Creative Director almost done with logo design ;)

Before I get into talking about my logo I have a small announcement.

After years of procrastinating I just got my tax ID # and my DBA (Doing Business As) License. Now that I have the paperwork in order and just got my new email address (thepaintedhand@gmail) I feel strangely legitimate. So what do I call myself?

Sole Proprietor sounds so boring. Maybe C.E.O.? President is a worthy title. I can also be the Treasurer, Secretary and the Head Janitor if I want. I should start making the contact sheet now, and the email lists so that I can keep in touch with my growing organization of one :)

Creative Director..... Hmmmm, I like that.

Meanwhile, as the bureaucratic mess of ID#s and contracts is being dealt with I am still working on the final logo that I will use as my website and Etsy Storefront. The Logo looks great but I do not want to be represented by a computer generated image so I have decided to print the logo on some really nice paper and put it onto a scroll. I want it to look ancient. I have looked around at all the usual suspects: Michaels and the local art supply store but in the end I had to make the long drive to Pearl over on Pico and La Cienega in order to find what I was looking for.

I found some great paper. There was some with leaves pressed into it, some that was thick and gold with a pressed on fibrous textured overlay. There were two types of paper that looked like the one I had been visualizing. One was pressed and kind of fibrous with the fibers being like a long thin confetti and the other being more muted and natural looking with the fibers having a more fabric type feel, almost eggshell in color. The Mulberry that had the best texture and the closest resemblance to the antique parchment that I was looking for. I got bundles of paper, okay, maybe I got more than I needed for a simple logo.... but, surely I will find a use for all this beautiful paper. Not to mention that I have noticed I never know where the project will take me once I get my hands dirty.

So off I went, thinking I could print on this paper and would be done tonight. Unfortunately it is never as easy as it seems like it will be. This has definitely been a learning process. I just discovered that it is impossible to print on Mulberry Paper (laser printing gets up to 300 degrees and would just burn the Mulberry right onto the printing wheel thinger) and I can't get it done on the spot for anything over 11"x 17." If I want to print it on my paper I basically need to make a block print. Learn something new every day.

Damn, that's annoying. I get it printed on their paper, just to see how it looks an then I get it printed on some recycled paper I had. The recycled paper has a little texture to it and is also that muted eggshell color that I like... it looks a little more interesting than the plain Kinkos Paper but it still needs something. Its not what I was looking for.

After a lot of consideration I decide to put the printed logo under the Mulberry and trace it. The delicate Mulberry might tear if I am too rough and is so porous that it will definitely bleed with marker so I do a few practice times before I commit to doing it on top of the logo. Even with practice it takes three tries doing the logo full size before I like it enough to put the brown henna art on the hand.

So its drawn on now but now I have to make it into a scroll. I thought this was going to be one blog, but I also thought this was going to be done by now! I will have to finish off the blog and the scroll when I am done posting few more items on my Etsy store. No use having a logo when you have nothing for sale...

Designing a logo, Part one: The Name

Designing my logo has been one of the most difficult things I have ever done. It has been a challenge both artistically and emotionally to find a name and symbol that was right for me. I wanted the logo to represent who I was and what I wanted my company to become. My vision was of something simple and uncluttered that was connected to the symbology that connects all people and cultures and transcends language. I have pretty high ideals for what I want my company to become. I want to help support creativity and independence. (Goal: make a work at home business for women so they can stay home with their children.) I want to support the environment by using natural and recycled products and making decisions that reflect a care for nature. (That’s just what we all need to do as citizens of the planet) I want to have money enough to spend some of my time volunteering. You can’t help others until you can help yourself. I want, I want, I want...

In the midst of all this wanting it has been a long and anguished process even getting started! Such a difficult decision to choose a name since it was wrapped in the despair of feeling like all the really good ones were already taken. This plagued me for weeks and kept me in complete inaction. But… I already have desire to be an artist and a case full of beautiful jewelry to sell... It has to happen; it’s just a matter of when.

