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Be your best so people can recognize themselves in your work

Published: 05/06/2013

Today’s video is short and deep! ha! I believe that if we as creatives can bring the very best out in ourselves that we can help people express themselves. Did you follow that? I genuinely believe people desire to be heard and seen. One way that they do this is through perosnal expression. That may come in the form of how they dress themselves, what they read, the music they listen to or in how they decorate their homes. I think that people are tried of being lumped into categories for the benefit of being marketed to by big brands. This isn’t to say some brands aren’t doing a good job understanding their customers uniqueness but I would say a lot of large brands are missing the boat.

This is where you as a creative person have the most opportunity. The time is ripe for you to excel in this climate. This is also why it is very important that you don’t turn your own creative journey on auto pilot! Everyone says that you need your own look, good branding and good marketing but no one is telling you HOW to get it. We are going to start with YOU (fun!) and break it down in to real life take aways. You are not meant to be like or look like everyone else. You were made a unique person, right?! It will be approximately 6 weeks long and I am excited. I have great guests coming to help and I have some interesting strategies on what I think an online course should look like, so stayed tuned!

Smart Creative Style will cover in depth marketing and brand positioning. I also do Clarity Coaching for those of you who want specific help with things you may not be clear on in your business, sometimes a girl needs and little one one time. Smart Creative Dreaming is a fun downloadable course that delivers what I call “foundation ideas” as you begin your journey. It contains some practical advice as well as what worked for me on my own journey.

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Who and What I am into this week: Looking inside your spaces to find your creative style

Published: 05/03/2013

The winners of the book, Lessons from Madam Chic are Heather Boissonneau and Martha Shouse! Congratulations Ladies! Contact me if I don’t have your correct email!

As I have journeyed down the path to discovering my style and aesthetic, one exercise that I recently did in my own home surprised me. On a bright sunny Saturday morning while still wearing my pj’s I walked around my house with my camera in hand. I cannot for the life of me now remember why I had my camera out but what I do know is that I was relaxed, calm and and content. I gave myself a casual assignment to take pictures of my favorite vignettes, textures and colors in my own home. I wandered room to room snapping only the things I loved even if it did not make sense to me intellectually. I had purchased a small sparkly bag months ago but couldn’t bring myself to put it away, I always my jewelry hanger etc.

What I realized when I downloaded the photos is that I had not taken one picture in my studio/office space. It is not because I didn’t enter this space with my camera. It was because I couldn’t find anything about it I absolutely loved. So I forced myself to take pictures of my office and I was really surprised. Laying it all out before me in the form of photography made it clear that my work space was not a reflection of what I really love.

This is only one of the investigative exercises that I have been trying out as a part of the course, I am putting together. I was a little surprised it was so clear. I remembered having to paint my office very quickly before new furniture came in. I gave myself about 10 minutes to pick a new paint color. As soon as I rolled the color on I knew it wasn’t right but I moved forward. When I started doing video I thought I needed bright colors to liven up the background. The only other bright color in my home are in the kitchen (where my brights happily belong.)

Not bad but not necessarily me.

Now I can plan an office re do slowly and more deliberately. I think I will wait until I finish more exercises that I am designing for this course first!

I would suggest you trying this exercise out yourself. It can be interesting to see what you have surrounded yourself with. It may prompt you to have a gargae sale, haha! It may give you great pleasure as well as decorating definition!

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Mary Beth Freet from Pink Light Studio

Published: 05/01/2013

Oh my gosh! Fan of art licensing? You need to watch this! Trying to figure out how to make it in that biz? You need to watch this! Need to motivation to start a new business but are afraid you don’t “know” enough to get started? You need to watch this! Mary Beth Freet from Pink Light Studio is a woman who just went for it and made a business for herself AND for other artists as well. You know I like ALL creative women and you know artists are near and dear to my heart so I get pretty detailed in this ~~grilling~~ (oops!) interview. Thank you, Mary Beth, for going deep with me on this subject!

The reality is that art licensing is good for some artists and not the best for other artists. It is not one stop shopping for your career and I never want to pretend like it is some magic pill BUT I do believe society as a whole is responding to good art and design on products. It is our job collectively as creatives to make sure we get fairly compensated. Part of that journey is to become educated and it was refreshing to hear that people helped Mary Beth when she was starting out. I love seeing generosity at work.

