Weekly WrapUp June 17

Welcome

On most Wednesdays, check this blog for a strategy, process, or reflection for illustration with the iPad app ProCreate or Affinity Designer. This week I attended Denise Nakrents’ Profitable Artist Summit and Liz Kohler Brown’s Summer School.

Summer School

It’s been a busy week with two summits. Liz Kohler Brown’s Summer School takes us through an entire project from concept to product design and upload. In the photo on the left you can see my research notes for a project including sketches and researched links to find relevant niche trends and keywords. The second photo is of the product illustration with a mug mockup.

I spent the day researching Etsy, Spoonflower, and Red Bubble for trends, keywords, and a possible niche. Since it’s a “crunch” course, I needed to choose something. I considered salt/pepper shakers/condiment sort of things for picnics and summer fun.

In the left photo you can see a pattern of salt/pepper shakers I made a while ago, so it’s something I’ve been thinking about, and I searched for vintage shakers and found several ideas. I turned the squirrel and acorn into my first product illustration and mockup. Click the right image to enlarge.

Tomorrow we vectorize, ready to include on any size or product. It’s quite the process, and I’m loving it.

Profitable Artist Summit

As you can see, the summit was prolific — in order to get to profitable. We learned many things not artifacts, but information: working in print on demand, strategies for products and trends, and various mentorship ideas.

With Gabrielle Brickey we learned watercolor techniques as a creative part of the summit to build a collection. [cupcake, olives]. Delores took us through flower design in Affinity Designer [trailing purple pattern]. Jennifer Nichols provided Procreate pattern strategies [the coordinate pattern in different color ways]. And Shell taught us how to vectorize lettering from Procreate to Affinity Designer.

A very busy summit; I have more to watch! Check it out next year!

On My Own

A dwarf mallow– inspired by my yard

Thanks for stopping by!

Attending summits from talented artists and art coaches provides a boost in information and strategies to keep going.

You can find many helpful artists teachers on my Artist Resources  page. Take a look at their IG and YouTube. Find one that fits your learning and art preferences and stick with them a while to develop your skills. 

You’re welcome to follow this blog for art inspiration. We can share with #warmup4art to enjoy our work together! I look forward to your sharing and find me at @42Sheri, on Mastodon Sheri42, on Flickr teach.eagle Sheri 42. And, I’m so thankful you’ve been joining me with art this year! Take care!