Okay, in order to "get" this next video, you have to be familiar with Craig Rowin on YouTube. This is Zanden's attempt to help our cause. He saw Rowin and said, "Maybe we can ask for $2,000,000!" Hey, it worked for Craig!
Wasn't he great?! (Did you watch Rowin first???? }:I)
We have many small thinkers in our circle of friends and family (by no fault of their own) who are crytical of our ambitions. A friend once told me that there are ducks and there are eagles... I am definitely an eagle and I am not afraid to shoot for the stars!
Our family has a goal, for those of you who don't know, to bring David home and become philanthropists. We are passionate about being able to help people in a BIG way someday. So you ducks can keep being cynical. Maybe we'll make it, maybe we wont but here's for courage!
(check out my work at http://www.meloniepacker.com)
Showing posts with label creativity. Show all posts
Showing posts with label creativity. Show all posts
Friday, April 6, 2012
Wednesday, January 18, 2012
Seasoned
I remember the first thrill I got from the seedling of a thought, "Maybe I can do this; maybe I can be an artist!"
Van Gogh said that he would dream at night about painting, then get up and paint his dream. I dreamed about
painting to. I longed to to be an illustrator, sculptor or painter. The problem lied with when I got up, I could not paint my dream!
I spent many years in frustration. Yes, I had turned a waterfall purple and that was cool... but was it real art? Could I do it again?
"Seasoned" was my first piece of art that I considered to have real potential. It was late winter of 2009, the kids had gone to bed and, David, to play basketball with the ward. I had nothing to do!
For several years (about 4) I had been taking pictures of ordinary yet, to me, beautiful things. I sat down at the computer and began to browse the images... there was something there, I knew it! I stopped on a photo of a simple fall leaf on the sparkling white snow. I loved the contrast of the orange on the brilliant white. I loved the delicate, yet intricate, features of that fallen leaf. It was more than what it seamed. It had lived it's life, it was "seasoned" and it had a story to tell!
I remembered the waterfall and contemplated... "I wonder" 4 hours whizzed by; David came home, stinky and wet. I will never forget how he stopped in his tracks and admired that piece of art I had just made in awe! Only hours before, he had walked by the same leaf without a second thought. This is the effect I wanted to have on people. This was art!
View "Seasoned"at:
http://www.meloniepacker.com/Photography/My-Gallery/11642051_hxp3F#!i=790035976&k=FuzYz
(check out my work at http://www.meloniepacker.com)
Van Gogh said that he would dream at night about painting, then get up and paint his dream. I dreamed about
painting to. I longed to to be an illustrator, sculptor or painter. The problem lied with when I got up, I could not paint my dream!
I spent many years in frustration. Yes, I had turned a waterfall purple and that was cool... but was it real art? Could I do it again?
"Seasoned" was my first piece of art that I considered to have real potential. It was late winter of 2009, the kids had gone to bed and, David, to play basketball with the ward. I had nothing to do!
For several years (about 4) I had been taking pictures of ordinary yet, to me, beautiful things. I sat down at the computer and began to browse the images... there was something there, I knew it! I stopped on a photo of a simple fall leaf on the sparkling white snow. I loved the contrast of the orange on the brilliant white. I loved the delicate, yet intricate, features of that fallen leaf. It was more than what it seamed. It had lived it's life, it was "seasoned" and it had a story to tell!
I remembered the waterfall and contemplated... "I wonder" 4 hours whizzed by; David came home, stinky and wet. I will never forget how he stopped in his tracks and admired that piece of art I had just made in awe! Only hours before, he had walked by the same leaf without a second thought. This is the effect I wanted to have on people. This was art!
View "Seasoned"at:
http://www.meloniepacker.com/Photography/My-Gallery/11642051_hxp3F#!i=790035976&k=FuzYz
(check out my work at http://www.meloniepacker.com)
Monday, June 6, 2011
wi(ə)rd
Affirmation of the day:
"I am completely aware that there are people that are not going to like me... and that's okay!"
My photo book is finished! I have never had anything flow out of me so freely! It was as if the pages were already written and saved in an archive inside of me and all I had to do was open the file. I know that God is responsible for this and I thank Him profusely!
We are now editing and finding critics who will provide us with real feedback (no cushioning the tough stuff). I'm currently facing that familiar fear that has come to greet me on the eve of every art show. I know my stuff is weird... I am completely aware that there are people that are not going to like me; I will be misunderstood... and that should be okay!
