The Super Adventures of Ben and Noah I am really proud of the work my children are doing and how they are using their art to touch the lives of so many others.
Since I have been talking a lot about this past CHA in Chicago, I was reminded of the fact that I have yet to share the antics that went on in Anaheim at the Winter CHA. Carol Duvall hosted an amazing Unscripted Live event where many artists that were on her DVD as well as other in the industry came together to have a "celebrity" craft off....PageSage just recently released the footage so you can see here yourself what happened in all it's Unscripted Glory....enjoy. Oh BTW, my wrist is fine now.
Names are really important....I remember when I sat down with my husband and we tried to figure out what we would name our first child (we did this with all of our kids for those who are curious). A couple of the criteria we had listed were things like, "Will it look good on a college application?", "Will it look good on a resume?" "Will it look good on that Nobel Peace Prize or Presidential Stationary...?" You get the point. So imagine my surprise when I saw this article pop up....Talula Does The Hula In Hawaii.... what the heck were this poor child's parents thinking? I found this picture of my son at his Kindergarten graduation that made me think about how thankful I was that he has a strong name (despite his displeasure about leaving his favorite teacher on the planet behind....this picture was taken the moment he realized that he would have a different teacher in First Grade). His name had such a cool ring to it when they called it out and he walked across that stage... I know, I am a total Mom....
The weird thing is, this really does apply to art and the business of it in a round about way. The name you chose for your business matters. The name you decide to put on your licensed materials matters. You need a name that you can live with and, in the event that you decide to sell your business, without (because the new owners can do whatever they want with it...think about that for a second, what if your real name is all over what was just bought and the new owners could care less about it.... would that bother you?) The other thing is that, you need to know what others think of when they hear your business name or signature collection. Perception is everything and words that invoke less that savory attributes in folk's minds are not the words you want for your business name or products. There really is a lot in a name...just something to think about.
I love the hustle and bustle after CHA. I get so many interesting phone calls. Oftentimes, I get phone calls from folks who have had that muse of their tickled and a fire lit under their tails to create or do something amazing. Conventions of that magnitude do tend to plant seeds in people's heads and after a day or two, they start to marinate on how they plan to take over the world...personally I love that part. I love hearing the excitement in people's voices when they are truly passionate and inspired about making the next best thing...whatever that thing happens to be. In my world it has always been an honor to be a sounding board for so many folks.... Then there are the calls from people who for the first time, see something they made or designed without their name under it, on display. Ouch.
I had a student of mine call me up today heartbroken that one of her designs was, for all practical purposes, on display with someone else's name on it. She was heartbroken because it was a piece she had sent into a company for a contest that was not selected yet, there it was, a few pictures changed and one piece of patterned paper exchanged out for another. I could feel her pain and understood why she was so hurt. Be wary of contests that do not value your submission as an artist; who do not pay you for your work, your time or your ideas. These companies will continue to prey on folks for as long as people are willing to discount their time and creativity by giving it away for free. It was a really hard lesson for this new to the industry designer but, one thankfully, she will never forget.
This is a picture I took in my garden. Notice the spider there lurking in plain view of the unsuspecting victim (poor honeybee) carefully disguised. Just because the flowers and outside veneer are beautiful, it does not mean that danger is not lurking in the fine print somewhere in those contest rules my friends. We know what is in it for the company, what is truly in it for you?
I am hoping that my blog will finally be all back to normal....
CHA was a weird thing for me this go around. I went home with a trophy and a whole new mission and perspective on many things. So, the Trophy was for the Designer Press Kit Award.... Below is the video of how it came together and links to the fake sites ( CCRAFTA and Crafting A Better Mousetrap) for all to see.... I will most likely take the fake sites down in a few months unless folks want them up. This press kit was less about me than it was for my concern for those who teach, those who attend classes and buy stuff, those who sell stuff in their local stores and the manufacturers who create things for the first 3 groups of folks.... I was really proud how it turned out and the amazing response it has gotten since then.
Our industry is at a crossroads of sorts; one of those redefining moments people who keep track of history like to refer to after the fact except, we are right here in the smack dab middle of it. It is no secret that we are in a recession. The numbers at CHA were down significantly from previous years and spending well, it all directly correlates now doesn't it? The place was filled with a lot more Eeyores than Tiggers and a heavy sense of "okay, what do I have to fall back on if this doesn't work" was on the faces and hinted in the tones in which people spoke. I guess my question is, do you just give up and keel over or, is it worth fighting for?
Let me tell you folks, from the beginning of time people have always wanted to make their mark on the timeline of history....always. It doesn't change. People are crazy amazing. They are unique, they are special, they have something to say and the desire to express it in whatever way they can. I spoke with a gentleman whom I had just met (a really amazing famous guy with a cool program on television and a heart the size of frickin' Texas) on the phone for a long time about his thoughts on the industry. He was right on in so many ways. He said the same thing. Crafting things is a human expression...and the minute we try to control it (or bottle it up and sell it back to the consumer) it could very well blow up in our collective faces....His thought was, don't label folks who make stuff...don't call them scrappers, stampers, arty, indie or any other moniker....and try to fit them in a box. Give them the tools and pieces, and they'll make stuff.....so true. Recessions are the BEST time to be creative and, the innovation that occurs when people are forced to think of alternatives to their normal whatever it is, *IS* that cool.
Like I said on my Press Kit, I am looking to make a difference, not just in our industry, but in the lives of those who drive the industry in the first place. I think, as I always have, that it starts with equipping and, most importantly, thinking about the consumer and their best interest first. If you take someone aside and explain to them the stuff gel medium DOES, they in turn are going to tell you not only what they are going to do with it but, ask all sorts of questions that could very well lead to new undiscovered uses for the stuff....art has always been organic and a part of a process; it's like food, when food is straight from the garden without all the processing and additives, it not only tastes better, it is for better for you.
