Brenda Pinnick -news, ideas, events and more...

What does it take?

What does it take to get on HSN? I've been asked that a lot lately so I thought I would share a list of the first things that come to mind...

Believe in yourself enough to make the commitment to do your VERY BEST WORK. ever. 

Get feedback from and listen to your stakeholders. ( manufacturers, HSN buyers & anyone else who is on the team )

Research your consumer and know your market. Define their likes, wants and needs.

Identify your unique selling propostion ( USP ). What sets you apart from the others? Practice saying it out loud. Don't be shy about your achievements, your talents, your dream, your uniqueness. 

Look honestly at your work and don't be afraid to let go of the mediocre. ( Get honest feedback if you're not sure, we ALL have "off" days, trust me, not every single thing you do can be exactly right! ) 

Be commited to excellence in all aspects including your presentation. Practice in front of a mirror - many times. If you meet with the buyers, they will be judging how you present yourself to them as an indication of how you'll do on air. Be enthusiastic but not over zealous. THANK them for their time, regardless of the outcome. If it wasn't right for them this time, you may have another opportunity in the future! ( Like me )

Look at and learn from your successful competitors. ( Thank you, Anna G. )

If you are able, hire some help when it comes to crunch time. There is no glory in "doing it all", only exhaustion and possilby, some not-so-perfect work.

Say "Thank You" to everyone from the big wigs to the people who clean the restrooms. Everyone appreciates acknowlement for their work, just like you and I.

When you've done all this, you can't help but be ready. It will come naturally, without effort, from your heart. Your enthusiasm will overide your nervousness, I promise! 

 

So, here's the ugly...anyone want to come over and help clean up ??? This is my table on one side of the studio as I was preparing for my segments on March 6th.

And here's the pretty...on the other side, as I'm finishing up my samples. ( no staff...just me, in my basement, late at night, after designing products, making art and taking care of business all day. Did I mention hiring help? LOL )

If you have aspirations of getting your product designs on air, I hope this little tutorial has helped you decide if it's right for you. When you get your first feedback on the HSN site and it goes like this,

"The paper is so vibrant and the colors are so current. The purples and aquas and greens are fantastic. Really good quality paper, stickers etc. I may buy another set so I don't run out. Those Alphabet rub ons are amazing too."

well, it makes all those late night crafting sessions worth every bit of lost sleep!

Happy planning...

 

 

 

Glad to be home!

In case you haven't done so, please come by my ColorCafe blog to see how artists and designers are using color in their work! Each day is a different theme. I'd love it if you'd stop in, visit the featured artist's blogs and leave a comment. I'd really love it if you have some beautifully colored art or design and would like to be featured on the ColorCafe! If so, please email me at [email protected]

 

 

Boy I've been busy! Jan. is a wild month for me...CHA and the Atlanta Gift Mart, nearly back to back!

Here's me with my new friend, Robin Davis, at her signing. She has products in several different showrooms at the mart since she's a highly sought after artist. And she's so darn cute! 

And speaking of cute...

Heidi is almost 15 months old already! I just can't believe it! She is so much fun right now - she's a sponge, absorbing everything, mimicking everybody and discovering new tricks which she loves showing off. AND, she LOVES beads!

 

Exciting new Seminar!

EXCITING NEW SEMINAR!

Presented by Karen Embry, Phyllis Dobbs and Brenda Pinnick

In the new,global marketplace, licensing plays an important role in bringing unique, exciting products to market. The fast rate at which products are released added to the recent flood of artists and designers trying to start a licensing career has a lot of people confused & seeking truthful knowledge, based not on wishful thinking but rather, first hand experience by not one, but three successful art licensors! 

Karen, Phyllis and I are presenting a seminar designed to deliver honest, first hand knowledge, tips, advice and insight. As an optional add-on, we are also offering a private, one on one consultation for portfolio viewing- yours and OURS! You will get to peek inside our "books" to see what our clients see and which art got the deals! We will look at your art, discuss what categories it might fit and give you honest advice about color, styling, themes, etc. This is a one time only opportunity at the low, low price we are offering. ( click on logo to view the the information packet ).

When- Saturday, January 28, 2012 at 6:30 pm to 8:30 pm, then 8:30 pm to 9:30 pm for private consults. (this is after CHA meet and greet so there is no overlap or conflicts)                                                 Where- Annabella Hotel, Azalea Room, Anaheim, CA

update:

And, because we’ve also have had several creative’s asking if were were having it at other locations, we’ve decided to offer this seminar during the Atlanta Gift Market on January 12, 2012 (Thursday afternoon 2:30- 4:30 pm, the location to be announced later but close to the gift market).Hurry, the early bird special ends on Jan. 4th!

your unique style

It's something many of us struggle with as artists. Maybe you're like me - I'm one of those people who is blessed/cursed with being able to work in many styles. There are days when I want only to do abstract paintings and then there are days which I long to go outside and paint plein-air. And because I'm also a graphic/ product designer, some days, it's typography and package design I'm fixated on. I guess this has served me well, I'm able to meet the needs of plenty of different types of manufacturers from crafting to gift and homegoods, while satisfying my own creative needs as well, which is very, very important to do in order to grow and expand as an artist.

