Hello friends. How are things out there? I’m good, keeping busy. What have I been doing? Why, thanks for asking! Let’s see if I can give a little recap, in no particular order. (No photos today, sorry!)
Workshop in the Adirondacks
At the end of July, I got the opportunity to attend a 3 day workshop with Matt Monaco. I had a blast, met some very nice people, and learned exactly what I was hoping to learn. I feel confident about the shapes, curves, profiles I create. I have been struggling with getting a beautiful surface from my tools. In this workshop, we spent time learning about the profile on each tool we used. Matt walked us through how to create each profile, and what are the advantages of the profiles he uses. In the process, we all completed a beautiful platter (mine is made of Oregon Oak, and is the one in the center).
Rather than post a rerun here, if you want to know more about my time at the workshop, check out my daily posts on Instagram (here, here, and here). And I also want to say that, while Glens Falls might not be a destination city, if you find yourself needing to be in the area, I highly recommend staying at the Queensbury hotel. Very nice place, lots of dining within a few blocks, easy parking.
It took a few weeks before I could get back into my workshop after this workshop ( … life …). But even though I haven’t been able to reprofile my tools yet to match what we learned and used in the workshop, it was still such a happy moment when I did finally get back to my little shed. I don’t know if I gained skill or confidence (probably a bit of both), but just yesterday, I was quietly squealing with delight at the gorgeous finishes I was getting on the bradford pear and dogwood bowls I was finish turning.
Applying for grants
The workshop was amazing, but I probably wouldn’t have gone had I not received a grant from the Community Arts Partnership of Tompkins County. Applying for a grant was a new idea for me. It hadn’t occurred to me until I learned about the SOS Grant program (SOS stands for Strategic Opportunity Stipend) that there might be people or entities that would want to support my efforts financially. I was awarded enough to pay for both the 3-day workshop itself, and a hotel for 2 nights.
While the process of applying for a grant is nontrivial, I now have one under my belt. I understand a little more about what the grant providers are looking for. I hope to find and fund more opportunities this way.
Craft shows
I only started selling at craft shows last year, and I’ve already written about the learning curve of building the infrastructure for a booth. There’s so much more to learn than that. In July, I had my first craft show fail — the lesson I learned is that not all audiences are your audience. I did sell enough to cover the booth fee, gas to and from, and lunch. And maybe put a couple bucks in my pocket. But it was definitely not a money maker. I won’t go back next year. On the plus side, it gave me an opportunity to prove to myself I can set up and tear down my booth solo, in a reasonable amount of time.
August saw my first repeat show — my second year at the Ithaca Artist market. I shared a booth again, this time with a fellow Danbyite. We got along great, the layout of this booth was even better than last year, and i sold more than last year. So all in all, a success.
There is still so much to learn: who is my audience and where do they shop? what sort of “eye candy” draws people into my booth for a closer look? and so on.
Finding time
This is something I really need to work on. I have two events in September and four days of open studio in October. I occasionally have some anxiety that I should really have a lot more completed stock than I do, or that what I have is not what people are looking for, or that someone is looking for it but not the people that will be at these events. I know the core of my issue is that I’m waiting for someone to miraculously grant me the time and the permission to use it to create more. I also know in my heart that the “someone” can only be me. This is not a new battle, or one unique to me. It’s all a part of the growing pains of learning about this new world. Still … anyone got some time they can lend me?