Now Mary Beth is moving and grooving in this industry. I get the impression, Mary Beth Freet would move and groove in ANY industry. She is not afraid to learn, work hard and put herself and the artist she represents out in front. If you are attending Surtex stop by booth 417, the Pink Light Studio Booth and say hello! In the meantime, check out their new website. Nice job!

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Do you ask?

Published: 04/29/2013

I LOVE your answers to the question on Jennifer L. Scott’s interview. The giveaway will close Wed, May 1st. The good news is I have received 2 books to giveaway!

In this 3 minute “pre coffee” video I make a referral and ask for a referral. When was the last time you did that? I know I haven’t done the asking part in some time. I was taking the Be a successful artist class put together by Alma Loveland and Melanie Burk at Nicole’s Classes and I wanted to share how much I liked it. Completely enjoyable class, terrific if you are starting out. Perfect for freelancers. Their combined wisdom will really encourage you and set you on the right path. A lot of you may not necessarily be setting pricing with clients etc or even be freelancing BUT I recommend this anyway because I think their approach in the running their own businesses is a good one.

I have interviewed both of these ladies and they are full of good info.

You watch Alma’s interview here.

You can watch Melanies’ here.

You can also check out the Watercolor class 101 I teach over at Nicole’s classes. The next session starts May 6th. If you know anyone who might like to take either of these courses, pass it along! See? I am asking…….

What have you actually “asked” for lately?

Who and What I am into this week: How art and story mingle

Published: 04/26/2013

Mary Ann Wakeley

This week I took a pause to embrace some nice fine art. In my head I am redecorating my studio and I would like to focus on some fresh pastels that excite me. I like all of Mary Ann’s work. Her sense of color speaks to me. All these paintings have the potential of being starting points for me! I found them at Saatchi Online. If you have not heard of this website and you are interested in fine art, I would encourage you to check it out.

Here is the about us info: “Launched in 2006 by London’s renowned Saatchi Gallery, Saatchi Online aims to continue the gallery’s legacy of promoting new, contemporary talent and bringing great art to a wide audience.Our vision has always been to empower sustainable careers. We enable artists to sell their originals as well as make them available as prints while giving them access to an engaged global audience. Artists manage their own portfolios and price their own work letting both artists and collectors skip the formalities of the traditional gallery structure.”

Since I like people’s stories, here is an interview from the current CEO, Bruce Livingstone. He had an interesting start.

Silvina Resnik

Life as an artist has the opportunity to be so global now. I liked these couples dancing. The artist is from Argentina. I used to travel to Buenos Aries and just that connection made me like the painting more. This is what I mean when I talk about the importance of the “story” behind your work.

Hannah Bureau

I ran across this painting and realized that the artist studied at Rhode Island School of Design and currently lives in Boston, which also added a connection to work that I already liked. The colors makes me think of Spring.

I was talking to Kim Weineck at breakfast this week and she talked about how the use of a palette knife gets more pure pigment on the painting. I instantly thought of Hannah’s work. Kim teaches art and is a gifted pastel artist herself.

Kim Morin Wieneck

Truthfully, I don’t have many conversations about fine art so it is always nice to get together with Kim and get a glimpse on her view of the world. She keeps her head in the “art and creation” mode as she shifts her roles as a mother, artist, teacher. In fact Kim has a bunch of other jobs and projects, I don’t know how she stays in “art mode” but somehow she does!

I saw her post this new work on her Facebook page last night. I simply love it. She is good to follow, I like how she mixes real life and art on her facebook updates. If you missed my interview with her you can see it here.

P.S. As soon as she posted this painting, it sold!

Do you find the “story” behind someone’s work interesting? Do you think it helps connect you to the work?

Jennifer L. Scott and her 20 Stylish Secrets

Published: 04/24/2013

I have to finally come to terms with the fact that even though I was born in Italy, I am a Francophile. When I was a flight attendant, no matter how tired I was we we arrived in Paris something just lit up inside me. Gorgeous city. A lot of cafes, a lot of places to sit, talk and enjoy yourself. I love the pace and grace of European culture and when I picked up Jennifer L. Scott’s book, I practically read it cover to cover in one sitting. I interrupted myself only to email her and ask her for an interview.

