tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-73616960821287663162024-03-13T14:15:31.519+00:00Diana MazuruCreator of Mahya HouseDiana Mazuruhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16727418234770397428noreply@blogger.comBlogger167125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7361696082128766316.post-32768644606212816692021-03-27T11:22:00.001+00:002021-03-27T11:22:10.303+00:00Painting time-lapse: Beth Harmon and kitten<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uPgMtS6W8rM/YF8U2VcZHEI/AAAAAAAACXQ/5DXu2gaQx_AE1nAjQEtZAGduYqhhhIUkQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_7409.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="2048" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uPgMtS6W8rM/YF8U2VcZHEI/AAAAAAAACXQ/5DXu2gaQx_AE1nAjQEtZAGduYqhhhIUkQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_7409.JPG" /></a></div><p></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">Enjoy this watercolour time-lapse of the character Beth Harmon from The
Queen's Gambit on Netflix.<span style="background-color: white; white-space: pre-wrap;"> I really believe Beth would have benefited from having a pet so here I have generously given her a cute kitten to help her with her chess skills.</span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">Download my guide on watercolours here : <a href="http://www.7stepsguide.co.uk ">www.7stepsguide.co.uk </a></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">Materials used in this video are: <br />Winsor & Newton Professional watercolour paints <br />Frisk Artists' Blue Mask <br />Daler Rowney Langton watercolour paper<br />Faber Castel PITT artists Black Pen in Black size S</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="358" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/cteD4KfjOOM" width="479" youtube-src-id="cteD4KfjOOM"></iframe></div><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><p></p>Diana Mazuruhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16727418234770397428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7361696082128766316.post-53873073101731526942021-03-24T19:21:00.002+00:002021-03-24T19:21:48.619+00:00Watercolour tip: How to keep your water jug/pot clean for longer<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SLJi2p8CeRQ/YFuOSR6Pz6I/AAAAAAAACW4/eK3GwpiHhssNHcZ43kIwHo257LWxnQLtQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1280/watercolour-jug-diana-mazuru-mahya-house2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="1280" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SLJi2p8CeRQ/YFuOSR6Pz6I/AAAAAAAACW4/eK3GwpiHhssNHcZ43kIwHo257LWxnQLtQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/watercolour-jug-diana-mazuru-mahya-house2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Have you ever been frustrated by having to pause mid painting to change your water pot? Isn't it frustrating when the water is no longer clear and it begins to taint your new colour mixes? What can we do to keep the water clean for longer so that we can continue painting uninterrupted?<p></p>Watch the video below to find out these simple tips to make your painting much easier and free of frustrations.<br /><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="355" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/LJUbyiI6WXU" width="481" youtube-src-id="LJUbyiI6WXU"></iframe></div><br /><p>I used these very tips while painting my newest addition: Beth Harman with a kitten (shown below). </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-glpjhCzuzO8/YFuP4YWeB9I/AAAAAAAACXA/d8lpRmx97-sYHl5fdNIvRPT3d3lLCm28gCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_7409.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="2048" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-glpjhCzuzO8/YFuP4YWeB9I/AAAAAAAACXA/d8lpRmx97-sYHl5fdNIvRPT3d3lLCm28gCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_7409.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>Diana Mazuruhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16727418234770397428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7361696082128766316.post-21011629078632868232021-03-16T18:56:00.003+00:002021-03-16T18:56:58.303+00:00Cute Easter Card Designs<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jsfOskxcZ48/YFD-eUfGFOI/AAAAAAAACWk/VmAHKr5GAPAPwIEp6_MGdlrtaFL0REr3ACLcBGAsYHQ/s794/il_794xN.2930784256_iuk2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="794" data-original-width="794" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jsfOskxcZ48/YFD-eUfGFOI/AAAAAAAACWk/VmAHKr5GAPAPwIEp6_MGdlrtaFL0REr3ACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/il_794xN.2930784256_iuk2.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>With Easter speedily approaching, we have finally printed and uploaded our cute little Easter cards to our <a href="https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/MahyaHouse" target="_blank">Etsy store</a>. AND to make things much more enjoyable for you, we have a new promotion on with 15% off our Easter card for a few days. Go over there to get yours now so you don't miss out on the sale. <p></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Q9rfse14zzc/YFD-ec4ZFUI/AAAAAAAACWg/C7NLw2-LI0cwTkKEoFASHeDBoKA1gE8xQCLcBGAsYHQ/s794/il_794xN.2930783954_l422.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="794" data-original-width="794" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Q9rfse14zzc/YFD-ec4ZFUI/AAAAAAAACWg/C7NLw2-LI0cwTkKEoFASHeDBoKA1gE8xQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/il_794xN.2930783954_l422.jpg" /></a></div><p><br /></p>These are available in singles or sets of three or six cards. Send your loved ones a little bit of joy with one of these sweet cards.<p></p>Diana Mazuruhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16727418234770397428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7361696082128766316.post-7214225877233493932021-03-16T18:47:00.005+00:002021-03-16T18:47:52.654+00:00Get to know your watercolours with a colour swatch<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">When a new set of paints is acquired, one of the very first things that I do is to create a paint swatch that fits neatly inside the paint set. Doing so not only helps organize them but is a fantastic way to get to know the colours better and to have a clear visual of what the paint will actually look like on paper. Watch the video bellow and follow along with this very easy colour swatch making session. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="359" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/xmbUHz49J0M" width="481" youtube-src-id="xmbUHz49J0M"></iframe></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> Learn more about painting with watercolours by nabbing my FREE guide on
watercolours here: <a href="http://www.7stepsguide.co.uk">www.7stepsguide.co.uk</a></div><br /> <p></p>Diana Mazuruhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16727418234770397428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7361696082128766316.post-18482989858493359702021-03-11T20:13:00.000+00:002021-03-11T20:13:00.945+00:00Watercolour Painting Time-Lapse<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TixkNt6T-mk/YEp3-5PZt7I/AAAAAAAACWI/swrnhXW8k7sCsni9-WFY07FBSqR-NGb3ACLcBGAsYHQ/s1920/dog-watercolour-painting-finished%2Bcopy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1920" height="225" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TixkNt6T-mk/YEp3-5PZt7I/AAAAAAAACWI/swrnhXW8k7sCsni9-WFY07FBSqR-NGb3ACLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h225/dog-watercolour-painting-finished%2Bcopy.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>My challenge to myself since the start of February has been to paint every day no matter what. So far I have missed two days: one when I spilled masking fluid all over myself and another when I was finishing a YouTube video and completely forgot. <p></p><p>Out of my painting commitment, a few things are beginning to happen. The first is that I can see myself successfully improving (after my long break from painting of about a year) and a few little video for all of you. </p><p>Below is my third time-lapse (second during the daily painting challenge) which I hope you will enjoy.</p><h4 style="text-align: left;">The materials used here are:</h4><p></p><ol style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Daler
Rowney Artists' watercolour paints </span></li><li><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Frisk Artists' Blue Mask </span></li><li><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Started with Daler
Rowney Aquafine watercolour paper </span></li><li><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Changed to Arches watercolour paper </span></li></ol><h3 style="text-align: left;">Download
my <a href="http://www.7stepsguide.co.uk" target="_blank">FREE guide on watercolours</a>: http://www.7stepsguide.co.uk</h3><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="369" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/b7ij1c-lMBY" width="482" youtube-src-id="b7ij1c-lMBY"></iframe></div><br /> <p></p>Diana Mazuruhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16727418234770397428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7361696082128766316.post-68731149564763532402021-03-08T17:02:00.001+00:002021-05-16T19:08:36.884+01:00Improve your watercolour skills<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.7stepsguide.co.uk/landing.php" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1448" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DWdpIYFPuPo/YEZL6JeSPyI/AAAAAAAACVw/6F93Li05wKcc0xGwNR2u33Y0P0jvoCnqQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/7WatercolourSteps2021-1.jpg" /></a></div><p></p><div style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Watercolours are an incredibly easy medium to start with: the beginner supplies are relatively inexpensive and the paints themselves are pretty straightforward to get onto the paper.</div><div style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Somewhere along the road, we find ourselves getting frustrated. The watercolour paper buckles and the paper starts pilling from overuse, the colours become muddy, and the masking fluid won’t come off without tearing the paper. There are too many options for supplies and we don’t know what to choose.</div><div style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">So with that in mind, this booklet was created with my past frustrated self in mind and for any of you who might be feeling the same way. It’s intended to give you some pointers to help get you back on track and to help you feel like you can step up your game.</div><div style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">It’s full of information about watercolour paper, how to mix pigments and contains tips and tricks to help you improve. I filled it with lots of valuable knowledge and really tried to go above and beyond with it to make it super useful to you. Below is one of the pages from the FREE guide showing you some of the valuable information it contains. And the best part is: it’s FREE!</div><div style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Get your free copy, you’ll be doing yourself a favour. Simple click on the link here which will take you there. Happy Painting! <b style="color: #0c343d;"><a href="http://www.7stepsguide.co.uk">www.7stepsguide.co.uk</a></b></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3UfNcPiX57c/YEZXvUYo07I/AAAAAAAACWA/RV_FnZt1kFcR4dIx57PO6Pb8UN2IDOodACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/7WatercolourSteps-3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2036" data-original-width="2048" height="636" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3UfNcPiX57c/YEZXvUYo07I/AAAAAAAACWA/RV_FnZt1kFcR4dIx57PO6Pb8UN2IDOodACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h636/7WatercolourSteps-3.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /><br /></div><br /><span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><br /></div>Diana Mazuruhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16727418234770397428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7361696082128766316.post-41360202775271973102021-03-07T19:07:00.003+00:002021-05-16T19:08:24.685+01:00Red Panda Watercolour Time-Lapse<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Hy3U_2wlqHc/YEUj_noZVZI/AAAAAAAACVk/32Ok6djIxzsjOHmEDh-01r_QWee4trEFQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1920/finished%2Bred%2Bpanda%2Bcopy.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1920" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Hy3U_2wlqHc/YEUj_noZVZI/AAAAAAAACVk/32Ok6djIxzsjOHmEDh-01r_QWee4trEFQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/finished%2Bred%2Bpanda%2Bcopy.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p>I'm trying to record more of my paintings and watercolour knowledge/experiments. Below is the very first watercolour time-lapse that I have managed to do. I hope you will enjoy it.</p><h4 style="text-align: left;">Materials use for this painting are:</h4><p></p><ol style="text-align: left;"><li>Seawhite Travel Journal</li><li>Frisk Artists' Blue Mask</li><li>Daler Rowney Artists' watercolour</li></ol><h4 style="text-align: left;">The reference image is from <a href="https://pixabay.com/photos/animal-red-panda-branch-cute-1852789/" target="_blank">Pixabay.com</a></h4><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="339" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Foab64XAV9g" width="480" youtube-src-id="Foab64XAV9g"></iframe></div><br /><div><br /></div><p></p>Diana Mazuruhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16727418234770397428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7361696082128766316.post-74445095366888331972021-03-03T17:24:00.000+00:002021-03-03T17:24:19.909+00:00How to remove masking fluid from clothing<p>Watercolours and masking fluid can be messy and accidents do happen and I
managed to get a whole lot of masking fluid on my leggings while masking off an area on my painting. Let me know if this has ever happened to you. Once it gets a chance to dry, how on earth do you remove it? Does the item just get chucked or is there something we can do to restore it?</p><p> I tried to scrub it at the sink with soap and water but I wasn't fast
enough and it dried. I tried dish washing soap, then antiseptic alcohol,
then baby oil. I put it in the washing machine and nothing. It came out of the wash just as stubbornly fixed as it was before the wash. The masking fluid has absorbed into the fibbers and wouldn't budge.</p><p>Nothing was getting it off! And then I learned this
little trick from one of my friends and you can try it too.