It would be nice to say the name came to me in a flash of inspiration but unfortunately I have to admit it was a long tedious process, like naming your fifth child. There were lists and lists of names that were already registered to someone else, and an even longer list of names that were just awful. When I was brain storming with my best friend and we thought up "The Painted Hand" I almost didn’t search it since I was sure it would be taken. It was available. I was shocked.

The Painted Hand had the mystique of tribal traditions and the stark visual contrast of paint and hands. It was symbolic, universal. It filled the mind with images that evoke deep feelings. I could see the hands of Hindi women with their henna tattoos, the tiny hands of children drenched in paint and the red and yellow that followed these thoughts. I could feel the texture of the paste as it slipped through my fingers and the joy that brought. The smile on my face said it all. It felt like a good fit. It felt like a name I could grow with.

After I decided on and purchased the name (Blog, Etsy and .com) I knew it was important to brand my store. I wanted people to remember that they had visited "the painted hand" and have a really strong visual imprint. At first I was reluctant to use the hand as a logo. It’s a little big and awkward. It was hard to imagine in a banner in the dimensions they require for the Etsy storefront... (100 pixels high by 780 wide). Since I am designing the Etsy page first (so that I can monetize my art as soon as possible), it is very important that it fit into the pixel format of the Etsy store....

After talking to everyone I know (I mean that, I talked to everyone I know and picked their brains about what they thought a good logo would include) I decided that I would come up with an original logo that was similar to a yin yang sign but that had three swirls instead of three.***

***Credit where credit is due: Wanona, my sister, had this idea. Since we were both raised with our primary principle as yin/yang and had a Triscle tattoo on matching parts of our bodies it is no surprise that her idea resonated so deeply with me, but I transgress. I am off point and the tattoo story is for another place.

I love the way that the three sided yin yang sign ends up having a Triscle in the center. This is a great balance between my love of Eastern Religion and the Irish blood that is coursing through my veins. The symbol felt so right... but when I tried to put the logo on the banner it looked wrong.

For one it was way too heavy on the left and although papyrus is my favorite font it looked so trite next to the heavy metal looking logo. It also did not connect to the name: The Painted Hand. There had to be a hand, or paint. Something.... A hand seemed like the way to go.... Back to the drawing board.

Since I knew that I was not going to get the logo done that night, I thought I might post a few photos on Etsy. I was looking in my computer for my jewelry photos that I had cropped and maximized for the web (In this context "looking" describes a state of frantic spasticness that verges on me throwing my computer) and I came across a photo of a painting I had done ten years ago.

All of the sudden I could visualize the swirls, crests and dips I would fill the hand with. Once I had the firm idea in mind it was a matter of sitting down with a cup of good coffee and getting it done...

I have printed it on 8x11 paper but want to print it larger, on some really special paper... Now that I have a solid vision it is really coming together! I think the photo of the printed image will be the final logo...

Now that I have the hand and the text designed for the logo I have been looking at all the other amazing artists on Etsy. I am now inspired to draw the logo on parchment and turn it into an ancient looking scroll. I am in the process of doing that now and better get back to it. :)

My Little Stimulus Plan

Well, since returning home in February I have not been able to get full time employment. Heck! I haven't even been able to get part time employment! So I am faced with the same dilemma as many Americans today: do I change careers? go back to school? accept a job that either pays very poorly, robs me of my life or both? When I first got home and the job offers did not roll in I was still optimistic. After all: there was an actors strike that put many projects on hold and "the buisness" is always up and down... right? I thought that patience would be the defining characteristic that would get me the job I wanted. I just had to wait. A strategy that had worked in the past was about to fail, and fail big time. The year I spent out of the country had me extremely out of touch with the job market.

With so long unemployed I began to feel despondent and like there was nothing I could do. I felt unproductive, like I was no good to anyone. With the political and economic situation the way it is I really wanted to help others but I felt that I could barely help myself. When I really did some soul searching I realized that there were a few things I could do to help the community, help myself and feel good about life again.

