Life Update Blog🌳 (End of July/Beginning of August) (Patreon)

Hello hello, my loves! 🌸How has your summer been going so far? (Or winter for those of you down under.) I hope you have had a chance to take at least a little time to relax, though I know how hard it can be to find that relaxation time sometimes.

I just returned home from a trip back to Utah, the place where I grew up. It is always quite a journey to go back to the western part of the US. Usually around 20ish hours of travel each way that starts with catching a 3:30 am bus to the airport. Phew! And let me tell you, the bus and train station were SHOCKINGLY busy for a Sunday at 3:30 in the morning! Seriously, what are so many people doing out and about at that time?!

Once I was there, I spent most of the trip on one mountain or another. 

First, I did a little backpacking excursion in the Uinta Mountains, near Wyoming. 

What you need to know about traveling or backpacking with me is that I tend to have horrible luck when it comes to adventures like this.  Without fail, we WILL get lost.  Even if I am with someone who has been on that same trail a million times, I can guarantee that if you are with me, we will lose that trail and spend at least a couple hours trudging through the swamps of Vietnam trying to find our way! This trip was no different.  

We did indeed lose the trail and spent a few hours bushwhacking as we walked up and down the mountain side trying to get back on the trail and find a place to set up camp. 

Then, just as we found the trail and an area to set up camp, it started storming. And we didn't bring a tent. 

It was my first time camping with just hammocks, which would have been great if not for the rain. We did have some cheap ponchos (mine had a hole in it), so we constructed a little roof with the poncho over the hammock to try and keep out at least some of the rain. Luckily, the rain did let up by the time we went to sleep, and even when it drizzled in the night, it wasn't too windy, so I was mostly protected from the water. 

In addition to camping in questionable weather, I was super paranoid of bears! I know encountering a bear was extremely unlikely but It only takes one bear mauling to be dead, am I right?!  We forgot the bear spray so I slept holding on to a our cooking pots in my hammock to bang together in case a bear showed up... although "slept" is a generous term, considering I did very little of that between the rain and my own paranoia.
Fortunately a bear did not show up to take a bit out of that perfectly wrapped Chrissa-Burrito and I survived the night! The next morning we were exhausted enough that we decided not to do the second night and instead headed out.

Next, we went up a canyon in the Wasatch Range of the Rocky Mountains for an extended family get-together. I shocked myself by tagging along for a hike🌄 that starts at around 7500 ft in elevation and ends at the top of a mountain peak at 11000 ft in elevation, so it is quite steep the whole way up. As a sea-level dweller residing in a mostly flat country, I'm still surprised I made it!  My legs and lungs were not happy with me!

All in all, it was a good, although tiring trip. One of those "you need a vacation after your vacation" sort of trips. lol I'm happy to be home and starting to work on getting caught up with things here.

But let's go back in time a little and talk about some other updates in July.

 July was a fairly chill month in terms of not having any huge shakeups, but as always, I kept myself busy. Maybe a little too busy, as I have started having some pain in my right pinky finger over the past month. To alleviate this, I have adjusted my digital brush settings to the highest softness/sensitivity level so that I am less likely to push hard and squeeze my pen. I'm also planning on getting something like a trackball for video editing since the pain tends to be worse when I am using a mouse than when I am drawing. Weird, right?  Do any of you guys recommend mouse alternatives?

 I'm also laying off the colored pencils for a while in favor of something more gentle like paint. Sorry, my poor colored pencils!

Despite the setback of my finger pain, I am very happy with some recent strides in my personal work. One of my personal goals is to make artwork that I would want to decorate my home with. I think as artists, we can judge our own work very harshly, and because of that, I find that I am very picky about which of my art I would hang a large print or canvas of. WELL, I ordered a couple BIG prints of some recent pieces that I am really excited about, so it feels like I am maybe starting to hit that goal of making art that I would want to decorate my home with more frequently. So that feels good!

(Here are a couple snapshots!  I need to find some frames and take better photos and video because I am considering offering these large formats in my store since the colors turned out so nice!)

On the other hand, I have been dealing with that odd untethered feeling with July being my first full month of full-time independent artist life. The odd feeling of having the pressure to work hard for yourself because if you don't, you obviously don't eat.  Then of course working hard to fulfill obligations to clients and of course making lots of goodies for you guys! But then at the same time not actually being expected anywhere by anyone, no structure or schedule made for you by a boss, no one checking in on you, etc. I can't say it is bad or good. In some aspects, it is very liberating to wake up and not be expected by anyone, and at the same time, it can feel weirdly unnerving. I don't know if that makes sense. haha! 

But thanks to not being expected to be anywhere in the morning, I have been trying to take advantage of the lovely mornings before the lake and trails get crowded. A few times a week, I love taking a thermos of coffee out to the lake or forest to enjoy drinking it in nature. Sometimes also including a little nature walk.

It has been blueberry season here in Sweden, so one morning I went out with my fancy schmancy berry scooper to forage. 

What a haul and gorgeous morning! And for my fellow Americans out there, I have to tell you that these little wild blueberries are ridiculously tastier than the usual larger variety found in US supermarkets. I have been told they are actually a different breed, so the difference in taste isn't just from the modifications that a lot of US produce suffers from, which makes them larger but not tastier.

What else is on the horizon? 

I foresee more very busy months to come, and while I am a bit worried about my schedule, it is full of fun projects.🎨💼 I'll be starting work on my second undisclosed tutorial book soon. It is kind of crazy that my first book isn't released or announced yet, but I already need to start work on the next. I can't wait to stop teasing you guys and just say what I have been toiling away at for so long! I'm also excited to be in touch with a couple of fantasy authors that I am excited to be working with for a couple of promotional projects. 

Occasionally doing things like promo and cover art has always been a distant dream in the back of my mind, and it is wild that it has slowly been manifesting. I don't ever expect to be a Charlie Bowater (whose art I love, btw), but every once in a while picking up a commercial book commission is such a fun thing to do in between personal work and making tutorials over here on Patreon. I'm also happy to get experience in the publishing industry and see what that's all about.

Having the ability to jump into a variety of industries is something so cool about artists. When you have drawing, painting, design, and/or animation skills, you have the ability to be flexible and use those skills in so many different areas, whether it be games, film, publishing, branding, or even medical! It also isn't a skill that is tied to a specific tool.  Even if you prefer a program like clip studio or procreate, just having the general skill to draw or paint is something that can transfer to other tools as well!  
It isn't just art, of course; other skills like programming and writing are that way as well, but hey, I'm an artist and will talk about the area that I know. Just generally building skills and experience makes us much more adaptable, and not only does it teach the skill itself, but it trains your mind to focus, learn, and have patience and diligence, which, in my opinion, is invaluable, especially in a world where we are encouraged to have short attention spans.

Anyhoo, I'll get off my rambling soapbox. If you made it this far, you probably have one of those very valuable patient minds that I was talking about! Hah!  Keep practicing what you love my dears!   🌈✨
Love you guys to pieces and thank you for coming along on this journey with me!
Hugs hugs everyone and we'll speak more soon!

Chrissa XOXO