Category: Self-Promotion

Shop Update: Raw Footage Photos

1 Comment

Whirlwind Weekend!!

So we’ve been up to our eyeballs measuring the new space, shopping for the new space, and hosting impromptu First Friday this past weekend at the new space.


We kept our presence at the new location low-key because there was already an artist, Anne Gregory scheduled to show her collection of new paintings. Her work was lovely. I rather liked the orange-red piece she included.

I do Volume, Not Area
Wow, I can’t tell you how much I suck at perceiving area or distance. When I looked through the window and walked into the space, I swore it was about 800 square feet. Boy, was I wrong!! But that’s okay. When I stand in our home workshop, I realize it’s the same dimensions as our new space, which will be great for placement.

However, our plan is to cut the shop in half and dedicate the front to retail and parties while the back will be for production. Only the very good customers will be allowed to peek back there -I’ve got liability to think about now. Pfsth! Yay me.

Urgency Shopping: Not for Me.
Can I just tell you how much I despise urgency shopping? Seriously not fun in my book. Fortunately, the past 10 years, Andrew and I have done our own virtual store shopping when we’re trekking around the globe. When we shop, we shop product as well as environment. So, our urgency shopping was really a matter of selecting the pieces that match our brand and will help to extend it into the retail environment.

I joke that it’s going to look more like Borgin & Burkes than anything we’ve seen in the modern world. I only know that if ever I had a chance to purchase 2 vanishing cabinets, I would in a New York minute. One for our home shop and one for the public shop. Imagine saving all that time loading and unloading supplies and inventory?!

Sneak Peek Floor
We spent Saturday night huddled in Lowes and Home Depot looking for candidates for our floating wood floor. Since we can’t have anything hinged directly into the floor, we thought laminate would be a gorgeous addition to the retail space.

We love the warehouse feel to this laminate flooring and the deep red pepper for the walls.

TIP for You
If you’re updating a space and want to repaint with your existing wood floors, bring paint chips home with you to match the undertone of the wood. Things to think about:

  1. Is the wood a yellow tone or red tone? If you are hesitant to match your color with your wood tone, chances are the harmony is lacking. When you match the red paint chips (as shown above), you can see how the deep reds complement the wood.
  2. Do you want the paint values to match or to complement? It can get pretty dark in a hurry if you pair two dark color choices that you love. The fact that we had the option of selecting wood and paint in the store was extremely helpful. Fortunately, we don’t fall in love with any combination until we know the final outcome.

These are things to think about when creating a space for yourself.

A Sign of Things to Come
After I signed the lease on Thursday, I went straight to work on our sign. It’s based on the quick and dirty sign I put together for the graphic announcing our good news. Andrew said he liked it very much and suggested that this be our sign. Easy enough for me. Yay me! I found a telescoping swing rod that was meant for curtains late Thursday night at Lowes -I made them reopen a cash register so that I could checkout!! This swing rod will enable the sign to hang perpendicular next to our front door.

It’s really charming if I do say so myself.

Stay tuned for updates!!

Dashing Out the Door to Lowes Again!
Lisa

We’ve got a shop of our own!

Leave a comment

Happy Dance! Happy Dance!!

Guess what?! We’re opening a combination retail and workshop space in downtown Raleigh!

We’re so excited! The crazy bit is that amidst everything else we have planned (Autumn shows), we’re now certified nuts. 🙂

We plan to have our doors open to the public October 1st, but with everything going on, our grand opening may be a bit delayed. You know, complete with party balloons and just a little bit of sleep. 🙂

Stay tuned for details!

Can’t wait to meet many of you in person!

Okay, now I must go take a nap. Wait, there’s no time for a nap!!

Signed,
Ms. DashingOfftoGettheKeys
Lisa

How We Created Volcano Girl’s Leather Mask

3 Comments

We were invited to make a mask in leather for an upcoming movie. I’ve always wanted to be Edna Mode from The Incredibles, designing and building cool outfits for superheros!! This was our chance!

