Happy New Year! (And Good Riddance 2020)

Whew we made it to 2021...

Sure, the world's problems weren't solved overnight, but it's nice to have a sense of hope again and something to look forward to. I hope you all had a safe holiday season!

Ever since I got back home to Colorado from staying down in Texas with my BFF all year, I've been really focused on "spring cleaning" my life. I'm temporarily living with my parents for a few months, but they will be selling this house I grew up in and I will be moving to Washington state in the spring. As such I have to condense down on the stuff that I own.

Begin THE PURGE.

I moved my computer to the craft room instead of having it in my bedroom which caused me to do another major rearranging of the furniture in the room. That felt pretty good, so I kept going... sorted through all the craft supplies I own. Then sorted through all the toys, collectibles, books, and clothing I have. Then I dug deep into the archives and went through my childhood memory box- lots of elementary school art projects I'll have to share with you guys sometime for future Throwback Thursdays.

Very soon I will start putting up a massive garage sale of the things I'm looking to part with. Anything I don't sell will be donated. I've gotten rid of SO much stuff already, including my Pokémon costume heads (much to the internet's dismay). I have been learning to let go of the physical more; I've been hording so much random stuff like business cards of every convention I've been to. Anything that I don't have a use for or has been just packed away in a box for years I want to move on from. I took photos of the things I want to remember for digital archiving. It's been pretty cathartic.

Goal Time

-More Metamorphic designs (min 1 a month)
-Knockout 2019 commission list
-TopazGryph's bodysuit
-Feathered raptor pre-made
-Finish My Hero Academia cosplay

I've been pretty busy lately with launching the new webstore, releasing a bunch of new Metamorphic designs, fulfilling orders, and starting to Livestream again. Trying to get not only my physical life in order but also my digital one/business one. I bought my first advertisement on FurAffinity the other day, something I've been wanting to do for years to test how well that boosts my reach with the lack of conventions, and I finally feel confident enough that I have a wide enough variety of products to offer. I just finished vectoring 8 new birds and adding them to the store tonight. I have not been doing any character art at all this year, and just barely did some costume stuff... so I'd like that to change.

My absolute biggest goal is to knock out my outstanding commission queue. These were mostly after-con projects I took on in 2019 that I haven't gotten around to yet... because 2020 said no to things like making plans, positivity, and having a drive to do things. Very few people have taken me up on the offer for a refund though, so I appreciate everyone's patience and will be utilizing livestreams to help push my output as that has worked really well for me in the past.

I want to finish my gryphon suit, which has been a thing I've slowly worked at since 2017. And I want to finish that dang feathered raptor pre-made so I have a portfolio that represents my current skillset. 2021 will also mark 10 years since I've made a Pokémon costume (HOW!?) so I may want to revisit doing that again because I know that's why half my audience followed me in the first place and wants to see more of. I know that if I sit down and work on a costume project every day, I can get just about anything done within a month, but the drive to do that has been exceptionally difficult this past year. And funds for materials.

I was really hoping Monoyasha and I could have a lot more craft days together when I was staying with her in Texas, because it's a lot easier to be inspired to work when you have a friend next to you... but we surprisingly had very little time or energy throughout the year to do that. She's STILL working on that chicken head that I made the eyes for. Most everyone I know is struggling in a similar fashion so at least I'm not alone in that, but it doesn't feel all that great either to have such little output. We started working on our My Hero Academia cosplays together at the start of the year for a big cosplay group, but progress halted when conventions cancelled. (I'm making the dragon-lady hero Ryukiu). Since I have already created the dress pattern, I just need to finish putting it together.

Otherwise I guess I have the general goal of growing my business and making more money, because obviously ;) Patreon is a huge chunk of my income and is one of the steadiest forms of it that I can get, so I thank you guys a LOT for helping me stay afloat this past year!

As usual I post most of my daily updates on Telegram and Discord and only the bigger project milestones and updates on the Patreon feed. Let me know if you're not in there yet and you want to be! I also always welcome feedback and suggestions!

I guess that's it for now. I have pleeenty to do, so here's to a better year!

What sort of things do you guys what to accomplish in 2021?