Well, hello there! Long time, no see, huh? I had a wonderful, restful break, and I was really able to do some thinking and soul searching. After a lot of thought, I've decided to do things here at Pretty Cute Stamps a little differently from now on. Before I tell you about the changes, I'd like to share the reason I'm changing things up. So, here it goes...I'm going to be real with you, right now. (If you also love Pretty Paper, Pretty Ribbons, you've heard some of this before).
When I started designing craft supplies (cutting files), it was a complete career change for me. I went from teaching elementary school full time and going to graduate school to staying home and figuring out how to turn my drawings into cutting files (because of a family move and change in our situation). I was passionate about paper crafting, and I loved every minute that I was designing. Then I got the chance to turn those drawings into stamps, and another piece of my career puzzle fell into place. It all was really was a dream come true.
Fast forward to now...almost 5 years later...and my dreams have changed a bit. I still love to draw and create art, but my heart and interests have really started to shift. I'm super excited right now because I'm learning new ways to draw and I'm using those drawings to create acrylic, watercolor, and digital paintings and illustrations. I'm taking classes and absolutely loving every minute of them. I'd love to turn this new passion into something more...I'm just not quite sure what that means, just yet. So, I'm sure you can imagine that a lot of my time has been taken up by these new interests. It's really all I can think about...which is an exciting thing, especially since I've been struggling over the past couple of years with bouts of something pretty close to depression. I just wasn't myself...I was withering away. But, now I'm back, and feeling fresh and happy and excited again. So, I have to follow my heart on this one and really invest my time in these new interests. That's really best for everyone...my family, my friends, and, of course, me.
So, here's how things are going to change. I still want to create digital stamps, but I also want to have plenty of time to learn and practice my new passion. So, I will no longer be having official monthly stamp releases. I'll be adding new stamps to my store semi-regularly...just not as many as before. Several members of my awesome Design Team have decided to stick with me, so they will be sharing projects with you...just not everyday, like before. And, we won't be having regular challenges and blog hops. We might do one now and again, just for fun, but not on a scheduled basis. So, that's it...I hope you understand. I feel that all of us have had times when we find a new passion and just can't stop thinking about it...so much so that it turns into new goals and dreams. So I hope you're with me in thinking that I should go for it.
So, today, I have a few new digi stamps for you. I got on a roll and made more than I had originally planned for February, but that's a good thing, huh? You can find all of these new stamp sets in the Pretty Cute Stamps Store HERE.
