Hope you all find time to enjoy this wonderful season!