MAW's latest photos and design

2016 is flying by! I have stayed busy booking new clients, nurturing current professional relationships and building my catalog of product photography.

I've had the pleasure of working with several artists this year, including (clockwise from top left) Olivia Molinaro Landry, Kris Prunitsch, Charlotte Terrell, and Miranda Herrick.

I've also been working on independent projects, both for practice and to show samples of my studio work.

 

I've had plenty of design projects to keep me busy, as well, including several ongoing marketing projects for The One and Only Bill Davis and Very Entertaining Records.

The color photo below is a portrait taken by me, which came out so much better than I expected. Photo credits for the other images go to Miranda Herrick for the photo of Bill and me and Brett Schenning for his photo of Jeff Blaney.

You are seeing that right! I've been joining my charming husband for most of his gigs over the past six years or so, and am now fancy enough to be in photos with him! He's always been very encouraging, but I've kept myself in the background for multiple reasons, one being that it's hard to be in a photo when you're the person photographing.

While the above images are all being used for digital marketing, I have also had the opportunity to create some physical promotional products, as well, including these cards for Kris Prunitsch and Miranda Herrick. 

 

It's been a wonderful year so far for MAW Studio, and I'm looking forward to sharing more with you soon. Contact me if you'd like pricing for any photography or design projects.

Project Review: The Album Design of Jeff Blaney's Go Now, Don't Look Back

I've done several album design projects over the years, the most recent being for Jeff Blaney for his latest EP Go Now, Don't Look Back. I take care to do every project well, but this one had an extra little string attached to my heart: Jeff used one of my Horse Trail -> Highways images for his album cover!

The original photo used for the cover

When Jeff asked me to handle the cover and disc layouts, I was so excited. Not only was he using my photo, but I was getting creative control over how the image would appear when printed.
When we met to discuss his ideas, I was pleasantly surprised by Jeff's excellent notes and mock-ups. It made the entire process much easier.

Notes and mock-ups. Jeff became a dream client for bringing these.

The first time I ever did an album and disc layout, the templates totally threw me for a loop. Was it all the colors? The layers? I'm not sure why it was so difficult. As I've gained experience, though, the process has gotten much easier.

A few small changes were made to this layout before printing

The final product looks exactly how Jeff planned. It's a thrill every time a client, especially when that client is a friend, has that "YES!" moment. I couldn't have asked for a more rewarding experience! 

The final product

The other awesome bonus of this project is that Jeff is using this image for a lot of his marketing and PR materials. Seeing my work peppered around the internet has been exciting and humbling. 

A couple of Jeff's promotional pieces

It's wonderful to live in a city where there is such a solid arts scene, and being part of my friends' successes is one of the best parts about living and working in Nashville. 

Interested in catching one of Jeff's shows? Details here. 

The 2015 International Gift Show in Atlanta

One of my regular jobs is as a production assistant for local jewelry designer Freshie and Zero. Three days a week, I hammer, shape, bend, and wrap to help create this lovely line of jewelry.

The biggest gift show in the world takes place in Atlanta, about 250 miles from Nashville. I've been assisting Freshie with her booth in the Boutique section for a couple of years now, and it's always an inspiration to see how she displays her wares. 

If you're a maker, whether you're on the craft fair circuit or have a thriving wholesale business, your display can have a huge impact on your sales. Below are a few suggestions for making your booth as engaging as it can be.

Choose colors that are eye-catching but not overwhelming

Freshie and Zero items are dainty, so potential buyers need to be drawn in with some punch. Freshie has chosen a palette of mint, gray, and pink to add some color to her booth. The decor she has chosen corresponds with her website and her packaging. 

The booth! It's such a fun, cheerful environment. Note the use of bunting, flowers, and small accessories to incorporate color into an otherwise neutral line.

Mint is incorporated on the tags with the item information, as well as in the ampersand on the letterpress earring cards and hangtags.

Invest in professional photography

One of the reasons the booth looks so good is because all of the images are taken by professionals. Jewelry is challenging to photograph, but the vignettes that were taken show the details of her work, while the photographs with models showcase the scale of the pieces.

The photos and displays at different heights keep the buyers' eyes moving throughout the booth. The better the booth flows, the easier it is for potential buyers to say "Sold!" and for existing customers to reorder.

Take the guesswork out of it

I don't know how many vendors there are at the gift show, but it is in the thousands. Three buildings, each with over ten floors, make up the show, and it lasts for four and a half days. Many buyers plan out what to see, but everyone hits a point of sensory overload. Making new items easy to find is key, especially for existing customers who are familiar with the line.

The stars indicate new items. Grouping them together in this creative display makes it easy to shop.

Another great way to entice buyers to choose your line is to have a pre-selected package. Freshie has two different packages: the best-sellers, and the best-selling earrings. She always offers some sort of show incentive with them, as well. This works in two ways: it takes the pressure of decision-making off of the customer who is bleary-eyed from shopping, and it also puts the top sellers in one place so people who do want to create their own order have one place to look for the best-performing pieces.

