Approaching Shift

I'm honored and flattered by all the comments I've received on my Illustration Friday drawing for this week - thanks everyone! A little encouragement sure can go a long way. I feel like I've been fumbling around here on the Internet for SO long without a peep - trying all sorts of things to try and get my business off the ground with not much luck. And then I go and start doing stuff purely for my own enjoyment and what do you know ... things start working.

I guess, in a way I'm trying to lead into a post I've been meaning to write for a long time. A post about my personal tug o' war with the art business. I've been working on my Rekoj line drawings since... well... 2001? And then in 2003 I started painting those lines direct onto clothing through my involvement in the now disbanded Olympia Clothing Project. This picture is of one of my shirts in an old O.C.P. window display. It was an exciting time in an exciting collective - the Green Design movement was just getting started and the Oly Clothing Project was right there on the forefront. We were a group of artists who banded together to run retail space dedicated to independent designer goods - most of which featured recycled or upcycled materials. It was a hit of the Oly fashion scene and we all did pretty good until sadly, we lost our space due to a leaky roof in 2006. PaperDoll Fashion, Ruffeo Hearts Lil Snotty, Baddins and Aidan Koch all have their roots in the Olympia Clothing Project along with me. PaperDoll and Ruffeo Hearts seem to be doing pretty spectacular since they made the jump out of the O.C.P. and over to Etsy. And me... well, I've been floundering ever since.

I only have recently admitted that to myself. My line drawings on rescued clothing just hasn't done as well outside of the O.C.P. incubator. They don't carry that "Oly Hip" vibe on their own. I'm just a little to artsy perhaps. Or... more likely than anything else I just haven't been as dedicated. I've been pretty sporadic since I started on Etsy and it really has only been in the last 3 months that I've even started listing regularly. But even with that it hasn't been my clothing that I'm listing regularly. It's been the pendants. And now, Etsy is just so HUGE that even that doesn't matter anymore. My work gets buried too fast to even make a dent. I bought a couple of Etsy showcase spots though - one of them being today. We'll see what comes of that...

I guess what I'm trying to admit is that I am beginning to come to terms with the fact that all I want to do is draw. I find peace in those line drawings. I find my joy and my expression. It doesn't matter what I draw them on. And drawing on paper sure is easier than clothing that's for sure!

What does this mean as far as the future of my business? I'm still working that out.
Am I worried about it? Not really.

One thing I do know though is that I sure am excited for my next Illustration Friday assignment.

Thanks again to everyone who has taken the time to comment - you really have made my day!