Hello and welcome to Slowpoke.
Hi. I’m Carson Ellis and Slowpoke is my newsletter. I’m an illustrator, picture book author and enthusiast, gardener, mom, musician’s wife, historic farmstead steward, traditional crafts novice, and nature fanatic.
Slowpoke is my newsletter. It’s always evolving, but here are some things you may find in your inbox if you subscribe:
Illustration sketches and WIPs
Comics
Painting and drawing tutorials
Picture book recommendations
Quilting / embroidery / knitting / woodcarving
Farm reports
Q&A
Illustrated poems
Travelogues
You can read Slowpoke in the format of your choice: as a newsletter in your inbox, on the webpage where it will resemble a blog, or on the Substack app.
Yes, it’s free to subscribe and free subscriptions will have access to most posts. Some video tutorials, art education, and process stuff will be for paid subscribers only. If you do choose to become a paid subscriber you’ll have my earnest gratitude, the satisfaction of knowing that you’re supporting my work, and some extra newsletters. You’ll also get a heads up about posters, prints, etc. that may sell out and an opportunity to order them before they do.
The short answer is that I am a slowpoke. I move slowly and I work slowly. On top of that, I’m a perfectionist. Everything I do takes forever. In general, I try to celebrate slowness and I will tend to do that here. But my relationship to working slowly and to being a perfectionist is, of course, complicated.
One slow thing that I love is an art task that is both creative and repetitive. Hand-quilting is like this. So is whittling. Repetition in art is soothing. It settles me down.
In the spirit of this, and of the Slowpoke ethos of spending way too long on things, I handmade 100 wearable buttons for people who subscribe at the Founding Member level. Each one is different and comes with a risograph-printed thank you card while supplies last.
Anyway, that’s the deal with Slowpoke. I hope you like the sound of it. Tell your friends!
