I have many goals for my art business this year. My biggest one is spending more focused time on actual artwork. This past year I got side-tracked with trying to do it all: social media posts, weekly blogging, learning new mediums, studying various marketing platforms, creating classes, etc. in addition to homeschooling/parenting our children, training a new puppy, and maintaining our household, all while only having hubby home on weekends.
Just a side-note on my husband… I don’t know any man who does more for his family than mine does. He is dedicated to his priorities of God, family, country (in that order), patient beyond belief with all of the demands that he faces, and hardworking to the core. Without him we couldn’t homeschool and I definitely wouldn’t be able to pursue my passion for art, let alone have made it through the ongoing pandemic with my sanity intact. So even though only having him home on the weekends is hard, it’s not unbearable because of how committed he is to his priorities.
Anyway, I digress. Back to the topic of goals.
My number one art goal this year is to complete more illustrated maps and watercolor paintings (specifically, architecture and pet portrait). They are not only fun for me and beautiful to display, but serve a number practical purposes.
· wedding maps to include with invitations, as thank you cards or even as a special gift
· businesses to advertise their location or decorate their place of service
· realtor gifts for housewarming
· wall décor for you or as the perfect gift
· customized to commemorate special memory/event or family pet
· birthday, anniversary or other holiday gift
Every time I finish a piece, it reminds me of how much I enjoy designing and painting this kind of work and how much I want to do more of it. This year, I have an ambitious goal of one map and one painting each month.
To inspire and motivate me I thought I’d share a few of the ones I’ve completed in the past.
This first one is a custom map that I designed for my niece and her then fiancé, now husband. It showcases events and locations that are meaningful to them. This type of design is great for weddings, anniversaries, and other special events.
Here is another design that I created after visiting Door County on a girls’ weekend with a few close friends. This one is available at my etsy shop. Recently a customer who purchased this design shared that she has it displayed at her own Door County property!
This next one is a custom residential painting done for my husband’s brother and his wife. I have enjoyed doing many of these types of paintings for other friends’ homes in the area, too. They make great gifts from realtors or as a house warming surprise.
Another type of map design I enjoy creating is highlighting the names of major cities within a silhouette of a state or neighborhoods within a silhouette of a well-known cities. These make special mementos for loved ones who live long distance or military families. Here are a few that I completed last year. These can be found at my spousely site, designed to support military family business owners.
Another type of watercolor that I ventured into this year features realistic pet portraits. Here is an example of my sister and brother-in-law's sweet rescue, Josey. This year I want to focus more on creating more of these types of paintings, beginning with our own crazy pooch, Scout. These are a great gift for any pet lover or for your own family to showcase your furry four-legged friend.
The last examples I want to share with you today are calligraphy with watercolor designs customized with names, verses or special information. These make great gifts for new babies, baptisms, graduations or birthdays.
Please don’t hesitate to send me any special requests or ideas for maps or architecture projects that you would enjoy seeing. Thanks for joining me today as I reflected on past projects.
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