Wednesday, August 7, 2013

A Big Decision

This painting is called Exposed Profile (2012, spraypaint and oils) and it effectively describes how I am feeling at the moment. It shows someone facing one way, their mind directing them another, and their roots growing in yet another direction. I have so many things that I would love to do, so many paths to follow, and not enough time in which to do everything successfully. That torn feeling has led me to make a big decision about my life.







As some of you know, I recently made a huge choice that will result in a big change in the way I have lived for the past 10.5 years. I gave my notice to Craig's Cake Shop that I would like to be taken off the schedule once the busy season ends (late October, early November). I won't be totally disconnecting from the shop and will go in to help once in a while.

The shop has been part of my life for a long time; I have been there for over a third of my life! The people I have worked with have been like family and I am proud of the product we make and love making people smile with all the cool cakes I get to decorate. The decision was not at all easy and I know I will miss being a part of the everyday activities of the cake shop and the lovely people.

I made this choice for a couple reasons. The first and biggest reason is that my personal business (art, illustration, face and body painting) has been growing a lot and to take it to the next level, I need to give my full attention. It has been draining and a bit stressful to juggle jobs, especially when the busy time for both is in the summer, mostly on Fridays and Saturdays. Those days are also when my husband, Mark, would love to hang out, go camping, travel, see a movie, etc. As long as he has known me, our free times have not coincided very well. After four years of dating and another four years of marriage, it is time to spend more time together! Another reason is the fact that squeezing a pastry bag for as long as I have can start causing repetitive motion injuries. My fingertips have been going numb after work and then have continued to go numb as I am painting at home or during a face painting job.

Though it is a huge change and I am a little anxious, I am also very excited about the future of all my pursuits. It is really a dream come true to be able to make art the center of what I do for a career. I can only hope that I will be successful and be able to make a living from the things I do and what I create. This choice was made possible by my wonderful and supportive husband who works very hard and just wants to see me smile. Thank you, Mark; I love you!

There is a lot more to say but the busy life beckons. I plan to write more about my plans for my business and I intend to write a blog post devoted to how I started at the cake shop and my experiences there.

I am about a week away from a RAW show on Thursday, August 15th, featuring my visual art and I have been busy making new pieces for that. I'm so excited to share my work! If you are interested, I would love to see you there! Please make sure to purchase paperless tickets online and in my name before the show. You can purchase tickets here: www.rawartists.org/madison/enmasse or view my Facebook event page here: https://www.facebook.com/events/132514163624952/

Thanks for reading!