Thanks

So this is the week of Thanksgiving. I have to give thanks for all those who have supported the arts throughout the years. Whether you went to a show, bought a painting, attended an art show or even gave your kid a box of crayons to keep their imagination going, you are indirectly supporting art and creativity that keeps us being human. Thank you.

This past weekend I did a fund raiser for the Friends of Greyhounds. It was a long day with no customers and a lot of the same CD played over and over (some American Idol BS that was driving me crazy). The woman who organized it wasn't thinking about traffic in a literal sense. The event was held in a lobby area in an high end apartment building off the beaten track over in Waltham. She explained to me that she works in real estate and had shown apts in that building and there was always some sort of traffic going through the lobby. I can only think that maybe at 6 or 7pm on a week night maybe. But this was a Saturday and it was freezing out. She did send an email out to all of us and she was able to raise $150 for the greyhounds and that she "learned a lot of lessons" for next years event. Lets hope so. I ended up being set back by $11. I really wonder if I could do any better organizing an event. There are so many things that I've learned through out the years....

This week I'll be flying out to SC to see my sister's family for Thankgiving. I have a lot to do this coming few weeks including 2 portraits, holiday cards, Christmas presents and prints of the watercolors. Ebay sales have picked up a little bit, so that's good. I'm really wondering how this holiday season is going to play out. Just wait and see.

Happy Thanksgiving.

Holiday madness

Hello to all. Well, Oldies 103.3 in Boston here has started playing Christmas Carols on a 24 hour basis...which gets me thinking "here we go again!". It's 2 more weeks til Thanksgiving but there are a lot of people out there already buying, making and selling for the holidays. I've gone ahead and downloaded the paintings that I did in the fall (business was slow for me which is better for the portfolio) and plan to do a constant contact marketing promo this week. Next weekend is also the greyhound benefit show, however the Commonwealth of Massachusetts has banned dog racing starting 2009, so I'm not sure how many people are going to turn out to this event. I've also downloaded and older painting that I did for my Christmas card this year. I have a feeling that this year is not going to be that busy. Let's hope not.

The weekend

So I went to an little art show on Friday night. It was free and I just stumbled upon it because it was in the church next to the gym I go to. (and I went to kickboxing on Friday night). Anyway, I went after class to see what this little church in Cambridge had to offer.

One woman I spoke with was very nice to talk to. She jumped into a conversation with me asking me about the boots I had just purchased at another store. They're golashes with roses on them :). Anyway, she was a beader, lots of jewerly - one of those crafters that you see at every craft fair. Although she did have bracelets made from old typewriter keys that were cool. I asked her how she knew about the fair and how it was going for her. She told me that she knew about it from a connection that she made through the Christmas Dove artisans association. And then went to tell me about the event that was last year. Funny thing it about this is that I was thinking of doing the Christmas Dove last year. But they ask you for a fee, you display with your own display things and then you had to work the weekends in December. She told me that it wasn't worth the effort. Lot of work for no reward. I'm glad that I opted out of that show.

I also saw a terrific artist who would cut out landscapes in metal and then print them on to paper, then take the metal template and make a painting on that. It was very unique and that was impressive for me. You see so much of the same thing at these shows - I think that's a big reason why people don't go to these shows anymore. But we were talking (I believe her name is Rachel but I left the business card at home... I'll find it and post her site. She's worth checking out.) and we were talking about having a studio. There are many reasons why I don't have a studio. Number 1 is money and the lack there of. Number 2 is that I have this feeling that if I had a studio that I'd never go in there. It'd be a outa sight outta mind kind of thing. But she made a point saying it was the paying for the space that made her feel obligated to go. I can see that for sure. She also talked about when her work was at home in the house that she had a tendency to put things before the artwork. Like, oh there are dishes to be done and there's laundry to do.... I'm thnking Oh this is me like every day. Wasn't it just last week that I cleaned, did a bottle return and grocery shopping on a Saturday and by the time I got home the day was shot. No painting got done that day. SO I knew exactly what she was talking about. Jason was funny: when I retold this story to him, he's all "What? Does she do her laundry with a washboard? You just load the machine and go."

Well, that aside, I didn't go out on Saturday at all and was able to get Nicole's dog, Arthur, done. He's a cute Yorkie puppy and this painting resembles both him and a little old Japanese man. Jason said it looked more like an oil painting from a distance and that made me very happy. I have one more commissioned portrait on my table and then we'll see if any other Christmas orders come in. I have to do a holiday promo email soon. I have a ton of new emails from my Facebook connections so hopefully some of these people that I haven't talked to in 20 years will place some orders.

October

Well, it's been a busy month!! I took the last 3 Mondays off, hence the reason why I havne't published anything; Monday being the day that I do that!



Spent some time in Vermont and relaxed. But besides that I did 2 fairs, as I mentioned in my last post. When doing the raffle for gift certificates I got the information of a guy who does boarding for small dogs only. Later that week I called him and asked if he'd be willing to display some work of mine in exchange for a link on my site. He was kind enough not to just put it out, but hung it on a wall along with a post card holder for all his clients to see. I'm thrilled! Hopefully we'll get some business out of that.

I also have some friends who have contacted me about portraits for themselves as well as for gifts for their loved ones. My friends are great to support me and what I do - thanks sooooo much to them!!

I also had a donation gift certificate redeemed so that's one painting that I'll be doing for free. That's okay though. I did it to raise awareness of the shelter (as well as advertising). Now, I just need to tell her to tell all her friends in Nevada(!) about me so that they can get their pets done too!

Ah the Christmas season. I love it. I really do. Every year I'm thinking that I'll do my Christmas cards in June to get it out of the way but it never happens. So I'll be busy this week doing the orders that I have and waiting for more orders to come. In the mean time, clean my house and get ready for the holiday season!! I'll have to put a constant contact email together and since I've joined Facebook, there's more emails to add to my list. Hopefully the friends that I had in grade school will pass my info along as well. Marketing marketing marketing.

This November I'll also be doing a show for a Greyhound benefit. Thank God it's in Waltham, and I won't have to drive very far :)