Throughout my childhood, I loved art and took various art classes for fun as I was growing up. However, back then, I never seriously considered doing anything with art or design in my career. It always just seemed like a dream - one that I didn't feel like I could reach. So life went down a different path.
Fast forward to the Covid-19 pandemic: I had been working full-time as an administrative assistant for several years at that point. Given what was happening across the globe, things seemed dark at that time - as I'm sure it did for many. I decided to turn my attention back to activities that made me happy that I had lost touch with over the years. This included art and I found that it was the perfect distraction from what was going on in the world.
Back when I was younger, drawing was fun but I was definitely self-conscious about my art. I felt that if it didn't look like the artists that I knew and admired, then it couldn't be considered "good" and I was was more focused on that than just embracing my own personal style and enjoying the process.
This time around, I just wanted to have fun. I wanted to do what felt natural instead of trying to fit in a box of other people's standards. This took the pressure off and I began the journey of discovering my style - while also trying new things that I was too self-conscious to explore before.
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[A screenshot from one of my GoPro videos on a scuba dive.]
In 2021, I took my first trip to Mexico. It was truly life-changing and inspired me to explore both new and old interests, expand my art and photography further, to get certified in scuba diving (which I happily enjoyed for the first time in my return trip to Mexico in 2022), to do the things I had long been pondering but hadn't actually acted on such as opening my own Etsy shop.
Overall, it gave me a new outlook in life: to not just think about the things I wish to do, but to actually do them. Not to let anxieties or uncertainties get in the way of experiencing something I might truly enjoy (like scuba diving). Even if the result turns out not to be what I hoped for, at least I won't regret NOT giving it a try.
My Etsy shop, NyansenseArt, is a tangible example of this new outlook in my life. It merged many of my biggest passions together into an ever-evolving project and continuing my non-stop learning in life. I went into it not knowing what to expect - will it be successful or not - but even in just my first year since starting it, I've learned so much and have had a lot of fun. That in itself is worth it, to me.
----FUN FACTS ABOUT MY ETSY SHOP----
• The name "NyansenseArt" came from my Instagram name "nothinbutnyansense" which contains a play on the word "nonsense" using the word "nyan" which is "meow" in Japanese.
• That name was chosen because when I first started my Instagram account, I was only posting pictures of the cats I fostered and/or rescued.
• I still find the name fitting despite my Instagram and Etsy shop not being limited to cats - but all my various hobbies and interests may seen eclectic, or perhaps "nonsensical" to some.
• Related to the choice of the word "nyan" in the name: I studied Japanese in school, along with several other languages, and Japan was the first country I ever visited. I later returned to study there for a summer semester (and loved it, of course).
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My cats even get to join in on the fun by appearing in certain product photos and sharing their thoughts on the items!
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A TRADITIONAL START
I was still doing all traditional art at this point but would later move on to learn more about creating digital art as well.
Examples of my first designs created for products on my Etsy shop:
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EXPERIMENTING IN PRINTFUL
Combining my designs with the patterns and features of Printful – this was especially fun when creating rash guards for swimming.
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FUN FOR THE HOLIDAYS
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COMMISSIONED DESIGNS
I was asked by my cousin-in-law to create a design for a shirt that featured the mascot, a raccoon named Wes, of the school where she worked with a specific quote (Wes is the Best).
This was also the first time I attempted to draw a raccoon
which was a fun challenge.
which was a fun challenge.
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At this time, I was starting to experiment with Adobe Illustrator and used this project as a way to help me learn the program.
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GIVING LOGO DESIGN A TRY
My first project involving logo design was before I had any experience in Adobe Illustrator [you can view the details for that project HERE].
I took this next project as a chance to continue my learning in the Adobe Illustrator program.
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The leader of the teacher’s union that my cousin was a part of also requested that I do a bit of a refresh of their logo design and make two shirt designs.
One shirt design would be a casual t-shirt with the logo covering the front and the other would be a more professional shirt with a smaller version of their logo.
I was asked not to change the actual design too much as the group had selected the design by a vote.
During a break at work, I sketched a rough concept of the potential new look for the logo.
(Using a random notebook I had with me - sketching with a pencil that had an absolutely terrible eraser... Despite the smudgy result, I was still excited enough with how it turned out that I was eager to get started on the digital design.)
Once I had the central concept decided, I tried to match the look of the rest of the original design.
Per their request, I didn’t change their design very much, but I did freshen it up a bit:
I also created a simplified version of their logo for the professional shirt so the embroidery wouldn’t look too busy or messy.
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EXPLORING DIGITAL ART
The logo designs helped start my journey of learning Adobe Illustrator and I continued that learning in my own designs.
This is a simple design I came up with as someone who loves orcas:
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LEARNING THE TOOLS
This design was one I used to learn more of the tools available in Adobe Illustrator – particularly the gradient tool. I used the tool for all of the coloring and shading for this piece and learned a lot in the process.
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EXPERIMENTING FURTHER
This was a more involved digital design. I had sketched the idea out with pencil and used Adobe Illustrator to convert the line art to a vector image. After cleaning it up a bit, I then continued to color and shade the design completely in Illustrator.
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A DIFFERENT KIND OF UNICORN
Design prompt came from my aunt who wanted a more sarcastic/cynical-looking unicorn with the quote:
“It’s all Rainbows & Unicorns around here…”
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THE JOURNEY SO FAR
At the time of writing this, 2022 has come to a close and we have started 2023.
It has been a little more than two years since I started working on my art specifically with the plan of opening my own Etsy shop. If you include the amount of time before then that I started getting back into art during the pandemic, it’s been barely three years altogether.
In just that short amount of time, I feel like my art has changed and improved so much. It has truly been a journey of discovering my art style and continuous learning.
While I was completing my UX Design certification course as well as working on commissions and designs for my Etsy shop, I thought it would be a good time to freshen up my own Etsy profile icon.
The icon I drew was inspired by a photo (which is my Instagram’s profile picture) of my cat, Frauline, that was with me for 18 years.
I jokingly say that she is the one who determined that cat rescue would be one of my missions in life.
She was my best friend throughout my life and was there with me through many of life’s big moments and I miss her everyday.
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Seeing the comparison side-by-side like this, I can really tell just how much my style has developed since I first started out. Having the opportunity to view those changes and improvements in just a couple year’s time is another fun part of the process that I truly enjoy.
Etsy profile icon 2021 vs new icon in 2022:
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THE JOURNEY CONTINUES
As I entered 2023, I began expanding my knowledge and skills to include topics such as User Experience Design, Visual Design and Graphic Design. My continuous learning has taken me away from coming up with new product designs for Etsy as I follow my never-ending curiosity.
By August of 2023, I began learning about video editing - and I fully intend to utilize the creative skills I've developed so far as part of this new adventure. Nothing is ever wasted in the journey of learning. It all just keeps adding to the fun of the experience!
I still enjoy making art and also started learning how to make stained glass crafts in 2024 and intend to expand my learning in other crafts as well. So much to learn, so little time! (as always)
Though I had a lot of fun and learned so many things through my Etsy shop, my heart just isn't in it right now. To be honest, I've also been wanting to go in a different direction and I'm just not sure if that new direction fits in with this shop.
I don't want to force anything, so, I will continue to follow my heart wherever that leads me as I explore new adventures in art and beyond! Perhaps I will revisit my Etsy shop someday or maybe I'll create a different shop with a whole new theme - I'm not sure - will just have to see where life leads me. :)
Thank you for taking the time to read about my personal story. I can’t wait to continue my learning journey and see what wonderful adventures I get to experience next!