My Etsy Shop - Click on Picture below to visit!!

My etsy online shop is being revamped and will be showing more of my work for sale in the coming weeks and months. I am researching and working on improving and offering more work for sale there. Please feel free to call in and enjoy browsing, and maybe even see something you would like to buy. Regards Jim

Etsy Shop Now Open -- ShanahanArt

Yesterday I joined Etsy as a seller. I went through the whole shop setup procedure and now have a niche in the Etsy "Mall". Hopefully I can see some interest from the online world. I will be listing some paintings at the shop which might also be for sale on the blog gallery (see bottom of this page). Where prices are converted to US dollars for Etsy I have tried to keep prices the same as the euro price although some discrepancies may arise due to the exchange rate changing! Sorry if that is confusing. Also I am just getting to grips with the paypal setup, so if you wish to buy and are experiencing difficult, just send me an email. I am almost certain I have it configured correctly but one never knows.

I am enjoying the whole experience of learning about online marketing. I feel I have really learnt a lot in the last few months, and it's not finished yet. Apart from the blog and other technical online things, I have been researching the use of printers and lots of other stuff that artists need to know about for general day to day survival. I guess it all takes time, but being savvy about marketing is an artform in itself and it really helps to know what to do. I have learnt a lot by reading the advice from many artists who contribute to online forums. To them I am very grateful. If I can begin to carve out a niche market for my work I will consider the last few months well spent. At the moment I still consider myself an emerging artist, -- but one to watch! You can't beat modesty...

One thing I have realised from reading the experiences of other artists is the occurrence of burn-out. It can be difficult to be focused and creating art is quite intense at times. That's why being able to take time out with friends or to relax at something else is most important. I definitely know this to be true for me, I need variety. Fortunately I have a lot of non-art related interests to divert me. I go through phases of creativity and then need to refresh, so to speak. I guess like most things in life, we need to keep a balance.

Anyway that's it for now - check out my Etsy store at ShanahanArt if you're curious and want to see what I did. Just click on the link under my photo on the right of the posts. Enjoy and check back here for new work in progress which I will be posting over the next while.

Ebay Auction up and running...Etsy to follow.

Crohy Head, Donegal

Yesterday I set up my first Ebay auction - see here. It was interesting to go through the learning curve. Also I intend to explore setting up a shop on Etsy which looks to be a neat way of hosting paintings. Reading reports from veterans of both sites, it appears that Etsy might be giving the competition a run for their money. I shall try both Ebay and Etsy and make my own judgements and report back here in later posts.

As for today, I'm including a poem now from the public domain which I like, by John Masefield.
Enjoy and check out my auction, thanks.

Sea Fever

I must go down to the sea again, to the lonely sea and the sky,
And all I ask is a tall ship and a star to steer her by,
And the wheel's kick and the winds call, and the white sails shaking,
And a grey mist on the seas face, and a grey dawn breaking.

I must go down to the sea again, for the call of the running tide,
Is a wild call and a clear call, that may not be denied,
And all I ask is a windy day with the white clouds flying,
And the flung spray and the blown spume, and the sea-gulls crying.

I must go down to the sea again, to the vagrant gypsy life,
To the gull's way, and the whale's way, where the winds like a whetted knife,
And all I ask is a merry yarn, from a laughing fellow rover,
And a quiet sleep, and a sweet dream when the long trips over.