Change is good, but change is tough. I can't say things are all rosy and golden since my big tell-all post (did I really tell all? that just sounds so dramatic!) I'm really excited to launch all the new things I've been working on, including those books. Oh man, those books. Is it possible to have a love affair with one of your own projects? I think yes. But there are still more big decisions to make, and things to figure out and plans to make. And visions to figure out.
But I can still say I'm very comfortable where I'm at in all this chaos. I'm a really great dreamer. Day dreamer that is, ambitious dreamer - I never remember my night time dreamings. That sometimes makes me sad, because I wake feeling like I dreamt something amazing, but no memories. That sucks. But whatever. That's life.
So, speaking of those books, the Troll one is actually almost finished so I wanted to share a bit of that. People are often a bit confused about this one. I'm not 5 years old, and what the hell is a troll anyhow? This is why I had to write it. And it fits in nicely with the Midsummer Fairy Tale. This little companion book is an introduction to Trolls, for you North Americans who still think that Trolls are the same things as Yeti or Sasquatch (pft, come on now!) I can say now, that it's the first in a series. I've already started on the next stories. Oh yeah, so much Troll love coming your way.
Here's a sneak peek of the covers (above) and some of the inside pages (see most of you probably didn't know there were different types of Trolls, did you?). This book will actually launch before the Midsummer book. Can't say much more than that as I'm still working out the details. Soon though. Very soon.
Here in the Great North today is a Holiday. Happy Birthday Queen Victoria, thanks for the extra day of sleeping in and drinking tea in my jammies. And working from the comfort of my sofa.
I don't usually travel during long weekends, because pretty much everyone else is and I hate traffic. So I'll be heading out of town next weekend, for a couple of days in the deep woods of Algonquin Park, for what my good friend Amy likes to call Chill the Fuck out time. Sounds good to me. And apparently there are a ton of Moose out and about in the park, and Amy and I love Moose! But the point is, I had to work extra hard to catch up on a ton of work this weekend to be able to take next weekend off for adventures. And man, there is a ton of work on the go! But it's good. All good. I got to spend a lot of time designing and bringing this story of mine to life, and that felt awesome. I still struggle with that that nagging voice that reminds me of all the other little things that need my attention, but sometimes you just need to muzzle her and stay the course. A lot of my stationery friends are in NY right now, doing what most stationery designers need to do to get noticed, the National Stationery Show. But I took a pass again this year, still just doesn't feel like my path. Some people don't get it, but that's ok, we've all got our own paths to follow. I'm 100% confident that I'm exactly where I need to be (at least career wise, we all know that my heart truly lies in the wild, not in the city ;)
I mean, this weekend wasn't ALL work and no play - I did get a chance to go out and play with Steff (the other half of Pickled Herring), trying to hunt down a colouring book for her can prove to be quite the experience! I mean so many people still haven't gotten on the adult colouring book craze. And that doesn't make us Hipsters (well apparently I'm getting close, but whatever), trust me you should try it after a shitty day. Colouring Therapy is a thing. We've also got some big things coming up for our collaboration Pickled Herring Designs. So much good stuff coming for you guys and gals.
There's just a bit more than a month to go until the Midsummer Collection launches, although the books will have a bit of a later release - I'm working on a event to mark their debut in the beginning of July (hopefully I'll be able to tell you more about that soon!) So considering the rest of the collection one big ass sneak peak into the book set. I'm so excited for everyone to see it. I'm excited to see the finished product myself.
If you follow me on Facebook and/or Instagram you got another sneak peek today as I posted some more pics pulled from the artwork. I think I'll continue to do that as we head into the final stretch of spring.
Since you guys enjoyed yesterday's youthful photo, I thought I'd throw a couple more in today, just for fun. I have no idea what I'm up to on the left, but on the right that was me and my Crayola Carousel - all those markers and paints and crayons... I was so excited when I got that. Then proceeded to make full use of it all over that hideous wallpaper (gotta love the early 80s!)
Midsummer is coming. And it's long overdue.
So now you know, I took some time off from the push to grow thunderpeep the stationery company. It was the best thing I could have done. I took time to find myself again, and brought that back to thunderpeep as well. The 2 of us are stronger as one unit than 2 battling sides.
All those things I said I'd love to do when I had some time, I did them. Well ok, not ALL of them as that big trip didn't come together as planned, but I'm not sad about that because so much goodness came out of the past couple of months (and now the plan is to be spending the New Year in Iceland and a bucket load of time travelling across it and Norway)
Now, first off let me make one thing clear. I do really love making funny cards. No, it's not what I started out doing, but it's the side of the business that really took off. And I'm so grateful that it did, it opened so many doors and helped me grow as a businesswoman and artist. And the cards aren't going anywhere. The world still needs them (and I already have a few new ones ready to go later this spring. They're really good too). But my creative soul needs to get back home. As I started to look inwards and rethink the business, I started to really look and judge it. What would it look like if I stayed the path with the current plan. It was already getting to be too much for me to handle on my own. I was working endless nights just on the business and production sides, where was the creative side? And while that's a part of small creative business, if I'm not 100% in love with it, am I going to be fully committed. Well, the answer is of coarse No. I was starting to feel like I was making things for others again, not for the joy of making them. What would sell, what is on trend, what shows to do to get my name out there. Did I want to go full into a wholesale world that really doesn't always value the artist. (that's a strong statement and is why I'm very selective with the stores that carry my products. There needs to be a relationship between maker and vendor for me. I hate big box stores, I don't shop at them, why would I want my products in them - I'll avoid them as long as I can. This is not a common point of view though, if you are setting out yourself into the wholesale world with your craft, do what is comfortable for you. I love all my vendors and am proud to sell in their shops!)