The Six Things I Am Doing to Improve the Economy
1. I am buying local
As I feel the crunch of financial strain and those pennies become ever more precious to me it is obvious that the strain is being felt everywhere. It is even more important to support our local artists, craft people and farmers. Unlike the government's stimulus plan when you change your shopping habits you can make a direct difference right away in someones life! That farmer at the market or the artist that you support when you need to buy a gift for a loved one will appreciate your dollars way more than big stores. I also realized this is a great time to reward good service with loyalty. If I get good service now, especially at a small business, I make a mental note to shop there exclusively. Also, think about your friends and what they do for a living, if they can help you why not use a friend or a relative if you are going to give your business to someone, anyway? Your friends may not let you know if they are experiencing financial pressure but they sure would appreciate your business!

It makes me mad that these companies that got bailed out where "too big to fail." That whole concept flies in the face of capitalism and the principles that this country were founded on. Be proud to be an American, Buy Local!

2. I am investing in myself
I can't support the communtiy the way I might like if I do not start to be productive and make money. Instead of spending every day ticking the hours away for someone else I am trying to improve my situation. While it can be hard for me to fill every day with a series of tasks with no camaraderie or team to cheer me on I have now realized that every day is a blessing and I have to use it to its maximum potential. I have had to time to cut up a fruit salad and been cooking more for our family which is saving us money and keeping us healthier. I have been walking and reading (from the library) and feel healthy and strong. Knowlege is power and I am trying to take this time to educate myself. Now that I can't find a job I am instead working on my own project: the road is long and risky but the payoffs could be huge.

3. I am re-purposing things and making my space perfect.
Well, all that time on my hands means that I can go into my cupboard and get out all those projects I have been meaning to do; stitching a button on here or painting a chair there can really give me a sense of luxury. Its like buying myself a gift but afterwards I feel pride instead of guilt. I went to the thrift store and got an ugly jacket for $1, the upside? The buttons were amazing and look great on this "plain-Jane" sweater I had. Reorganizing files and emails or sorting and framing photographs have all given me hours of pleasure at close to no cost. And when these projects are done, I feel great!

4. I am walking instead of driving.
Saving money and the planet while getting healthy: need I say more?

5. I am getting creative about gifts.
I love to be generous but when my generosity started coming out of my savings I realized that I needed to get really creative about what I gave to my loved ones. I had to realize that the best presents are not always the most expensive: for my sisters last birthday I went up to her house and helped her clean and organize for two days. She is a single mother and was ecstatic for this opportunity to have an extra pair of hands and eyes, I gave her a great gift that cost me nothing but my time and we had a great time doing it together!

6. I am starting my own buisness
After years of not taking my tallents seriously I am finally going to be putting my jewelry online at http://www.thepaintedhand.etsy.com!
I have been making jewelry for over 20 years and have never had the time or the energy to put my stuff on line. Thanks to the help of Joel Schwartzberg (Love You, Joel!), who was kind enough to take professional photos of my work, I will have a grand opening of my store on http://www.thepaintedhand.etsy.com on September 21, 2009. Thanks to all the other friends who have encouraged me to take the plunge! Here goes!

On a final note, this time of financial uncertainty has made me think of my mother, who struggled to raise my sister and I on a single income and still manage to teach us that we could be whatever we wanted when we grew up. I am both inspired and awed by her. At the moment I will be the only artist featured at The Painted Hand but my long term vision is that it will be a buisness that employs exclusively stay at home mothers so that our next generation can be raised at home by the one person who loves them most: Mom! (back to rule #1) September 21 is my mothers birthday and I am dedicating the grand opening to her and to mothers everywhere.

The stone sharpens the blade, I hope that this time of crisis will make me stronger. If you have any suggestions for "Little Stimulus Plans" please feel free to comment! I love to get new ideas
:)