5 Things I Am Grateful For Right Now – A Celebrate The Small Things Blog Post

Simple Beauty – Fall Leaf Small Square Tile

available on Zazzle

After missing a week of posting a “Celebrate The Small Things Post”, I am glad to be back participating in the wonderful blog hop, hosted by Lexa Cain. I hope you will join us, which you can, by simply following this link.

What am I grateful for this week?

1. I just found out that they are making a second installment of  the movie John Wick. Surprisingly the first movie was pretty good, and my son really enjoyed it as well, especially considering that the main character makes an appearance in on of his video games. And if you like action movies, you can not go wrong with a Keanu Reeves movie.And I do like action movies.
2. It is only a few more days until my favorite Author – Kay Hooper releases her new book “Fear The Dark. It is a part of her series around a special FBI unit, who’s members have special paranormal skills. If you like suspense and the paranormal I highly recommend her books (not her romance novels though).
3. It is supposed to get cooler soon – yay! It had been 10 degrees above normal in the already too hot Las Vegas, so I am looking forward to days in the 80’s rather than the 100’s. Until then, I am staying indoors – well mostly.
4. The cute little noises my dog is making in her sleep right now. She is dreaming and as usual, she  dream-barks. Sounds more like a little puppy, than a full grown dog, which makes it even cuter.
5. I have been working on my Fall collection of designs on Zazzle and they are turning out to be actually pretty cute! I love Fall colors, and I think I managed to capture some of that beauty. I am proud of those designs.

Now it is your turn – join our blog hop and tell us what you are grateful for. And do not forget to visit all of the other beautiful peeps who are participating in this group of Gratitude!

Blessings!

Claudia

Featured Artist Of The Week – Octavi Navarro

 

Pixels Hu by Octavi Navarro features fun designs that drew me in because of the artist’s unique ability to draw from video games, and bring that inspiration to life in digital applicable art. I had a chance to connect with him over the last few days and allowed me share some insights into his work and life as an artist.

 

Octavi Navarro – The Painter

 

What is the main inspiration behind your art?

I don’t think I can point out just one source of inspiration. The ideas behind my works always come in a very natural way, sometimes while watching a movie, playing a video game or reading a book. It’s really important for me to tell an interesting story in my illustrations, something that feels touching to me in some way, so these kind of sources are always useful.

 

Octavi Navarro – The Flood

What are the techniques you use and why?

I try to get as close as possible to the classic pixel art feeling of the early 90’s video games, but mixed with my own painting techniques. I’m pretty obsessed with lighting and shadows so I use the techniques that allow me to achieve the effects I want, even if it moves away from the “purist” idea of pixel art.

Octavi Navarro – Day Off

This charming technique is actually one of the aspects that drew me to your art in the first place, so I think you succeeded with your mission. So, how did you get started as an Artist?

As far as I remember I’ve been drawing and painting all my life. I was a very shy kid so I always used my drawings as a way to express myself. While working as a graphic designer in a technology company, I started looking for illustration clients and that’s how I started my career as a freelance children’s books illustrator. I had lots of fun those years but at one point I wanted to make something more personal. Something that really talked about my personality and my feelings. Pixel art was the best medium I could think of to make that possible.

Octavi Navarro – The Toy Maker

How can people get in contact with you?

I can be contacted from wy website: www.pixelshuh.com
Also, I try to be pretty active on the social networks too, so people can find me on Twitter (@pixelshuh), Facebook (www.facebook.com/pixelshuh), Behance (www.behance.net/onavarro), Dribbble (dribbble.com/pixelshuh), DeviantArt (octavinavarro.deviantart.com), Pinterest (www.pinterest.com/octavinavarro), and of course Redbubble (www.redbubble.com/people/pixelshuh).
Those who like my work can also support it on Patreon: www.patreon.com/pixelshuh

Thank you for taking the time to sit down with me today!

As always, please remember to support independent artists. Independent artists create a unique variety of creative art pieces, that are always worth a second look. You can find something for every taste and in every style. Thank you!

 

Best Of Zazzle – Halloween Edition #1

 

Click on the individual pictures for more information on the individual product. As always, please support independent artists! Thank you!

Let me tell you about this dog… – A Weekend Coffee Share Post

 

Coffee Time 

 

If we were having coffee this weekend, I would welcome you, and tell you that I am relieved that my friend’s dog is okay. I was worried about the puppy all day yesterday because she is still so little (and cute), but she seems to be fine now. I would also use this as the major excuse, why I did not get as much work done yesterday, as I had planned to.

