It must be great to just work on the weekends...

One of the reasons I enjoy shows is because it gives me an opportunity to meet my customers. It's a thrill to get feedback on your work. There are many changes I've made to my work that is due to a particularly astute suggestion by a customer or a remark made by a show attendee. I do get sourpusses at shows from time to time, people that offer criticism that is hurtful or even downright insulting. Fortunately those are in the minority and veterans to the circuit learn not to let these sourpuss ruin their day.

But addition to suggestions and criticism, both useful and hurtful, are remarks that leaves many a working artist either scratching their heads or suppressing an ironic grin.

Here's an example of such a remark. At my last show, after spending several minutes deciding on a pair of earrings, a lady selected a pair of Paper Bead earrings to purchase for a friend. While I tallied her order and boxed the earrings, she chatted about how much she liked my jewelry and how much her friend will love the earrings. I smiled at her and told her how much I appreciated her compliments. It's always a good feeling when someone compliments your work, and I always appreciate positive comments and helpful suggestions. Then as I handed my new customer her package, she said, "It must be wonderful to only have to work only on the weekends and to have free time during the week." Inwardly I said, "Hah!". To my new customer I said, "Well, shows do give me an opportunity to get out of my studio for a change. I always have a great time at them," and thanked her for her purchase.

A saltier artist may have taken this comment as an insult or as a sign of the lack respect for the arts and would have used this as an opportunity to inform this lady on the trials and difficulties of being an artist. Personally, I don't believe in chastising customers for remarks such as these because, 1) People come to festivals to have a good time, not to get a lecture on how hard it is to be an artist and on how art is under-appreciated in the world of Wal-Mart and cheap goods from Asia, 2) Many people have this romantic vision of what life is like as an artist, and I really hate to burst their bubble, and 3) I've learned to decipher the difference between what people say and what people actually mean.

I found out that what most people actually mean when they say "It must be wonderful to only have to work on the weekends" or "You must have some much free time during the week" is that "It must be great to be able to make a living doing what you love and to have the freedom to set your own hours...I wish I could do that." If you scratch the surface, most people do realize that artists do have to work on weekdays too. Most of the time, they are expressing their fascination with the concept of the artist's life. The fact that artists can be creative and do something that they love and make a living at it.

I've been in and out of the craft industry for fifteen years on a part time basis until very recently and had daydreams of sitting in my studio with my dogs at my feet making jewelry in the middle of the day instead of when I could scratch out time after work or on the weekends. With these daydreams came the thought of, "If only I could afford to do this full time, then I'll get a lot more work done and I'll have time to expand".

Then in late January this year, I was told that my full time job of web designer was being eliminated and just like that...I had the opportunity to make my daydreams into a reality. I wasn't completely naive, I knew that being a full time artist wouldn't be all fun and and games and that it would take a level of discipline and sacrifice.

It's true that I now spend many a day sitting in my studio with my dogs at my feet making jewelry. But that's only about 40, maybe 45% of the time. The other 55 to 60% of my time is spent sitting in front of the computer making out budgets and marketing plans, logging in sales and expenses, filling sales taxes, updating my web site, and answering email. It's also spent talking on the phone with customers, chasing new wholesale accounts, and ordering materials. It's spent processing and packing orders, taking daily trips to the post office, biweekly trips to the bank, and monthly trips to the half dozen local galleries to check on sales and to fill orders. In other words, 55 to 60% of my time is spent doing the same things that other small business owners do, actually running a business. In reality, I'm actually working much harder than I ever did when working at a full time job. Instead of working an 8 hour day, I typically work a 10 to 13 hour day and sometimes longer if there is a show coming up or a large order due.

Do I get to set my own hours? Sure, I can choose what part of the day to work my 10 to 12 hours. Do I get to make a living doing what I love? Well, I get to do what I love and I hope to one day soon be able to live off it. I'm quite lucky to have a spouse that has a regular job with medical benefits so that we have at least one steady paycheck and medical insurance until the day comes that I can equally support the household with my jewelry. The number of artists without medical insurance is pretty staggering and many must take part time jobs to get by while building their business. Art is pretty much a feast or famine enterprise. Do I get to do work that excites me? Most of the time, yes. If an artist is lucky, the type of work they love to do and that type that sells are the same thing.