While I’ve decorated a many mask and have had the pleasure of wearing them, I confess I never made a mask from scratch until this year. We were called on a Friday afternoon and she implied that we had only three days to complete this project. Yikes! We immediately sought out a few shops to buy heads as forms. Wouldn’t you know it? Raleigh closes early… like noon on Saturday early. Crap.

So we ran to a display store and a few craft stores to find something that looked like a head. Anything! To our good fortune, we found ourselves -where else- the mask aisle! We picked up a few full face masks (I tried one on to make sure it was life size) and dashed back to the studio. Attempting to stay tight to the artist’s designs, we were in full on design mode, texting the director every 30 minutes with photos to make sure we were headed in the right direction.

Designing templates in Illustrator, cutting out, fitting the paper templates over my face several times over before we cut into the leather was only the beginning. And since we didn’t have the model actresses measurements, I was the next best thing –it’s a good thing I’ve got a big head. I’m not implying the actress had a big head, but if it fits me, it’ll fit anyone. 😉 Once we felt that we had a good template, we moved forward with cutting out the leather and begin forming it on the face mask. We cut a few masks (more than we needed) in case there were any anomalies or if the model needed more than one mask during filming.

Being the creative department that we are, we found several hues of red paint to apply to the mask. It so difficult to know which one is the right one without the director standing by giving us the okie dokie. We gave it our best shot and again, sent photos as clear as possible for her to make an accurate decision. When we had 2 that we liked, we gave them a couple of light coats of sealant to protect both the mask and the model -we didn’t want the paint to bleed on her face while she’s kicking ass.

I wish I could remember the steps and timing to give you a better look at behind the scenes, but as it is, we ran into selling season, recouperation season, and now ramping up season.  I’m also so behind in many other blogging articles, that this one almost didn’t make it.

Movie: VolcanoGirl
For more behind the scenes, check out VolcanoGirl production on Facebook.

Have a great weekend!
Lisa

Published: ArtistMagazine on Expanding Your Product Line

Leave a comment

Anais Nin is quoted as saying, “Life shrinks or expands according to one’s courage.” I believe this is also true with one’s portfolio.

If any of you know me and my work, you know that I can’t be pigeonholed as a purist in the traditional fine art sense. As a fine artist, my calligraphic approach is my signature style, cultivated with great care and therein lies the purist. However, I don’t remain brush to paper everyday. 

I have an article published in Jan/Feb 2011 The Artists magazine outlining how to multiply your opportunities with your art. I’ve expounded on the article on INDIECreatives Multiplying Your Product Opportunities.

Hope this helps you in your artful endeavors.
Lisa

How to Comment & Why It’s Good for Business

Leave a comment

How to Comment & Why It's Good for BusinessDo you think commenting on blogs are for know-it-alls? Do you think the World doesn’t need to read your opinion? Are you still struggling with crafting a clever comment?

You’re Not Alone.

I’ve written a new blog post guiding the shy and introverted on making comments on blogs. Please join us and compel yourself to make a comment -there’s definitely a win in it for you!

How to Comment & Why It’s Good for Business
IndieCreatives
http://ow.ly/2U0kW

Here’s to Cultivating Your Creative Independence

Lisa

Life is but a Yacht

Leave a comment

A few years ago, I had an idea to revitalize AMTRAK -it was to rent out the box cars and sell our handcrafted wares from city to city. How fun would that be? Seriously?! Cities get the opportunity to bring in new artists as temporary installations, select artists get a chance to sell, education, and participate in a rolling venue like Gypsies on Rails, and city patrons don’t have to leave home! Personally, I love the idea.

Meanwhile, have you heard about the SeaFair Mega Yacht Venue?

Looks like someone had the same idea on water… one day.

Ahh, life is but a Yacht.

Would you participate in a travelling show as an artist?


Bookmark and Share