Business Lessons

I've mentioned my business idea before.  It evolves slightly as my skills and interests change, but the basic idea is still the same.  I looked into renting this building in Old Mandeville, which seemed perfect for the plan.  I thought surely, it must be a sign that I should rent this space for my business since it's been sitting there for so long. 

So everything's not a sign.  I finally did some real research on this place and found out why it's been for rent for so long - it's an "as is" property and the rent is high, and to purchase it is even more expensive!  I did learn a few things in my research, though.  NNN stands for net-net-net, which translates to the renter paying for property taxes, insurance, and any maintenance the building needs while you are paying rent.  It comes with a TI, however, which means that any improvements that the renter would need to aide their business,  like a wall that needed to be moved, would be taken care of by the owner of the building. 

Either way, the owner is looking to make money whether it's by selling the building all together or making a living off of renting it out.  It was surely flooded by Katrina and Rita, and has been sitting vacant for three years, so no telling what the wall conditions are like.  This has gotten me curious to look into other places to rent, though.  If I would decide to finally pursue owning my own business, it definitely couldn't happen until our daughter is at least three.  Plenty of time to research places to rent and firm up exactly what I want to offer customers.

Sterling Properties image

Wedding Planning: Decorations

Our wedding is in three days.  Thursday is kind of prep day for getting the flowers together - making my bouquet, my dad and husband-to-be's boutonnieres, and making the last two head wreaths for the nieces to wear. 

The plan is carry a bouquet of sunflowers mixed with hydrangeas, but if it looks goofy, I'll just carry sunflowers because they're my favorite.  The hydrangeas are coming from my parents gardens and they look amazing.  They'll be sitting on tables in clear glass vases - most are globes, but some are in neat, previously emptied liquor and beer bottles.  My bouquet stems will be wrapped in burlap, and a thin blue ribbon for part of my "something blue".  I may add another accent flower of sorts if I see the right thing when I'm buying my sunflowers on Thursday, but if not, all will be good.  My other something blue is going to be tiny little satin roses that I bought at Michael's that the girl doing my hair will tuck into the chignon. 

I'm not feeling super confident about making the boutonnieres, so I've bought silk flowers from Hobby Lobby just in case.  The plan is to use a small cutting from a hydrangea, wrap the base in burlap and the thin blue ribbon; however, hydrangeas need lots of water and since it's a cutting and not even an entire head, I fear it won't last even through the ceremony. 

The head wreaths for our daughter and her cousins are made from a flower wired garland that I bought at Michael's.  Our daughter didn't mind wearing hers at all last weekend, so I'm hopeful that her cousins will like theirs just as well.  If not, though, my heart won't be broken.  I know better dealing with kids. 

As for decorations at the reception, the roll of burlap I bought for the flowers is twenty feet long, so there will be plenty to drape at the gazebo entrance where the ceremony will be held, as well as to drape across the fireplace mantel inside the house where the reception will be.  I also hope to hang up my collection of white paper lanterns inside the house.  They're all different shapes and sizes.  The PR person at the house we're renting said that as long as 3M strips are used to hang things and not nails or tacks, it's fine to do.  We'll try it out and hope for the best.  Again, if it doesn't work, I'm not going to be upset.  It's just an idea.  The house looks great without any decorations, really. 

People are already making it known that they're dying to see pictures of everything, so I'll at least post everything I've mentioned on here as soon as we get the pictures from our photographer.  Otherwise, don't expect to see our entire wedding album on here.  I'm not a fan of posting our daughter's photo on Facebook, or anywhere else creepy people could get a hold of it.  I work among lots of creepers every day, I know what they're capable of and it's not pretty.  Anyway, here's a happy note to close on....the hydrangeas

Attachment

One of the hardest things to do after spending so much time and energy on something is to let it go.  Human beings get so attached to things.  We have a favorite item of clothing, or that piece of equipment (a camera or a bike) that is a beloved hobby that we think we'd just die if something happened to it.  Depending on how much money any of these examples cost, sure, it would be upsetting if something did happen to damage them or lose them in some mishap or accident.  Creating things, like a piece of art in this case, and just giving it away or dismantling it or repurposing it can be a great challenge.