Watch this video to learn how to save your favourite garment from this treacherous art supply. 😉</p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="273" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/zIevcsVZe6o" width="480" youtube-src-id="zIevcsVZe6o"></iframe></div><br /><p>... Or you can read it from here...</p><p>The first thing you want to do if you get masking fluid on your clothing is to immediately soak it in cold water and the masking fluid should come right off. If, on the other hand, it has a chance to dry then things get a little more difficult. Fear not because I have a solution:</p><p>The trick is lighter fluid. Yup. Who knew? Lighter fluid has been used in the art world for ages and I have used it extensively on removing stubborn sticky substances and permanent marker ... marks.</p><h3 style="text-align: left;">For this process you will need:</h3><p></p><ol style="text-align: left;"><li>Your masking fluid soiled garment</li><li>Kitchen paper roll</li><li>Lighter fluid</li><li>Elbow grease</li></ol><p></p><h3 style="text-align: left;">Step 1.</h3><p>Place kitchen paper under your fabric so that the masking fluid doesn't transfer to the other side or to your surface as it dissolves.</p><h3 style="text-align: left;">Step 2.</h3><p>Apply a dash of lighter fluid to the affected area and dab/rub at it with more kitchen paper.</p><h3 style="text-align: left;">Step 3.</h3><p>Apply more lighter fluid because it does evaporate rather quickly and replace your kitchen paper if it becomes too dirty.</p><h3 style="text-align: left;">Sptep 5.</h3><p>Allow the garment to dry to check if there is any remaining masking fluid. If yes, repeat steps 1 to 5.</p><h3 style="text-align: left;">Step 6.</h3><p>Once you are satisfied with your garment, pop it in the wash. Personally, I don't like wearing clothing that is more flammable than necessary. 😅</p><p><br /></p><h4 style="text-align: left;">Leave a comment bellow if you are going to try this or have done so already.</h4><p><br /></p>Diana Mazuruhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16727418234770397428noreply@blogger.com0Plymouth, UK50.3754565 -4.142656524.480690409536855 -39.2989065 76.270222590463135 31.0135935tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7361696082128766316.post-33274660193861494052021-02-26T18:53:00.004+00:002021-05-16T19:08:34.189+01:00Masking Fluid watercolour test // What works best?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2wsRVExyCck/YD_G5TcqygI/AAAAAAAACVU/7cMZikzt7JoerllsLeL-QFzM3CubENlqgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1280/Test-masking-fluid-Diana-Mazuru-Mahya-House.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="1280" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2wsRVExyCck/YD_G5TcqygI/AAAAAAAACVU/7cMZikzt7JoerllsLeL-QFzM3CubENlqgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Test-masking-fluid-Diana-Mazuru-Mahya-House.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p> Have you ever wondered how to keep the white of your paper white or have you tried to use masking fluid but it tore your paper or made a mess? Masking fluid is a great way to preserve the white of your paper but it can sometimes be a little tricky. So to help with this, I have tested different masking fluid brands on a handful of different watercolour paper types to find out what works best on what.</p><h4 style="text-align: left;">You can watch the video below or continue to read this post to see the results:</h4><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/4tk48zV9Ivs" width="479" youtube-src-id="4tk48zV9Ivs"></iframe></div><p><br /></p><p>Write down in a comment below what is your favourite masking fluid and on what paper.</p><p>The Experiment:</p><h3 style="text-align: left;">Supplies</h3>The masking fluids I tested for this experiment are as follows:<p></p><p></p><ol style="text-align: left;"><li><b>Masquespen </b></li><li><b>Winsor & Newton Art Masking Fluid</b></li><li><b>Daler Rowney Art Masking Fluid</b></li><li><b>Frist Artists' Blue Mask</b></li><li><b>Frink Artists' White Mask</b></li></ol><div>The watercolour papers that I used are:</div><div><ol style="text-align: left;"><li><b>Aquafine by Daler Rowney</b></li><li><b>Langton by Daler Rowney</b> (140lb/300gsm Rough)</li><li><b>Bockingford by St Cuthberts Mil</b>l (250lb/425gsm)</li><li><b>Fabriano Artistico</b> (140lb/300gsm CP)</li><li><b>Sanders Waterford by St Cuthberts Mill</b> (150lb/300gsm Rough)</li><li><b>Arches </b>(140lb/300gsm CP)</li></ol></div><h3 style="text-align: left;">Process</h3><h4 style="text-align: left;">Step 1.</h4><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rJhlO-NLpjw/YDkpDccGISI/AAAAAAAACTM/shIVrBA0GD0q5ysP6ti4YlGacusZzYHXwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1920/watercolour-dry-diana-mazuru-mahya-house.png" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1920" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rJhlO-NLpjw/YDkpDccGISI/AAAAAAAACTM/shIVrBA0GD0q5ysP6ti4YlGacusZzYHXwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/watercolour-dry-diana-mazuru-mahya-house.png" width="320" /></a></div>I created a wash on the top of each sheet so that way I lay down the masking fluid and then remove it, it will be very clear and obvious if any of the masking fluids have removed paint pigment or torn the paper. For this I used a size 10 sable watercolour brush with Daler Rowney artists watercolours.</div><div><br /></div><div>I then set these aside to dry because the paint and paper must be fully dry before applying masking fluid in order to avoid it from seeping into the fibbers of the paper and creating a right old mess.</div><div><br /></div><h4 style="text-align: left;">Step 2.</h4><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AOtR-lpUBp4/YDkqTR3VYdI/AAAAAAAACTc/OoJfzruUFiceI-uVODhs4M9mHq_YwY0oACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_6707.JPG" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="2048" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AOtR-lpUBp4/YDkqTR3VYdI/AAAAAAAACTc/OoJfzruUFiceI-uVODhs4M9mHq_YwY0oACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_6707.JPG" /></a></div><div>I applied the masking fluid in the order as shown above in the supplies list, first a thin line and then a large rectangle (using the wrong end of my paintbrush).</div><div><br /></div><div>First up was the Masquepen. It has a thin plastic nozzle to allow a small amount of masking fluid to flow through. There are ones out there with even smaller metal applicators but this is the one I have available atm. With this one, I am finding that in some areas I am getting more masking fluid than I intend.</div><div><br /></div><div>Thankfully the Masquepen comes with a little needle like point in the lid which helps keep the applicator nice and clear.</div><div><br /></div><div>I added masking tape into the mix (on the far right side) to see how in compared to the masking fluid.</div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uTM0NYPTczY/YDksllT_wuI/AAAAAAAACTw/GAZteVnMVU0s6I4c_qfFgQUjLqZsAjFigCLcBGAsYHQ/s1268/loxley-ruling-pen-closeup-diana-mazuru-mahya-house.png" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="648" data-original-width="1268" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uTM0NYPTczY/YDksllT_wuI/AAAAAAAACTw/GAZteVnMVU0s6I4c_qfFgQUjLqZsAjFigCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/loxley-ruling-pen-closeup-diana-mazuru-mahya-house.png" width="320" /></a></div>To create the thin lines for the remaining masking fluid I used a ruling pen. I am blown away by how well the ruling pen works with masking fluid, by the fact that is can effortlessly create thin lines and tiny dots and is much more precise than the Masquepen.</div><div><br /></div><div>I repeated the application of the five masking fluids onto the other paper types in exactly the same way and then allowed for it to fully dry.</div><h4 style="text-align: left;">Step 3.</h4><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OY83t0qEBdw/YDkyIBMlFrI/AAAAAAAACT8/tnDOqhiyAr0GWiyhGZSDooZ0dLGTosMQQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1920/watercolour-blue-wash-diana-mazuru-mahya-house.png" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1920" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OY83t0qEBdw/YDkyIBMlFrI/AAAAAAAACT8/tnDOqhiyAr0GWiyhGZSDooZ0dLGTosMQQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/watercolour-blue-wash-diana-mazuru-mahya-house.png" width="320" /></a></div><div>To test the masking fluids properly, a blue wash is added on top of the while lot. I left a bit of the masking fluid clear of this was just so that it would be clear if any of the masking fluids stained my paper.</div><div><br /></div><div>With a clean damp brush, I removed any of the paint that pooled on the dry masking fluid. The last thing I want is for the pigment to transfer to my watercolour paper when I remove the masking fluid later.</div><div><br /></div><h3 style="text-align: left;">Step 4.</h3><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UZ8YFM6taZo/YDkzYU_iSmI/AAAAAAAACUE/C8DkT4NBnX0hidLA7BGJfkRbc975KLW8ACLcBGAsYHQ/s1318/remove-masking-fluid-diana-mazuru-mahya-house.png" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="979" data-original-width="1318" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UZ8YFM6taZo/YDkzYU_iSmI/AAAAAAAACUE/C8DkT4NBnX0hidLA7BGJfkRbc975KLW8ACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/remove-masking-fluid-diana-mazuru-mahya-house.png" width="320" /></a></div><div>The paper must be allowed to fully dry before removing the masking fluid.</div><div><br /></div><div>My favourite way of removing masking fluid is with my hands ands fingers but if you do that, please make sure to wash your hands before hand because the last thing you'll want is to get skin oils all over your nice painting.</div><div><br /></div><h3 style="text-align: left;">The Results</h3><div>Concerning the masking tape in the top right corner, across the board on all the paper types, it appears to have not adhered too well on the painted area and therefore the blue wash has seeped through. Where it was placed directly onto the clean paper, it has had no issues resisting the blue wash and it did not tear any of the paper when it was removed.</div><h4 style="text-align: left;"><b>Aquafine by Daler Rowney</b></h4><div>It's clear that the paint has been lifted off by the masking fluid but it did not tear the paper at all. Quite possibly the Frisk brands removed more pigment (number 5 and 6).</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-P9Fj3zTTxvw/YDk4dB6v_zI/AAAAAAAACUM/JPzXjsLABQM4hYy1iHifgwjAKU-eHSRzgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/aquafine-masking-fluid-test-diana-mazuru-mahya-house.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1676" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-P9Fj3zTTxvw/YDk4dB6v_zI/AAAAAAAACUM/JPzXjsLABQM4hYy1iHifgwjAKU-eHSRzgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/aquafine-masking-fluid-test-diana-mazuru-mahya-house.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><h4 style="text-align: left;"><b>Langton by Daler Rowney</b> (140lb/300gsm Rough)</h4><div>I'm quite surprised by it did not do so well. The paper tore a little on all f them but most obviously with the Masquepen (number 1) and the Frisk Artists' Blue Mask (number 5). The pigment has been removed quite a lot by all of the masking fluids.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uxCkmxPXO_4/YDk5qTA6zKI/AAAAAAAACUk/1CEXyXJ2XMko1Ay3TyTe42XEwvPxiZ9XgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/langton-masking-fluid-test-diana-mazuru-mahya-house.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1568" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uxCkmxPXO_4/YDk5qTA6zKI/AAAAAAAACUk/1CEXyXJ2XMko1Ay3TyTe42XEwvPxiZ9XgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/langton-masking-fluid-test-diana-mazuru-mahya-house.JPG" width="320" /></a></div></div><h4 style="text-align: left;"><b>Bockingford by St Cuthberts Mil</b>l (250lb/425gsm)</h4>The Bockingford paper too did not fair so well. The paper tore with the Masquepen (number 1) and with Frisk Artists' Blue Mask (number 5). The purple pigment was lifted off quite a bit, especially by the Frisk Artists' White Mask (number 6).<div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EiqL9coEqeY/YDk4g8pfDnI/AAAAAAAACUQ/jvuU34pK5w4ZPQs6cHnqZcACdhvDMB7lgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/bockingford-masking-fluid-test-diana-mazuru-mahya-house.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1668" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EiqL9coEqeY/YDk4g8pfDnI/AAAAAAAACUQ/jvuU34pK5w4ZPQs6cHnqZcACdhvDMB7lgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/bockingford-masking-fluid-test-diana-mazuru-mahya-house.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><h4 style="text-align: left;"><b>Fabriano Artistico</b> (140lb/300gsm CP)</h4>Fabriano Artistico fared much better. It didn't tear at all and not as much of the pink pigment was lifted off. It is most clear on this paper though that all the masking fluids did in fact tint the paper slightly. Worst was Dale Rowney (number 3) followed by Winsor & Newton (number 2). The Masquepen (number 1) and Frisk Artists' Blue Mask (number 5) were about the same excepting that the Masquepen left a warmer tint and the Frisk Artists' Blue Mask left a colder tint on the paper. The Frisk Artists' White Mask (number 6) left only an ever so faint mark where it used to be.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hPRTFdjFae8/YDk8L-fAlsI/AAAAAAAACU0/CFAjD6vBmt8nzWqyx5JXaVrKyyH63H4owCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/fabriano-artistico-masking-fluid-test-diana-mazuru-mahya-house.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1667" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hPRTFdjFae8/YDk8L-fAlsI/AAAAAAAACU0/CFAjD6vBmt8nzWqyx5JXaVrKyyH63H4owCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/fabriano-artistico-masking-fluid-test-diana-mazuru-mahya-house.JPG" width="320" /></a> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b>Oversaturated picture to better show the slight tint to the paper:</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-c2LX618W2wM/YDk-e38WYHI/AAAAAAAACU8/wxG9_wgeRqcXDDE074CsQftTla6-EgFXQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Fabriano-artistico-test-diana-mazuru-mahya-house.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1715" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-c2LX618W2wM/YDk-e38WYHI/AAAAAAAACU8/wxG9_wgeRqcXDDE074CsQftTla6-EgFXQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Fabriano-artistico-test-diana-mazuru-mahya-house.JPG" width="320" /></a></div></div><h4 style="text-align: left;"><b>Sanders Waterford by St Cuthberts Mill</b> (150lb/300gsm Rough)</h4><div>Saunders Waterford did surprisingly well. The paper again didn't tear and hardly any of the pigment was lifted off. It appears as though it has taken only very minor damage from the masking fluid.</div><div><br /></div><div>It really goes to show that maybe it doesn't matter quite so much what masking fluid brand you use but maybe it matters more what paper you use. It really goes against all our instincts that it could be the paper and not the masking fluid causing problems.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ijfi1Atuyig/YDk5qdkTwtI/AAAAAAAACUo/IxRiuCHdySkmS7ej-8_bzgcauwfeKOyLwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/saunders-waterford-masking-fluid-test-diana-mazuru-mahya-house.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1661" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ijfi1Atuyig/YDk5qdkTwtI/AAAAAAAACUo/IxRiuCHdySkmS7ej-8_bzgcauwfeKOyLwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/saunders-waterford-masking-fluid-test-diana-mazuru-mahya-house.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><h4 style="text-align: left;"><b>Arches </b>(140lb/300gsm CP)</h4><div>Lastly we have Arches which really I thought would do the best but it hasn't. The masking fluid has lifted off some of the underneath pigment, mostly the Frisk Artists' White Mask (number 6) and the Masquepen (number 1). Daler Rowney here has lifted the least amount of pigment from the purple wash (number 3).</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zmi9lbK6mQk/YDk_Ed5USFI/AAAAAAAACVE/OtbTOMjcDFkCmJdJNv4kAZ1kDhF00gsEwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/arches-masking-fluid-test-diana-mazuru-mahya-house.