The Ebb + Flow of Artmaking

Does it ever seem like every other artist around you has such consistent and impeccable output, both in their studio and their social medias, while you struggle to make art on a regular basis and sometimes let your social medias go quiet for weeks or even months on end??

Don't worry.. you are not alone.

Resources:

https://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/ebb+and+flow

https://www.irisbarzen.com/cycles-of-productivity/

https://evernote.com/blog/the-most-and-least-productive-hours-in-a-day/

Sara Tepes vid: https://youtu.be/erK8FhVOZ-U

My lovely iceberg landscapes were painted using Himi brand gouache on thick watercolor paper.

Reference Images:

https://pixabay.com/

2.5.2023

Bookkeeping for Independent Artists

Would you believe me if I told you that accounting for artists is actually pretty easy?? It's true!

If you start out the beginning of every year and month with a few organizational habits in place, you will spend so little time and effort having to keep track of all of your expenses (art + office supplies) and income (art sales!). Then once it's time to do your sales taxes or small business taxes it will be a literal breeze.

There are scores of blank ledger PDF’s you can print out online, or just use an Excel spreadsheet, or even simply drawing some vertical lines in a $1 notebook if you like the pen-to-paper method. It takes almost nothing to get started on the right track and you will never regret being more organized :)

Things to Remember:

• Separate your personal from your business bank accounts and credit cards.

• Decide how you would like to keep track of expenses and income (whether digital or a paper ledger) and stick to it! Wave is my fave free software.

• If you decide to go digital, integrate your bank and credit accounts within the software and make sure they stay accurate.

• Figure out your list of categories for the different ways/reasons you may get paid. You can always add more later.

• Figure out your list of categories for all the different expenses you will have. Sometimes it help to just brainstorm up a huge list of everything it takes for you to run your art business and then see how to make those things either go together or separate. You can always add more later, and feel free to use as many of mine in the video as work for your small biz too!

• Make sure to save and log receipts for paper ledgers and keep up with automatic transaction imports via the digital ledger no less than every 2-4 weeks. Trust me, it gets hard to remember what is what if you wait any longer than that.

• You can use your super organized finances at the end of every month to pay your biz sales taxes as well as at the end of the year to do your personal state and federal income taxes so much easier now - ta daa!

My Examples in the Video:

Putting everything together on one page:

Having one page for all expenses and another for all income; can be done by the month or by the year:

Separating each category of expense or income onto its own sheet; most likely done by the year.:

1.22.2023

How to Support Your Favorite Artists (Besides Buying Art!)

Aloha artists and art lovers! If you are like me you love the feeling of supporting your fave artists and small creators, but sometimes we are on a tight budget (or let’s face, could never begin to afford allll the art that tickles our fancy!) and need to find other productive ways to show them we care!

Well luckily for all of us there are actually a number of ways you can show your support that cost absolutely nothing, or at least nothing more than you would have spent anyway on things you need.

7 Ways to Support Artists (other than buying art!)

1. Bring friends to our openings and exhibitions (even if it’s a small one!) to introduce then to out art in a meaningful way.

2. Talk us up if you hear of any artistic opportunities or gigs, or if you hear a friend or family member is looking for original or custom artwork.

3. Forward us artistic opportunities you happen upon or that come across your radar, even if there’s no firsthand connection.

4. Sign up for our newsletters and be active on our social media posts. The more meaningful the comments, the better :)

5. Share our work (with credit) on your socials occasionally.

6. Suggest our art, prints, or merch as gifts in conversation with others just like you would suggest a retail store if you hear someone saying they are looking for “the perfect item.”

7. Purchase products from companies that sponsor us through ads or product placement as it really helps show that we are great creators to work with who have audiences that buy.

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And if you'd like to support this small artist, here are some links to do so: Thank you so much for being so generous with your time!🎨💖

Need new art supplies? Any purchase through my Blick link helps a lot!

Find me on Instagram

Sign up for my newsletter

Here's my Skillshare link that includes a free month trial

Prints and original art is available in my Shop

👉And just sharing my YouTube vids with someone you think would like them is a ginormous help! Thank you!!

