{"id":6288,"date":"2020-06-09T17:11:34","date_gmt":"2020-06-09T21:11:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/littleviews.com\/?p=6288"},"modified":"2020-09-22T16:24:18","modified_gmt":"2020-09-22T20:24:18","slug":"sketch-diary-june-2020","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/littleviews.com\/sketch-diary-june-2020\/","title":{"rendered":"How Karen Little Developed Littleviews On-line Shop, Sketch-Views"},"content":{"rendered":"

Comments later in 2020<\/span><\/h4>\n

In June 2020 I started keeping a diary about the process of developing Littleviews’ store, Sketch-Views, which had a soft grand opening in September 2020.<\/p>\n

While I deleted diary entries from July on on as most of my time was spent in study and skill upgrades, I though that you might be interested in what was going on in June, especially if you are interested in starting and maintaining your own store.<\/p>\n

You can see that some of my ideas changed between then and September. Should you start your own store, go forward slowly, try things, and eliminate what doesn’t work. Keep, of course, what does!<\/p>\n

Monday, June 29<\/span><\/h4>\n

\"\"<\/a>I am still waiting for my scarf samples to arrive so I can plan how to improve designs or start actually promoting them. Half should be here this week but I don’t know when the remainder will arrive.<\/p>\n

While I am looking forward to the September Sketch-Views “Grand Opening,” I’ve started updating everything this past weekend.<\/p>\n

Going forward, I am still devoted to daily sketching as well as to developing a PDF catalog on how pet portraits can be used. It might seem like it’s an easy task to distribute a PDF file, but it took a major amount of brainpower to figure out how to do it on the Shopify platform I use for Sketch-Views.<\/p>\n

For now, the catalog being developed is called “Creative Expressions.” Click Here<\/a><\/strong> to see how catalog delivery is set up.<\/p>\n

Monday, June 22<\/span><\/h4>\n

\"\"<\/a>When I first looked at my stash of “Fat Quarters,” which are quarter-yard pieces used for patchwork and various sewing projects, I was going to give them away.<\/p>\n

And then I thought, “I love sketching pet portraits, so why not make pet bandannas out of them?”<\/p>\n

This morning I researched pet bandanna patterns and decided that this would be fun to do, so by\u00a0 next Sunday, I will have\u00a0 enough bandannas made for our site’s mascots (4 Doxies who live in Texas), plus my current clients.<\/p>\n

I’m still waiting for my scarf and fabric samples to arrive and really can’t do much in terms of posting products on Sketch-Views until I examine them for quality and design balance.<\/p>\n

My sample order is for nine scarves in different sizes, but I’ve only received two. Those two, however,\u00a0 give me something to style on Hilda the Head. She seems pleased…<\/p>\n

Friday, June 19<\/span><\/h4>\n

\"\"<\/a>And so, I cut my own hair . . .<\/p>\n

And I also bought a 2nd wig to demo scarves (and maybe wear myself when the weather is cooler). This purchase might be especially meaningful should I decide to continue cutting my own hair!<\/p>\n

In the meantime, I received the first scarf sample yesterday and, unfortunately, I wasn’t impressed. The printing of the scarf was excellent, but a series of lines that were part of the pattern were too think and appeared as light gray broken lines, instead of crisp white.<\/p>\n

The rest, however, should be OK, except that the 1.5″ edge treatment I created shrunk to 1″, so in the future, I’ll have to adjust that. Anyway, I can’t wait for the rest to arrive.<\/p>\n

Thursday, June 18<\/span><\/h4>\n

\"\"<\/a>The Coronavirus “lock-down” closed the companies I use for printing scarves and other fabrics. While I started my recent design process in late February, I am still waiting for samples.<\/p>\n

A “sample” is not a discounted item delivered inexpensively to my door. Samples represent products creators like myself use to evaluate product quality. If I bought these things in large lots, item cost might be discounted, but at one or two pieces per order, samples (whether I like them or not) are a major business investment.<\/p>\n

