Delivering the Goods- Art at the Mill

Study in Scarlet by TW Stifel

Yesterday was a weird yet wonderful day.  For the first time in almost nine years I left the house on a Saturday without worrying about who was on duty, if anyone had any questions or my to do list.  The latter was because mostly I have never been more physically fatigued in my LIFE as I have been this past weekend.  I guess my regimen of not working out and stressing for 18 hours a day did not prep me for the physicality of six days of moving and making decisions about truck loads of merchandise...

Art & Soul by TW Stifel

But looking at my new truncated schedule I realized that Saturday was indeed the best day to deliver my Art at the Mill juries art selections.  I cajoled my hubs into driving me to Clarke County to drop off my pieces.

Lady in Waiting by TW Stifel

It's amazing how just by heading west for 40 minutes you leave the crazy traffic of DC behind and enter the rolling hills and quiet beauty of the Virginia countryside of Fauquier into Clarke County.

Founded in 1939, the Clarke County Historical Association is dedicated to preserving the history of Clarke County.  CCHA also owns the Burwell-Morgan Mill, a fully operational 18th century grist mill located in nearby Millwood, Virginia.  

Their volunteer millers grind a variety of grains as well as give tours of this historic site every Saturday from May through November. 

In October 1990, a small group of artists got together and proposed an idea for an art show at the Burwell-Morgan Mill.  Over time,Art at the Mill has grown from a three-day show of a handful of art into one of the most recognized and prestigious art shows in the region.

 The show’s basic principles remain the same:  to have fun, bring together artists and promote the extraordinary artistic talent of the region. 

I'd love you to join me at the Artists Reception.  It's free but it;s best to RSVP to attend. Join us on Sunday, May 1 from 4:00 pm to 6:00 pm at the Burwell-Morgan Mill for a very special afternoon to recognize artists participating at Art at the Mill.Please email your RSVP by Monday, April 18 to artatthemill@gmail.com

On the way home, we popped into the Arterra Winery for a quick glass of tasty vino and then headed home to the Falls Church Chamber of Commerce Gala.  All in all, a VERY atypical Saturday...

Looking good in public, at least.

 May I just say I have never been so physically tired in my whole life. Even though everything in the move went like clockwork I underestimated the actual physical VOLUME of everything that would be invovlved with the move to the Old Screen Door in Delaware and parsing out the various components out of the building on Broad Street. After our big moving sale we dropped 3000 square feet of merchandise by half but my space in Lewes is less than 500 square feet.

 So the rest is taking up half of the family room at the cottage, my dining room in Falls Church oh and in the 16 foot long storage container parked in our driveway.  EEK!!!!!! I also broke the cardinal rule of moving of not touching something more than once.  BEcause we had to load the big storage and display pieces intot the truck forst (to make sure that they would all fit.) we had to UNLOAD the entire truck to get those pieces out of the vehicle to set them before we could start unpacking. After unpacking, then we had to decide what was going into the Old Screen Door- Round 1. And then hump all the excess inventory back to the Lews Cottage. Holy Moly what a mess!

 And then it was back to Falls Church to clean out "what was left that didn't fit on the truck". Double eek. 4 vehicles, 4 cheerful volunteers, 4 trips to my house later and my home looks like a VERY artistic episoide of "Hoarders". Luckily for me I have a crazy wonderful supportive family, truly amazng colleagues, friends and clients who stepped in to help do the schlepping.

At the end of the day here's what was left. A sunny clean space.  Rumor control says it's going to be converted into a day spa or a wellness center.  We shall see. It was hard leaving this high ceilinged sunny space. Taking the last walk about by myself I remembered getting the space ready, learning so much from artistic colleagues while ogling their works in progress, helping people launch their brands, laughing about the time we hosted a blues trio in the "dress department" because it was raining and they couldn't play outside, and all of the hundred of people who we helped and who helped us make me what I am today.

 I am a firm believer in the "things happen for a reason" universe and while I will miss the daily contact and ebb & flow of the Falls Church shop I am envigorated by the possibilities of going back to creative art practice.  I am going to be 55 in a couple of weeks so I have declared this the Year I Actually Get Into Shape. Can only assume that clearing this debris field of a home counts as cardio!

