I loved this recent post by Wil Wheaton, encouraging people to Get Excited and Make Things. I’m all for creativity, of course, and heartily believe that people who are making things are happy people.

The post inspired me to do something I’d been thinking about for a while, which was to create something marketable from the various swirly doodles that I enjoy, uh, doodling from time to time. Because I know my own limitations when it comes to actual handcrafted items (I lack patience and consistency) I decided to take the CafePress route, which as a print-on-demand service is the easiest way for small-time merchants like myself to get their designs and artwork on products to sell to the world at large. For my first design, I chose the tree pictured at left, which I designed last Christmas for a handcarved stamp — I only used the stamp on a small handful of cards, but I really like the image and I hope other people will too.

I’ve offered it on a variety of mugs, magnets, buttons and, yes, greeting cards, all very simple in their layout. I think I like the mug best: it would make a great small gift for someone, filled with candies and topped with a bright bow. The magnets or buttons would make great office co-worker gifts or party favors. There’s even a few fun items, like a teddy bear and a baby’s bib, which a few of you might find use for.

This isn’t a plea to my friends and readers to go out and buy my stuff. I am just offering this up here because I like this design, and I thought you might too.

Here’s my shop address: http://www.cafepress.com/dumoski

It’s a little messy in there right now, because I’m still getting the hang of how the backend of Cafe Press works, and I thought it was more important to get the products in there then worry about the shop itself (so backwards, I know). Depending on how things go, I might add some new designs soon (there’s a bird that I’m running hot and cold on right now). I’d love to hear what you think…it’s always a little intimidating when you put yourself out there like this. But if you don’t try, you’ll never know, right?

An important note: the Creative Journaling workshop mentioned in the previous post has been rescheduled for December 14th! All the other information remains the same:

DATE: Monday, December 14th
TIME: 7:00 to 8:30 p.m.
LOCATION: It’s A Grind Coffeehouse, 24801 Alicia Pkwy, Laguna Hills CA

Hope to see you there!

I’ve been negligent in getting photos up from last Monday’s Creative Journaling workshop in Laguna Hills.

Here you can see all our supplies, ready to go:

And some of the journal pages, by Jill and Melodye respectively:

A few more shots of people working:

There are a few more shots over at Flickr, if you care to see them!

I want to thank Tom for letting us meet at It’s A Grind, and everyone who came and participated. I had a great time, and can’t wait to do it again. I hope some more of you will join us too:

Join me for an evening of exploration, creativity and fun as we use pictures, symbols and design to express our thoughts and dreams. Combine images and words to create a visual map to your own inner landscape, and find new tricks to invigorate your journal writing. No experience required!

November’s theme is Gratitude. It’s been a rough year for a lot of us. Come remember all that you have to be grateful for.

Bring Your Own Journal, Sketchbook, Notebook or other Blank Book
Some supplies will be provided, but feel free to bring your own. Recommended: colored pencils, markers, pens, rubber stamps, stickers, decorative paper, glue, scissors, pictures, magazines, watercolors, paintbrushes, hole punches, etc.

Creative Journaling is about the process of art, not the product. I’ll share techniques that will help you bring your inner visions to the page, but the most important thing we’ll be learning is how to shut down your inner critic so that you can “see” yourself think, and understand that it doesn’t matter what anyone else thinks. No one is going to tell you what to do, or tell you that you’re doing it wrong. YOUR WAY is the only RIGHT way.