Anyway, as of today, I am still waiting for samples and, if I like them, figure out how to stage them for photos and videos. My new partner, Hilda the Head, is anxiously waiting for new products to show off, too. It is time for a fashion update!<\/p>\n

Hilda’s easy hairstyle, however, has influenced my desire to cut my own hair really short. Unfortunately, my hair salon is not yet open due to the pandemic, so on the docket for today, I will cut it myself.<\/p>\n

. . . expect photos of my new hair chop later this week.<\/p>\n

Saturday, June 13<\/span><\/h4>\n

\"\"<\/a>The Chinese can teach us many things about the use of hand-held fans. Fans cool the air, provide artistic appeal, and most importantly, prevent stagnant air from settling around us, something to consider as we fight to avoid the transmission of viruses.<\/p>\n

While “sheltering in place” limits our exposure to whatever is in the general atmosphere, consider using a simple fan to keep that atmosphere moving at home and when you are out and about.<\/p>\n

To that end, I recently purchased 12 folding fans for $7 on Amazon with the idea that I’ll share them with family and friends. These are around 9 inches long and fold flat into the handle, which rotates shut.<\/p>\n

I’m so fond of my new fan, in fact, that I’m using it all day long! It moves dust away from my nows, with no electricity or filters required!<\/p>\n

Interesting references: “The Cool Story on Chinese Fans<\/a>,” “Traditional Chinese Fan, an Artistic Symbol of Literati and Social Status<\/a>,” and for more options on handheld paper fans, check the results of this Google search<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Friday, June 12<\/span><\/h4>\n

\"\"<\/a>This is a wig I purchased to stage scarves for Sketch-Views photographs. It’s beautiful! It had rave reviews! The hair had similar qualities to mine! And it was only $21, delivered.<\/p>\n

When I lost all my hair due to cancer, I dutifully visited a local, high-end wig maker and paid almost $500 for one, thinking it would look more natural. It did not.<\/p>\n

Anyway, I’m now waiting for a wig-form “block head” upon which I’ll demonstrate the scarves I’ve designed and this wig’s glories. If the images look better than real life, I might soon be wearing this wig, too.<\/p>\n

Tuesday, June 9<\/strong><\/span><\/h4>\n

\"\"<\/a>Today is my online diary “kick off” and a celebration of my new mastectomy bra. Both things make me happy.<\/p>\n

It took me 4 years since having my left breast removed to have enough healing to allow anything tight surround my chest. Should you find yourself in my position, don’t rush back to looking normal. Wait until you are completely healed (radiation is worse than the surgery itself).<\/p>\n

I’m 76 and am a cancer survivor! And as such, fill my time with lots of artistic projects, which is lucky because for the past three months, New Jersey has been in “lock down” to honor “social distancing.” Ah, the Corona Virus.\u00a0 If it isn’t one life threatening thing, it’s another. The best we all can do is just soldier on!<\/p>\n

Anyway, I started Sketch-Views<\/a> this past January and curating it took a hit when social distancing shut down my vendors. As of now, vendors are starting up again and I’m creating several collections. All should be done by early September.<\/p>\n

Questions? Just ask Karen@Littleviews.com<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Comments later in 2020 In June 2020 I started keeping a diary about the process of developing Littleviews’ store, Sketch-Views, which had a soft grand opening in September 2020. While I deleted diary entries from July on on as most of my time was spent in study and skill upgrades, I though that you might […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[68],"tags":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/littleviews.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6288"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/littleviews.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/littleviews.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/littleviews.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/littleviews.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6288"}],"version-history":[{"count":25,"href":"https:\/\/littleviews.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6288\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6574,"href":"https:\/\/littleviews.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6288\/revisions\/6574"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/littleviews.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6288"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/littleviews.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6288"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/littleviews.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6288"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}