Good Morning From Joe's!

Coffee in a big white mug, something by Mono on the sound system *lots* of chatter from the locals for background music. The sun shines in Atlanta again. After 2-3 days of straight rain from tropical storm Ida, we can see blue sky today. Whew. I was getting moldy. Today we start to prep for this weekend's artist open studio sale--the Siyeh Sleigh Ride. But before that I need to get some computer work done. V the bookkeeper has finally convinced me to put all my work as items in Quickbooks. I am desperate to avoid QB, but as I seem to have no other viable options, I succumb. The task is especially prominent with the newly opened Resource Center and all the additional things to sell and track.

What a short post today! I thought I had a lot to say, but then I ran out of steam. Till tomorrow...

Did Somebody Say Something About a Saddle?

What
• GET LOOTED! shop 6 local glass and metal artists' work

• GET BURNED! studio tours + demos of beadmaking and glass blowing

• GET NOGGED UP! wine & horses' doovers Friday night, munchies throughout

• GET YOUR OWN ORNAMENT! Make your own kilnformed glass ornament




When
Friday November 13th: 6 pm to ?? Artist Reception and much nogging
Saturday November 14th: 10 am to 5 pm
Sunday November 15th: noon to 4 pm

Who
• Brenda Griffith: kilnformed glass vessels , tabletop and wall art
• Dee Janssen: dicroic glass and fine silver jewelry
• Lee Ritchie: blown glass tumblers, bowls, and decorative pieces
• Brian Renoud: torchworked pendants and ornaments
• Todd Briske: whimsical wire sculpture and jewelry
• Rebecca Sizemore: torchworked bead jewelry

More info

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Coffee in the New York Skyline mug, Ernie snoring gently beside me for music. I'm back in the saddle after a dentist appointment in the morning and an afternoon off yesterday. Finally got off my duff (with much prodding and help from Dee) and got out the announcement for the artist open house (i.e., Siyeh Sleigh Ride) this weekend at the studio. Dee uses Vertical Response for her bulk mailing program and I have to say I was impressed with it. It's easy to use, gives good statistics, is reasonably priced, and most importantly sends out email in a pretty format with uniform text and pictures. Next time I might size my final draft a bit bigger, but this was a great effort for under the gun.

Today I wrap up from the Waldorf Holiday Festival last weekend and figure out everyone's cut of the proceeds. Tonight is the first night of our first 5-week glass beadmaking class (yea!). Tomorrow we start cleaning up the studio and preparing for the Sleigh Ride this weekend. Slow down much? Today is also payday for my official new permanent, part-time employee Judy who is AMAZING. Hope V gets her all set-up.

Now off to ikebana with a bunch of Siyeh Sleigh Ride flyers clutched in my eager little fists.

Monday is Actually a Relief

Dee is on her way down with a grande pumpkin spice latte (and maybe a pumpkin scone) from Starbucks for me, "Missing" by Everything But the Girl on iTunes. My fingers fumble at the keys as I try to find my rhythm again. Last week was beyond tough for personal reasons and busy, busy, busy too. This week life is settling back to normal and it's busy, busy, busier for the studio. This weekend is the Siyeh Sleigh Ride and Dee is coming down to plan and to help me (finally) get the invitations designed and out. Late much?

The Waldorf Holiday Festival was this past Saturday and, as always, it was a lot of fun. This year the Siyeh Studio booth had work by Lee (blown glass paperweights and glass flowers), Brian (torchworked heart and goddess pendants and icicles), Dee (fused glass jewelry), and Todd (plant stakes, ornaments, people and jewelry--much of it with my glass incorporated). I had a last minute 8 year-old, after-school birthday party/sleepover Friday to whip up for the J--both before and after the 2-hour long adult preview for the holiday festival--and then a memorial service to attend the first half of Saturday so I didn't have any of my own work at the festival.

Yesterday I was was originally scheduled to have a Make a Holiday Dish class at the studio through Oakhurst Community Gardens but when the week went to hell in a handbasket and there was only one person signed up for it, I asked the director of the gardens if she would mind rescheduling. I'm not sure what happened, but it was a very lucky set of circumstances for Skippy when he and his mother showed up at the studio yesterday at 1:00 for the class (it's amazing they got there at all--Memorial Drive was closed Friday night through this morning just on the block in front of the studio for street repair) and I happened to be there. They had gone through so much trouble that I didn't have the heart to tell them the class had been rescheduled so I did an impromptu holiday dish class for Skippy and then he and his mother got to watch a little glass blowing in the hotshop. It was a good save--and renewed me more than I would have thought possible.