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1726" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zmi9lbK6mQk/YDk_Ed5USFI/AAAAAAAACVE/OtbTOMjcDFkCmJdJNv4kAZ1kDhF00gsEwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/arches-masking-fluid-test-diana-mazuru-mahya-house.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><h3 style="text-align: left;">The Winners</h3><h4 style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Paper</h4><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The winners amongst the watercolour papers for being the best at withstanding the abuse of masking fluid are as follows:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">🥇FIRST PLACE: <b>Sanders Waterford by St Cuthberts Mill</b> (150lb/300gsm Rough)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">🥈SECOND PLACE: <b>Fabriano Artistico</b> (140lb/300gsm CP)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">🥉THIRD PLACE: <b>Arches </b>(140lb/300gsm CP)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">FOURTH PLACE: <b>Aquafine by Daler Rowney</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">FITH PLACE: <b>Bockingford by St Cuthberts Mil</b>l (250lb/425gsm)</div><div><br /></div>SIXTH PLACE: <b>Langton by Daler Rowney</b> (140lb/300gsm Rough)</div><div><br /><h4 style="text-align: left;">Masking Fluid</h4>The winners amongst the masking fluid in my opinion and supported by this experiment are as follows:<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">🥇FIRST PLACE: <b>Frink Artists' White Mask</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">🥈SECOND PLACE: <b>Masquespen & </b><b>Frist Artists' Blue Mask</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">🥉THIRD PLACE: <b>Winsor & Newton Art Masking Fluid</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">FOURTH PLACE: <b>Daler Rowney Art Masking Fluid (and the masking tape)</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ReVFO8BCU7I/YDlDJmh7-FI/AAAAAAAACVM/l-Uh5_iRV_8Objab3KQFMtJFvsf1gCZLwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/masking-fluid-test-diana-mazuru-mahya-house.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ReVFO8BCU7I/YDlDJmh7-FI/AAAAAAAACVM/l-Uh5_iRV_8Objab3KQFMtJFvsf1gCZLwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/masking-fluid-test-diana-mazuru-mahya-house.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">I hope you have enjoyed this experiment. <b>The conclusion is that, above all else, more care should be taken to choose good quality paper when using masking fluid for a painting<span style="color: #0b5394;">.</span></b> Happy painting!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Write down in a comment below what is your favourite masking fluid and on what paper type.</div><div><br /></div><p></p></div>Diana Mazuruhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16727418234770397428noreply@blogger.com0United Kingdom55.378051 -3.43597327.067817163821154 -38.592223 83.688284836178838 31.720277tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7361696082128766316.post-32909698728519584862020-09-22T18:01:00.003+01:002021-02-24T17:55:55.470+00:00Using Instagram paid ads as a beginner<h2 style="text-align: left;">Do Instagram ads work and are they worth it? Information for beginner Instagram users.</h2><div>Are you new to Instagram or are you just now beginning to take it more seriously like me? I’ve been on Instagram since October 2016 and despite my four years on there, I have to admit that I didn’t quite know very much about it beyond posting and using hashtags. If you too struggle with using social media to its fullest potential then keep reading.</div><div><br /></div><div>In this blog post I’ll be diving into using Instagram ads and what the outcome to my trial was. I hope that this will help shed some light into the mysteries of Instagram and how we might better use it as designers and business owners.</div><h3 style="text-align: left;">Organic Growth </h3><p style="text-align: left;">Despite my four years on Instagram, my posts have been sporadic at best and my growth has been excruciatingly slow with only just this year reaching 100 followers, the majority of which are my family and friends. Instagram likes it when we post regularly, ideally once to four times a day, and likes us to use hashtags in our posts and stories. During the past couple of months I have been endeavouring to post more regularly by creating more small drawings which are easy and quick to do. Despite this, my following has only grown to 130, which though a good increase, is still painfully slow. This is when I decided to cave and have a go at paid advertising.</p><h3 style="text-align: left;">Creating a paid ad</h3><div>For this test, I chose one of my posts that had the most engagement with 76 ‘likes’. It was of a super short video of my using a blending pencil to finish a cute otter colouring pencil drawing. As this had been a popular post and it had movement to potentially attract and engage more people, I decided to give it a go.</div><div><br /></div><div>The process of making a paid ad from a post has been made really easy by Instagram. I decided as this was only a small test that my budget would only be £2. For the filters, I chose the USA and UK for people who are interested in animals and art. This meant that my advert would only run for 2 days.</div><h3 style="text-align: left;">The results</h3><div style="text-align: right;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7p9dVO9hH44/X2ol3QrYqYI/AAAAAAAACNs/PyOckyE8D8wp57LkLwAIMoF-roqYjnGRQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1183/IMG_5977%2B%2528Edited%2529.PNG" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1183" data-original-width="750" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7p9dVO9hH44/X2ol3QrYqYI/AAAAAAAACNs/PyOckyE8D8wp57LkLwAIMoF-roqYjnGRQCLcBGAsYHQ/w254-h400/IMG_5977%2B%2528Edited%2529.PNG" width="254" /></a><div style="text-align: left;">During the running of the ad, I kept track of the ‘likes’ my post was getting and would go onto their accounts and ‘like’ their posts to try and get more attention.</div></div><div><br /></div><div><b><span style="color: #073763;">By the end of the two days, my post had 113 ‘likes’ (an addition of 37 from the promotion) and had been shared and saved a few times. I have 2 new followers from this advert.</span></b></div><h3 style="text-align: left;">Conclusion</h3><div>I’m hoping that there’s something I’m not quite getting with the paid advertising because otherwise £1 per follower is a bit steep. </div><div><br /></div><div>Despite the obvious fail, I will be giving this another go with different settings, this time sending people to my website link instead of my page and Instagram will be searching for people similar to the ones who are already following me instead of my trying to figure it out with filters myself. I'm hoping that some people might find their way to my Etsy where they might just be inclined to make a purchase.</div><div><br /></div><div>What would you like to learn more about Instagram? Let me know in a comment below.</div><div><br /></div><div>Thank you,</div><div>Diana</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div>Diana Mazuruhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16727418234770397428noreply@blogger.com0Plymouth, UK50.382754899999988 -4.16682722.072521063821142 -39.323077 78.692988736178833 30.989423000000002tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7361696082128766316.post-71718256240162159802020-08-27T15:11:00.007+01:002020-09-02T12:43:41.120+01:00A daydream story<p>Here I am afraid of the empty page, of the words that might make no sense or add any value to future readers, be it myself or others. How do you start a story when there is no story? My mind is drifting, filled with wonder and nostalgia from the magic created by a book which has captivated me, tugged at my heart and left me longing for more. I feel a sense of sadness at it's having ended and my returning from it's pages to my reality. I wish to walk through a misty woods or lay on soft grass under the wondrously worm sun. But the spell is almost broken as I try to capture the last remnants. Why do I escape from reality when my own life offers me so much? I hear the jingle of Tilly's bell as she washes near me where she settled on the sofa and I have my own dear beloved always to look forward to, the one person on whom I rely on so dangerously considering the fragility of life and how easily it can be fractured or lost.</p><p>I do forget how in my younger days (as though I have aged a century) I used to spend numerous hours lost on pages with my own messy scrawl across them, lost in my own mind and dreams, transfixed and mesmerised. I wish I could stay there now in this half life half dream state. Reality is nagging at me. Tilly has fully awoken and will want food. All around me people move, cars go by, life continues and I am yet again struck by how life continues to flow without any regard for the dreams and events that pull our souls to other planes of existence, those places of ecstasy that fill us with wonder, that are so addictive in the moment and leave us with a feeling of melancholy after their passing. </p><p>I wish again for childhood days of mindless hours perfect for loosing oneself in, days in which ones toes float above reality in the land of imagination with its dreams upon dreams. How I wish I could always be in touch with that artist in me. Once I was a child who ran loose in the nearby woods, with matted hair and a long princess dress. Onward to adventure and to connect with the creatures that lurk just out of reach of civilisation. I would wake up on those summer days, dazed from too much sleep and without meeting a single human being would, in princess clothes, dash out into my mind and into the open crisp air, running and running with hair tangled and whipping behind me and long skirt tugging on twigs and fallen branches. And there in the woods, when fully alone and far enough from family and people, I could slow my pace and glide between the trees, find the trail left by deer and be lead by the wisdom and guidance that they left behind for me. The wind is swaying the branches and the trees creaking ever so gently, the dancing breeze comes down to greet me. I follow the path. I follow through crackling twigs and dry crunchy leaves over soft moist earth. I spot a deer in this solitude or it spots me but it does not bolt nor does it stay. It disregards me as though I were not there and disappears out of sight and I awaken. I realise that I am writing and that the little princess girl is only my soul transported into the memory of my past, that I travelled deep into my own mind to my childhood woods. I call my soul home. I call it home back to me. Come back little heart, return to your owner. Come be a woman again and leave the play in the wild for another time. Come home.</p><p>Here I am, the little voice answers, my heart returned to me. I allow myself to awaken. Slowly. I do not want it to be over too quickly. I have enjoyed this journey and I have missed this feeling. Why did I ever stop writing? Why?</p><p>Awake at last.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-694vKKEnP-E/X0e-nVyJ5zI/AAAAAAAACMw/0sboKzVkJakIb71LXsDolF7oK05ckhWbgCLcBGAsYHQ/s648/lilly_by_mebeme14-d1s9t5n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="648" data-original-width="409" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-694vKKEnP-E/X0e-nVyJ5zI/AAAAAAAACMw/0sboKzVkJakIb71LXsDolF7oK05ckhWbgCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/lilly_by_mebeme14-d1s9t5n.jpg" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p>Diana Mazuruhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16727418234770397428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7361696082128766316.post-48994219166297611422020-08-13T18:10:00.009+01:002020-09-02T14:44:47.895+01:00My First Teespring Discount Sale (2020)<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://teespring.com/en-GB/stores/mahya-house-shop?pr=TEAADDICT" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="512" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Fqmb0If6RHE/XzVpHuS9yaI/AAAAAAAACMY/RPxcY2QMFR0Ers_elVjEzJZ0RvV1qthIgCLcBGAsYHQ/w512-h512/instagram-story-template-for-a-men-s-t-shirt-sale-969b-el1.png" width="512" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><h2 style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Introducing the very first <a href="https://teespring.com/en-GB/stores/mahya-house-shop?pr=TEAADDICT" target="_blank"><span style="color: red;">SALE</span></a> on my new Teespring account!</h2><div>Thank you to everyone who has been following my journey thus far and especially to those who have supported me along the way. I want to let you know that you are all greatly appreciated and that this wouldn't have become a reality without you.</div><div><br /></div><h3 style="text-align: left;"><b><span><span style="color: #0c343d;">As a massive thank you, the </span><a href="https://teespring.com/en-GB/stores/mahya-house-shop?pr=TEAADDICT" target="_blank"><span style="color: red;">Mahya House Teespring Shop</span></a><span style="color: #0c343d;"> will be having a sale! Whoop!</span></span></b></h3><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Enter the promotional code <b><span style="color: red;">TEAADDICT</span></b> at checkout to receive a wonderful<span style="color: red;"> <b><span>10% OFF</span></b> </span>all the items in my shop. Sale lasts until Sunday 23rd August.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">It's the first time I've done a Teespring promotion so I don't know what exact time the sale ends which means that if you don't want to miss out, order your one early.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Use the following link to get to the shop:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://teespring.com/en-GB/stores/mahya-house-shop?pr=TEAADDICT" target="_blank">https://teespring.com/en-GB/stores/mahya-house-shop?pr=TEAADDICT</a></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">If you would like to learn more about how I started making my Teespring shop, you can read all about it in this post: <a href="https://dianamazuru.blogspot.com/2020/06/print-on-demand-experiment.html?" target="_blank">Print on Demand Experiment (Does it work?)</a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">And you can read about how quickly I made my first sale here: <a href="https://dianamazuru.blogspot.com/2020/07/print-on-demand-first-inkling-of-success.html?" target="_blank">First inkling of success</a></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><p></p>Diana Mazuruhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16727418234770397428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7361696082128766316.post-61940284367590335802020-08-10T09:30:00.170+01:002020-08-10T09:30:03.900+01:00A drawing every day<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EzbTEQScE3I/XywYQH-H5EI/AAAAAAAACL4/Go_IJg-TFZUYtjcMjQXEyeZX8BIPbRFdgCLcBGAsYHQ/s600/drawing%2Bof%2Bme%2Band%2Btilly.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; display: block; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; padding: 1em 0px;"><img alt="Drawing of sleeping girl and cat" border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="531" height="307" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EzbTEQScE3I/XywYQH-H5EI/AAAAAAAACL4/Go_IJg-TFZUYtjcMjQXEyeZX8BIPbRFdgCLcBGAsYHQ/w272-h307/drawing%2Bof%2Bme%2Band%2Btilly.jpg" title="Falling asleep after a tiring day at work" width="272" /></a></div>Have you heard about the drawing a day challenge? I'm not sure where the idea came from but it appears to be prevalent in the art community as a way of improving skills and as a way of posting online every day and therefore hopefully growing a bigger following.<div><br /></div><div>I have a full time job on top of my endeavours as an artist and last time I tried this, my drawings were a bit too complex for my time constraints of work and house chores so even with using my meagre lunch breaks for drawings, I was only averaging a drawing a week. Maybe I'm just slow at drawing and need to focus on speeding up. I drew moments from my own life and even though I enjoyed them, there was no real use for them beyond this challenge. The point is that I was failing at keeping up and like anything I find too difficult, promptly gave up.