All in a days work

I have managed to finish a couple of others since producing these, hopefully, within the next two to three weeks I will be able to try my hand at selling some through online outlets.  I just have final details to sort out but I will let you know when I am up and running. 

I have treated myself to a book to try to help my thought processes regarding getting on and making some money from my art.  I've had time for a quick flick through and it actually looks pretty good, so when I have finished here I shall make myself a warm drink and snuggle down in bed for a read.  The book is 'The Creative Enterprise' by Lisa Sonora Beam (available on Amazon):

I'd be interested to know if anyone else has read this book - or perhaps if anyone could recommend anything else, or a website perhaps? 

I have my usual day off tomorrow, which I usually try to enjoy by getting as much out of the day as I can - artwise. I have an appointment at the dentist in the morning though, and will be seriously numbed-up and feeling sorry for myself by the time I get home. I shall spend some time this evening preparing some good things to entice me to 'crack-on' when I get back and not wallow in self-pity!!!

Money don't grow on trees...

.... but I have been spending it this week, on materials and bits and pieces, as if it did!!  This week is seeing months worth of ideas and work come together in some designs I have made for pieces of jewellery I hope to begin selling sometime over the next few weeks (when I have my Paypal / bank account sorted :-)  ). I thought I'd post a couple of the pages from my design sketchbook here just to give you a feel for them and see what people think.

Firstly, here are a couple of necklaces I have already made using 'pre-fabricated' sterling silver pendants.  Each pendant is 1" square.  I will eventually have around a dozen of these to sell, each one will be different as the images are all hand drawn and painted individually.  I don't think I will buy any more of these pendants (lovely as they are) as I imported the pieces from the US and was hammered by customs!  I have made the bee necklace to keep and I think I am happier with the silk ribbon / clasp combination here than the one on the toadstool pendant.

I have come up with what I think is a much more interesting solution to make my own pendants for the the next designs..., these will also include a small amount of embroidery and beading (hope I'm not over-egging the pudding).  Hopefully I will have a couple of finished pendants to show you in the next week or so, the square ones will be 1 1/2" square and the rectangular ones will be 1" x 3".  Again, all the designs will be hand drawn / painted / made by me.  As you can see I will be concentrating mainly on 'flora and fauna' as subject matter.

Ignore the odd thing on the right!!  It's meant to be a fern pattern with an embroidery design running through it... it doesn't really work very well does it?  I might use the fern leaf idea for the reverse of some pendants but not sure yet.

There'll be a general 'otherworldly' fairytale quality to everything, I'm obsessed with fairytales, they definitely inspire some of the images.....  anyway, I do hope you like them!

Now I'm off to draw Scout's jar of doggy biscuits from her point of view - for the EDM I have been promising myself I would do all week!