Charlotte Fundraiser

Great attendance! and plenty of food

So we had the big fundraiser event in Charlotte, and it turned out to be a wonderful evening!  The woman behind it all, Hannah, did a marvelous job, down to the smallest details. You can read about her amazing story here.  Hannah brought in a well-respected Charlotte interior designer to help arrange the art, and they put in special lighting to highlight many of the works.  Rarely, have I seen that much effort go into an art event.  The fundraiser was held in two penthouse condos that were for sale, and so we had access to kitchens and bathrooms! Yay!  There were even lovely little napkins and soap in the bathrooms.  Those are the kinds of details that I noticed and appreciated.

Mike Lewis,  performance painter

Gotta love that red "SOLD" dot!

And here's the fun part :) I sold two pieces and got a commission for a third! So that's exciting!  I've already built the piece (it's still drying), but my next post will show details of how I made it.

Charlotte sky from the Penthouse

It was a great night and I was so honored to be a part of it.  And even better, some of our friends, that we don't get to see very often, were able to attend and we got to hang out with them too.  It was a win/win situation!  

Hope everyone is well and I'll be posting soon about that commissioned piece...

Kelly

The End of the 101010 Project

Wow - it has been a crazy two weeks, but I have so LOVED reading everyone's answers to these questions!  I thought a few of the questions were hard, and I had to do some real thinking about the answers.  

But that's why it was great - it made us think.  And I really and truly thought "my" question - the color question - was so cool.  I am very color-oriented in my life and it seemed to be a perfect fit.  

I want to thank Robin for coming up with such a fun and exciting project!  And what's more is that she is going to do two more sessions of this same project with other artists, and once again, I'll be jumping around, reading everyone's answers.  The next session kicks off on June 15.

If you missed some of the soulful goodness that has been shared, make sure and head over to the blog that holds ALL THE DETAILS on the project: CLICK HERE

So if you stuck with us the whole way, thank you.  I hope you enjoyed it.  Now it's back to our regular programming :) 

Have a great rest of the week!!

Kelly

What color is your Business? ~Me!!

So here is my answer to the big question.  I figure there's no need to put my photo on here :) You guys already know what I look like!

Kelly Thiel 

of Kelly Thiel Studio

Name of Business: Kelly Thiel Studio

kellythielstudio.com
kellythielpottery.blogspot.com
twitter.com/kellyTpottery
facebook.com/KellyThielSculpture

Years in Business: 10

Brief Bio:  An artist and a mother of two young girls, Kelly Thiel lives in South Carolina, USA creating award-winning clay and bronze sculptures, as well as doing art journaling and mixed media paintings.  She just finished building a new studio at her home, and is dying to log some real hours in there!  Kelly is doing her best to live life to the fullest and enjoy each day, with her art and her family.

What color describes my business? 

I had to think about this one for about 2 seconds.  Then I knew.  Pale Yellow.  My business is Pale Yellow for several reasons.  Right now, I know that my business is a paler version of what it could be.  I want it to be a bright, blazing, and cheerful yellow, but right now it isn’t.  My business is at a slow simmer and hopefully over the next few years as the kids start school, I’ll be able to turn up the heat and bring it to a boil.  It’s an exciting thought and one that keeps me awake at night!

So that's it!  You've read answers from 10 different artists.  Have you thought about it yet?  What color is your business?  It's an interesting question and I'd love to hear your answers!

What color is your Business? ~Nolwenn

Today, we have Nolwenn, a multi-faceted person.  She is also a teacher, in the online playground 21 Secrets, which is a super fun e-course for art journalers.  Welcome, Nolwenn!! (Great photo, huh?)

Artist Name : Nolwenn Petitbois

Business Name : Inner Worlds

Years in business : 2

Blog: http://inner-voices.net

Shop: http://InnerWorlds.etsy.com  

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/InnerVoices.net

Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/NolwennP

Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/user/NolwennBC

FlickR: http://www.flickr.com/photos/nolwennp

Brief bio:  I am a self-taught Mixed Media artist.  

Dreamer. Lover. Passionate. Gratitude Warrior. Bookaholic. Cook. Art Journaler...

I would never have thought that painting and creativity would be in my daily life and even less my business until not so long ago. I believe that nothing happens by coincidence and so that I do have powerful messages to share through what I create. I am a Mixed Media artist because my heart and soul need to play and discover all the time and Mixed Media allows me to mix and match techniques and materials.

