Thank you so much Claire! I'm still super new to the inks, but it has been so much fun so far and feels like such a fun exploration of my love of nature and color!!!
Ah so fun and I love that it changes too. We did some natural dyeing with fabrics and relief patterns with mordants as part of a young propels and that was really fun! Especially the reveal part!
Agree! I love that the ink charges too! My mom and I tried doing a mordant dye on fabric with ferns in the summer but for some reason it didn’t transfer at all - no clue what went wrong but it was fun to try anyway!
I appreciate your genuine post and I feel much the same way you do, 2022 was a trying year. And I feel like I secretly have to fit in my creative work, for my own mental health, around the paying design work and searching for more work and trying to make any of it profitable can be difficult. Best of luck this year, I really like your inks - I've always enjoyed work with ink.
I totally missed this reply somehow, my apologies Sandra! Thank you for your comment - I very much feel the pressure of the creative work being "secret" and like almost shameful feeling when it should be "paid" or I should be prioritizing paying clients. I will keep you updated on the ink journeys! =)
I'm feeling similar things in relation to my art practice. Not a business yet, but the pressure of "gotta make this profitable" is definitely killing some of the joy. Thanks for the post!
I totally understand. It feels there's so much pressure, especially on Instagram that every creative pursuit you share or engage in has to be monetized. When I started doing watercolor art, many people around me said "Oh! That'll help your business so much with new skills!" or "OOH! You could sell prints!" and, while well-meaning, I definitely was trying to engage in the art of learning watercolor for my own happiness... not to monetize or benefit my design work in any way! It kind of bummed me out a bit that my interest in a hobby was met with an instant assumption around monetization.
I hope that you can find a way to monetize, if that's your goal, that doesn't kill the joy and feels sustainable for you long-term <3 Thank you for your comment!
I can relate to some of this. I’ve come to associate this with self employment as opposed to it being a design thing. So I’ve decided to become a design employee again. Stable pay, disconnect at 5pm and reconnect at 9am. Current goal of exploring more creative writing and also hopefully soon more pottery throwing class. Unfortunately the full time contract I was in didn’t lead to being hired so, job searching now. Also difficult struggling with ethical issues of being a graphic designer concerned about over-consumerism. Love the inks, been wanting to explore too. :-)
Hi Brigitte! I totally understand and respect your choice - there are SO many benefits to having a "normal" job. Being a solopeneur is cool and all, but it has a LOT of downsides with instability and time commitments. It truly is not for everyone. I really hope that you can find a design job that brings this stability and comfort to you. Fingers crossed for your hunt! I myself am looking into a possible part-time position with a non-profit to give me that stability, and ability to clock off while in my spare time I work on newsletters or sustainable design educational content. And then clock off and do art!
I love the pottery throwing and creative writing! These are such cool pursuits! My partner has gotten really into creative writing recently and I'm so proud of him finally writing the sci-fi stories he always talked about writing :)
I definitely understand the trickiness and kind of ickiness of working in a career that basically is designed to promote over consumption. I haven't fully worked this out for myself either. I've been trying to find solace in working previously in the alternative protein space, thinking that well if people buy alternative meats they're not buying real meat which is a net good, right? But it is still difficult and takes some compartmentalization, especially these days. It's like a chose between the lesser evils it feels like some days.
Thank you so much for your comment and I wish you the best! I will keep you updated on the inks!
I’ve been trying to lean into like looser paintings while I practice more basics of drawings in sketchbooks. I am not very skilled yet so if I try and make things too realistic I only am unhappy with my beginner level attempts! It has been fun to just like meet myself where I am at and I’ve already seen some improvement over the course of my sketchbook. Highly recommend mini abstract paintings!
Beautifully written - I love your exploration of foraged inks - my friend does this too and her art work is fascinating.
Thank you so much Claire! I'm still super new to the inks, but it has been so much fun so far and feels like such a fun exploration of my love of nature and color!!!
Ah so fun and I love that it changes too. We did some natural dyeing with fabrics and relief patterns with mordants as part of a young propels and that was really fun! Especially the reveal part!
Agree! I love that the ink charges too! My mom and I tried doing a mordant dye on fabric with ferns in the summer but for some reason it didn’t transfer at all - no clue what went wrong but it was fun to try anyway!
Ah I’m not sure... my friend Yvette Ja Studio knows all about this stuff though - https://yvetteja.com Cx
I appreciate your genuine post and I feel much the same way you do, 2022 was a trying year. And I feel like I secretly have to fit in my creative work, for my own mental health, around the paying design work and searching for more work and trying to make any of it profitable can be difficult. Best of luck this year, I really like your inks - I've always enjoyed work with ink.
I totally missed this reply somehow, my apologies Sandra! Thank you for your comment - I very much feel the pressure of the creative work being "secret" and like almost shameful feeling when it should be "paid" or I should be prioritizing paying clients. I will keep you updated on the ink journeys! =)
I'm feeling similar things in relation to my art practice. Not a business yet, but the pressure of "gotta make this profitable" is definitely killing some of the joy. Thanks for the post!
Hi Hannah Ruth!
I totally understand. It feels there's so much pressure, especially on Instagram that every creative pursuit you share or engage in has to be monetized. When I started doing watercolor art, many people around me said "Oh! That'll help your business so much with new skills!" or "OOH! You could sell prints!" and, while well-meaning, I definitely was trying to engage in the art of learning watercolor for my own happiness... not to monetize or benefit my design work in any way! It kind of bummed me out a bit that my interest in a hobby was met with an instant assumption around monetization.
I hope that you can find a way to monetize, if that's your goal, that doesn't kill the joy and feels sustainable for you long-term <3 Thank you for your comment!
I can relate to some of this. I’ve come to associate this with self employment as opposed to it being a design thing. So I’ve decided to become a design employee again. Stable pay, disconnect at 5pm and reconnect at 9am. Current goal of exploring more creative writing and also hopefully soon more pottery throwing class. Unfortunately the full time contract I was in didn’t lead to being hired so, job searching now. Also difficult struggling with ethical issues of being a graphic designer concerned about over-consumerism. Love the inks, been wanting to explore too. :-)
Hi Brigitte! I totally understand and respect your choice - there are SO many benefits to having a "normal" job. Being a solopeneur is cool and all, but it has a LOT of downsides with instability and time commitments. It truly is not for everyone. I really hope that you can find a design job that brings this stability and comfort to you. Fingers crossed for your hunt! I myself am looking into a possible part-time position with a non-profit to give me that stability, and ability to clock off while in my spare time I work on newsletters or sustainable design educational content. And then clock off and do art!
I love the pottery throwing and creative writing! These are such cool pursuits! My partner has gotten really into creative writing recently and I'm so proud of him finally writing the sci-fi stories he always talked about writing :)
I definitely understand the trickiness and kind of ickiness of working in a career that basically is designed to promote over consumption. I haven't fully worked this out for myself either. I've been trying to find solace in working previously in the alternative protein space, thinking that well if people buy alternative meats they're not buying real meat which is a net good, right? But it is still difficult and takes some compartmentalization, especially these days. It's like a chose between the lesser evils it feels like some days.
Thank you so much for your comment and I wish you the best! I will keep you updated on the inks!
the "quick loose painting... of some wooly bear caterpillars" —
mini abstract paintings. wonder where they'll lead !
I’ve been trying to lean into like looser paintings while I practice more basics of drawings in sketchbooks. I am not very skilled yet so if I try and make things too realistic I only am unhappy with my beginner level attempts! It has been fun to just like meet myself where I am at and I’ve already seen some improvement over the course of my sketchbook. Highly recommend mini abstract paintings!