Coffee with Julie- 1-4-21

2021 arrived and passed and today we are all resuming our daily lives after the holidays. My shop sales came to a screeching halt on December 9th it seems and since this is my first real year of sustained growth and revenue from my online sales I don't have previous history to judge if that is normal.  I think it makes sense that all the online Christmas season shipping had been done and so I took the time to begin working on my new designs for the upcoming year.  

I received my new iPad Pro 12.9" and my first ever Apple Pencil around that same time as my sales slowed down so I stayed very busy learning how to use this amazing new tool.  I downloaded the app Procreate (seems anyone serious about drawing digitally on the iPad chooses that drawing app) and I have been having a blast ever since.  

I'm currently working on my second "Farmhouse Whimsy Coloring Book" and hope to have it published and available on Amazon by the end of the month.  I'm subtitling this one "All Critters Big and Small" so I can include my mice, bunnies and bees in the book too.  This project has me super excited because I LOVE the passive income that I think self publishing on KDP (Amazon) will eventually bring. 

My first book wasn't published until November 1, 2020 and so for those 2 months of 2020 my sales break down as follows:

Farmhouse Whimsy Coloring Book- A Coloring Book to Make You Smile - 62 copies  COLORING BOOK ON AMAZON

2021 Farmhouse Weekly/Monthly Planner- 21 copies  2021 PLANNER ON AMAZON

Little Farmers on the Go- A Traveling Game Book- 13 copies TRAVEL GAME BOOK ON AMAZON

Branding your business is so important and something that I really want to do this year is wrap most of my orders in cute wrapping paper.  Eventually, I will design my own and have that printed for me but in the mean time, I decided that I would use rubber stamps and both brown (the rolls that painters use to tape off windows) and a whole case of white packaging newsprint paper that someone gave me.  The beauty of having all your designs in a farmhouse/country theme is that you can easily upcycle items around your house and it adds to the homemade primitive charm of the farmhouse motif.  

I ordered this "Tim Holtz Collection- Funny Farm" cling stamps and a few colors of ink pads to get started.  We found some wood to glue the stamps too and Wallaaaah! I have cute farm themed wrapping paper with minimal investment.  I can't wait to start wrapping all my 2021 sales with them.

I will be sharing more about this in detail on my next VLOG- YOU HEARD ME CORRECTLY!  I have started my own YouTube Channel where I show off my new artwork or studio tips.  This will be expanding in 2021 and I'm super excited about growing this new social media connection.  Here is the link to my channel so please consider subscribing!  Julie Townsend Studio - YOUTUBE

There is DUST on my PAINTBRUSHES

 I have been so busy these past few weeks, that I haven't picked up a paintbrush or even a colored pencil.  Now don't be concerned that I may be giving up on my artwork!  It's far from it.  Rather, I have been working on a couple of new projects that I'm really excited about and that are dear to my heart.  The learning curve has been pretty steep but I feel as if I have climbed to the summit and now can see the possibilities on the other side.

What am I speaking of you ask?  Well, I will tell you.  I have been learning all about low content self publishing using KDP (Kindle Direct Publishing) on Amazon.   I just published my first coloring book and it went live on Nov 1st.  "The Farmhouse Whimsy Coloring Book" contains 35 line drawings of my original artworks that you can color for yourself.  Many of the "Wash Tub" series are included in the book and priced at only $8.99, I think this coloring book will make a great gift option for the coming holiday season. Well that is at least my hope and that I receive passive income from here on out with continued book sales.   I'm already planning to create more coloring books in the coming year.

 My second project may not be as popular but I'm excited.  I'm almost ready to push the button to publish my first desk planner for 2021.  It's a large 8.5 x 11 inch paperback (just like the coloring book) and has both a monthly and weekly calendar and 142 pages filled with my artwork, digital designs, scriptures, prayer journal and a big "TODO" list page for each week.  I designed it with my needs in mind but I'm hoping a few others will also find that same appeal.  Because it had to be color print, I had to set my Amazon retail price at $21.99.  

