This week I am busy painting artwork for our 2023 Christmas card range.
“Why so far ahead?” I hear you ask. Well, I don’t want to paint Christmas art out of context or just to make Christmas cards. Art has always been a way to journal or express something relevant to me at the time, and I don’t want to “commercialise” my art. This year’s 2022 Christmas range was artwork I painted the year before. And as I’m in a very Christmassy mood this week and things are winding down in the world beyond my front door, the snow is starting to fall and the days are very dark, it’s definitely time to express my love of all things Christmas.
Having moved to the UK from hot, bright Australian Christmasses, I consider myself a new convert to a love of Christmas. Suddenly all the things that didn’t quite fit back home in Australia now make sense and make the world a happier place: Christmas lights when the days are dark and very short; mulled wine to warm you; mince pies for long, warming energy; warming Christmas spices of cinnamon, ginger, and cloves; greenery brought into the house when the trees are winter-bare outside; bringing in bright colours in the form of tree decorations, or woolly-coated felt mice, or Christmas villages lit up in the snow; a hot roasted meal and brandy-soaked fruit-dense winter puddings … Suddenly it all just seems to have its proper place.
In terms of artwork, I’m not a traditional-Christmas-colours person. Maybe it’s the legacy of an Australian Christmas in me. I find the vivid reds paired with greens quite jarring. I love Christmas cards and art and colours that are unusual in some way. And I especially love vintage, and folksy, and naive art, and things with a folk tale or fairytale quality. So that’s what I paint and create.
Here’s an example of the kind of unusual thing I love. It’s a piece of scandi-inspired art I painted on Sunday. Consider it a sneak peek at what will be coming to our 2023 range of Christmas cards:
Happy Christmas for 2022.
Thank you to everyone who reads these, even if you just dip in and out. And thank you to everyone who supported our shop in 2022, whether you purchased something or passed on the word about us. As a small and very new business, we depend on all of you wonderful people to get the momentum going. Thank you to those of you who wished us well and offered lots of lovely encouragement and praise for our website and products. Here’s to all the possibilities and adventures of 2023. – Lisa & Naomi
About the Author: Lisa Saul