Now I need to get back to updating both websites, seeing if I can fill the last couple of spots in the 5-week glass bead making class that starts Wednesday night, and running a glass resource center. Hurry up Dee, I need that coffee!

Just Need To Get Through the Next 48

It's been a rough week--the kind of week where I could have used 15 minutes of Mafia Wars on Facebook right now instead of blogging (how sad is it that blogging takes almost too much energy?). But Mafia Wars is down for 30 minutes for maintenance (how dare they?!), and so I post. It has been a week of life: birth, death, birthday, family calls, friend calls... intense. It has also been a week of work: the Waldorf holiday festival is this weekend, the Siyeh Sleigh Ride is next weekend, and there were the usual orders to make and ship. I have class descriptions to get written up for the web and for a flyer, and class cards (of the Buy 4 Get 1 Free! variety) to create for sale this weekend. There is an open studio schedule to finalize, and a glass order (for the resource center and for me). I'll get through the next 48 hours, and then I'll be human (and post) again.

Tuesday Marches On

It's a beautiful, chilly fall morning, I need to focus on the beauty and be reminded of life by the chill. Building a retail business is a series of waves. First you get it open, then you promote it to get people in to it. When the people come, you make sure you have everything in place for them to have a positive experience that makes them want to come back. Then you need more people so you expand your promotion mechanisms. A resource center offering supplies and classes is a vastly different beast than a production studio. If what you're selling is your work, there are retail and wholesale shows, ready-made on-line venues (like WholesaleCrafts.com and Etsy), and there are trade magazines in which to advertise for the wholesale market. If what you're selling is classes and supplies, how do you build that business? Retail of this sort is completely new to me.

The resource center is open, we've had our grand opening weekend that Bullseye kindly promoted through their vast mailing list, and we've begun a modest mailing list of our own. Now what? We have a great class line-up, how do we get the word out more? It's a whole new set of things to think about and I have got to get comfortable with the idea that I don't need to do them all *today*. It will be enough for this week to get the class descriptions up on our website in their own page, to have postcards made of our class offerings and drop them around coffee shops, restaurants, bars, etc. in the little neighborhoods surrounding East Lake, and to get a form created for people to sign up for them on the web.

This is why I blog. I sat down this morning in a vast funk of what to do, what to do, and worked through the broad brushstrokes of it here before. Now I'm ready to get dressed and on with the day!

Just Need To Get Through

The morning and the week have begun. Both will be busy. I finally have to face 2-3 months worth of papers piled hither and yon, there are several orders that came in over the weekend that have to scheduled, some redos on the awards project from the summer to finish up, and I have both the Waldorf Holiday Fair and a holiday dish class through Oakhurst Community Garden this weekend. Oh yes, and it's our annual Ichiyo ikebana retreat this week Tuesday through Thursday and J's birthday is Wednesday. Dee is coming down this morning to plan for the artist holiday open house next weekend at the studio (Mike has dubbed it the Siyeh Sleigh Ride).

Every year right about this time I start letting things drop off the plate. Last year it was the holiday artist open house. Let's see if this year I can keep morale and energy and power on through. Even though it is my favorite time of the year (right after daylight savings time has ended), it won't be easy.

I'm Baaaaack!

Coffee in the Chicago skyline mug, "Let's Get It Started" by the Black Eyed Peas on iTunes. Time to bust out of the apathetic, lackadaisical state I've been in and Get It Moving! Today I'm gearing up to... take tomorrow off. Not the way I took yesterday off which was unplanned and unexpected (brain and body got together and both decided to shut down forcing the Me that was left to follow), but a planned day of doing things Other Than Work. Sure, there might be some of the reading and sleeping that there was yesterday, but there'll also be a PEDICURE (I think--thanks to the broken ankle--the first one this year).

If I could squeeze in a massage and a facial (I have gift certificates languishing for both) I would, but the spouse is getting home at noon! I'm going to pick him up at the airport, take him to lunch, and maybe go for a drive with the top down on the Mini Cooper (wink, wink).

