Stephanie Fizer Illustration

Dear lovely customers and blog readers, 

Although this might be surprising, I have actually NOT dropped off the face of the planet :)  I'm still here, working away on processing the last of the pile of orders from my Heartsy feature last week.  The pile is down to just 20 more orders, which will be posted today!

Then I'll be back to my usual happy craziness.  New stuff is coming soon, to my shop and to my website which I'm almost finished redesigning, so it will less quiet around here--well sort of around here, but more on that later!  

For now, I've got a small poll over on my Facebook page, scroll down to about the 4th or 5th item to check it out.  I'm thinking about phasing out my small 3.5 x 5 inch notecards and introducing some that are a bit larger and I'd love to know what you think, so head on over to the page to share your opinion!

Wishing you a lovely day,

Steph Fizer Coleman :)

Bits, Pieces and Heartsy

Here's a kind of self-portrait from a tutorial I did for my Inspired Doodles online workshop today.  The workshop wraps up officially tomorrow and I can quite honestly say that it's been so much fun to teach!  

I'll be doing another session of Inspired Doodles later in the year, probably during the month of August.  I'll be posting final details here and on my Facebook page as soon as I've worked everything out!

And one more fun thing for this weekend:  I'm going to be featured on Heartsy this coming Sunday, May 1.  If you're not familiar with Heartsy, it's sort of like Living Social or Groupon, but with handmade items from Etsy sellers.  

For my feature, I'll be offering a $30 store voucher for $13, which I think is a pretty awesome deal.  You'll be able to purchase the vouchers starting at 8am PST on Sunday May 1.  And if you're a VIP Heartsy member, you can purchase a day early on Saturday and you get an extra $10 on your voucher for free.  

I'll be sending out a reminder of the Heartsy deal to my mailing list on Sunday morning, along with an extra discount code to use with your Heartsy voucher, so if you haven't joined my mailing list yet, click on the link over on the right to sign up.  

Now I've got lots of new illustrations to finish up over this weekend, so I'm off!

Enjoy your weekend!

Hello, I'm Back!

After nearly a two week break from the social networking scene, I've been slowly working my way back into being connected again.  First Twitter, then some Facebook and now a new blog post!  

I used my social networking break to catch up on some work and to figure out why I've felt so off kilter for pretty much all of 2011 so far.  And what I've figured out is that I've become too much of a yes girl this year.  I've been saying yes to everything:  new projects, family stuff, friend stuff, projects around my house and whatever else has come along.  No matter what the question, my answer has pretty much been Yes! for 2011.  

The problem with being a yes girl is that eventually you've got so many things going on its not possible to get any of them done.  And that's where I was a couple of weeks ago.  

I had to come to terms with the fact--again--that I just can't do everything.

So I've been working over the last few days to find that delicate balance again, the point where I am happily busy but not ridiculously overwhelmed.  To some extent that means shelving some projects for now, mostly several around the house projects that can be pushed back a few days or a few weeks.  

And it means bringing my focus back to my work. 

In 2011, I've been trying out working with more of a schedule.  I try to not work after 6pm and I try to not work on the weekends.  I've really been keeping up with this goal but I've found that it's having the opposite of the intended effect:  It's made me a feel a bit empty and honestly, it feels a bit like a punishment.  

I love my work and while I don't want to get back in the habit of overworking myself, I am giving myself permission to work whenever I darn well please.

I've learned so far that if I work about 40 hours a week, I have just enough time to keep up with my business--ship orders, answer emails, work on commissions and freelance projects--but I have no time to work on new ideas and illustrations and I end up feeling a bit creatively sort of blah.  So for me, I need longer hours to feel creatively fulfilled.  And I'm ok with that as long as I can still maintain some bit of balance between my work and my friends/family life.  

To that end I've decided to make some changes here on my blog as well.  

*I'm cancelling my 52 Creative Weeks Project.  While, I've enjoyed it immensely, it's just another thing on my already too long to do list for week, so I'm letting it go.  I'll still be posting tutorials and short projects, just not on a weekly basis.  

*I'm planning on sharing more of my illustrating work here.  You'll see lots of new prints, but you'll also see some work that I'm doing for my portfolio, some work I've done for freelance clients and some work that I'm doing just for fun.  I want this blog to get back to focusing on my work, that's why I started it!

Overall, I've enjoyed my little social networking hiatus but I'm happy to be back in the fold.  

*PS--I'll be sending info about a new shop item and a special discount to my mailing list later this evening.  If you're not signed up already, you can click on the Join the Mailing List graphic over on the right to sign up now.  

Taking a Social Networking Hiatus. . .

Yep, it's time for the annual social networking hiatus.  I love being plugged in all the time as much as the next gal, but sometimes between blogging, Facebook and Twitter it all just becomes quite overwhelming and honestly a bit stifling.  

So I'm taking a breather for a week, maybe two, maybe more if I feel like it.  

The blog will be quiet as will my Facebook page.  

You might see me pop up every now and then on Twitter to say hello.  