The best-seller package is the main focus of the booth. Everything is here: the logo, booth number, the package of top-selling items, and beautiful photography.

The earring package is at the front of the booth in a highly visible but sleek display. Paired with bright flowers, it encouraged many people to enter the booth and get information about the line.

Do you have a story? Tell it!
People love a good story, and incorporating items with meaning into your line is a great way to engage new customers. Displaying her Sentimental Notions as a collection on the wall, Freshie has made it easy for buyers to choose which pieces best represent their customers.

Each item from Sentimental Notions collection comes with it's own meaning card, which acts as both a display tool and a little bonus for the customer.

These are just a few observations I've made over the years of seeing the booth of Freshie and Zero update and upgrade. Freshie often has other vendors ask for tips on how to make their booths more attractive, and buyers often take photos of her displays to get ideas for their stores.

Freshie's displays are exemplary: the pops of color are engaging, and each item has it's own space in the display, keeping it from looking crowded or junky.

What does your booth look like? If you have any other suggestions, please share them in the comments!

A Look Back at 2014

This year has been a challenging one, both personally and professionally. Growing pains with MAW and at home have made every step forward especially sweet this year, and while I'm enjoying the last few days of 2014, I am also looking forward to the New Year.
I'm not much of one for dwelling on the past, but I do want to revisit some of the highlights of my year, to keep in mind that no matter how challenging life may get, the good stuff will always happen, too.

Placement - my collaboration with Miranda Herrick

Miranda figures heavily into this year being a professional success for me. We collaborated on this series at the request of the owner of The Framemaker, and it came together wonderfully.
Miranda wrapped and gessoed a globe for me to take to different locations and photograph in my style.
I photographed different collections of objects and supplied Miranda with photos to cut up into her signature designs.
This project stemmed from our compilation on a piece from a few years ago called Heartstrings. Miranda wrapped an anatomical model of a heart with fishing wire, and I photographed the progress at different intervals.

The Facebook banner image for Placement, featuring selections from Heartstrings.

It was awesome to work with Miranda, and the show came together better than I think either one of us expected. To see more of her work, check out her website, also designed by yours truly.

The show turned out beautifully!

Go Now, Don't Look Back - album cover art and design project with Jeff Blaney

When Jeff Blaney asked to use one of my photos from Horse Trails -> Highways on the cover of his new EP, I jumped at the opportunity! What an amazing thing to have a piece of mine chosen by an artist to represent a piece of his musical journey. He also hired me to design the layout of the CD jacket and disc. Jeff gave me a lot of lead time, brought all of the information I needed for the layout to our meeting, and even had rough sketches to work from. It was a perfect project experience.
The album will be released in February, but until then, give Jeff Blaney's music a listen. 

The front and back covers of Go Now, Don't Look Back

Works and Days - being published in an art book for the first time

Miranda Herrick is one of the most talented people I know, and her dedication to art is astounding. We have built this amazing working relationship around our friendship-she is the creator, I am the documenter. I've been working with her for about five years now, and one of my ongoing projects is to document as many of her shows as possible. Having this catalog gave Miranda the breadth of images she needed for the introduction to her book, Works and Days, which is the entirety of her year-long daily drawing project. It was gratifying to not only see my name in print in a book, but to see years of work pay off in such a wonderful way for both Miranda and me.

There it is, live and in print. Woo hoo!!

Some perspective: this is the full set of all 365 Works and Days. They span the color spectrum in order of the months.

All in all, it's been a really good year. I hope you're enjoying the final days of 2014, and happily anticipating 2015. Cheers to the close of one year and the new beginnings of another!

Five Steps to Getting Control of an Overwhelming Schedule

We've all been there: taking on too many tasks and not thinking about the reality of our schedules. I recently went through period of saying "yes" to too many projects. It took some time, but I learned valuable lessons in managing my schedule and what my priorities are.

Here's how I came back from the brink:

1. I took a step back.

It's hard to follow this advice when one is overwhelmed.

I remembered to deep breathe. I have the ability to work until I am almost dead with exhaustion. This is not healthy, but it can be very productive...or can it? When I really started to look at my situation critically, I realized that I was running myself ragged by taking on so many projects. I was doing a lot, but accomplishing almost nothing in the process, and I was running at about 60%. I like to give 100% to any task I take on, so this 60% thing was like ice on my spine.

2. The hard edit.

At the opening reception of Placement in June. I look exhausted because I was.

Hard though it was, I cut out extracurricular band membership. Music is fun for me, but I am primarily a visual artist and designer. I set a limit: I sing with only my husband's bands, and I have to draw the line there. That still means performing with three different bands, but it's feasible since we can practice whenever we want. I don't have to schedule anything, we just do it.

