Smart Creative Women

I ran across the team from Project Bead at the MA Conference for Women and I was just so impressed with their hearts, their mission and them and women making a difference in the world. They have a mission to alleviate poverty through education and they are doing it selling one cute piece of jewelry at a time! The Bead Team buys the beads, plans and designs the jewelry and commissions women to create the final products - all in the same region of Ghana where they are funding education. The bead team consists of nine best friends and entrepreneurs who envision a world with less poverty and less hatred. Their drive and mission and their beads just put hope in my heart, what impressive young women!

Tune into their story and buy some beads to support their mission! When you tune in, you will hear Jenna talk about BEAD PARTIES, huh, YES! Doesn't that sound like the perfect way to get your girlfriends together to be creative and be supportive and to interpret your style, your way!

I was invited to answer a Q and A session with private Facebook group Watercolor Designers. It's a invite group but they love to have fellow watercolor artists in the group, so feel free to ask for an invite. In this Q and A I discuss STYLE, how I found mine and how you can really nail yours too. It is simply one of my favorite subjects! I also talk about my journey as a sales rep in the gift industry and why it is SO important to understand how people shop AND why I started XO, Monica Lee. I cover how to incorporate trends into your particular style and how it applies to you getting your art on products.

I am laying it all out in this podcast!

Meet Alexandra Evjen, from Ave Styles. Alex is a stylist, blogger and "power-pinner, pinfluencer, pin ambassador..." She knows about the PRETTY side of Pinterest as well as the smart aspect of using Pinterest. With almost a million followers, she is in the know and works with Pinterest executives to make sure this platform stay fresh, current and workable. Tune into to this episode and hear how she got her start as a stylist, how she runs her business and how she thinks you should be using Pinterest! You can follower her (and learn from her) on Pinterest here and follow her on instagram here.

I have heard quite few strategies on how to deal with self doubt, everything from cursing it, to squishing it to making friends with it and I finally came to terms with my own way of dealing with it.

In today's mini episode I am discussing times when self doubt tries to stop you dead in my tracks to the times when it shows up as a little pesky gnat that you can't seem to swat away. If you think doubt only stalks some people and not others, think again. It is an equal opportunist. Tune in to hear how I finally decide to deal with it!

You can check out the leather bags and all the new products at XO, Monica Lee

This is fun story of someone who stumbled into just the right career for herself. Elissa Paquette studied art and design and was playing around with a passion that turned into 3 retails stores and an commerce site. From her beginnings selling vintage on Ebay, tune in and see how Elissa has just kept growing, learning and meet her customers needs. If you have ever wanted to open a retail location, this is a good hands-on episode. If you want someone to let you know that you don't need to know everything BEFORE you begin, this is a good episode. Learn as you go can lead to success!

Elissa is hosting a TRUNK SHOW for my line XO, Monica Lee in her Providence location, 381 Broadway on Small Business Saturday, Nov 24th 10-6! Bubbly, munchies discounts and surprises included! If you are local, please join us!

Jennifer is a hot new artist that has been around for some time. After graduating from Rhode Island School of Design as a textile stylist designing prints for children's clothing and lingerie, she raised her family, designed textiles and worked away. Fast forward several years she started a daily sketch book project that reignited her career in a huge way! I love her story and how she is such a hot ticket after working as an artist for the last 20 years. Tune in and listen to her story, it's a refreshing one!

Her work is inspired by the everyday small things, a bird in a tree, a garden, crowds of people, a beautiful table with luscious food and her clients (like Kate Spade home and Abrams Books!) are eating up her style, her voice and her point of view!

You can see more of her art work at http://augustwren.com/

I am so so happy Danielle Krysa on the show today! If you don't know who Danielle is, she is the mystery girl behind the very popular blog, The Jealous Curator where she curates and features fine artists who make her a bit "jealous"

Get it? Of course you do, because we ALL feel that way, right?

Now she and her blog is so popular that she is not really a "mystery" per se, in fact she has written 2 very popular books, The Creative Block and Collage and takes on speaking engagements all over the country. I am itching to jump into reading The Creative Block, if you want we can jump in together and discuss! Tune in to hear her talk about her books and art in this interview!

She also recently started a podcast herself called Art for Your Ear. Naturally, I know you like podcasts and I feel confident you will like hers! She is just so REAL! I find her refreshingly honest and smart. I love that she has a distinct point of view in the art that she features on her blog and has wrestled with her own "I am going to love my own art too" issues. Kindred spirits for sure. In fact so much so that I turned art therapist on her, haha! Poor dear! It was so fun meeting and chatting with Danielle, be sure check out her site, podcast AND to follow her instagram.

You MUST tune into this podcast! I have been itching to get it out to you! I cannot say enough of how fabulous it is. I had to edit the heck out of it-we had some audio issues but it came out perfectly. Kerry Lemon is a mulit talented artist, innovator and business woman! With commissions for a wide range of editorial, publishing, advertising, retail and architectural projects for clients, Kerry has SO much talent! She was kind enough to gather her wisdom for this chat!

These are just SOME of the things Kerry shares in this episode:

How she structured her art as a business from the very start

How she views her freelance licenses

How she learned how be an installation artist

How she managed to get a GRANT from Ted Baker to fund a creative and scientific idea

How she is getting her PATTERNS to grow on plants (WHAT?!)

Kerry is such a fabulous example of marrying creativity, ideas, hard work and business. I just can't say enough-as I was editing this, I found myself saying "wow!" a lot! You will too!

Meet the stylish duo of Susy Pilgrims Waters and her husband, Keith. I love everything about them both. So talented! Susy is a well known illustrator and painter who has been applying her skills as a textile designer to good use with their lifestyle and home line, Pilgrim Waters. Every product in their line is exquisite! I am a serious scarf wearer so trust me, the cashmere wool blend on these is the ultimate luxury! They are so so soft and tightly woven as not to sang and they go with everything. (Gushing...love them!) The smart design involved in all they do is so incredibly refreshing to see. Talent! Smarts! Style! I adore them! Tune in hear it all!