fresh picked whimsy

Live and learn

 

So......here's the honest scoop on last weekend's art festival...it tanked for me.  Really.  See, i did not have a booth at the actual festival.  A local business in the downtown Carmel Art & Design District had done a local artist call out on her facebook page.  She offered any Carmel art business that wanted to share her tent in her parking lot, to do so for free.  She said they do it every year during the festival and get lots of traffic.

 
In reality, basically the traffic we had was from her established customers who made a b-line for her merchandise (gorgeous furniture).  She had shut her biz down for a week, teased customers with all of her new goods on facebook and turned people away until the festival.  So, when people showed up, they were on a mission for a particular piece that they had seen online.  She had a spectacular sales weekend.  Myself and the other vendors who took her up on her offer, not so much.  We were really too far off the beaten festival path for the public to know we were there. 

 
It was a really generous offer for her to invite us into her tent.  She gave me some great advice at the end of the day when i was feeling a bit discouraged.  She said that she had been doing shows for years and years.  She said this wouldn't be my last "skunk" of a show and that i need to just look ahead, move on and keep a positive attitude.  She was so nice.  I am very thankful for the whole experience.  Getting ready for it was a lot of work and a bunch of late nights.  I was exhausted by Saturday night and had myself a little cry on Mark's shoulder.  Of course i am second guessing everything...including the money i am investing and how my art will be received at Holiday Mart.  It's all a giant leap of faith.  Holiday Mart is a totally different shopping experience and demographic and I think i'm a fit for it.  I think it's only natural for me to have doubts, especially after this weekend.

 
We cut out a little early at the end of the day and i was able to make it home in time to see my teenagers off to their Homecoming dance.  That made my day.

 
 
So all of that said...i'm choosing to find the silver lining in this epic fail in my business experience.  This will be the story i tell when i look back in a few years, after much success {says me}...and i will say "remember when..."  I am going to learn from it...and move forward.  Onward and upward!  It reminds me of a piece i put together a few years ago about some very famous people who experienced their own epic fails prior to their successes.  They didn't take no for an answer, they didn't give up, they persevered and we all know how their stories ended...

 

 and so i add...

 
Lori McDonough - went to the Carmel International Art Festival and didn't sell one...single...thing. 

p.s.  thank you to all of my friends who came out to see me and to Carolyn and my awesome family, who rallied to help me set up/break down, shuttle my kids to sports and who sat with me and kept my spirits up while the hours dragged out passed on Saturday.  I am a blessed girl.  xo

the new arrivals...

Brand spanking new baby announcement prints available in the shop...ready to be personalized!

Prince Charming

 

Princess Lovely

 

wow...that delivery was a breeze!  ♥
 

Go big or go home!

That's what my cousin Jeannine said to me yesterday when i told her my news...

I'm taking whimsy studios on the road...to two BIG shows coming up soon:

Carmel International Arts Festival - September 25 & 26 (next weekend!)

 
I am going to be in the Bella Chic tent at Bella Chic Interiors one block off of Rangeline Road at 254 1st Avenue SW, in the Carmel Arts & Design District.  Organizers expect a crowd of 30,000+!!! Holy moly! 

and...

Junior League of Indianapolis' HOLIDAY MART - November 3-7 at the Indiana State Fairgrounds. 

 
  Aside from my own Open Studios, the only other show I've done was this one at Jenny's studio.  So, to jump into this and choose to tackle the big granddaddy of them all...Holiday Mart, is a giant leap for me.  So many unknowns and a big financial investment just to be there.  This event really kicks off the holiday shopping season here in Indy and will be such incredible exposure for me and my little studio. It feels like a pivotal move for my business.  I am facing my fears and doing it anyway!!!!! ♥

All of your whimsy studios favorites will be at both shows, and a few little new things that i'm cooking up, including these fun handmade and hand painted wooden frames that i designed to perfectly complement my art!  My very talented brother in law, Jimmy is cutting all of the frames for me and building my booth, too!