12.4.2022

[blank canvas image credit: Angela Roma from Pexels]

How to NOT be a Starving Artist

When you think of someone as a “real artist” you probably conjure up images of the woefully-tortured-for-their-craft “starving artist” and think that even if you ‘make it’ professionally, you probably won’t necessarily be making it financially.

But that is simply not the case if you learn to live your life the right way, frugally but fruitfully :D

10 Ways Not to be a Starving Artist

1. Don’t quit your day job/ side gig/ work hustle… (at least not yet!). Make sure you can definitely pay your necessities and eat every month or you will stress yourself out of artistic motivation - and maybe even your financial stability. It’s not good to worry constantly, and honestly doing so will help you account for your time better too because it will be more valuable.

2. Cook at home + workout for free = stay healthy and out of the doctor’s office as much as possible. It is unreal how much eating out and getting gourmet coffee and paying for gym memberships and medical treatments can really add up over a month. Try to pay utmost attention to expenses that are reoccurring and unavoidable, like health and food, to make them less costly as well as more nutritious for yourself. Remember, it always cheaper and easier to prevent rather than treat any condition, so do your best to stay on top of your good health your wallet by preparing balanced meals at home, and try working out at home or in a local park as well.

3. Budget your money. Figure out ways that you can reuse items, buy used to begin with, make your own, and just plain do without various nonessentials in your life. Keep debts low, resist impulse buys and shopping as a hobby, and try tracking your money very closely for at least a few months to see where your money pitfalls pop up. Realize that following your dream of being a successful artist is worth far more than anything you can own.

4. Budget your time. Don’t give away your most valuable resource for free. Make sure you are keeping track of where your time is spent and don’t let anyone (not even your besties and family) interrupt your creative work time because that is the one thing you can never get more of and is essential for growing as an artist. Learn to use a planner and say ‘no’ to situations that may be a time suck that won’t pay you your true worth.

5. Use supplies wisely. Get the most out of all your paints and paper and markers and glue. Don’t be wasteful (or buy stuff you won’t use) and you will save a ton of money as well as help the planet. You can also learn to source supplies from other places than brand new from the art supply store. Let folks know around you know that you are more than happy to take on old art supplies, look around college campuses at the end of a semester for art supplies getting tossed, gesso your old canvases of practice works to be repainted on.. the list goes on and on.

6. No frivolous purchases. Don’t get suckered into impulse buys for art supplies, or really for anything else if you can help it. Even little $5 purchases here and there really add up. A good rule of thumb is generally not to buy new things unless you are replacing something that is all used up. It’s not going to happen over night if you are used to buying random things often, but owning less stuff will make you happier and more clear-minded, more financially stable, and more creative in ways you could have never dreamed.

7. Cancel excess subscriptions. Trust me, you don’t need to be watching a ton of TV anyway, only keep like your fave one or two streaming apps and toss the rest. Get rid of any reoccurring monthly or quarterly automatic purchases like theme or art boxes. They are super wasteful in literally every sense of the word. See if anything else you get delivered automatically isn’t piling up and can be paused or just stopped all together.

8. Find local free events and openings. I am someone who fully believes that there are interesting and fun things happening within 30 minutes of practically everywhere in this country. Put your finger on the pulse of city or town wide events, art openings, street fairs, cultural events.. there are so many fun lil happenings constantly going on if you just pay attention! Some visiting exhibits or events that cost more will often take volunteers to help out in order to see it then and usually get your own tickets for another day.

9. Learn to barter. You can trade soooo much for your original artwork! Local restaurants may trade meals or a bar tab, fellow artists will trade just for fun or for gifts for others, and certainly folks who offer services like bodywork or classes love to trade their knowledge and skills.

10. You need to have a positive mindset. Be happy to live within your means and without excess. Be thrilled to reuse, fix, or buy used many of your household objects. Realize that expensive brand names that are only sought after due to recognizability and hype rather than for actual quality are truly empty possessions and not worth wasting money on. Be literally ecstatic to find low cost and creative alternatives to so many of life’s desires and expenses. Learn to love frugality!

