The Company We Keep

I am writing a check today. That check is to renew my membership to IDAL, the International Decorative Artisans League.  You might think I am writing this check because I am obligated to do so-I am Vice President of the association after all.  Or maybe, it is out of duty. How can I expect you to pony up, if I don't ride the horse?  Possibly to build my business? Sure. That is a reasonable assumption and certainly a hoped for outcome.

 

All of these are valid reasons to rejoin IDAL but they are not the main reason. Let me share with you how a chronic UN-joiner (that would be me, by the way) found herself not only pursuing membership but championing an Association.

My history of non-participation in group activities is long.  I quit Girl Scouts because our leader insisted we complete badges as a troop.  I watched the school nurse while the other kids watched a movie because I refused to sell wrapping paper for the PTA. I played a "team" sport...

but as a goal keeper where you can be in charge of your own plot of sod. Sorority? Just long enough to wear a polka-dot sundress during rush and learn the game "Thumper" at Sigma Nu Casino Night.

This pattern of being an extroverted outgoing anti-social loner served me OK well into adulthood.

So what changed and how does it relate to IDAL?  There is a point to this post beyond revealing my character flaws!


The Small Picture:

 

It is lonely. As finishers, many of us work by ourselves. How many times have you come home and vented to your partner about your day just to have them say something "logical" ?  I didn't want logic, I wanted someone who understood why seeing 100 small pieces of blue tape dotting a wall made my eye twitch!

 

In my quest to be successful, I started to feel paranoid.  Who would see what product I was using?  Was someone under-bidding me or taking my work? Ugh!  All this thinking did was make me unhappy and isolated.

 

As my business matured (and probably me as well) it became more important to have friends rather then "fans" and colleagues instead of competitors.  So I changed.  Through Surfaces, I decided we would be a hub for our decorative arts community.  Now I take the time to know my artists personally-keep up with their lives and not just their business. How can you not treat someone's business with respect once you share a meal, understand their struggles (because they are yours as well), and get to know them as people?  I mended fences. Accepted and granted forgiveness. I became closer to people that I never thought I would talk to-I guess Hell did freeze over!

 

I am grateful to have real relationships beyond our shared worked. These are the relationships that have saved my business.

 

And how does IDAL fit in with the new me? Once I opened myself up locally, I thought I better start participating more globally. IDAL gave me the chance to experience these relationships on a national scale and become connected to artists outside my Kansas City Classroom.

 

Blame it on the Bayou

So, my friend Marti asks me to teach at her IDAL Chapter,  Bayou City Artisans in Houston. And to her surprise I agree (remember I've been standoffish with IDAL-before the "new" me). Last February I head south, which was the perfect time of year to head south, and teach two days of classes for this wonderful group.  Wow.  Was I ever impressed. Everyone was so eager to learn and excited about class. I really enjoyed getting to meet the members and it was very rewarding as a teacher. All I could think was, "wouldn't it be great to have more chapters like this?" The Bayou City Artisans won me over!

 

The Big Picture

My experience with Bayou City Artisans confirmed for me some undeniable truths about our profession as well. I'd had a sense of it for a few years at my own studio but it really hit home when I traveled to other parts of the country.  These were not just local changes but industry trends that could not be ignored. 

*  Our artists are aging-we already skew to an older demographic since finishing is often a 2nd or 3rd careers.  But we are not getting younger finishers in classes or buying product. as our experienced finishers are cutting back or re-tiring.  How will we mentor a generation of new talent? How do we support our finishers going through the realities of taking care of parents, kids, grand kids, and their own health/well-being?

* Finishers are looking for ways to stay in the business longer even as our backs are saying "I am not doing one more damn ceiling!"  How do we assist our artists to have longevity and a successful retirement?

*  The housing crash, credit driven consumers, cheaper labor, and changing tastes are all realities for a small business in the decorative arts. How do we educate the consumer and business partners about our profession so they make better informed decisions?

* Social media is a blessing and a curse.  Some of my best finishers are being left behind because they don't understand or have time for Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter.  They need an organization that wants to promote quality and provide content. 

These are the type of issues that are best addressed by a Trade Association. These are the issues that effect the artists, the school, and the product manufacturer. For better or worse, we are in this together. Addressing these things is (should be) the basis for membership benefits.