</div><div><br /></div><div>Three weeks ago I began this challenge again. If you have seen my first Instagram experiment where I tried posting every day you will recall my small yet persistent results from this one strategy. I am therefore transferring a few of the things I learned from that test onto my original <a href="https://www.instagram.com/diana_mazuru/">Instagram account</a> by posting more frequently. Unfortunately, because my drawings take a few days to produce each, I had to think of something that would allow me to make them more quickly and I think I have the solution. I plan to create a simple animal or object drawing for posting once a day. I am allowing myself to draw a few in a day where I have more spare time to allow for the days where I don't have any free time available. </div><div><br /></div><div>Now, it's not been smooth sailing. Out of the 20 days that I've been trying this, I have only posted 14 drawings despite my best efforts. That's not the best of starts. Nevertheless, I will persevere and the drawings will have a purpose beyond being posted once a day. I plan to use them to create more products for my <a href="https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/MahyaHouse">Etsy shop</a> and my Print on Demand, <a href="https://teespring.com/en-GB/stores/mahya-house-shop">Teespring</a> and <a href="https://www.redbubble.com/people/MahyaShop/shop">Redbubble</a>, accounts. A few days ago I printed the first samples of cards to be featured on Etsy and I am quite pleased with them.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ug67Gl6GxJw/XywTmYAWC9I/AAAAAAAACLs/IKsoaCMfgxQm7ezyEsRBryyFLywEKxEowCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/foxes%2Bcards.jpg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="2048" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ug67Gl6GxJw/XywTmYAWC9I/AAAAAAAACLs/IKsoaCMfgxQm7ezyEsRBryyFLywEKxEowCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/foxes%2Bcards.jpg" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">The cards are printed on 300gsm matt white card and come with a white square envelope. They are printed locally at <a href="http://theartside.co.uk/">The Art Side</a>, Plymouth UK. I hope to make a set of 10 so that they are available together or individually. Do you prefer it on the blue or white background? Please let me know in a comment below.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Thank you,</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Diana</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div><br /></div>Diana Mazuruhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16727418234770397428noreply@blogger.com0United Kingdom55.378051 -3.43597327.067817163821154 -38.592223 83.688284836178838 31.720277tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7361696082128766316.post-15758161084921914562020-08-06T05:43:00.003+01:002020-08-06T14:35:44.437+01:00Small Art Business and Overwhelm<span style="font-family: inherit;">My art business is new and small. It is fragile and the to-do list is not only massive but a little confusing. With so many options, things to try and test, navigating through the maze of endless possibilities feels overwhelming and I find myself at a standstill. My to-do list is long and yet I cannot bring myself to do anything. </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Does this sound familiar? How many of us, especially artists, feel lost in the business world (at least from time to time)? Creating artwork can </span>occasionally (or always)<span style="font-family: inherit;"> feel easy compared to finding customers, marketing and generating sales. Even without that, sometimes our own perfectionist natures and constant striving for greatness, for creating work better than our last, can be crippling in itself. </span><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BGjK6O8i02c/Xyv7dW6HWyI/AAAAAAAACK4/oClwfIHEDp48-yzjnPOSVFk8L8YKNkf1gCLcBGAsYHQ/s872/IMG_20170411_221537_718.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; display: block; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; padding: 1em 0px;"><img alt="A drawing representing the feeling of overwhelm" border="0" data-original-height="872" data-original-width="865" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BGjK6O8i02c/Xyv7dW6HWyI/AAAAAAAACK4/oClwfIHEDp48-yzjnPOSVFk8L8YKNkf1gCLcBGAsYHQ/w317-h320/IMG_20170411_221537_718.jpg" title="Feeling Overwhelm" width="317" /></a></div><div><div><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit;">The definition for overwhelm is to </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">bury or drown beneath a huge mass of something, especially water. Against such a force, what powers do we have? </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">What can we do when we no longer know what to do or when we have too many things to accomplish and they all seem urgent or a priority?</span><div><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit;">As an </span>anxious<span style="font-family: inherit;">, stressed and easily overwhelmed human being, I have tried many things over the years. Below are a few suggestions from the NHS for dealing with stress and overwhelm which I hope you will find useful. </span></div><div><span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div><div><h3 class="icon-card-panel__heading" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Split up big tasks</span></h3><div class="icon-card-panel__text" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><div class="icon-card-panel__body" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0.5em 0px;"><div class="richTextEditor" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative;"><div id="richTextFormatter-1596711397721" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">'If a task seems overwhelming and difficult to start, try breaking it down into easier chunks, and give yourself credit for completing them.'</span></span></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">I personally like the techniques of </span>writing<span style="font-family: inherit;"> down your whole to-do list and choosing only three of the most important, or the three which would make you feel most accomplished when you finished them, and then disregard the rest for another day. Use this as a way of creating the biggest impact with your limited time, and the generated self worth that comes with it can help you push through the feeling of overwhelm.</span></span></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></p><h3 class="icon-card-panel__heading" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Challenge unhelpful thoughts</span></h3><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"></span></span></p><div class="icon-card-panel__text" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><div class="icon-card-panel__body" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0.5em 0px;"><div class="richTextEditor" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative;"><div id="richTextFormatter-1596711397723" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">'The way we think affects the way we feel.'</span></span></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><br /></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">In feng shui, it is recognised that our environments can impact the way we feel. Try to create a positive and clutter free space where your mind has room to decompress by putting things out of sight as much as possible. Having too many things out in the open for our eyes to settle on can be stressful for our minds so creating a clear space for yourself can be very effective.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><br /></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">If you feel powerless in a situation such as work, try to change your desk and chair so that you are facing the direction of human traffic into a room, called a power position. In our own house, the sofa we use faces the front entrance and in our studio, our desks face the doors and path to our house. I like to think of it as a throne, physically positioning ourselves as the person/s with power in a space so that we can more effectively handle things coming our way.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></p><h3 class="icon-card-panel__heading" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Talk to someone</span></h3><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"></span></span></p><div class="icon-card-panel__text" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><div class="icon-card-panel__body" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0.5em 0px;"><div class="richTextEditor" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative;"><div id="richTextFormatter-1596711397729" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">'Trusted friends, family and colleagues, or contacting a helpline, can help us when we are struggling.'</span></span></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">Women especially find a way of dealing with their racing thoughts and emotions through conversations. No matter your gender, there is something powerful in stating a thing out loud to another human being which allows us to gain more mastery over it. It makes us feel like we are no longer alone, that at least we have been heard and understood. When we face overwhelm, sometimes shame and the guilt of failure can trap us further but finding the courage to push through that by conversing with another can be a start towards recovery.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></p><h3 class="icon-card-panel__heading" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Allow yourself some positivity</span></h3><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"></span></span></p><div class="icon-card-panel__text" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><div class="icon-card-panel__body" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0.5em 0px;"><div class="richTextEditor" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative;"><div id="richTextFormatter-1596711397722" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">'Take time to think about the good things in your life. Each day, consider what went well and try to list 3 things you're thankful for.'</span></span></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Try to do this for 21 days straight to see how you can change your own outlook. I took the challenge and even now that it is completed, I still enjoy </span>writing<span style="font-family: inherit;"> down the three things I'm grateful for today and the surprise is that on some days it is difficult to stop just at three. Thankfully you can make your own rules.</span></span></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></p><h3 class="icon-card-panel__heading" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Be more active</span></h3><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"></span></span></p><div class="icon-card-panel__text" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><div class="icon-card-panel__body" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0.5em 0px;"><div class="richTextEditor" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative;"><div id="richTextFormatter-1596711397728" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">'Being active can help you to burn off nervous energy. It will not make your stress disappear, but it can make it less intense.'</span></span></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Taking a walk without music or any form of audio can give your brain the space it needs to start finding a way through the tangle, even if it is only </span>subconscious<span style="font-family: inherit;"> at first.</span></span></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></p><h3 class="icon-card-panel__heading" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Plan ahead</span></h3><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"></span></span></p><div class="icon-card-panel__text" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><div class="icon-card-panel__body" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0.5em 0px;"><div class="richTextEditor" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative;"><div id="richTextFormatter-1596711397731" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">'Planning out any upcoming stressful days or events – a to-do list, the journey you need to do, things you need to take – can really help.'</span></span></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">I like to write these down, to have a plan set on paper which in turn frees up more brain space for dealing with the more difficult tasks. My memory isn't the best so trying to remember everything I need to do can be taxing and stressful in itself. By writing down your plan, it becomes more clear and easier to follow</span></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">.</span></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">For more suggestions, please visit the <a href="https://www.nhs.uk/oneyou/every-mind-matters/stress/">NHS website</a>.</span></span></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5CJdUbN8CAc/Xyv86rzbg4I/AAAAAAAACLM/HQGnq81tMSoEZLkeuoqrGIB-Deu3G96MgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/20171009_195741%2Bb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; display: block; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; padding: 1em 0px;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1490" height="328" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5CJdUbN8CAc/Xyv86rzbg4I/AAAAAAAACLM/HQGnq81tMSoEZLkeuoqrGIB-Deu3G96MgCLcBGAsYHQ/w238-h328/20171009_195741%2Bb.jpg" width="238" /></a></div><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><p></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: inherit;">Often, the answer to my own mental paralysis is to take time away from everything and everyone and to listen to my own internal wisdom. Sometimes I discover that I have to </span><span style="background-color: transparent;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">actually ignore what my loved ones are saying, to shut them out and follow my own instincts. They mean well but they don't always get it right and in those cases we must persevere with our own wisdom. Once through to the other side they often concede; they only want our best after all no matter what we decide. </span></span></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="background-color: transparent;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="background-color: transparent;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">After all, only you can find your own way out of the </span>labyrinth<span style="font-family: inherit;"> of overwhelm. Others are there to help but only you hold the power to bring yourself through to the other side. </span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: inherit;">And with this I leave you. I hope you have found it at least as helpful as it has been for myself to remember what skills and resources are available to bring me out of my own negative dip. I'm sure with time it will pass and that it will not be too long before I am returned to my usual productive and positive self. But I cannot deny that I will inevitably find myself back in the repeating cycle of certainty and despair that comes with being an artist and small business owner and that it is OK and normal to feel at times lost. It is therefore comforting to know that that too will pass as it always has done and that no matter how bad it might get, I will always find my way back to my usual self. Life goes on.</span></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="background-color: transparent;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="background-color: transparent;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Thank you for reading and I hope you have a lovely day,</span></span></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="background-color: transparent;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Diana</span></span></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="background-color: transparent;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><br /></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><br /></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">The top drawing was created in a moment of overwhelm and despair. It too passed.