Review (and Giveaway!) Doodle Diary

by Sister-Diane on September 1, 2010

in Craft Books

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Dawn Devries Sokol sent me a review copy of Doodle Diary: Art Journaling for Girls, her new book aimed at girls aged 8 and up. It’s really fun and cute!

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It’s all hand-lettered and drawn by Dawn. And there is some basic art-journaling information in the front, but most of the book is dedicated to creative prompts that will get girls actually making art in the book.

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Each two-page spread is another colorful, enticing idea. Honestly, if you were interested in breaking into art journaling but felt intimidated by the adult books, I think this would be a fantastic entry point into the craft.

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If I had a niece, she’d be getting this book as a back-to-school present. But since I’m more of a nephew-girl, let’s have a giveaway!

To enter, post a comment below and tell me about the girl you’ll give this to if you win. (If that girl happens to be you, that’s totally okay.) Bonus points if, in your entry, you can explain to me just how the heck it’s already September.

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I’ll take entries through Sunday, September 6th. International readers, you’re most welcome to enter.

Good Luck! (Oh – and that link up there is an affiliate link.)

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While I re-assemble my shattered calendar, here’s a post from the now-retired Make & Meaning blog. Light some votive candles for the possibility of a new podcast this week, willya?

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Image by jcolman, via Flickr

If you want to cross over from hobbyist maker to professional maker, I’m growing to believe that one simple question will get you there: “What’s in this for me?”

First, let’s dispel all the cultural stigma around that question. It doesn’t make you a grabby, selfish person. What it does make you is a person who evaluates opportunities well – and that’s a crucial business skill in the 21st century.

Here’s what I mean: when you’re new at the whole professional-maker game, and you’re trying to break in and get established, new opportunities can seem uniformly golden. The idea that someone has noticed you, and is inviting you to do something (contribute a piece, organize an event, participate in a panel discussion) – that’s exciting, right?

It is, as long as you first figure out what’s really in it for you.

 

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Image by Peter E. Lee, via Flickr

Interestingly, we’re in an age where there’s an unprecedented amount of project-ing going on around us. Internet tools make it so easy for people to collaborate and take action, we have an explosion of independent efforts in progress – whether they’re indie magazines, conferences, community beautification efforts, websites, or anything else.

Not only that, the web makes it easier than ever for corporate entities to find you and get interested in your work. Build up enough of a presence on the web, and sooner or later they’ll come calling, too.

These are awesome, loaded-with-opportunity times. The only caveat is, your time and attention are limited. If you want to become a professional maker, you need to be able to invest both in ways that pay off for you.

So, when you’re invited to participate in any project, it pays to ask, “What’s in this for me?”

 

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Image by D Sharon Pruitt, via Flickr

Sometimes, the what’s in it for you will be money. Sometimes, it’ll be a chance to speak directly to a whole new group of potential customers. Sometimes, it’ll be a chance to trade your skills for some product or service that’s valuable to you. When the return is this concrete, the opportunity is often a good bet.

Other times, the what’s in it for you won’t be as clear. Maybe you’ll be offered a vague promise of “exposure” with no concrete means of getting your business card into people’s hands. Maybe you’ll be offered “a chance to sell your work” with no concept of whether the audience is actually receptive. Maybe you’ll be offered the chance to have your logo on the program… along with a hundred others. When the value to you is fuzzy, the opportunity might be worth a pass.

Don’t be afraid to ask as many questions as you need to until you know for sure. Your time and energy are precious, no matter if you’re just starting out or a veteran professional maker. So don’t spend them unless you will benefit in some way. (Not “might benefit,” will benefit. I think a lot of rookies, myself included, tend to assume there will be “some kind of benefit” and plunge right in. And I’ve learned, more times than I care to admit, that this assuming can be a mistake.)

