Supporting Fellow Creatives Through the Pandemic

- Stephanie Leave a comment

Hello friends!

Day 28 of quarantine… and I know this entire thing is a lot. It’s ok to feel like it’s a lot. Because it it. I wanted to come say hi and remind you that, as the great philosopher Troy Bolton once taught us, we’re all in this together! And we are going to get through it.

A lot of people are using their mandatory indoor time to learn new skills or make pretty things! Skillshare, Lynda, Youtube and even your favorite artists’ instagram stories are all great resources to learn a new art or craft skill during these ‘stay home’ weeks. What are you making? Is it something you love? I hope you are creating what you need to see and what makes you smile!

On the flipside, I totally understand not having the energy to learn something new when so many other things need our focus right now. (Or you might not even have all this extra time people speak of!) The most important thing is to take care of yourself. Do all the usuals (drink water, go to bed at a reasonable hour, get some fresh air) and keep in mind, it’s good for your brain to be surrounded by things you are obsessed with. If you have the means, invest in some pretty art for your space to keep you company while you hang out there for a while!

I am always available to chat via instagram or email! If you have any questions about learning painting, lettering or embroidery, hit me up! I want to support you in your creative endeavors and I’ll do my best to help when I can!

WHY NOW! Hudson, MA Artist

- Stephanie Leave a comment

Hello friends! It’s been a while, but I’ve had a few great questions asked about my art endeavors recently so let’s get into it! (see my art at stephanieritacreative.bigcartel.com)

– When did you decide to focus more energy into your art? – Last October! I had a long & inspired brainstorm session with myself and the result was the decision to create for myself a practice in painting. Doing it often, with intention. Making art has always been very important to me and I needed to honor that by putting a strong amount of energy into it. With the practice of painting comes many, many physical paintings! And what do you do with them? You sell them. So here we are! 😉

– Doesn’t your art business feel like it’s happening really fast? – Hmm… It does feel fast in the sense that I am painting way more often and intensely than ever, and I’m talking about my art 100% more than before. But truly, I think it feels more like “a long time coming” than it does “fast”. I have been making art my whole life, went to art school, was actually very close to minoring in painting (6 credits away, bad planning on my part), have been running a photography business since 2013 and even dabbled in selling lettering art between 2014-16. So being a creative, and a creative business owner, is not new or fast to me!

– Why now? – I’m energized and motivated. I have ideas and visions. I am focused. I have a litttttttle extra time now that my toddler has a consistent nap schedule, ha!! So why NOT now?

– What are your favorite things to paint? – I’m not as much of a ‘things’ painter as I am a ‘feelings’ painter. I pick colors that feel good in the moment and go with my gut on what the painting will look like! Sometimes they start one way and end up completely different. I’m inspired by seasons and music and moods, so those always play into my art, too.

– How did you get your art in to a coffee shop? – (For those that don’t know, I have 8 original paintings hanging in Cafe 641 in Hudson, MA!) I asked!! I researched the contact person for my town’s art association, emailed them and asked if they had any openings this year. And they did! Their team vetted my portfolio and told me they would get me in “sometime this year”. Which actually happened to be about 3 weeks later 🙂 Moral of the story, ask for what you want, friends.

– What about your photography business? Does that still exist? – YES!!! I would never leave my precious photo business behind, don’t worry! Stephanie Rita Photography is my first bizbaby and I love it more each day.

Beginning Embroidery

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Let’s talk EMBROIDERY. It’s currently my main creative outlet, but only since last September. I tried this hobby on a whim, just before Julien was born. I had watched a couple Instagram tutorials and thought it looked cool, and that’s honestly how I decided to start haha! So I went to Joanne’s and got a few basic supplies, just to try it out.

Super beginner embroidery supply list:
– Hoop – size of your choice (~$2)
– scrap fabric (cheapest option) or small cut of fabric ($2-4)
– pack of embroidery needles ($1.50)
– 3-4 few colors of embroidery thread ($.60 each)

I’m not joking when I say that, to learn this skill, I watched upwards of 100 Instagram and YouTube tutorials. (The internet can be helpful sometimes 😉 ) Eventually, after lots of finger pokes and knotted threads and more tutorials, I felt like I had a decent hang of the craft. It definitely takes practice. And patience!! For real, don’t be discouraged, you will develop the muscle memory and get better the longer you practice!