10.9.2022

4 Great Reasons You Should Start an Art Blog

If you saw my video last time about the 11 essential things every artist website should have, I had to cut myself off from going on a tangent discussing why every artist should have a simple blog on their website in order to make that video concise. However I made some really good points in my lil diatribe, which I felt merited its own video, so here you go today!

Even if you don’t think this could possible apply to you (or even if you’re scared that it might and don’t want the “extra work load”) I urge to strongly considered even just blogging once every other month. I promise, it get’s easier over time and you will be so glad you did.

4 Reasons to Start an Artist Blog:

1. It let's the algorithm know your website is active

2. Visitors to your website will see that you are active and current

3. Potential clients or curators will know you are actively working and open for business/art opportunities

   3b. Potential clients + curators can learn more about you which will *hopefully* make them more devoted to your work

4. It's like a personal journal of your own artistic journey that you’ll be grateful you made

So don’t be shy! Get started today!

3.20.2022

11 Artist Website Essentials

We talk a lot here about what your small art biz needs to succeed. At the top of that list is a website, so today I am breaking down 11 components that you definitely need to have for a successful, professional art biz website.

Today’s vid has a lot of information in it, but don’t stress having every single thing finished and perfect before launching your creative website. Really items 1-4 must be ready at launch, and the other things you can work on and add as you go.

Below is the list of all the other helpful videos I reference during this one. Just bookmark this blog post and come back to each video one at a time as you’re ready to tackle each step. And don’t forget I am always here to guide you one-on-one through my Creative Coaching programs if you like more of a hands-on approach with feedback for creating your website.

11 Things Your Artist Website Must Have:

1. A gorgeous gallery with great pics! Even if you are just starting out and only have 8-10 artworks to post, it’s never too early to make sure they are high quality. Here’s a video I made about the easiest way to take quality art photos using natural light and a smart phone. And here’s one if your art is shiny and has a glare.

2. Social media links. If someone has taken the time to visit your website, they probably like your art enough to want to follow you so show them all the ways they can right from your home page!

3. Contact info. Definitely make sure folks can send you a message because you never know what kind of commissions or opportunities you’ll miss out on if folks can’t reach you. Don’t share your phone number here though, just a contact form and email.

4. About Me page. This is a casual way folks can get to know you. Think of it like a conversational introduction to why you do what you do. I’ve got a video for you here on how to write a short About Me that really compels people to want to learn more about your journey as an artist.

5. A Bio. This is different than the About Me page; it’s a little more factual and might be something you come back to later as you’ve progressed on your educational or professional art journey. When you are ready though, ya Birdie has got a video for you right here.

6. An online Shop. Give the people what they want... the ability to purchase your artwork - yay! Here’s a great video on how to create a tempting and beautiful online art store (or an alternate video if you’re really only ready to sell through Instagram for now).

7. An Artist Statement. It doesn’t have to be a long one if you’re just starting out, but folks who visit your website and like your work definitely want to know about why you create what you do and what you’re hoping your work will do in this world. It’s one of the trickier things for artists to do, but one of the most important. Go make a cup of tea and watch this video full of step-by-step information and inspiration for writing an exciting artist statement that will really connect with your audience.

8. A listing of any Awards, Accolades, Press, and your CV. Basically any documents or links showing other people have paid attention to you as an artist, or that you have started to make your mark on the professional art world. Again another one I have a video for that you can watch when you’re ready.

9. A blog. I know, I can hear the groans from here, but all this is is a simple place to update your audience on any interesting artistic projects, happenings, exhibitions, ventures, or art-related events that may be going on in your life or studio. It really only needs to be updated every month or two to show both your website visitors as well as search engine algorithms that you are an active artist working on current projects. There are multiple great reasons to host your own art blog, which I’ll tell you all about in this video.

