Signing with Phoebe Fabrics has definitely made it on to my life’s achievement list. I don’t know if you have something similar, but I’ve always kept a mental short-list of the things I am most proud of achieving. The list includes getting my driver’s license first time, having one of my HSC artworks included in Art Express when I was 18, completing a Bachelor of Education degree, starting a small teddy bear design business in my early 20’s, and buying my first home all by myself. I had worked towards this goal for so long, and I’d started from knowing nothing, so the confirmation that setting a clear goal and consistently putting in the hard work can result in big things, was a big turning point for me.

I must admit, I was on cloud nine for quite a while and I felt it was all part of the process to allow myself to enjoy it. After all, I’ve never reached such a big, over the top, ambitious goal before, so I allowed myself to revel in the feeling for a bit. I often found myself smiling and thinking ‘I did it!’ in the quiet moments of my day. It took me a while to really believe and accept that my dream had become a reality.

Now that I’d proven to myself that the impossible could become possible through consistency and clarity, I needed to think about what could be next. That thought was both exciting and confronting. Short-term, I was excited to set about creating my first fabric collection, but looking further ahead, where did I want to go?

I found myself floundering a little bit, which I definitely had not anticipated. In hindsight, I think I needed to give myself time to adjust to seeing myself as an artist and really think about what I wanted to achieve long-term. I’ve always been a dreamer who always looks for the positives, and I always follow my gut feeling. But what is the reality of being a full-time licensed surface designer? A danger is to get caught up in all the hype that surrounds creative business development and entrepreneurship. Create a strategy. Build a strong following. Grow your business. Promote hype!

From the point of view of someone who is just new to the design profession, every facet of this industry is exciting, because it’s unfamiliar. I don’t personally know of anyone else who works in the design industry. Thank goodness for the internet and in particular, Bonnie Christine’s community! So, even though my personal journey been challenging so far, and I’ve had to stretch myself out of my comfort zone, I think I’ve risen to the various challenges that came my way. But there is one thing I know about myself that I am not sure I can change. Marketing. It’s just not my thing. Some people are natural leaders who love self-promotion and are very happy to share their personal stuff. They have no hesitation talking about what they have to offer others. That’s definitely not me. I’m admitting that I find it really difficult to share, even on Instagram! (I’m working on that).

I definitely acknowledge that I’m very inexperienced and am still in the early stages of being a business, so it’s hard to know what I might eventually want to offer others further down the track. So I did a little research and looked to other, more established designers to see where they’ve taken their business and how they’ve done it. There seem to be several lines of income creation that other designers have taken on – education and product development seem to be the most common. And everyone seems to have a newsletter! Build your email list! I’m hearing that all the time, but without knowing what, if anything, I may be able to offer anyone further down the track, there doesn’t seem to be a point to that yet.

After much thought, and taking in to consideration my inexperience, I’ve decided a good option for me moving forward would be to continue down the licensing route. No hype. No big plans. No 6-figures. I just want to see my designs out in the world making someone else’s day better. That’s all. But licensing requires good marketing as part of the pitching process. So, knowing my strength isn’t in marketing, I have to make a decision as to whether I want to continue to pitch to companies myself or should I try to secure an art agent? As with everything, there are positives and negatives to consider. So more research is needed before making that decision.

I’m currently pitching ad-hoc. If I see an opportunity and I think one of my designs is a good fit, I send through a submission. I’ve only sent two submissions in the past three weeks. It’s not very strategic, but until I settle on a clear path to the best chance of licensing success, I can live with this feeble attempt and accept that this is at least me doing something. I’m sure that everything will become clear again soon and the right path will present itself for me.

But I have achieved one big thing recently. I finished my first fabric collection and I’m very happy with how it’s turned out. I ordered samples on Spoonflower before I sent the files off just to make confirm I was satisfied with the designs and that they all definitely worked together on fabric. I’m also still a little iffy about scale. I’m sure that will come easier with practice. It’s currently being test printed. I’m hoping that it all turns out just as I’ve envisioned it will. Fingers crossed!

So for now, I will continue to draw and design and spend my days in my happy place. I know it’s cliched, but there’s no other place I’d rather be!