:: :: my signature :: ::

i am trying to work on some new designs and products for when i take my upupcreative.com shop live, but i've been struggling a bit. i just have too many ideas coursing through my creative veins. and too many influences. i've been spending an awful lot of time perusing other stationery shops to see what i like (for the design of the shop itself and then of course i can't help but fall in love with just about every stationery line) and it's got my brain completely overwhelmed.

all of this is a lead-in to this:

i downloaded good to know issue #2 yesterday from amy at pikaland ($7 for the printed version, $2.50 for a pdf download). this issue's topic is personal style, as in how does an artist know when he or she has developed a personal style.

i was heartened to see that so many great artists said that they're honestly not sure what constitutes their own personal style and that they didn't know they had developed one until people would tell them, "i saw your work the other day and i knew it was yours before i saw your name."

as i read through the zine and as i worked on some of my own designs last night, i decided that i know something's my own personal style when i make it just for myself. when i make a card that i would send and that i love. i also decided that i need to sit on new designs for a few weeks before i really know if i love them, because sometimes just the joy of creating them makes me love them for awhile, y'know?

how do YOU know when something's got your signature on it?