I was pleased to find that if you Google "weird" definitions; this is what comes up:
We are now editing and finding critics who will provide us with real feedback (no cushioning the tough stuff). I'm currently facing that familiar fear that has come to greet me on the eve of every art show. I know my stuff is weird... I am completely aware that there are people that are not going to like me; I will be misunderstood... and that should be okay!
I was pleased to find that if you Google "weird" definitions; this is what comes up:
weird/wi(ə)rd/
Adjective: Suggesting something supernatural; uncanny.
Noun: A person's destiny.
I like that! "Weird" is a person's destiny! So why do I fear being different? Would art really be art if it looked like everything else? Would I really be a creator if I never strayed from the mold? And if everyone liked the same things, would this world be very colorful?
"Do not quench your inspiration and your imagination; do not become the slave of your model."
Vincent Van Gogh
(check out my work at http://www.meloniepacker.com)
Monday, April 25, 2011
I Have Been "Hearted"...
I guess people still "dig" my art at $3,000+. My confidence has officially been raised!
Thanks to all my Etsy friends, I have come to realize that raising my prices won't change a thing (for the worse, anyway) like I had previously feared... (and also, that fear is a liar!)
I am so excited about this photo book idea! I think it is going to be great. I have spent several days on it now and I am having this really neat "deja-vu" like experience as it practically unfolds as if from a memory.
I remembered that 3 years ago, I had this idea for a book pop into my head while I was driving back to our temporary home from school. I wasn't sure what this book idea was about because I was in school and most of my efforts were divided in an engaging battle between finishing school and mothering our 2 children.
However, my husband had lost his job and we were in financial stress so I prayed a lot about what I could do to help. I must have been pondering about money then because I think it that God responded with an answer. This idea for a book with many pictures in it entrapped my mind and all I knew was that it was to be about enjoying the simple things in life.
A year or so later, I was drawn to a book in the store that was full of pictures and uplifting messages. I had another "Celestine Prophecy" experience and I knew that I needed to create a book like that. Unfortunately, someone must have pushed the "play" button on my internal answering machine and this bothersome message replayed in my head:
"I know you want to be an artist but you need a real job... something important!"
As a result, I immediately discounted any serious thought about becoming an artist... In that case, what was this book idea about? That belief put me behind a couple of years, I think...
Finally, as I begin work on this photo book, I've realized this is it! All my mentors told me to get out of Utah if I want to be a serious artist... I think this book will be my ticket! People are already "hearting" me on Etsy and I have a way to mass distribute my art without devaluing it's worth! It is exciting to me to finally be on the track I believe God intended.
(check out my work at http://www.meloniepacker.com)
Thanks to all my Etsy friends, I have come to realize that raising my prices won't change a thing (for the worse, anyway) like I had previously feared... (and also, that fear is a liar!)
I am so excited about this photo book idea! I think it is going to be great. I have spent several days on it now and I am having this really neat "deja-vu" like experience as it practically unfolds as if from a memory.
I remembered that 3 years ago, I had this idea for a book pop into my head while I was driving back to our temporary home from school. I wasn't sure what this book idea was about because I was in school and most of my efforts were divided in an engaging battle between finishing school and mothering our 2 children.
However, my husband had lost his job and we were in financial stress so I prayed a lot about what I could do to help. I must have been pondering about money then because I think it that God responded with an answer. This idea for a book with many pictures in it entrapped my mind and all I knew was that it was to be about enjoying the simple things in life.
A year or so later, I was drawn to a book in the store that was full of pictures and uplifting messages. I had another "Celestine Prophecy" experience and I knew that I needed to create a book like that. Unfortunately, someone must have pushed the "play" button on my internal answering machine and this bothersome message replayed in my head:
"I know you want to be an artist but you need a real job... something important!"
As a result, I immediately discounted any serious thought about becoming an artist... In that case, what was this book idea about? That belief put me behind a couple of years, I think...
Finally, as I begin work on this photo book, I've realized this is it! All my mentors told me to get out of Utah if I want to be a serious artist... I think this book will be my ticket! People are already "hearting" me on Etsy and I have a way to mass distribute my art without devaluing it's worth! It is exciting to me to finally be on the track I believe God intended.
(check out my work at http://www.meloniepacker.com)
Saturday, March 5, 2011
The Great Experiment
Day 1 of The Great Experiment:
If you asked any level-headed, down-to-Earth-type person you would be considered "unrealistic" to set your sights so high.