But before I stray to far into the future, let's revisit the pre-comatose past. Tuesday I had the Waldorf School of Atlanta 7th grade class in for a morning field trip. True to field-trip-in-the-studio-weather form, it was pouring rain as they trooped from studio to hot shop and back again.

However the rain couldn't dampen spirits and everyone made a small fall leaf window panel, got to see and maybe take part in a glass blowing demo or two (Lee made several projects with them), and saw a bead making demo and maybe got to make a bead with Brian. Oh yes, and they also learned about the history of glass blowing, kilnforming glass and glass bead making. Yesterday after school I dropped their projects off and I was a bit late as they were still a bit warm at 2:30 so I didn't get to see their reactions to them. I hope many of them will be back for open studio time this fall--I love when they bring their parents back all excited about what they know and make pieces with them.

Having the 7th grade in during fall quarter is always a good kick-off for pre-holiday open studio--and I need to get that schedule set-up on the web asap. Also need to get a web guest book and a sign-up for email updates/newsletter created. Hope Mike has time for me this week. Thanks to Dee for both the pics of the field trip and for incredible help during it (she managed one of the two leaf panel project tables and did lots of set-up). After the field trip we cleaned up, I trained Judy (the new assistant) on shipping and close-up procedures, and got three shipments out before picking up the Sprout from Brownies. Thus ended the pre-comatose part of the past. Then came the next part...

I almost posted yesterday. The Post would have been titled, "Discombobulated, Or, If It's Not On the Calendar, Don't Do It!". I knew I had a dentist appointment yesterday morning but I couldn't remember whether it was at 10:00 or 10:30 and I couldn't find it on the calendar so I decided to just go as if it were for 10:00 and maybe get to read in the waiting room for a half hour (no problem there!). On the way I turned down the wrong street and had to go around the block. In the building I got off the elevator on the wrong floor and had to get back in and go down a couple more. Once in the office I signed in, and settled in for an illicit read (stolen time and all). The receptionist called me up about five minute later and asked me why I was there. I told her for a cleaning and an exam and she told me my appointment was on 11/10 at 10:30. She then kindly validated my parking and I toddled off home.

Once home I started working on the backlog of paperwork I have, and sometime around 1:00, I fell asleep. When I woke up at 2:15 I had to scurry to get the field trip projects unloaded, cleaned and off to them. When I got to school I found out I had three little girls (one of them my own) for a playdate, and at that point I just decided to let the rest of the afternoon--the sunny, gorgeous, perfect fall afternoon--take care of itself.

Today I am enthused and renewed again--just in time for V to come and work on my books. If there's anything that can harsh my mellow, that'll be it. *sigh*

__________________________________

Right as I finished writing, before I could add the photos, V came and hijacked my laptop for Quickbooks. So I got my kiln loads in for the day, cleaned up a little, trained Judy a little, and had my first formal glass blowing lesson in the hotshop! (How many people do you know who have a hotshop and don't know how to blow glass?) I made a flower and a paperweight, and learned the first techniques for feeling the glass from a glassblower's perspective. Then I finished the post. Pics are from the open house (the pretty, staged ones) and the field trip (kids with heads in hands, hands in pockets, etc.).

Exhausted to the Bone

Nothing to drink, the sound of Tim Burton's "The Nightmare Before Christmas" for music. I'm exhausted. It was a GREAT opening weekend for Siyeh Glass Resource Center, but I think I finally tried to get too much done at once. Tomorrow at 8:30 am is the Waldorf 7th Grade field trip in the studio so we have another intense four hours ahead of us. Becky is off to a full-time job and her beadmaking classroom duties have been taken over for the time being by Brian Renoud--another good friend and great torchworker (he usually works in borosilicate but is doing all Bullseye work for me). I also have a new assistant, Judy, who started today and looks like she'll whip me into organizational shape in no time. Lee has the hotshop off to an incredible start--we had our first private lessons in it yesterday after the open house was over (two customers from Saturday).

For the fieldtrip in the morning, Brian is demoing glass bead making, Lee is demoing glassblowing, and Dee is helping me do a two-part fall leaf fused project. She came this afternoon to help me prep. I had asked her for a couple of hours and she was still there helping till 7:00--with a dead early start panned for the morning. Dee, you have been the greatest over the past week, thank you.

