Making a Mug of Myself

So another 9 months pass between blog posts and what the heck have I been doing with my time, you may ask? I often ask myself that too.

Sheesh. 9 months. I could have had a baby quicker. (I didn't, by the way.)

Thankfully Mum's regained some of her mobility but there remains plenty she can't do any more. So although I don't have to follow her round the house all day I still have to be there to do the urgent housework, answer phone calls (or rather slam the phone down on call centres) and remind her what day it is. Oh yes and still empty the piss bucket of course.

Strangely enough this has a plus side. It means I'm eligible for Carer's Allowance so I no longer have to worry about finding work or running a business. There's a limit on how much I'm allowed to earn on top of my benefits and I was never anywhere near hitting that so I can now get on with the fun side of doing the artwork as more of a hobby. If I happen to sell something, great. If not, it doesn't matter so much any more.

Things have been helped no end by a successful appeal against mis-sold Payment Protection Insurance on my credit card. If you've never had your PPI checked it's well worth doing but make sure you approach your lenders direct and don't go through any of those blood-sucker companies that take up pretty much every advertising slot on TV. Start by filling in the Consumer Questionnaire from the Financial Ombudsman and send it to your lender. If you hear nothing back within 8 weeks, don't just assume you've failed. At this point you're entitled to enlist the Financial Ombudsman to chase the lender on your behalf, which is what I had to do and it certainly helped my lender get their backsides into gear! My refund was hardly a fortune and I'm sure it will soon get spent but it's been enough to cushion me against my bills for a few months, lift that terrible depression money worries always cause me and free my mind up to plan new projects, buy materials and enjoy my creative time. Which is exactly how life should be.

So now I'm pushing ahead towards Christmas and I'll be updating this blog with the latest news from my online shops. I've become a big advocate of supporting micro-businesses, who are people using their creative talents and their spare time to make something unique and meaningful, for little reward. I'd much rather support a talented mum stuck at home than throw my cash at big corporations and it would mean a heck of a lot if people took that attitude to me too. Every "You Made A Sale" Email is like winning the lottery!

The first thing I'm going to tell you about in these updates is that I recently added several new mugs to my Zazzle store, this time featuring the scribbly flags that are already available on T shirts, badges, keychains and magnets.

Click the caption below each picture to be taken to the shop and the products for that country:

Australia

Canada

France

Germany

Ireland

Italy

Japan

New Zealand

South Africa

UK

USA

There are 7 types of mug to choose from for each design, which you can compare by clicking the "7 styles" link below the thumbnails, as seen in the pictures above. That brings up a screen like this:

Choose from:

• Classic White Mug - 1 colour, 2 sizes
• Ringer Mug - 6 highlight colours, 2 sizes
• Two-Tone Mug - 6 highlight colours, 2 sizes
• Morphing Mug (print revealed when hot) - 2 highlight colours, 1 size
• Stein - 2 highlight colours, 1 size
• Travelling Mug - 2 body colours, 1 size
• Frosted Glass Mug - 1 colour, 2 sizes

Your choices don't end there, though. As with most Zazzle products you can personalise them with your own text or even a photo to make a truly individual gift for a special loved one or a treat for yourself. Once you've picked your mug, here's what to do.

All the graphics are centred but you can move them to one side if you want to add something else or if you would prefer a left handed or right handed display.

The Add Image button allows you to include your own photo or other graphic (just remember not to pass my artwork off as anyone else's, thanks!) The Add Text button brings up this dialogue box to type in what you want to say. Use the Enter key if you want your message to run on more than one line, as in this example.

Click the ƒ symbol in the tool bar to make your selection from over 300 fonts and dingbats. I've chosen the charmingly named Horse Puke.

Choose your font size, colour and alignment and your one-of-a-kind mug is complete!

Prices start from £10.95 +P&P for a classic white mug, with discounts for bulk orders. Don't forget to check out my Font Island mugs too, which are screaming out to be personalised. Your special someone will love you for making a gift especially for them and, as you can see, it's so easy to do.

I'll be back very soon with some more wonderful ideas for gifts and greetings to make this Christmas extra special!

Sometimes Life Hands You A Bucket Of Piss

Hello dear readers, welcome to another blog post firmly under the label of Rants.

