update 11/3

Hey everyone :)

Just a little update from the home front!

Project Postcard was a success! YES! It was my first time going through that process with an original work so it was super exciting to rip open (and yes, I mean that in a literal sense!) the box and with a beam of light (not really) gaze upon the fruit of my labor; My beautiful Halloween postcards. :)

Hopefully, everyone who wanted one received theirs already, but if you didn't just let me know and it will be sent to you pronto! Late's better than never :)

Sooo with that happy event now over, I've immediately moved onto a few more projects.  I've started working on some Christmas cards and envelopes that will be available to purchase hopefully in the next couple weeks. Im trying really hard to get these out in time for people to use them. Otherwise they'll go into a secret vault in my Annie cave where they won't see the light of day till next year. Or in my drawer.

Another exciting thing I'm working on right now is my new Website!! YAY!!  I've purchased the domain name, hosting site and I've got some framework up that now need to be worked out. If anyone has any advice on page elements or things you have in your sites that works really great, please send it my way.
Ive been following the advice of Jon and Lea Woodward and using they're 12 Week Challenge kit.

It's been soooo helpful and they've got some excellent advise on setting things up the right way.

So far I've used:
www.bluehost.com

 wordpress.org
 










I'm also thinking about using Headway as a Wordpress theme, but I haven't completely decided on it yet.

Well that about wraps it up :) Keep checking back because there's a lot of stuff in the works! Hope you all have an excellent week.

 

Spankin' New Logo

If you're looking at this blog post then you've probably noticed the new logo on the top :)

This is a new marketing strategy I'm using to put on packaging, note cards, business cards, promo stuff, magnets...etc. I also decided that if the illustration is holiday or event themed (such as Autumn, Halloween, Christmas etc) the color scheme can be easily changed to match, all the while keeping the form and feel of originality.

Ive been thinking a lot about how I want to brand myself because of the 12 Week Challenge I'm currently working on. I think it's important to brand yourself as a business as well as an artist. Ive skipped ahead a few challenge weeks, but because of current freelancing projects I felt that I needed to address this part sooner.  Here are some questions I've been asking myself;
- What kind of logo or image can be universal enough to stamp on the back of a professional print or a silly birthday card?
- Do you only want to use images of your new and changing illustrations to promote yourself?
- Or should you include a simple logo that can be consistantly repeated and identified by clients?


Anyway, some food for thought for any fellow illustrators reading this :)

As always, Your comments and opinions are eagerly welcome.

Updated Portfolio Site

I realized this week I didn't have a lot of options within my online portfolio to show the different types of work I've been doing.  So to correct that, I Updated!  Imagine that :)  Click on the link to see some of the New things I've been working on.
Online Portfolio

I'm still working away on the 12 week challange. It's going a little longer than the actual 12 weeks, but I'm completing step 3 this weekend!! Next: 3 new Portfolio pieces! So excited and I can't wait to get started on them. I keep reminding myself that I can't skip ahead and do the weeks whenever I want, gotta stay on track and do them in order.

Anyway, Everyone have a great weekend!