How to Prepare for Your First Art Festival Like a Rock Star Lesson 1

The getting the making on

 It's Tuesday. I have less than 4 days to get all of my art Sh#@!t in order before this weekend. This weekend I am participating in my first ever Art Festival. If you live in the Bay Area, come check out Art in the Park in Downtown Martinez. It is sure to be some great home grown art. That sounds awful. Scratch that. It is sure to be a fabulous way to spend a weekend. Plus I hear they will have food trucks... but I digress.

Some Art Making is Happening

So, you want to know how to prepare for your first art festival. Oh, boy. Have I got a TON to share with you, and I have not even made it to the festival yet. Hence, the "Lesson" as part of the title of this post.

Lesson #1. Don't FREAK OUT.

Seriously. That is my first lesson. If you freak out then you won't even do the work it takes to find an art fesitval to participate in, and then print out the vendor application, then print out pictures to send in to the jury, and, and, and....oh...I did say I have a lot to tell you right?

Again, don't freak out.

Me trying not to panic so I make pretty pictures instead

The first thing to do is to breathe. Take a look around. Do you have some art or crafts you make that you think you might like to sell? Have you sold any to anybody before? If the answer is no then I suggest you don't jump head first in to selling at any type of festival. Do a little market research first. Share some of your artwork with your friends on Facebook, pin some pics of your work on Pinterest. Ask some of your family members if they would like to buy some art from you.

The more pieces you sell on your own the more confident you will be when it comes time to locating the best festival to start with.

Okay, so you have sold some pieces of art to your family and friends. Great! And you are ready to find the "perfect" festival to sell your work. Before you begin your hunt take out a piece of  paper and a pen. Number down the side of the paper 1-8. Now, fill in 8 pieces of criteria your first festival needs to have. Here is what mine looked like:

1. Located near or in my own hometown
2. Affordable (aka less than $100 to sign up to sell as a vendor)
3. At least 3 months away from the time I decide I am ready to sell
4. The festival has been around for at least one year
5. The festival provides either it's own media or the materials artists need to promote the event (both is even better!)
6. The festival is on a weekend
7. The festival is jurried (more on that later) .
8. The festival is open to having new and emerging artists participate.


Once I had these guidelines to work from it was easy to choose which festival I would start with. It made it clear that I am not ready for the Renegade Craft Fair, but I am beyond selling my wares out of my garage.

I am beyond excited to be part of my first art festival. It has been a long time coming. The next lesson in this series will be about Jurried art/craft festivals vs. non Jurried. Please share your experiences with selling at festivals in the comments. Your support and wisdom will be the light me and many others need!


XOXO,
Julia

Easy Iced Coffee Recipe Using a Keurig

I love my Keurig. I use it every morning to make me a hot cup of (decaf) jo. Lately though, I have been wanting another cup in the afternoon. The problem is the weather has been so darn hot! And even though I live around the corner from Starbucks, seriously, I can walk there, it is nice to know I can get something similar to an iced coffee at home. And it takes no time at all. Perfect.

Now, before I go any further I want you all to know this is NOT a sponsored post. I am NOT an affiliate for Keurig (I wish I was- think of the samples!) and I am NOT an affiliate for Starbucks (although, I probably should be). Okay. That is settled. Moving on.



  To make your sweet afternoon pick me up all you need is to grab an empty coffee cup add 2 tsp of sugar, or more if you like more into the cup. Now, add a handful of ice cubes. As much as you can fit into your cup. Place the coffee cup onto your Keurig.

 Select your favorite K-cup coffee (regular or decaf) and place it into your Keurig. Select the smallest brewing cup option on the Keurig, this will make  your coffee will have a stronger flavor.

Allow to brew.

Pour milk on top of the brewed coffee and ice and stir. You will need to add more ice before enjoying as the first batch will melt.

Grab your favorite type of pastry and enjoy.

 

 XOXO, 

Julia

My Authentic Self

Deep down I am an artist. I always have been. It's what I thought I would be when I grew up when asked at age 5. I. am. an artist.

