26 Before 26

26 Before 26


I decided to go ahead and come up with a twenty-six before twenty-six list this year! I've never done one before, but it seemed like the blogger-y thing to do ;)

I have several things that have been on my to-do list for a long time (finish my furniture projects and my camper), and a few things that I came up with just for this list because they sounded like fun! (Like trying a dragon fruit and knitting a blanket)

I'm not going to put too much pressure on myself, but I'm excited to see how many of these I can knock of the list before my birthday next summer! And of course I will share them with you as I go along!

TWENTY-SIX BEFORE TWENTY-SIX

  1. Try a dragon fruit. They just look so cool!
  2. Perform at an open mic night with Dane!
  3. Finish my camper.
  4. Go camping in finished camper!
  5. Organize my house Marie Kondo style. Specifically my paper situation.
  6. Come up with (and stick to!) a house cleaning schedule.
  7. Work on my photography skills.
  8. Get a puppy! -Done!
  9. Knit a blanket. I think I'm finally ready! -Done! Better late than never...
  10. Try one new recipe every month.
  11. Learn to play the ukulele/mandolin. We already have a mandolin, but ukuleles are so cool!
  12. Plant a vegetable garden.
  13. Pickle some asparagus. Yum!
  14. Make my intsagram account better fit my brand.
  15. Paint all of my furniture projects. Finally.
  16. Go to the beach. -Done.
  17. Make almond roca. I kind of cheated, oops!
  18. Perfect my cupcake frosting skills.
  19. Visit Colorado/another state I haven't been to.
  20. Weave a wall hanging. They are so neat!
  21. Throw a mini food party. Because, mini food!
  22. Go skiing for the first time.
  23. Start doing yoga again and learn a hand stand!
  24. Have a fall themed brunch.
  25. Buy some copper mugs. Put some ginger beer into said mugs ;) - Done!
  26. Finish my stationary line!
I can't wait to get started on these and share them with you all. Wish me luck!

Thanks for stopping by!

Feeling Like One of the Cool Kids Now!

Design
Yesterday I finally upgraded my software! Yeah, you know what that means. I took the plunge and subscribed to Adobe CC and got myself hooked up with all that jazz!

I had put it off for so long because I thought it was something totally out of my price range (turns out, not so much), and because I thought maybe I could do it with much cheaper (as in free) software like Gimp and Inkscape. The longer I've tried to do this though, the more I felt like they were holding me back. Not that I don't think that there weren't ways of creating great products with that software, but as a beginner and someone looking to self teach with tutorials and what-not, there just wasn't as much information on what I wanted to learn. What information there was seemed very confusing and required a lot of digging and headache on my part. 

Now, there are some pros and cons to taking this step. Pro, there are so, so, so many awesome how-tos and tutorials at my fingertips! I have already played around and created a fun little graphic :)




You like it?? I learned how to do it with this tutorial! 

The cons are that now I am paying a monthly subscription for this new product vs. having a free one before, and although there are tutorials galore, I still have to figure out and re-learn a lot of the things that I was pretty used to doing in those other programs.

Over all though, I feel like this was the right step to take, and I am so excited at the possibilities this has opened up for me! 

For a long time I wondered if I wouldn't have been better off if I had gone to college years ago, but honestly I probably wouldn't have gone into the design field then, and I would have wasted a LOT of money. Then there were times more recently when I wondered if I should go now? Maybe get an associates or certificate of some sort in graphic design, but I'm glad I didn't.

I know this is a field where it doesn't necessarily matter if you have that degree under your belt. And I am pretty confident in my ability to self teach the things I need to know. Sometimes I'm a pretty quick learner ;)

I think that joining the cool kids and taking this leap is going to help me out so much, and I am so excited to get to share the things I'm going to create with you all! 

Thanks for following along! I'm thinking there may be some incentive soon to those of you who like to read and support me in this little venture.....maybe along the lines of a giveaway? Stay tuned, you might just get lucky!

Happy Friday everyone, I hope you have a great weekend!

