Running a Business Archives | Page 39 of 49

Running a Business

growing

When I first started my business about three years ago, I basically had no budget. Now, my wee little no-budget, counter top business has grown far beyond expectations and beyond what I can handle myself. I’ve struggled over the last year to know what to drop, what to outsource and how to best prioritize. The time finally came when I realized that, while I need to be the driving creative force of Mustard Seed Interiors, I needed to let some things go. It may sound like a no-brainer, but I’m used to touching everything I make and sell. I’m used to doing the sewing, stripping, upholstery, painting, sanding, staining, refinishing, crafting, writing, styling, moving, shopping, scheduling…everything. I decided I needed to look carefully at everything I was doing to see what I could let go. I had been printing and hand punching all of my tags…OK, I can let that

October 18, 2011 74 Comments

the art of styling

When I first started my business, I would paint a piece, pull out my camera and snap a picture of it…just right where it was. Usually the lighting was poor, so I used a flash. I would send the picture to my web designer and ask her to put it on my site. I didn’t realize what a poor representation of my work it was. I just didn’t think of the fact that I should take the time to stage the photo and light it properly. I really had no excuse, either. I had taken a photography class and knew how to take decent pictures, but I didn’t think I could achieve “magazine quality”, so I didn’t even try. Then, I stumbled upon the wonderful work of Shelter Blogs. There were girls just like me, taking really great pictures of their home and their work. I was immediately drawn to

October 16, 2011 109 Comments

The General

As some of you may know, I’m good friends with Barb Blair from Knack Studios. She called me up one day out of the blue (creeper) and I felt an immediate connection with her. Barb has since been one of my go-to girls to call when I need to chat, vent, celebrate or get some sound advice. Her work and style, which is very different from mine, has also been an inspiration. Enter…The General. I “met” him on her portfolio page a few months ago and he sent my heart a-flutter. I loved her technique of allowing the stripe on the piece to be wood. Genius. Brilliant. I knew the day would come when I would find the right piece to make my own version. Here’s a sorry iPhone picture of the before. It was an extremely sturdy, heavy dresser, but the finish was pretty tired. I taped off all

October 8, 2011 58 Comments

one of the secrets to great photography

The clock ticked past 9:00 tonight and I still had no idea what I was going to post about. It was one of those days when I work on things that are very uninteresting. I primed the baseboard heaters in my family room and the under side of my kitchen cabinets. Bo-ring. I was about ready to get my camera out and snap a “before” picture of my heaters, but that seemed a little silly…even in the blog world. I have finished three pieces of furniture, but I have to lug them into the house for their “beauty shots” and that just wasn’t going to happen today. So, here I am…late into the evening and dry on material. I started looking through my old photographs for some inspiration. As I scrolled through some I took over a year ago, it hit me. I knew what I wanted to post about.

October 4, 2011 57 Comments

watermarks & actions

Last week I posted about my camera and lenses and this is the follow-up post about watermarks and actions that I promised. Let me preface this by saying I am not a PSE (Photoshop Elements) expert and there are a lot of other great programs out there, this is just what I use. If you use a free program or prefer another software, that’s totally OK. Just use what works for you. There are a couple of ways to watermark a photo. Before my designer made a graphic for me, I just used a text box and added text over the picture. This is a great homemade solution if you don’t know how to make a graphic (which I didn’t) or don’t have the money to hire someone to make one for you. Laura made four graphics for me to use for watermarking. The one above in white is what I

October 3, 2011 33 Comments

Lucketts

My space at The Old Lucketts Store is a big part of my business, so I have to share what it looks like every now and then, especially since it’s constantly changing. Here’s how it looked last Thursday… I sold five furniture pieces over the past couple of days, so it doesn’t look like this anymore. I guess that means some furniture painting and shopping is in order…

October 1, 2011 44 Comments

pumpkins

…because sometimes it’s fun to just take some pictures.

September 25, 2011 34 Comments

my camera & lenses

You can find an updated post (written in 2022) HERE about my camera, lenses, and other gear. I get a lot of questions about what camera and lenses I use as well as how I process my pictures. I received a bunch last week, so I thought it was time to share it all in a post. Well, a few posts. This post is about what gear I use. My camera body is a Nikon D7000 digital SLR. This picture is from Gear Patrol, because it’s hard to take a picture of your own camera when that is the only camera in the house. I could’ve done the “mirror shot, but I’m not exactly photo-ready today. So, anyway, there she is… You can whistle at her. It’s okay. I really love this camera. The body is around $1200 (without a lens), so it’s definitely expensive if you’re just starting out.

September 20, 2011 46 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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