My artwork usually represents strong whimsical women (that I called «Nixies») who have a positive message to deliver to the world, to you. I believe in the important power of Positive Affirmations and of Gratitude, that both guide me in my creative process. I am a life-long learner, and love to unravel new ways to make my path lighter and stronger. Healing is a huge part of my life path, I am now also a Practical Reiki Master and noticed how it shifted the way it affects my creativity and the entire process of it.

I am also an art journaler and is currently a teacher in the art journaling collaborative playground 21 Secrets that opened its doors in April 2012.

     What color describes your business?  

I would say «Teal». Because running Inner Voices feels like being on a constant wave. Sometimes I crash and burn on the rocks that are put on my way, sometimes I feel like I am on top of the World and can accomplish everything my Heart and Soul desire.

I am swimming in a huge ocean of Creative beings and it is not always easy to find my place, to figure out how to get noticed in all the wonderful art that is created and shared and sold each day.

We are nearing the end of this project, and on Monday, my answer will be posted!  Don't forget that you can go to the project homepage for more information!

What color is your business? ~Jan

Jan Avellana of 

Hazelnut Cottage

What color describes your business?
 
Right now, my hand stamped jewelry business is in transition in a big way, so I’d have to say that dark grey describes my business at the moment. There are many things I am letting go of, many new things I am venturing towards, but right now I am in the middle of getting from here to there. This is the scary moment of letting go, that moment of leaping before the net appears. All is not lost, since I do believe that the best is yet to be, that’s why I’ve chosen “grey” and not “black”! There is a quote by Anatole France and it reads: “All changes, even the most longed for, have their melancholy; for what we leave behind us is apart of ourselves; we must die to one life before we can enter another.” This is what “grey” speaks to me today...

here's my bio:
Jan Avellana is a mixed-media artist with a passion for art making, books, deep conversations, and seaside adventures with her three favorite men (ages 5, 8 and 42).  Jan spent the better part of her adult life trying very hard to be a grown-up with a traditional job. The birth of her two sons released her to follow her heart and reclaim the artist she has always been. In 2007, Jan created a line of silver hand stamped jewelry under the Hazelnut Cottage brand. Today, she revels in mixed-media messes, making heartfelt connections with others through art and words.

In print, you can find jan in  “The Pulse of Mixed Media”, “Inside the Creative Studio”, “Artful Blogging, Winter 2011” and “ClothPaperScissors Studios”. In life, you can find her immersed in the studio or at the beach (with paint in her hair). Online, you can find Jan here:

{etsy shop} http://www.hazelnutcottage.etsy.com
{blog} http://www.hazelnutcottage.typepad.com{newsletter} http://tiny.cc/pjtn9{facebook} http://www.facebook.com/hazelnutcottage

Only two more days of this blog project!  My answer will come on the last day, May 14th.  This is pretty cool, huh?

What color is your Business? ~Sonya

Another artist, Sonya, shares her answer to our question.

Sonya of 

sonyamacdesigns

What color describes your business?   

The color that describes my business these days is GREY ... a sweet combination of black&white  (which express my view of this world)

http://www.sonyamacdesigns.com/ 

https://www.facebook.com/sonyamacdesigns 

https://twitter.com/#!/sonyamacdesigns 

http://www.youtube.com/user/sonyamacdesigns 

Years in Business = 12

I’m this crazy JESUS loving creative … with 2 children living smack in the middle of Tennessee. The seeds of my creativity were watered with knitting needles, yarn and nine kittens on a rock covered patio in the mid sixties. Today, we hold the fort down with a few less kittens (3) … and thankfully my creative edge remains in tact. I’m often inspired by some odd ball stuff & compelled to create by the sweet whispers of the HOLY Spirit. An idea generator am I. Creative collaboration is a sweet spot with me and many have locked creative hands with me to work on projects like The Bond & Respond Quilt project of 2010, Inspired Studios Magazine & The Creative Biz Marathon. My service to HIM in the body of the church currently is that of Women’s Ministry Coordinator, Southeast Baptist Church Murfreesboro TN. 

What color is your Business? ~Jean

From Seattle, we have Jean, who works in colorful jewelry.  She also does art journaling, and other fun creative projects!  Here is her answer to our question:

Jean Simrose

jsimrose@gmail.com

jeansimrose.typepad.com

jeansimrose.etsy.com

What color describes your business?

I’ve always had an affinity to turquoise. When I was designing my business cards I decided to use a favorite photograph my husband took of a dragonfly. To make the picture more dramatic we decided to make a color negative of it. The red dragonfly turned out turquoise and the green rosebud turned purple.