Now if I can just make it till Friday...

More pics in the next couple of days (hope I can find my camera).

Glass Resource Center Opening Day!

No coffee as I'm not yet sure why I'm up, the heavy throttle of Ernie's purrs and occasional grumbles (as I stop petting him to type with both hands--it's bad enough that I'm a four finger typist on a good day, going down to two is just too much) for music. Day One of the Siyeh Glass Resource Center Grand Opening is over, now is l'aube of Day Two (literally--and I don't mean the cassock). Day One went perfectly save for one hitch, and even that one was minor enough we didn't break a sweat over it.

The studio day started for me when the phone rang at 7:10 as I was in the shower (of course I got out, hair dripping wet, and answered it). It was Lee and he had the news that something happened with the program in the glass furnace and it had shut off and was back down to 745 degrees. I finished up, dried off and hustled over only to not be able to figure out why the temp wouldn't go higher in the ramp/hold program. FInally I broke down, switched the controller over from automatic to manual (sometimes a real person just needs to take the controls), and fired that puppy up. If I have time today (I hope not), I'll putter with it. But, really, the best thing to do is just leave it going on manual and futz with it next week.

I didn't get to stay at the studio then, I had to rush back home, make Jessie's lunch and breakfast, and get her off to school. THEN the studio day really began, and it began with a vengeance. With the best will in the world, I had not been able to get all the pricing sheets and other papers done the night before. I collapsed at 11:00 so tired I was almost hallucinating. Come to think of it, that's how I was last night too! I sense an unfortunate pattern that must end. We also didn't have the last of the straightening, any of the sweeping, or a host of other things done so Becky, Lori, and Todd set to with a vengeance. Then Christie came and took Todd grocery shopping for all the munchables and he made a BEAUTIFUL spread.

And we swept, and cleaned, and carted boxes of stuff to the shed and the shipping room, and printed out price lists and cleaned off the desk and the counter, and by the time the first visitors arrived, we were ready! And the traffic was slow and steady all day. I had enough time to interact with everyone, give tours, talk about glass, write up sales and graze the lovely buffet. It rained, but who cares?

Today should be a gorgeous, cool, fall day. Dee is coming to help (in fact she's calling right now from Starbuck's where she is acquiring the box of coffee) and Todd is still here. Brian Renoud will be doing beadmaking demos today, life is good.

Now I had better get dressed and get over there to prepare for another big day!

The Physical and the Mental

Coffee is brewing--a big strong pot, I got J to school, Lori is on her way, Becky will be in after 3:00. Song of the morning on iTunes: "The Beat Goes On" by Sonny and Cher. I think I may have finally hit the limit on organizational tasks that I can juggle in my brain. Tomorrow at 10:00 I will have a physical space all set-up, sparkling clean and welcoming. Yea. Let's revel in that accomplishment for a minute. Four days from production studio to Glass Resource Center including basic classroom setup (six of the seven mega-minor torches are hooked up, still waiting on the teacher torch--#7) and an entire retail area *built* and stocked with almost 5,000 lbs of new glass, frit, rods, confetti and supplies. Yes. I feel good about that. (All the glass will be cut this morning).

Of course being me, I am still fretting about all the infrastructure bits that I have not had time to get to like the open studio schedule and pricing for kilnforming, torch work and blowing, creating the order write-up slips, finishing the retail pricelist, making all the pricing boards for the glass (everything is stickered with a price code instead of a price so the customers can know the cost of each thing up front and we can still change the prices as we need to (sales, etc.), etc., etc., etc.

Then there's all the food to decide, purchase and arrange. I think I'll put Todd in charge of catering. V the bookkeeper is bringing some of her deviled eggs (the best you've ever had, literally--she makes some with salmon, some with caviar, some with creme fraiche... *sigh* yum.)

Mike Z is on the gift certificate and last web site details but I need to come up with what we're going to give away, the demo schedule, and when we're going to give things away. And mustn't forget the mailing list! Got to collect names for classes and events. I know there are a bezillion good ideas that people have dropped like pearls in my ears over the past week and (to mangle as many metaphors as I can) it was in one ear and out the other. Time to start carrying the little moleskin notebook again to capture them. Now off to the studio to crank the tunes and start cutting glass.