stickers — Jdeebella is a Designer, Illustrator, Maker at Soulfulcrane the creative nest in Italy

Hi! How are you?

If you are an Illustrator, an author's, a publisher or an agent, you probably are or are looking at the Bologna Children’s Book Fair. There are left two days and this edition is a big one as always.

So now, why this title?

Well, yesterday April 1st, I would have been at the fair, I spent almost a week on getting ready for the fair. But at least, I didn’t, I wrote about this here, so please get on my Substack (it’s free), to read about the why I couldn’t go.

And I wan’t to add a brief though about it, here too: I’ve been doing things alone all my life, now I’m tired about this fact, 50 years are weighing on me, and I’d like to finally share the good things with someone.

On the other side, I’m working to pursue my dreams. As my friend Rekha Salin told me yesterday, there will be other occasion for me to go at the fair or maybe something bigger is in preparation for us.

here is my beautiful sweater I’m wearing right now, I have a shopper too!

I spent the month of March on working on my stickers. As I said on the last post, I have designed some sheets in the past, and this year I would love to make more of them. Also I’ve got a character that stumbled on my sketchbook and I felt in love with it. I called this cute character Fragolin@ and I’ve designed and want to make more stickers about his activities.

I’ve also made some other sheets about Tea Time, you probably saw the post card on my Instagram as well.

Well, that’s all for now, I am a bit tired in this time of the year, so on April I hope to have a slow down month to recharge my energy. But silently work on some new staff on the backstage.

I hope you’re doing well and enjoying your Spring.

So, till next time, xoxo, G. aka Jdeebella at Soulfulcrane the creative nest in Italy

Hallo dear Reader,

Awww March is finally here!

February was a slow and long month, a quarter of it spent in the hospital, but what’s important is that all is going well and I hope we will came out of this awful and uncomfortable period of our lives.

I did some profound thought about what’s have a meaning for me in my life and at least I can say I’m not different from many of you:

The wellbeing of my family is a priority
Being open to other people without prejudice:
Open mindedness allows us to see beyond our small world and appreciate the diversity and experiences of others. I find it very stimulating to see how the simple act of listening and understanding someone else can pave the way for new friendships, ideas, and collaborations. It's a way to enrich each other and to build a more inclusive and compassionate world. Curiosity and empathy are our best allies.
Working on things that have meaning to me and bring value to the world I live in, and this is my why:
1. Personal Fulfillment: I love to be engaged in activities, projects, or careers that resonate with my core values, passions, and interests. When I work on something meaningful to me, it gives me a sense of purpose and satisfaction.
2. Contribution to Society: Highlighting the importance of contributing positively to the community or world around me. By working on things that bring value to others, we can make a difference, solve problems, or improve the quality of life for people.
I really want to find a balance between personal fulfillment and social contribution, creating a harmonious and impactful way of living.
Traveling and collecting good experiences with my loved ones
For all those above, I will strive to ensure that these aforementioned points become the milestones along my life and work journey.

And now a little recap on what I’ve been to in the past month.

Well, I’ve been working a bit on my portfolio just because it needs to be updated.

I revealed the image I entered to one of the big competitions in January for the WIA presented by TheAOI and the DI

There is another one to be revealed soon as possible, since the jury will decide the finalists in the coming weeks, let's keep fingers crossed and wish me luck!

This year I couldn’t participate to the BKS challenge, this year theme was Peter Pan, and you can spot all the entries at Instagram using the tag #BSKPeterPan. I really love all the illustrator’s colleagues involved in, and also I was really sad I couldn't find the time for it. But when I was in the hospital, I’ve got a moment to sketch Captain Hook for the prompt of day 5. And I loved to imagining him, especially his hair that seems candles from a certain distance and also his fringe jeans.

And at least I’m into a creation of new stickers again! I did some sheets in the past, and here are some new stickers sheets I designed on February. I’m going to refresh some old ones too to use into my planner, could you live without a planner and some embellishment for it? I surely cannot. And thanks to it I can say I could accomplished all my February goals this year.

Well, my plan for March is to get prepared for the Bologna Children’s Book Fair! I really can’t wait to plan some meetings too. For now, I’m planning to stay just for one day, but there is still room to change my mind, especially if I could arrange where to stay for a couple of days maybe with an illustrator friend… will see.

So that’s all for now. I hope you’re all well and happy and I encourage you to try to escape from the bad news and get into life with eyes wide open and a open mind and heart.

Since next time, xoxo, G. aka Jdeebella - at Soulfulcrane, the creative nest in Italy!