Turquoise: represents a higher heart; creative communicators; trusting intuition and femininity.

Purple: represents higher mind power; good judgment; peace of mind and inspiration.

I love these two colors together and they seem to fit with my creative business.

Tomorrow, we have Sonya's answer to the question.  Don't forget, if you want to learn more or read other answers, click here.

What color is your Business? ~Robin

Here is Robin, a lady I much admire.  She seems to have endless energy, and so much enthusiasm for her creative business.  She is a very hard worker, and a mother too!!

Robin Norgren 

Name of business: Robin Norgren Studios

Social media links:

Website: http://www.robinnorgrenstudios.blogspot.com

Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/robinlnorgren

Facebook:  http://www.facebook.com/wellofcreations.myetsyshop

Years in business: 4 years

Brief Bio:

 I strive to live life to the fullest.  No matter what.  I have grown into myself through my love for Jesus and HIS LOVE FOR ME. Art, motherhood, business, creativity and yoga are the cherished vehicles for this deepening.   Life can be FULL, JUICY, MEANINGFUL, PURPOSE FILLED, LOVELY.  I want to help you come to your fullest life.  I create workbooks, ecourses and workshops that chronicle my change and growth and offer you ways to find out what YOUR FULLEST life will be. 

What color describes your business?

I can’t believe I am saying this but the color of my business is pink!  I am not normally into pink and actually I very rarely wear the color.  When I first started my business I gravitated to orange and yellow and all things funky, all things boho.  And then suddenly my life, my heart, my business took a feminine turn.

I got more heart centered, more soulful.  The business became more about the “why” I do business and why I was just the person to serve those that connect in my business.  So here I am embracing who I am… and embracing pink.

Still more to come!  We have more ladies answering the big COLOR question, so keep checking with me here.  If you want to read the other questions and learn more, click here.

What color is your Business? ~Alease

Here is Alease, who is obviously very business-oriented, and her answer to the question.

Alease Michelle of 

The School of Creative Business

Name of Business: 

The School of Creative Business

Social sites:

Blog: www.schoolofcreativebusiness

Facebook: www.facebook.com/AleaseMichelle

Twitter: Alease Michelle

Years in business:  

4

Bio:

As an expert, Alease lends knowledge to the press, editorials and serves as a subject-matter expert. She is a sought-after presenter in the areas of creative marketing, personal image, branding and fashion.

As a professor, Alease is committed to her student’s education, furthering their exposure and considers their success a direct reflection of herself.

As a mixed-media artist, Alease participated in several exhibitions. Wishing to market her artistic endeavors, she found little advice available. This, coupled with her passion for education – she tracked her online marketing & branding journey and founded The School of Creative Business.

Current Projects:

On a 12 Week Sabbatical

 (video updates) https://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=10150720851787080&saved#!/video/?id=818177079

101 Free Resources to Grow Your Creative Business

https://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=10150720851787080&saved#!/SchoolofCreativeBusiness/app_197602066931325

Creative Entrepreneurs of the Month Interviews

http://aleasemichelle.typepad.com/my_weblog/creative-entrepreneur-interviews/

Starting Points for Creative Entrepreneurs webinars

http://www.anymeeting.com/AMStudio

 What color describes your business?   

Blue- not in a depressing way, but in the positive enlighten way.  Blue is uplifting to me. Makes me look forward to the next day.

To view more questions and to learn more about the 101010 Project, click here!

What color is your Business? ~Leanne

This energetic soul creates inspiring artwork with lots of happy colors in it.  Here is her answer.

Leanne Wargowsky of 

From Chaos Comes Happiness

Name of Business: From Chaos Comes Happiness


Social Media Links:
Blog: www.fromchaoscomeshappiness.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/From-Chaos-Comes-Happiness/125848910797771
Shop: http://www.etsy.com/shop/chaostohappiness

Years in Business:  Approaching 1


Bio:

Born, raised, and currently living in the Chicago land area, this happily chaotic soul is definitely a newbie in the universe of creative businesses.  Last August, after 25 years in healthcare, I was released from days of insurance and hospitals and I started listening to my inner artist.  My dream, From ChaosComes Happiness, was born.  I'm not doing it alone, though, as my support system is wide and deep with a husband who encourages me and two beautiful daughters who inspire me.  While I have a long way to go in this business of mine, I'm determined to remain true to who I am, and stopping just long enough to smell the roses along the way.

What color describes your business?  