</p></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>Diana Mazuruhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16727418234770397428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7361696082128766316.post-81662056826281148912020-07-27T09:39:00.041+01:002020-09-02T13:16:16.118+01:00Instagram Experiment: Follow/Unfollow (Does it work?)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FkXn_oYDt7Y/Xxh7M12a7HI/AAAAAAAACJ0/x2DbThnD14gsFAj7BLaTKXYw0tMu3McOQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1920/t-shirt-mockup-featuring-a-man-drinking-tea-sitting-by-his-dog-18086.png" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1920" data-original-width="1440" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FkXn_oYDt7Y/Xxh7M12a7HI/AAAAAAAACJ0/x2DbThnD14gsFAj7BLaTKXYw0tMu3McOQCLcBGAsYHQ/w300-h400/t-shirt-mockup-featuring-a-man-drinking-tea-sitting-by-his-dog-18086.png" width="300" /></a></div>We live in a world where information and resources are at our fingertips. As artists this can be a blessing and a curse. Never before has our work had so much potential be be viewed by so many people with apparent little effort. The whole world is our marketplace and we can ship physical items almost anywhere in the world or do without shipping altogether and sell digital work. We have print on demand websites like Society6, Teesprint, Redbubble and AmazonMerch and hand made marketplaces like Etsy. Never before have we had so much at our disposal and yet.... and yet... things are not so straight forward. We have infinite resources while at the same time we now face such great challenges like the sheer number of artists in competition with us on the same global marketplace. And if we don't even account for the small artists all veering for attention, we have to fight against giants like Amazon and Ebay who have what feels like a monopoly on the marketplace. We are at the mercy of apps such a facebook, Instagram and Twitter, hoping we can adapt to and take advantage of each new update. How can we complete with companies who have spent years developing ways to win attention, engagement, and customers? What can we do in the face of all this?<div><br /></div><div>40 years ago, the world of artists was very different. One would put together a tidy portfolio and walk with it to various agencies and publishers in search of work. Of course, the world isn't like that anymore. The methods we are taught in University and College for helping us make some sort of living are outdated and irrelevant in this spinning world of ever changing and growing technologies. We all have the world available at our fingertips and yet it has never seemed more difficult to set oneself up as an artist and actually earn some kind of living.</div><div><br /></div><div>Follow me on this journey as I traverse the creative landscape in search of a way through from obscurity to hopefully success. Last month I started a print on demand shop on Teespring called <a href="https://teespring.com/en-GB/stores/mahya-house-shop">Mahya House Shop</a> and an Instagram account <a href="https://www.instagram.com/mahyahouseshop/">@mahyahouseshop</a> as a way to test and learn about this way of generating income as a creative. During the <a href="http://dianamazuru.blogspot.com/2020/06/instagram-experiment.html">30 day experiment</a>, I received 4-5 likes per post, 17 new followers, and had 1 sale. It is now time to take things a step further and build upon the things learned during the last month. I will be conducting a new 6 week experiment and this time it will be based on the follow/unfollow method for Instagram (which sounds bad but bear with me).</div><div><br /></div><h3 style="text-align: left;"><font color="#ffa400" face="verdana">Experiment guidelines:</font></h3><div><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>The aim is to gain more followers, generate more engagement on Instagram and ultimately, more sales.</li><li>Continue doing the things from the <a href="http://dianamazuru.blogspot.com/2020/06/instagram-experiment.html">first experiment</a>.</li><li>Try to create Instagram stories one a day or one every two days so that new followers have something more to engage with. (Use tags in stories)</li><li><u>Follow/Unfollow</u>:</li></ul><ol style="text-align: left;"><li>Find similar accounts as our own and ones that cover the same of similar niches.</li><li>Repost images that have had a lot of success on those accounts with the intent on finding something that has the potential to go viral. Posts have to be relevant to the niche on the Instagram test account.</li><li>Follow people who have recently 'liked' content on these similar niche accounts.</li><li>Follow 50-100 accounts per week (select a day in the week to do this: Wednesday).</li><li>Engage with new followers by going on their account and liking some of their posts or leaving comments to show appreciation without stating it outright.</li><li>Six days later, unfollow any accounts that have not followed back but leave the ones that have followed.</li><li>Repeat steps 3-7 for six weeks at which point the experiment will end.</li><li>Review results.</li></ol><h3><font color="#ffa400" face="verdana">Experiment Begins:</font></h3></div><div>Starting with 17 followers and 1 sale. I believe I was following 15 art accounts which were not relevant to this experiment.</div><div><br /></div><div><font face="inherit"><b>Week one (22 July - 28 July): </b>51 Followers <b>/ </b>Following 101 (I thought 100 looked suspicious)</font></div><div><font face="inherit"><br /></font></div><div><font face="inherit"><b>Week two </b><b>(29 July - 4 Aug)</b><b>:</b> 69 Followers / 121 Following (+80/-those who didn't follow back)</font></div><div><font face="inherit"><br /></font></div><div><font face="inherit"><b>Week three </b><b>(5 Aug - 11 Aug)</b><b>:</b> 83 Followers / 117 Following (+66/-those who didn’t follow me back)</font></div><div><font face="inherit"><br /></font></div><div><font face="inherit"><b>Week four </b><b>(12 Aug - 18 Aug)</b><b>:</b> 97 Followers / 148 Following </font>(+100/-those who didn’t follow me back)</div><div><font face="inherit"><br /></font></div><div><font face="inherit"><b>Week five </b><b>(19 Aug - 25 Aug)</b><b>:</b> 159 Followers / 256 Following</font> (+200/-those who didn’t follow me back)</div><div>Running a 10% discount sale until Sunday 23rd. Posting twice daily until the end of the sale. <b>2 Sales with discount code. </b></div><div><font face="inherit"><br /></font></div><div><font face="inherit"><b>Week six </b><b>(26 Aug - 1 Sep)</b><b>:</b> 182 Followers / 284 Following </font> (+173/-those who didn’t follow me back)</div><div><div><br /></div><div>My biggest concern is whether I have chosen a bad niche because if I have then the experiment is unlikely to go well. People like tea puns, right? hmm... 😨</div><div><br /></div><div><b><a href="https://dianamazuru.blogspot.com/2020/06/instagram-experiment.html?" target="_blank">Read about the first Instagram experiment where I tested posting every day and using 30 tags.</a></b></div><div><br /></div><div><b><a href="https://dianamazuru.blogspot.com/2020/07/Instagram-experiment-conclusion.html?" target="_blank">Read the conclusion from the first Instagram experiment</a></b></div><div><br /></div><div>Keep posted for for updates on further experiments and progress on Instagram if you would like to learn from my findings and mistakes.</div><div><br /></div><div>Is this a method you think you would yourself use on Instagram?</div><div><br /></div><div>Write in a comment below what you do to grow your own Instagram following.</div><div><br /></div><div>Thank you and have a lovely day,</div><div>Diana</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div></div>Diana Mazuruhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16727418234770397428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7361696082128766316.post-43705740405614056812020-07-23T10:52:00.002+01:002020-09-02T12:43:14.731+01:00Instagram (posting every day & tags) & Print on Demand Experiment Conclusion 2020<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://teespring.com/kitty-tea?tsmac=store&tsmic=mahya-house-shop&pid=388&cid=101860" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1280" data-original-width="1920" height="416" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pLEYQbz7Qi8/XxhgVM-EEgI/AAAAAAAACJU/6j5iHk-W2_UMHZTnP5b56P_4sXazDnvuACLcBGAsYHQ/w625-h416/t-shirt-mockup-featuring-a-woman-and-her-cat-at-home-30669%2B%25281%2529.png" width="625" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://teespring.com/breath-in-and-out?tsmac=store&tsmic=mahya-house-shop&pid=387&cid=103460" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1920" data-original-width="1440" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8e8WETncXwA/Xxhgsv5Aa4I/AAAAAAAACJc/pGqnPp5hRMIhBGuHWh6G6qlDWO69yObtACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/man-doing-an-up-dog-yoga-posture-wearing-a-t-shirt-mockup-a20035.png" /></a></div>During the past few years, print on demand has gained in popularity. With many more people choosing to shop online and with the development of technology, print on demand has stepped in as a way to bring creatives and the consumer together. It's a relatively easy and straightforward way to get your work out there and hopefully generate some income. Over the last 30 days I have been running a test to see how effective print on demand can be for a totally new beginner. If you are thinking of starting a print on demand online shop or are wanting to create a new Instagram account and are at a loss of what to do or where to start, then you might find this useful.<div><br /></div><div>I've been running a 30 day experiment/trial with Instagram and Print on Demand, namely Teespring. I created a small number of t-shirt designs and a shop front on Teespring called <a href="https://teespring.com/en-GB/stores/mahya-house-shop">Mahya House Shop</a>. Teespring was chosen because I have heard the site requires you as the designer to generate the first 10 sales before Teespring will begin marketing your designs for you. This makes it easier to see the affect that my own efforts in marketing is having on the sales and therefore allows me to test which strategy works best.</div><div><br /></div><div>I chose to create my designs around the niche 'tea puns' (though I couldn't resist the yoga cat) because it's a niche that I felt I could easily create 10 or more designs for without running out of ideas and it's also one I have a passion for. I mean, who doesn't love tea and who can't resist a good roll your eyes pun? Well, maybe some people but we won't mention them.</div><div><br /></div><div>To help generate sales, I created a new Instagram account (<a href="https://www.instagram.com/mahyahouseshop/">@mahyahouseshop</a>) as a way to drive traffic to the online store and also to learn more about Instagram. You can learn more about the details of the Instagram experiment <a href="http://dianamazuru.blogspot.com/2020/06/instagram-experiment.html">here</a> and you can read about the Teesprint set up and what YouTube tutorial I followed <a href="http://dianamazuru.blogspot.com/2020/06/print-on-demand-experiment.html">here</a>. The types of posts I uploaded were educational/inspirational posts, my designs that I hoped to sell and examples showing my items being warn/used accompanied by 30 relevant tags. I used placeit.net to create the model mock-ups you can see in the pictures above. I did not use the follow/unfollow method for this experiment. If you would like to know exactly how many Instagram posts I created per day and what response I received, then you will find the information at the bottom of the <a href="http://dianamazuru.blogspot.com/2020/06/instagram-experiment.html">Instagram Experiment post</a>, where I tracked and updated the daily progress.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Suffice it to say, I posted one-two times per day on average. For my efforts over the last 30 days, I received 4-5 'likes' per post, had 17 new followers, and 1 sale (from the USA) resulting in a tidy £6.</b></div><div><br /></div><div>With such small results as to followers and post 'likes', that one sale is actually quite surprising. I started with no followers and didn't even tell my friends and family how to find it so the generated results are from complete strangers. I tested different tags but I have yet to decipher which of those were most effective and to me it still seems rather random. Nevertheless, all the traffic to my Instagram account was generated through the tags. What I did discover was that when someone came across my posts, they would often click on my account and proceed to 'like' many more of the images. So from this, I am deriving that the designs, when they strike a cord with someone, it really does the job but that maybe overall it might be too narrow of a niche for the rest of the population (but more research and testing is needed to verify this). As a result, the one single sale came from someone clicking on the Instagram link to the Teespring shop.</div><div><br /></div><div>So was this a success of failure? Well, I don't know. My ego tells me that there should have been more, maybe two sales instead of one but at the same time I cannot deny that it only took 15 days to generate the first sale from the start of this whole endeavour, after all, I did create and upload designs as I went along rather than having them ready from the beginning. As far as starting an online shop goes, I think that's pretty good and considering that I didn't have to pay for the item to be produced and shipped, I think that's a great deal. </div><div><br /></div><div>So what's next? Well, there's room for improvement here and maybe it's time to start a new experiment and take things further. What do you think?</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Update: Read about the next Instagram experiment <a href="https://dianamazuru.blogspot.com/2020/07/instagram-experiment-2.html?">here</a> where I used the follow/unfollow technique.</b></div><div><br /></div><div>Please write bellow what your strategies are for growing an Instagram account and for marketing your online shop if you have one. Any information you have will be valuable to myself and other readers.</div><div><br /></div><div>If you want to start your own online print on demand shop then keep posted and I will update you on what worked best.</div><div><br /></div><div>Thank you and have a lovely day,</div><div>Diana</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OXmJ6X2_UFk/Xxhpd7mqpYI/AAAAAAAACJo/1YQ-tXuWHW0aAglJnstENqOkKlIaO8HoACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_5391.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OXmJ6X2_UFk/Xxhpd7mqpYI/AAAAAAAACJo/1YQ-tXuWHW0aAglJnstENqOkKlIaO8HoACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_5391.jpg" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Tilly helping me write this blog post in our new studio (work in progress)</div><div><br /></div>Diana Mazuruhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16727418234770397428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7361696082128766316.post-73700536471668533032020-07-16T09:18:00.002+01:002020-07-16T09:18:03.416+01:00The story behind Mahya House<div class="separator"><div style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="591" data-original-width="591" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-IBP-42bKdTE/XwX2vwmEiEI/AAAAAAAACHU/2o3so42-fa4keCxRHw4_I5waX39QVhpMACK4BGAsYHg/s320/logo%2Bsample1%2Bcopy.jpg" /></div></div><div>In these posts I have been mentioning a new business I'm creating called Mahya House. I'd like to take the time today to tell you a little about it's name and what it stands for.