Thanks for all of the kind emails, phone calls and texts you sent me this week.  They are SO appreciated.  I am a little fried mentally but am looking forward to sorting it all out and moving on the next chapter. I hope you will join me!

PS thanks for the flowers Anne & Mel.- They are beautiful!

Not exactly a day at the beach - yet!

Yesterday went just about as smoothly as we could have asked. The guys showed up on the DOT to load the truck and filled a twenty foot trailer in exactly 2 hours. Amazing. We made it to our place in Lewes in less than three hours (again, amazing). Treated my Driving the Truck Dad to fish and chips at the local tavern, watched a little Adam Levine on The Voice and off to bed.

Couldn't fall asleep right away though (not exactly amazing). Basically unpacked the entire truck in my head. Set up the shop in my head also.

Must be why I am so tired this morning!

Wish me luck!!!

Bittersweet but Optimistic

Today was the last retail sales day at Stifel & Capra in Falls Church.

I won't lie, it's been a ROUGH week (month, 60 days).  After all of the soul searching to decide to NOT renew the lease here locally I had to come face to face with my feelings of failure.  I don't do well with not winning.  Actually not so much winning (as in "We're Number ONE!" NCAA tournament anyone?) as in being successful on my own terms.

And not being profitable enough to take the hit of over the last year of the impact of construction AND absorb a twenty percent increase feels like failure to me.

Luckily for me, The Tribe that has assembled over the last few years reminds me that numbers aren't important. Since the news broke they have brought me:
hugs,
outrage,
champagne,
encouragement,
tears,
more hugs,
laughter,
gifts,
letters,
notes,
even more hugs,
stories,
praise
&
eye contact.

When I am not so sure about WANTING to look anyone in the eye because I feel like a failure- these people have DEMANDED me to look at them while they tell me how impactful the place I built has meant to them.

It's humbling.

Also humbling is that everyone, everyone that I have approached so far to collaborate with has told me YES.  And if you know me, you know I LOOOOOOVEE to start some stuff. So, hold onto your hats peeps, it's going to be fun.

Come ride with me.

And thank you for today.  Especially for the hugs,

PS- A special shout out to my lovely friend Fran Casey.
I grew up in a very loving but not terribly demonstraive family.
Until I met Fran and her husband John Brian I NEVER greeted people physically but was more of a hand shaker or waver (if I was feeling frisky.)
But Fran didn't know that and hugged me anyway.

Leading me on the path of actually being able to receive affection from folks that care.
I haven't seen Fran in months but she was there today.  To give me a hug.

xo

Keeping to a schedule (in my own little mind, at least).

I don't know about you but I am a big list maker.  But if you are like me, some things seem to always fall to the bottom of said lists.  As 55 is creeping up on me I am more and more aware of the things I have to plan to do instead of assuming that they will accomplish themselves.   With me, usually it is taking care of myself unless I am forced to. Setting aside my absolute lack of desire to exercise while still desiring to be in shape (!) I am proud of myself for scheduling in on my calender some things I want to accomplish.  One of these things is my Tuesday morning drawing class with Alexia Scott.  I am learning a lot - one of the biggest lessons is the reminder that just showing up is half the battle to learning a new skill or accomplishing a goal.

Dismantling the Falls Church Stifel & Capra requires multiple lists! One whole set of logistics revolves around what merchandise is going where.  I am proud to announce that we will STILL have a local place for CeCe Caldwell's paint customer to buy their paint in Falls Church.  God bless Tom at Art and Frame of Falls Church! We are stocking up the paint as we speak and will let you know when we have demos and classes scheduled.  Stay tuned there.

Next on the to-do list? Determining whether or I not I am crazy to be booking a twenty foot truck to haul display shelves counters et al to my new space at the Old Screen Door in Lewes Delaware. I am delighted to report with my trusty space planning tool of ruler, paper and scissors the verdict is - my mental plot OUGHT to work! Of course I am guessing I have totally forgotten some serious pole or junction box and I will be completed thwarted when I get there (takes a break to pull pics off my phone), YES there is a box. Argh.