I mentioned in past posts that our daughter's room is shared with my art studio.  When I was organizing and sorting through things to condense everything into a confined space, I ended up with a stack of paintings that I wasn't entirely sure with what to do.  One has been shipped off to my future sister-in-law to hang in her office; another two are being saved for embellishing and bedazzling; and the last one....I decided to take apart!  The only other time that I ever dismantled pieces of art I made was after a college sculpture class (3-D design at LSU).  Since I didn't have never ending storage space, the giant cupcake made from plywood, corrugated PVC, batting and beads got taken apart, as did a copper wire orb, and an acrylic "mysterious ink spill" piece.  The cupcake was an installation for our final exam so it was meant to be temporary, and the other two weren't my favorites anyway, so there wasn't much emotional attachment.  

The painting that I just took apart the other day, however, took me 9 years to finish!  I started it when I worked at Forstall Art Supply in New Orleans in the early 2000's.  A friend and I had open studio night after the store closed and had the best time painting and chatting while music played in the background.  It was rejuvenating and enjoyable evening to say the least.  At the time, it was the biggest painting I'd ever done - about 6"x 5'.  It took until last year for me to get the background on the canvas with the acrylic medium I purchased when I was working at the art store! The image I had in my head was quite different from what the actual outcome was.  For a while afterwards, I contemplated offering the painting up for grabs or even putting it out for the trash.  The other day, I realized that the frame was still perfectly usable and so is the other side of the canvas!  Now I plan to save them both for when our daughter is old enough to paint. Maybe she and her cousins can work on a painting together, or she and I.  

My friends, when something has a better use as something else or with someone else, don't be afraid to send it on, repurpose it, or to completely start from scratch.  Giving something new life is much better than holding on to it for prides sake or for sentimental value.  I can't say it's always going to be this easy, but it's a start. Breaking our attachment habits - art related or not - can only be freeing mentally, emotionally, and spiritually, and that's good for everyone.  

Mardi Gras and Fine Art: Suddenly an Outsider

Normally at this time of year, I'm finishing up my corset for Flyday. I'd have been working on it since around Thanksgiving and would just be adding the final touches. By the way, Flyday is Friday, February 28 this year, and starts at Tujague's at 2 PM if any of you want to go.

This year is the 75th anniversary of Hermes.  There's a much talked about exhibit celebrating their Diamond Jubilee at the Presbytere.  Checking that out will be the extent of our Mardi Gras festivities this year, and not even during carnival season.  Our one-month-old is way too small to be out a parades, and we are way too tired to do a big field trip like that at this point.  The exhibit is up through December.

Next year, Mardi Gras might be spent trying a few family friendly day parades.  Depending on how that goes, we may try bringing petite bebe to the Bywater Mardi Gras celebration, which is my new favorite way to celebrate the day.  Fiance' and I went last year and had a blast.  Y'all think I'm creative with costuming - I'm just phoning it in compared to most people down there!  

The other day, when I was walking around the house holding my daughter, she seemed to notice a lithograph hanging on the wall that I'd made in college. It's black and white, which infants pick up on easily, and matted in a black frame. Although we like to think she's a genius, our one-month-old can not yet recognize anything that's going on in the lithograph. I realized, however, that doing art like that seemed to take place in another lifetime. Sure, I'm able to make things for her here and there, but to create what I think of as "fine art" is a thing of the past now, and that's okay.

There's an egg painting class happening in two weeks at the St. Tammany Art Association I'd like to try and attend, sleep/baby schedule depending.  Otherwise, I'm working on a felt mobile for baby's room and contemplating onesie embellishments.

Random assortment of costumes from the Bywater last year

Art Events for 2014

I hope you all have been enjoying this holiday season!  It has certainly been a special one for us.