</div><div><br /></div><div>The name Mahya House actually came to me while I was trying to sleep some months ago. I've been wanting to create some kind of business for myself for some years and always seemed to get stuck on what to call it. During that night I had been thinking about my grandmother and how she is the glue to our family, the one connecting me to my numerous aunts, uncles, cousins and their many children. Her hearing is going and she has been ill throughout my life but without her, we would all feel a vacuum. To me her position represents wholeness, oneness and love; she binds us all together. We call her Maia, which means mother, even though that is not her name but everyone including neighbours and friends all call her Maia. But, I didn't want to call my business by something that would mean mother because it would be too unrelated to what I actually wanted to do. So, as I was failing to sleep, the spelling for Mahya came to mind. I don't know if I must have seen it somewhere but it seemed to drift to me from the universe itself, this <i>Mahya House</i>, and when I awoke in the morning I looked it up: Mahya means <i>life</i>. My fledgling business is <i>life house</i>. It is my life house, my way of granting myself the creativity my soul has been craving and hopefully it will one day bring life to others by inspiring and encouraging them with their own creative journeys. For me, Mahya House is hope and a way of connecting the creativity throughout our lives together instead of compartmentalising it into art or craft or DIY, it all falls under the same creative branch. Mahya House is about encouraging a creative life as a whole.</div><div><br /></div><div>I once heard someone say along the lines that you know something is a good idea if you think someone in the world should do it even if it isn't you. And this is how I feel with Mahya House. If I don't do it, this thing that the universe has entrusted me with, someone else will do it if I don't, so I had better get on with it and so I am. I wouldn't be surprised if one day I will no longer be enough on my own and that a team of people will be required to fulfil it's mission but until then, I press on.</div><div><br /></div><div>As always, thank you for reading and wish me luck,</div><div>Diana</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div>Diana Mazuruhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16727418234770397428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7361696082128766316.post-56053090021114103422020-07-13T09:47:00.007+01:002020-07-13T09:47:00.488+01:00Etsy progress - the first reviewFor those of you who have been following along you will know that it wasn't that long ago (three months) that I finally opened an <a href="https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/MahyaHouse">Etsy</a> store (I say 'finally' because I've been meaning to do it for years and only just got round to it 😅). Seeing as I have been posting my progress of my fledgling business I thought you might appreciate my being transparent about the progress and how things are getting along so far. <div><br /></div><div>Well, I have had three sales on there of my pansy linocut prints which helped raise funds for the Plymouth Food Bank. Two of the sales were from people I know so they count but don't count, you know what I mean. The one I am very proud of is the one from a complete stranger who has trusted me as a seller. And, 11 days ago I have had my <i>very first</i> review and it's a glowing one, so of course I have to brag:<div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wIDcjZB3Stg/XwXtak7uLZI/AAAAAAAACG4/lUgo3pQMMs0u59IWUt526hjsp9anvYG9wCK4BGAsYHg/s1097/Etsy%2Breview.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="488" data-original-width="1097" height="349" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wIDcjZB3Stg/XwXtak7uLZI/AAAAAAAACG4/lUgo3pQMMs0u59IWUt526hjsp9anvYG9wCK4BGAsYHg/w781-h349/Etsy%2Breview.jpg" width="781" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>If you are only just starting out your Etsy store, tell your family and friends about it so that they know where to go to buy your work. If they purchase through Etsy then pester them until they leave you a review because that helps others see you as trustworthy, or at least that is the idea.</div><div><br /></div><div>Unfortunately, I do believe I am guilty of neglecting my Etsy store so it probably could do better. 😓There is always hope. </div><div><br /></div><div>Until next time,</div><div>Diana</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div></div>Diana Mazuruhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16727418234770397428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7361696082128766316.post-86241249392182367412020-07-08T16:44:00.001+01:002020-07-08T16:46:08.436+01:00Print on Demand - first inkling of successI did promise I would keep you posted on my journey with print on demand so here is a little update. Two weeks after first starting, I have had my <i>very first</i> sale. Whoohooo! The sale was of the design below for which I will eventually receive a whopping £6 but I have no idea when.<div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://teespring.com/en-GB/stores/mahya-house-shop" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1920" data-original-width="1440" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EBtHVLdg0NM/XwXmbMX96VI/AAAAAAAACGc/2rOiQWpN9Ho9tVDOmmFzSF_JSJacHglGQCK4BGAsYHg/s320/tattooed-girl-wearing-a-t-shirt-mockup-petting-her-cat-on-the-bed-a18791.png" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>So moral of the story is that it is possible to start a print on demand business and have sales very quickly. This one is on <a href="https://teespring.com/en-GB/stores/mahya-house-shop">Teespring.com</a> and the goal is to get 10 sales before Teespring will promote the designs itself. Until then, I will have to continue sending traffic there through my experimental Instagram account.</div><div><br /></div><div>Keep well,</div><div>Diana</div>Diana Mazuruhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16727418234770397428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7361696082128766316.post-55263016174037338632020-07-01T08:33:00.009+01:002020-07-01T08:33:00.324+01:00A year ago we bought our first homeThis time last year we received the keys to our very first property. The process felt long and difficult but in actuality, it only took eight months from the initial idea and resolution to actually getting the keys to our home. But I guess it was similar to when we got married, we were engaged in October and married the following June, an eight month engagement. What a coincidence!<div><br /></div><div>For those curious, this is the first video after receiving the keys, before I knew it's better to make landscape videos:<br /><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/V5iPfuW2Dz8" width="320" youtube-src-id="V5iPfuW2Dz8"></iframe></div><div><p style="text-align: left;">This time two years ago, buying our first house seemed like an unrealistic dream or at least one far, far into the future. I would never have imagined that only a year later we would be holding the keys to our first property. Only a few months later, the culprit who takes the blame (or credit) for putting all this into motion is my lovely mum. During a harmless Sunday discussion, she pointed out that with a few extra resources, we could afford the 5% deposit required to buy a house. Suddenly, our meagre savings began to look like a pot of gold. It wouldn't be difficult to boost that and reach the 5%. I caught the buzz, got really excited, and there was no stopping me after that. It was like a veil had been lifted; the allusive dream was actually tantalisingly close. We threw ourselves head first into the super fun process of calling agents and visiting properties.</p><div><h3>Hidden Resources</h3></div><div>When we began this journey, we found we had a few resources we had not been aware of. We spoke to mortgage brokers who informed us how much we would need for the paperwork and lawyers (plan for £3,000 to be safe for up to a £150,000 house) and discovered the Help To Buy ISA which the government were then supporting for first time buyers, giving us some extra cash after the sale and had a very helpful high interest rate.</div><div><br /></div><div>There are also no Land Registry fees for first time buyers in the UK so that saved us a little.</div><div><br /></div><div>We found we were actually able to save a lot more each month than we thought now that we had a strong reason to make a few more sacrifices. We started saving like crazy.</div><div><br /></div><div>My family are quite close and help each other financially when needed. My parents were generous enough to help us pay for the lawyer and paperwork fees. I will be forever grateful for all the help my family gave us, they are awesome human beings. My parents had a year previously bought their house and had relevant advice and guidance for us. I don't think things would have moved so quickly and smoothly without them. So make use of family where possible.</div><div><br /></div><div>By the time the deposit was actually required of us for the sale, we had actually managed to scrape together enough for a 10% deposit. Whooop!</div><h3 style="text-align: left;">What the process looks like</h3><div>Without going too much into detail, other than making sure you have enough savings for a deposit and fees, the first important step for us was finding a trustworthy mortgage broker to sift through all the options and find the best deals. We used <a href="https://www.themortgageguyltd.co.uk/">The Mortgage Guy</a> and we have to admit, we had a wonderful experience with them. They were recommended to us through my parents who had used this company the year before with their house. They were super helpful and explained things to us so that we could understand everything, they pretty much held our hands throughout the whole process. The best bit, they can calculate what mortgage you could comfortably afford and what the monthly mortgage repayments would look like if you bought a lower end property or a higher end property.</div><div><br /></div><div>Estate Agents- we signed up to pretty much all of them. We got so excited with the process that we were even able to push through our phone anxieties (we both have a phobia of phone calls, go figure). The only thing I would suggest here is to be super clear about what you would want your house price range to be because they <i>will</i> try to get you to your upper limit so be careful. This is your future and your new house so don't let them influence you into getting a property which you might struggle to afford.</div><div><br /></div><div>Lawyers- now this we would have struggled with and went with one of the options recommended to us from The Mortgage Guy. I guess we could have done more research on this but I suppose we were lazy and impatient. We were told the process from when an offer gets accepted to getting the keys could be 6-12 weeks but in our experience, expect it to be on the longer end, more like 12 weeks. Things happen, records need to be excavated. We had a delay from waiting on the seller to find and provide the gas and electric certificates for the property. We received our keys a month later than what we initially thought. Another thing to keep in mind is that if there is anything you would like the sellers to do to the house before the end of sale, like get a skip for all the junk in the garden, you <u>must</u> tell your lawyers so that they can enforce it if, for example, the sellers don't remove all the rubbish and leave you to deal with it yourself. Because we trusted the sellers, we didn't involve our lawyers which meant we didn't have a leg to stand on when they didn't quite fulfil their promise.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Inspect the house before the final sign off of the paperwork. </b>This way, you can catch anything that might have been missed or if anything got broken since you last viewed the property. And this is why your lawyer needs to know if you've asked the sellers to get something done so that you can inspect it and allow time for things to get sorted to your specifications. We, of course, did not do this and learned this lesson after the fact. 😅</div><h3 style="text-align: left;">The scary side of buying a house</h3><div>The downside to buying a property instead of renting is that all the repairs & maintenance, home insurance, etc become your responsibility, yay. You now have a bunch of extra worries and you need way more savings as a safety cushion for when things go wrong (because things will go wrong, it's just how it goes with properties). We used almost all our savings in the actual purchase of the property so we urgently had to save for our safety net. Gone are the days when a couple a thousand would have covered any disaster, now we need so much more. What is the roof leaks? Could we cover such an expense?</div><div><br /></div><div><div>Another down side is that you're stuck with your neighbours. It's not so easy to move if you don't get along, so you'd better do your best to keep things pleasant.</div><div><br /></div><div>It's difficult to move when you have to sell and buy another property, it's a long process which needs to be taken into consideration. Getting up and randomly going somewhere is not so straight forward anymore. What happens to the house when you are gone? Who looks after it and takes care of it if anything were to happen?</div></div><div><br /></div><div>What happens if you can't keep up with your mortgage repayments? Well, there's actually not much of a cushion there. You pretty much get into hot water straight away if you miss a payment. As much as the paperwork might be in your name, the house belongs to the bank until the mortgage is completely paid off. Which doesn't seem quite fair, you are responsible for keeping up with the upkeep of the house but if you can't pay back your mortgage, it gets taken away from you and sold via auction, usually for much less than what you paid for it, leaving you not only homeless but also with debt.</div><div><br /></div><div>So with that bombshell, lets look at some of the positives.</div><h3 style="text-align: left;">The up sides of having your own house</h3><div>One of the best upsides which turned out to be true for us is that the mortgage repayments can be lower than rent in your area. We pay £100 less each month than we did while we were renting. This extra dough can now contribute to our much needed safety net savings.</div><div><br /></div><div>The very best thing, in my opinion, of owning your home is that finally you can do what you want with it. Paint it hot pink, nobody can do anything to you. Maybe it's from now being in my 30's but I had a real craving for creating my own environment. I had done as much as I could do to our rented house without getting into trouble with the landlord and I needed more. I was desperate for a real juicy project to sink my teeth into. A year later and I can say that this house is going to provide me with entertainment for many years to come. The <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC73V9xiZFfYquG0f7gALdqg">Mahya House YouTube channel</a> is based on our journey with our lovely home.</div><div><br /></div><div>This might not be true all over the world but here in the UK, the value of houses generally go up. Where we live, even the 2008 recession barely touched the housing prices and it very quickly recovered, although in some areas in the north of the country this has not been the case. Now, we have no idea how bad the recession will be after lockdown with the Covid 19 outbreak but if historic housing records are anything to go by, stick with it and eventually the market recovers and then grows again. I really hope I've not jinxed it now that I've said that (fingers crossed). If all goes well, buying a house <i>should</i> help us save money over the long run by allowing us to pour the money that would have gone for rent into a house that has actual value, acting like a kind of savings account. Of course I am writing this in very uncertain times so I could be proven very wrong and this whole thing could turn out to be a devastating disaster. 😨</div><div><br /></div><div>On the bright side, banks allow you to pay small amounts of the mortgage back to help pay it off earlier. Every year you can pay off an extra month's worth without incurring any fees or charges. And as far as I understand it, when the fixed term of the mortgage has ended and you renegotiate, you can pay off some of the mortgage at that time too. </div><h3 style="text-align: left;">Make your house pay for itself</h3><div>So with all this scary talk, it's probably prudent to be aware of the options at our disposal that might help bring some more income. If you have bought or are thinking of buying a house, keep in mind that you can rent out spare rooms. Here in the UK, we cannot rent out the whole house unless we were to get a Rent to Buy mortgage which is a lot more complicated but as far as I found out, we can rent out our spare room to, for example, an international student staying for a relatively short time. Now don't take me at my word, do your own research and get legal advice on this.