As you know I'm currently working on a commission that is going to be a Christmas present for the collectors girlfriend. Normally in the past I'm just concerned about doing my own body of work on a regular basis and meeting the demands of the holidays such as decorating, card writing, and gift buying. Now I'm doing artwork with a deadline, posting three times a week in my blog, and putting out my newsletter every other week. What I've found this month is the anxiety of the holidays are reduced greatly if you do take some of your time and create a plan. I think the lack of one is the greatest reason people feel they have to rush around and from talking to people, they are feeling it.
Don't get me wrong, I'm feeling it but I make it a point to not let overwhelm me. The thing I feel that adds insult to injury is the media and how this time of the year is advertised.
It seems right after Halloween is over the Christmas music starts playing and the stores put 70% off signs on the "Dracula costumes" while other employees are putting up the trees and garland. I tell people when they bring this up to just get out of the house after making up a plan to find good weather days and go to the parks to enjoy the fall foliage. This will show you that it is still fall and the holidays are still about a month away regardless of how many decorated trees Walmart has set up.
Right around the second week of November we then get bombarded with the Thanksgiving advertisements and this is when most people including myself start making plans for that day. I say keep planning and make up a plan for getting all of your Christmas "work" done. Now you can eat all the turkey (and fall asleep) that you want knowing that you have a basic idea of what's going to happen after "Black Friday" hits.
I've found that if your day job is close to a shopping area you can buy a gift here and there on your lunch break. You get in there on a weekday and little to no other people are there so you shop in peace and get to cross a gift off your list, bingo! This way you can concentrate on decorating and card writing on the weekends while most people are running around in the malls.
One final thing that has saved me time is when you receive a gift in a gift bag, save it! If you have two to three bags, that is two to three less gifts that need to be wrapped next year. So to sum it up today, ignore the commercials, and have a plan to make sure that you enjoy this special time of the year. Take care and have a great day!
