More Charms, More Goals

As you can see, I've been at it again with the charms! The yahoo artcharms group that I'm in is holding a "red-pink-white" swap this month. Even though I plan to send the hearts that I made earlier this month, I decided it would be fun to make a whole variety of charms with these colors. I'll let you know more about my motivation for this later in the post, but first, GOALS.

First let's see how I did on last year's goals. I had a long list last year and some I did very well on, others kind of mezza-mezza, and some I didn't complete at all. I did join SAQA, I did submit pieces to 3 different shows (and got something accepted in one - Sacred Threads), I did finish the large piece for my friend's office, I did narrow down my "brand" and signature colors and order business cards, and I did open an Etsy shop! Hooray for me!

I did not do 52 weekly journal pieces. I think I only did 12. If I had kept that up, I wouldn't have been able to complete anything else! I'm not sure regular journaling is for me. I also did not follow through on "The Creativity Book." Maybe I'll revisit that at a later time. I also did not update my blog or website. That is still on the list for this year. I also did not really develop a calendar system to keep track of show entry deadlines etc. I seem to do okay in my own haphazard way, but I'm not sure entering shows is so important to me at this point, so I think I'm going to let that one go.

I had wanted to complete 5 pieces in addition to the weekly journal pieces and the large one for my friend, but I think I only completed two or three. I spent more time on making coasters and jewelry to put in my Etsy shop, so that's the trade off. There are only so many hours in a day. I bought a new light to improve the quality of my photos and also researched how to make a simple and inexpensive light box, but I have not made it yet. I seem to be getting by with the set up I have, so I'm not sure I need that after all.

In addition to the goals I completed, I also made several artcharm bracelets, earrings, and necklaces, and joined the yahoo group. I also revised my manuscript "The Timid Seahorse" and sent it out to two new publishers. One of them still has it, but even if they reject it, I'm still not ready to give up on it.

SO, what's on the plate for 2012? First, I think I'm going to choose the word "open" as a theme for the year. Last fall I read a book called "Open the Door" by Joyce Rupp which was a six-week meditation series on opening your heart to God. I want to keep focused on the idea of openness - being open minded, doing open-ended activities, remaining open to any possibilities. That being said, my goals this year will be to

• Continue to look for my authentic artistic voice in all my creations
• Update my blog and website to reflect my brand colors and style
• Continue to list items in my Etsy shop (and hopefully sell something!)
• Possibly approach one or more local gift shops to see if they'll carry some of my jewelry (which is why I want to create some Valentine's Day charms - maybe I'll use the red-pink-white theme as my product debut!)
• Revisit my seahorse manuscript again and possibly remake some sample art
• Work on a retelling of a folk tale (possibly with illustrations) for submission
• Complete an 18"x 8' "totem" fiber piece for a special FANE exhibit (due in April)
• Spend at least 5 minutes daily in quiet meditation
• Think positively (ban all negative thoughts and words!)
• Experiment with adding more text to artwork

There it is! It's ambitious once again, but as they say, if you shoot for the moon, even if you miss, you'll land among the stars!