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Welcome 2018! (And some changes....)

1/5/2018

8 Comments

 
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Happy New Year everyone! What a totally wild and wonderful and sometimes frustrating and sometimes ridiculous ride 2017 was, and I'm so grateful for the journey and the interactions and creative expressions I've indulged in along the way. 

​I spent a quiet night at home, organized my space and invited the new year in with a
totally clean slate! I taped coins to my door for prosperity and good fortune (which is a tradition I was tickled to learn isn't unique to me!) I read a book... one of only three books I actually managed to make time to read all year! I set up my planner for January and my business journal and made some goals which definitely included reading and sketching more.  It was, in three words, a glorious night.

So let's talk a little about what to expect moving through 2018! Not many changes, I promise... not many things that will really effect how you navigate my site. The treasure hunts are, for 2018, here to stay, and there is already two "Finish It!" contests (tentatively) scheduled. But one thing you may have noticed is the absence of activity on my YouTube channel. 

Unfortunately, Go Art Yourself took a turn for the worse last year. Starting in April, my laptop was officially on the fritz.. At only a year and a half old, it was sent into the shop for weeks at a time, which left me scrambling to function effectively from my phone or a tablet. I seemed to repel functioning technology last year which, sadly, carried on for about five months. With my laptop out of commission for weeks at a time, I finally decided to invest in a new computer. Which also means my trusty Windows Movie Maker program was a distant dream! It was no longer supported and no longer available for download, so that sent me on the hunt for new video-editing software (which I still haven't mastered... because.... technology!). 

Learning new software was, sadly, derailed when, in September, my son was hit by a drunk driver while riding his bike home from work. He's totally fine! A few scraps and bumps and very sore for a few days, but thankfully no lasting damage. Just a nervous and overly-protective mother! So I was, in essence, in a funk. It happens right? I'm considering being proactive and scheduling a funk into my planner for 2018 because, as George Washington once said "To be prepared for war is one of the most effective means of preserving peace", and I'm definitely down for making way for peace (and quiet) in 2018! 

THEN (yes, there's more) Murphy's Law decided my phone should stop working, which is exactly what I was using to record video. My new phone, sadly, has this weird 4k recording limit, which is really prohibitive, so now I'm on the hunt for actual video equipment. Shew! But you know what? I'm totally down with it. If you have any recommendations for video cameras with macro capability, let me know in the comments below! I'm looking forward to experimenting with a new camera and to start filming again! 
So, what's on the docket for this year, you may be wondering! I'll be doing some work behind the scenes on my website, but my hope is that you wont notice any interruption or weirdness going on while I navigate through those changes. 

The YouTube channel is probably the most notable change for the next twelve months. While I cannot promise a consistency in adding content to my channel, there may be a video that crops up there from time to time. Unfortunately, YouTube has made some changes to their platform that negatively impacts content creators which I'm not totally down with supporting so, even though these changes likely wouldn't effect me directly, my focus is moving away from the platform in solidarity with content creators who rely on ad revenue to continue to produce the free content we all enjoy. 
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I am hoping, however, to offer exclusive video content to my email subscribers, so if you aren't signed up, there's a form at the bottom of this post! I'll be offering special discounts, giveaways, sneak peeks of works in progress, opinion polls for new collections, and all kinds of goodies! 

And collections! Yes. New collections are on the way. My Signature Collection this year is all about these totally fab copper ring accents which I am absolutely obsessed with incorporating in my work, and which will likely be a recurring theme throughout the year. Bracelets will definitely feature heavily in my coming releases. And labradorites. Lots and lots more labradorites. And pearls. So many pearls! The ideas are all bundled up in my head and I'm itching to let the wire translate all that creative noise into tangible art. 

Oh! And my Facebook page is at almost 14k likes, so you know what that means! Only 1k more until my next Facebook day-long giveaway extravaganza. So share my posts, share my page, let's get that number to 15k so I can spend 12 fantabulous hours showing my appreciation to all of you and filling your day with all the goodies I can spare! 

Lots of new things to come! I hope you're as excited to hang out with me these next 12 months as I am to have you part of my journey. And I hope you all had a beautiful, safe and happy New Year's Eve and New Years Day. I wish you beauty and hope and love and passion and creativity in all the days to come.

