Fine Artisan Ceramics vs DIY

I listed this platter on my website and then pinned it on Pinterest .

Where it soon acquired this comment:

@ Savannah Hall cool idea to incorporate lace to make pattern in pottery when you make it.

One of the dilemmas we’ve all encountered as artisans is the perception that images of our works for sale are also DIY projects that any beginner could easily achieve. When, in reality, this piece has been in design production for years. It has evolved out of pressing lace in clay, such as in these ornaments That I made for Grovewood Gallery from 1996-2009

In 2010, I helped my daughter design this tray:

  

and here in one of my own from 2011

By 2012 I was partially obsessed with lace trays, with organic shapes. Here are a few:

 

And here are the lesser quality pieces from the same kiln load; all experiments done on the same day:

and a similar piece:

I want to encourage everyone to play around with clay, as it is a lot of fun. I do, however, want to dispel the impression that what I do is so low-skill and easily replicated that anyone in Ceramics 101 can whip them out. The work on my website represents countless design tweaks.

So here is the reply I posted on my Pinterest Pin:

It's an easy technique, but don't expect to get results like this in your first 1,000 tries!

Sarah-Lambert Cook's Amazing Creative Vortex

The miniature watercolor with its impossibly rich detail and precision rendering are impressive, but what makes Sarah-Lambert Cook stand out is the quirky choice of subject matter. Monty Python, Jane Austen and Harper Lee references show up often, usually with an unusual personal twist. There are also finely drawn  animals, flowers, landscapes. Where, you might wonder, does she get all these ideas? Well, for starters, she has moved 5 times in the last year as a military spouse, so she's seen a lot of various landscapes, zoos, museums, nature preserves. But her best inspirational source is with her younger sisters. Their distinct and fearless personalities are captured below, along with Sarah-Lambert's notes. I think it shows how one creative person is often the voice for all that has touched us, especially the people who live in our hearts and minds.

This is my youngest sister who, at 16 years younger than myself, has a fantastic person style.  

She's really into red pandas right now and is wearing my Red Panda necklace (found here) while holding her own pet red panda, Charlie Brown.

Julianne is a pensive, beautiful girl who is just on the cusp of high school now. (Wearing the Le Magical Fireflies necklace) 

She spends a lot of time reading and even more time inventing stories of her own! (Wearing the Arrowhead necklace) 

Katy-Lynn is on the cusp of college and full of possibilities. Her observant nature helps in her writing which she is very good at! (Wearing the Llama locket)

Style

I invited a few local creative clayfolks over to my studio to show them  tricks that have made me successful on Etsy. These are people who already have a unique body of work. That’s the #1 thing. I believe that the second most important element for success is how you style your photos.

Above is a One Clay bead necklace from my My Tribe collection. I used natural sunlight, a vintage looking Boho shirt, and a model with no makeup and carefree hair. This one is all about natural beauty. It’s for a woman who wants that look, and meant to draw her in to look at the close up photos that are second in the listing.

Here are a few other successfully styled photos from the Artisans Gallery Team. Notice how each one is so much more than a catalog shot. The photos make a statement about the work, and tell us who the target audience is for that artisan. (Click on any photo to learn more).

From Birribe, the scarf pops against a subdued palette and the rustic bowl says ‘handmade, and ‘timelessly fashionable’.

 

From Starbags, a playful, fun and energetic styling photo says that this is for a woman who is light hearted and adventurous. She needs a bag that has personality but is made well enough to withstand her capricious and active lifestyle.

From Polestar, this conveys a message that the necklace will be front and center, a focal point for your outfit. Simple and powerful presentation.

From WolfArtGlass, the recycled shot glass is shown emerging from the bottles- a clever way to convey the process and its eco friendly nature. The target market- eco conscious buyers- are defined instantly.

From Ileaiye, the styling shows us a comfortable and flattering shawl in the easy going pose of the model. The white textured brick background also says urban. The styling successfully says that it is made for a woman who needs hip current styling but demands comfort.

From LeshasWorkshop, “turn your shoes into boot” is perfectly conveyed. The buyer is modern, youthful, sexy, and confident.

