I like setting goals for my business. I set really lofty goals and try to hit my targets, but when I'm setting those goals I forget that life is often busy and my business goals will undoubtedly take a back seat to the really important things like family. That's okay, though because goals are a… Continue reading The vision for 2020
I work a full time job in an entirely different industry from the art world. That leaves me scrambling to create content for Instagram, get my portfolio updated (and post the updates to my artist website sandandchi.com) Once all of that is done, I have to finish collections, design new elements, make new patterns...and the… Continue reading My December organizational binge
I love symmetry and balance. I have a gallery wall in my living room with a collection of nautical art that has circles, squares, rectangles, and ovals all perfectly balanced with a large picture in the center. It looks a little like this: I spent hours measuring odd shaped pictures and hunting through my collection… Continue reading Beautifully organized chaos
I've had a successful career in another field for over 20 years. When things got stressful or discouraging I sought solace in the same place again and again - my art studio. Painting, drawing, and designing have carried me through some of the worst times in my life and have also given me some of… Continue reading Making art my second career
I've been going through a revamping of the Sand & Chi brand since this past summer. I've really been trying to focus on a cohesive style instead of just producing a rather random mix of patterns and prints in various forms. One of the things I did in the process was to look at my… Continue reading Why there is so much orange in my portfolio
For many years now, my entire house has been used as my art studio. I would paint watercolor florals at my kitchen table because the light was good. I would set my easel up in the living room and paint with the front door open so I had the light streaming in and no glare… Continue reading My biggest summer project: the studio/office redo!
It's been one whole year since I started designing patterns in an organized way - in other words, actually running my hobby as a business. I've been designing for years now, but I made a shift last year to exclusively designing patterns (instead of producing paintings and illustrations as canvas works). Truthfully, it has become… Continue reading Narrowing the focus of my art & design business
I'm starting to build a new collection of textiles for a bedroom. The feel should be soft, organic, and very restful - but the bedding is going to stay completely white (there's an ultra soft microfiber duvet cover and pillow shams that must remain). In order to design something that will fit the space seamlessly,… Continue reading I’m starting a new collection of eclectic and organic themed textiles.