We are back here in Michigan to finish up last minute CHA stuff before heading back to Chicago later tonight (yes, it is a 5 1/2 hour drive from here and yes, we got in at 3:30 this morning and will most likely arrive back in Chicago sometime after 3 in the morning their time.....miserable driving folks, miserable.) I am planning to pull an all-nighter to get the last things finished to be unveiled Saturday Morning and am grateful that my Mom is willing to be co-pilot on this adventure...... Here's a look at Navy Pier as we left Chicago around 9:00 PM last night and yes, it looks like CHA will be sporting some really wicked cool trinkets in a little over an hour when it opens..... I can't wait to walk the floor.
Well, it is that time of year again.... time to divulge all these lovely little secrets...
I am off on my way to CHA with 200 press kits signed, sealed, and numbered for the press room. I am dedicating these kits to all the folks who continue to invest in my career by taking my classes and supporting the books and DVDs I have been working on as of late.
As some of you may or may not know, Stamping Today Studio has always been the teaching arm of my business. I never expected that my career would take the turns that it has thus far. After writing the book (Repurposed) and finishing up filming on the Functional Art DVD in May, I had a nasty bout of pneumonia that nearly did me in. I think most folks who have young children can appreciate the thinking that occurs when you are forced to wonder what would happen if you were suddenly out of the picture...not pretty.
At any rate, because my business involves a lot of licensing now, things that involve royalties and deferred payments and such, I needed to create a company that would be able to provide for my family in the event that I could not. I realized too, that there are a huge number of fantastic and insanely talented artists out there that have amazing art that they too want to be on various things as well....so I created Sarah-n-dipitous Designs LLC It is a licensing and design company and from here on out, the various things I design specifically for licensing will go through this company and will be under the Sarah-n-dipitous brand. I really wanted to make sure that when I teach, that there is no conflict of interest and that I continue to have my student's best interest in mind. When folks invest in my classes they can expect technique, not an infomercial.
I hope you get a chance to check out the faux websites I designed specifically for the press kit as well... (CCRAFTA and Crafting A Better Mousetrap) I will be adding a video after CHA that shows how the press kit came together as well. See you at CHA!
Many folks ask me how I can possible get all the things I do completed...it is easy, I have hired thugs living under the same roof who have a vested interest in the success of my business.... Seriously, if it were not for my husband and children actively playing a role in my business, I would not be able to do the things I do.
This week my husband took his vacation days to stay home and help me prepare for CHA. The press kit I designed is very time consuming and involves a number of pieces that have to be measured, die cut, scored and folded just right or they do not come together. The kids have all the literature that goes inside sorted and arranged so that they can be put together quickly. Right now, my children are all suffering from extremely high fevers and just having my husband home to help me take care of them while we get everything done is a huge blessing.
While I was thinking up this post, my son took a picture of the snakes sun bathing in our front bushes. He said, "Look Mom, they get warmed up better when there is more of them." How true it is. The more you have working together towards the same common goal, the easier it is. I know many folks who do not have spouses or family members who believe in their work or even in what they are trying to accomplish through their crafting (whether it is self-edification or monetary). The important thing is to surround yourself with folks who have similar ambitions and who will spur you on to do great things.
I caught myself doing something I hate seeing other folks do while demoing and, I had to go back and correct myself as to not lead folks astray.... I had folded my card over and the edges did not line up because I had not taken the time to measure a second time before cutting. Now, in the scope of all eternity, the miscalculation was really minor and it wasn't *that* big of a deal. Seriously, I do not think many folks even cared at that point but, in an instant I thought to myself, what if I got a sample from one of these folks across my desk in an editorial room....would I allow it to go on the cover of my magazine? At that moment it became less of an anal perfectionist issue as it was a pride in workmanship issue. I think folks who stand in front of me while I demo expect that what I show them will indeed look like the samples there displayed on the boards. They need to feel that they can go home and be confident that I showed them something they themselves can reproduce on their own. It is ALWAYS easier to say, "well, sometimes that happens" when things go wonky than to take the time to go back and figure out what went wrong. I figure it this way, if you are going through the trouble of making it in the first place, you want to give it your best shot and make it look the most polished and professional as you can. As instructors we owe it to those watching us to make sure they get our best work as well.
I love reading How Magazine and I always seem to find some nugget in the commentary that gets me wondering about what it is we are doing and where we are going not only as an industry, but as a culture and as the human race. There was an article about returning back to handmade that caught my eye that spoke of what I had dealt with a few days prior perfectly.
I had taught a class and had a student tell me that they did not need to bother to learn to draw because everything is on the computer and that computer graphics are the way of the future.... I reminded him about the Apollo 8 mission when all the computers failed and the men aboard actually had to know how all those computers worked and do the calculations sans technology to get back home....
I am seeing a growing trend of people who are looking for things that are less manufactured and more unique and a group of up and coming kids that do not know how to, for lack of a better term, do it the old fashioned way without technology or clip art and stock photos to help them. This is a rude awakening of sorts. We have made everything so mechanical that the human element is almost completely stripped out of the equation. Our products and materials are comprised of a bunch of manufactured layers as opposed to having a foundation of something original.
My Grandmother gave me this hand stitched piece of linen that is literally hundreds of years old. She had mounted it on a piece of printed fabric from the local craft store using a sewing machine. I looked at it hanging on my wall and thought how easy it was to blend the handiwork of the old and combine it with the new to get a complete finished piece. The only caveat is, one really needs to know and understand the primitive form of sewing before they can take advantage of the technology that makes it easier (the sewing machine) to blend the two or else both pieces could get ruined in the process....
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