A month ago tonight, The Accident That Was Waiting To Happen finally happened. Mum slipped over in the kitchen and fractured her hip. It was a straightforward, clean break (resulting in 2 pins and a thigh-length scar) but it's totally thrown our lives up in the air.

I'm a creature of habit and for almost 30 years our front room has been my little world - my office, my living room, my dossing space. Now, with 48 hours' notice, 30 years of clutter had to be bagged up and shifted upstairs into Mum's tiny box bedroom so she could have her bed downstairs. At least we've been able to come to a room-share agreement so I can still use it as my office (with there being absolutely no more room for furniture upstairs) but now I have to get booted out at 10.30-ish so she can go to bed. The arrangement sometimes works the other way round. Some nights I'm really shattered and would love to turn in early but I can't because I need to be available to help her get into bed. When you're middle aged it rankles a bit when your Mum goes back to dictating your bedtime!

The living room that is now a bedroom.

The clutter that used to be in the living room that is now a bedroom and is now in the box bedroom that is too small and too cold to be any use whatsoever. Yes, I know it's a tip. I'll tidy it up when I find that elusive 25th hour in the day.

Thankfully she's fairly mobile now, she can get to the downstairs toilet and back unassisted, using a walking frame. Often she's up before me and can get dressed and washed on her own. But mostly my day consists of making sure she's OK getting in and out of bed; brewing endless cups of tea; not letting her starve (because she insists that if I do her so much as a slice of toast she's being a burden); struggling with fitting her compression stockings (so tight they almost wrench my thumbs out of their sockets); putting up with her moaning as I make her take her tablets and do her exercises; tackling the housework (it's amazing how little you can get away with and still not look like a pigsty); reassuring her that, no, she HADN'T been stupid in falling over and it could have happened to anybody; overseeing the nurses (thankfully no more visits after yesterday) and emptying the overnight doings in the commode.

Ah yes. The commode.

If a seat that conceals a piss bucket could talk, it would greet me every day with a loud, camp "goooooood moooooorrrrrrrniiiiiing!" It certainly commands the attention. So it's on with the lid, trudge up to the bathroom, dilute, empty, rinse, empty, bleach, dilute, slosh, empty, rinse, empty, flush, trudge downstairs, disinfect. It's not dignified but neither is cleaning up after a dog. I'm also the only person available to do it so a piss bucket kind of sums up my life now. That's why I decided to work from home, because I knew the day would come when I would be called upon to flush my mother's piss.

But the bucket is the least of my worries. I don't begrudge doing that or anything else to help Mum get along. She's done plenty for me over the years, time to pay the debt back. No, Jean-Paul Sartre is the man who summed up my problem perfectly - Hell is other people. By other people I of course mean my brother and sister trudging in and out of our day thinking they know best. So, for the record: I really can't be arsed to grab every penny you think we're entitled to, even given your bizarre logic that if [RACIST INSULT DELETED] the government would fall over themselves to give us millions. I haven't done that string of worthy but non urgent chores you're suggesting because I haven't found a 25th hour in the day. Getting your mother to do leg exercises does not make you homosexual. I, unlike you, am not going to second-guess how Mum will recover and start ranting about scenarios that may never happen. The physiotherapist has years of medical training, you do NOT know more about the workings of the human body than she does. Crutches are a sign of progress, not a stigma. We have our house the way it is and not the way you think it ought to be because it's OUR house and you don't frikkin' well live here.

Honestly, if anything ever happens to me I DO NOT want Negative Nancies like that hovering over me telling me I ought to know my place and not push myself to get better. Too many opinions, no consideration for the person actually trying to recover or the one who sees what really goes on all day.

So that's been my month. Absolutely no time for anything else, never mind work-

"To remain entitled to New Enterprise Allowance, you must provide evidence of continuing self-employment when we ask you... Please send your evidence to reach us by 03/02/12. If we do not have the evidence by this date, your payment will be suspended."

AAAAAAARRRRRRRGGGGGGHHHHH! NOT NOW! CAN'T YOU SEE I'M BUSY WITH A BUCKET OF PISS?

Whither Fiddle-Farting?

Welcome back, I hope 2012's kicked off to a great start for you all.