Each of the 12 monthly pages has a full size image of the Wash Tub drawings that appears on my 2021 wall calendar that is available on my Etsy Shop.  The weekly calendar has also a combination of my original artwork and adorable clipart that I have arranged.  The thing that I am excited about is that each week there is included on the layout a large "for this week" page that allows you to prioritize your goals and consider your blessings and victories.  I'm a list girl and I have not found a planner that gives me the ability to organize my week like this one does.  

If my copy of this planner is the only one that sells, I think I will be okay with that.  I felt with the craziness of this past week and the uncertainty I feel about the coming year, along with the continued economic fall out caused by COVID, a happy planner full of funny farm animals and scriptures was exactly what I need to make it through.  Besides I learned a lot and at my age that is SOMETHING!

To find both of these books (hopefully the planner will go live on Amazon by tomorrow) you just search "JULIE TOWNSEND STUDIO".  

 

It's Coming

 Just 98 Days until Christmas...and I have the perfect Christmas Cards for you!

I've drawn this old washtub so many times that I can almost draw it now in my sleep.  With the holidays in mind, it just seemed natural to decorate it all festive for Christmas and invite some fun farm animals to the party.  I had a blast creating each of these drawings and it was natural to then turn them into a set of Christmas cards.  I just added the listing for the set a couple days ago on my Etsy Shop along with a "Woodland Critters Christmas" design that is just adorable.

I'm in love with the torn paper background and the hint of dark red surrounding it.  It compliments that old washtub perfectly and just makes an adorable holiday card to send to your farmhouse loving family and friends.  You're sure to get lots of smiles.  Wash Tub Christmas Card Set on my Etsy Shop

As a matter of fact, I'm SO in love with that background that I have decided to incorporate it into my 2021 calendar designs that I am currently working on that will feature many more of my washtub series.  I'm really excited about and will be sharing more next month.

When I create a new art for a series like this that I know I will be grouping together, I also list each piece of art separately on my shop where you can purchase a print or note card with just that image on it.  No background added, just the artwork itself printed on nice paper with my signature.  This gives 100% of the focus to the artwork without diminishing it with other colors and images to distract your view.  I have listings for all 4 of the Wash Tub Christmas designs on my Shop if you are interested in a print or a card of this style.  These cute animals are sure to brighten up any wall in your home with a splash of Christmas cheer!

If you would like to check out this image or more of my art you can hop on over to my Etsy Shop and poke around.  I LOVE having visitors!  Julie Townsend Studio on Etsy

Baa Baa Bath Sheep

This is my newest drawing in my Wash Tub series and it is just in time to order for Mother's day if you hurry.  Up to this point I have only had one animal at time in the tub but it seemed fitting to include a ewe and a her brood of youngsters as we approach the month of May.

While I was working on this piece, I couldn't help but remember the process bath time was when my own 4 kids were babies.  It was akin to a well organized assembly line.

I would hand one baby at a time to my husband in the shower and then as he washed them and shampooed them I was drying and putting on pj's on the clean child he had handed back to me.  It was fun times and I miss those years when they were all small. Thinking about those times, so many years ago brought a smile to my face while I drew this piece.  Of course, to really personalize this drawing to match my family dynamic I would have had to add a 4th little black lamb to the group.

"Baa Baa Bath Sheep"

For me creating art is about creating an emotion.  There is just something about drawing that transports me to my happy place or sparks a cherished memory from my past.  Scripture tells us that  "A happy heart is like good medicine but a broken spirit drains your strength." Proverbs 17:22   A HAPPY HEART is a powerful concept and living a life full of happiness is a choice.  I find myself at times becoming overwhelmed with the negativity of this world that surrounds me and I just have to escape to my studio, turn on some worship music and grab my sketchbook. I sing and I pray while I am drawing and the stress and anxiety just begins to disappear and fades away.  God is so good! (I can even hear your replying back to me "All the Time.")

This piece is titled "Baa Baa Bath Sheep" and is one of 10 drawings in a new series I'm doing that I call my wash tub series.  I may be quarantined in my studio but I'm loving this whole process of drawing farm animals taking a bubble bath.  The series has been so well received and for that I am so blessed. 

