Humblearts Journal

August's List

Okay, everyone, my biggest goal for August is to stop procrastinating!!!

Struggling with it too?  Here is a nice article.  I've been enjoying this coach's little introductory program and will post more about it later this week.

What am I procrastinating doing?

Finishing my Dummy and sending it out

Sending out my Bumpy Bead Article

New goals for this month:

Send some tearsheets from my magazine assignments to Spider and Cricket.

Spend my time online more productively, like promoting Bead Cruise 2006.  Make a postcard to pass out and mail to bead societies and bead shops.

Send out the application for the Dallas Art & Soul Retreat.

Finish planning my fall/winter schedule, including taking some new photos of my work and sending out applications. 

Approach 2 bead shops about carrying my beads.

I feel like this is a lot of work, but the girls are heading back to school on the 15th, so I will have more time now.  (I'm not homeschooling this year.  It was a tough choice, but I had to do what I felt was best for all of us.)

Today will be spent getting orders out the door, calling for show information and finishing samples for a teaching application.

Be Generous to yourself, without finding fault.

Do more, create more. 

Celebrate the little successes along the way!

A Beady List for July

"Life is filled with so many wonderful things we should all be as happy as kings!" -Robert Louis Stevenson

I missed the 1st of July for my monthly to-do list.  But that's okay because I've been a busy worker bee!  Things are moving along nicely for the cruise and beads will be my main focus for this month.  Of course, if an illustration job lands in my lap, I will happily work that up, but for now, I'm not sending out any new promos or working on my dummies.  There will always be time for that.  Right now, I need to get my bead business growing a bit more.  It takes good care of me, so I want to take good care of it!

Write Press Release for Bead Cruise 2006 and send them out!

Finish last little additions to beadcruise.com & promote site heavily.

Write business article for beadingtimes.com.

Get ready for Gruene Market Days.

Work on my jewelry website and update the bead section too.

Send 1 article out that I've been sitting on.  yikes.

Submit to upcoming jewelry competition, more on that later.

Write 3 more beadmaking articles and send them out with samples.

Take my jewelry into a new store that has asked me to wholesale with them.

I also need to whip up a flyer for our SCBWI fall conference and work with getting things smoothed out for that.  But that's just a little aside. 

purple - this week, teal - next week, orange - whenever I have a minute, green - before the end of the month.

June's To-Do

This month is going to be all about beads.  I have a gallery show and an outdoor market this month. The gallery work is due on the same day as the market, so I need to create twice as much work.  The HGTV crew will be here on the 11th, oh my goodness!  I'm looking forward to all the craziness.

Beads:

For the next three weeks make a new set of beads and a few pieces of jewelry everyday.  Beads I need to make: lariat beads, earring beads, dragonfly bodies & wings, disk beads. 

Make the pieces for the steps for Crafters Coast to Coast.

Make 6 show stopping necklaces.  These are the pieces that bring people into my space.  My tiger lily is an example.

Make new tags for jewelry and new business cards.

Make new tablecloths for my booth.

Illustration:

Reprint South Haven piece, for myself.

Make finished pieces for Crafters coast to coast.

Work on my dummy book at the end of the month.

Around the house:

Finish fixing up my studio. 

Frame some of my prints.

Work in the yard, add mulch to my little flower beds. 

At the end of the month, celebrate my success!!!

By the 10th, before the shows, by the end of the month.

May's List

I had a great month and did accomplish a lot.  For instance, getting my portfolio ready for the conference, creating a few new portfolio pieces, including one for my next promo postcard. Moved into a bigger studio space. Did another magazine assignment. Started planning for our fall SCBWI conference.  Took more work into the gallery, participated in an open house and I have written both my articles, I just need take a few photos and get them sent out.

So this month's list includes:

Illustration

Send out Promo Postcards to my ever growing list

Magazine assignment

New Magazine assignment

Illustration samples for hgtv show

Put together and send out my dummy - this task is dragging on and on, I need to rethink this, I need to work on 3 pages of my dummy each week until June and then we'll see where I am at.

Create 2 new portfolio pieces

Beads

Send out 2 articles (this week!)

Update website

Write new article for BeadStyle

And just for fun:

flower scarf for month of softies

Punched tin mermaids and seahorses for my studio! (big news on that later.)

This week, next week, by the 22nd, before the 31st.

I'm also going to keep track of the hours I work toward my goals, so here is today's sad tally:

2 hours creating 2 postcard designs and working on my mailing list.

updated, reorganized and new things added 3/16.

The New To-Do

Okay, I can't believe it's a new month already!  And you know what that means, I get to throw off the old list and start over.  I love that idea.  If something didn't get done, I decide, did I really want to do it?  If I didn't and it just seemed like a good idea at the time, I graciously exclude it from the next list.  This month I have to be more realistic and keep my list shorter.

I also see that I have a few things carrying over from last month, I need to just get these things done and off my list.  I feel like they weigh me down and prevent me from moving forward onto new creative adventures.  I also need to work on being more confident in my work and not so tentative.  That sucks away a lot of my time, second guessing myself.  So here is to getting more work done in less time, by not over-thinking!

Illustration:

Magazine assignment

Finish Dummy Book in the next two weeks 

Send Promo to magazines

Beads:

Bead Articles for Step by Step Beads

Schedule to take work to the new shop (call today!)

Open House April 10th

Purple, this weekend!  Orange, By April 10th.  Teal before the end of the month.

That's the plan.  This month I'll need to work more than usually.  I have two big events that will be joyfully cutting into my schedule.  One, a visit from my Mom and Grandma - can't wait!!!  And then, I'm going on the SCBWI Texas Writin' & Drawin' Cruise in the middle of the month.  I'm way too excited about that.  I will not procrastinate, I will not procrastinate...

New Month, New List

I'm not going to look back at my February list, I've done everything I could and now it's time to refocus and move unto what adventures March has in store for me.  I'm happy with what I  finished last month, including 2 new portfolio pieces, new bead kits and new bead designs, along with a handful of knitted projects.

Illustration Stuff:

Send out promo to my "On File" list, (TODAY!)

Update humblearts.com

Story Friends Assignment

Finish Dummy Book and 2 new finished pieces from it.  Submit it to my "secret list of editors."  2 weeks to finish this project.

Send postcards to magazine list 

Beads:

New Work for Gallery

New bead sets listed on humblebeads.com

Jewelry for Fiber Artist's Fashion Show (March 26)

D.I.Y. Projects

Switch Bedroom and Studio - yikes!  Bigger space, new shelves. 

Make curtains for studio

Create an outdoor classroom

Start spring planting

Paint Bedrooms during Spring Break

Purple, this week.  Teal, by March 15th.  Orange before the end of the month.  Green, maybe during spring break.

Another busy month, but the list does help me to stay focused since I only have a few hours everyday to work.  And it's also nice to write down the fun things that I'm looking forward to doing, somehow they seem more likely to get done.  Plus Spring Break, means I will have more free time, so looking forward to that! 

So many projects, so little time

Things I have to do:

Fill orders and get new work made for the gallery.

Get all my tax stuff together, I need a better record keeping system!

Send out a new promo postcard.

Things I'm working on:

Valentine cards

New bead designs

Knitting a poncho for my daughter, while I "watch" TV.

Things I want to do this month:

Send out 3 new bead articles.

Update my websites.

Character study for a book I'm working on.

Do a few oil pastel still lifes, just for fun.

Let's see 4 hours a day, 22 days left.  Eighty-eight working hours this month.  Above all I want to enjoy the process.  And except for the tax stuff and my websites, I'm looking forward to each project. (updated 2/18)