 

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Image by kalleboo, via Flickr

I learned to ask this question later than I should have. I’ve spent hours writing free articles that few people read. I’ve spent money and days running free craft tables where nobody was interested in my flyers. Heck, I even blew several months organizing a craft show once, with no marketing benefit for my business at all.

If I had only asked “what’s in this for me? at the outset of these projects, I could have used all those hours much more profitably. (That’s not to say that all the people organizing these opportunities were out to bilk me. The fault was completely mine for not asking the question.)

It’s an important distinction between a hobbyist maker and a professional one: generally, the longer you strive to make your living from making, the more you grow to steward your time. From a business standpoint, it’s an absolute necessity that the effort you expend be balanced with some form of compensation. That compensation can take any form you want, but if it’s not there, you’re mostly fueling other people’s dreams.

(Is that a bad thing? Not at all. But will it also grow your career? And can you afford the time?)

 

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Image by planeta, via Flickr

And as a sidebar, when you’re organizing your own professional projects, and you want to involve other people, what’s in it for them? becomes a crucial skill to have, too. When you’re inviting someone to give you their time and energy, if you can make it clear right up front what’s in it for them, you’ll immediately set yourself apart from so many others clamoring for time and attention.

What are your thoughts? How do you evaluate your opportunities? And what kinds of trouble have you gotten into by not asking, What’s in it for me?

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Review: Brave New Knits

by Sister-Diane on August 26, 2010

in Craft Books

Print publishers have made many attempts to embrace the crafty blogosphere – some more successful than others. I think the mix works best when a printed book seeks to create a tangible record of the wonderful-but-intangible community we enjoy.

Julie Turjoman is about to release Brave New Knits: 26 Projects and Personalities from the Knitting Blogosphere – a book that celebrates how blogging has influenced knitting, and vice versa.

I should say right up front: I’m not a knitter, so I’m not qualified to comment on the instructional side of this book. I’ll show you some of the garment projects included, but you’ll want to check out some knitters’ reviews for details on the patterns.

I do love how Julie has selected a nice blend of knitwear designers to represent the knitting blogosphere – a mixture of established stars and new arrivals. I particularly liked the contributions of Teresa Gregorio, Mari Muinonen, Shannon Okey, Jared Flood (who also photographed the book), and Kathy Veeza.

The projects are divided into two sections: a variety of sweaters and a variety of accessories (including hats, scarves, and socks). This is a book for people who have basic knitting skills already – there is some coverage of special techniques in the back of the book, but no coverage of basic knitting stitches (which I always like in a craft book, because it leaves more room for projects.)

Interspersed with the patterns are profiles of the 26 designers, which reveal how they fell into knitting, and how the web has shaped their career paths. Many of these designers participate in traditional publishing, but there’s no denying that the influence of Ravelry has created strong indie publishing streak in the community.

(Don’t you wish we had a Ravelry for every craft? So do I. But I digress….)

Other themes that emerge in these interviews are how a blogger’s community of readers influences his or her design process, and how sharing your inspirations and designs publicly can lead to career opportunities. I was also struck by the way the web has allowed many more unique design styles to emerge than the traditional publishing world (always in need of widespread sales) has been able to foster. Because there are no gatekeepers in the blogosphere, the knitting community has been able to grow in all kinds of original directions.

Though we’re all immersed in the online community, it’s true that there’s still a vast swath of the world population who’s never looked at a blog. Brave New Knits is a nice introduction for these folks to a world that can change your creative and career path profoundly.

For those of us who hang out in the blogosphere all the time, this book is a lovely archive of this exciting moment in the collision of a very old craft with a very new social landscape.

(The usual disclosures: Julie sent me a review copy of her book, and the title link is an affiliate link.)

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So, back in the significantly-more-carefree month of June, I thought, “I need a crochet project.” I had this cone of stranded yarn that I’d picked up from Yarnia on clearance, and I thought I’d fulfill a longtime dream of mine – to make a scarf from small granny squares.