​I'll see you in the next blog post! 

Stay creative! 
Nicole

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8 Comments
Barbi
1/8/2018 07:41:30 am

Good morning and Happy New Year to you! Technology can sometimes be a pain. I'm not good with it at all, usually ask my son to figure it out and then show me. Glad you will be using lots of Labradorite this year, my favorite by far and garnet, I love garnet. My goal is to keep up on reading my favorite bloggers, lots of good info to be had! The usual first of the year stuff lol. Cheers and thanks for the ongoing treasure hunt. Another goal is to do more wire weaving. So peaceful and relaxing!

Reply
gemtoria link
1/8/2018 05:08:37 pm

Firstly, the pic collage is amazing. The mix of colors and design is really intriguing. Happy New Years by the way! I feel your pain with technology and it's something I feel takes me away from other, more productive, activities. Anyway, it's not something that can be avoided unfortunately. I think the youtube channel is actually a good idea and i'll be keeping an watch on the developments! Hope 2018 is a great year for you!

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Donna
1/12/2018 10:24:38 pm

Happy, healthy new year! May the technology gods smile on you in 2018, and I hope you and your family are happy and safe this year, so you can create unencumbered by worry. Onward and upward to 15K.

Reply
Jack link
1/15/2018 03:37:05 am

Blimey, you've had a lot on your plate! Glad to hear that things are looking up, and may all your technology behave in 2018. Have a great new year.

Those new pendants are gorgeous. (And I just want to say thank you for your tutorials - I've already purchased the ring, picked up another in the treasure hunt, and I'm hoping to buy some more soon - they're very well-written and easy to follow.)

Reply
Care
1/15/2018 09:02:35 pm

I want to thank you for all your wonderful inspiration and for sharing your amazing work!
You are obviously very tech savvy, to me anyway, so I hope everything works out!
Happy birthday as we both shared at one point that garnet is our birthstone! So garnets always have a soft spot in my heart since my mother, my grandmother, and I all share the Capricorn sign and with that garnets!

But I do truly love labradorites. I think it’s the way they shimmer and change colour when you move them or change your point of view! Maybe it has to do with that they’re somewhat of a metaphor for life.
So looking forward to seeing your labradorite creations!

Anyway I think your new work is out of this world-spectacular! Hoping someday you will come to Canada (Ontario) and teach a class here! A girl can dream!🤗

Anyway, thank you very much Nicole for everything that you do and I wish you and your family a wonderful year! And I look forward to seeing all your fabulous work and thoughts here on your blog, Facebook and Instagram too!

Reply
Barbara link
1/16/2018 01:42:16 pm

Wow, what a year you have had and you still have a some technical bugs to work through. But I am confident 2018 is going to be a fantastic year for you. All the technical issues will be worked out and you are going to find better solutions to your needs, making it all easier eventually. The process of getting there is a bear but hang in there. I very much admire your creativity and positive outlook! Keep on moving forward. We are all behind you!

Reply
Sandra Smith link
1/16/2018 09:29:25 pm

You had quite a year and glad your son is OK! You are such an inspiration and now that the blood pressure medication is working and over the stroke, book is in full swing being written and promise, you will get first review privileges (ok, you are mentioned in it a bit!). Also, as I am a retires programmer who swore would never program another thing, I naturally created a program to track jewelry component purchases costs , jewelry created costs and labor as well as sales inventory, profit/loss with reports. Would you or anyone be interested in becoming a beta tester? It is written on Access 2013 but anyone interested would get a beta version.

Reply
Sandra Smith
1/16/2018 09:32:56 pm

Sorry, forgot to request to be notified of comments so this second post. If anyone does want to become a beta tester, they will get a free version of the production one when it is ready.

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  • Home
  • Blog
  • Gallery
  • Learn To Wire Wrap
    • PDF Tutorials
    • Video Tutorials
    • Tutorial Membership 2022
  • Shop
    • SIGNATURE COLLECTION
    • GODDESS COLLECTION
    • PDF Tutorials >
      • Beginner Wire Weaving
      • Intermediate Weaving
      • PDFs for Cabochons
      • Advanced Weaving