I have mentioned before that I love finding new products to put my art on. For me, the painting and the products are both a creative process. I also like finding ways to do it myself. I enjoy learning the processes and I enjoy the overall feeling of accomplishment when a product turns out well.

I am not a purse or bag carrier except when I travel. But, I know a lot of people are, and I have noticed a number of people who love round bags lately. I found some that I could sublimate a picture onto and the finished product was better than I hoped.

I don’t know what I expected, but I have found that my expectations aren’t always in line with how the product turns out, and isn’t really in line with what I wanted, at least not at first. Most of my products I have a bit of trial and error before I get them how I want them.

The round purse however, worked without a single issue. Not only the first one (beginners luck), but all 8 of them. I love how they turned out, and I’m excited to see if anyone local loves how they turned out as well! I won’t add these to my website however, as there’s only 8 of them. But if you see one you like, let me know and we can work out a deal!

I also bought some rectangular bags, more like a laptop bag. This one has a flap that I was able to customize. The flap is bigger than I can print on my printer, but I actually don’t mind the white border as it looks similar to a mat that you’d find around a painting in a frame.

Under the flap there’s pockets for smaller items, and then a zip top with a large pocket inside. This is probably more what I would travel with as I do travel with my laptop, and it would give me space for my phone, wallet, a few art supplies, etc.

The other thing that I have been working on is a new way to design towels. I have been looking into flour sack towels, but the only company I can find to print the way I want doesn’t ship to Alaska. I did order 4 towels with different designs and they are being shipped to my parents who will then send them on to me.

But, in the interest of doing things myself, I can sublimate on waffle microfiber towels and decided to try a couple of new designs. In the past I’ve just sublimated one large picture on the bottom half of the towel, but I wanted more of an all over feel, so I created 2 new designs that worked wonderfully.

I have a number of pictures without backgrounds, which makes it easier for what I’m doing. I also had a number of the same type of pictures, so the first towel I tried was red poppies cascading from one corner on the top down to the opposite corner on the bottom. It turned out way better than I was expecting, and I absolutely love this design.

I also had a set of 3 Easter eggs that I painted a few years ago so I decided to try the same design, the cascade with those. They are so cute, and again, turned out better than I expected. I will now have to look at what other options I have for a fun all-over design for my next towel.

Making new products and having them actually turn out is so fun! I’m excited to share these with you, and if they do well in

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