 
 {the sentiment of that print, which happens to be my best selling print, couldn't be more fitting!}

I'm super excited and have so many people to thank for encouraging me and supporting me.  I have so many incredible people in my corner cheering me on and i couldn't do any of this without them!  They've all volunteered their time, talents and ideas.  I am so blessed!!!  thank you to my big awesome family who are my biggest cheerleaders and to Carolyn, Melanie, Mimi, Melissa, Joy, Stacey, Martha, Erin, Jeannine, Val, and the list goes on and on....

So, mark your calendars if you are in the Indy area...for both of these great events!!!  I would love to see familiar faces there and meet some of you who have been following me and supporting me in cyberspace!  Please...if you come...introduce yourselves!!!! ♥

I am going to blog about the process of getting ready for these shows and hopefully, it will be helpful to anyone out there who has ever thought about putting themselves out there like this...but didn't know where to begin.  Like ME! 

Here we go!!!!!

Bewitching new art!

As sad as i am to see summer come to an end, i really do love autumn, too!  I love Halloween, fall decor, and the leaves changing colors.  Fall will officially be ushered in next week and to get you in that sweater weather state of mind, there are two brand new Halloween pieces in the shop today!

Unibrow

 

What a witch

BIG announcement tomorrow...that is certainly spine chilling and hair raising for me! Eeek!

this fun day has been brought to you by the number 41...

 
I turned 41 on Sunday.  Wow, that went fast!  Can't believe it's been a year since my big 4-0 celebration!  It was a gorgeous, sunny day and i got to spend it with my favorite peeps. 

We went to church and then headed out to the Indianapolis Museum of Art's new 100 Acre Park.  I've been dying to get out there.  With sports schedules and high school homework, it's really difficult to find the time to spend the day out...but, we did it and we had so much fun.  It's a brand new art park featuring interactive art sculptures, but there's not too much art out there yet. I do think it will be a wonderful addition to our city as they add more and more art over the years.  This was a piece that was a lifesize basketball court, with these soaring structures that mimic the movement of the bouncing ball. 

 
The kids were loving it...and then we got scolded by the IMA staff for climbing on it.  That was a bummer...it kind of screams to be climbed on, but evidently, that's a big no no.  We must have missed that sign on the way over to it. Oh well.  We were allowed to climb all over the skeleton boulders. 

We decided to make a quick run through the actual museum. 

 
This incredible string structure filled the huge lobby.  It's called Gravity's Loom and it was awesome.  Reminded me of childhood games like cat's cradle with string. 

Then we went right to my favorite section...Europeon art/impressionists.  Got to spend a few minutes with Mr. Van Gogh. 

 
He is my very favorite of all time.  I have a vivid memory of 5th grade, when the art teacher brought a giant framed print of "Starry Night" to our classroom.  I was mesmorized by it.  It was love at first sight.  Our museum may only have one Van Gogh, and only one each of other very famous artists, but the variety of artists is impressive...Monet, Gauguin, Seurat, Renoir, O'Keefe, Rockwell, Picasso, etc...and unbelievably, admission to the IMA is FREE.  It is such a lovely way to spend an afternoon.  Take your kids...mine loved it.  We had a little incident when K dropped her cell phone on the loud floor behind us and Mark and I thought she had knocked over a statue...whew!  Thankfully, all was well and no alarms went off!  Catastrophe averted!!!!

When we left the museum, we went to the Apple Store...no, not that Apple Store.  We went to the Apple Store at Conner Prairie, our living history museum...where they sell all things apple (the fruit, not the computer).

They're good sports, aren't they? :-)...

 
 
 We got the yummiest caramel apples {made fresh daily!} for a snack.  If you live in Indy, YOU MUST GO!  It's only open in September/October.  So worth the trip!

 
We wrapped my birthday up at my parent's house where we feasted on my mom's eggplant parmigiana {you know it's my favorite}.  Thankfully, my taste has matured past the Hamburger Helper that I used to request every year for my bday dinner when i was a kid!  Ha!  After dinner, we indulged in decadent desserts made by my sisters and mom. 