The question is: Who am I trying to appeal to? Are the realist majority who I want for my market? If so, I'd better learn to love the "gypsy" way of life! (Meaning: to travel from state to state, show to show barely turning a profit.) ...Or, will I shoot for the stars?
I believe the saying, "You are who you roll with". If I want to be successful, I think I need to start learning from the miracle workers; the idealists.
This reminds me of something Van Gogh said:
The plan:
Today, I will list my pieces on Ebay and Etsy for 100x the amount they are currently marked at. I will change my website to match the new prices and monitor and blog the results.
This is a weird felling for me... I feel somewhat nervous, like I am breaking some unwritten rule; yet it's surprisingly invigorating!
(check out my work at http://www.meloniepacker.com)
"Who's gonna place value on that? You, that's who! Ain't no one gonna do it for you. You pick a price and, suddenly, that's what it's worth! List it on Ebay For $100,000 and see what happens!"That was a rough quote from our southern friend; speaking in reference to my art. (Who, by-the-way, believes in his theory so much, he jokes about living off of 1% of the profits!) He's right. ...At least I believe he is.
If you asked any level-headed, down-to-Earth-type person you would be considered "unrealistic" to set your sights so high.
The question is: Who am I trying to appeal to? Are the realist majority who I want for my market? If so, I'd better learn to love the "gypsy" way of life! (Meaning: to travel from state to state, show to show barely turning a profit.) ...Or, will I shoot for the stars?
I believe the saying, "You are who you roll with". If I want to be successful, I think I need to start learning from the miracle workers; the idealists.
This reminds me of something Van Gogh said:
"It is better to be high-spirited even though one makes more mistakes, than to be narrow-minded and all too prudent."Thanks, Vincent. I have been inspired, yet again, to ask myself, "What if?".
Vincent Van Gogh
The plan:
Today, I will list my pieces on Ebay and Etsy for 100x the amount they are currently marked at. I will change my website to match the new prices and monitor and blog the results.
This is a weird felling for me... I feel somewhat nervous, like I am breaking some unwritten rule; yet it's surprisingly invigorating!
"Painting is a faith, and it imposes the duty to disregard public opinion."
Vincent Van Gogh
(check out my work at http://www.meloniepacker.com)
Sunday, January 2, 2011
The Results are In!
After a relatively long "vacation", I am ready to share the results of our adventure! I'm sure that you have been waiting on the edge of your seats for this!?!
Before the Fair:
Everything worked itself out smoothly before the day we were to "open for business" at the State Fair. Even the things that previously would have seemed a near impossible feat didn't stress me out so much this time. We started out $500 short for the booth fee and without a truck to transport our store to Salt Lake! Our enlarged photos that we displayed for sale didn't even arrive at our home until the day before we were to leave... Talk about cutting it close!
Yet, somehow, I maintained a calm demeanor. I knew I was meant to be at that fair; therefore, I knew everything would work out... and it did! Irreplaceable friends and family lent us the money and provided the supplies and babysitting we needed. We were on our way!
At the fair:
Butterflies churned in my stomach as my old nemesis, Fear, tried to conquer me again. However,... the weather was perfect! It may seem like a small thing to have the sun smiling down on you; after all, it's not an unusual event, but I had prayed and prayed it would work out that way after our first "flash flood" experience at Summerfest. My faith swelled inside me... I knew this was going to be a great 2 weeks!
We sold an average of 5 Pieces a day that first 4 day weekend. I was confident that was a great start! Nonetheless, nervousness crept in as the weekdays arrived... David was to head back home to the kids and his job while I manned the booth alone for the 10 to 12 hour days. I ate only the best of foods... potato chips, PB&J's, fruit snacks, apples and peanuts; I was near starving!!! Yet, I was bound and determined to hit the "break-even point" before I allowed myself to spend any of my earnings.
I don't think I sold anything that Monday and Tuesday. It got harder and harder to have faith in myself by the time mid-week came. Wednesday, my brother-in-law tried to commit suicide. Doctors told the family they didn't know if he would live or die. For 24 hours I stayed by the phone, completely distressed about where I should be while this was happening. I prayed and prayed. He was okay.
Just when I thought I had had enough, another internal conflict arose with the arrival of my parents. I hadn't seen or talked with them for some time and I definitely didn't expect them there then! My parents have a way of making me lose all my personal power and I felt like a child again. Though it was good to bring up some things that had been weighing on me, I could have thought of countless other places I would have liked to have the discussion!