10. A Newsletter sign up form. Another great way to connect with your audience is by having a newsletter. Trust me, you do not want to rely solely on social media for connecting with your audience. You need to have a way to connect with your audience and collectors that you are in complete control of by sending out periodic newsletter updates. Here’s a video explaining why this is so important, and how to write a great one.

11. Legal stuff. Definitely the driest part of your website, but a total necessity. Just clear a few days from your art biz calendar and learn how to tackle this beast right here. Luckily, you really only need to do it once, and then just check on or update it yearly.

12. OPTIONAL: A custom art or services contact form. If you provide anything custom, such as family portraits, murals, graphic design, or even consulting or tutorial sessions, having a distinct contact form to get the conversation started between you and your potential client shows that you are a professional in control of the situation and their artistic needs will be met. A real win for both of you!

Now I know that’s a lot of info for you all in one day…

But don’t worry! I have compiled all of those videos on one playlist right here you can save on YouTube and come back to as you are ready for each step.

And of course I am here as a Creative Coach that is more than happy to help you through each step of setting up a beautiful website you can really be proud of. I also do website reviews to give a helpful critique of what you’ve already got setup with a ton of suggestions to really help it shine. Drop me a line here to chat further about options.

Featured Videos:

Brand Yourself and Get Recognized

How to Photograph Artwork Using Natural Light

How to Photograph Artwork Without a Glare

How to Write an About Me for Artists

How to Write an Artist Bio

Setting Up an Attractive Online Art Store

Open an Instagram Shop for Free

How to Write an Artist Statement

How to Write an Artist CV

4 Reasons you Should Start an Art Blog

How to Write an Exciting Artist Newsletter

5 Legal Things Your Artist Website Must Have

3.6.2022

What to Name Your Art Business?

Hey there chickadee, what do you call your small art biz? Do you just use your real name? Or maybe an alias? Do you have it registered legally? Or have you even thought that far ahead yet?

While coming up with a good ‘art name’ may not be on your radar, it’s definitely something to think about before you go and get too famous because whatever people get to know you as first, usually sticks. You want to make sure that you are becoming known by a name you can grow with and live with for the rest of your life (and beyond!).

On today’s Ask an Artist I’ve got five tips to help you land on an individualistic artistic moniker that will help you establish and brand yourself as the independent artist you already are:)

Five Tips for Choosing a Great Art Business Name

1. First off, have you thought about whether you would like to use your real name or an alias? There are benefits to both, your name will never get ‘old’ but using an alias is a little more private and can be easier to remember. Occasionally artists even include a descriptive word (see tip 4)

2. If your going to use anything other than just your legal name in the business name, make sure not to choose anything too narrow that may pigeonhole you down the road. Like beware or using something related to fanart or a certain subject matter as you may want to grow beyond that later on.

3. Try to be thoughtful of difficulties your audience may have with spelling or remembering your biz name.

4. Using the words ‘art’ or ‘painting’ or ‘printmaking’ or ‘tattoo’ within your moniker can help you not only get found on search engines, but can also help to be a mini-marketing opportunity when others see your name in comments or communities.

5. Once you think you’ve come up with a great moniker/biz name, the last step is just to check it online and on the platforms you plan on showing your art on to make sure it’s not a name that is taken (at least not by anyone super big!). If it is… unfortunately you may have to go back to step one.

2.6.2022

How Do Artists File Taxes?

Aloha artist... are you all pumped up to start your taxes yet this year? Or still a little early to be stressing it?

Well I agree!

Which is why I am getting a nice head start for those of you running a small art biz this year by creating a video full of tips and advice to make filing your taxes as a small art biz owner that much easier this year. Because simpler taxes is always great news!

Disclaimer: I am not a Certified Personal Accountant nor trained in any other way to do taxes professionally nor to give specific tax advice. These are just tips that I have personally implemented or have researched for this video from 3rd party websites as well as irs.gov, but they are not meant to act as a specific guide for you since each person/business/state/situation is different. Use these suggestions as a jumping off point for your own research:)

How to file taxes as an artist

1. Don’t lie! It may be very tempting to fudge some numbers or not report all your sales so your taxes are a little lower this year, but the IRS is not messing around and they can come collect back taxes for up to 10 years - with the addition of all kinds of penalties and interest (and maybe even a taw lawyer for yourself too!). So do your peace of mind a favor and go ahead and report every sale and don’t take false deductions.

