Athena Dreams Design

Pantone Memories

I've had a deep and abiding love affair with Pantone since my first year in art school. First year in most art schools means having to take a class in every discipline, even if you think you already know what you want to focus on, and I groaned when I saw that Design 101 was on my schedule.

Design was so not what I had come to art school to do, and funnily enough, it turned out to be fun, and something I was good at... funny how that works, skill and desire for something I never would have done on my own.

The first assignment was about illustrating a word. I got the word "naked".

We were given a list of materials we could use to complete the project and off I went to the school store to look at what my options were. It was then and there that I met Pantone papers, then printed by Letraset.

I had never heard of Pantone, never knew you could buy sheets of printed paper in colours that stretched though more hues and shades and tints then I had ever seen before. I was smitten. I was, truth be told, delirious. And if I had had thousands of dollars would have purchased one (and in some cases three) of everything. I did purchase a few in my favourite colours, and then purchased 5 shades of "naked", and completed my first design assignment (pre-Photoshop, Illustrator and etc).

In this wonderfully modern age of electronic everything, some things have gone the way of the dinosaur, and the pantone papers are no longer made, but you can find them here and there, every once in a while.

I still have some 3" x 5" sample sheets that I use sometimes. But mostly, I look at them and arrange the colours and remember the first time I met Pantone.

 

And what got me started down this particular memory lane? Well, just in time for NY Fashion Week, Pantone released their Fall 2012 Colour Report.

Going with What's Happening

Much of September has been about throwing away the daily to-do list and going with what is happening for me. I have some deadlines. I have some contract jobs. And then I have the rest of my time. Time that is spent on what I choose to spend it on.

Until this month, I have been blocking out chunks of my days: 2 hours for design time, 3 hours for painting, 1 hour for a walk, etc. Well, this month I changed all that, and opted to experiment a bit with my time and my schedule. I have my larger to-do list, but the day to day one: gone.

I have been spending the time that is not taken up with a deadline or a client, doing what I am excited about in that moment, on that day. So today, I had planned to paint, but, today, I am way into printing miniature images of my paintings and setting them into various and sundry bezels and flats, and pouring resin.

Today, the only brush I am using is the one that's coated with matte medium to seal the ink on my prints, and then it's mixing and pouring the resin, and hovering, waiting for the air bubbles to form and rise to the surface so I can get rid of them. It's what I MOST want to do with the time that is mine today.

I think I might be onto something with this experiment in how I use my time. It's just a bit past 11am and I count 20 something pendants poured and setting.

 

A Good Pillow (Cover)

Who would have thought that a pillow cover or 2 created with my artwork, could make me feel as happy as a little kid... not me, but they do.

Last week, my shop opened up at a european website called Envelop, debuting 2 pillow covers. One made from the painting Night Garden, and the other from the painting Matilija Poppy (pictured above, showing the front and the back).

The work to put these pillow designs together was a perfect yummy blend of three things I most love:

• painting (which was already done, but still plays a part)
• creating patterns
• colour 

You know all those wiser-than-many-of-us-people who are saying things like find something you love to do, work hard and go for it? They are SO not wrong, in fact they are SO very right.

So if you have been thinking about getting your work onto some textiles that are printed on demand and shipped all over the world (and I know some of you have), go here, and DO IT.

Pillows people. More pillows to come... Pillows!

February 2011 .:. Biz Goals

Pink Tulip necklace, available here.

January's goals were short, and really really sweet. I mean really sweet. I can't remember a month that was more fun, because my goals were fun. I think we all sometimes have a tendency to make work, well, work, when it may be work, but it's also what we love to be doing everyday (or most days), and so, it really is fun. Did someone, sometime, somewhere, really say that work should be any of these things:

• dreary
• negatively competitive 
• heart-breaking
• soul-sucking
• the thing you do until you get to go home to your real life

Yeah, I don't think so either. Most of us who come here at the beginning of each month are working for ourselves, (or are working to get there) we are growing businesses around ideas/talents/things we love to do, and sometimes we lose touch with loving what we are doing, so I am here to remind myself and all of you, let's get back in touch with that feeling: no matter the stressful days, the overworked evenings, the crazy deadlines, and the such like, we are here because we love what we are doing, and how lucky are we!