Finally, by Thursday, I was in tears. The stress was overwhelming and the sells were barely existent. I prayed again with all the faculties of my heart. I knew that I couldn't do this myself any longer...
God sent me my long lost friend. A friend that I had adored as a teenager and young adult; my dear friend and the only person I could count on to make me laugh EVERY TIME! I knew that was a direct blessing from Him because that laughter carried me on until my sweet David arrived. That hope that God was still hearing me and cared is the same hope that saved me.
Now, this could possibly be a testimony to all those who question the part of a positive attitude when it comes to sales, because as soon as my husband showed up with his faith in my work, and me and my insecurities backed off, we started to sell again! By the time we packed up for home, we had sold 50 pieces of art. Now, this being a new business, our expenses were quite high and we didn't make back what we'd put into it like I had imagined, over and over in my mind...
All and all, though, I would call our endeavor quite successful! Though, I didn't sell as many art pieces as my cousin-in-law sells diaper bags, I learned a valuable lesson:
Before the Fair:
Everything worked itself out smoothly before the day we were to "open for business" at the State Fair. Even the things that previously would have seemed a near impossible feat didn't stress me out so much this time. We started out $500 short for the booth fee and without a truck to transport our store to Salt Lake! Our enlarged photos that we displayed for sale didn't even arrive at our home until the day before we were to leave... Talk about cutting it close!
Yet, somehow, I maintained a calm demeanor. I knew I was meant to be at that fair; therefore, I knew everything would work out... and it did! Irreplaceable friends and family lent us the money and provided the supplies and babysitting we needed. We were on our way!
At the fair:
Butterflies churned in my stomach as my old nemesis, Fear, tried to conquer me again. However,... the weather was perfect! It may seem like a small thing to have the sun smiling down on you; after all, it's not an unusual event, but I had prayed and prayed it would work out that way after our first "flash flood" experience at Summerfest. My faith swelled inside me... I knew this was going to be a great 2 weeks!
We sold an average of 5 Pieces a day that first 4 day weekend. I was confident that was a great start! Nonetheless, nervousness crept in as the weekdays arrived... David was to head back home to the kids and his job while I manned the booth alone for the 10 to 12 hour days. I ate only the best of foods... potato chips, PB&J's, fruit snacks, apples and peanuts; I was near starving!!! Yet, I was bound and determined to hit the "break-even point" before I allowed myself to spend any of my earnings.
I don't think I sold anything that Monday and Tuesday. It got harder and harder to have faith in myself by the time mid-week came. Wednesday, my brother-in-law tried to commit suicide. Doctors told the family they didn't know if he would live or die. For 24 hours I stayed by the phone, completely distressed about where I should be while this was happening. I prayed and prayed. He was okay.
Just when I thought I had had enough, another internal conflict arose with the arrival of my parents. I hadn't seen or talked with them for some time and I definitely didn't expect them there then! My parents have a way of making me lose all my personal power and I felt like a child again. Though it was good to bring up some things that had been weighing on me, I could have thought of countless other places I would have liked to have the discussion!
Finally, by Thursday, I was in tears. The stress was overwhelming and the sells were barely existent. I prayed again with all the faculties of my heart. I knew that I couldn't do this myself any longer...
God sent me my long lost friend. A friend that I had adored as a teenager and young adult; my dear friend and the only person I could count on to make me laugh EVERY TIME! I knew that was a direct blessing from Him because that laughter carried me on until my sweet David arrived. That hope that God was still hearing me and cared is the same hope that saved me.
Now, this could possibly be a testimony to all those who question the part of a positive attitude when it comes to sales, because as soon as my husband showed up with his faith in my work, and me and my insecurities backed off, we started to sell again! By the time we packed up for home, we had sold 50 pieces of art. Now, this being a new business, our expenses were quite high and we didn't make back what we'd put into it like I had imagined, over and over in my mind...
All and all, though, I would call our endeavor quite successful! Though, I didn't sell as many art pieces as my cousin-in-law sells diaper bags, I learned a valuable lesson:
"If you hear a voice within you say, 'You cannot paint', then, by allI find that I am battling only my own "greatness". I was humbled by the almost constant compliments of successful artists. They each told me that I "had something" and that I should never give up or allow someone (myself included) to tell me that I wasn't going to make it... They said that I was great. I received some self-esteem; what more success could I have wished for? Now I only have to believe in myself!
means, paint... and that voice will be silenced!"
