2017: Good Stuff from a Good Year

2017, you had your moments! For all the upheaval in the world my business had a good year. I reached a lot of goals I set for myself (and heck, came up short on some too, but that’s life!). The first week of the new year I’m always in planning mode. I grab all that NEW YEAR ENERGY by the tail and try to make the most of it. I also feel that reflecting on what I’ve done, writing down my goals for the year ahead, and coming up with some strategies to accomplish those goals is really important. Especially as a solo entrepreneur, I’m the only one who’s paying attention and holding myself accountable! 

Here we are, let’s look back on my year! Some really great stuff happened and it was fun to think back on 2017.  So if you’re interested, here are a few of the highlights:

  

From the top (kind of chronological, not in order of importance):

• I got myself a new website last January! I switched over to Squarespace, and oh, Squarespace, how do I love thee? So easy and a good investment on my part.  
• Then I got to see my work in the Print & Pattern Nature book by Bowie Style (a.k.a. Marie Perkins from the Print & Pattern Blog) - dream come true! She was also kind enough to feature me on her blog in March - how cool is that?
• That big mug up there is ME at BLUE PRINT, my first trade show I exhibited at with my awesome art collective, Pencil Parade. That was by far the most important (and scariest) thing I did for my business this past year. I’m really happy with how it went and in fact, I’ll be back there later this year with Pencil Parade from May 17-19! 
• Another perk of Blue Print was meeting my Pencil Parade comrades (Betsy, Megan, and Brooke) in person for the first time! These ladies are awesome and I’m so glad I have them! This pic also represents all the other artists I got to meet this year in real life, from international online acquaintances (even some art/design heroes) to some new local artist friends. This profession of mine has an incredibly supportive community and it’s important to connect with and support each other.  
• Yes, that’s my iPad up there. I got my iPad Pro at the end of 2016 and it’s become such a valuable tool I had to include it. (I’m using it right now) It’s given me more flexibility, it helps me work more efficiently, and I actually love creating art on it too. I can make art wherever I am: with my kids, on the couch, in a coffee shop, or in bed (?!). 
• My first greeting card with Design House Greetings for Trader Joe’s came out this past summer! It’s been SO fun to start working with them (did you know they’re based in MN?) and I have a number of new cards coming out with them in 2018.
• Another great new client, Mpix, who make customizable photo cards. I was able to order Christmas cards for my family that were of my own design. More designs to come this year!  
• My 30 Days of Patterns Challenge! This past fall I made a new pattern every (or nearly every) day for 30 days. It was a way for me to speed up my workflow and be really productive in a fun way and it was a good (but manageable) challenge. I made a lot of that work on my iPad too (wink, wink).
• Also this fall I started the Yellow House Post! This is a newsletter for friends, shop customers, and art aficionados. I share new art and shop items, special promos, and free printables. I love sharing that kind of stuff (what else is the internet for anyway?). Sign up here if you’d like to receive it!

There you have it! 2017 in a pretty little nutshell. There are of course other good things from the year, including some art opportunities that won’t come to fruition until this year. Now I’m looking forward to another great year of art making and growing my business! Thanks for coming along for the ride! Happy New Year!