As I have mentioned in previous posts, I have been connecting with some really amazing folks on Linkedin as a result of being laid off last year and going full force on both my job hunt and artwork marketing endeavors. So much so that I am actually a part of many “hashtag” founded groups filled with people who understand that you can be your offbeat self and still be a professional. Breaking the stereotype that business means boring.
One of these amazing hashtags that have helped me find my fellow like minded “weirdlings” is “WeirdLinkedIn” by Orana Velarde, which then transformed into the Fellowship Of The Weird LinkedIn Group, described as “the ultimate hangout for those of us who embrace the quirky, the offbeat, and the marvelously strange. To give you a judgment-free zone where you can let your weird flag fly and to build a warm, welcoming community where anyone identifying as weird (and proud of it) feels right at home.”
And like most of us that feel right at home amongst the strange and unusual, we are also a pool filled with many talents. So Ambra Hubert wanted to find a creative way to showcase that to the world. Especially during this terrible tsunami of unemployment a majority of us are trying to survive through right now. The end result was her creating the very first issue of the Weird Professional Community Zine.
Here is a screenshot of the beautiful page layout she created that features some of the wording from my LinkedIn profile along with my Alter Ego Monsterpieces!
Be sure to give the online version a look through and discover all the weird and wonderful things everyone compiled to launch this great endeavor! It will be available on Flipbook (for 1 year) and you can also purchase a print copy of it as well.
You can also find this magazine and more examples of where my art has been featured on the Creature Features page of my portfolio website. And if you are interested in showcasing my work in your next publication, exhibition, or creative venture let’s connect and make some magic together!
Over the weekend we had some fun celebrating my great niece Violet’s 11th birthday. One of the MANY things I love about this little girl is her fascination with monsters, cryptids, mythological creatures, and animals. And not just typical animals either. She can lay down some facts about animals you didn’t even know existed and is a trip and half to go on zoo adventures with.
On top of all of that she loves drawing the things she loves as cartoon characters. Her talents and imagination fascinate me. She gives each character she draws names and each one has a backstory. That’s right, she’s quite the little artist herself and my husband and I have a little collection of handmade gifts and drawings she has made for us over the years and when she draws or makes something new she can’t wait to show us. Since she is getting older (she even mentioned the word pre-teen at her party to remind us all) I thought she would appreciate finally owning one of Aunt Nicole’s handmade Monstrosities.
So here is Franklin (the name she gave him), who is a “violet” and pink Moffin pencil/art supply holder and the first of its kind!
I wrapped him and the art supplies (seen in the photos) up in cellophane and tied it off with my branding ribbon. We gifted it to her with a book about cryptids and an art sticker maker she had on her wishlist. She got a complete kick out of it.
It was so rewarding to see the reaction she had and the smile on her face. She truly is quite the creature lover like her Aunt Nicole.
You can find Violet and Franklin alongside photos and videos of some of my other happy art collectors on my Freaky Fanatics page of my portfolio website. Franklin can also be found amongst my other handmade monster creations on the Monstrosities page.
And.. if you are looking for a quirky low maintenance companion to call your own, be sure to shop my creations to see which of my Monstrosities are currently available for adopting. Unlike machine mass produced collectibles, these are each handmade with loving intentions and therefore no one else in the world will ever own the one that you adopt. This makes them one-of-a-kind gifts for the person in your life that has everything and are definitely great conversation starters for your home or work decor.
If you are new here, be sure to subscribe to get updates of when my newest creations drop as I am already conjuring up some new monsters that have been lurking around in my brain.
If you are already one of my art collectors, don’t forget to contact me so you can send me your photos or Youtube video links showing how you rock, gift or display my artwork and become a featured Freaky Fanatic!
Some of you may be setting your New Year’s resolutions right now, however with it still being the dead of winter I prefer to follow the rhythm of nature and set my intentions with the spring equinox, when light takes over darkness, life re-emerges, balance is restored, and creation begins. So for me, winter is the time to dream without pressure and reflect on what I have overcome thus far.