I got "Farkased"

My head was full of these ambitious thoughts when Lyna Farkas called me to talk about IDAL. She  noticed some of my "Norma Rae" posts about decorative painting and thought I might want to put my energies toward something more productive then Facebook rants.  Since this is the new me, I had a great experience with the Houston Chapter, and I had become a Faux Revolutionary-well, I couldn't really say no. Plus Lyna is super nice.  First I started with the Building a Better IDAL Facebook group and then when I saw the enthusiasm (with a huge side of doubt), I agreed to run as a Board Member. Then I taught at Convention for the first (but not the last) time! I am happy to say that the other board members are wonderful people and I met so many new friends through IDAL!

"C" is also for Community

In my last post, I shared that Bruce has Stage IV lung cancer.  Our world has been turned upside down. He has begun his treatment and we are in the process of selling our home. This is for his safety and to help me manage his care and our business better. I should be a wreck and on some days I am. Thank goodness I gave up that whole anti-social thing a while ago because our family and friends are incredible. But they know us well.

What is amazing is My Community-My IDAL Community which has been a huge source of help and comfort.  Everyday, we receive a token of support. It might be a note or message. A gift, often hand-made.  A quick phone call or text.  A prayer. And donations. We have received so much help to pay for the painters-it has lightened my load and stress in ways you will never know. And many of you are people that I have only met briefly. Some of you I have never met in person. I also know that several of you have your own struggles and business concerns.  We are truly humbled.

Just last week I received a gift from my friends at the Bayou City Artisans. And I cried.  I cried with gratitude but also because I knew I had made the right choice to believe in the special people that make up this (My) profession.  In the  midst of my pain, I have discovered the joy of  connecting.

And that is why I am writing my membership check. Because right now I am the recipient of all that greatness.

My hope is that my work with IDAL will pay it forward. Someday, you may need the support of a community. Our Community which is made up of people you may never met but who share your passion and your dreams.

My commitment is to help the hard-working IDAL Board in creating something that will be there for you and future generations.  Currently, my fellow board members are carrying much of my load.  Many of you will never know how much time and effort they have given on your behalf.

My belief is we have the talent to take IDAL into the future and make it an important association. 

I look forward to working with (or should I say "joining") you on this journey. Please judge me by the company I keep. Because I could not be surrounded by better folks.

 

 



The Fort Worth IDAL Diaries Part Two:

Monday, September 29th

Another beautiful day in Fort Worth so I take a 5 mile run toward the stockyards. Kathy Wear, fellow IDAL Board Member and runner, directs me to a tree-lined path that goes down by the river. Alas, 2 days later I will not find this spot to take my friend George Hackford running.

 

 

This is where I will take George for a run:

 

 

 

The Conference Center is walking distance to our hotel and has a visually interesting atrium. My talented friend Susan Kolesar took this picture and many other great shots of the IDAL Convention.  A cowboy hat star!

It turns out that a lot of concrete trucks are circling the convention center to set-up the Concrete Decor Show that is sharing our space. So our time to set up for classes is moved back...and moved back...and moved back.  We spend some time at the cool water park by our hotel...

which shows the lovely deployment of Concrete!

 

We also get manicures:

Well, not this one but it would be perfect for a stencil theme as long has you didn't have to get your hands dirty! We work and ruined our nails the first day. Ah, the glamorous life of an artist!

By the time we can set-up our classroom, I have One Hour before I am going to dinner with our Citadel Insurance Representative, Heather.  Now, I am wearing a Debbie Harry Shirt and grab at the last minute some clothes to change into for our very nice dinner.  Thank goodness Sue and Jeanette know how I like my class set up because I drive the Balls of Clay truck to the convention center unload about 10 boxes and rush back to the hotel to meet for dinner.

Ugh! I have one minute to change..in the truck (clothing becomes somewhat of a theme later on). What I think are black pants are really black leather leggings. And I forgot my nice shoes-looks like the Leopard Flats on my feet will have to do. I meet this very sweet and nice young woman from Citadel dressed like I am going to an "I Love the 80's" party.

 







IDAL Vice President reporting for duty!

Tuesday, September 30th

Finally my first class day. We are beginning with the Modern Historian wall
and cabinet finishes. I am not going to sugar coat it-the set-up was nuts.
Pole and drape on the convention floor. And plastic on the concrete made you walk like Frankenstein!
I naturally have a really loud voice...

 

 

 

but I was really yelling.  This is something that the people in Mave's class

(behind the curtain next to me) will attest to!

They should think of it as 2 for One Instruction!

 

 

Well, that is one way to sell it.

 

OK! So it was loud with concrete mixers going. And I was slip 'n' sliding across the floor.
But guess what?  We had a good time and a great class!