SO, here were my JANUARY goals:

1. Figure out what working smarter is, and how I can make it a regular and central part of my life and my work.
2. Create for fun and joy.

I can say I successfully did all of them. I am not done with #1 or #2, and I worked them all month long. I am going to keep my February goals pretty simple again, and see how that goes.

February:

1. Identify 3-5 new product categories to create with my art/design. Research. Prototype.
2. Find a mentor. I have NO idea how to do this, but the first step is always putting it out there. I want to find a mentor who is also an artist and a designer, and has worked their art and design into brilliantly placed, licensed product that are seen and bought and loved all over the world. 
3. I think #2 above might go under the category of working smarter.
4. Repeat #2 from last month.

OK, here we are, the shortest month of the year, so it's gonna go even faster than the one that just passed us by. Let's take February by storm, in a crazy, fabulous cloud of creativity, ideas, colour, movement and inspiration! Happy February everyone!

________________________

IF you are new to The Meetup or would like to play along, here's the scoop:

• Post a list of your business related goals for the current month on the 1st of each month on your blog. {If the 1st falls on a weekend, post on the following Monday.}
• Come back over here and leave a link to your goals blog post in the comments of my current month's goals.
• And then {and this is the most important part, since we are a community} visit all the links in the comments, stop in and say hello, have a conversation, meet and greet and etc.
• You can also "meet" the Meet Up peeps, go here and visit the links.

Tilt Your Head Back and Laugh at the Sky .:. a free download

Realisation. Perfection. Laughter. Sky. Everything.

How many moments in life do I need to remember this one? Well I won't quantify that number, but suffice it to say I created this "Perfection" card as much for myself as for you all.

 

   

And so without further ado, but making room for much laughter, here is my second free downloadable card, just for you!  I give you a the Perfection Card, along with an envelope for you to print and use to your heart's content. 

You can download it here:  Download Spring Gift. Or leave me a comment here and I will send the file directly to your in-box. It is a 3 page document, one page for the card, one for the envelope and a page of instructions for printing and cutting and pasting. 

And as ever, just one requst: This card is for your personal use only, please do not re-sell, change or modify the artwork in any way. Thanks.

The Holiday of Love

I know that there are a lot of people that feel that Valentine's Day is a Hallmark card invention, and more about commerce than love, which may be partly true, but according to an article this week in the Telegraph, its origins are most likely traced back to ancient Rome, among other places. 

Apparently in the days of old Rome 13-15 February was a pagan fertility festival called Lupercalia. And, OK, so it seems that the main part of these festivities centered around young men running naked in the streets using goat or dog skin whips to smack young women's bums in order to improve their fertility, but you know, it was a festival, and, all festivals usually include some wild aspect... uhm, haven't we all been to Burning Man, or heard the stories...

So, more history in a nutshell for you (PLEASE NOTE: irreverence ahead): in the very early years of A.D., there were several martyrs with the name Valentine or Valentina, who probably perished in some unspeakable ways, and then the Catholic church came along and called the 14th of February a saints day, no doubt to upstage those naughty pagans. Fast forward quite a few centuries and Chaucer comes along to write something naughty (again) in old english about the engagement of Richard II and Anne of Bohemia (mm-hmm). Now, fast forward another century and we have the first Court of Love, in Paris (of course), which deals with legal matters of the heart, and ya da ya da, and now onward a few more centuries to Shakespeare mentioning Valentine's Day in his play Hamlet - a long soliloquy by Ophelia, before the drowning.

So, that's probably more than enough to give you the idea, that the symbols and beginnings for Valentine's Day were around long before Hallmark opened their doors, I guess they saw a good thing and jumped on board, so to speak.

I want to say too, that I know there are people who loathe this day because they are single. For me - someone who has spent many a Valentine's Day without a true-love - this day has always been less about romance and flowers and having an "other", and so much more about carrying along that tradition begun in elementary school of giving a valentine to any and everyone that you love or even just like a lot. 