With that being said, this time last year looked very different for me, and what started off on a very high note came crashing down rather quickly. I was so excited to kick the year off with a brand new job where I could finally support fellow artists for a living, only to be led by a CEO full of false promises that resulted in surprise layoffs and the company closing their doors. Despite them being a startup, I jumped all in when the opportunity arose and was quickly reminded why I have never been much of a big risk taker. Having been on my own since I was 18 and always holding a job since I was 15, I was overcome with emotions. I had never lost a job before, especially at no fault of my own, and on top of it, in an industry I was genuinely passionate about. To say it was soul crushing would be an understatement. It didn’t help that it all happened with terrible timing, and I don’t mean just being let go the day after my 44th birthday, but the fact that I was left to hunt for a new job only to find myself tangled in the web of a nightmare job market filled with scammers, hackers, AI garbage, age discrimination, remote jobs that are really hybrid, too many applicants, fake job postings, and most of all, false hopes.
Unfortunately, I still haven’t escaped that job hunting web just yet, but my mindset has changed as I continue to reflect on all the blessings that have resulted from it. For instance, yes, I may have taken a risk, but I also was stuck in a very toxic work situation, and jumping ship to board on with the new startup gave me the push I needed to leave. And although everyone’s time at the startup was cut short, I was blessed to be able to work with an amazing team of women I may never have had the opportunity to meet. I quickly picked up new software and skill sets, and even some great advice and ideas that I now utilize for my own art practice. Most importantly though, I got to experience what it was like working directly with some very talented and well-known fine artists from all around the country, which was something very special that I had hoped to gain from my time working there.
As months passed, one thing remained constant, and that was me word vomiting over and over again about how incredibly grateful I am for my hardworking husband. He has not only been keeping us afloat financially, but he has been my emotional rock through everything, reminding me that just because I am not working full time doesn’t mean I am worthless, because honestly most days thats how I’ve felt. Not having the spending money to enjoy ourselves like we used to or having the ability to save like we were has definitely taken a hit to my self esteem but at the same time allowed me to gain a sense of freedom that money could never buy.
Which leaves me with the one thing I feel this year has blessed me with the most, and that was time. Something I never had before and at times still feel guilty about gaining. When working for other companies, I never had the dedicated time and creative energy I needed to fully invest into my own artwork. Writing this blog alone would have been much different, much shorter, or not even written at all. I would become overwhelmed trying to balance and keep it all together, my health often taking a toll, projects and ideas piling up because it would take me forever to finish anything, or feeling overwhelmed enough to skip the creative process altogether, which would ultimately leave me feeling unaccomplished and unfulfilled.
After being let go from the daily grind, it seemed like whenever I had a confidence crushing moment on my job hunting journey, it would immediately be followed by an uplifting art win of some sort. I now know those were signs from the universe divinely guiding and gifting me with what I had always asked for, it just arrived terribly wrapped in loss and confusion. It was like asking for flowers and the universe giving me rain instead. The seeds were planted. It was up to me to figure out that the glimmers in the rain drops only came if I provided the sunshine needed to bloom. So some days I chose to take breaks from the stress of the job hunt and strictly focus the time I was gifted to work on bringing more of my visions to life. Guilt free.
Since being laid off, I have also gained a plethora of new LinkedIn connections and although a majority of them are strangers in the real world, they’ve truly helped keep me sane. They’ve been there to boost my confidence when venting about job hunting dead ends while also being there to celebrate and support me when sharing my art wins and announcing my new creations. Many have even written up features or conducted interviews about me and my work, and others have actually become new collectors of it. Ironically, most of them may have never even discovered my work had I not been more active on the platform due to my job hunt and the time I was blessed with to focus and really go all in on it this year.
And although I was technically unemployed, I remained VERY busy. When I was not creating, applying or interviewing for jobs, I was putting in hours of unpaid work as an Artrepreneur, which really has put into perspective why it’s been so hard to keep up with everything while working a full-time job.
Top that off with everything else going on in the world, there were many days that made it harder to find the blessings and transform negative thoughts into positive ones. But I found that when I surrounded myself in inspiring environments and spent my time and energy wisely with people who would rather live in the moment than constantly focus on drama, politics, news, and negativity, I felt much lighter, healthier, and creatively motivated.