…But then I got curious to see just how many little squares I could get out of this cone. Well, it’s clear at this point that I’ll have enough to make a great big blanket.

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And that’s where I could use some help from you fiber-lovers. See the yarn? It’s mostly purple, but that one strand of bright red is really prominent. Not only that, the variegation makes the squares pretty visually complex. I think I need another solid color or two to border these little grannies and give the blanket more harmony.

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These red grannies are about 3″ square (or they will be once they’re blocked). What colors would you use between them? I’m leaning toward neutrals, but yarn-color-selection is not my forte. I’d love some suggestions!

(Oh, and while I’m here, I should let you know that my video blog and Google Analytics tutorials have had to go on hiatus until after Labor Day. Sorry, friends – I am up to my eyeballs in work deadlines for a while. The Crafty Goodness will return, don’t worry!)

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This is a post from the now-retired Make & Meaning blog – though I changed the title, as the original title was rather lame on second reflection.

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Image by Tipiro, via Flickr Creative Commons

It’s true that you can declare yourself an artist (crafter, writer, etc.) anytime you want.

But if you want to become a professional maker (that is to say, get paid for what you make), then you’ll have to get some other people to declare you an artist as well – and consent to pay you for your work.

What’s interesting these days is that, if you want a third party to declare you a professional maker, you can take two distinct approaches:

 

Approach #1: The Corporate Gatekeeper

For decades, we’ve lived in a system where a small number of people or institutions had the power to decide which makers would become professionals. There were people who decided whether your manuscript would be published or not. People who decided whether your paintings could hang in galleries or not. People who chose whether the songs you wrote would be played on the radio – or not.

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Image by Sam Javanrouh, via Flickr Creative Commons

Approach #2: The Fan Base

Nowadays, we’re watching the influence of these corporate gatekeepers wane, as a new breed of makers begins to do that deciding for themselves. Thanks to the internet, you can self-publish that manuscript. Build an online gallery of your paintings. Share your own music via MySpace. All this requires is the focus necessary to hike whatever learning curves you need to in order to make it happen.

But you do still have to face a kind of gatekeeper in order to be paid for these efforts – in fact, a whole slew of individual gatekeepers. Now, instead of appealing to an editor or a corporate buyer, you have to develop and appeal to an audience. And not just an audience of blank-faced consumers, but an audience (and a community) of true fans.

 

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Image by Dawn M. Armfield, via Flickr Creative Commons

Pros and Cons

You might think I’m about to say that the corporate gatekeeper is somehow evil, while the fans are the best audience for a true artist. Well, not quite.

I certainly do think that, if you produce your own work and actively build your own fan community, you get to enjoy a deep connection to the handful of people who really “get” what you do. That’s pure gold to makers.

The downside is, you have to work very hard to keep this kind of professional making viable. You have to wear lots of hats. You have to earn your fans’ support every single day – but you also can’t ask your community for money over and over. You have to keep seeking more and more fans, and diversifying your business efforts – and if your work isn’t very mainstream, this may be an uphill path.

 

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Image by Grant MacDonald, via Flickr Creative Commons

Those corporate gatekeepers, on the other hand, often control access to much bigger audiences. If you can connect with the right gatekeepers, and convince them you’re worth letting in, theoretically at least, you can make much more income. (In some creative industries, of course, you can spend years knocking on doors, trying to find a gatekeeper who’ll say yes.)

Also (in some cases), if you seek a corporate partnership, you might have someone to handle the business end of things so you can focus more on making.

The trade-off? Well, the larger the audience you can reach through a corporate partner, the more bland and mainstream your work may need to be in order to appeal. This may mean compromising your creative vision, and it may mean producing work you aren’t in love with in order to make a buck.

 

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Image by ladyvee9, via Flickr Creative Commons

Which to choose?

So, which kind of audience is best for makers? I’d definitely say, both. And start by appealing to those fans.