 
I don't need to eat now for weeks.  I'm all set!  Seriously...three days later, i'm still full!

Lots of exciting things happening in the studio {the reason i have been absent}!  I will share with you this week!  xo

who lives in a pineapple under the sea...

you know who...

This is a one of a kind Bikini Bottom edition of the little houses that i make. 

   

They were sweetly requested by my nephew Sam, who adores all things Spongebob.  This was our conversation a few weeks ago...

Me (my nephews & niece call me Owie {pronounced Oh-eeee}):  "Sam, what do you think you might want for your birthday this year?"

Sam:  "you know your little houses that you make?"

Owie:  "yup"

Sam:  "i think they are soooooooooo cool.  and it would be soooooooooo cool if you could make Spongebob's house and Sandy's house and Squidward's house and the Krusty Krab and Patrick's house, too."

Owie:  "Gosh, Sam, i don't think i would know how to do that."

Sam:  {kind of sadly} "oh, ok."

When I arrived at his house on his birthday with a big gift bag, i told him that i hoped i got the right size underwear and socks.  He wasn't buying it for one second.

Happy Birthday, Sam! I love you. ♥

cupcakes are taking over the world...

and...I'm good with that.  Seems cupcake bakeries are all the rage right now...very trendy.  This is a trend that i hope is here to stay.  My little sister, Susan, and her hubby, Andy just celebrated her 9th wedding anniversary and i think theirs was the first wedding that i had ever heard of that had a cupcake wedding cake instead of a traditional wedding cake.  It rocked and everyone oohed and aahed and the American cupcake obssession seemed to have exploded from there.  Sus, you are such a trend setter!  Three years ago, we had a 50th wedding anniversary party for Mark's parents...

 
{i love this photo of them on their wedding day...so lovely}

we also opted for the cupcakes...Classic Cakes of Carmel made them for us with the sweetest little sugar shamrocks on top to reflect their Irish heritage. They were a huge hit.

 

this past summer, my sweet friend Carolyn celebrated a milestone birthday with friends and these yummy margarita flavored cupcakes from Holy Cow Cupcakes in Carmel.  They were so good...had a key lime flavor to them.  mmmmm.  {cupcake picks by yours truly ♥}

 
Recently, i got a fun email from my friend Jane, with these photos of cupcakes that her daughter, Katie had made.  She's starting a new cupcake business called Katie's Kupcakes and wanted me to see her first cupcakes with my picks in them!  How sweet is that!?!  Great job, Katie!

 

I love baking cupcakes as much as i love eating them...remember these...

and these...

Finally, I took a little field trip with my friend Erin and her mom this past weekend to The Flying Cupcake...a darling cupcake bakery in Indy.  I will be going back again in November because that's when their mocha latte flavor makes a return appearance.  nom nom nom.  So, enjoy the pictures and don't let your co-workers catch you licking your monitor...

Have a sweet looooooong Labor Day weekend, friends!

xo

etsy l♥ve affair

etsy, how do i love thee?  Let me count the ways....

This is the latest addition to my front entryway, from sweet Lisa at SimpleSweetDesigns. 

I love how it complements all my little nest obsession collection.  I think it's dreamy.

I bought this for my mom, for her birthday from dottyral.  {it's ok, her bday was last week, so she already received it}. 

 
Did you know those little strawberries that hang from the traditional tomato pincusions have a purpose?  Maybe i'm the last to know, because i don't sew, but those little strawberries contain metal shavings called emery.  When you push your pins and needles into the strawberry, it sharpens them.  Well, this sweet little coffee cup pincushion is filled with emery, so Mom's pins and needles will always be sharp.  So clever! 

I picked up this darling little felt headband from louandlee. 

 
All of their designs are swoon worthy!

i've made a few more small purchases for Christmas gifts and have loads of yummy-ness in my favorites, like this print by jenniferramos...want want want

and this happy rug by krita...

 
and this french market tote by bayousalvage...

 
and this fun necklace by Joannarutter...

i ♥ etsy