I would then make you a coffee in my new French Press. Never owned one before, always went for the traditional machines or the espresso machines, but I decided to try it anyway. Can you taste the difference between this one and a standard coffee machine? I am sorry I can’t. But they take away less space, so when I send my daughter off to college, she will get one of those.

We are having chocolate oatmeal cranberry cookies today (vegan). I am hungry, haven’t had much of a chance to eat, because I had to catch up on yesterday’s slacking, so excuse my manners if I shove a few extra cookies into my mouth. I hope you don’t mind. No worries, there are plenty, I made extra. The apple pie in the fridge (also vegan) is not for us, though, it is for the above-mentioned friend, who could really use a treat right now – and can’t bake worth a darn. Sorry, but being a friend means you know their strength and their weaknesses, and embrace them both.

I would tell you, that I would have three things on my agenda today that are a must:
1. Visit the blogs on my list I did not get to read yesterday
2. Write as much as content for the two holiday projects I have coming up (they are kind of secret, so I have to show you, but I can not let the cat out of the bag over the internet yet)
3. Write the outline for the script I have in my head. It isn’t a complicated script, but it was originally a story idea, that just would translate better on screen than it would in a book. Simply because it has a lot of physical action.

Once I wrote the outline, I will be able to define it better, and present you a short synopsis. Still working out all of the plot holes in my head, which are the size of a Florida sinkhole at the moment.

What are your plans for the day, the weekend? Any special projects you have in place, or something that did not go as planned, but worked  out at the end? Why not add your thoughts and plans to the linky  right here.  (Via Part Time Monster)

I hope you enjoyed your stay, and will join in again next weekend. I am always baking something – I can’t help myself – so always come hungry!

Blessings!

Claudia

Wanelo For Print-On-Demand (POD) Creators

This post may contain affiliate links – see disclosure page for details

If you are a print-on-demand creator on Zazzle, RedBubble, Society 6 and the like, you should utilize Wanelo to market your products.
Wanelo stands for “want – need – love” and is simplistically stated a version of Pinterest that specializes purely in sales. so for any e-commerce business that focuses on clothing, shoes, jewelry, handmade items or home decor, this is the place to be.

You can create boards, similar to Pinterest, but your products are not competing with infographics and other non-product related pins,  follow other people, share your own products and those of others (but not as an affiliate, more about that later), and create “stories” around your products.

Stories are not as fancy as they sound, there are more a commentary or thought you have about a group of your products, which you attach to your written words, and you created somewhat of a collection (see an example in the image above).

As you can see, this platform makes it easy for you to get directly in front of consumers, even though the main customer base is still a younger crowd – which is most likely to expand over time, as it has with many social media platforms. The downfall to the younger age of the people on Wanelo is that they tend to not have as much money they can spend freely  while at the same time this demographic does make more impulse purchases, than an older crowd would.

What Wanelo is not, is a way to make money as an affiliate. They do not allow the affiliate links because that is how they make their money. Every time you post something they get a commission, which is only fair for creating the site, but a downfall for anyone who seeks to make an affiliate income. We have to look for revenue elsewhere.

Four quick tips on how to make the most out of Wanelo:

1. Post often – Top Contributors get featured, and that means you have to post a large volume of content to take advantage of that aspect. Do not just share your own things, create boards for other items as well that might be related but do not compete with your product line. That way you are not limited to posting only the amount of items you have created.

2. Be active – interact with other contributors, just like you would, to gain followers on other social media platforms. Comment on other people’s posts, share their stuff, and follow others.

3. Connect with people that buy in your niche – the best way to do that is to check out your competitors and follow their followers. Those are people who have already saved items that are similar to yours, so you know they are interested in your types of products. Many will follow you back, and you will relatively quickly grow a following of niche-related people.

4. Use hashtags – you can add up to five hashtags to each of your products. Use all of them, and use them wisely. Hashtags make it easier for your products to be found, just like it makes it easier for your content to be found on twitter. Because you are limited to five, you should be very careful about which ones you use.

That’s it for now. I will be posting more tips on how to get noticed as a POD artist.

Find out more about marketing for artists here

Blessings and happy creating!

Claudia

Best Blog For Zazzle Designers – A Sunday Blog Share

Apparently I am late to the party, but this morning I saw a hashtag trending that intrigued me: #SundayBlogShare. I find the concept of either sharing one’s own blog or sharing a blog, others might not have read before, a pretty cool idea. A few minutes later, I ran across a blog that is a huge resource for any designer, and artist thinking about using Zazzle as a way to market their art.