Well Christmas was as crummy as I expected it to be in a house full of boredom, depression and short tempers. For once I'm not talking about myself! I've decided to put a bit of money away each week by hook or by crook and go somewhere - anywhere - else next Christmas. I don't care if it's just the hotel on the other side of town!

With the mood miraculously lightening as soon as the decorations came down, I really needed a break to get over the holiday stress. So I wrote off last week as a warm-up session to get back into gear. Some decluttering to make the most of the extra Christmas recycling collections (always a foolproof way of getting into a good frame of mind) and a bit of light creative work.

Fun with patterns...

From Patterns For Colouring

...cack-handed attempts at bead-sewing...

...and helping my friends over at Colin's Chicks redesign their forum.

If, like me, you're a massive fan of ITV1 show Dancing On Ice, this is a fun and friendly website dedicated to the 2011 runner-up professional skater Colin Ratushniak. As he's had to miss this year due to other commitments, the Chicks are working on keeping his fans informed of the projects he's working on these days, as well as letting the Powers That Be know that there's a big demand for him to come back in the next series.

Also over the new year, I learned a brilliant new verb.

Fiddle-farting

Used in a sentence:

RESOLVE to stop fiddle-farting around on the Internet or with the TV remote control and start dedicating myself 100% to my life’s work.

Taken from the list of 12 artists' resolutions posted on ArtBizBlog, the website of art business coach Alyson Stanfield. Feel free to study the list for yourself and download the poster. Plenty of food for thought on it, whether you're an artist or not.

Which of us is never guilty of fiddle-farting at least a couple of times a day? It's very likely you got alerted to this blog post during a fiddle-farting session. In fact you probably only clicked on the link because it had the word "farting" in it!

For someone like me, working from home, it's an occupational hazard. There's no start and end time, no one to tell me what to do. Home life and work life get blurred into one. I can work whenever I feel inspired and take downtime whenever I feel tired.

My business depends on a bit of constructive fiddle-farting. If I'm not on Twitter I might miss a link to a really useful website. If I don't check Facebook I could lose the chance to leave useful advice for a fellow freelancer who would then, in turn, give me feedback on my own work. Doodling my pencils over a colouring pattern is an exercise in creative problem solving and colour experimentation. It isn't just me desperately avoiding growing up, honest! In fact, let's be brutal, I write this blog not because I'm obsessed with sharing my innermost thoughts but because I hope someone takes pity on me and buys a T shirt.

So when you're your own boss, success or failure hangs on knowing when to be disciplined and when to indulge in a few minutes' fiddle-farting.

Time to take my own advice then and get prepared for a brand new year. What have I got planned? Well getting the ideas is always the easy part! I'm working on improvements to the online shops which will make it much easier for you to buy my art from me, so look out for some surprises on that front very soon. I'm also going to put together some previews of all the projects I want to work on over the year and hopefully this will help me with fundraising. There's also the big challenge of trying to branch out into getting clients from local printers and small businesses (that's really scary when you're pretty much housebound and out of practice in dealing with actual real human beings!)

The rest of the time can be spent sniffing around for new networking opportunities, showcases for my work and any other chance to flex my creative muscles. All of which, you might guess, will come from a productive session of fiddle-farting.

Goodbye 2011

As the sun sets on another year, time to reflect on what's happened to me during 2011. It's been a challenging year, one where my financial problems have continued to drag me down and hold me back. A year when family relationships have continued to deteriorate and I'm being pushed into making some decisions that will make me very unpopular. But it's also a year where I've made lots of new friends, been charmed by some very positive people and finally been handed the chance to get off unemployment benefit and into self employment.

So here are just 5 important lessons I've learned over the past 12 months which I'll take with me into 2012 and beyond.

1) You might see something as your destination but it turns out to be a stepping stone. You'll meet someone or do something and you'll feel it's the most important thing that's ever happened to you. Then it turns out not to be as good as you thought it was going to be. But on the way you've made new friends, done something you never imagined you would do, or set yourself up to take on an even bigger challenge. So don't feel bad if the thing you originally thought you wanted didn't turn out to be so good. Look at the positive outcomes you got from it and be happy for those who got what they wanted too.

2) Take baby steps towards your goals. If there's something you really want to do but it seems too daunting and massive, just do one little thing towards it every day. Even if it's just a couple of minutes, if you're consistent in doing these things they'll soon add up. Before too long, living the dream could become a reality!