Perhaps what the salty, lecturing artists most want their customers to know is, yes, it's great to be able to set your own hours and to go to the gym, the bank, and the store at 10 a.m. on the week days., and to not have to punch a time clock, to be able to decide the course of your own destiny, and to be able to work on what you enjoy. Yes, all those things are great. But life as a successful working artist is not for the faint of heart. It's not for the lazy and undisciplined. It's not for the thin skinned and for those who lack perseverance. That the myth of the temperamental, suffering, starving artist is just that, a myth (well, it's mostly a myth). And most of all, life as a working artist is not for those who don't have a passion for what they do.

Hello Again!

It's been a long while since I've written in my design diary. A lot of time and a lot of changes have taken place between now and then. Including a brand new lines of jewelry, two brand new retailers and and a schedule of retail shows.

In late March and early April, I've acquired two new retailers, Crossings at Carnegie in Zumbrota, Minnesota and woodbloom in Portland, Oregon. These two retailers are particularly exciting for me because up until now, most of my retailers have been located on the East Coast. With these new retailers located in the Midwest and West Coast, I have the opportunity to introduce my work in these areas. Much thanks to Marie Marvin of Crossings and Ken Kane of woodbloom for this opportunity!

I've also created a new line of jewelry and expanded the Ojos Series. The new line of jewelry, tentatively called the Beaded Chain Series is a line of bracelets, anklets, necklaces, and earrings of handmade beaded chain. Beads in the chains encompass a variety of materials, wood, Czech glass, Swarovski® crystal, and semi-precious stones. My most popular line in the Beaded Chain series is the Birthstone line which includes earrings, anklets, earrings, and necklaces made in gold, sterling silver and Swarovski® in each of the twelve birthstone colors. I also include custom mixing and matching of crystals to create personalized jewelry...a very popular gift item for Mother's Day. The bracelet shown below is the October Birthstone Bracelet in gold.



I've also expanded the Ojos Series to include rosaries and necklaces. The necklaces shown below are my first designs and are made of sterling silver.




The Ojos Rosaries are made of sterling silver and gold and beads made of a variety of materials including wood, crystal, and a a variety of uncommon materials. The rosary shown here is made of sterling silver and Buri Nut beads.



You can find my Ojos Necklaces at Vincent Hester Gallery in Portsmouth, Virginia and at any of my retail shows. My Beaded Chain Series and Ojos Rosaries are available only at shows.

And speaking of shows, the 2005 craft show schedule is now in full swing. My first show of the year was hosted by one of my favorite retailers, Elizabeth Sorrell of The Leaping Lizard. Dubbed the "Creating Woman Art Show", this 1st annual show is the brainchild of Cathy Smith and Elizabeth Sorrell. This show featured over 25 women artists in the local Hampton Roads area (including myself). Cathy is currently working on a book about women artists called "Creating Woman: Her Art and Spirit at Work in the World", and she and Elizabeth struck on the idea of having an art show at The Leaping Lizard that feature all women artists. Not only was I fortunate enough to receive an invitation from them to participate, but I was fortunate enough to meet a lot of talented female artists and to share exhibition space with them. Despite the threat of rain and thunderstorms, a perpetual hazard of outdoor show life, the day was a smashing success! The show even got a mention in The Beacon, the local newspaper for Virginia Beach. The show was such a success, we lady artists are lobbying for a 2nd Annual Creating Women Art Show. Not a bad way to start the 2005 show season!

You can take a look at the 2005 show schedule here. This list reflects all of the shows I'm currently confirmed for, but I will be adding to the list once I get more confirmations. You can return to the show schedule page to keep up to date, but an easier way is to sign up for my mailing list...then you'll get updates every time the schedule changes.