As Rod Stewart once sang “Every picture tells a story, don’t it?”  I enjoy styling my pottery. it’s another artform unto itself.

Pottery Loved by a Potter

I’ve always been opinionated, especially about what looks good, and really, there should be some sort of syndrome named for how opinionated I am about what is good or bad in pottery. Maybe 2% of all pottery made qualifies as even good, and then only maybe 10% of that qualifies as something I like. So there may be worthwhile pottery that doesn’t make my list but you cannot convince me of that, so don’t even go there!
So here are pieces by a few claymakers whose work enthralls me at the moment:

By Romy and Clare, it’s the organic shapes that push  the barriers of function without being unfuctional that really awe me. And the modern version of hand painted fruit. I just love it, and everything they do!

From HodakaPottery, it’s how harmonious and quiet this piece seems, while using so many design flourishes. Really quite stunning.

By JustMare, it’s the soft, subtle glazes paired with the twig handle- such an original interpretation of a mug!

You know I'm a fan of MarciG! Even if she wasn’t my daughter…. I’d be in awe of this huge emerging talent. Her pieces are magical and functional.

By peifferStudios, the organic shape that utilizes both stained and glazed areas is alive with that peace that comes from knowing nature intimately.

This is someone to watch! She has always had a unique vision and she’s really coming into her own lately. Keep your eye on DBabcock!
By WhitneySmith, this pine cone inspired set of nesting bowls is visually sophisticated and flawlessly executed. Whitney is a creative giant whose work evolves in new directions as if a fine geneticist is cross breeding nature with clay.
When I look at pottery, which has been made by human hands for over 10,000 years, the words of Werner Erhard come to mind:
“Any idiot can walk the path when shown it. But out here, there is no path. The path is made by your walking. “
And that’s what I love to see. Someone following their own muse, forging their own path, speaking in an ancient tongue but saying something that takes you into a yet uncharted inner terrain.

I’ve been eating my staging props

In order to show the size of my pottery, I've been using food as staging props. I scour the produce and bakery sections for food that looks good. I've gotten quite anal about it, actually.

I know I’m starting to sound eccentric in the grocery, but when I saw these great looking radishes, I picked through every bunch to get the perfect color. It sort of annoyed another woman, but hey! I need my radishes to be bright RED, ya know?!

I’m glad that Valentine’s Day has passed. Because my diet has gotten healthier. How would you like to have this on your counter staring at you after you’ve used it for staging?

How to ride the trend wave in 2011

The global financial crisis was a game changer in how we spend our money. Before November of 2008, advertising was all about “more, newer, and different” without looking at the substance or deeper significance of what was being sold. Tips and trends were about how to ride a tsunami. That it would inevitably crash and devastate  lives was not part of the advertising conversation.

We were supposed to market our work to consumers with disposable income, who were assumedly seeking satisfaction by having more of what they had, or a newer version, or a different kind of it, or more of a newer thing… you get the picture. It was pretty shallow.

By the end of 2010, we can’t read any substantial forecast for 2011 that doesn’t mention values such as sustainability, simplicity, and the human connection. The very good news for artisans is that we no longer have to find a surfboard to ride the trend wave. This year we are the wave! The trend gurus are predicting that artisan, handmade goods made with sustainability and lasting quality by humans with a story to tell are It. All you have to do to market your work now is to show who you are and what you do. Make a cohesive statement in your presentation; your photos and shop copy, if you sell on Etsy.

Through ArtisansGalleryTeam, we are carefully selecting works from the pool of Etsy shops that are legitimately handmade in an artisan studio by those who bring individual vision and advanced skills to their works. Joining with others who are the real deal is going to make riding the wave easier.

Here are some trend reports worth noting:

I have been working in "ethical" for a long time, because I find humanitarian principles very important, and I hated big fashion's disregard for them. Having said that, I think the global economic crisis has made people re think how things are made, where they come from, and has led to an appreciation of small-scale, handcrafted, tangible, home-made etc.. The human stories behind the products are interesting, the big manufacturing model had become boring, impersonal & mechanical.

