I haven't forgotten about my passion...

I know, I know it's been a long, long time since I posted anything here on the blog but......There has been all kinds of thangs going on over here!!! Still trying to work on getting back into this art but it has been difficult for the last past months.....

Working 2 jobs, looking for a house, family duties, homework and studying with the girls, there has been a baby shower and a new baby added to the family back in Nov. Oh, and I had emergency surgery last month....(long story)

Sad to say....I haven't had a chance to sketch, paint or blog in months. Lots of re-evaluating what I'm doing and what I want to do with my art. Lots of ideas and plans I want to put in actions this year. Still wondering and dreaming about what this will really become....

And with all that being said ...lots of doubt creeping back in....but.....


I haven't forgotten about my passion. Haven't forgotten about my dreams. Haven't forgotten about why I want to pursue this dream and why and who I'm doing this for.

I'm just trying to figure this whole art business out. Trying to really take the steps to transition into this art thing full time. Researching creative ways to sell my art. I want to do something that has  never been done before!  I'm still working on branding and coming up with logos, packaging, websites, so on and so forth...Trying so hard not to get overwhelmed with all that's going on right now.

That's why I have to stay focused. I try to hard to stay connected to what other artist I admirer are doing..Always looking at the bigger picture, never being satisfied by what I'm doing at the moment. I'm always looking for creative ways to display my artworks.

One of my long term goals is to Yes, be a street artist..I would love to display my art like this one day!!! How cool and amazing it will be to travel to different cities to make art, that anyone and everyone would be able to see while walking down the street. Would love to have a wall to display my artwork here in my own city. But one thing at a time Trena! LOL !!

The interview below is from artist Kelli Murray!
Please visit her blog @ http://www.kellimurray.com/ She's an amazing artist doing amazing things!!!

Lots of new projects ...to busy to share...

So...as you know it's been a while since I've updated the blog! I've been really busy,busy,busy! Still looking for a home, still working on the website, still working on branding, still sketching, and still painting. I planned to share some of these small projects but time kept getting away from me !! So here goes....

This is a picture of a Hospital Door Hanger that I painted for my cousin's new baby Karsen !!! This is the first time I actually did a character painting. Here are the stages of that painting.

The rough sketch of the couple. If you notice the girl's eyes are not as bright and the guy looks kinda nervous. LOL!!! Let's see if we can change that ? 

See, alot better!  Now lets add some color for these black and white sketches. 

I also added another painting at the bottom. This will be a name plate for Karsen. I thought that the owl would be a cute addition. Now all we need is a little detail. 

And we'll need to add some detail to mom and dad !

Well I think were almost done, we just need to adds some cute ribbon so that we can hang this thang!!

My inspiration:

My Creation:

.Love This!!! Here are more pic of it up close. I just love all the details !!! 

There are still more projects that I'm working on...Just trying to find time to share them!!! Hopefully I can get them uploaded with the next few days or weeks.....I love doing pieces like theses as gifts. I hope they love it as much as I do. 

Figure Drawing Workshop with Jane Davenport

 Great Art Course offered by Jane Davenport! I absolutely love her work. I wish I could have enrolled in this course, but I'm looking forward to taking it in the future !!!!

 

I'm Back....after a much needed break !!

After my last post about focus, I decided to take a much needed break. A break from painting. A break from sketching. A break from ALL things Artistically Urban.


What did I do while on my break from Artistically Urban??? My wonderful hubby took me on a surprise vacation to Puerto Rico!!! We spend 4 days at this wonderful Resort called the La Concha!

 

View of one of the pools out side our suite !

Another view of the lounge area outside our suite !

Did I  mention that it was also our 6 year Wedding anniversary!!

 

Eric loves Trena and then our Anniversary Date 7-18 

Loved, Loved, Loved this Resort!!! We loved everything about this hotel and  the staff was wonderful !!! The minute we arrived curb side Felix one of the Valet Drivers greeted us as Mi Familia! Mi casa es su Casa !The resorts also featured not 1, not 2, but 3 infinity pools that were opened 24hours a day !

This is the view of one of the infinity pool and yes it was on the beach!! We spend 4 days in Puerto Rico doing nothing but relaxing! We went to the beach, did alot of swimming, and  enjoy a little bit of Old San Juan. It was so nice to go on a vacation and do nothing....you know, most of the time there are things that you feel that you need to do to enjoy your time while on vacation. We chose to doing nothing but relax and I LOVED IT !!!


