Social Media Marketing | Sharing the Love!

Last week I had the opportunity to speak to other artists and creatives about Social Media Marketing on behalf of the Art & Culture Alliance of Knoxville. I was thrilled to see so many creative business people come out during the middle of the day to learn how they could use social media to grow their businesses. It made me so happy! So did this quote below from the son of one of the attendees.

"You've inspired folks! Even J who is 11 said "I know about FB, twitter, tumbler, and sharing the love, but it was good!" For an 11 year old to say that, it really was a good session! "

Teaching. Speaking. These are two things I would never have thought I would be doing 15 years ago, before I moved to Knoxville and changed my whole life. I have been teaching fused glass classes for many years, but teaching creative business people, such as photographers, artists and graphic designers about social media is one of my passions. One reason I love sharing my passion for social media is because most artists have a difficult time promoting themselves and the other is because it is a relatively low-cost way to spread the word. And there are lots of ways to incorporate images, which can be so incredibly important when you are an artist. I also love to speak about turning your artistic passion into a successful creative business.

So, I wanted to share over here on my Sassy Glass Studio blog about what is going on over on the Creative Business Learning Center blog. I've created a page to share the presentation and I'm working on a document that will include some additional information and tips that I didn't have time to include in a 60 minute presentation. If you are interested, you can view it here. The Creative Business Mentor Program has also been retooled a bit, and you can check that out here. I'll also be answering some of the questions I am receiving from attendees on the other blog.

I would love to share my passions with your creative group, class or business! Contact me for availability and rates at lisa@kittyfantastic.com.

#ShareTheLove {social media is all about sharing not only about you but others as well}
#BeAwesome

{ON A SIDE NOTE}
Don't miss out on the fun of  celebrating National Craft Month in Sassy Style! There are still a few days in March to enjoy the crafty awesomeness! This will be the only time this year that Fused Glass Classes will be discounted!

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Fresh Fused Glass Goodness | New blog series

It's been a busy month in the studio between the reorganization and redesign and creating new pieces for upcoming shows. I love sharing photos of the new pieces I create, often with some background on how it was created and the creative thought process behind it, and decided to create a series "Fresh fused glass goodness" that will appear on a regular basis on the blog. This will be a great way for me to share the process of creating some of my work. This is the first post in the series featuring some of the pieces I have created over the last month or so. The glass studio doesn't have a heating/cooling system so I have to fire up the space heater when I am going to work out there, which means I don't get as much studio time when it is very cold. But Spring is on its way and I'll be creating more fused glass goodness in preparation of the Dogwood Art DeTour and Dogwood Arts Festival Market Square Art Fair in April.

These pieces below have been created using what I refer to as "remainder glass". This is the glass that is leftover when I cut squares and circles. I stacked the pieces into circles and squares to create "new" pieces of clear glass and then I added additional glass embellishments and accents. The pieces were them full fused and then slumped or draped into or over molds. I love how thick and heavy these pieces are! Let me know what you think of this new process. I love getting feedback!

ON A SIDE NOTE:
Sassy Glass Studio will be at the Ironwood Art Fair on Friday, March 14th from 5pm to ?? and Saturday, March 15th from 10am to 4pm. Find out more information here.

March is National Craft Month and there are three ways you can celebrate in Sassy Style! Find our more in this post.

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Refresh and Reorganize | a mini studio makeover

{ Organized + Refreshed = Increased Productivity + Inspired Creativity }

The last few weeks have been a whirlwind of cleaning, moving and tossing stuff in the trash. The glass studio is a work in progress, but I wanted to share a short video {kind of like a moving portrait} of the refresh and reorganization. All that's really left is some painting and then I can hang some shelves, a cork board and some art on the walls and be done with it. For now. Eventually I will paint the floor, but that will involve removing everything from the studio and I don't have time for that now. Maybe next January!

The area I have been reorganizing is my main workspace. We boxed in an area about 10 feet X 10 feet when we started working on the "Great ALM Photo Office|Studio Project" about 6 years ago and outfitted it with items we already had, like shelves, a desk, tables and even the wainscoting and window were things kicking around the garage. Yes, my glass studio is in what was once a boring detached two-car garage/workshop. During the "Project" we built up on top of it and out the sides to add another garage bay and a large porch. What I love most about my entire glass studio space is that I can open the overhead door in the gallery/classroom area and work pretty much outside. I will be sharing photos and updates on that area when I get it finished up. All of my reorg/refresh has to be done in time for the Dogwood Art DeTour on April 12th and 13th when my studio is open to the public. Who wants to see that I usually work in a messy, unorganized space?!

Here is a "before" photo:

Yeah, it was a mess. It's a happier space now!

Here is the short "after" video:

Here are some photos I found of the glass studio being constructed. Wow! Looking back on these photos, I really wish I had painted the walls before moving everything into the space so I could get working. The walls still look like this. Gross!