Ann McCreath from Kiko Romeo

 

 Organic Waldorf Doll By SewnNatural

IMM Cologne believes that as a result of the financial crisis people are questioning what it is they need to live well. This is leading to the emergence of simplistic, formal or severe designs that combine the basic and old with the modern and the high-tech.

Interior Trends 2011 was recently released by IMM Cologne

Natural Gemstone Cluster by ThePeachTree

Whenever we feel as consumers that the time is right for paring down, we focus on simple designs and simple, warm colors. Plain metals and eco friendly materials: wood, bone, simple and soft semi- precious stones with Earth colors and a simple palette will prevail for 2011.

Lisa Jesse (Lisa Jesse has the #1 website on Google for trend prediction)

home business on steroids

What you see here is one day’s sales from OneClayBead and MarciG on Etsy! It’s freaking awesome and out of control! This is where we eat dinner generally. You can see the menorah and the flowers left from Thanksgiving, which are lost in the jumble. I print orders as things sell, and put them, with the correct piece, on my long table. There is typically lots of room for the 3 of us to eat, but it’s getting harder to sit down to a quiet meal. We have to push the sales down in order to set the table.

My friend Natalie has been coming over in the evenings to help with the packing. Here she is with my husband, Ken, as they make PayPal labels. Today the packages wouldn’t all fit in the car and we have to make 2 runs to the post office. This is my computer room but it now looks like UPS has set up an annex with board games, books, and a drum circle.
I’ve lost my zen a few times just living in this much activity every day. What brings me back is the feedback and notes from my buyers :
Beautiful! Gorgeous! Even better in real life! I am so happy with this and will be back to buy more! Oh and insanely fast shipping too... OneClayBead is awesome!
This is truly one of the cutest things. Thanks so much! I can't wait to give this to my friend for Christmas!
These are such beautiful ornaments. My infant daughter died two weeks after Christmas nearly 4 years ago, and each Christmas her brothers and I pick out a special ornament for her. Your doves are perfect.
The emotional connections made through buying and selling my handmade pottery are truly moving. It makes the chaos of my home a worthy price to pay.
Wishing you some joyful chaos today!

First Snow

  

The first cold flakes fell silently in the early dawn, blanketing the leaves we’ve not yet raked into piles.
Each white glistening orb seems like an answer falling from heaven. My world is transformed from autumn’s landscape of loss into a confection made with spun sugar and pearls.
It is beautiful as we walk outside, but we scurry inside soon as do all our woodland friends. Time to share our stories and dream our dreams by the fire.
Here is my new glaze, Blue Ice Crystal. The first piece sold right away but I'll be using it more in weeks to come. Wishing you beauty, and the light of love that shines from the eyes of those who gather with you by candles and fireplaces, as we burrow inside.

lulubugjewelry: he(art) and mind

Lulubug’s jewelry shop on Etsy has 3568 sales in under 2 1/2 years. Her median price point is $71. She demonstrates how a true studio artisan succeeds on Etsy, and flies in the face of many of those old long standing myths that success means selling lots of small quickly assembled components. I interviewed Sue to find out how her uniquely forged path has unfolded, with the intention that we can learn from this talented artisan and businesswoman.

With 1,642,653 jewelry listings on Etsy, Sue’s work stands out because she has learned unusual techniques:

I currently work in PMC (precious metal clay) which is a relatively new material composed of silver particles in a clay binder, which you form and then fire in a kiln. The clay burns off, the particles fuse and you end up with a .999 silver object.

I had heard about PMC and always wanted to try it, so when I saw a workshop being offered nearby in 2007 I signed up for it. Much like the first jewelry classes I took, I felt like I had found my medium, and within a couple of months had set up a little studio in my living room.

She concentrates on new designs  rather than promotion of her shop, and tracks to see which ideas are marketable:

 

Q: How do you promote your Etsy shop?
I'm not much of a self promoter. I post most of my new designs on my Facebook fan page, I have a very neglected blog, I read but rarely post in the Etsy forums, and I'm always thinking that I should be making more treasuries than I do. About the only thing I really do consistently is renew items, usually at least 10 a day plus relisting sold items.