2. Have a business bank account and business credit card to help keep your biz finances separate and organized from your personal finances. This way you can look at all your expenses as purchases on your credit card and all your income as deposits in your bank account. Ideally, you will put all of your business expenses on one credit card which you pay off in full at the end of every month. Even if in the beginning your expenses are higher than your income and you have to use money from your personal bank account to pay off your business credit card on time (to avoid accruing interest), that’s ok. It’s totally normal. Still doing it this way will be better in the short and long term for keeping things organized and being able to see exactly what kind of money your small biz is brining in.

3. Make sure to keep all of your expenses and income organized not only into their own accounts, but into their own categories within your accounts. Income should be split into categories like, ‘Retail Sales, Wholesales, Services, Digital Products’, etc. according to what your art biz consists of. Your expenses should have categories like, ‘Internet, Computer Hardware, Mobile Phone, Shipping, Office Supplies, Art Supplies, Resale Merchandise’, etc. This way when the time comes, you will know exactly where your business had to spend money and exactly where that money came from. You know, stuff the government is really interested in knowing. **I really like the free accounting software Wave (not affiliated) because once I set it up, it automatically separates my various incomes and expenses for me. Once a month I just go through and check on things and make a few tweaks and I’m done with all my bookkeeping. Let me know if you’d like a video specifically on how I set up and organized my own art biz bookkeeping down in the comments below :)

4. Have your art business registered locally as its own entity to collect and pay state sales taxes throughout the year on all your art sales and services. I know, I know…. more taxes?! But yeah, you gotta do it. The good news is that by paying your sales taxes all year long a lot of your bookkeeping will be maintained making these end-of-year taxes soooo much easier! Plus, you have to be registered in order to take deductions (which you definitely want!!).

5. Once you’re paying federal income taxes at the end of the year, have your business registered as it’s own enterprise such as an LLC or Sole Proprietorship with its own business name. The difference between and LLC and a Sole Proprietor usually has to deal with the size of the small business and whether you have anyone working for or with you. You can watch the video for a more in-depth description of each (including pros and cons of declaring your business either one), but essentially, if you’re like me and a one-person enterprise, you’re most likely going to want to stick with a Sole Proprietorship.

6. You’ll probably need to fill Self Employment and 1040 forms including W-9s from any freelance or contracted work you’ve done, and W-2s for any regular employment you’ve had throughout the year. Just follow the directions on those or use an online tax service (which I strongly recommend and use myself!).

7. When it’s time to file, make sure to look for ALL the deductions!! Sit down for a minute and think about every little thing it takes for you to make sellable art, and then to market it, and then to actually sell it. From your art and shipping supplies to your website hosting to the cell phone you use to post on your art-related social medias to the milage you drive to show or deliver your art to the money you spend on editing/workshops/gear to improve your artmaking abilities… it’s all tax deductible because it helps your small business to function and to grow. This is where filing taxes - even as a super tiny newbie creator - makes it all worthwhile.

8. Yay! GREAT NEWS.. showing a profit every year while starting out is not a requirement for filing taxes! This is awesome news that means that you are allowed to show a net loss for five of your first seven years in business. Sounds almost unbelievable right?! That you could get all these deductibles for your biz having not made enough have to pay Uncle Sam anything yet!?! Dang! But it makes total sense. Most businesses, from the tiniest creative venture to the biggest venture capitalist-backed corporation, are understood to have large start up costs with small initial revenues associated with them as they are just starting out and getting their name in the market. It’s one of the things that make the US such an entrepreneur-friendly country, that the gov knows it takes time to make that first bit of money, and that you’ll get him once you’re good for it;)

9. Newbie Artists Beware: Don’t file art biz taxes and declare a bunch of deductions unless you are ACTUALLY selling art or art services. Because what can happen if you aren’t really selling and aren’t really trying to sell, is that the IRS can look at your sizable deductions and literal zero gross sales and decide your (potential) art biz is actually a ‘Hobby’ which means you can no longer write off any art related deductions. From what I understand, it can be really hard to shake that label from the IRS for years to come even once you are more legit and really do need to take deductions so don’t shoot your future self in the foot on that one!

