2014 bold plans

I have been trying to narrow down an easy plan for this 2014, and considering the changes and challenges that we’ll be facing in a few months’ time, I thought it would be wise to keep it minimal. I will try not to do too many to-do-lists, although I like setting some goals each month and get them crossed off.

My main (big!) goal for 2014 is to make my life, style and thinking more cohesive, focusing on my art and the way I live my life.

I have chosen a few year-long projects to achieve this and I will be planning some monthly projects to keep me motivated.

// 2014 projects

• One Little Word (I have talked about it here). This is the biggest new project for this year for sure. Living my chosen word CREATIVE in 2014 is more like a daily task, than a yearly goal. But the plan here is to carry on completing the monthly prompts and be reminded of my word in every choice I make, every single day. I’m planning to share some updates at the beginning of each month, more to remind myself of the decisions I have been taking and the actions I have been making which reflect my little word.

• Project 52 + Fruits of womb (here & here). I decided to combine these two projects together, as at some point in July the fruit of the womb will turn into a real tiny little person. My pictures taking skills have still a long way to go, but I will try to add some creativity into it. The plan is still to post a picture every Monday at 10:30am (GMT) here on the blog.
• Complete any current sketchbooks before buying new ones. This has actually been deleted from this year plan! I had it in for the past two years, and it didn’t really worked. So for this year I’m making a plan to start a brand new sketchbook, with new ideas, new illustrations and new thoughts and use the other ones when I feel like it. Hopefully I will have at least one completed sketchbook by the end of the year. More about this in the following weeks.

// Monthly projects and goals

I can repeat this over and over, but I love a good monthly project! The beauty of it is that you don’t have to plan it in advance, if not one week or even a few days before the start of each month. So based on your mood, time or interest they can be chosen almost on the spot. And if you get bored, you can ditch it without having wasted too much time. Or this is what I did last year and worked brilliantly!

This year I decided to focus on my artistic skills. I was planning to enrol in a botanical painting class I attended a few years back and loved, but time is really playing against me, so I decided to try some new illustrations techniques at home instead.

The plan is to practice on a different subject each month, or more than that if I think it’s needed, using my watercolours, a new sketchbook and this book.

Another goal I have is to produce a new item for the shop each month, easier said than done!

Of course things will probably change over the course of the year, I might be fed up with the current goals or maybe be intrigued by other projects. For these reasons I’m not making any list or reminder of any sort, except for the things I like to accomplish some time during the year (and that I’m worried I will forget!), like a blog and shop re-do.

Rather than crossing things off lists every month, I will be checking on my progress and draw some conclusions on how I am doing half way through the year and/or in January. This way I don’t feel the pressure of being behind my plans, it gives me time to focus more on the things that I actually enjoy doing and to catch up if I have been lazy!

I hope I can make this work. Let’s get working!