What I Wish I'd Known When I started Selling my Artwork Online 5 years ago.

I decided to take a big risk and started selling handmade cards and some bits of jewellery on Esty almost five years ago, after two good friends encouraged me to do it. I had never even heard of Etsy (I'm sorry, what-sy?), and up until then I had always been able to draw and make some nice cards, but really, sell them?? For real? Maybe...

I knew nothing about 'selling on-line' and I didn't know anyone who did this, having been an English teacher for 10 years.

So, here are a few things I wish I had known during my 'stab-in-the-dark' journey on the online selling train to 'Learn-the-Hard-Way'.

1. Make sure your work is top-drawer and unique.

When I first set up my online store, I felt pressured to fill it up! The more I have, the more chance of a sale, I thought. So as well as my lovely hand drawn cards of hares and moons and red foxes, I whacked up some bits and pieces of jewellery I'd made at a local class.

It looked wrong. It just looked like a shop that didn't know what it was. The bracelets and earrings were cute, but compared to other sellers' bracelets and earrings, they looked amateur. My drawings, however, looked really good, and so after a while (it takes me a while to learn), I removed the jewellery listings, and continued to make quirky little illustrated cards. I remember my first sale was to a lady in the States, and I did a very happy, running-on-the-spot dance in my kitchen.

2. Take good, clear photos of your products in natural light if possible.

So, my product photos in the early days were horrifically bad!! My shop name then had the word 'zebra' in it, so I thought I was being all artsy and clever by posing my jewellery and cards on a 'zebra print throw'!!! I am not even joking. I wish I was. I thought, yeah, this is so cool, and I've got a theme here. It hadn't occurred to me that, A: It looks stupid, and B: no-one cares what your shop name is when faced with 1000s of results in a search. They want to see products, not weird staged sets.

It did take me a while to accept that the plain and simple backgrounds actually do look better, and show off the product nicely. It's fine to add props for scale, say, maybe a potted succulent, a few scattered buttons, or a nice pen, but no dodgy blankets with animal print!

3. Know your craft, and be prepared to invest in it.

After about a year of tweaking, listing and learning, I decided to take my skill a step further, and I signed up to an illustration class, taught by a professional.

I have always had a natural talent for drawing, and I had taken part in art classes before, but they were always easy going 'do what you want, and I'll give some advice if needed' classes. But the illustration classes were focused. I learned about paper 'gsm' and what 'cold pressed' paper is. I learned that there are different types of pens; there are various ways of using line. I learned how to apply washes of colour; how to draw quickly; how to use tools like drawing gum. And I had to draw things I had previously avoided like doors and buildings.

I went back to the classes three more times, and during lock-down, I took part in some of the online challenges.

Signing up to, and paying for professional guidance has taken my work further than it ever could have before, and now I can charge proper prices for my art, because it's skilled, unique, and using high quality papers and tools makes a huge difference to the outcome. I have made a good income from commissions and prints, and sometimes I even have to turn down work because I'm too busy.

But, do not expect to make a fortune from your craft!

Thankfully, I really didn't expect to make a fortune, but I certainly didn't expect the first few years to be such a slog, and for very little financial reward.

At first, I really just drew animals, and I produced artwork of creatures I liked: guinea pigs, rats, hamsters, birds...that sort of thing, and the guinea pig items did sell well, but I knew I had to broaden my range. The illustration classes pushed and inspired me into doing pets, buildings, landmarks, and from there I just kept practising and drawing, painting and printing new places and locations. My pet portraits took off locally, to the point where I found I had done 30 in the run up to Christmas. It was actually too much. I even personally delivered most of the paintings, as I couldn't face people calling to my door at random times during the week. I was just too tired, and too rushed, so I thought, at least I can 'post and run'.

To supplement my income, I was also tutoring online, and so I became frazzled, but I couldn't seem to say no.

And so, here is my final point:

Don't let it become a chore! I did. It just became crazy, and even though time and again I had asked people to book commissions before October, people were coming to me in the first week of December, asking for a portrait of 'Bella' for their mum, and I didn't want to let them down. I refused to do any more commissions for 3 months after Christmas, as I just hated them, and I was burnt out. I will not be doing that again this year. It's really not worth it. I love drawing and painting so much, but I risked destroying it through not being able to set clear boundaries.

My advice is, do it because you love it, and do not take on work because you are afraid to disappoint someone. They'll find someone else to do it, anyway, but at least you'll still love your craft.

Also, keep your expectations low, and your standards high. Pack things properly. Research postage fees. Keep your customer service impeccable with a pleasant tone if things go wrong, and a simple hand written 'thank you note' really makes a difference. But, most of all, have fun!