Goals

Blogging
I'm in love with my new planner! It's gotten so much use already. Planner: Sugar Paper LA/Target


I've been thinking a lot lately about goals, both personally and for Brightly Done. I don't usually make new year "resolutions," but I do like to use this time of year as a way to step off on the right foot. Most of the goals I have are consistent ones, that I have all the time, but it seemed like a good idea to reevaluate and share them all here!

Personal Goals

I have been a yo-yo dieter for as long as I have been married. I have lost the same 10-20 pounds, and gained them all back, several times over the last six and a half years! I know this is so terrible for my health, but the good news is that I have gained so many good habits over those years that have stuck. I just know one of these times (hopefully the next time!) that the weight will stay off for good! Luckily, on of my little sisters just got engaged! And we all know what great weight loss motivation it is to be a bridesmaid in a wedding. I have 15-20 pounds to lose, and with a five pound a month goal, so far I'm on the right track.

I never have been known for being organized, but since moving to Idaho and downsizing in living space, I've had to adapt a little. I have had a much easier time keeping up on organization, because we don't have a lot of extra room for me to just stash stuff and "get to it later." I want to keep working on that (because there's still a lot of room for improvement) and maintain my home better in a way that will be more relaxing for both me and Dane! I have found that breaking things down into small daily tasks, and writing them in my planner keeps me more on track.

Next September will be our seven year wedding anniversary, and I've decided we need a vacation! Not that we don't take vacations, but we haven't gone away for our anniversary in years. I have made it a priority to work a few extra days this spring to save up for our trip, so we don't have to worry about fitting it into the regular budget. We are planning a trip to Seaside, OR, which is where we went on our first date and spent a week getting to know each other at the beginning of our relationship. I have wanted to make a trip back ever since, but so far it hasn't worked out. This summer it will be eight years since we've been together! Can I get a cray-cray?!

Goals for Brightly Done

First of all, I will be bringing more content to my blog! I'm so haphazard with my posting, and that's not good. I will be taking more of a planning, organized approach to my blogging, and I feel like that will help a lot. I'm working on new ideas for posts, and might start doing some weekly themed posts soon. I also want to share more in the way of freebies and giveaways, as a way to put myself out there and get people interested in what I'm doing. 

For my business, this is going to be a year of exploration. I have so much to learn still about design, and I hope to gain a lot of valuable information in the coming months. I know I have improved so much since I started, but I also know that there are a lot of ways I'm lacking. I really want to focus on honing my craft this year, big time! Since I started this business,  I have found myself drawn towards several different mediums, and that may not be a great thing. Instead of focusing specifically on one thing (hand lettering) I have spread myself out a bit (calligraphy, water colors). This may not be a terrible thing either, I'm just saying I feel like I need to reign myself in a bit. 

With that being said, first I will be trying out some different things very soon. I plan on having a lot of new listings this spring, of various different products. I have loads of ideas, and some of them aren't necessarily very cohesive. I want to expand my shop though, and find out what sells and what doesn't, and where I want my niche to be. I love greeting cards, but I'm also drawn to stationary and invitations. Do I want to print and sell physical products, or do I want to go the more modern printable route? Should I stick to art prints and cards, or are announcements and invites more my thing? Plus there are tons of other ways I could apply my lettering! What I'm trying to say is that you can expect to see a lot of things from me in the near future, but eventually I will start being more specific in the kinds of things I create. 

I haven't made a sale on Etsy yet, but I'm not too disappointed. I know these things take time, and I feel like with a little more inventory, and a little more marketing, things will start moving. I have done plenty of personal projects though, with more in the works, so I keep myself busy. I am still creating, and still enjoying it so much!

The big goal, whether it happens this year, or further down the line, is to be able to run my blog and business full time instead of having to work outside the home. Hopefully I get to see some good progress on that front in the coming months.


Phew, what a novel! Kudos to you if you made it all the way through. Now this is one thing off my daily to-do list, I should get to tackling the rest!

Thanks for stopping by!

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