A short, sweet, and to the point newsletter from an illustrator, book designer, and all around busy bee. π By day, I work in the publishing industry as a book designer and illustrator. By night, I indulge in my inspirations and grow my creative business with slow, intentional steps. Every month, you'll get insights into living a creative life, what's currently inspiring me, behind the scenes peeks of works in progress, the stories behind the work, and freebies to help nurture your own creativity.
A New Studio Note has arrived! π August 2026 Edition
Published about 2 months agoΒ β’Β 2 min read
Studio Note 08/26
Hello Reader,
So sorry this is coming in a day late! School started back up this week and I completely lost track of the days!
Summer is in full swing. It's been so incredibly hot and humid. We have a thunderstorm almost every day! At least the extra rain is helping the plants around my yard and garden stay alive. I've even been able to harvest a few more tomatoes (they were delicious in a salad).
Setting time aside on the weekends has really helped with my creative funk. I actually look forward to the weekend because I know I'll have my 2.5 hour painting block on Saturday and Sunday mornings. If you've been struggling to find time to create, try picking a time on a day that tends to be slower for you and see if it helps!
Here's a summary if you're short on time :
Finished some art!
Sticker restock
A scam attempt was made
Art Notes
I forgot to share the finished Winterhalter study on my socials, so you get the first peek here!
Done in gouache with some touches of colored pencil. I love the texture pencil creates over this medium!
I also worked on this long-forgotten sword. Once discarded or lost, the forest took it back. Who it belonged to is a mystery, but maybe that will be revealed in a future painting...
Prints coming in the future!
In Progress, still needed to paint the background at this point.
And the finished piece! "Relic of the Ivy Knight", watercolor
Shop Notes
β"Selkie" stickers were restocked! I have several more sticker designs that will not be restocked, though, Once they're gone, they're gone! You can check those out here.
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Extra Notes
I almost got scammed recently! I had an email come in, inquiring about a specific sticker design I sold. I replied that yes, I was still selling it, and linked where it could be bought. The next email that came in looked like a badly copied automated Etsy email, the one you get when you make a sale, that requested I click the button below to get paid right away!
Obviously, this was fake, and obviously I didn't click said button. But I'm sharing this as a warning to you to watch out for stuff like this! Don't EVER click links or download files from an email source you haven't verified as legitimate! If you sell on Etsy, you'll never have to click a button to get paid. That's just not how their payout system works.
Stay vigiliant out there!
Until next time,
Catherine
P.S. A Note on Creativity
βImagination is everything. It is the preview of life's coming attractions.β β Albert Einstein
from Catherine Herold - Illustrator & Graphic Designer
A short, sweet, and to the point newsletter from an illustrator, book designer, and all around busy bee. π By day, I work in the publishing industry as a book designer and illustrator. By night, I indulge in my inspirations and grow my creative business with slow, intentional steps. Every month, you'll get insights into living a creative life, what's currently inspiring me, behind the scenes peeks of works in progress, the stories behind the work, and freebies to help nurture your own creativity.
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