I do a new lay-out.  It's all good.  Now if only the shed moving guy would show up so I can get my etsy shop inventory out of the shop basement and into my back yard....

The Agony & The Ectasy

Yesterday was a REALLY tough day. And a wonderful one.  With having to pack out almost 3000 square feet of retail space that contained over 100 consignors and 40 artists, "winding down" is a daunting task.  I have almost all of the consignment picked up and now the artists and artisans are coming to pick up their wares and say goodbye to the shop and me.  Brutal and lovely.

The bittersweet was reinforced by first time customers walking in the shop telling me how lovely it is and how they can't wait to come back. Or not. Ow.

I am reminded I only work with people whose I like and whose work speaks to me.  So it is really hard to say "until next we meet" to those folks because I don't WANT to say goodbye. And the reality is I probably won't see them much going forward.

So yesterday was full of a few tears, a whole lot of hugs, a few really special gifts and a really good bottle of wine,

I love to start things.  I hate to end them.

Just about have control of that Control Freak thing. Or Not.

In an attempt to become more of a human being and not just a human doing I took an absolutely wonderful class at my church called "Growing Your Soul".  The class's premise is that  “Grant Lord that I might know myself and that I might know Thee.” There is a lot of indepth self study, contemplation and reading to learn more about yourself.  I am not given much to navel gazing so this was difficult. SO difficult in fact that I actually took the Beginner class TWICE- that's how long it took me to get get with and absorb the program. I have tried really hard to hand my controlling tendancies over to the Man Upstairs. Occasionally I ask my group mate and colleague Cindy "did you see how I let THAT go?" amd she laughs lovingly and says "So I see you almost have control on that controlling thing..."

The course truly has changed my life.  Although I have found when I don't do my mental & spiritual homework I find myself  slipping into my old control freak tendencies. When things feel out of control I tend to clamp down & try to control the things I can.

So with all the recent soul searching, number crunching, and pondering, it's been tough. With the crushing rent increase and the decison not to renew the lease on the shop I have been pondering and plotting my next chapter.

How do I maintain the supportive rowdy community that has developed over the last 8 years? How to do that and support my own inner artist? It would be easy to just move into a new building and start over.

With the plan to relocate to the water after our son graduates from school, it seems flatout fool hardy to start over yet again with a brand new lease and building.  I would barely be up to speed and it would be time to head out.

So instead I am going to concentrate on what I was too chicken to do 8 years ago.  Work on my art.  Work on my craft. Write about the creatives I meet and shine a light on them. Collaborate with other amazing people and be the trumpeter and let them run the show.  And yet...

I wait.

I wait for my back to heal so I can start packing.  I wait to move my shelves to the Old Screen Door in Delaware so I can put merchandise on them. Here in Falls Church I wait for the possibility of a local collaborative venue.  I wait for the approvals and legal reviews and paperwork and, and, and...

Waiting is so not my nature, I am used to being Large and In Charge. If I was in charge (I think) I would be so far down the road it would be next week.  Or so I think. But when I stop to truly think, I know it's God's way of telling me to go do my homework.  And wait to see what happens.

When One Door Closes, Another Opens- in this case an Old Screen Door

 Once I made the traumatic decision not to renew my lease at the shop in falls Church I was at a loss.  What to do next.  Fire Sale? Shut her down and walk away? Neither of these are options as, I think I have mentioned, I actually love what I do.  So how to create a new paradigm? As I pondered- the same day I made the decision I saw a Facebook post from a shopkeeper I admired mentioning that he had an opening because one of his vendors had expanded and had left to open her own shop.

 Really? this was interesting as I really liked the shop layout and their style. I actually shelled out retail bucks with them (and THAT is saying something!). One conversation later I was offered an opportunity to join them. (click to read more)  Think, think, think. What DO I want? I already had a list-

 Discover and sell vintage goodies. Make more art. Write more. Actually write the Thriving Creatives blog/book mag/whatever it is that I have had in me for years. Spend time with ailing family members.  Hang with my son before he slips off to college. Teach more. Sleep in occasionally.