What I've realized in this past year is that my unique vision comes in the form of color. No matter what art I'm working on, for me, color is the message. The palettes that I use are what bind all my efforts together. Whether it's pattern, icons, type, graphic and even jewelry making, color is the most important component to my work. Now I know that. Finally. Gheesh. It's like Dorothy and her ruby slippers, it was there all along. I spent way too long trying to decide my "style". MY STYLE IS COLOR. 

 

I read posts  and see images on facebook of many emerging artists, from Etsy and elsewhere, who are basically trying to be someone else in their work. A recent success story of an Etsy artist being discovered by a big gift manufacturer has spurred all kinds of wannabes within that community. This artist has tons of "followers", almost in a bizarre way. The artist doesn't have the years of experience that many of my artist friends have. Nor does this artist have years of business experience. But, because her art hit a note by being at the right time and in the right place with the right message, people want to know her secrets and are willing to pay big, big money. It's an odd phenomenon, really. I wonder just how long it will last? It has a lot of people scratching their heads... including me. I hope they really are getting their money's worth, not a bunch of hype and wishful thinking. Making a living as an artist is HARD WORK. When I meet someone new and tell them what I do, the inevitable "oh how fun!" response comes out of their mouth even before I've finished my sentence. Yes, when you have a big hit, when the money comes (actually, it's more like if the money comes ) there is that feeling of being so blessed to be able to do what you love. I am grateful for this - many people get in their cars and go to a job they hate every day of the work week. sad. But, they know that there is a paycheck waiting for them on the other end. Oh, and benefits like paid vacation, medical, dental, 401Ks. It's awesome to be an artist but don't let anyone tell you it's easy. It isn't.

If you're a new artist, the best advice I can give you is to make A LOT OF ART. A. L.O.T. - fill your basement with mistakes, as I have. Don't worry about being trendy, don't copy others, just be your own true self while learning technique. Look at many different models of success, not just one. Enjoy the process, even though sometimes growth is painful. Learn from it. I've been making art since I could hold a crayon. I've never even considered being something other than an artist. But guess what? I still learn every day and yes, I throw away more work than you will ever know! You've got to let the ugly out in order to get to the beautiful...just let it out. 

Sneaky Peek

I'm reformating my portfolio today and decided to go share a bit of some of my recent work.

This is from my Canterbury Park collection. What you're seeing here is the handpainted version of the flowers. I'm kind of a messy painter so it always gets cleaned up in the computer before sending files off. Sometimes I just go ahead and trace the elements after placing the file in Illustrator so that it's easy to format for various products. If you bought myDecorated Life stamp collection on HSNlast Monday, you'll recognize the birdcages. I also licesned them for Sizzix E-Clips electronic cuting machine. I bought some vinyl and plan to cut them out to put on my walls. I just don't seem to ever get tired of birds... I've always loved them! 

Hubby was out watering the lawn yesterday when he spotted a yellow finch sitting on top of the birdfeeder. He said it looked full sized but I suspect it was still a baby. It seems he was pretty close to it and it didn't seem at all scared. He gradually inched his way up and placed his finger under it. The little guy just stepped right up and perched himself on his finger where he stayed for several minutes! I wish I would have seen that- how sweet!

BTW- I'm now back with Two Town Studios after taking a little break for a year. I'm looking forward to working with them again, such nice people. For licensing opportunities, please contact Jim or Ronnie for porfolio viewing or requests. Thanks!

 

finding balance

A recent discussion of late, among my art licensing friends has been about the quest of seeking balance in our efforts to run our businesses. With social networking an absolute must for building our brands, we are all struggling with finding (making) time to actual do what our business is all about- making art. I need to clarify here that making NEW art differs from the necessity of reformatting, updating and building onto OLDER art. Building a licensing portfolio is so much more than getting up each day and sitting down to the process of making art. It's about trend research, targeting specific clients, adapting to an ever changing marketplace by positioning ourselves as this or that. Building a (recognizable) brand requires consistency in style, in viewpoint and in technique. These days, almost any type of art can become  marketable if it meets these brand requirements. There is a lot of junk out there. There, I said it out load - it needed saying.

Finding (or making) the time to stay inspired and fresh while still working withing the framework of a brand does require balance. I opted out of traveling to the licensing show this week in favor of spending quality time with my paints and brushes. I'm glad I did. I'm trusting my agents to get me some juicy deals which are based on my unique perspective. I'm waiting anxiously for a report back from the show!