If I have one new year’s wish for makers everywhere, it’s that sometime in 2010, you’ll try being your own producer at least once. You can start small, too – make a zine, record a video, or start a blog. Just produce something on your own, and don’t wait for some outside influence to tell you whether you’re good enough to do it. You’ll learn a ton in the process, and you’ll begin to step into the shoes of a real 21st century maker.

…But eventually, if you aspire to larger levels of income, you may need to learn to dance with those corporate gatekeepers, too.

If you make things professionally, I’d love to hear about your experiences. Which approach do you find most satisfying?

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Good (Online Class) News and Bad (Podcast) News

by Sister-Diane on August 17, 2010

in Online Classes

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Let’s start with the good news! The time is approaching for my new online class, Write, Publish, & Sell Your Crafty Ebook. We’re already amassing a super awesome group fo people for this one, and I hope you can join us!

My goals for this class are:

  • To help each student formulate an ebook plan that has great market potential.
  • To give each student a thorough understanding of the “bottom line” of an ebook project, so they can produce profitable ebooks.
  • To share the ins and outs of the publishing process, using a variety of platforms.
  • To offer tips and plans for a solid ebook launch and marketing effort.
  • To create a space where my students can share their skills and knowledge with each other, and help each other make their ebooks a reality.

Anyway, needless to say, I’m really excited about this one! We start on Monday – sign up over here.

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Then there’s a little bad news: I’m still up and down with this virus, which has created some bottlenecks in my work deadlines. I’m afraid I’ll have to put the podcast on hiatus for the rest of August – there’s just no time at the moment.

I hope to resume normal shows on September 3rd. Boy, do I have some awesome interviews in the can for you already! Sorry you have to wait for them.

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Back in May, I had a chance to teach a two-hour workshop on social media marketing for creative biz owners. It was part of an ongoing workshop series organized by I Heart Art. You should know something about this organization, because it’s awesome. Here’s the deal:

I Heart Art is a cooperative effort between Etsy, the Pacific Northwest College of Art, Portland’s Museum of Contemporary Craft, and the Portland Etsy Team.

Here in PDX, we have a huge but very diverse community of artists and crafters: we have a number of well-known Etsy sellers, and we have many fine-art and fine-craft guilds. The community represents a wide range of creative expertise, technology savvy, and business skills. So I Heart Art seeks to help connect all these people and skills so everyone has better access to the resources they need to make their work into a sustainable business.

(I know, right? P-Town is awesome.)

Anyway, working with I Heart Art was dreamy. I had a blast doing this class, and now they’ve generously made the whole thing available in a well-produced video to the public, for free.

If you like this class, you might want to check out the I Heart Art video page to see the others in this series as they’re added.

If you’re local, definitely keep an eye to the I Heart Art website, Twitter feed, and Facebook page. They’re doing excellent community-building.

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Review: The Big-Ass Book of Home Decor

by Sister-Diane on August 13, 2010

in Craft Books

Hoo, Boy – it’s been a long week. Over last weekend, I was knocked in the head by some kind of icky virus, and have been down for the count until today.

So, I have no podcast for you this week, and no Google Analytics tutorial. But I do have a cool craft book review!

No beating around the bush either: I freaking love The Big-Ass Book of Home Decor, from Mark Montano.

For one thing, there’s a metric ton of great ideas in here. Not just pretty stuff, not just trendy shapes and colors, but actual, innovative, original ideas.

(Case in point: this gorgeous chair modification, which is layers and layers of small vinyl patches.)

Not only that, these original ideas involve such simple materials and processes. This frame is made from nothing more than layers of cardboard and glue.

I know, right?!

I think Mark’s genius is in looking at everyday stuff with a fresh eye, and then boiling the concepts down to a really accessible form so you’re itching to try them.

…Especially once you’ve looked at the step-by-step photos and seen how simple this stuff really is to make. Mark’s done an awesome job of documenting nearly every project with photos of the crucial steps. This is a crafty reference I can use again and again.