</div><div><br /></div><div>Have you got a garden, can you grow any food and save on your food shop? I don't know about you but it seems to me that one of the biggest expenses in life is actually food, especially good healthy food. Seeds are inexpensive and if you have the space and time, why not give it a go and see if you can produce some of your own organic, locally grown produce? </div><div><br /></div><div>Save on that usually high water bill by attaching a water butt, or three in our case, to the drain pipes for the house. We have a rather large back garden so water was a real issue. We have a lot of rainfall in the UK so in the winter when it's not needed in the garden, it might be good for things in the house like the loo. The water burrs were also a useful water source for when I last washed the car! YAY.</div><h3 style="text-align: left;">It's your home, love it</h3><div>Despite all the scary aspects of buying our first home, the delays and (seemingly at the time) complicated process, I often look at our house and think how very fortunate we are. We are in love with our house and have never looked back at renting. It's been life-changer for us. Our first home was dark and narrow with a tiny concrete courtyard. Our new home is bright and spacious with more outdoor space than I can look after (building myself up to the dream of having acres upon acres of land, some of it wild like my own private nature reserve). We are taking our time with house improvements, learning and savouring the process and hopefully we will continue to document it for you all on here and our <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC73V9xiZFfYquG0f7gALdqg">YouTube channel</a>. And no matter what comes, whether the house prices plummet, jobs lost or not, we are in this together and for now we will continue to relish the good times.</div></div></div><div><br /></div><div>Thank you for reading. If this was useful to you, please leave a comment bellow or if you have any advice for first time buyers, likewise let us all know.</div><div><br /></div><div>Thank you,</div><div>Diana</div><div><br /></div>Diana Mazuruhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16727418234770397428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7361696082128766316.post-15833586369699068732020-06-28T11:22:00.001+01:002020-09-02T11:48:22.423+01:00Print on demand experiment (Does it work?)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4zZ27rsQMYA/XvebXX_iurI/AAAAAAAACEo/GuAsWXBBR8A8lC8djsGNCmxPDUPGzuTdwCK4BGAsYHg/s406/Clip%2Bone.png" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="406" data-original-width="385" height="256" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4zZ27rsQMYA/XvebXX_iurI/AAAAAAAACEo/GuAsWXBBR8A8lC8djsGNCmxPDUPGzuTdwCK4BGAsYHg/w243-h256/Clip%2Bone.png" width="243" /></a>Is it just me or are there an unlimited amount of YouTube videos to help people start a YouTube channel, or blog, or business or something? Just sign up to their course, right? There seem to be more online courses than ever before. There are even courses on how to make courses. And many have the 'passive income' as their dangling fruit to get us hooked (or addicted). <br /><br />As someone who questions everything and wants to research things to death, it's super easy for me to fall down the rabbit holes of all these promises of some future success only to find that like everything else, there is no easy answer and that no matter what road you choose to go down, it will involve a great deal of work and time.<br /><br />With that said, I came across YouTube channels who claimed to have several income streams, one of which being the ever popular print on demand. I was introduced to print on demand, namely Society6, back when I was in Uni. Back then they didn't have that many products and even then it felt like there were such a huge number of artists that it was impossible to get noticed. I even went as far as to message some of their featured artists only to find out from them that they have had no sales and they had no idea why or how they even got featured. I am an impatient person so after my artwork was up on the Society6 site for a year or more and I had no sales, I took down my account. But what if I had it wrong? What if you cannot rely on these kind of websites to market you at all, what if it is all up to you to drive your sales and that is what I was missing? But then if you are driving all the sales, is it not better to have your own website? Of course, having your own website and stock costs a lot, right? Or does it?</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">From what I have been learning from YouTube and blogs, people are making their own Shopify website stores with their own url, driving their own sales and all this through print and demand. Of course, they still have to handle customer service and returns but it seems that gone are the days for needing a huge amount of funds to begin a small online shop. It appears that people have been doing it will little startup money for the last few years and I had no idea of this subtle yet massive development.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">My curiosity eventually brought me to Greg Gottfried. I don't know how trustworthy he is because I didn't look into his background but he does appear to be more upfront about what it takes to set up a print on demand shop and what the actual steps are that a person could take to get going and with virtually little to no upstart money. He gives more information and more detail than a lot of the other YouTubers.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Anyway, I thought I'd take him up on it and give it a go. What's the worst that could happen? If it fails flat on its face than you and I would hopefully have a few things to learn from this experiment and if it does succeed in any way than I have something that I can start scaling as time and funds permit. So without any further ado, the YouTube video that inspired this post and experiment is <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SmWPAvywW28&t=916s">Print On Demand Tutorial For Beginners - Teespring, RedBubble, Merch By Amazon</a> (for some reason it won't let me actually post the video which would make it much easier for you all).</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Greg Gottfried claims that you can expect your first sale in the first two months so that's actually a really long time in my book. I'm not sure I have enough patience for two months but I can definitely do one month. Then again, I guess I don't want to be a quitter. 😬😅</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I will try to follow his instructions for this but I can't promise anything because my creative and stubborn natures do not allow me to follow instructions very well but I will do my best for you. I shall be starting by creating some digital designs for Redbubble and Teespring. As far as I know, Merch by Amazon is still not working due to lockdown and I'll have to get on that at a later date. So please don't laugh, but this is my first attempt at an online print on demand shop:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://teespring.com/en-GB/stores/mahya-house-shop" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1153" height="406" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-biZGPcSjFXM/XveZ3oSMDzI/AAAAAAAACEM/KIXC53eeVf0ws072FPlZGGB4PrzJ82P4wCK4BGAsYHg/w625-h406/shop%2Bpreview.jpg" width="625" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">This preview is from Teespring which allows the artist to create a storefront to keep all their design together and direct their customers to. Teesprint handle all the sales, shipping, customer service and returns. They print their stock in the USA and Europe. I have only made a few designs so far and I only hope that I didn't pick a niche that's too narrow. Maybe I can expand to coffee and other puns?</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The Instagram Experiment which I am also running is linked to this online store. So it's more of one big experiment. Concerning designs, I know I can only get better the more I do them. If I did choose the wrong niche, with this method, it wouldn't take much to set up a parallel shop with another niche and run them side by side to see which is more popular, but that is for a later date. In the meantime, I still have a lot to sort out for this one. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">If you are interested in learning more or following this experimental journey, than keep posted! I will be updating my progress as I go along and if it fails, you will find out about it. 😉</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Thanks for reading. If you have tried such a thing before than please comment bellow with your experiences and any advise you have for beginners. I'm sure we are all curious.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Have a super duper day,</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Diana</div><div><br /></div>Diana Mazuruhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16727418234770397428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7361696082128766316.post-54362431872915123622020-06-24T11:26:00.032+01:002020-09-02T11:44:06.207+01:00Instagram Experiment: Posting every day and using tags (2020)While my little business is still in its infancy, I think this is the best time to run a few experiments, try things out, and hopefully learn some things along the way. There's nothing more strongly praised these days than the wonders of social media to help promote your little fledgling business. Now I've had my personal Instagram account for a few years and I have to admit that I don't actually know very much about it. Therefore, I shall be running a little experiment to see what would happen if you were to set up a new Instagram account and try to grow it organically. Is this still possible or would I need to use paid advertising and whatnot? What do you guys think?<br />
<br />
<div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UbUERXA2OFU/XvJSuk3UPiI/AAAAAAAACDs/24hyUa4hNSE4N8LLT7CtiebPs483tW3TwCK4BGAsYHg/s1080/Instagram%2Bexperiment.png" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="812" data-original-width="1080" height="301" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UbUERXA2OFU/XvJSuk3UPiI/AAAAAAAACDs/24hyUa4hNSE4N8LLT7CtiebPs483tW3TwCK4BGAsYHg/w400-h301/Instagram%2Bexperiment.png" width="400" /></a></div>
<div>
1. So for this experiment, which I plan to run for 30 days will involve creating a new Instagram account (which I will not tell you what it's called so I don't ruin my own experiment) and I shall be posting on it every day. At first I might post two a day but after a while I plan to only post one a day.</div>
<div>
<br />
2. The types of posts I will be uploading are educational/inspirational posts, my designs that I hope to sell and examples showing my items being warn/used.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
3. I have followed a few Instagram accounts but they are there only to give me something interesting to look at in the feed and is not really related to my target audience so I'm not expecting any follows back from any of them. I know you can use the follow/unfollow scheme but that's not what I'm about; it does seem a little dishonest to me.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
4. For this experiment, I shall be relying on those ever popular hashtags! Now I've see that pretty much everyone does it differently. For this experiment, I shall be using the 30 tags in a comment style. I have to admit that it does look a lot neater when the posts show up in your feed this way. I could try putting the tags in the actual post as well to see if there is any difference but I don't see why there would be.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
5. I shall be linking the new Instagram account to a print on demand shop with some new designs to see if I can generate any sales through this free Instagram traffic. Of course, there's always the off chance that my designs are terrible and nothing will happen. Therefore I shall be tracking followers, likes, and sales.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
6. I shall be updating this post to keep you updated on my progress. Lets hope that something will come of it. If it doesn't than hopefully you and I would have learned something.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Let me know what you think of my little experiment. What do you think will happen? Will I get any sales? If you have any knowledge about how best to use Instagram to grow your account and drive traffic to your shop, please let me and others know in a comment below. Let the experiment commence!</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<h4 style="text-align: left;"><b><font color="#ffa400" face="verdana">Experiment Start Date 22nd June 2020</font></b></h4>
<div>
<font color="#666666" face="verdana" size="2"><b>22nd June/Day One:</b> 3 new posts, 1 new followers, 6 new likes, 0 new sales</font></div>
<div>
<font color="#666666" face="verdana" size="2"><br /></font></div>
<div>
<font color="#666666" face="verdana" size="2"><b>23rd June/Day Two:</b> 2 new posts, 3 new followers, 12 new likes, 0 new sales</font></div>
<div>
<font color="#666666" face="verdana" size="2"><br /></font></div>
<div>
<font color="#666666" face="verdana" size="2"><b>24th June/Day Three:</b> 2 new posts, 5 new followers, 5 new likes, 0 new sales </font></div>
<div><font color="#666666" face="verdana" size="2">
(and finally linked in the shop to Instagram)<br />
<br />
<b>25th June/Day Four:</b> 2 new posts, 4 new followers, 5 new likes, 0 new sales </font></div>
<div><font color="#666666" face="verdana" size="2">
(and I'm already thinking this tag thing isn't working so well... I wonder what I'm doing wrong? Maybe people don't appreciate puns as much as I thought?)</font></div>
<div>
<font color="#666666" face="verdana" size="2"><br /></font></div>
<div>
<font color="#666666" face="verdana" size="2"><b>26th June/Day Five:</b> 2 new posts, 0 new followers, 8 new likes, 0 new sales<br />
<br />
<b>27th June/Day Six:</b> 3 new posts, 0 new followers, 12 new likes, 0 new sales</font></div>
<div>
<font color="#666666" face="verdana" size="2"><br />
<b>28th June/Day Seven: </b>1<b> </b>new posts, 0 new followers, 4 new likes, 0 new sales<br />
<br />
<b>29th June/Day Eight: </b>3<b> </b>new posts, 0 new followers, 17 new likes, 0 new sales<br />
<br />
<b>30th June/Day Nine: </b>2<b> </b>new posts, 0 new followers, 15 new likes, 0 new sales<br />
<br />
<b>1st July/Day Ten: </b>2<b> </b>new posts, 0 new followers, 6 new likes, 0 new sales </font></div><div><font color="#666666" face="verdana" size="2">(Used Launch.com to automate the posts for the first time)<br />
<br />
<b>2nd July/Day Eleven: </b>1<b> </b>new posts, 0 new followers, 6 new likes, 0 new sales<br />
<br />
<b>3rd July/Day Twelve: </b>1<b> </b>new posts, 0 new followers, 8 new likes, 0 new sales<br />
<br />
<b>4th July/Day Thirteen: </b>1<b> </b>new posts, 0 new followers, 3 new likes, 0 new sales<br />
<br />
<b>5th July/Day Fourteen:</b><b> </b>1<b> </b>new posts, 0 new followers, 9 new likes, <b>1 new sale</b></font></div><div><font color="#666666" face="verdana" size="2">(First sale)</font></div><div>
<font color="#666666" face="verdana" size="2"><br />
<b>6th July/Day Fifteen: </b>2<b> </b>new posts, 1 new followers, 10 new likes, 0 new sales<br />
<br />
<b>7th July/Day Sixteen: </b>1 new posts, 1 new followers, 4 new likes, 0 new sales<br />
<br />
<b>8th July/Day Seventeen: </b>2 new posts, 0 new followers, 14 new likes, 0 new sales<br />
<br />
<b>9th July/Day Eighteen: </b>1 new posts, 0 new followers, 8 new likes, 0 new sales<br />
<br />
<b>10th July/Day Nineteen: </b>1 new posts, 1 new followers, 5 new likes, 0 new sales<br />
<br />
<b>11th July/Day Twenty: </b>2<b> </b>new posts, 0 new followers, 6 new likes, 0 new sales<br />
<br />
<b>12th July/Day Twenty One:</b> 1 new posts, 0 new followers, 5 new likes, 0 new sales<br />
<br />