 How to do this? How to keep connected to the relationships that I have nurtured over the years? I am still working on multiple options for here in Falls Church but the space at the Old Screen Door seemed a wonderful opportunity to put SOME of my goodies in a space that speaks to me.  Lewes Delaware is a lovely town (we have a farm house 5 miles from the beach there).  Lewes was so supportive when Bob had lost his leg and was rehabbing.  This little beach had handicapped facilities including a beach wheelchair for heaven's sake.  Anyone that follows along with me knows how much I love my Bay sunset shots!

 So I took the plunge and signed a lease on a space at the Old Screen Door. Am looking forward to my "debut" in April.  The 16th is their Sip and Shop event so if you just happen to be on the shore that weekend - come see me.  More details to follow.

 This next week is crazy.  We have a fantastic week booked at Stifel & Capra - one of my dearest friend and neighbors, Howard Cincotta is doing a book signing on our last FIRSTfriday at S&C, old friends are coming in from out of town for the event and I 

 still have a COMPLETE debris field in my basement from the hot water heater pipe bursting. My studio and the anteroom look like something exploded.  While getting ready for my de-stash sale. AND writing the newsletter by tomorrow.

 And planning the logistics of moving everything out of the shop while negotiating details of a local lease so I am not simply banished to my basement while pondering which shows and events to sign up for.

 Life may be nervewracking and complicated. But it is NEVER dull.  Stay tuned.

Taking a leap.

If you had told me a year ago I would systematically be breaking down the physical organization I've so carefully built out of over 8 years I would have laughed. But time marches forward.

Leap year is an odd occurrence. A calender course correction to keep the world on its proverbial axis. Funny then that I am making momentous decisions in a leap year.

The last couple of years have been rough at the shop. Vendors have come and gone. Large scale neighborhood  construction projects have wreaked havoc not on just the physical landscape (read losing a week's revenue when the ceiling caved in from them piledriving the footers of the 5 story building across the street) but the PERCEPTION that there were traffic delays caused by construction (there were not). That tiny fall-off in revenue - a $50 invoice rather than a fifty five dollar ticket is the difference in me taking a salary or not.

Add to this a landlord who did not respond to rent abatement entreaties and a city that neglected to factor the impact multiple large scale construction projects have on its small businesses and neglected to ask for impact fees and a lease that expired and I am out. Done.

My husband and I refuse to be one of those yahoos you see on those TV shows like "Restaurant Impossible" who are working 70 hours a week and are 100 thousand dollars in debt. That is not going to happen here.

So sadly I am vacating a space that has become, for many, a Third Place- not home, not work, but a place where someone knows your name and you feel safe, amused, maybe even delighted and inspired.

I feel confident that my ability to create this Third Place is not building dependent. A community can be built and flourish in many different forms.

I love eye contact myself though. Don't leave me.

Losing the building will mean gaining other things. Freedom from the daily routine and new found time to write and create perhaps.

I am feeling the crushing feeling of letting people down, of not taking care of the tribe. But I look around at my neglected house, my almost grown child and feel compelled to re-engage. Phone calls with news of less than wonderful health reports from beloveds remind me that there is more than just minding the store.

The volume of the tasks ahead are daunting. But the options are many, almost too many.

It's time to leap.

Momentous shop news

Hello Friend- 

The only thing constant is change, so they say.  That adage was brought to mind quite forcibly recently.

There is not subtle way to say this: I have lost my lease here in Falls Church.  I have chosen not to renew the lease at the increased rate my Landlord is asking for the building. 

The hardest part about this decision is telling my tenants and vendors. And now telling you.

I would like to emphasize we are NOT going out of business.  Just out of this building.  

All of our fantastic events planned for February and March are still scheduled and will go off as planned.  If you have been procrastinating about taking a class might I suggest that NOW is the time to sign up?!

Please mark your calendar and join us as we celebrate what we have here on Broad Street and stay tuned for what comes next.

To Adventure!

Theresa

Happy New Year!

From our house to yours - Happy New Year!
Praying 2016 brings you health that causes you to thrive, 
contentment that brings you joy, 
friends that make you laugh until you cry, 
gratitude that stops your heart and 
prosperity that enables you to share it all. 
Cheers!!!