In past posts, I've written about what it means to be an artist, to enter art festivals, markets, and starting my own art business.  Well, here are two goals I'm setting for myself for the new year:

Lake Pontchartrain Basin Maritime Museum's Nautical Arts Market
April 5th, 2014

10:00 am- 4:00 pm
Deadline: February 28, 2014

The Maritime Museum is accepting applications from artists working in nautical/ maritime or historic craft themes for the ‘Nautical Arts Market’, a component of ‘Show and Tell’, a free event featuring art, a fishing equipment swap meet, a maritime creative writing contest and a ‘Fishing Tales Stage’ for storytellers  to publically stretch the truth about ‘The One that Got Away’.

Selected artists will be showing and selling work ranging from paintings to sculpture to jewelry to handmade lace during the event.

¨The Maritime Museum Arts Market indoor spaces are 10’ x 10’.
¨Booth Rental fee is $50
¨Supplying tables, display fixtures, and/or walls are the responsibility of the artist or vendor.
¨$15 non-refundable application fee will be deducted from rental fee for all selected artists. Do not send booth rental fee until accepted into the Arts Market.
¨Selected artists will be notified via email by March 7, 2014
¨Selected artists and their works will be featured on our website, Facebook, newsletter and in all press related materials for ‘Show and Tell’.
¨Artists are responsible for all sales. LPBMM does not take commission.

And this event at the Pitot House next December.  Hopefully, I don't make excuses and get myself out there this time!  Both events are affordable to enter, so even if I only sell one piece, it will be worth it.  Plus, maybe baby can even come sit with me at each event.  Speaking of baby, check out my other blogging adventures here and here.  Both let me continue to be creative while using a slightly different part of my brain. 

Iron-on fun with onesies this morning!  The bedazzled one is more challenging than you'd think!

Crafty Momma

Hey there!  I hope everyone's enjoying this time of year - nicer temperatures, fairs, and Thanksgiving right around the corner.  We're busy, but excited.  As you've either seen on Facebook or heard in person, the vintage sewing machine that was once my grandmother's doesn't work.  Since we're getting our baby's room ready, which is also my studio, getting it fixed is basically not going to happen for a while.  It's being used as a table at this point to stack things on.  BUT in order to sew and make things for her, I pulled out embroidery thread and felt.  I can sit on the sofa and do that while we enjoy a fire, have LSU or the Saints on, or whatever.  It's actually the perfect craft since it's portable.  So far, I've made a little felt wallet to hold any gift cards in that we get from baby showers.  Later, it will be her first little purse.  I'm also planning to make her a little mobile of some felt friends.  I'm still working on a painting for her, too.

In related news, I did start a mommy blog.  It's a place where I'm sharing parts of my experience as a first time mommy.  Other mommy stories are welcome and encouraged as comments.  I hope that other moms - first time, future, or of multiples - all find it slightly educational, humorous, and helpful....or at least one of those.  Everyone have a great weekend!

Still working on the other side, but it was fun to do the button and flap

My Favorite Time of Year!

I love fall! Obviously, southern Louisiana doesn't get to experience it like other parts of the country, but the idea of cooler, drier air, falling leaves - golds, reds, brown - baking, festivals, scarves, cozy feelings....I could go on and on.

This year, all the holidays mean more to me than they have in a very long time. I'm thinking ahead to making our daughter's Halloween and Mardi Gras costumes, festivals we can take her to, family trips we can take, what her interests will be, and more. Of course, I wonder if she'll like art.

Her nursery will share the room with my studio. My office is going away for now. I want to be sewing things for her so badly, but it seems the sewing machine needs some TLC, possibly in the way of a new belt. This afternoon, I'll attempt figuring things out underneath the carriage.

The idea of starting a mommy blog keeps crossing my mind. Sewing and writing are where my creative interests lie these days. They seem cozy, too, just like the season. These next few months will be quite busy, though, so I'll let a greater force guide me in what I'm supposed to be doing with my time.