September is here and this month our youngest daughter goes to University for the first time. Things will feel very different here because it will be the beginning of the empty nest years...
When I began my art business both our girls were toddlers. In fact it began before that, because I was casually freelancing after having our eldest daughter, taking on occasional graphic design jobs and the odd anniversary portrait commission here and there.
During that time I had my eye on the handmade market to see what opportunities there were and learn how I could get started. That led me to setting up my first Blogger Blog, which was really where it all began for me. Which is why this return to blogging feels a bit like coming home...
From that community of blogs all those years ago, I've seen many creatives go on to carve out successful businesses from humble beginnings. Often from kitchen tables or between baby naps. It is how marketplace sites like Etsy and Not On The High Street grew into the huge sites they are today (although looking at the recent actions of both those sites, it seems they've forgotten who it was that helped them grow - but that is a whole other story).
From these blogging beginnings, a global creative community of small businesses all encouraging, sharing, teaching and buying from each other, grew into a thriving industry. Which collectively makes up a very significant slice of the economy (why else would sites like Amazon, Temu etc try to muscle in on the 'handmade' sector).
I learnt so much, met so many amazing people and grew my art practice into something that supported me while I could be a stay at home mum as our girls grew up. As did many of the other wonderful creative women I met along the way...
It’s hard to comprehend that those years have whizzed by, but at the same time so many changes have come into place that those days seem like a lifetime away.
In some ways it feels like, with the onslaught of generative A.I. content polluting those same spaces these creative communities have inhabited for years, that the time has come for something fresh to cater for this creative community again. Makers are always going to make and more often than not, they will buy from other makers. Surely someone is going to tap into that huge potential again soon, right? (there is always hope)...
So here I am, at the start of a new term and a new chapter in my life, wondering where it’s going to go next. Feeling a little daunted, nervous and excited all at the same time. Much like a University fresher in so many ways.
However, it feels right to use my creativity to get through this stage. To lean in and fill the silence with my art practice. It’s a start, not unlike the start I made all those years ago with my first posts on blogger - and look where that beginning has led me...
As September begins, I have sharpened my coloured pencils, cleaned my brushes and palettes, dusted off my sketchbook and am very much ready to start practicing again to see where it leads me this time.