Back in my corporate days I always had off work between Christmas and New Year's.  I used that time to travel, host a HUGE open house and think, think, think.  Recharge my batteries and set up my goals for the New Year.  Not so much resolutions but goals.

The past few years of being a self employed retailer my goals have been mostly reduced to "survive and thrive" and "do more everyday" but I found myself governed by, to quote Steven Covey, "the tyranny of the urgent".  My thoughts for this year involve being more purposeful with the goal of if the activity doesn't serve my greater goal of being an Awesome Parent, Better Than Average Spouse, Gleeful Artist, Engaged Family Member, Supportive Friend or Evolving Human Being to just let it go.

Pretty broad net don't you think?

To that end, I actually

wrote these words just now
marked my kids' school breaks on the calender
confirmed a lunch date
and
ate lunch without looking at a screen.

Progress!

A Creative Mind is Rarely Tidy

I don't know about you, but when I'm making something I tend to leave all the various options that have been part of the jury process just shoved aside. It's a very colorful and sparkly debris field to be sure but by the end there's very little room to actually walk or move!

I just finished up a batch of about half a dozen commissions so it's particularly bad at the moment. There's no distinction between wet and dry parts of the studio in process or done pieces its just all a big jumble.

So I'm taking the time this morning to actually stop and put things away. The good news? I got 3 more commissions over the weekend!

( this Thursday will be the cutoff for a local commissions.)

One of the hardest things about being a retailer who is an artist is trying to find time to actually make things myself.
Having people so thrilled with the gift that I make so they can give them to their loved ones is a good reminder that whatever we make, no matter how small, matters.

Laughter and paint.

Had fun yesterday running a team bonding exercise for a group of polished, positive HR executives for one of our biggest consulting firms.

I must confess it felt like a million years since I have worked in that kind of environment. Not good or bad, just different!

They were a delight to work with. I did a UN structured art lesson because they seemed like such a creative group.

It was fun to see how different everyone's paintings were by the end.

This was a group of ten but if you want to get together with friends, co-workers or family for a fun night out, remember it only takes four to make a class!

All available workshops are on our website. www.StifelandCapra.com

OK, I know it is still summer but...

 Took my daughter up to her second year of art school on Sunday. I was struck by that air of expectation that floated over campus.  New beginnings- back to school.  My son doesn't start until after Labor Day so I am floating in this weird sort of limbo.  Feeling motivated and energized to start the new season but not waiting to wish away the time I have left of summer.

I must confess that my biggest summer indulgence is sleeping in.  With the shop not opening until 10 I can get up at 8 and still have a leisurely morning.  Of course the price I pay for that is all of the things that DON'T get done in my well rested state. During the school year I am up by 6 and have 31/2 hours to exercise, meditate, make art, do chores, or do paperwork before the shop opens and my phone starts ringing.

 My perennial problem? As Steven Covey so elegantly puts it - putting First Things First.  I can't do EVERYthing I want to before I head to work. So how does it get done when I run out of steam at night after being perky all day? How do I juggle the interminable list  of to-do's of the business owner and actually hang out with my son while he still lives here? How do I stay in touch with and support my family and friends that need my help and love?

 My biggest failing is I am an "all or nothing" kind of gal so today I DID get my spiritual reading done, my house is clean but no art happened and the only exercise I got was running up and down the stairs with the laundry!

The good news? All those hours in the car doing the college run gave me some thoughts about regrouping and restarting.  Let me know if you have any hints.  This donut around my middle has GOT to go.  Maybe I need to re-read that Covey book.

The Altered Page: Living With Art: 12 - featuring ME!

The Altered Page: Living With Art: 12



So excited to be featured on Seth Apter's The Altered Page Blog.

Check it out!

From trunk to treasure to thirteen messages.

I have a colleague that has "seller's remorse" when something she brings in sells right away. I think she worries that it some long lost Picasso treasure rather than just being happy it found the right new owner in a twinkling of an eye.

A happy example - I had a client who told me that they were looking for an "unconventional shower caddy" for a recent remodel that they had done. After listening to her creative yet vague description I suggested we go to the back of my truck where some (awfully dirty) treasures were waiting to be cleaned up, tagged and put out on the sales floor.

