twentytwentythree year in review
this was my first year putting all my focus into it’s wonky and only taking on photo projects that lit me up! i’m so glad i gave it my all because i think that opened up doors for me to experience so much growth this year.
i think i made about 800 pieces which is bonkers and not something i want to do again LOL ( i’m trying to figure out how i can financially make more without physically making more, ya know? ). bobby and i realized while talking the other day that i’m a solopreneur not and entrepreneur - right now, the goal is not to grow a large business with a large studio and a team making thousands of pieces, etc. call me simple, but i’m just trying to build a lifestyle where i can experience life in the way i desire but also pay the bills! ( is it possible?! IDK!!) i know my hopes can change and evolve but for now, this lil’ dream (ie. backyard studio, pieces in shops, selling online, doing markets) remains and i feel like this year was one small step in the right direction.
you know the part in harry potter where, spoiler alert, voldemort is back and everybody’s scared about what will happen, and hagrid says “ no use worrying about it, what’s coming will come and we’ll meet it when it does”? that’s the energy i’m trying to bring into 2024.🥹
less trying to have it all figured out, more trusting the process.✨
reading. it’s truly been a joy to find a love for reading this year and be able to either cozy up with a book or put on an audiobook while i work and just dive into new stories for a bit. some faves are - all the light we cannot see, the dune saga, and the trilogy that silo the apple tv series is based on!
prioritizing rest. i’m the annoying friend who talks about how much they love going to bed early lol. but with my anemia coming in hot this year, giving myself some grace to just sit and slow down was important, and as hard as it is to do so, i’m glad for all the slow mornings in the garden and the early evenings reading in bed.
writing down what i want. it’s easy for me to lose sight of what i want when i’m so focused on just getting things done, so i made a point to write down what i want my life to look like this year and it’s pretty cool that a lot of my hopes for myself and my biz became a reality!
completing 12 commissions. the goal was just ten! and i finished off with the biggest batch i’ve ever made for one order. it’s really fun to have people trust me enough to play and i hope that i get to do more of that in the new year!
doing 10 markets. what a ride!!! some weren’t great some were amazing, and some were right in the middle. i was able to meet so many amazing people, share my work in person, and get my wonky name out there!
wonky tonk. it was honestly one of my favorite parts of 2023. sign-ups for 2024 close tonight, so join now if you want ceramic surprises next year! (major TYSM to those who joined this year and those who have signed up for 2024!!)
saying no. i’ve gotten very good at saying no, it’s not a hard and fast rule, but when i feel the project, either photo or pottery, is only going to distract me from my goals saying no has led to more time to say yes to things that do!
setting up shop in the owl’s attic. wrote a whole blog post about it!! it brought me so much joy to take this step and i can’t wait to focus more on the shop in the new year!
streetttccchingg. making time to move my body, even if it’s just a few minutes in the morning or before bed has changed the game for me in a lot of ways!!
making youtube vidoes. i have been making vlogs on youtube for a while now with no plans but to document my pottery journey. i never tell anyone lol, but the process has been so fun and lighthearted and i love that i have a little catalog of my process/progress over the years!
if you’re as tired as i am approaching this new year, i hope that you can reflect on all the things you were able to do in 2023, even if it was just keeping yourself afloat. we are all capable of so much, but that doesn’t mean we should do so much all the time. i hope rest comes easy for you as you start another year. can’t thank you enough for coming on this journey with me. :)
your purchases, kind words/ encouragement, likes and shares help keep this wonky dream alive and it truly means the world. 🖤