If you would like to purchase a print or note card with this image then you can visit my Etsy Shop and here is the link.  Search "Wash Tub" and you should be able to find all the rest of the water logged gang there.     HAPPY ETSY SHOPPING!

Could all this CRAZY be just HOG WASH?

This past week has certainly has sure been a crazy one and the last think I want to do is to get on that CRAZY TRAIN.  "I have enough toilet paper, thank you very much!"  I don't even want to go shopping for the next few weeks and it's not because of the germs I will encounter.  It's that CRAZY TRAIN that's pulled into station and everyone is jumping on board. 

My daughter was telling me a story last night about how my son-in-law went to the store to buy baby wipes.  After all, they do have 2 small children and wipes do come in pretty handy when you are changing diapers.  The store shelves were completely OUT.  As he was standing in the check out, the woman in line in front of him changed her mind about the package of small wipes that she had in her card and asked the cashier to remove them from her bill.  My son-in-law spoke up and told the woman and the cashier that he would like to purchase them if she wasn't going to.  Can you believe that another woman stepped up and grabbed them right out of the cashiers hands and quickly scanned it on her self check register. I would hate to think what it would be like if we had a true emergency to deal with.

What is there to do?  My peace comes from my faith in my Creator who is bigger than the NASDAQ or the World Health Organization.  A virus isn't bigger then my Heavenly Father.  So I believe in common sense here is what is needed, not panic.  I think avoiding large crowds is using good sense and of course washing your hands often is on the top of the any common sense list. 

Besides the obvious course of action, my second plan is to start a new series of color pencil art in my Farmhouse Whimsy style.  Each piece will feature a different farm animal taking a bath in a large wash tub.  We all need to find a place free of worry and panic and mine is my studio.  Here is my newest drawing and I'm calling it "Hog Wash". 

This new drawing would be a perfect to display in your country or farmhouse bathroom.  I have prints, cards and magnets available on my Etsy Shop if you are interested and want to check it out.  I have all kinds of great farmhouse out to look at.  Here is the link to HOG WASH       

We did it!  “Life on the Funny Farm” is all hung up and I think it looks great.  Of course I could imagine that you would think my opinion would be just a wee bit biased.  I can say that I have been anxiously awaiting this opportunity and I'm so happy that March 1st has finally arrived.  It takes nearly a year to get on the schedule and I missed out in 2019 but the wait was worth it and I am now officially the featured artist at the Boulder City Art Gallery for the whole month.

The reception is scheduled for March 21 from 1-3 pm.  Now I just need to start planning the fun for my reception in a few weeks.  I certainly plan to make one of my much requested cheese balls but I need to find some other goodies to make.

This is such a lovely gallery, nestled in the heart of the "Old" Boulder City and located in the historic Boulder Dam Hotel.  The gallery has been in operation for over 40 years and it really is a little gem in the desert.   I believe this is my 6th year as one of their gallery artists.  It is a great talented group of local artists and I'm honored to be listed among their ranks.

If you are in the Southern Nevada area, I would love it if you would stop by on the 21st to say hi.  It will be fun and you will LOVE spending the afternoon in Boulder City.  I promise. 

Check out my Etsy Shop for many of the cards and prints are available that I have here in the show.  Julie Townsend Studio Etsy Shop

Sometimes I Crack Myself Up

I have to confess, that there are times I actually catch myself laughing out loud at my art.  Just to clarify, I don't talk to my drawing and paintings, but they do make me chuckle.

With my new note card series called "Funny Farm" I have been chuckling quite a bit.  I've combined my original artwork and some country humor to make the perfect all occasion cards.  A total of 15 designs (I had to make myself stop) are now available on my Etsy Shop for purchase.  I print them out myself using high quality note card paper sold by the Red River Paper Co.  I also use fade resistant ink so the colors are vivid and bright. The envelopes are self adhesive and are either white or kraft brown.

The link to my Shop is provided below and just search "Funny Farm" for these designs specifically or spend time just browsing through all my FARMHOUSE WHIMSY art. (I have almost 400 listings).  Let me know what you think by leaving me a comment.

KEEP SMILING!

 ETSY SHOP-Julie Townsend Studio