To my delight she jumped on an awesome vintage plant stand, spider webs and all.  The out of the box results are below!

Dear Theresa,

As promised, please see how perfect your newly-hauled plant stand/converted unique shower caddy turned out for us!  A few strategic holes, new Rustoleum paint job and we're good to go forever.  I was trying to replace the little rubber feet, but once scrubbed they were discovered to be in fine shape and ready to go.  Thanks so much for so quickly filling the bill of my "out of the box" look for our shower.

Love it!  And you know I'll be back--to shop your store--or the back of your car for recent discoveries.

Take care.

 Rob

Speaking of cleaning up, I have spent the better part of the last 60 days cleaning out, filing or responding to my in box. My voice mail box is cleaned out too!  I will admit my to do list is still there but it is focused and singular.  I feel like I have lost weight!  Quite exciting.  (although you know losing weight is on my to do list as well).

Brooklyn Bound- Revisited

Inspiration can strike anywhere.  An old acquaintance's Facebook post caught my eye.  She was elegantly dressed to catch a train to party in New York. While lamenting the fact that my middle age life did not include such excitement I asked her if I could "appropriate" the photo as inspiration for a collage.  She graciously gave permission. (While it is not illegal to 'borrow' photos in the public domain,  I feel it, it is only proper to ask to use someone's image or take their photo.)

A lovely family came in and bought not one, but TWO of my pieces.  I was thrilled and jestingly asked if they would send me a photo of my art in their new home as I like to see where they land. Not long after - I received this from John.

Hi Theresa,

We like your work very much. When did you make it? This year?

When I first saw your collage I liked it a lot because I saw a rare young woman I thought I recognized -- one with a defined sense of personal style that was somewhat daring confident and casual. I went back to see how you'd made it and liked it even more because what I'd first taken to be carefully drawn and painted, actually seemed to be brilliantly dyed draped and stitched! I admired the intensity you captured in your friend. And I think your medium of collage is so apt simple and surprisingly evocative of flesh blood and spirit. It pops with life and I love looking at it.

 

...

 

Sure you can use the photo.  You're pretty good to make me see your friend the way you see her.  She sounds like a special person. John

You are too, John. You are too.

PS- Blogger & artist Seth Apter is running a "Living with Art" series one his blog right now.  A corner of my living room is lucky  enough to be featured in an upcoming edition. Stay tuned!

Ok so maybe you DO have to hit me in the head!

You know that thing where you get a new car and suddenly every firth car on the road is the same make and model as your?  Of course all of those cars were there the day before but you are just SEEING them for the first time.

In the past 24 hours I received the same message from my Growing Your Soul Group,  Seth Godin, Jennifer Boykin, Regina and Facebook & Pinterest posts. I felt like I am being hit in the head with a baseball bat with the message to just GO.

In the past few days I also had a pipe burst at the shop, our wet-vac caught on fire, the color is off so I can't print a commission work that is due uh, NOW, I ran over a pin with a sewing machine and it killed it, oh AND I woke up this morning and my 2 week out of warranty laptop (read still darn new as far as I am concerned) just didn't. turn on.

So advice all of my real and virtual pals has me resolved. Even if it is not perfect or pretty. So here you are.

I am starting,
yet again.

Embracing Change

I had the audacity to run away this weekend. With the family, to one of my oldest and dearest friend's house. Ok that probably doesn't seem audacious to you but we haven't gone on a trip for the sheer pleasure of it for a long time. 

 I had to beg for shop coverage and pay my lovely staff for bleary winter days in January when most folks are more excited about the Super Bowl that they are about gift shopping.  So it was a big deal.  More about our lovely time later but I just sat down and steeled myself to really LOOK at my email and one of the first things in my inbox was the article below.

It's like it was reading my mind.  Question begs- what is next?  Still thinking. Stay tuned.

Embrace Change in Order To Make A Difference

by Clint Watson

When I first started BoldBrush (the company behind FASO), things were pretty simple. I was the leader, the boss, and all the employees. [...] 

Read the rest of this article at:
http://faso.com/fineartviews/87569/embrace-change-in-order-to-make-a-difference

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collectors and galleries (and anyone else who loves art).


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Miss you already!