Hopefully you found today’s blog + video super helpful! If so, make sure to subscribe to the weekly blog roundup so you never miss any good tips OR when I ask my audience for input or suggestions!

1.16.2022

How Much Do You Love Doing Your Art Biz Taxes?

Oh boy oh boy, it’s that special time of year…. tax season! I know it’s still a bit early to deal with for a lot of us, but since I have been asked from time to time about how to handle income taxes when owning a small biz, I figured early is better for this particular topic. I want you to have all the good info to procrastinate on!

But before I can offer advice, I need to know just what you’re curious or confused about? Have you ever even claimed your small biz and filed sales and use taxes? Do you use accounting software to keep track of your income and expenses throughout the year? Do you make the most out of your deductibles?

These are just a few things to think about when filing taxes with the IRS, and they are important!

For the next 24 hours I’m featuring a series of questions on my Instagram Stories to find out just where you chickadees are regarding filing federal and state taxes for your small one person art biz, so pop over there to take the survey and get some of your questions answered in next week’s video.

FYI This video will not be a step-by-step tutorial on how to file your taxes since every person/state/business/situation is different (not to mention that I could probably get in some kind of legal trouble for doing so!), but it will be a series of tips and suggestions that will help you navigate the confusing world of declaring small biz income for Uncle Sam.

PS If you’re not on Instagram, feel free to respond to the above queries or drop a comment or question of your own regarding filing your small art biz taxes below. I’m excited to help you all realize that filing taxes is way less daunting than you may think, and is really beneficial to your biz in both the short and the long run.

After taking the survey, make sure to tune in next week for all the good tax advice this Bird can muster! We can do this!

1.9.2022

5 Legal Things Your Art Website MUST Have!

Do not get sued! Yikes!

Every website these days (yes, even your teeny tiny lil humble artist portfolio) must have five legal items on it to make sure you are compliant for visitors in the US and the EU. I was unaware until recently just how essential these things are, so as soon as I figured out how to be compliant, I wanted to share them with you!

5 Things you Definitely Need on Your Art Website:

1. Privacy Policy You have to tell folks what kind of data your website tracks and how you’re going to use it. There are different requirements for the US and Europe so you’d better make sure to follow all the rules!

2. Cookie Banner + Policy Letting people know you are taking analytics and giving them the option to opt out of non-essential monitoring. This is also about the personal privacy of your website visitors.

3. Terms + Conditions This tells folks that if they are on your website, it’s on your terms. This lets people know what to expect so they can’t get upset and sue you for being offended by your content, or if they simply don’t like the way you do business. This part tells people, hey , if you don’t like it, then leave because by staying on my website you are agreeing to using my website in the way that I, the creator, see fit. This also let’s folks know that they cannot take your content off your website and use it as their own, but if they submit comments or images to your site, then you can use them for anything.

4. Disclaimer The disclaimer tells people that your website and its content are your opinion and any instruction or advice they get from you is their own responsibility and you do not guarantee everything to be perfect or without flaw. It also let’s people know that you do not guarantee any company, product, or third party that may be featured on your website either.

5. Refund Policy Definitely essential if you ever want to sell goods or services, that way there is no question should an issue ever arise. This one can be written by you in casual, understandable English according to however your particular policies are and don’t need to be written in legalese.

Here are the companies I used for my legal jargon:

I am not affiliated with them and get no money from you using their services, nor can I legally bind myself to or guarantee their products. This is just a simple recommendation of what I am using for my website.

https://termly.io/

https://www.websitepolicies.com/

10.3.2021