Sometimes you just have to ask yourself WHY?!

I wrote the previous post a couple of weeks ago, but never got around to posting it until today. Our run of Doctor and hospital visits has continued as Zoe developed Chicken Pox within the week of getting out of hospital, and Jade has ended up with some stitches in her head following a nasty fall! All four of us are also still recovering from that nasty virus we picked up a few weeks ago! I have never known such a stubborn virus in my life and everyone is still coughing like an old man with emphysema.

I have had to let a few things slide lately (like the housework!) just to get through the days. We seem to have been hybernating at home for the past month and have enjoyed getting back to the simple pleasures in life, like making mud pies in the garden:

Amidst all the turmoil and sleepless nights I can't stop thinking about starting the Lilla Rogers course in October. I am so excited about it.

Lilla has already sent out some information and notes in preparation for the commencement of the course and I get a little thrill of butterflies in my stomach just thinking about it. Interestingly, one of the documents asked us to write some notes on WHY were taking the course. Funnily enough I found this one difficult to give a straight answer on. Why AM I doing the course? I am certainly not looking to take on more work.....I have pondered the question quite a bit since then, before finally realising that for me it's about self improvement.

Before I had kids I worked as a Children’s Product Designer in several industries including, Toys, Apparel and Bedding & Manchester. As an in-house artist I was always encouraged to explore many different styles, often to create the feeling that it was more than just one artist turning out the designs. Sometimes there was a team, sometimes it was just me. While the brands I worked on needed a certain ‘look’ and ‘feel’ that helped identify the brand in the market place, it was important that this look was not based on an individual artists style - because if that artist moved on then where would that leave the brand? When we looked to employ new designers we needed to know that they could work in a variety of styles to suit our brands.

Now as a freelancer, I am finding things are just the opposite! I AM THE BRAND. My work needs to be clearly identifiable as mine in the market place. If I think about some of my favourite illustrators and designers, I can identify their work right away. If you think about all of the artists represented by Lilla Rogers, I bet you can pick their work a mile off.

While I think I do have a certain look and style, I don’t feel that I am necessarily marketing it very well. I hope that by taking the Lilla Rogers ‘Make Art That Sells’ it will help me create a more professional web presence, strengthen my skills, and develop my style.

Following the course, I plan to revamp this blog (that has remained virtually unchanged since I started it 6 years ago!) and to finally create a website that will better represent my work.

Hhhhhmmmm, not asking much am I? Can a course truly do all this? I don’t honestly know but I have read such wonderful things about the course that I have complete faith that only good things can come from it. 

I’d love to hear from anyone else who might have signed up. What are your reasons for doing the course? What do you hope to get out of it? Are you as excited about it as me?