January Jones

TGIF My Lovelies!!

Today is my last day as a full-time employee and I'm so excited to spread my wings and soar into this new adventure with all of you. My schedule has been a little nutty lately, finishing full-time projects and lining up things for my new business, BUT I did manage a little me-time last night to paint my #WCW January Jones. I absolutely love January's look. She is my go to reference for hair and makeup always, and when I saw her this week at the Emmy's, I could not resist illustrating her. So here she is, in all her Prabal Gurung and Christian Louboutin glory, with a killer red lip to boot.

What were some of your favorite looks of the evening?! More posts to come!!

Much love,
Meag xx

The Next Step...

Good Evening My Loves, 

I have some BIG news to share with you all and I couldn't be happier. On Monday I officially resigned from my full-time job. I have finally, after half a decade, opened my own illustration and creative service company in New York to pursue my fashion illustration career here full on!!!! I am passport stamped, visa approved, signed, sealed, delivered in NYC and for the first time ON MY OWN TERMS!!!! I finally feel like the sky has opened up and is ushering me into a life I could only dream of for years. I am finally, finally, free.

It saddens me to let go of a company that I truly adored, and I am eternally grateful for everything they have provided me. But any great employer can recognize when their employee needs to go and follow their heart, their passion, their truest calling. Fortunately for me, my employer does.

Life right now is going at the speed of lightening. I have major collaborations planned for New York Fashion Week in a few weeks plus loads of fun commissions that I can't wait to share with you all. AND the best part is, I'm going to have all my time to give to you and my illustrations. I'm going to sign off for now but I assure you that the best is yet to come, for me, for you, for us together.

Sending so much light and love into the world tonight and leaving you with this final thought - "stop asking for permission to do what you love and just f$$cking DO IT."

Much love,
Meag xx

LIVE Fashion Illustrating with Lexicon of Style

Hello My Darlings,

I hope you've had a wonderful week thus far. SO much is changing in my world at the moment and I can't WAIT to reveal the big news with all of you. In the meantime, I'm thrilled to finally share the collaboration I did with my dear friend, the uber talented scarf designer and blogger Alexandra Dieck of Lexicon of Style!! Alex and I met this past Spring while taking that incredibly inspiring Blogging for Fashion Business class at FIT. We had an instant connection, as we are both super passionate entrepreneurs. Shortly thereafter we discovered that not only did we both live in the West Village, but we were also featured in the same Glamour Magazine New York Fashion Week Video from this past February 2014!! Clearly we were destined to become friends...continue reading after the jump!!

Take Me to Hong Kong : MOSCHINO Resort 2015

Hi My Little Love Bugs, 

Happy Sunday evening to you all! I hope you had a refreshing two days off in the sun. I spent the weekend working on commissions and soul cycling my body back into shape. Seriously, I kick started my Saturday with a 45 min session in SOHO at 8:30 AM (in the dark, candles lit, music blaring, instructor headbanging) and biked the remainder of the day through Central Park. I cannot contain my smile when I hop on a bike in New York City. Equal parts terrifying and liberating, it feels so good to be enjoying exercise in the sun. By the time I returned home, I was starting to paint this piece by 10 PM Saturday evening. I'm seriously getting old, no late night NYC dance session for me as of late.

24 Hrs in Toronto - A TWD Guide

Top 5 Things I've Learned While Living in New York

Hello My Loves,

How have you been?! I hope you're all feeling refreshed from your weekend. I for one am over the moon while writing this post because this weekend marks my 5 year anniversary of living in the Empire State, New York City!!!! This is truly a joyous occasion. I feel like I'm honestly celebrating my birthday. For those of you who have followed my journey on this blog the past four years, you know that I'm a Canadian citizen, and that life as a legal alien living in NYC has been anything but a cakewalk. That said, my heart could honestly burst when I think of all the wonderful experiences I have had while fighting for my dream here in the Big Apple. I feel so incredibly fortunate everyday that I have had the opportunity to pursue my greatest passion, fashion illustration, in the city that never sleeps.

Moving to New York undoubtedly changed the course of my life forever. It marked my decision to leave behind comfort and convention for the potential of a life filled with passion, purpose, and creativity. It was proof to myself that I believed in something greater, that I had a burning fire deep down within me that believed I could live the life I so badly dreamed of. This post, however, is really for all of you lovely and loyal Travel Write Draw readers. So many of you write me beautiful emails asking questions about my career as an illustrator and what it's like to live in New York. Well here are my answers out in the open for all of you; a comprehensive Top 5 of what I've learned, and what you can expect as a creative in arguably the greatest city on the planet.

1. Dream big, start small, expect nothing: When I first applied to attend FIT while still living in Toronto, I had a million ideas of what my life would look like when I moved to New York. I expected to be embraced wholeheartedly by the glamourous world of fashion the minute I moved here. I thought I would be given the key to the industry on a silver platter. I imagined I would have my own company straight out of my associates in illustration, making my own illustrated accessories, coffee table books, and absolutely killing it financially. Needless to say I had BIG dreams and even BIGGER expectations and that often led to HUGE disappointment.