I loved the day of the Valentine at school. We would tape paper bags to the sides of our little desks, and everyone would put valentine's in each others bags. Most were handmade and handwritten, some the hallmark variety, but all of them were so very sweet. Did you all do this too? I remember coming home with all my Valentine's in my little paper bag, and sleeping with them under my pillow, until they got all ratty and bent, and my mother probably whisked them away.

And so in the tradition of my elementary school experience, I give you a Valentine, along with an envelope for you to print and use to your heart's content. You can download it here: Download Valentine Gift. Or leave me a comment here and I will send the file directly to your in-box. It is a 3 page document, one page for the card, one for the envelope and a page of instructions for printing and cutting and pasting. 

Happy Valentine's Day, and may all your heart's be full to overflowing.

PLEASE NOTE: This card is for your personal use only, please do not re-sell, change or modify the artwork in any way. Thanks.

February 2010 .:. Monthly Goals

 

Did you all catch how quickly January just passed us by? I have to say in all honesty that the start of the year, which I was looking forward to greatly, didn't begin with the beauty and grace that I had envisioned. The first few weeks were full of long deadlines, and a stubbed and broken toe, and lots and lots and lots of rain, and no feelings of "aaahhhh, here begins a fabulous new year". That all changed last week, well, the deadlines ended, the rain is still coming, but thankfully, and I now feel ready to begin this year with a (tiny) hop in my step, whilst singing a happy song.

So January was: 

1. Creating a plan for my business(es) - my artwork and my design work
2. Researching and contacting 3 galleries - DID research, no contacting, but have a really great list going!
3. PAINTing at least 2 hours a day - YES!
4. Writing at least 2 hours every other day - hmmm, nope

#3 is the only one I can say that I accomplished. Since January ended up being all about design deadlines, all the rest fell by the wayside, and I had a small epiphany moment about #2, and that is that I need to get more work painted, so I have something of substance to show a gallery. Yup. That little item, needs to be accomplished.

And so on to February:

1. Bakery's Half Dozen course - and it looks like it's starting off BIG, with the Biz Plan - who else in this group is doing the Bakery course?
2. Continue researching galleries
3. Same as last month: PAINT
4. Focus Focus Focus: what is my next destination with my art/design/writing? A vision in my own mind needs to be conjured up. Less metaphorical rushing around putting out and starting fires, and more clear and focused thinking
5. Decide what classes I want to take at Squam this september. Registration is OPEN as of today. Anyone thinking about going? Elizabeth (the brainstorm behind Squam) has a great quote up on the Squam Art Workshops site:

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover."

OK, let's go forth and experience February!

IF you are new to the Meet Up, here's the scoop:

• Post a list of your business related goals for the current month on the 1st of each month on your blog. {If the 1st falls on a weekend, post on the following Monday.}
• Come back over here and leave a link to your goals blog post in the comments of my current month's goals.
• And then {and this is the most important part, since we are a community} visit all the links in the comments, stop in and say hello, have a conversation, meet and greet and etc.

January 2010 .:. Monthly Goals

2009 has passed, and already we are 4 days into 2010. The transition was wonderful, I have decided that all new year eve's should fall on a thursday and then roll into a lovely 3 day weekend. Who agrees? 

This morning though was rather a rude awakening. Words of the year to choose, work to get done, and reviewing my goals in 2009 to see if I got anywhere that I was trying to get.

Overall I did okay: 

• I grew my sales in my Etsy shop, not by the percentage that I had wanted, but still, it grew.
• Had my work in 5 shows in 2009, and sold almost half of what was shown (that gets a smiley face)
• Got my newsletter up and going, and published it 5 times since July of last year
• Kept my ears open to listen to that inner voice, and has it ever served me well

How are you all feeling about your 2009 goals overall? Are you excited about 2010? Do you have some big plans you are ready to share?