Over time, being an "artist" morphed into more specifics, such as "being an actress," or "being a ballerina." Later my thoughts on what I wanted to be when I grew up changed to more of what I should be. Because, let's face it, I didn't want to be a "starving artist" and neither did my parents (although they are two of the most supportive people in the world of my whims).

Around age 11 I decided I would be a marine biologist. I fell in love with sea otters and thought I could probably spend the rest of my life trying to save the mere thousands of sea otters that remained. I was 11 and in love with peace signs and a member of the World Wild Life Federation. I felt empowered to make a difference.

 I later changed my mind and thought that being a 4th grade teacher would be the best option. I could empower young minds instead of fight the bureaucracy. The teaching life seemed more practical. Less deep water (I am afraid of deep water), and I could still have summers off to save those sea otters I so loved.

Years later I am none of these things I have listed above. The one element that comes close is I am still an artist. I still create on a daily basis. My creativity is part of the core of who I am. When there is time to do something for myself I am often found chest deep with my hands immersed in art supplies.

Lately I find that I am feeling more drawn to honoring my more authentic self. Even acknowledging that it exists, like here on this blog. So many times I have brushed off the comments I have received about my art, about what people like about it, how it has affected them. I ignore it or belittle it because I am too scared to acknowledge that it exists. Perhaps fearing, that through acknowledgment, this aspect of myself that I deeply adore will disappear.Or fearing that I don't posses the right qualities or accolades to be a true artist. Artists make BIG things with BIG impacts- right?

So I have taken on the challenge that Elanor Roosevelt presented a long time ago,

"You must do the things you think you cannot do."

And that is what I am doing. I am facing the life of uncertanty of being an artist and jumping head first into the world of creativity. I have reopend my Etsy shop with my real- true art- to share with the world. I plan to share more about my art and the journey I have been on these last few years rediscovering who I am. Expect more about my art and my process and where I go for inspiration to be gracing this blog space.

I hope you will share some of your thoughts on the things you think you cannot do in the comments. Together we can support each other in being our authentic and true selves.

Out for a Stroll

Out for a stroll just me and  my girl. All dressed in neon green, bright yellow, and pink shoes. She is a peanut with long-long-long hair. I love this age. Ready for adventure but still wanting her mama by her side.

I haven't gone on a child led walk in a while. I had forgotten how much peace and wonder can be found in a simple foot stroll with a wee one by your side. My imagination was sparked and I loved the lighting of the early morning. Even my sweet girl looked like a ray of sunshine bursting from the shadows.

Happy moments.

Have you had any happy moments lately too?

Hello. Meet Me. Again.

I have some songs running around in my mind today. "Sunrise, sunset. Sunrise, Sunset..." from Fiddler on the Roof and then quickly followed by Matchbox 20's "Every New Beginning is Some Other Beginning's end..." Maybe this is kind of silly. But as I am working on shifting- is adult life nothing but shifting?- and watching my children grow it feels like I am in a constant state of beginning and ending. Circling around and around. Starting and stopping.

It can be frustrating.

I am often frustrated.

At times I am startled by this forceful voice that shouts from within "Move FORWARD! Get Moving!"

Let's be real, I often feel stagnate.

Stuck.


Perhaps that is one of the purposes of life. Learning to go with the quick succession of time and the absolute sluggish feeling of, well,  time. I guess that is why that saying exists, "The days are long, but the years are short." Because, um, my days are soooooo long but yes, my years are too short. It can be disorienting and I often feel like I am viewing life through a glass window while swimming around in my head of "what ifs..." and "Oh I could/should do that..."

I have been having a lot of those feelings these last few years. Wanting to suck up all of the precious baby time of my kids, suck up all of their kid time, and be present.

I am finding that the more time I give myself to pull back and take a momen; look at what is happening and reevaluate where we are doing I begin to have a better sense of what my part of this whole thing called life is.

For me, life is a spiral not a straight line. I am constantly circling towards and away from the things that are important to me. Right now I am circling back to rediscovering who I am. Who I am as Adult Julia. As I meet myself in this form I am also greeted by so many pieces of my former self along the way. Reminders, or clues maybe, of who I have always been.

So, Hello. This is me. Julia.

I like to play.
I like to create.
I love to read and dream.
I pretend.
I imagine.

I am beginning...