3) Respect yourself, don't wait for others to respect you. Sometimes it doesn't matter how much you do, you can't make people think better of you if they really don't want to. So don't worry what they think, just always ensure your own conscience is clear.

4) Positivity is contagious. Get to know people with a can-do attitude to life instead of those who just want you to know your place (even if relentless positivity can come across as naive!) A little gesture of encouragement is better than a thousand put-downs. Make the most of that energy boost like a surfer rides a wave.

5) It's better to have tried and failed than never to have tried at all. Life is far too short, will you honestly be able to look back on your time and say you had a go at everything you wanted to? That you used your talents to the fullest? That you lived to work instead of worked to live? Not all of us want to do the same things and we should never give in to peer pressure because we want to live our lives in different ways. Be yourself, not a sheep!

Whether you look back on 2011 as one of your favourite years or one you'll be glad to get rid of, I wish you all a very happy, successful and fulfilling New Year. Thank you for reading my blog and I hope you'll join me on my big creative adventure in 2012!

Merry Christmas!

Following in my long tradition* of Christmas cartoons, here's a little offering to wish all my friends and followers a very happy Christmas.

However you mark the festive period, I hope it's a happy and fun time for you. Sadly that's not the case for many people so please take a moment to spare a thought for those who find it stressful, lonely or who are feeling the loss of a loved one.

My best wishes to everyone who takes time to look at my little ole' blog, thank you for your support and I'll see you back here very soon.

(*Est. 2010)

IOU 2 Illo's

It's December (you might have noticed). Being the case, I'm holding my breath every time I turn on this computer because, for the past 2 Decembers, my darling laptop has broken down. (Excuse me as I reach for the nearest wooden object and give it a quick superstitious knock.)

The first time this happened, the blog was in its infancy and I'd just embarked on an ambitious festive project, illustrating my own daily advent calendar. For 2 of those days I could only run on the battery and just had enough power to make a plain version of the graphics, with the intention of completing them later.

It hardly seemed appropriate to post Christmas graphics at any other time of year but, last winter, I was without my computer for over 3 months so I totally missed that window. So now, a mere 24 months late, I'm very proud to present the final 2 illustrations of my 2009 advent calendar!

This time, if you click either picture, you'll be taken back to the December 2009 archive. I've checked all the links out and updated a couple that no longer work, so click away and explore all the fun Christmas surprises I found for you.

Last Orders Please!

Well this is it. This weekend marks your LAST CHANCE to order from Café Press if you want to guarantee delivery in time for Christmas. You could always leave it up until about the 20th and pay extra for express delivery but I really would hate to see you forking out more money than is necessary. Not if it isn't coming into my pocket, at any rate! (Incidentally the standard post deadline from my Zazzle shop has passed so it's express delivery only now.)

So do please take a few minutes to browse my shops and treat a loved one (or yourself) to a unique item of giftware and clothing. You won't find them anywhere else but here and you'll end up with something that no one else in the world has got, for only a few pounds! Just like the lucky recipients of these sales which I made this week:

Octopus Women's Dark Tee Shirt in Caribbean Blue, £18.50 reduced from £22.00 - Click here to buy one

Octopus 10" Wall Clock, £11.00 - Click here to buy one

So all the shops are now fully stocked with the latest products and here's my pick of what's new in store.

iPad 2 cases join the growing list of gadget accessories

Kids' pyjamas are back in store after being temporarily unavailable.

The ultimate in cosiness for a long, cold winter.

Luxury suede pillows in a choice of colours

A wide range of purses, bags and gadget sleeves

New shirts in the womenswear and menswear departments

Quality reusable bottles for hot and cold drinks

30 piece jigsaw puzzles for a little light brain training

Note: Prices in UK£ are converted from US$ and subject to change based on daily exchange rates.

As usual, look to the left of this page where you'll see each of these designs has its own button. Just click on the one you like and you'll be taken to its shop where you'll find all the goodies in store.

Do have a good look at what's on offer and don't forget to share a link to this page with anyone else who would be interested in my range of unique clothes and giftware. Just don't forget to place your orders by THIS WEDNESDAY, 14th December, if you want to receive them before Christmas.

Next: watch out for a few little festive treats as we head towards the holidays. I hope to see you back here soon!