Last year I looked back on 2015 on New Year's Eve and it was really eye opening to see all of the amazing things that had happened within a year! Well, 2016 was no exception so I thought I'd do the same again this year!
Last January I spent my Christmas gift money on a GoPro camera, and re-launched my old YouTube channel with all new videos! I've since uploaded many fun videos of step by step designs, product demos, paint kit tours, time lapse paintings and more!
In February I completely re-designed and re-released a new edition of my cheek art face painting book, "Classic Carnival Cheek Art!" The new book has new step by step designs, and is now offered along with a new design menu sheet and mini cheat sheet! I also created a new selection of Easter word menu designs for my custom word menu design service!
In March I was so thrilled to place in Illusion Magazine's "Spring" face painting competition with my honeybee design! I also sold out my first ever workshop, "Achieving Detail with Speed," for local artists here in MN!
In May I had the opportunity to travel to New Jersey to teach at the Northern New Jersey Face and Body Art Guild's monthly meeting, as well as a full day of workshops on "Realism: Raised vs Recessed" and "Achieving Detail with Speed!" It was an AWESOME experience, and my family was able to come out after my workshop for a few days of touring New York City!
This past August I enjoyed my 4th year painting at the Carver County Fair! It was my best county fair yet, and I also had fun utilizing my GoPro again to record some real time cheek art!
In September I hosted my first ever belly paint jam! It's something I had been wanting to do for a long time, and with several pregnant friends (including a pregnant face painter friend), it really all came together nicely! What an awesome opportunity for artists to create masterpieces without the pressure of a paying client!
October was one of the most amazing opportunities of my career by far! My husband and I traveled to Belgium (happened to fall over our 17th anniversary), where I taught "Realistic Eyes" at the Jamvention! It was absolutely incredible on so many levels, and I really hope to go back again in the future!
This December didn't disappoint! I had a couple new opportunities arise. One was the chance to dress in full elf wear for an event I painted at for another agent, so I created my first ever elf costume...it was a blast! I also had the opportunity to work as a glass painter, decorating perfume bottles for a private event at Nordstrom's!
So What does 2017 hold?
And now I enter my "dead season!" However, the dead season is anything but dead for me. I honestly look forward to this time of year, as I've stock piled a list of things I want to accomplish throughout my busier months. I catch up on housekeeping, soak up lots of FABATV, and tackle new challenges. I'm planning to get back to working on my next book of course, but there's more...
One of the things I've decided is to take online classes in accounting! Yup...I know, it's the opposite of the creative stuff I love. But the accounting side of my business and working with Quickbooks causes so much stress in my life, I've decided to put my money where my bad, frustrated language is and do something about it!! SO, I am taking a series of online courses through Coursera to earn a certificate in accounting, on my path to becoming a better business owner.
Of course, this sort of thing completely sucks the creative energy out of me, so to counteract this, I have given myself a really awesome creative challenge for the year. I'll begin it tomorrow, January 1st, so be sure to check back tomorrow as I kick off one of my most ambitious personal challenges yet!!
Happy new year, and happy painting!!
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