There are several items that appeared a couple of times that I did not get to, and so tackling these, or at least reviewing these for 2010 are tops on the list, and truly they all center around getting better organised and coming up with AND following some kind of overall plan. Call it a business plan, call it a life plan, call it whatever, but how does that phrase go... Plan your work and Work your plan...

• Working on art and design to license
• Contact 3-5 galleries each month regarding shows
• Marketing
• Develop a comprehensive website that will incorporate art/design/blog
• Create some regular columns for the blog

Specifically for January I am working on:

1. Creating a plan for my business(es) - my artwork and my design work
2. Researching and contacting 3 galleries
3. PAINTing at least 2 hours a day
4. Writing at least 2 hours every other day

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Some news about the Biz Meet Up Group

Many of you probably already know that Jena will no longer be hosting the Modish Monthly Goals meet up. She is busy working on her vintage shop Miss Modish and writing for her ever popular Modish blog, and so the Meet Up will find its new home here, as well as get a bit of an expansion and polish up. I would like to say a very huge thank you to Jena for what she started, and what she has given to all of us that participated regularly in her Modish Monthly Meet Up, thanks Jena, you are amazing!

In the near future, we will be adding some features like interviews and resources and make this Meet Up the community that it wants to be for entrepreneurial artists, craftsters, photographers, writers and a larger mix of creative endeavors. 

We will also  be creating some on-line group spaces for people to stay in touch and connect over and above the once monthly goal posting, so come on and join in the fun! Make some friends, learn a few things, share some of your knowledge with others, and so on and so on.

If you are interested in being a participant and want information about the on-line groups, please send me an e-mail, or leave a comment here.

IF you are new to the Meet Up, here's the scoop:

• Post a list of your business related goals for the current month on the 1st of each month on your blog. {If the 1st falls on a weekend, post on the following Monday.}
• Come back over here and leave a link to your goals blog post in the comments of my current month's goals.
• And then {and this is the most important part, since we are a community} visit all the links in the comments, stop in and say hello, have a conversation, meet and greet and etc.

Ok, so here comes 2010, let's GO!

Lovely Mention-ables

A few weeks ago I got a message from Jenny Swanson, telling me about a daily art project called the Retrieval Project. She and her husband and family have taken some wonderfully amazing leaps of faith (all in the name of art and living the life they dream of) and after several moves, find that some of their treasured belongings are being held hostage somewhere in Minnesota, while they are in the Bay Area. 

Read about their journey and the their incredibly creative Retrieval Project. And see how a painting a day can fund the reunion of a family and their treasured belongings. This project started 1 August and will be going until 19 September. 

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Have you been longing/thinking/hoping for a more professional looking blog? Lots of posts this past week about Niya Christine's 5 Elements of Professional Looking Blog Design, but here is one more. The live webinar (broadcast through Typepad's webinar series) was on the 12th of this month, but you can still hear the recording of the live discussion. Niya and Andy Wibbels discuss the best (oh yes, and the worst) of small business blogging, and use lots of great examples from the blogosphere.  

Can I just say that this "webinar" is a wonderful resource if you are feeling some blahs about your blog, and wanting some great design input, theory and/or ideas about how to grow, enhance or change your blog. 

Niya comes from a strong art background, and has an astute sense of design, an amazing way with words, a finely honed sense of marketing, branding and an inate know-how to spotlight a product, a person, a rabbit or an idea. I am just saying if you need a website or blog design or help with how to market your small business or promote yourself, she's your Girl, (oh and she's an amazing and wonderful friend too).

* * * * * * *

So, this is something I have wanted to do for a while, start a new weekly "column" called Lovely Mentionables where I talk about the happenings in my world, and let you all know about artists, people, writers, art happenings and anything else that strikes my Mentionable fancy. Please contact me if you have something Lovely and Mentionable that you'd like me to share.

Calling all Altars

Some altars from around Flickr.

I've always had a fascination with personal altars or shrines. The altars that people create for any number of reasons or purposes: for prayer, for remembrance, for growth, for change, for beauty, for collecting precious items, for anything.

If anyone has a personal altar or personal "sacred space" or special spot to share, I would love to see photos of it. E-mail or by comments.