Until I started embroidery, my art had exclusively been 2d (graphic design, lettering, painting, photography). But thanks this new adventure, the idea of 3d art, specifically textiles, has become really fascinating to me. I am actually looking into learning about the loom! What I’m loving the most about embroidery is all the textures that the layered, crossed & knotted thread makes.

I wanted to share more specifics about one project. The photos above are of my jean jacket! It was hard for me to make progress on this jacket at first, because I was scared that I would mess it up. It was the first embroidery project that I couldn’t scrap if I didn’t like it. Plus it’s my jean jacket, so I was worried if I didn’t completely love the design that I would never actually wear it. Thankfully I just went with the flow and now, the more I work on it, the more I love it! It’s slightly inspired by Santa Fe colors and style and I’m hoping to have it done soon, so I can wear it during the spring season.

Is there anything you want to know about embroidery? I’m not an expert, but I have a few tips and tricks if you need them! Let me know in the comments.

PRO TIP: If the thought of coming up with your own designs is what is keeping you from trying embroidery, find a KIT!! Search Etsy for embroidery kits, pick a design you like, and you will be sent everything you need to make that design. It’s not the least expensive way to jump into embroidery, BUT it’s convenient and will give you a good starting point.

3 Tips for your First Market

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Hey makers!! This blog post is specifically for you! If you’ve been here for a bit, you know I was a vendor at my local farmer’s market three times this summer. I had a blast sharing my lettering work, and each time I learned something new and helpful. I wanted to share these tips with you in case you are about to embark on your first market appearance soon!

PAY ATTENTION & SAY HELLO
This seems like a no brainer, but I saw so many other vendors on their phones or reading a book while potential paying customers walked right by their table! I definitely noticed a difference in interest between when I said hello versus just smiling at the person walking by. I think that when you reach out and say hello it engages the person right away and makes them slow down a bit. It’s not guaranteed they’ll buy something, but at least they are taking a closer look.

KEEP YOUR PRICES EVEN
Most market-goers bring cash, because they assume vendors only take cash. This means you’re dealing with change! Keep your prices even, so you aren’t rifling through pennies and dimes, which takes a long time and can be frustrating if you can’t find or don’t have what you need.

INVITE YOUR FRIENDS, BUT SET BOUNDARIES
On the day of my first market, there were no less than 12 people there to support me, which was amazing and fun! BUT! I had to make it clear that I was there to reach out to new customers, not to talk to my friends for hours. If you have a squad taking up all the space in front of your table, it will be intimidating for others to make their way to your products, so set those boundaries. You can all talk when you go out for ice cream after!

BONUS TIP:
Have a sign up sheet for your email list on your table and tell anyone who is remotely interested in your product to add their name! Give them a good incentive: sale codes or freebies do the trick 🙂

Hopefully these pointers got you thinking about your market in the not-usual-market-tips kind of way! Good luck!

My First Market!

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Last Saturday morning I was a vendor at my very first market! I’ve been a long time attendee of the Natick Farmer’s Market, so it was extra special to actually be a vendor at it! I honestly went in with no expectations; I knew I would probably give away a lot of business cards, and was OK if that was it. But luckily 4 sweet souls found pieces of art that they loved! I was so surprised! I had a lot of good feedback on my work, and quite a bit of interest in custom work, which I am praying will pan out in the future. I loved being part of the local action and getting to meet a variety of people from my town. One observation I made was that teenagers were particularly interested in my art. I am wondering if that is because hand-lettering is so prevalent on social media these days… or if they were just really cool teenagers 🙂

I also had a personal squad who came to support me! Nate was key is helping me set up the tent and tables, and bringing me coffee 🙂 My parents, my in-laws AND two of my four siblings-in-laws came to hang out (my mom was the principal photo-taker). A few different friends from bible study and my running group stopped by, and my sweet friend Amy surprised me with a visit as well! Thank you to all who made time in your day to say hi!

I will be back at the Natick Farmer’s Market on July 30th and August 6th and I’d love to see you there!

Stephanie