Refocusing my mindset was important for me as an artist. For instance, did someone physically steal a piece of my artwork and therefore I became a famous artist overnight due to the heist? No, but someone wanted my artwork badly enough that they were willing to risk getting caught and arrested for it.
Did I make a killing on my work this year to the point I could completely live off the income and stop job hunting? No, but I gained a couple freelance gigs that got me by, and both my Etsy and Closet Collectibles sales were on the rise, resulting in many happy dances for a girl who just wants to share her visions with the world while hoping they speak to someone as weird as she is.
So with that, I just want to show my gratitude to everyone that helped these artist milestone moments happen for me over the past “Gregorian calendar year”….
I joined Lyric, an artist first platform allowing my art collectors another way to shop my creations (the company rebranded as Latchet)
Bestselling Author, Award-Winning Screenwriter, & Entertainment Journalist Staci Lane Wilson interviewed and featured me and my work on Women In Horror
My split face portraits “Nothing Is Trivial” of Brandon Lee as Eric Draven and “Maybe Today Satan” of Kierna Shipka as Sabrina Spellman were selected and featured in the Artflow Alliance Virtual Art Exhibition: Haunted Histories from Halloween – Dec 31st
I was commissioned and completed 7 portraits that will be used for promotional and fundraising efforts for the fantasy web series Sommoners Tale created by Brandon Nyte
In celebration of the final season of Stranger Things I conjured up a limited edition Vecna – Upside Down picture frame to showcase an 8×10″ giclee print of my Pretty Bitchin’ split face portrait of Millie Bobby Brown as Eleven in Seasons 1 and 2
I checked Mia Goth and Pearl from the X Trilogy horror movie series off my art bucket list by completing my split face portrait “I’m Not Staying On This Farm”
I checked Walton Goggins and Uncle Baby Billy Freeman from the Righteous Gemstones off my art bucket list by completing my split face portrait “Voila! No More COVID!”
My split face portraits “Chop Driftwood” of Bill Moseley and “Shit The Bed” of Sid Haig were featured on multiple episodes of the Slash Sisters Podcast on Youtube
I was contracted by the realtor/owner of Teighlor Made TX to set up her WiX website from their brokerage’s company template. This included adjusting layout, updating media, hyperlinking, SEO & social media share settings, alt text, blog set up, setting up forms, service/meeting requests bookings, automations, notifications, label tags for segmenting contact leads, setting up admin roles, giving the client marketing and process feedback
I was once again the VIP Prize Collaborator for Flashback Weekend Chicago Horror Con where I doubled the number of prize contributions resulting in a very happy crowd and another successful VIP Cocktail Reception Party for celebrity guests and ultimate ticket holders!
And most importantly, I want you all to know… I’m not stopping anytime soon!
My newest art collector, Dustin discovered my one-of-a-kind, hand-crafted Monstrosities on LinkedIn and adopted one for his very own. Not only did he provide a happy new home for my last remaining Limited Edition (Batch 2) Moffin stash box, but he also left me a 5 star Etsy review, and sent me this great photo to show that he arrived safely and is already on active duty to protect his treasures.
“Excellent transaction. Exactly what I expected. A beautiful little piece of art. Thank you!” – Dustin S. on Etsy
If you’re new here, be sure to check out Dustin’s photo of his new Moffin friend alongside other photos and videos that some of my happy art collectors have submitted to me on my Freaky Fanatics page of my portfolio website.
Looking for a quirky low maintenance companion to call your own? Shop my creations to see which of my Monstrosities are still available, so you can get one for your collection before they are gone! Unlike store bought collectibles these are not mass produced by machines and are one-of-a-kind which means no one else in the world will ever own the one that you adopt because its handmade with loving intentions and therefore no two will ever be the same. What more could you ask for in a fun new friend and a unique piece of art that is sure to be a great conversation starter.
Have a photo or video of yourself rocking or displaying my artwork? Contact me to be featured!