<b>13th July/Day </b><b>Twenty Two</b><b>: </b>1 new posts, 0 new followers, 4 new likes, 0 new sales<br />
<br />
<b>14th July/Day </b><b>Twenty Three</b><b>: </b>1 new posts, 0 new followers, 5 new likes, 0 new sales (1 comment)<br />
<br />
<b>15th July/Day </b><b>Twenty Four</b><b>: </b>2<b> </b>new posts, 0 new followers, 6 new likes, 0 new sales<br />
<br />
<b>16th July/Day </b><b>Twenty Five</b><b>: </b>1<b> </b>new posts, 0 new followers, 2 new likes, 0 new sales<br />
<br />
<b>17th July/Day </b><b>Twenty Six</b><b>: </b>2 new posts, 0 new followers, 8 new likes, 0 new sales<br />
<br />
<b>18th July/Day </b><b>Twenty Seven</b><b>:</b> 1 new posts, 0 new followers, 4 new likes, 0 new sales<br />
<br />
<b>19th 20th July/Day </b><b>Twenty Eight</b><b>: </b>1<b> </b>new posts, 0 new followers, 2 new likes, 0 new sales<br />
<br />
<b>21st July/Day </b><b>Twenty Nine</b><b>: </b>2<b> </b>new posts, 1 new followers, 4 new likes, 0 new sales<br />
<br />
<b>22nd July/Day Thirty: </b>2<b> </b>new posts, 0 new followers, 8 new likes, 0 new sales</font></div>
<h4 style="text-align: left;"><font color="#ffa400" face="verdana">
Experiment End Date 22nd July 2020</font></h4><div><font color="#ffa400" face="verdana"><br /></font></div><div><font face="inherit">Thank you for following the progress,</font></div><div><font face="inherit">Diana</font></div><div><font face="inherit"><br /></font></div><div><font face="inherit"><br /></font></div>
</div>
Diana Mazuruhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16727418234770397428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7361696082128766316.post-27546881459852673432020-06-22T09:00:00.001+01:002020-09-02T11:44:35.607+01:00Lessons from a first attempt at starting a businessSince I was a teenager, I've dreamed of having my very own creative business. My very first official attempt was right before I started my Illustration Degree at Plymouth University and it was called Kitty Cards. It was a business selling hand made cards which lasted a very short time and was closed shortly after starting my degree. It boasted one sale to a friend and nothing much more.<br />
<br />
On the surface, it was a complete and utter failure like all those we like to sweep under the rug and never look back at ever again. But, reflecting on those very early attempts, and despite my lack of sales, this little business did manage to teach me a few important things: how to file a tax return for one, how to balance accounts (not difficult with this one), how to set up a website and online shop, and how to add those little paypal buttons among other things. Overall, this little business served as a stepping stone for me.<div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gO733NIvNjg/XukVf6zL35I/AAAAAAAACBU/IUv6GCZ_2zMukm2s6AYRjeotuVrQfxuoACK4BGAsYHg/s3540/DSCF0330%2Bedit.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2634" data-original-width="3540" height="373" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gO733NIvNjg/XukVf6zL35I/AAAAAAAACBU/IUv6GCZ_2zMukm2s6AYRjeotuVrQfxuoACK4BGAsYHg/w500-h373/DSCF0330%2Bedit.jpg" width="500" /></a></div><div><h4>Time and effort vs quality or price</h4>
From an artist point of view, it's easy to think that because we spent x amount of hours on something that we ought to be paid y but this isn't the case. There might not be enough people wanting to buy your products, you might not have reached the correct customers, your products might need improving. Kitty Cards taught me that time and effort did not always correlate with pricing nor necessarily with quality, especially when first starting out. I can now look back and say that my products were not ready, they were nowhere near good enough for what I needed to charge for them. Making low priced, time consuming products was disheartening and I did not have the resilience to push past it. Add to this the new adventures of being a full time student and we have a recipe for disinterest in the place of the hard work required to knuckle down and bring real quality to this business.</div><div><br /></div><div>What are some things you can do to improve the quality of your products/services? How can you bring more value to your customers so that you can charge what is right for you?</div><div><div><h4 style="text-align: left;">But can you stick to it?</h4>
Perhaps my greatest failure with Kitty Cards was in neglecting to choose a business I could really stick to over the long run. I chose hand made cards because at the time it was new and exciting. I was learning new skills and focusing my time of limbo before the start of Uni into productivity. We had little money so using scrap to make into creative products was a great outlet for me. But like any fad that comes and goes, hand made cards were soon replaced in my minds eye by illustration. And unfortunately, I have been proven to be one of those people who really does struggle to stick to any one thing. Receiving advice about business from others, the one point that keeps coming up is that we really ought to choose one thing and stick with it. To that I say, 'easier said than done,' because it is still a struggle for me. Blessed are those who can do it and make a success of it. ;)</div><div><br /></div><div>What is that one thing that't you are obsessing over and which <i>must</i> be done in the world whether by you or by someone else?</div><div><h4 style="text-align: left;">Striving for greatness</h4>What I take most from this little venture of Kitty Cards is the recognition of that little internal desire for something other, something more than what is generally viewed as 'normal'. Is that not what we all want in the end? Whether I achieve this or not is perhaps irrelevant because the way I see it, part of the fun is in the chasing for it. There is something pleasurable in striving for more, pursuing progress and growth. I will tell you if I change my mind when I get there but until then, it is an ever growing force inside my soul. Besides, I believe that if you dream big, you'll likely get some things done but if you only dream small, you'll only ever get small things done.</div><div><br /></div><div>What is your ridiculously big dream and what is the first step to make it happen?</div><h4 style="text-align: left;">What the future holds</h4><div>So through all my years of attempts and failures one thing did not diminished: I still dream of having my own creative business. Failure hasn't stopped me yet and I daresay it won't stop me any time soon. I will learn to focus better; I will become more resilient. </div><div><br /></div><div>The current endeavour close to my heart is Mahya House which was started during this lockdown 2020. It's been two years of conversations and thinking in the making and I still don't know exactly what it is but it is slowly taking shape. I hope you will join me on this adventure as it ever so slowly unfolds into something worthwhile. My aim is that Mahya House will be a voice of encouragement to those in their own creative pursuits. Creativity is a human need, without it we go a little mad, and I believe we need more support though our journeys. Mahya House will be one of the supportive voices. I welcome you to follow it's progress.</div><div><br /></div><div>The brand new Mahya House Etsy shop can be found <a href="https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/MahyaHouse">here</a> and the YouTube channel can be found <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC73V9xiZFfYquG0f7gALdqg">here</a>.</div><h4 style="text-align: left;">What about you?</h4><div>What was your first business venture like? What are some of the greatest lessons you have learned from your failures? What is your current endeavour? Write a comment below and let us know.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>If you would like to learn more about gaining successes from failures, I recommend giving <a href="https://www.facebook.com/TheGoodFailers/">The Good Fail</a> a peruse. The Good Fail is a podcast exploring failure and learning to turn it into a positive, bringing a different perspective on what it looks like to succeed in the creative business. I have found it very encouraging thus far and hope you will enjoy it also.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>With love,</div><div>Diana</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div></div></div>Diana Mazuruhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16727418234770397428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7361696082128766316.post-9420035269601800332020-06-19T11:13:00.007+01:002020-06-19T11:44:20.660+01:00Nursery Prints, The Gingerbread Man<div>
Back when <b><a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Gingerbread-Man-Mr-Neil-Trigger/dp/1512176648/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=neil+trigger+the+gingerbread+man&qid=1592562962&sr=8-1" target="_blank">The Gingerbread Man</a></b> book illustrations were first created, I always desired to sell some of my favourite paintings as prints. With the setting up of my very first <b><a href="https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/MahyaHouse">Etsy Shop</a></b>, that vision has finally become a reality, yapee!<br />
<br />
Grab all four to get the full collection.<br />
<br />
These ones come framed but would you prefer to have ones available unframed? What do you think?<br />
<br />
I'm just so excited to have them available at long last.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Om-KMxL3DZM/XuyMtJI0jZI/AAAAAAAACB0/FpMkm_m-r_o-LUTafqL20IOExwacJ6FUQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/IMG_4478.JPG" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img alt="The Gingerbread Man and the fox" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="256" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Om-KMxL3DZM/XuyMtJI0jZI/AAAAAAAACB0/FpMkm_m-r_o-LUTafqL20IOExwacJ6FUQCLcBGAsYHQ/w256-h256/IMG_4478.JPG" title="The Gingerbread Man" width="256" /></a><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CHen20_xFrk/XuyMtNZl0ZI/AAAAAAAACB4/r4TsH_753QUZYOIPLLKOJKGOuw5m0ZXoACLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/IMG_4477.JPG" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><img alt="The Gingerbread Man and the cow" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="256" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CHen20_xFrk/XuyMtNZl0ZI/AAAAAAAACB4/r4TsH_753QUZYOIPLLKOJKGOuw5m0ZXoACLcBGAsYHQ/w256-h256/IMG_4477.JPG" title="The Gingerbread Man" width="256" /></a></div>
<div>
<br />
<div>
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GhAmZCxAf7g/XuyO4gkQyOI/AAAAAAAACC8/OHSnsWAp_5gaJQ-NeooD6PVR1KGnMQnuQCK4BGAsYHg/s3024/IMG_4481.JPG" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="3024" height="256" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GhAmZCxAf7g/XuyO4gkQyOI/AAAAAAAACC8/OHSnsWAp_5gaJQ-NeooD6PVR1KGnMQnuQCK4BGAsYHg/w256-h256/IMG_4481.JPG" width="256" /></a> <img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="3024" height="256" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YJvsQJAlR8g/XuyO3fG_UTI/AAAAAAAACCw/hCHu7IcqWXMj8lmjXgYw6V6wOJRMJo6jgCK4BGAsYHg/w256-h256/IMG_4473.JPG" width="256" /></div>
<div>
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CHen20_xFrk/XuyMtNZl0ZI/AAAAAAAACB4/r4TsH_753QUZYOIPLLKOJKGOuw5m0ZXoACLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/IMG_4477.JPG" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><br /></a></div>
</div>
Diana Mazuruhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16727418234770397428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7361696082128766316.post-15943979100432033392020-06-16T14:10:00.003+01:002020-06-16T14:21:27.069+01:00Tote Bag Screen Printing and Template Download<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-L3cfsmkKPW4/Xui4xsAh75I/AAAAAAAAB_w/gvIUs0yiCIAy0JplRwzUV7hIMX6yVpgoQCK4BGAsYHg/s3024/IMG_4153.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-L3cfsmkKPW4/Xui4xsAh75I/AAAAAAAAB_w/gvIUs0yiCIAy0JplRwzUV7hIMX6yVpgoQCK4BGAsYHg/s320/IMG_4153.JPG" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Earlier this year, I made a <a href="https://youtu.be/j-EAKcxQzfQ"><b>YouTube Tutorial</b></a> (shown below) on how to screen print your own design on a tote bag in the comfort of your own home. The easy screen printing kit was from <a href="http://theartside.co.uk/">The Art Side</a>, our local art supply shop. You can either make your own design entirely or go to the bottom of this post to download for free the template I used.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
I printed three bags and despite the delays incurred from actually shooting footage for the video, I managed to successfully print these in one day with a head start on the template cutting out the morning before.</div>
<h3 style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Watch the video below for the tutorial</h3>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/j-EAKcxQzfQ" width="320" youtube-src-id="j-EAKcxQzfQ"></iframe></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<h3 style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Supplies needed for this project are: </h3>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
1) Marabu Textil Screen printing kit</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
2) Marabu Textil Print Ink in Primary Yellow 100ml, White 100ml and Primary Cyan 100ml</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
3) An oven and oven thermostat</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
4) One or more Cotten Tote Bags or any other fabric you would like to print onto</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
5) A printer and A3 printing paper/card</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
6) A craft knife to cut out the stencil templates</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
7) A POSCA pen or alternative fabric pen (I chose mmy Posca in Slate Gray PC3M)</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
To Download the template I used in the video, click on the link at the bottom of this post. Please print the sheets on A3 sized paper. I used my local print shop for this. Alternatively, if you would like the templates to last longer, you can get them printed onto printable A3 transparencies instead of paper.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Cut out the template from page one and two and use these as stencils with the screen printing kit. The third page is meant as a guideline for the line layer to be drawn by hand over the other two dried layers before placing in the oven. Do not worry about getting it perfect because the imperfections in this design make it more charming in my opinion.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="3024" height="256" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NHPrSNjnphc/Xui5FMp5kQI/AAAAAAAACAQ/Z45TGIUC4fc434c2ZacG9TlQWtqfTYd_QCK4BGAsYHg/w256-h256/IMG_4154.JPG" width="256" /><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-J5ycgalC2DM/Xui5E884mPI/AAAAAAAACAM/j0xpkcNnMUwK8Qr5IBRE3sD7BgrFm_ujQCK4BGAsYHg/s3024/IMG_4152.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="3024" height="256" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-J5ycgalC2DM/Xui5E884mPI/AAAAAAAACAM/j0xpkcNnMUwK8Qr5IBRE3sD7BgrFm_ujQCK4BGAsYHg/w256-h256/IMG_4152.JPG" width="256" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/15UCptTceYXJHCLT9E03gvEcfX62EdyLB/view?usp=sharing"><b>Download Tote Bag Screen Printing Template</b></a></div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ha7NQ7fPI6U/XuTU86-eQ1I/AAAAAAAAB_U/YYbcp-n2TPgT0NPUUUkW-6sY1eRwIfL8gCK4BGAYYCw/s1600/image00002.jpeg"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ha7NQ7fPI6U/XuTU86-eQ1I/AAAAAAAAB_U/YYbcp-n2TPgT0NPUUUkW-6sY1eRwIfL8gCK4BGAYYCw/s320/image00002.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/15UCptTceYXJHCLT9E03gvEcfX62EdyLB/view?usp=sharing" target="_blank">Download Tote Bag Screen Printing Template</a></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Once the tote bag has been though it's setting in the oven, it can technically be washed in the washing machine but I prefer not to risk it and will instead spot clean.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Thank you and I hope you have enjoyed this,</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Diana</div>
Diana Mazuruhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16727418234770397428noreply@blogger.com0