Workshops - Online, In Studio and One-on-One Mentoring!

I'm pleased to announce a new line-up of classes that will be starting in the new year! One fabulous online course plus a number of workshops to be held in my studio in Connecticut. Tell Santa - a workshop makes a great gift!

Jump Start Your Art Career, my intense action-packed, knowledge-rich, six-week online course, will begin on Monday January 13, 2014. This class can help anyone with a creative business - working artists in any medium, art teachers, people wanting to get published in magazines or write a book, anyone wanting to start an art retreat, and so many more. We dig deep into a wide variety of topics and, through worksheets and homework, you'll develop a plan for your own business moving forward. Find more details and a sign-up button for Jump Start Your Art Career here.

The Jump Start class is an online class with extensive written material, informative blog posts every week day for 6 weeks, interaction with your fellow students, focused advice for your creative business, deep thinking exercises, and great resources! I hope you can join me.

Workshops held in my loft studio in Bridgeport Connecticut are of both the learn-new-art-techniques, make-cool-stuff variety and the nurture-your-creative-business variety. You can find classes in gyotaku (fish) printed collages, creative stamp making, spirit flags, and a sampler of all of the fun surface design supplies. Plus workshops in building a website, creating and editing videos, making art connections with social media, and as a special bonus - I will be offering one-on-one creative mentoring in 2014!

If you'd like a chance to work directly with me on your art business, either online and over the phone or in person, this is your opportunity. There are only a limited number of mentorships slots available for the first quarter and I'd love to work with you.

If you have any questions about the online or studio workshops, or about the one-on-one mentoring, please contact me at info @ janedavila dot com

B2B Monday - Retire Your Art

Happy Monday! This week's tip will help you prepare for the coming new year with some cash in your pocket and some space in your studio. Evaluate the inventory of your art to see which pieces can be "retired" and sold for a lower price than you'd normally offer. You may find that you've moved on from certain pieces or series and are ready to let them go. Having a sale, with a definite beginning and ending date, can clear space in both your studio and your mind to explore new directions. The holiday season is the perfect time of year to offer a sale like this.

List work, with prices and photos, on your blog, website or in an Etsy store or other online venue. Advertise your sale to your email newsletter list and on social media sites. State that the sale is on pieces that you're retiring and emphasize that each piece is being sold at a price below that which it would have normally sold. Add an ending date to your sale to create a sense of urgency. 

Come the new year you'll be ready to work, knowing that the older, retired art has moved on to good homes, freeing your creativity!

B2B Monday - Sort Your Supplies

Happy Monday! If there's one task that needs doing on a semi-regular basis, it's sorting through your art supplies. Throw away used up or dried up paints and mediums. Store "like things" together to prevent re-buying things you already own (I'm guilty of this one!) Check your scissors and cutters to see if blades need replacing or sharpening. Evaluate supplies to see if they're still needed or wanted. If not, donate them to someone who will use them. As our interests and skills change and grow, our need for certain supplies may change too. The space you make can be filled with new supplies or supplies that don't currently have a "home".

When was the last time you sorted through your supplies? Have you outgrown any? Found that you have 3 of something that you only need 1 of?