When I first read this question, I thought "easy peesy!" But the more I looked at the color wheel, I felt drawn to so many of the colors out there. Trying to narrow an artistic person down to one color is quite a challenge. The color RED is represented widely in my studio, as bookshelves and frames and accent pieces here or there. Red gives off a great energy and inspires me to take chances and be BOLD in my work. However, I must choose YELLOW as the main color to describe my business . . .  Bright and sunny, and full of creative energy. Yellow is said to stimulate mental processes and encourage communication. Much of my art has to do with inspiring and encouraging, and I can't think of a better way to encourage communication with others. "Some painters transform the sun into a yellow spot, others transform a yellow spot into the sun." - Pablo Picasso

To view more questions and to learn more about the 101010 Project, click here!

What color is your Business? ~Stephanie

Here is the second artist to answer our question: What color is your Business?  I've followed Stephanie in her online life for a while now, and she seems like such a happy, energetic person.  Here is her answer.

Stephanie Amos of Koi Studios

Name of business: KoiStudios

Social media links:

Web- http://www.koi-studios.com

Blog- www.samos-koistudios.blogspot.com

Twitter-http://www.twitter.com/stephanieamos

Etsy- www.muddypotts.etsy.com

www.samos.etsy.com

www.stephanieamos.etsy.com

Facebook- https://www.facebook.com/pages/samos/39883324558

Years in business: 7 years

Bio:

I live in the mountains of Colorado with my amazing husband, three loving dogs, two handsome horses, and the queen of all cats. When I'm not out riding, I am usually in one of the two studios at our home where I paint, throw, sculpt and shoot my camera. I am more or less a free spirit in the sense that I can never sit still and am easily distracted by my interest in trying something new. I am fascinated with color and texture which is not limited to just art, but architecture as well. I love to travel and have been to many beautiful places and look forward to seeing the rest of the world real soon. 

What color describes your business?

After putting much thought into this I have concluded that orange describes KoiStudios. I have three reasons why. One is that orange is one of my favorite colors. It’s such a cheerful color and makes me happy. I would hope that anyone that collects my art is happy when they receive a package from KoiStudios. The second reason is that orange is a warm and inviting color, one that represents me and my business well. The last reason reflects the name of my business, KoiStudios. When I think of koi fish, I immediately think of the orange koi first. So naturally, orange is the best color that describes my business!


To view more questions (and answers!) and to learn more about the 101010 Project, click here!

What color is your Business? ~Kelly W.

Welcome to the first post of the 10 Women 10 Businesses 10 Questions series!  I'll be posting every weekday for two weeks, with the answer to this question:  What Color Describes Your Business??  Each day, I'll have an answer from a different artist and then on the last day, May 14th, I'll post my answer to the question.  I thought this was a fun question - if you have any thoughts about the color of your business, please post it in the comments section.  I'd love to read it!

And now, introducing.....

Kelly Warren of Happy Shack Designs

Name of business: Happy Shack Designs

Social media links:

For my website, visit http://www.happyshackdesigns.com

For my blog, visit http://happyshackdesigns.blogspot.com

For my jewelry on Etsy, visit http://happyshackdesigns.etsy.com

For my art and photos on Etsy, visit http://kellywarrenphotoart.etsy.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Happy.Shack.Designs

Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/kellynwarren

Years in business: 7

Bio: An artist with a short attention span, I create work in artisan jewelry, fine art photography, mixed media, and book arts. I've also been known to sew a thing or two. I work full-time by day as the Director of Student Life and Leadership Development at a large four-year college in Florida, and am the lucky mama to wonderfully sweet eight-year-old twin red-headed daughters. I have been married to a handsome man of great patience who's put up with my art shenanigans for 17 years now.

What color describes your business?

“I cannot pretend to feel impartial about colors. I rejoice in the brilliant ones and am genuinely sorry for the poor browns.” ~ Sir Winston Churchill. 

Did you know that Winston Churchill was also an artist?  And his quote sums up my love of color. What color describes my business?  Bright, happy colors! The name of my business I think clearly reflects my outlook on life and my love of color.  When you think of a “happy shack,” what color do you picture it to be? I certainly don’t think of brown.  I think of bright Caribbean blue, with pink porch ceilings and aqua doors. Every room inside this little shack is painted a different color, each just as happy.  And in this, my friends, I have truly described for you what my own home looks like to a T.  And that love of color is reflected in my work. My jewelry designs are filled with brightly colored handmade glass beads and gemstones, my photography is juicy with saturated color, and my mixed media work is spilling in color as well. I can’t pick a favorite.  I love every color on God’s beautiful rainbow.   

To view more questions and to learn more about the 101010 Project, click here!