 

What I do focus on is my product development. Selling on Etsy gives you feedback on new ideas much more quickly than traditional brick and mortar sales. Using Craftcult I can see which items get viewed the most and draw people into my shop, as well as which things may not get the most views but sell consistently. I keep an eye on Etsy trends, and when one speaks to me I'll use it as inspiration for new pieces, but I don't follow all of them. Hence some new fox pieces, but no mustaches! The one thing that is certain is you NEVER can predict what will sell well. When I come up with a whole new concept, I will make 4-6 new designs and watch them closely. If they get a lot of views or sell quickly, I'll build on the concept and add more designs. If neither happens, I let the idea go, even if I love it and think it's great. This way I build up a product line of successful sellers, but I keep adding new ideas to the mix. I read the Etsy forums very regularly, and I rarely hear anyone say to work on changing your products if sales are down. For me this is the first thing to do. I've learned not to take it personally when the design I think will sell like hotcakes is a total dud! There really is no telling what is going to sell well, so I just put it out there and watch what happens, and base future designs on that information.

Sue’s response to this question reveals a great deal:

Q: Do you think that artists are born, or made?
Both! I think we all have creativity inside us, it's just a matter of finding the best medium in which to express it. Some artists will be better than others, but I think anyone who has the desire can learn the techniques and create something meaningful.

She respects the value of hard work and education while still following the call of her inner creative beacon.

Bravo, Sue of lulugjewelry! I appreciate your time in sharing this and trust that other creatives will, too.

Wishing you all a successful journey today!

The Unbearable Lightness of Being

In the studio yesterday, Marci told me that she was turning her cell phone off more often. She was weary of the drama. She was happy glazing; excited about a new design. This, above all, I have wanted to impart to my teen daughter.

After some early success in the fine art world in my 20’s , I began making pottery. Fine art is so gravely serious. Works of light and joy were, at the time, viewed as useless fluff, and perhaps they still are. I was drawn to the silent thoughtless world of clay where you can be moved to an almost holy place just by how beautiful something is.

Today I ran across this quote. It is from the novel, The Unbearable Lightness of Being.

“she knew that she had become a burden to him: she took things too seriously, turning everything into a tragedy, and failed to grasp the lightness and amusing insignificance of physical love. how she wished she could learn lightness!”

I suddenly wanted to see lightness everywhere, to go outside and capture with my camera the light shining through leaves. To feel that lightness of being is to be transparent, thin of  negativity and judgment, and allow the light of Creation to shine through.

I’m going to do this more often. it feels good.

Building a Body of Work

We fall in love first with the pure act of creation. From there we chose a medium, such as clay, paint, metalwork. The pieces we make for sale are a consequence of an inner exploration, and that’s the most fulfilling context for creation. If you follow this path, what you create is a legacy that is distinctively your own, as Jonathan Fields so aptly describes. What you get if you don’t follow this path is a frustrating, jealousy producing, creative dead end of finding objects that others have made and trying to make them. In this world there is a great deal of finger pointing and reading endless marketing tips, and seeing other creatives as competition. The most threatening people of all in this world are the ones who are successful. Frankly, it’s not a satisfying place to be, and if you are a creative person stuck in this world, get out now! Put your time and energy into building a body of work!

A body of work is a clear, recognizable  path that you are taking with your artistic exploration and creations. To build a body of work,  just pick one thing that you like to make that you can make well. Make that with one invariable quality, and several variable qualities. Your same quality might be same subject matter, size, color, or utilitarian function. For example, I made these casseroles last year:

 

 

Here are some variations:

I also took the casserole shape in this direction and developed Keepsake Boxes, which is a smaller version of my casserole form, without handles.

A body of work is a path that you forge. You end up in uncharted territory, making things that aren’t like other people’s work. You begin to respect and even like other creative people, and recognize those who have also forged their own path. The challenge now is to continue to progress, to continuously move forward.

Werner Erhard once said, “Any idiot can walk a path when shown one. But out here, there is no path. The path is made by your walking.”

That’s what I’m talking about!