So, since being back from my fabulous vacation, I have been able to ease back into Artistically Urban. I have really earnestly started to do a lot of research into this website and also talked to a few companies about branding and logo design. I'm also looking at another local business to display my artwork! I've been thinking of all kinds of new things to do with this business! Overall,  I'm just really feeling excited about the future of this Art Thang!! Looking forward to all the possibilities!

Oh, I almost forgot we're looking to buy our first home....So, we're super excited about that! Ahhh, just to have a room or a real space to paint !!! I can't wait! I have been all over pinterest.com pinning ideas for the new house that I may some day have. Go there and look me up following some of my boards !!

Focus.......Focus.....

The Definition

Focus:  to concentrate: to focus one's thoughts.

Something I can't seem to do right now....As you know a few years ago I took an e-course with Kelly Rae Roberts, and from time to time I go back and read over some notes I took. I remember that she talked about how she started her creative business right in the middle of working a 30 hr week. Don't know how she did it ? She also talked about setting realistic goals...taking small steps to reach big goals....That made me think.....

I've set goals for myself. Both big and small but, have I setup up those smaller goals to reach these big goals that I've set for myself? To be perfectly honest, I just feel like I'm all over the place now a days. Don't get me wrong I have been able to get a lot of my goals accomplished but not some of the bigger ones that Ive set for myself. There has been some things that I have been procrastinating about. Like.......

1.  Reaching out to some of those bigger blogs 
2. Sending my artwork to some of those cool magazines 
3. Reaching out to some of the local Boutiques 
4. Taking another e-course
5. So on and So forth........ 

I'm really trying to focus on one thing at a time.....(which is easier said that done). First, I need to sit down and come up with a plan, things I really want to focus on within the next few weeks, then months, and then things that I want to get accomplished before the end of the year. Second, I want to really do some research on turning the blog into a website. I've been all over Etsy...they have all kinds of cool packages there! ( If, anyone else is looking)  I think that will be the most important things to do right?...Especially if I'm going to be directing customer and companies to my blog I want it to really represent who I am as a Artist!!! 

Then.....I can start thinking about the list above ?  

My goals are to try to stay focus...set some realistic goals... and work hard to try my best to get those goals accomplished...

So... FOCUS..Trena....FOCUS!!!!

