The market is down, money’s getting tight but before I’m forced to return to my old job I’m going to reactivate my Etsy account to start selling my art!
This past year and a half has been a dream. I was able to cultivate different creative skills while traveling and spending time with my family. I’ve also been present for holidays and many special gatherings that I usually miss out on. This time that I was unexpectedly granted was something that I was ready to sacrifice. To me it was either that or risk losing the house. I’m definitely not above the idea of going back to a ‘ traditional ’ job. It’s what I know best and was conditioned to cope with to survive in the real world. It’s the American lifestyle right? We join the workforce at an early age while deep in our studies, acquire a large sum of debt after receiving a degree, then you’re lunged into the realities of ‘adulting.’ Finding a grown-up job, hitting that next pay bracket which means that you’re getting the shit taxed out of your paycheck so you’re forced to pick up side jobs to pay for all your bills. At the end of your day, you tell yourself that you’ll spend your hard earned money on things you don’t need and brief vacations to help you deal with the work you despise.
That’s the end of that rant.
I was reminded by @kommienezuspadt that we need to work smarter not harder.
It’s funny because I was on the phone ranting, getting extremely manic while running through part-time job ideas and it never occurred to me that I should try crafting new type of art to sell on my Etsy shop. He somehow got me to shut up, made a simple suggestion and the ideas began to line up. I swear, @kommienezuspadt always brings out the best in me. He’s my number one cheerleader and the key to unlocking my greatest potential. We got super excited about all the cool things that we could make together, all I needed to do was give myself the next month to hone in my skills then produce spectacular art to sell.
Can you tell that this little ball of clay will soon be a skull?
It’s been awhile since I’ve messed around with clay but I started approaching it differently. I began by working the clay as if I’m sketching with a pencil and the results so far are good. I’m planning on sculpting lots of animals and there is definitely a need to purchase an anatomy book to study. Tonight I’m attempting to tackle a lion’s skull and I’m using a real life skull as reference but I can’t recall what animal this is so please don’t ask. Anyways, this was going to be a sculpted head with a giant mane but it was looking wonky so it changed to a skull. I may layer skin on top later on.
Busting out the good camera.
I know, I’ve neglected the camera. It became apparent once I finished editing these photographs which is why I’m going to now make a conscious effort to take the time to photograph myself. Honestly, there are times when I’m seeking a specific type of natural lighting, it may not be available at that moment so I tell myself that I’ll save the ideas for a rainy day. Obviously those rainy days continue to extend until I lose interest. Again, I’ll be proactive from now on and do better with sharing new photography. Until then, check out this gif that I made.
![](https://steemitimages.com/0x0/https://i.imgur.com/FCtg7N9.gif)
wow that art can take it on anything huh?!
dude we didn't know you do that! nice!!!
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Jack of all trades right here! ^^
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yes definitely! I mean that's a lot of skills right there and that's the art aspect!
what else you got?! hahah :D
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So much more! You’ll just have to keep coming back to see it!
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no doubt about that! you do good arts! :)
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Well I hope you manage to avoid the "straight job". I managed to have an entire career without ever being on salary so I know from personal experience that it CAN be done. Part of being creative is finding unusual ways of assuring our survival and reserving time for creativity.
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Thanks for the encouragement Kathleen! That’s awesome that you’ve been able to support yourself with your art. I know there is hope, I just have to push through this difficult time with sheer determination!
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Yay!! I can't wait to show off your work!!!!1 sqqueaallssss
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😭 Thank you!!!! 💕
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There would be an upcoming site renewal on December. The platform will be able to accommodate more audiovisual content. There's room to upload your sculpting videos then if you're interested. :D
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Sweet! Thanks so much for letting me know @adamada! That’s so exciting to hear! I was trying to post this through artisteem.io last night but it failed to upload. After the tenth time I figured I’d try uploading progress shots for a future post.
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Log out and logging in again fixes the problem. It's a known issue and it has something to do with steemconnect tokens expiring whenever you grant your account access to their platform. Good luck :D
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I’ll give that a try! Thanks @adamada!
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Badass! Looking forward to seeing the cool shit you create. My wife loves Etsy and shops there all the time. We even got our rings there!
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You got your rings on Etsy? That’s awesome! I know a bunch of people that search for engagement rings on there. I used to shop there a lot for special gifts. Usually something nerdy that I can’t find offline.
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Yeah. I don’t gave a pic of my wife’s right now but mine is simple and easy. It was affordable, nice looking, and supported a small business. All wins!
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Good job, I am looking forward to see it finished. I do particularly enjoy your sculpting posts, even though your other posts are interesting as well
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Thanks @evilhippie! I’m glad to be back at it! I think the hardest thing for me is taking progress photos as I go. I’m not always working at a desk so the light always disappears as the day goes by! Maybe I should try to film time lapse videos instead?
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I am horrible with progress photos. I tend to get carried away if I havent set up the camera first. The result is that quite a few of my projects are either documented with sloppy mobilephone photos, or only documented when i am finished or need to stop for the night. timelapses are super nice for sculpting. I imagine it is harder to do IRL. but i think the results could be super cool.
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Same. I’ve also done a few time lapses with my mobile phone but the thing that sucks is that the focus on the camera changes as you move. 😶 Why must everything be so difficult?
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Whoa you're going to sell your sculpture? That is so exciting and brave. Good luck foxxie, I know you can do it :D.
The skull looks good so far ^_^.
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Thanks for the support @scrawly! I always get a little nervous selling my work but I gotta do it!
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Well done you, realizing you have to do a thing and then getting straight to it! That's the way. And I love skulls so I'm excited.
It is such a shame steem is so low and Bitcoin too, how I wish I had cashed some in to only buy more back, I think that is what you are meant to do, but I'm never savvy enough to do it, or just forgetful most like
Congrats on your new Venture. I did etsy once upon a time.
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Thanks so much Donna! I’m fired up so I gotta keep the momentum going! I was thinking about doing this as a half scull and other half with skin or a skull with the mane still on it but then that might look weird. 😆
I’m pretty forget when it comes to cashing in my Steem when the market is high. I have moved it around a bit but I never touch my SP. I’ve been slowly working my way up.
I gave up on Etsy years ago because I didn’t get many sales, mostly hearts. Hopefully I can change that! ^^
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I thought about trying to sell drawings online, but haven't tried it yet. Do you prefer eBay to Etsy?
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I’d go Etsy for sure. There is also red bubble, society6 and storenvy.
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Thumbs up, and try to avoid going to ''regular'' job as much as you can. There is nothing that can kill creativity, mind and soul like some every day job that has eats time @vermillionfox, been there and still I am :(
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:( I agree. I spent most of my days telling others that I could execute a lot of things but I just needed the time to actaually create them. I’m glad that you’re able to find time to make art for us all to see.
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It's constant struggle in me, making time for work beside my day job. Usually my social life suffer but painting is what makes me truly happy so I manage somehow.
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