I also decided to take a break from exhibiting my photography. While I love showing my work, I saw a recent collaborative art opening as a burden, not an outlet. Until it becomes a healthy, productive exercise again, I'm putting it on hold.

3. Priority refining.
I assessed the projects I have that don't have deadlines and decided where on the priority list they needed to go. Several have been postponed indefinitely, others have been finished, and a few are still in the queue. When time and motivation allows, I finish one of these open-ended projects, but until these clients and friends decide they need these projects completed, I am not going to worry myself by thinking about them.

4. Nurturing existing professional relationships.
I put a spotlight on my relationships with my current clients. If they have a need, I rise to it. When they need advice or just a sounding board, I make myself available. This is easier to do than I initially thought, especially since I started to prioritize properly.

5. Bringing it home.

Taking a walk with the loves of my life. Imagine a schedule coming between me and these two! How silly!

Finally, and most importantly, while all of this was happening, I really focused on my relationships at home. I had overwhelmed myself to the point of being short with and overly demanding of my husband, which created tension in our household. Even our dog, Sapo, felt it. When I started to give Bill the love he deserves, the tension melted and our family unit became stronger than ever.

Now, several months later, things are so much better. I can see clearly where I failed to be fair in my time allotments, especially to myself. Since I've taken these steps, life has balanced out and I'm back to being happy, optimistic, and my can-do attitude has been restored and upgraded.

Do you have any advice to add? Feel free to leave your comments below!

Back In The Game

It's been a while since I've posted, which I apologize for, but I have been both busy as heck and suffering from a case of writer's block.

The good stuff is still happening! I've been singing plenty with The One and Only Bill Davis; he is finishing the cleaning up of his Omnichord X-mas album, and sending it out to be mastered within the next day or two. I was lucky enough to be asked to sing on one of the tracks AND do the layout of the album cover. It's coming along well so far - it definitely helps to work with a person who knows what he wants.

Screen shot of the work in progress

Bill is not only a great singer/composer/arranger, but he's been flexing his design muscles on his last two albums. The Up To Something! artwork was entirely his concept - I just did the layout design. He created the drawings for the Omnichord record ages ago in a Paint program on an old PC laptop, and, again, I'm just laying it out. I love that I married a man who likes to cross creative genres!

Front and back covers-do you see the faint drawing of Bill in the background of the back cover?

I recently reconnected with a client I had worked with in late 2012/early 2013, and she gave me a copy of a postcard/pamphlet cover that I had laid out months ago. She just sent it out to 200 people, so I'm pleased it came out so well.

My next project with these wonderfully creative folks is designing Rob's website

Here are another couple of ads I've contributed to this year:

I did the photography, post-production, and layout for this Frames By U ad, featured in the
Nashville Arts Magazine Gift Guide

I took the photograph used in the ad for Bennett Galleries, also found in the
Nashville Arts Holiday Gift Guide

Even with writer's block, I'm so grateful to have all of these great opportunities to work on so many creative projects!

Keeping My Inner Dialogue Positive

I've been having a week of fits and starts. I'm currently waffling between angry and hyper-motivated, and discouraged and ready to crawl into bed. Everyone goes through this, both personally and in our jobs, whether we're scientists, artists, or full-time parents.

In the midst of this self-doubt, I am trying to keep several positive thoughts in mind:

1. I have a great life and a fun job. I even have my design work published on a regular basis.

A small ad I designed for one of my clients, Frames By U, as seen in the September 2013 issue of Nashville Arts Magazine.

2. Nashville has a wonderful network of people. I sat for portraits by Deone Jahnke a few days ago. She works with countless local artists, and is making a good name for herself in Nashville. She also happens to be a total sweetheart and one of my neighbors. Occasionally, she needs someone to feed and smoosh her kitties when she's out of town, so we have a trade of photos for pet care going on. Here's one of the photos from the first session:

I am totally willing to believe I really look like this.

3. A week from today, I'll be packing to go on the road for a small tour with The One and Only Bill Davis. We'll be playing in Brookfield, IL, Manitowoc, WI, and Milwaukee, WI. My brother's band will be backing us, and we're going to (hopefully) get paid to play music! While we travel! It's another important step in both Bill's and my music career, and it's really exciting!

4. I actually have everything I need. I am fed, clothed, and have a cozy house to call my own. My husband is talented, smart, loving, and supportive. My family, though they aren't very close geographically, is totally awesome, as are my in-laws. I am healthy and continue to make improvements in my life that keep me that way. All-natural soaps, anyone?

Made On Acorn Hill soaps

The little things often make the biggest differences, and I have to keep that in mind when I feel the weight of the responsibility of making the "right" choices. In the end, even "wrong" choices teach us something.

Now, on to conquering the world, one happy client at a time!!!

Tell me, what do you do turn things around when you start to feel low?