23/08/2026
I got a D in GCSE Art.
I’ve seen quite a few posts since Thursday from people feeling negatively about their GCSE results, people calling themselves failures, feeling like they’ve let their parents down, or parents themselves worrying that their children’s results mean they won’t do well in life.
And honestly, it made me think about my own results.
I got a D in Art.
I actually loved art at school and was getting A*’s in the actual art but I failed the coursework side of things and ended up with a D.
At 16, that grade felt like it said something about my ability.
Looking back now, I realise it really didn’t.
Because since then, I’ve gone on to become a qualified makeup artist, start my own face painting business, paint windows, practise tattooing, create artwork in all sorts of different ways and constantly teach myself new creative skills.
I still pick up a paintbrush and create things all the time and I certainly wouldn’t consider myself a failure at art now 😅
If anything, I think that D taught me something important:
Being bad at something at 16 doesn’t mean you’ll always be bad at it and getting a grade you’re disappointed with doesn’t mean you’re a failure.
GCSEs are one moment in your life, they’re a measurement of how you performed in a particular set of exams and coursework, at a particular age, in a particular environment.
They don’t measure your creativity.
They don’t measure your determination.
They don’t measure how much you can learn.
And they definitely don’t predict everything you’re capable of doing with the rest of your life.
So if you’ve received results today that you’re disappointed with, whether they’re yours or your child’s, please try not to let that disappointment turn into “I’m not good enough” or “they’ll never amount to anything.”
You haven’t failed at life because you got a grade you didn’t want.
You’re 16. You’re not a finished product. ❤️
And honestly, if you had told the 16-year-old me who got a D in Art that one day I’d be a qualified makeup artist, running my own creative business, painting faces and windows and all the other bits in between.
I think she’d have been pretty surprised 💅🏻
Don’t let one piece of paper convince you that it knows your future ✨