-Vincent van Gogh
(check out my work at http://www.meloniepacker.com)
Sunday, May 9, 2010
Silence
Blank pages, white "drawing boards", empty memory cards...
Silence has swept through me again. Not the welcome kind, like those savored afternoons when you've managed to get all the kids down for naps at the same time! ...Today there are no soft bird songs, no bubble bath, no warm flicker of a cozy fire... Just a solemn silence; like after a devastating earthquake or war.
War. That's about what it was. Life has been an ongoing war zone. Battles were fought in my head and heart. Some have been won; victory (in some degree) has been declared... but it has left me broken and empty. Now, I am left with the unsettling silence that stirs my being and seems to threaten everything I have worked for.
Tapes in my head previously played constantly as the "wall" of beliefs I had formed as a child struggled to stay in tact. I challenged their authenticity:
"I am not good enough" now has a large, unrepairable crack on its face.
"I am not lovable " is only half its previous towering height.
"I am a failure" remains only as a weathered-looking stumbling block...
I sit in that solemn silence; basking in the light that escapes the ruins of the wall I had once considered my friend. I am tempted, for a moment, to ponder if I were wrong to rage war upon it. Who am I to be successful? What is my significance that God would notice me?
Gratefully, I am jolted back to reality as I remind myself of the pain these lies have caused. I am not quite strong enough at the moment to embrace my "brilliance", so...I remain in silence.
This awkward absence of noise has become my much needed teacher. It allows me to create a space around my past. I hold a place for the "seed" of truth, that I'd planted, to grow in my heart. When it finally does, I will gladly welcome it with all of my being!
You see, this silence that I have earned is a treasure. It is where the gifts of humility and meekness come to complete harmony with brilliance and worth. It is the place where pride is brought down and God can heal my soul.
"It was never about me!", I declare as I realize, "I just might be a rather plain and insignificant person! So what?" I have learned for myself that the greatest beauty to be had in life shines its brightest through the most simple of forms!
So, I stand again and I raise my flag in victory as I claim this battle ground for a new purpose. This day I allow my God and master to refine and smooth away the remnants of my "wall". I welcome His silence, and the light of creativity and beauty it brings, to shine through me undistorted! I will evermore "be still"... and allow Him to be my commander.
Dear Vincent, I can only wonder what could have been if you had only found my beloved friend, ...silence.
Silence has swept through me again. Not the welcome kind, like those savored afternoons when you've managed to get all the kids down for naps at the same time! ...Today there are no soft bird songs, no bubble bath, no warm flicker of a cozy fire... Just a solemn silence; like after a devastating earthquake or war.
War. That's about what it was. Life has been an ongoing war zone. Battles were fought in my head and heart. Some have been won; victory (in some degree) has been declared... but it has left me broken and empty. Now, I am left with the unsettling silence that stirs my being and seems to threaten everything I have worked for.
Tapes in my head previously played constantly as the "wall" of beliefs I had formed as a child struggled to stay in tact. I challenged their authenticity:
"I am not good enough" now has a large, unrepairable crack on its face.
"I am not lovable " is only half its previous towering height.
"I am a failure" remains only as a weathered-looking stumbling block...
I sit in that solemn silence; basking in the light that escapes the ruins of the wall I had once considered my friend. I am tempted, for a moment, to ponder if I were wrong to rage war upon it. Who am I to be successful? What is my significance that God would notice me?
Gratefully, I am jolted back to reality as I remind myself of the pain these lies have caused. I am not quite strong enough at the moment to embrace my "brilliance", so...I remain in silence.
This awkward absence of noise has become my much needed teacher. It allows me to create a space around my past. I hold a place for the "seed" of truth, that I'd planted, to grow in my heart. When it finally does, I will gladly welcome it with all of my being!
You see, this silence that I have earned is a treasure. It is where the gifts of humility and meekness come to complete harmony with brilliance and worth. It is the place where pride is brought down and God can heal my soul.
"It was never about me!", I declare as I realize, "I just might be a rather plain and insignificant person! So what?" I have learned for myself that the greatest beauty to be had in life shines its brightest through the most simple of forms!
So, I stand again and I raise my flag in victory as I claim this battle ground for a new purpose. This day I allow my God and master to refine and smooth away the remnants of my "wall". I welcome His silence, and the light of creativity and beauty it brings, to shine through me undistorted! I will evermore "be still"... and allow Him to be my commander.
Dear Vincent, I can only wonder what could have been if you had only found my beloved friend, ...silence.
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