Jennifer’s charming book reveals the lessons that she learned while she was living with a chic family as an exchange student in Paris. I say chic but I also mean sensible. While it is was a completely entertaining read, it is also lesson in elegant civility. The chapters Clutter is Not So Chic and Reject the New Materialism hit home for me just as much as Look Presentable Always. Jennifer is just as charming as her book! In it she talks about trying to lead a thoughtful, cultivated life as the mother of small children in the casual land of Los Angeles. On her popular blog The Daily Connoisseur , she shares more detailed secrets of the book including the hardest of all, Liberate Yourself with the 10 Item Wardrobe. That has become quite the hot topic!

Bonus takeaway: Listen in to hear just how she went about getting this book published. This just might push YOU into doing something brave for yourself.

Leave a comment below and tell me one thing you could NEVER part with in your wardrobe to win a copy of this fun read!

Super cute homepage, right?

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Finding your creative style, thoughts on cultivating originality

Published: 04/22/2013

Even before I started Smart Creative Women, I spent quite a bit of time talking to and meeting all sorts of women. Women who have successful creative careers and women who are working very hard to make the leap into profitability with their own creative businesses. Women who want to put themselves out there in a truly original creative way.

I believe in today’s crowded and largely virtual market, standing out and cultivating your own voice is more important than ever. It is vital. The women that I see with the most success have a distinct point of view. Some of them where born with it and some have cultivated over time. I have never felt I was “born” with it and have been fascinated with the topic since I was a young girl.

So how do you cultivate a distinct style, aesthetic or point of view?

Everyone tells you that you need one but HOW exactly do you arrive at it? How do you embrace the real you and not a version of you that you might get bored or frustrated with? What type of products or services do you offer that work with you really are?

Once you find and develop your own aesthetic, how do you turn that into excellent branding and a solid online presence that reflects who you really are? Once you develop this, can it help you make life choices? I think so!

One thing I know for sure is that we don’t need anymore cookie cutter businesses out there! We don’t need one more course that teaches you someone else’s look, style or business! You were not designed to follow a blueprint!

What I sense we need is something that involves the exploration of YOU. Exercises that you sink into. Fun exercises that challenge and bring out the best in you. Questions that dive deep into your past and your present, your influences both visually and emotionally.

This course will not focus on who is leading the course but will focus on you taking the course. It is more important than ever to develop and flex our creative muscles on a regular basis. The beauty of it is you were created with a completely original spirit.

Understanding and embracing your original style can help you make focused and powerful choices for a life that is designed completely by you for you. It will allow you to communicate who you really are and to celebrate what sets you apart.

With that thought in mind that we (together) will explore

*Capturing your creative identity through color texture and mood

*Tapping into your unique voice

*Staying current but not being a slave to trends

*Style vs. taste: Why you need both

*Taking your aesthetic to the masses

* Examine what your offer and why

*Exploring your sales pitch in a modern way

What do you think?! I guess I have been sitting on more than I realize as I write this lengthy post AND do a video! It is all bubbling up inside me! I wish I could take you all out for coffee at a lovely cafe like this one and discuss this!!

P.S. If you are in NYC for NSS or Surtex, I am planning a meet up at the Hilton Midtown (54th and 6th) lobby on Sunday evening May 19th at 6:30pm! JOIN US! A whole bunch of creative women in one spot…eep! Fun!

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Who and what I am into this week: The world needs you

Published: 04/19/2013

The world needs you to shine. You have heard me say it before and in light of what is happening in Boston this week I will reiterate again today. Sometimes world events can prove so heartbreaking that your daily work and creating can feel a bit…aimless.

I am here to tell you that what you do really does matter. If you are bringing joy, creation, beauty into the world in any form, I applaud you. I believe you are an antidote to all the darkness and fear. I would heartily encourage you to keep at it. Keep showing up in your life and the lives of others to counteract what we are exposed to on a daily basis. Every contribution counts no matter how small. You might be blogging about your life with small children, sharing crafts you do as a family. You never know who it might touch. Their may be a young mother who is suffering from postpartum and going to your blog everyday may be light at the end of the tunnel. You might be cooking up new recipes, sewing beautiful quilts to be passed down generation to generation, all I can say is, don’t stop.

We need you. The world needs you. You might be offering accounting to a new business or you might be the ring leader to a monthly girl’s night out. What ever joy, laughter and help you are bringing to the planet matters. If you can help another person on the planet get through the day with a smile or with helpful tips or lovely advice, don’t think for one second think you don’t make a difference. We need you to bring your light into the world to help people through fear, through despondency. So go do what you are called to do, don’t think it is too small too insignificant. We need you!