Somehow, we’ve already made it to the last Studio Sessions of 2026.
The past few months have felt a little different in the studio. I wrapped up my first illustration commission, got some very lovely licensing news, and spent a surprising amount of time with a sketchbook, a bottle of ink and a pile of watercolours.
I’ve also been thinking about what I want my creative time to look like when there isn’t a deadline attached to it. Not every drawing needs to become a collection, a greeting card or something for my portfolio. Sometimes it can just be something I noticed and felt like drawing.
That idea has quietly become a bit of a theme lately, so this issue is a mix of studio news, behind-the-scenes thoughts, and a peek at what I’ve been making simply because I wanted to.
I’m glad you’re here for one more catch-up before the year wraps up.
A Mother's Day card coming to Trader Joe's
I have a lovely little licensing update to share: one of my Mother’s Day cards has been picked up for Trader Joe’s and will be heading to stores next year.
It still feels a bit surreal knowing that something I drew here in my studio will eventually be sitting on a shelf somewhere for someone to pick up for their mum.
I won’t be able to share much more until it’s out in the world, but keep an eye out around Mother’s Day 2027. I’m very excited to see this one in print.
My first commission, finished
In the last Studio Sessions, I mentioned that I was working on my first illustration commission for a toy catalogue in France.
Well, it’s officially finished.
The final artwork has been delivered, and having the whole project behind me has given me some distance to think about what the experience actually taught me.
The funny thing is that the artwork itself was never really the intimidating part. The newer territory was everything surrounding it: pricing, contracts and usage, revisions, client communication, and eventually delivering final files for a real printed catalogue.
There were definitely moments where I wondered if I was doing everything the way I was “supposed” to. Now that I’m on the other side of it, I think the biggest thing I learned is simply that I can handle it.
I still have plenty to learn, but if another commission landed in my inbox tomorrow, I’d go into it with a lot more confidence than I had the first time. And that feels pretty good.
I can’t show you the artwork quite yet because the catalogue won’t be released until the holiday season, but I should be able to share a proper peek in the first Studio Sessions of 2027.
Wrapping up a year with Art Hustle Insider
I’ve also reached the end of my first year with Art Hustle Insider, the membership I joined last autumn, and I’ve decided not to renew it.
Overall, I’m glad I gave it a try. The monthly trend briefs and prompts gave me structure, pushed me to create collections I probably wouldn’t have made otherwise, and quite a bit of my work this year started with one of those briefs.
But after a year, I also have a much clearer sense of what’s useful for me. A lot of the buyer opportunities and market focus weren’t quite the right fit for my style or where I want to take my work.
Because I’m building this business around a full-time day job, I have to be thoughtful about where those extra hours go. For now, I’d rather put that time into my own ideas, my portfolio, the licensing relationships I’m already building, and honestly, a little more art just for me.
I’m grateful for what the membership gave me, but it feels like the right time to take what I learned and move on.
Brushes down
I only have one new mini collection to share this quarter, and honestly, I’m okay with that.
This one is called Where We Wander, a little travel-inspired collection about weekend escapes and the small details that hold the feeling of a trip: beach chairs, picnic blankets, sandals, passports and that sense that you’re off somewhere.
I kept the artwork light and minimal, with a soft blue-and-yellow palette that gives the whole collection a calm, breezy feel. It was a lovely one to put together, and I think it carries a little bit of that hopeful, away-we-go energy.
My sketchbook has become a colouring book
I was chatting with another artist recently about how hard it can be to make time for personal work around everything else, and afterwards I realised I’d accidentally stumbled into a little routine that’s been working surprisingly well for me.
I’ve been spending more time with ink and watercolour lately, but making a whole sketchbook page in one sitting was becoming a bit of a production.
First I’d decide what to draw, then draw it, wait for the ink to dry, start painting, wait for that to dry, and keep going.
A hairdryer would probably solve at least 20% of this problem, but apparently I’ve decided to solve it in a more cost-effective way.
So instead, I started splitting everything up.
If I have 10 or 20 minutes during the week, I’ll grab my sketchbook and draw something in ink. Lately it’s mostly been little bits of visual journalling: something I ate, a mug on the table, or some completely ordinary thing from the day.
I go straight in with my pen, no pencil sketch underneath and no fixing every wonky line. “Imperfectly perfect” has become a bit of a motto lately.
Then I close the sketchbook and leave the colour for another day.
Just a few of my line art sketches.
Later in the week, or on the weekend, I’ll flip through those drawings and choose whichever one I feel like painting. Because all the deciding and drawing has already happened, I can just settle into the colour.
The funny part is that I’ve accidentally created a backlog of unfinished pages.
But I kind of love it. 💛
My sketchbook has basically turned into my own colouring book. There are always a few drawings waiting whenever I feel like painting, and I don’t make myself work through them in order. Some get colour right away, some sit there for weeks, and a few might stay as ink drawings.
Some of my finished sketchbook pages.
I still catch myself measuring how productive I’ve been by how many finished pieces I’ve added to my licensing portfolio. By that measure, the past couple of months have been pretty quiet.
But that isn’t really the whole story.
I finished a commission. I’ve been drawing in my sketchbook most days. I’ve been experimenting with ink and watercolour and making things that have absolutely no plan attached to them.
And I think I needed that.
I love making artwork that eventually becomes a greeting card, a product or part of a collection. But I also really love drawing a sandwich because I ate it for lunch and thought it looked kind of cute.
There’s something nice about having one place where the artwork doesn’t have to prove anything. It doesn’t have to fit a trend or become something bigger. It can just stay on the page.
So I want to keep making room for that.
And if you’ve been struggling to fit a whole drawing or painting session into your day, maybe splitting things up is worth trying too.
Draw for ten minutes today. Add some colour tomorrow. Finish it next week. Or don’t.
I’ve been really enjoying Katie Moody’s sketchbook work lately. Her pages have been a lovely bit of inspiration while I’ve been spending more time with traditional materials myself, so I wanted to pass her work along in case it sends you down a creative rabbit hole too.
How have you been liking Studio Sessions as a quarterly catch-up?
Does the slower rhythm feel about right, or would you rather hear from me a little more often?
Hit reply, I'd love to hear from you!
Before I disappear into the holiday season, I also wanted to say how glad I am that I moved Studio Sessions to a quarterly schedule this year.
Giving myself a few months between issues has felt much more natural. There’s more to genuinely catch you up on, less pressure to invent something because another month has rolled around, and these emails feel much more like what I always wanted them to be: a proper little catch-up from my corner of the studio.
I occasionally wish I could pop into your inbox sooner when something exciting happens, but overall, quarterly feels like a rhythm I can happily keep.
So thank you for being here this year. Thank you for opening these emails, reading my ramblings, replying, downloading my wallpapers and cheering on the little wins. It really does mean a lot.
I hope you have a happy and healthy Thanksgiving and Christmas, with good food, good company and hopefully a little time to do something simply because you enjoy it.
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Hey there! I’m Tawn, a licensed Canadian surface designer and illustrator bringing feel-good, colourful art to life. My quarterly newsletter, Studio Sessions, is a mix of creative banter, biz insights, free wallpapers, and fun resources. Grab a seat and join the session! 🎬🎨