E-course...via A Beautiful Mess

• 
• 

Dream Job E-Course

Dream Job is the first E-Course written by Elsie and Emma! We are excited to share all the practical and personal lessons we have learned over the years as we have watched Red Velvet grow into a successful and thriving small business. Here is what you can expect to learn from our Dream Job E-Course:
-Elsie and Emma's Personal Business Story
-Session 1: Branding-Developing a Name, Logo and Style. This session covers the importance of developing a solid brand style, creating a pricing model, tips for choosing a name and logo and the technical aspects of branding.
-Session 2: Product Development-How to Make an Idea into a Quality Product. This session includes tips for developing a new idea, market research, creating prototypes and pricing; as well as ways to streamline production and how to expand on popular products.
-Session 3: 10 Tips for Your First 5 Years. This session includes my top ten personal tips for creating a successful new brand. Everything I talk about in this session comes from my personal experiences in my first five years of owning an independent business.
-Session 4: How Social Media and Blogging can Help Your Business. This session outlines all of the social media outlets we use and tips for getting the most impact for your time. It also shares tips for blogging in relation to promoting your small business. There is a lot of homework and practical advise!
-Session 5: Press and Promotional Ideas. This session outlines how we pursue press for Red Velvet including tips on sending press e-mails. It also includes ten free promotional ideas!
-Session 6: Tips for Creating Customer Loyalty. This session covers creative ways to create a sense of loyalty among your customers. This session is all about adding personality to your brand!
-Session 7: How to Create Collections and Seasonal Workflow. In this session I share the stages and steps I go through to create a collection. There is advice for pricing and creating a cohesive product line. I also talk about workflow and share how we stagger our projects throughout the year and prepare for heavy sales seasons
-Session 8: Photography for Businesses: Products, Models & More. In this session I talk about creating a styling guide for your brand, lighting, styling models, styling product and tips for creating your first lookbook or catalog. There are also 10 tips for getting started in commercial photography.
-Session 9: Be Distinctive: Styling and Creating Displays that fit with your Brand. This session includes examples from my styling work and 5 Simple Tips for Creating Distinctive Displays and Brand Styling.
-Session 10: Creating and Maintaining Steady Growth for your Business. Growth happens slowly and in this session we share how to create and maintain steady growth. This session is focused on how to know when you're ready to go full time and learning to write your first business plan!
-Session 11: Nomadic Selling: All about Pop-Up Shops, Festivals, Wholesale and Consignment Opportunities. This session focuses on choosing the perfect places to market and sell your products. Emma talks in detail about the pros and cons of each and shares tips for getting your foot in the door!
-Session 12: Dream Space: Setting up a Studio you Love and can Work in. This session includes tips for setting up a functional and stylish workspace that fits your personality and inspires you to work.
-Session 13: How to Evolve, Re-Brand and Expand your Business without Losing Your Roots. This session tells the story of our re-branding process and gives tips for businesses wanting to evolve and grow without confusing loyal shoppers.
-Session 14: Work and Play-Having a Balanced Work AND Personal Life. In this session Emma teaches how to cut out things that don't matter and make time for work and the balanced personal life that we all need.
-Session 15: Necessary Evils: Hiring, Firing and Copyright Issues. This session includes tips for some of the trickiest things in business. Learn to handle these inevitable obstacles!
-Session 16: Money: Goals, Budgets and Fundraising Ideas. This session includes some great advice for managing business expenses, setting goals and fundraising!
-Session 17: Overcoming Troubled Times: Our Personal Story. This is the personal story of how we overcame obstacles in our first few years of business. It's encouraging to know that every business faces times like these and that there is light at the end of the tunnel!
-Session 18: Customer Service: How to be a Sweetheart without Getting Stepped On. Learn to write a solid return policy and educate your customers so that you have fewer issues. This session is packed with personal advice and stories!
-Session 19: When are you Ready to go Full Time? Think you are ready to take the leap and quit your day job? Learn to build a strong support system and prepare for the transition into full time!
-Session 20: Staying Inspired: 10 Ways to Collect Inspiration. This is one of my favorite sessions. It highlights ten ways that I collect inspiration and keep my creative pencil sharp!
-Session 21: Goal Making: Create a 1 year plan with Elsie. This session is a step-by-step guide to making goals for the coming year. It's full of examples and stories from my past goal experiences.
-(NEW) Session 22: Be your own HR Department, how to build your A-team. This session talks in depth about what to look for when seeking employees for your growing business. It includes our top 5 tips for finding and interviewing potential team members as well as what to do what you have your dream team in place!
Bonus: Tips for Local Boutique Owners
Bonus: Tips for Online Business Owners
Bonus: Tips for Handmade Business Owners
Bonus: Tips for working with Vintage
Bonus: Tips for Food Industry Business Owners
Bonus: Tips for Independent Musicians (written by: Jeremy Larson)

-This is a 'work at your own pace' course. There are no due dates. We encourage students to follow along at their own pace. When you receive login information you will receive the full course wilth all sessions, no waiting! 

-Login information will automatically be sent to you via email (so be sure to enter your email address while checking out). Be sure to check your spam box if you do not receive it. Also if we are receiving a large number of orders at once it can take up to a few hours for our system to email you. If you have any problems logging in or have any other questions feel free to email us: support AT redvelvetart DOT com

NOW: $38.00


 This is what I'll be taking for the next few weeks! Can't wait !

New Art!!!!!

So this is Brand New Art!!! This is the Artwork that was given to my daughter Teacher Ms. El Amin the last day of school! I wanted to give her something that I thought she would use and something personal she is such a good teacher. I love the way I came out.

I used a 11x14 flat panel canvas. I wanted the teacher to be in front of the black board and used a white gel pen to write the message! Love the way it mimics a real chalkboard with the chalk. I wanted Ms. El Amin to be stylist with a hint of vintage so I chose the yellow and red dress. Can you see the small white details in the dress? I had to dress it up with some classic pearls! I also wanted her to be able to hang this piece of artwork, my solution to attach some pretty ribbon to the back of the painting!!!

I love the ribbon! Love the way it brings out the red in the painting. The polka-dots just makes it look a little more whimsical!  I hope she loves it as much as I do!!!!! I did hear that she put it up in the classroom and other Teacher came by to take a look at it. That makes me so happy !!

In other news.....This was just one painting that I have been working on right now. I'm working on 6 others. So, I'm just just trying to stay busy!!! I have started the ABC's series. I have started a (A.) painting and a (B.) painting cant wait to share those characters with you! And still researching ways to update the blog and make it more cohesive with my art. So... If you guys have any suggestions for colors or logos I would love to hear them!! So,until next time later gator!