Hello, I'm Bonny Snowdon, ex-corporate person and mother turned successful artist entrepreneur. It wasn't that long ago though that I lacked the confidence, vision, and support network to focus on growing my dream business. Fast forward past many life curve balls, waves of self-doubt, and so many lessons learned, and you'll see Ignite my thriving online color pencil artist community, a community that changes members' lives for the better and gives me freedom to live abundantly whilst doing what I love and spending quality time with my beloved family and dogs,
all whilst creating my best artwork with coloured pencils and mentoring others to do the same. But this life wasn't always how it was for me. It used to only exist in my imagination. I've created the, it's a Bonny old life podcast to help increase people's confidence, share mine and my community's experience, and hope through fascinating personal stories, champion the other amazing humans in my personal, professional, and membership community and create another channel through which I can support others to realize their dreams. If you're a passionate Coloured pencil artist or an aspiring one who's looking to create their best work and a joyful life you love, you're in the right place. Grab a cuppa and a custard cream. Let's get cracking.
Well, hello everybody. This week I want to indulge myself a little bit and talk about my Coloured Pencil membership, Ignite, which is part of my Academy. And of course, the reason I'm talking about this is because the Academy is inviting new members to join from the 3rd of April.
The Academy was born out of a need to create a teaching space that had great resources, a user-friendly navigation system, an excellent customer service. Something sadly that I wasn't getting from using Patreon. Patreon was a fabulous leap into teaching online for me, but the frustration with using the single scroll feed and the poor customer service made me really want to create something of my own.
So I created the Academy. So much effort, thinking, testing, went into creating my online membership, making sure that the navigation worked and was user friendly, was very high up on the list of outcomes that I wanted. I launched the Academy in September, 2021, and honestly, I haven't looked back.
I can now teach how I want to teach. An amazing community has grown and is thriving, and my students are developing, making money from their art, drawing their grandchildren, creating cars and going to art fairs, and even having their art displayed in galleries. This is what it's all about, helping people do the things they have dreamt about, giving them the skills, the nudge in the right direction, and allowing them to take the leap of faith just like I did.
So why am I in a place of authority to help people do this? Well, it's because I did it. It I was like my students are now. I wanted to draw. I had a full-time job, I had commitments, and I share everything I've done to help me get where I am so that my students can do the same if they wish. I invest in in myself. I buy courses, I go on webinars. I seek out amazing coaches, and what I learn I pass on to my students. That's how it should be. We learn, we pass on, and the ethos of the Academy is very much about sharing knowledge openly.
So what can you expect from the Academy when you join? Firstly, you'll get a huge welcome look out for emails, with videos, giving you your initial instructions as to where to start. I have a brilliant little quiz that will help you decide where to begin and where to focus your energy. Initially, you'll get an invite to join our Facebook group,
which is incredibly supportive and full of members waiting to greet you and welcome you. It really is a big extended family. You'll be given all the information you need to help get your Coloured pencil journey started, including some new technology we're testing out. That means all your questions will be answered promptly. If you have any.
I would always suggest starting with the Coloured Pencil Foundation's course, a fab way of getting to know your pencils and surfaces and jumping in with some relatively simple tutorials culminating in the German Shepherd. I've seen so many of my students work through and create this gorgeous dog and be so incredibly proud of what they've done.
Once you finish the course, or of course if you fancy one of the other tutorials, you have access to all my back catalog of tutorials in the video hub, an amazing platform that allows you to search through the videos using words or phrases. It's beautifully laid out in playlists, so very easy to use, as well as the tutorials. We also have all of the live session recordings. These are so, so useful. The confidence sessions, creating a mood board, learning about how to create more positive mindset, the business drop-ins,
learning more about social media and creating a mailing list down to writing content and using your personal voice to attract followers. I hold regular live streams during the month. Every Tuesday is my famous art club. We draw a subject together, have a bit of a chat, learn new techniques and ask questions. It's a brilliant opportunity to join like-minded people in a fun session.
One of the many brilliant things about the Academy is that I critique up to a hundred pieces of work each month, a lot of work for me, but something I love to do is it really does help people develop. I know that having my work critiqued by a more experienced artist was incredibly helpful for my development, and that's why I'm so passionate about bringing that to the membership.
I've always been a hands-on person, so I'm active in the groups, but I have the most amazing team around me. I choose people who compliment me and who have the skills that I don't have, and that's why it works so well. I'm always tweaking things and introducing new things.
This year we launched the members exhibition, which will be renewed every few months, giving members the opportunity to have their work exhibited online with all their info links to their social media, and also the opportunity to sell their piece. I have a lot of traffic through my website, so this is a really great feature for Academy members. This year, I'm bringing in some guest speakers as well, people who have helped me. I have asked to come in and run some of my business and confidence sessions so that you can get firsthand the amazing information I was given.
This is a massive opportunity for members as these consultants command a big fee, and I'm absorbing those fees to bring you incredible information. We're starting in April with my first business mentor, the fabulous man who helped me get started, and I'm in talks with an incredible coach to create an amazing opportunity for those really wanting help with their mindset and confidence.
So if you are wanting the full package, the drawing, the help, the support, an amazing community, and my knowledge from starting with colouring books in 2016 to building a 1 million pound business in seven years, then come and join me. I will share everything I know. I'm accessible and I'm incredibly passionate about helping others reach their dreams.
I really hope you enjoyed listening to this episode of my It's A Bonny Old Life podcast. If you did, I'd be so grateful to you for emailing me or texting a link to the show or sharing it on social media with those you know who might like it too.
My mission with this podcast is all about sharing mine and my community's experience and hope by telling your fascinating personal stories, championing the other amazing humans in my personal, professional, and membership community,and to create another channel through which I can support you to realize your coloured pencil and life dreams.
If you haven't done so yet, please help me on my mission to spread positivity and joy throughout the Coloured Pencil world by following me on my socials at Bonny Snowdon Academy or by getting on my list at Bonnysnowdonacademy.com. And remember, I truly believe if I can live the life of my dreams doing what I love, then you can too. We just need to keep championing and supporting each other along the way in order to make it happen. Till next time,
