Running a Business Archives | Page 13 of 49

Running a Business

All Things Home

soda crate + dress form display

When it comes to creative display ideas, I try to “keep my head down” or “keep my blinders on” to some extent, so that my ideas aren’t too heavily influenced by trends or other creatives. But, sometimes I feel a little stuck in a rut and I need to cruise for some fresh inspiration. It’s definitely a fine tightrope to walk! As I was getting ready for Lucketts, though, I needed some fresh inspiration and I came across one that was so cute, I decided to replicate it. The idea is from one of my milk paint retailers, Kathe of Warm & Weathered. She created a display for a dress form out of an antique soda crate. It looks sort of like the holder worn by the guy selling peanuts at a ballgame. Are you tracking with me? I hunted down an antique soda crate that worked with my brand…blue

June 14, 2016 19 Comments

Artistic Endeavors

behind the scenes | online shop

Since the online shop has been a big focus in the studio for the past couple of weeks, I thought I would share a little bit of the “behind the scenes” for those who are curious about our process. Our process has been a bit all over the place, since we don’t do this regularly, but we’re getting into a groove and are becoming more efficient. In fact, Kriste and I spent the majority of the day cleaning, purging, and organizing in order to make better use of the space. There have also been a lot of things just hanging around the studio that we really didn’t need to keep. We ended up hauling 5+ contractor garbage bags full of stuff to the dumpster, packed Kriste’s little car with a load of fabric rolls, home accessories, and craft supplies to take to the thrift store, and we have a

June 8, 2016 35 Comments

a slice of life

the business brain & the human heart

Before I get into the thick of it, I have to say that you all overwhelm me so often! The first installment of the Lucketts Leftover Sale went live today and pieces were selling before I could even get everything live on the site. So, I’m “listening” to what you’re “saying” and I need to have more things for sale online on a more regular basis. That’s a part of a grand plan, anyway, but I can have sales like these until all of that is sorted out. That means I need to do some shopping just for you! Let me know in the comments what you’d like to buy, so I can order it/hunt it out. If you missed out on pieces this sale, I still have a lot more to list and I will work on that tomorrow (Friday). As I did with this sale, I’ll list items as

June 3, 2016 103 Comments

Artistic Endeavors

back to work & other things…

I hope you enjoyed your long weekend. My three day weekend was actually an eight day weekend, since I took a week off to recover from the Lucketts Spring Market (and months of work leading up to it!) I still did computer work…e-mail, blog posts, social media, etc., but I took a break from going into the studio. I really needed that time to step away and recharge. I had some appointments. I got a massage. I spent one entire day in my jammies. And I started to do a bit of gardening. When the weeds in your window boxes are dying, it’s time to do some gardening! I also put together some plans. I tend to be a bit unfocused after a big push towards a deadline, so I decided to put together a clear list of priorities and to-dos to keep me on track. Most of those plans were

June 1, 2016 26 Comments

All Things Home

styling tips | for retail

I’ve written several posts about styling over the years, but I’ve grown a lot and learned a lot along the way and it’s probably time for an update. (I have also received a few comments and e-mails about it lately.) Styling is a broad topic, so I’ll break this up into a series. In my work, I do three kinds of styling – for photography, for the home, and for retail. They all have similarities, but I approach each of them differently. Let’s start with styling for retail… This is a “retail vignette” I put together using furniture and accessories that I brought to sell at Lucketts… As I’m pulling and arranging things, I’m aiming toward three main goals… styling for retail | tell a story Whether it’s a story of color, texture, a specific space, theme, season, geographic location, etc., I want to curate a group of items that relate to one

May 28, 2016 25 Comments

buying & selling antiques

Lucketts 2016 Recap | part 3

Saturday was the early day of the Lucketts Market, kicking things off at 8:00, so it meant another early morning after a full day Friday. I also didn’t sleep very well the night before. My mind was swimming with the events of the day and the tasks for the next. Sometimes it’s just hard to shut it off. We drove down to Lucketts and it rained the entire way. The forecast was so grim, I even packed magazines to read for the down times and scheduled a lunch with a reader Kriste and I connected with last year. When we arrived at the event, there was a hard, driving rain and standing water in our tent. There were a few leaks, but the good news was we were pretty snug with all of the tent sides up and we brought a couple bales of compressed straw to deal with the

May 26, 2016 46 Comments

buying & selling antiques

Lucketts 2016 Recap | part 2

Before I continue with the story of Lucketts 2016, let me rewind to one year ago, VIP Day 2015. We had tons of help lined up, cameras at the ready to capture the frenzy that usually happened when the gates opened. The anticipation was building as we neared 10:00. The gates were opened and customers strolled in. There wasn’t a rush at all. Everyone was relaxed and took their time. We had a steady stream of sales through the morning, but never a line, and the traffic slowed to a creep in the afternoon. So, we expected something similar this year. We were mistaken. The gates opened early for the VIP day of Lucketts 2016 and our booth started to fill with customers and it just kept filling. And the line kept growing and growing until it spilled out of our tent and wrapped through the aisle between the two

May 25, 2016 52 Comments

buying & selling antiques

Lucketts 2016 Recap | part 1

My alarm went off at 5:15 am on Friday morning. I don’t usually do 5:15 am (or anything before 8:30, if I can help it.) It was like Christmas morning, though. Your body feels energized instead of groggy. Exciting things await, so let’s get to it. I showered and put on the linen shirt dress and jeans I set out the night before. I usually wear a t-shirt to Lucketts, but I opted to wear a “real outfit” this year. I packed some berries and crackers to eat later in the day and took a few bites of a bagel. I had too much nervous energy to eat very much. I left the house at 6:15 in a van loaded with topiaries and plants and made it to Lucketts about 7:30. As soon as I arrived, I went into “Marian Lucketts Mode.” I am not like this the other 364

May 24, 2016 66 Comments

I’m Marian, a painter, writer, and lover of all things creative. From art and antiques to home projects and everyday life, I share my journey in hopes of inspiring you to embrace your own creativity and make beauty in the spaces you live.

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