I'll share more photos and/or video as I work my way through this project. The gallery/classroom area will have a nice comfy couch so my mom can wander down to the glass studio and watch me work. {We moved my mom in almost a year ago and she has a hard time getting around so it will be nice for her to have a place to sit and hang out with me.}

Don't miss out on the fun of  celebrating National Craft Month in Sassy Style! March will be a fun month of crafty awesomeness!

{ON A SIDE NOTE}
There are still a few days left in the Warm up with the Hot Winter Sale going on through February 28, 2014 in the Sassy Glass Studio Etsy shop! Save 20% with coupon code HOTWINTERSALE.

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Celebrate National Craft Month in Sassy Style

Did you know March is National Craft Month?

Yes, I know there is a month or a day for just about every interest, but let's be honest, who doesn't love to craft? Over here at Sassy Glass Studio we are celebrating National Craft Month in several of ways. Pick one or two and join in the fun!

Fused glass class discount: Save $50 off Beginner or Intermediate Fused Glass Class

Beginner Fused Glass Class is a fabulous opportunity to learn more about fused glass and expand your artistic skills, plus you create a set of fused glass coasters in the process. How cool is that? Intermediate Fused Glass Class if offered to students who have taken the Beginner class. Call me at 865-406-3870 or email me at lisa@sassyglassstudio.com to schedule your class today. Just mention you want to take advantage of the National Craft Month special!

Share your National Craft Month photos with Sassy Glass Studio on Instagram and Twitter

Post your crafting photos on Instagram and Twitter during March and tag @AllThingsSassy and #SGSCraftMonth. I'll retweet, share or comment on your photos and choose someone and their craft to be featured on this blog. Fun! I love being inspired by other creative people!

Sign up for the Creative Business Mentor Program and grow your creative/craft business

The Creative Business Mentor Program is perfect for artists, craftisans and other creative folks who want to launch their own business. Whether you want to venture into your creative biz part-time or full-time, there is never a better time than now! Enroll in the Creative Business Mentor Program during the month of March and receive a bonus hour of mentoring, a $50 value. Call me at 865-406-3870 or email me at lisa@sassyglassstudio.com to schedule your class today. Just mention you want to take advantage of the National Craft Month special!

So there you go, three different ways to celebrate National Craft Month in Sassy Style!

Click this link to find out more about my crafting journey!

{ON A SIDE NOTE}
Wow! It's warm in Knoxville, Tennessee today and tomorrow will be 70 degrees! But don't worry, that doesn't mean the Hot Winter Sale is over yet! Warm up with the Hot Winter Sale going on through February 28, 2014 in the Sassy Glass Studio Etsy shop! Save 20% with coupon code HOTWINTERSALE.

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Fusography | Show off your fabulous photos!

{ Fusography }

It's a word I made up to describe the pieces I create by permanently fusing a full-color {or not} image, whether it be a photograph or other graphic, to a one-of-a-kind fused glass piece. Several years ago, probably more like four years ago, I set out to find a way to combine my two passion/professions: photography and fused glass art. There were plenty of decals you could DIY, assuming you could lay your hands on just the right type of laser printer, but these decals would only fire to a sepia tone. I wanted COLOR!

So I spent a lot of time Googling full-color decals and a multitude of combinations thereof until I found In Plain Sight Art. I was so excited when I found them. They are artists who print exactly the type of decal I needed! And it wasn't ridiculously expensive. And they are super easy to work with.

My first decal order was of artwork by a friend {see finished bowl below}. I was super nervous about messing something up and it took me several weeks to get up to courage to actually create the piece. I wrote a step-by-step post about Fusography a while back outlining the whole process. It's not for the beginner or anyone not having a great attention to detail. The step of getting the decal off the backing paper and onto the glass is tedious and if not done right, can ruin the whole piece. My patience is tested every time. I sweat while working to get the decals off the backing paper and onto the glass without any bubbles.

I've been sharing photos of Fusography pieces I have created and I have had a lot of fused glass artists ask me about the decals, but I have yet to find another artist {besides the creative geniuses over at In Plain Sight Art} sharing art they have made using the decals. Of course, you need to have a digitally programmable kiln and many fused glass artists don't use one, but I figured somebody out there was doing the same thing I am.

One of my business goals for 2014 is to increase exposure of Fusography, get more custom orders for it and experiment with different types of designs and techniques. It's unique and since it gives customers the option of using their images, whether they are professional images they have permission to print, Instagram photos, mobile phone photos, or photos of photos. See...lots of possibilities! I bet right now you are thinking of some images you would love to have on coasters or pendants. Custom created fused glass art is a fantastic gift idea, but it is even more awesome when you embellish it with a photo of someone special or your own photography.

Here are the decals on order right now! I just uploaded this image file to In Plain Sight Art and I will have them by the weekend. As you can see I can add a lot of images to one sheet! There are several images on here for customers, but a lot of them are for new pieces I am creating for the Etsy shop and for the Dogwood Arts Festival Market Square Art Fair and Dogwood Art DeTour coming up in April.

Next up with Fusography is a video tutorial sharing the entire process from creating the decal sheet, placing the order, fabricating the fused glass blanks for the decals, firing and finishing pieces. I'm excited to share one of my passions!

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