Called “All About Zazzle” is a highly interesting and informational blog about all of the details of creating your best Zazzle experience, from how to set up your store, to how to use the different features. This blog is sadly no longer updated but has a wealth of information that no Zazzle designer should forgo. Check it out!

Which blog would you recommend as a must read? Why do you find it valuable? Let us know! Oh, and if you have a blog about designing on Zazzle, RedBubble or any other aspect of living as an Artist of any kind, share your blogs link in the comment section. I am planning on featuring a few blogs that are assets to creative people of all kinds.

Impact – A Flash Fiction

One day can change everything. I had never appreciated that sentiment until this very moment. A breath, a glance, a decision, all actions that are fleeting, but their impact felt long after, creating waves of changes not to be taken lightly. Until now, standing here, in the midst of the thick, lushious lawn, feeling simutaniously at home and lost, I did not know the depth of this truth. But at the end, all that matters to me now, is that those decisions brought me right here – to you.

Copyright Claudia H. Blanton 2015

Celebrate The Small Things – A Weekly Blog Post

Every week a ever-growing list of bloggers join together to celebrate what we are grateful for. This week I have chosen to make it a stand alone post – lately I have been so busy with posting other things, and writing off-line, that I smashed two blog hops together, but not today.

I got side tract from writing today, because I discovered a very good, very emotional romance novel, which grabbed me from the first page, and did not let me go, until I devoured it this evening. Sometimes books have that effect on me, allowing me emerge myself so much into the story and characters, that I want more until I have worked myself through the entire novel. “Silver Thaw” by Catherine Anderson was a gem of a book like that. I am grateful I followed my impulse to purchase it, when I was at the grocery store yesterday, even though I have a long list of books that I am supposed to review. I am glad I listened to myself.

I am also grateful that yesterday was a little warmer, then it had been, so the kids and I decided to take a very long walk with our dogs – something we do at least 3 times a week during the summer, but have not been able to since November. That was nice, we all enjoyed it very much, not just the dogs.

Speaking of dogs, my dogs recently developed a food allergy, which made them itch like crazy and break out all over, my bigger dog worse than the little one, she scratched herself raw. Thankfully, now that we switched their diets, strictly no people food, and only special food and snacks, there has been an improvement. I am glad to see that they are no longer suffering, it broke my heart to see them like this. They are doing so much better now.

Apart from that, this week was uneventful, which is nice too, so I got more writing done. I hope you all had a wonderful week, and I am looking forward to reading what you are grateful for in your posts.

Missing You

Image by Eva Nev    http://shrsl.com/?~7fvh

 

I miss the warmth of your gaze, the fresh clarity of your eyes, as if looking at me, you could see my core. No secrets ever hid from this look, a gentle one, directed at me with such love, that even now my heart skips a beat, just thinking about its power.
Within those precious moments, your blue eyes resting on my green, I could see forever, endless possibilities without anything holding us back.
Those moments, as I am waiting for your return, sustain my very existence, every breath apart, filled with the sweet anticipation of your return.

Copyright Claudia H. Blanton 2015

This post was inspired by this weeks Five Sentence Flash Fiction Prompt: “Fresh”. 

(Disclaimer: The above image is by talented artist Eva Nev, and is called “Mauve Flowers on Tourquoise Background“, and is available on RedBubble, of which I am an affiliate – helping independent artist connect with a broader audience)

 

 

Oh Cool – An Award!

Thank you to Axel Rider for nominating me for the “Very Inspiring Blogger” Award!

That was very sweet of you! Now, as with most awards, there are some rules attached. Here they are:

• Thank the one who nominated by linking their blog and display the award emblem.
• Nominate some other blogs (10ish or so) and link them.
• Mention three things that inspired you the most in the last week or so…

Okay, I can do that! There are so many beautiful blogs out there at the moment, so finding 1o people to share this award with will be fun! Here is my list:

Waywordness

Transition of Thoughts

Sarah’s Humble Blog

Lisa Rosier

The Magickal Pen

My Journey To The Boston Marathon…

Perspective on Life, The Universe And Everything 

Becoming Angela

Roxi St. Claire

Through The Peacock’s Eyes

I highly recommend that you check out these blogs! Very interesting and diverse bunch, but everyone of them is incredibly creative. I am happy to share them with you!

Wishing you the most wonderful day!

Claudia