When I was younger, I think I must have been a bit insufferable. Self-centered, selfish, tactless and so “professional” that that stick up my ass was something I thought I was born with. You would think that if I had a dream to have my own creative business that “professionalism” would be an asset. Strangely, I was too energized and spastic to focus any “one” thing.
I’m older now and have had to slow down due to some health concerns. I’ve always been creative and practical. So when I wanted to lean on my art for mental survival sake alone, I wanted to find things to do that I could sell and profit from. Now don’t get me wrong, I would love to be the next “hottest thing” in the market, I want to concentrate on being realistic. I don’t have the capital nor the physical stamina to get involved with the craft show circuit.
I started out by researching the concept of an art business. I got a subscription to “Craft Report”. To be honest, it just made me feel inadequate and ill prepared (“slap”,”slap”…sound of reality striking). But I already had the subscription, so I just kept reading, viewing ads, and trying to see the advice that hardcore artisans were giving freely… okay, the subscription was hefty, at the end, well worth the investment. I bought a book, “The Girl’s Guide to Starting Your Own Business” (Friedman & Yorio). Don’t get freaked by the pink girly look of the cover, it’s chock full of business concerns that are both readable and doable. I had to go to my accountant anyway for my tax preparation, so I asked her if there was any advantage to having my small in-house business… what can I say, she got as excited as I had when I first contemplated this option.
But I had to commit to this “dream”… I started to “create” a line of items that I was proud of and that I truly had fun making. My first task was to see if I could create a solid line of stock. I then started the necessary applications…in my case, applications for home occupancy, resale license, and business license.
My next step is to create my own website. As a more immediate task, I’ve created this blog first. First to show some of my work, but also in hopes of getting feedback, talk about off-the-wall stuff that I find rattles in my brain. If anyone out there can give me pointers on a website, I can use any and all help.
The website is the next big key…I can’t get my business cards made till I know the website. I looked at other blogs for help and found my favorite , amypeters.blogs.com/ She gave practical options to those of us who can’t do the trade shows.