I normally don't jump right out after completing a new piece and show it on line but am making an exception today in an effort to show the process I use to plan out color.My neighbor gave me a beautiful bouquet of hydrangeas from her garden and I was inspired by the color to create a painting. My goal was to design a vibrant, colorful piece in response to the all too often (IMHO) expected approach to painting pretty blue flowers. The blue is intense and I wanted to celebrate that and expand upon it.  I set up the bouquet in my studio and pulled in some colorful papers and a backdrop. I like the sharp, straight edges of the paper juxtaposed with the soft, round and fluffy flowers. It creates a nice variety and gives this piece a bit of an edge...just what I wanted. Above, I've shown the final piece cropped. I like tight crops on images and I will probably use this for a greeting card design or possibly a gift item...I have some ideas.

Below is the start. I set up the still life to my left and then photographed it. I printed off the photo and set it up beside my painting. I liked having both the real set up and the photo available to glance at.

Here it is, about half finished...I could have stopped here and called it done but chose to add in more detail instead.

And here is the finished painting.   Limited edition, signed and numbered Giclee prints are available for purchase. Please contact me for pricing and sizes.

Have a good week, friends!

If you were inspired, please take a moment and leave me a comment...thanks!

Color Inspiration from my daily walks

What a beautiful week this has been for walking! My country road is filled with vignettes of bursting color, subtle dancing shadows and fleeting spots of sunshine. I love the early morning walks the best, the air is still cool, the damp grasses and pine straw make for perfect "hunting" for my little Paisley. She's a born hunter and I'm not sure which accounts more for her constant pouncing - her keen eyesight or active imagination. Really Paisley, that many chipmunks on the side of the road in 2 miles??? And I managed to see not even one ??? Maybe I was too busy looking at all the beautiful color.

The azaleas are in full bloom and they are spectacular!

And you're not really a true Southerner until you confess your love for Dogwoods, grits and fried green tomatoes.

As always, I'm on some crazy deadlines for work...good thing I love what I do! Recently, in a linked-in forum for art licensing, a friend referred to art licensing as a "bad boyfriend". I love that, it's so very true. Sometimes it's the best, like when a check finally comes in or a new contract finds it's way to you. But sometimes things aren't so pretty like when a deadline is unrealistic or impossible or expectations are beyond what makes the business model work. Anyway, we all have trials in our professional life and we deal with them as best we can...I may need to call in some help on this one, though. Catching big fish requires a big lure, right???

Here's what's coming up in my schedule that I would like you to mark your calendars for:

 

See you there! 

Want to learn more about my BrendaPinnickColorU series of workshops? Visit my website at http://www.brendapinnick.com/color-u

I'm also going to be a speaker at Crafty Con in October, this is going to be an awesome event for crafters with some terrific presenters sharing all kinds of things related to professional crafting. I'm talking about color, of course! 

 

Inspiration!

Nothing like a spending a day with someone whose work is the likes of the fabulous Kathy Fincher!

Kathy invited me to visit her last week so I drove up to her beautiful home, about an hour away from my house via the back roads. I've been a huge fan of Kathy's work since I first met her about a year and a half ago but I have to say, seeing her paintings in person takes your breath away. They are extremely beautiful, meaningful and inspired. And Kathy herself is a true inspiration. She is an accomplished tennis player, water skier, and probably the smartest business person I know. When I say smart in business, I'm referring to the kind of smart that sets an example of trustworthiness, of honesty and of character. It would never occur to her to be anything less than a reflection of her faith, whether someone is watching or not. And isn't that the test of character? Doing the right thing even if no one is watching? She is such an inspiration and was kind enough to give me some private lessons in pastel painting. Here are a couple of pictures...the first one is Kathy working on her current painting.  Kathy's work is used for all types of wonderful products including her "Mama Says™' series of figurines available through Demdaco.

And take at look here... 

This just makes my heart flutter and my mouth drool! I'm pretty sure I have to go shopping at Dick Blick this week! 

I've started my next surface design collection after what seemed like a lifetime of "what next?". Sometimes that's just the way it works. I bought myself a big roll of paper from IKEA kids section, got out my pens, my pastels, my gouache paints and started to just play. It's amazing how simply changing your tools will set you off on a path you never would have thought of going down. I get bored doing the same thing more than once. I love exploring new looks, new color ways, new techniques...In fact, I'm a technique junkie. That's the designer side of me. Sometimes the Designer and Artist in me have to fight it out. As a Designer, I'm all about form follows function and I love simple, clean and organized. BUT, my artist wants to fill up the space with curlies and squiggles and polkadots. 

I hope you have an inspired week!

 

Want to license your art and design?

I get emails from time to time asking me how I got started in product design and art licensing. I'm always reminded of the quote that goes something like this: "It took me a lifetime to become an overnight success" . And this one, "Success is simply a matter of luck. Ask any failure."   ....read more >