Photo courtesy of Susan Kolesar

See I am happy-no one is holding me against that upright table and throwing darts-that's a win in my book!

 The battle of the cell phone pictures!

Everyone is working very hard-maybe because my yelling scared them but hopefully it is because of the great samples they made!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 During a break, I am expected at the Chapter Luncheon with a yummy Bar-b-Que provided by the Dallas Chapter. Now, I have been carrying what I call my "important papers" in a file since arriving on Saturday. As a kid I would have purses filled with drawings, clippings, and such. My Mom would threaten to throw away my "trash" and I would cry, "You can't-those are my important papers!" What 5 year old has important papers? This one!

 

The collar is either popped or it's not! Who dressed this kid?

 

 

Well this time, the papers matter. They are all the information and surveys I have been trying to collect about IDAL membership.  I enjoy talking with the Chapter Presidents and hearing what they want and need from IDAL. And Cindy Andrews the new Chapter Liaison, makes a nice presentation about new goals for Chapter growth and development. Thinking things are going smoothly,  I place my folder on the table for this picture with Lyna

 

and a gust of wind blows everything out of my folder and across the plaza!

 

 

 

 

 

One of the things I learned about Chapter Presidents? It turns out they run fast! Thankfully they captured all my papers. I didn't have time to sort them before returning to class which makes me twitch a bit.

Photo Courtesy of Susan Kolesar

 

This is me after the luncheon and I look a little crazed! Probably because I have not counted my Important Papers!  But our class finished 4 wall and 3 cabinet samples in one day-GO TEAM!

 

 

 

 

 

Wednesday, October 1st (The day)

2nd day of class and I have two helpers-Sue and we also have Jeanette. She finished her class on Tuesday and is ready to go! Jeanette is a machine with the stencils! That is why I look less crazy this day!

Susan took this nice picture of a Modern Romantic Sample the day before-thought I should tell you this since it looks like I slept in the same clothes! Now I fell asleep with my hands on the keyboard to my I-pad sitting almost upright (Sue thought I had a stroke) but I did change my clothes.

 

It was so warm I could wear my Fauxy Painter shorti-alls with my favorite pink shirt both days!







Photo by Susan Kolesar

 

 

I love these pictures! This is what it is all about...the prep, the drive, the set-up...working with people excited to learn and try new things! I am so grateful that I finally met so many Facebook Friends and people that order product from Surfaces-you are no longer a voice on the phone. What a great group of artists to work with over the two days! 

We had a really good time!





I am really proud that everyone did such a great job in class by staying focused and helpful! All the samples were portfolio ready! We even made up some new samples as we worked!

There was only one moment when things got a little too much. Now, the concrete people are lovely talented folks. Some of our decorative artisians are very talented in this medium. I want to just state that I love the concrete people. But one guy in the expo decided it was time for a Hoe-Down and really cranked up a the music. Now normally I love a good dance party, but in the middle of class?



Once again that cardio work came in handy. I bolted from class and really nicely
(yes, I was really nice) asked the very sweet young man if he could please
turn down the music-which he graciously did. Problem solved!

Wednesday, October 1st (that night)

 

This is my first General Meeting as a Board Member and like most of the week, I rushed from one thing to the next (good thing I run). I am also anxious. For weeks, I have been sitting in on the Board discussions and, as I noted in my first post, participated in my first official BOD meeting.

 

 It is hard to know that you are getting ready to tell your membership there will not be a Convention the next year. Sitting on stage, I could see the disappointment and questions on people's faces.  I also know that board members struggled for a long time with solutions to declining membership with rising costs.  Many people on the board had delayed their own personal needs to be at Convention to face the group. It was hard all the way around.

 

Plus, once again, I have selected the wrong clothing! Sue and I  walk a long way (me in heels)from the Convention Center to find comfort food-pasta! I keep fiddling with the ridiculous slip I have on until my OCD goes into over-drive. Now, I played soccer on all boys team so I got pretty good at changing garments in a discreet way.

 I shimmy out of my slip at dinner! It was discreet...until we posted a Facebook pic!

Thank goodness cell phones weren't around when I was a teen.

 

I am exhausted from teaching two days and attending functions but we are not done yet....

 

COMING NEXT-THE MAD HATTER AUCTION AND THE Q and A SESSION



The Fort Worth IDAL Diaries Part One

 

 

Every year I would look at the posts of IDAL attendees with some envy thinking “maybe this is the year I should’ve gone?”  But the convention would pass and other things would make any feelings of regret become a distant memory. I should confess at this point in my story, that I was a transient IDAL member.  One time I went to Chicago as an attendee and we went to Charleston to kick-off our clothing line. If you were hit in the eye by candy or a beads then you will remember that event. But other than those 2 times, sometimes I was a member but most of the time I was not.