But for the most part, I'll be spending time in my studio.  Enjoying the social media quiet.  Focusing on my own work and thinking about where I want to take my business next.  I'll be working on some personal projects, adding new work to my portfolio, revamping my website and adding new work to my Etsy shop.  

I'll still be shipping orders reguarly and keeping up with my emails and Etsy convos.  

I'll be doing a bit of soul searching and a whole lot of planning.  

I'll be enjoying the beginning of spring and all that lovely things that come along with it.  

I'm excited about the things I have in mind for the future, but need some quiet time to work out the hows and the whys.  

And I'll be focusing on my current online workshop, Inspired Doodles, which just in the first week has left me feeling inspired and overwhelmed with creative possibilities.  

So although it will be quiet here in my little corner of the internet, I'll still be working away behind the scenes and I'll be back soon with new work to share with you.  In the mean time, keep your eyes on my Etsy shop, I'll be adding new prints and maybe a few new products soon.  

For now, I'll leave you with a few photos I snapped this morning of my now blooming creeping phlox:

 

 

Saying Hello + 52 Creative Weeks

Wow, I can hardly believe that it is 2011.  I remember when I was much younger imagining that everything would be so futuristic in 2011; turns out, not so much.  

2010 was an awesome year:  I got married, continued to grow my business, taught my first e-course, landed some pretty fantastic freelance illustration projects and just generally enjoyed all the good things that came my way.  I also conquered my big resolution for 2010:  work smarter, not harder.  For me this involved learning to let go a bit, admitting that I sometimes need help, examining my shipping and business practices and starting to work with some outside printers to produce a wider range of products.  It also involved looking at how I take care of household duties and finding more ways to take care of them more efficiently and in less time.  The whole process of working smarter, not harder now has me in the habit of examining all of my processes in my work life and in my regular life, figuring out better ways to do even the simplest tasks.  

So what did I do with all the time I freed up by working smarter, not harder?  Well, honestly, I mostly just worked  more.  It is seriously difficult to flip the switch off when your career is your passion.  But part of my resolution for 2011 is to use some of that free time for me time. This year I'd like to take guilt-free days off and get back in touch with my social life.  

But my big resolution for 2011 is really a project.  You might notice this new graphic in the left sidebar:

 

This year I've decided to get back to exploring my personal creativity, which probably sounds crazy given that my business allows me to be creative every day.  But that's just it, although I get to draw/sketch/illustrate every day, the vast majority of the time, I'm drawing/sketching/illustrating for freelance jobs or for new products in my shop or for commissioned pieces.  And while you won't here me complaining, while I still love every second of every day of it, it's still so refreshing to just sit down to do something creative just for me, just because I want to.  

So for 2011, I'm giving myself time to do one personal creative project a week, anything I want to work on:  drawing, painting, snapping some photos, working on creative stuff to spruce up my house, anything.  

I'm already feeling the creative sparks flying!

And of course, I'm going to share my creative journey here.  

I tinkered with the idea of starting a whole new blog to catalog my 52 Creative Weeks, but in the end I've decided to write about my experiences here right along with the rest of my ramblings.  So at the beginning of each week, I'll be popping in to talk about what my creative project for the week is going to be.  Then later on in the week I'll be back to talk about the finished project and share photos or illustrations or whatever.  

This will all just be part of the regular posting here on the blog--which by the way got a facelift today, what do you think?--but if it anytime you'd like to just see posts from the 52 Creative Weeks series, you can click on the pretty graphic in the left sidebar!

I've got a tiny list started of projects for my 52 Creative Weeks and am so excited to get started on them. 

Other new years news:

-If you haven't registered yet, there are still a few spots for the February session of Flourish, my e-course geared towards helping you get your creative business off the ground.  

-And I'll be releasing a few Valentine's Day products in the next couple of days including school valentines like these:

Looking forward to sharing my creative experiences in 2011!

 

 

 

Winter Cheer

Here's a cute something I drew today.  Now that the holiday madness is beginning to wind down, I'm turning some of my attention to working on some new pieces to add to my portfolio.  And I'm focusing on creating some work that is more ethnically diverse now too.  

It's hard for me to believe that Christmas is on Saturday!  I'm currently patting myself on the back for being much more prepared and organized this holiday season, so my stress was a minimum, at least as far as my little shop.  Everything ran incredibly smoothly and there were almost no meltdowns--unlike last year when my husband came home from work one day to find me sitting in my studio crying.  Yeah.  

Business is up and craziness is down, that's how I like it.  And I think a lot of it has to do with my 2010 mission to Work Smarter, Not Harder.  But I'll talk more about that next week.  

For now, I just want to wish everyone a lovely and safe holiday.  I'll be taking a small break from business-related stuff, although I now I'll still be up here in my studio working on new things--I just can't be expected to stop that, I love it too much.  Hopefully at some point I'll be baking some cookies and other sweets.  I'll certainly catch up on a bit of reading--I've just realized that I'm in the middle-ish of about 5 books right now!

Wishing you all the best,

Steph :)

Flourish e-Course February 2011 Registration

Hello lovelies!

Although registrations have been trickling in over the last couple of weeks, I wanted to officially announce today that registration for the February 2011 session of my e-course, Flourish, is officially open.