This is when I re-discovered my journal from Finland. Remembered where I started. What I wanted to accomplish. What I really loved doing. And then one day I sat down and tuned out the world and wrote that story I keep saying I wanted to do, but never had the time to fully devote to. It was one of the greatest creative highs I've ever experienced. And the new and improved but back to the old thunderpeep started to take shape.
The Midsummer collection has been a sad non-event the past couple of years. It was always prep for spring shows and then christmas had to be ready in May and then it's summer shows. It made me so sad to not be exploring those characters, and stories. So the first order of business was to bring that collection back, Bitter and More Badass than ever. And it is. It more than makes up for the past 2 years. And it's not even half finished. Above is your first sneak peek of the story, it's not much but you can let your own imaginations run wild with it. I'll write a post all about the process of writing the book too, as the launch gets closer. There's a whole collection of goodies that are spawning out of the book, and for the first time we are kind of sneaking in on Family Friendly territory. Well maybe only kinda sorta… I'll let you be the judge, I don't want to be scaring kids out of the forest!
Then, I HAD to bring my Troll friends back. And it kind of fits in with the fairy tale. I mean, you had to know there were trolls in that story, right? So there's a little companion book for all my North American friends who seem confused by Trolls (NO they are not the same as yeti's, not even related)
And this is just the start. I LOVED writing and illustrating these books. It was an excuse to get lost in my own imagination. There is already a plan for books for the Polar Nights collection this winter.
It's all about the stories. All about the stories (sorry if I got that song stuck in your head right there)
As for the blog, I want to create a more personal space here. That can mean so many things, but I want it be full of things and stories to inspire, to create to laugh at and to share. My goal is to remind us all to really look at the world around us, to see all the small details, to be an active participant in your life and the world around you. I might even have some of the Trolls come and guest post. No seriously, that's going to happen!
For now, I'm still here in Toronto. I still have things to do here, for a little while longer. On a side note: one thing that I'm really excited about, something I really enjoy, is my role with The Toronto Etsy Street team, helping other makers in Toronto to grow and learn and share and inspire. Giving back is such an important part of living. You may remember from last Fall that we organized the flagship Toronto edition of the Made in Canada show. I love all the work I get to do with the team but am SO excited for all the amazing things we're working on right now in regards to this years show. It's really fulfilling to be able to be involved in this creative community, and to work with the group of women that make up the leadership team with TEST, but being able to give something this awesome back to all the other small creative businesses who work so damn hard, is also extremely personal for me. As much as I love so many designers and companies from around the world, I'm a huge cheerleader for the Shop Local movement, and Canada has so many, so many fantastic makers, it's important to make sure they get the attention they deserve. You'll hear lot's about the show from me as it approaches, and wherever you are (if you're in Canada that is) hopefully you're close to one of the other 30 shows that'll be happening across the country!}
But let's end this epic blog post now. It's time to move forward. And so I can stop talking about myself for at least a couple more months...
One day I'll live in the mountains again. It may not be in Vancouver, or even Canada. But I'll be there again, and have some awesome new Troll friends to hang out with.
They may not be Trolls but Monsters are still fun too. As I'm writing this I'm overly excited that OMAM are coming to Toronto this September and I can't wait to see them again. I love them almost as much as Troll stories. Maybe Toronto's not so bad after all…
again. I officially pledge there will be no more of these radio silence apology posts. For serious my friends. I'm pinky swear promising you.
So, as you might have gathered, a lot has been going on over here. Both for the business and personally. And it's all good. Really good.
But I'm not going to tell you right now. You'll have to wait until Sunday. The last pieces of a thunderpeep re-launch are coming together and on Sunday I'll start sharing it with you. Because building this blog back up is towards to the top of the To-Do list.
For now I'll bid you a happy Friday. There's tons of sunshine in the forecast here in Toronto, hopefully spring has sprung where you are too. Or, somewhere in the Southern Hemisphere (like our friend Your Hearts Haven who's currently exploring gorgeous New Zealand) Happy Fall!
So, if you've been following the blog for a little bit you'll know how much I love the Icelandic band Of Monsters and Men. No seriously I feel like I'm in love with their music sometimes.
I know, but whatever!
So they released their first new single in what feels like forever, on Monday. And it's perfect. Even this lyric video they did to launch it. Only OMAM could pull this off and still be super cool. And I really need to know who this man is - he looks like Fun!
So, on this day when I send my the Midsummer fairly tale out to be looked over by the first set of eyes that aren't mine, well this song just sort of fit. (FYI my story is one of Midsummer Forest Adventures)
So, I'm still struggling with the whole social media thing right now. The whole blogging thing. The whole life thing. I've always felt that it has to be natural, I'm not one to follow really fake or overly salesy accounts, so why would anything I put out there be? When you're not sure where you're at, that gets difficult to express.
So I just haven't been posting so much lately. I haven't been very natural in my own head of late, and that's not an easy thing to share. You just can't instagram that kind of confusing shit ;)
I've been slowly finding myself again (and yes I will eventually post about it, but it's still too personal to share) But this weekend I took some time to fully shut it all out and I guess kind of hit the reboot. Computers were down, phone was on DND and I set about doing what I really wanted to do.
You Guys, I wrote a tale.
I know I've been saying it was on the roster of to-dos.
I WROTE MY FIRST STORY. I wrote a fairy tale story. And it has Trolls in it.
And it felt really fucking awesome!
I mean I had no idea where to start, so I just started. And didn't stop. Life is pretty sweet when you know you are exactly where you're supposed to be. And when you're passionate about something it's easy, no matter how messy and complicated it may appear to be!
Stop putting off the things you are really passionate about. Life is too short.
PS. Sorry for all the potty mouth, I promise there is none of that in my story ;)