So why now? Did a bush talk to me? Was there a blinding a light? A sign on my toast?  Nothing so dramatic but one reason is simple and the other more complex. Simply, Texas is close to me and a good market for our business. I could drive and bring all my studio stuff which satisfies both my OCD and love of road trips. 

And the more complex? The environment for finishing is changing.  My biggest producers were aging out and there were not as many younger people taking their place.  The professional finishers are working harder to get better jobs with decent pay. The students attending my classes are sharing their frustrations and need for an organization that would better support their professional development.  At this same time, Lyna Farkas contacted me about heading a think tank to work on IDAL. It was the Magic Eight Ball moment-“All signs point to yes.”  So I headed a think tank, became a board member, and headed to Fort Worth to teach 3 classes. Go Big or Go Home! Isn’t that on the Texas flag or something?

This is all the stuff  prepped and packed for my class with the help of Emily and Jeanette!

Saturday, September 27th

 

 

So my trusty side kick Sue Hon agreed to join this adventure (are you Thelma or Louise? Which one gets Brad Pitt? Because that is me). And yes, that is a pill bottle by my leg.  Maybe I became committed because I am medicated? We drove Bruce’s truck that says “Bruce’s Balls of Clay” on all sides and the back which was the funniest thing about the trip until we stopped in Guthrie, Oklahoma for gas.

Now, I asked Sue (who is Louise thanks to a quick Wiki search about which one gets Brad) before we left, “is there any trick to this truck’s gas tank?” She looked at it and determined it to be idiot proof…hold that thought.  We stop at a truck stop to fill up and guess what? I can’t get the hose to fit in the tank.  How can this be? I try to call Bruce but no answer so I grab the owner’s manual frantically looking for the page entitled “An idiots guide to filling this truck.”  At this time a man drives up in the exact same truck. “Oh Sir,” says Sue in her nicest damsel in distress voice, “Do you know how to put gas in this truck?” He looks at us, determines our ineptitude and says “Do you want to put diesel in that truck?” Clunk. Sure it is a green handle and says Diesel all over…anyone could make that mistake right? Right?

 

To make ourselves feel better we stock up on road trip food which for me is Diet Coke and

Corn Nuts! What is a Corn Nut (besides a trip to the dentist) anyway?

 

 

And we stop in Edmond, Oklahoma to shop and take Instagram pictures.

 

Poor Jim, Sue's husband could not understand
why it took us 10 hours to get to Fort Worth.

We cruise into Fort Worth just in time to change clothes and meet my parents (who live in Oklahoma) for dinner. My dad is a guest speaker at the Southwestern Veterinary Conference at the same conference center as IDAL. See…Karma.  My Mom raves about Molly the Trolley so we board the trolley and enter the Gates of Hell. The TCU and SMU football game ends in a win for TCU and a loss for anyone else trying to drive or eat in the convention center area. Our Trolley driver seems perplexed and decides that keeping the door closed and going one inch per minute is the best choice.  Then we go off the route and pick-up a random person that flags down Molly. Somehow she convinces the driver to take her to her home! Are we really trapped in a cab? After over an hour stuck on the trolley, we arrive exactly one block from where we started.

 

The bright light is the Angel of Mercy descending to let us off Molly the Trolley!

Sunday, September 28^th

 

 

My Dad treated us to a yummy dinner and we had a good night's rest after our long trip.. I begin the day like most Sunday’s with a run and photograph for my Facebook Fitness group. The weather is beautiful and I know that I will be spending the day in my First Board of Director’s Meeting so the fresh air is welcome.  We had a long but productive meeting spent talking about the needed IDAL reorganization. It is time to make some tough decisions with the hardest part yet to come...the Annual General Meeting on Wednesday!

I did get some cool Texas stuff from Theresa-the outgoing IDAL President and now Past President. I ate the fantastic cake and packed up the rubs for Bruce!

 

 

And Janie (outgoing Past President) brought Zombie Chocolates made by her husband. Perfect for me!

 

Sunday afternoon, Sue and I had the opportunity to stop by the JFK Memorial.  It really is a touching tribute and it a nice place to think about the week ahead on a lovely afternoon.

 

 

 

 



Things really get going once Convention Starts.....