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Weekend work...
Well. It was a lovely weekend, but due to an injury (just a leetle one! I am okay!) I did NOT get to ride my bike. Which sucked, because it was SO beautiful.
However, as long as I had to stay inside, I managed to catch up on some Etsy orders including this piece:
A purple and white unicorn. I sort of borrowed the Kirin design I did for Magicarade, plus some purple & minus the kirin whiskers. I hope she likes it...it seems elegant to me.
On a whim, I bought a "how to" book and taught myself how to make knotted hemp necklaces. I wanted something sturdier for my beloved Beach Heart glass pendant. Naturally (because I do everything the difficult way) I bought the thinnest hemp I could find & picked a fairly complex twisting knot for my first project. It turned out great, by the way (I must take pictures), but holy cow...I know people sell these at craft shows and on beaches for not a lot of money. HOW do they make it worth their while to do so? Is this yet another example of amateur artisans underpaying themselves? 'Cause I made a 14 inch long hemp necklace and it took almost three hours to make it, & if I charged my usual price for a three hour project it'd be a $100 hemp necklace at least. :-/
I used to undercharge for my work too (some say I still do)...it's a common problem artists & artisans face; what price to charge for doing something you love to do? My Dad had great advice on the subject though (he was a graphic artist...did package design. If you ever see the Moosehead beer label, you're looking at my Dad's work).
Lifted from my brother John's DevArt journal, Dad's words of wisdom regarding not charging enough for your art:
- (he had an argument with me, because i had charged $25 for a drawing that took me 20 minutes, it's important to note that at the time i was also 22 years old). "What are you doing? If we were in New York, the boys and I would drag you out into an alley and beat the shit out of you. Don't bring down your industry. Keep the value of what is the rarest of all the talents. It took you 22 years AND 20 minutes to do that piece of artwork. Charge accordingly."
So every time someone asks me how long it takes me to make one of my masks, I say "Forty-three years AND three hours". Kind of puts it all in perspective.
Anyway I hope you are all happy & healthy this week. Spring is in the air! How glorious is that? ^__^
EDIT: I just realized Sasuke is happening RIGHT NOW in Japan. Say a prayer/ cross your fingers/ send happy thoughts to the other side of the planet for my favorite ninja fisherman. ^_^
However, as long as I had to stay inside, I managed to catch up on some Etsy orders including this piece:
A purple and white unicorn. I sort of borrowed the Kirin design I did for Magicarade, plus some purple & minus the kirin whiskers. I hope she likes it...it seems elegant to me.On a whim, I bought a "how to" book and taught myself how to make knotted hemp necklaces. I wanted something sturdier for my beloved Beach Heart glass pendant. Naturally (because I do everything the difficult way) I bought the thinnest hemp I could find & picked a fairly complex twisting knot for my first project. It turned out great, by the way (I must take pictures), but holy cow...I know people sell these at craft shows and on beaches for not a lot of money. HOW do they make it worth their while to do so? Is this yet another example of amateur artisans underpaying themselves? 'Cause I made a 14 inch long hemp necklace and it took almost three hours to make it, & if I charged my usual price for a three hour project it'd be a $100 hemp necklace at least. :-/
I used to undercharge for my work too (some say I still do)...it's a common problem artists & artisans face; what price to charge for doing something you love to do? My Dad had great advice on the subject though (he was a graphic artist...did package design. If you ever see the Moosehead beer label, you're looking at my Dad's work).
Lifted from my brother John's DevArt journal, Dad's words of wisdom regarding not charging enough for your art:
- (he had an argument with me, because i had charged $25 for a drawing that took me 20 minutes, it's important to note that at the time i was also 22 years old). "What are you doing? If we were in New York, the boys and I would drag you out into an alley and beat the shit out of you. Don't bring down your industry. Keep the value of what is the rarest of all the talents. It took you 22 years AND 20 minutes to do that piece of artwork. Charge accordingly."
So every time someone asks me how long it takes me to make one of my masks, I say "Forty-three years AND three hours". Kind of puts it all in perspective.
Anyway I hope you are all happy & healthy this week. Spring is in the air! How glorious is that? ^__^
EDIT: I just realized Sasuke is happening RIGHT NOW in Japan. Say a prayer/ cross your fingers/ send happy thoughts to the other side of the planet for my favorite ninja fisherman. ^_^