Can you guess what this light fixture is made from? I’ll give you a moment.

That’s right it’s lucite plate stands. How seriously genius is that? Makes me want to trail around after the man while he shops, just so I can see how his creative brain works.

You know those annoying subscription cards that fall out of magazines? Here, they’re transformed into modern art. The painting process involves – wait for it – a record player.

I KNOW, RIGHT?!

Yup, those are broken mirror shards, made into a wall sconce. Mark has a process in the book for removing the sharp edges. Beautiful, eh?

I also love this crazy Bollywood dresser. The paint treatment uses a big sheet of lace as a stencil. Plus, if I could get away with it, I’d bejewel all my furniture.

So by now, you may have noticed that although this is a home decor book, there are crafty concepts by the score you could use in lots of other contexts.

(That, my friends, is a fabric plant. How cool is that?)

Last but not least, I have to say this is just about my favorite piece in the book. I don’t have the right kind of apartment for it at all, but it made me burst out laughing with delight when I first saw it.

Definitely, give this a flip-through in your local bookstore, because there are way, way more cool things to see. I didn’t even show you the wall treatments, pillow ideas, IKEA hacks, tables, dishware, or sculpture! (Like the title says, Big-Ass!)

Also, check out Mark’s blog, where he shares equally-awesome projects.

(A few disclosures: Mark sent me a review copy, the book link above is an affiliate link, and at this moment, I have no clue when I’ll get the new podcast done. But I hope you have an awesome weekend.)

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A lot of the garment-sewing coverage in our crafty blogosphere seeks to simplify the process. Which is sometimes too bad, because there’s so much beauty to be had in older, more ornate sewing techniques like pin-tucking, lace mitering, and sewing with entredeux.

What’s entredeux? It’s a very fine eyelet trim that’s used to join two pieces of material. Want to see how it works? Check out this video from Sew Beautiful Magazine, hosted by editor Kathy Barnard:

(There’s a Part Two to this tutorial, which you can see here.)

Sew Beautiful is hosting a cool blog tour to celebrate these heirloom sewing techniques. It’s traveled around the blogosphere, and if you visit the stops, you can learn a series of beautiful details for handling lace, trims, and tucks. And all these techniques are collected in this pretty camisole project, which is featured in the September/October issue of the magazine.

And then, to further celebrate heirloom sewing, Sew Beautiful is also letting me do a pretty sweet giveaway. Here’s the prize package they’ve donated:

  • A complete kit needed to make the Vintage Inspiration camisole, from sizes XS (2-4) to 3X (26-28)
  • A copy of Sleepwear Especially for You (which contains the basic tank top pattern suggested in the instructions)
  • A copy of the new issue of Sew Beautiful
  • A June Tailor Heirloom Stitcher’s Shape ‘N Press board

That Shape ‘N Press board is super cool – take a look:


(As the name implies, those guides are designed for pressing trims and fabrics into various shapes with precision. OOh!)

Anyway – to enter your name for this prize package, leave a comment below and tell me which of Sew Beautiful’s heirloom sewing techniques you’re likely to apply to your own crafting, and why. (Sorry, but due to the size of the items, this drawing must be restricted to US entries only.)

I’ll draw a winner at random on Friday, August 13th. (For no other reason than the ability to make it someone’s lucky day for a change.)

Want to see the rest of the blog tour? look here.

Congratulations to Jean Babbage, our winner!

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In this video blog, I take a deep breath and ask you for some help to keep my email more manageable.

I hope you won’t be offended. This is a matter of hours and capacity – nothing personal.

…And by all means, if you do Google your question as I suggest here, and you can’t find a good answer, you’re welcome to email me and I’ll try to help. (But, save me some time by telling me what research you’ve already done, okay?)

I’m sorry to have to ask. I explain more in the video.

UPDATE: Check out this awesome Google cheatsheet that Christina sent me. Super useful for Googling!

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