This will be the only session of the course I'll be offering for 2011, so if you've been wanting to take part, this is your chance.  Hop on over to the registration page to learn more about the course itself and to secure your spot.

I'm also happy to announce that for the February 2011 session, Juliette Crane will be joining me as my assistant instructor to share her personal experiences in a growing a creativity-based business.  I'm really looking forwarding to working with Juliette and I'm sure that you will enjoy learning from her as well.  

As always, if you have questions before you register, feel free to contact me.

Gift Tags Inspired by Betz White

Happy Friday, lovelies!  

Today has been all about packaging orders, sipping hot cocoa, enjoying the snow flurries out my window and listening to holiday tunes streaming on Pandora.  So I figured since I'm so very much in the holiday mood, it would be a good day to share some pics of my holiday gift wrapping.  

I always try to add a little handmade touch to my gift wrapping without making it so complicated that I'll never get it finished.  This year I happened to see this post from the uber talented Betz White and I thought the little rosettes would make particularly sweet toppers for gifts. 

So I dug sheets and sheets of colorful felt out of my craft supplies and set to making rosettes by following Betz's tutorial(although mine don't look nearly as pretty as hers do!).  You know me, I'm not traditional when it comes to holiday colors, so I made rosettes in all sorts of colors:  pink, red, white, blue, green and yes, orange!

I also happened to have a sheet of festive glittery dark green felt so I used this to snip individual little leaves for the rosettes.  

And because I wanted to double these toppers as gift tags, I used a 3 inch punch to make pretty scalloped circles.  And voila!

I used a dab of hot glue to secure the leaves and the rosettes to the white circle tags and then either taped or hot glued the tags to the packages--depending on whether they were staying at our house or being dragged all around to be gifted :D  

 

Sadly, a certain adorable dog feasted on a few of the rosettes, tags and the packages themselves.  It was quite a little mess, but balance has been restored in the world.  New rosettes and tags were made for packages and no gifts were harmed.  But of course, all of my lovely gifts are no longer residing under my lovely Christmas tree but on my dining room table instead.  

She looks totally innocent, right?  

 

 

 

 

Happy Halloween!

Is it really already the end of October?  That's so hard for me to believe, as always this year seems to have just flown by and now we are teetering on the edge of the holiday season.  

I have to admit that fall has been a teensy bit disappointing for me this year.  We had a terrible hot and dry summer so the majority of the leaves just turned brown and shriveled up although we're lucky to have a few maples still burning bright yellow, reds and oranges.  The tree in our backyard gave about half an effort:

That was before Tuesday's severe winds stripped most of the leaves from the trees.  I've always so sad to see the leaves go because I know that freezing cold can't be far behind.  

Another small disappointment for me:  we toasted pumpkin seeds this year for the first time in ages and I didn't love them:

We tried a couple of different recipes but although I love the smell and find them to be quite homey, I guess I just don't really like pumpkin seeds.  

But we still had a blast carving our pumpkins:

That's Seth's big toothy pumpkin and my tiny pumpkin owl.  And yes, they do match the walls in my kitchen.  Sadly, since my tripod seems to have used its legs to relocate itself I couldn't get a good photo of the pumpkins at night.  Maybe next year!  

Leia really digs this cooler weather and has gotten in the habit of burrowing up with our down comforter when we get out of bed in the mornings.  She is the cutest pup ever!  

Now before I sign off for the Halloween weekend of fun, a couple of shop tidbits:  

-on Monday I'll be releasing a surprise limited edition calendar that may or may not have something to do with the monthly series of illustrations I worked on this year.

-and I'm working another batch of necklaces and brooches to be released in the next couple of weeks that will more than likely be the last jewelry pieces before the new year.  So keep your eyes peeled if you've got your heart set on a special jewelry pieces for gift giving!  

That it for me.  Do you have any special plans for the Halloween weekend?

New Name, New Hair, Same Me

I don't know if it's like this for everyone, but I've been agonizing over whether or not to change my last name pretty much since I got engaged last year, constantly waffling back and forth and never really reaching a decision.  Lucky for me, the state of NC, where I got married doesn't require you to make that decision when you apply for a marriage license, so I got a few more weeks to worry over it.  

In the end, I've decided to add my husband's name to my name, but still keep my last name as well.  Best of both worlds, right?  What it came down to was a matter of convenience.  In the long run, I'm sure I will be glad that I did it.  I'm sure that it will make life much simpler.  And as far as my business is concerned, I will still be Stephanie Fizer.  

I'll admit, I may have shed a tear or two on the way to the DMV to make my name change official.  I felt like I was having some crazy identity crisis or something, as if I was admitting that the old Stephanie wasn't good enough so let's just try a new version.  Weird, right?  

Anyway, to celebrate the name change and cheer myself up, I also decided to go with a big hair change as well.  After wearing my hair long for the last couple of years, I've gone back to my sassy above the shoulder 'do:  

 

And you know what the funny but awesome thing is?  After a new name and new hair, I'm still the same fantastic me that I've always been.  And now it just seems silly that I worried so much about adding his name to mine.