2016

2015 was full of change, love and adventure. I kicked the year off by buying a one way ticket to Argentina and left in March.  I traveled all over South America and met my boyfriend on the way. I got to explore Peru with my family and had the pleasure of working with some amazing clients on some of my favorite projects to date and even got featured on Career Contessa! I am so excited for what this new year has in store and already have some big plans and new destinations. 

I’m a big believer in writing your goals down and sharing them with others.  When you put your goals out to the universe they seem to manifest. I know that sounds cheesy, but it’s worked for me so far! :) Also, sharing your goals and telling other people what you have planned and would like to accomplish helps hold you accountable. So I’ve decided to share my professional and personal goals for 2016 with you here. I hope you help hold me to them!

Professional Goals:

Blend my love for art and travel - My two greatest passions in life are art and travel, however they aren’t necessarily connected. My art is mostly people and fashion inspired and doesn’t really reflect my travels and I haven’t done much traveling for art sake. This year I would like to change that and figure out a way to merge the two. I’m not sure what this will look like so stay tuned for lots of experimenting!

Work a live-illustration event - I would love to meet all of you and paint you in person! What a better way to do that than to team up with one of my favorite brands or companies for a live-illustration event?! 

See my work in print - This year one of my goals is to collaborate with and illustrate for more brands, companies and magazines. This might be a long shot but I would love to see one of my illustrations featured in a major publication this year. A girl can dream right?!

Wholesale my prints and offer more products - Last year I began selling phone cases featuring my artwork, and this year I’m eager to see my artwork on more products. I already have a few projects in the works for the new year that I’m so excited about sharing with you! I’m also looking forward to teaming up with a few shops and boutiques and have my prints available in store! If you’re a online or brick and mortar store interested in carrying Lauren Taylor Creates prints email me at laurentaylorcreates@gmail.com

Personal Goals:

Run a Triathlon - I’ve swam 1.6 miles in an open ocean race, biked 40 miles down Death Road in Bolivia, however I can’t run a mile.  This year I’m whooping my booty into shape and pushing my physical limits. I’ve signed up for the Tritonman Triathlon in San Diego in February. I’ll be doing the race with my best friend who is a personal trainer in Chicago. While I can’t train with her in person since we are in different states she has put together a workout routine to get me ready!

Dive Master Certification - I got Open Water certified about three years ago while living in Hawaii and absolutely fell in love with diving. I immediately continued my education and got Advanced and the Rescue certified.  While I don’t plan on becoming a scuba Instructor or working as a Divemaster, I think it would be an amazing experience and excuse to log a ton of dives. 

Learn Photoshop - This one is a mix of professional and personal goal. I’m proficient in Photoshop and I’m able to do basic editing however anything beyond that totally confuses me. If any of you have any recommendations on how to learn (online class, workshop, etc.) I would love to hear from you!

That is what I’m working on! What are your goals for this year?