“All the women I know feel a little like outlaws.”― Marilyn French
As some of you know (especially if you’ve read my last post Thing 1 & Thing 2) I have been working on recreating my website, webpresence, studio, product lines, life, creations…well, you know, it’s the year of reevaluations for me! In my quest for this, and amazingly in my research for the Creative Courage Challenge, I found many a muse on my way to here, and I would like to share some extraordinary things with you!!
I would like to say that my most extraordinary muse is a larger than life gal named Kelly Diels. She’s a writer, an inspiration, and (from what I’ve read) a wonderful individual! Her blog is calledCleavage, (who’s inner Curious George isn’t piqued by THAT?!!) While lallygagging through her words of wisdom, I came upon a page about Bios/Artist Statements, and it seems that just about everything she said (about how much they such in general) applied to mine! I was not surprised by this information, I just had one of my fears confirmed. So, I continued to explore, and I accidently came upon an amazing post/tutorial she wrote called Write Your Bio with these 11 Questions! OMG I was transformed! I thought if I could write a bio like that then it would really be about ME, but it was a little scary…(and if you read it you’ll know why!)…she’s got quite the personality – which was fabulous and frightening all in the same moment of time! But it was this tutorial that got me started with my rewrite.
“You do not aim with your hand. He who aims with his hand has forgotten the face of Sneaky Pete. You aim with your Moxie!”
Beyond Kelly comes a fantastic woman L’Erin (pronounced ‘lair-in) she is a self-proclaimedFreedom Muse and Life Alchemist Extraordinare! Her website is Sisterfire.com and you must check out her “Start Here” section, aiming straight for The Adventurous Moxie Playbook! It’s fantastic! It’s inspiring and it helped me grow…and some of the fear of creating my new bio scampered away without so much as a whimper!
As if that wasn’t enough (and these discoveries were all in one day mind you (actually in a matter of hours), my head was spinning, my equilibrium distraught, but my heart happy and jumping with joy!! I found Tara Gentile …ahhh, so amazing, so funny, so straight to the point! Talking about how the economy is changing (something I’ve been saying, but no one is listening) and how the freelance, the artist, the entrepreneur, the microbusinesses and other independent Artists, Creatives, and Services are going to save the world! I love her!! I purchased several of her down loadable books, and scoured them the next day! Including The Art of Earning Guide which has an actual “suggested price” and you really can change it if you aren’t in that place right now to pay the suggested price (no truly!)! Oh and don’t forget the Kick Start Labs! Which I signed up f or, and am starting to work!
There are also some wonderful things to be learned from Naomi Dunford from IttyBiz.com who grabbed my attention with her post: How To Stop Being So Goddamn Scared All The Time, and How To Get Your Shit Together! Which lead me to the Marketing for Designers and Other Artsy Fartsy Types, which is a downloadable lesson plan… she has several others as well to chooses from if you aren’t the Artsy Fartsy Type! And I’ve started my Emergency Turnaround Clinic, which also has a “suggested price”…and I am learning a great deal!
These wonderful women, as well as others have inspired me….well actually they kind of kicked me in the ass…so I took the first brazenly bold step!
I’m telling you this is the year I change my life, my business, my world…and I’m a little scared, so I am working my Creative Courage Challenge steps even more! I’m Looking Into Eyes (my own even more than others), I am Giving AND Taking Compliments, and it was my undeniable Curious George that lead me to these wonderful women, and I’m going to keep rolling! This next step is more about being Front & Center (one of my biggest fears believe it or not…and those of you who know me probably don’t believe it at all, but it is in fact true) but I’m doing it…for you, for me, for all of us!
So to the main event (drum roll please)… I finished writing my “real” Artist Statement earlier this week, on a beautiful afternoon while sitting on my back deck in the sun…it was glorious, I had a blast writing it, and it felt totally like me! But once I typed it all up on paper and reread it, the fear kicked back in. Gggrrrr!!!
For a second opinion, I sent it to a close friend (who knows me all to well) to read, and give feedback. She loved it (Fear obliterated) but thought there might be some questionable parts (Fear confirmed)…for a moment I thought maybe it was a bad idea, putting myself out there exactly how I am, I was getting ready for a rewrite…when a text arrived from my friend. She said that she had reread it and thought that I shouldn’t change anything! There wasn’t anything questionable, she reevaluated, and she thought it was fabulous! (*sigh*) yes she’s that important to me. Her opinion means a great deal to me as a person and an artist.
She’s as big and bold and full of life as me, but she has some moral quirks that seem to have skipped a generation in my family or something…so she’s an excellent friend, and confidant. She listens, and does not judge, but is honest to a fault. She suggested that if I was too worried about it that perhaps I should put it on the blog and see how well it is received. It is all aboutCreative Courage after all isn’t it??! So I am going to do just that! I am going to (once again – so weird) practice what I preach!! I’m going to Embrace The Tickle and see what happens!
So here it is, here I am, hope you like it…it will be on my new site when it’s all up and running. I’ve decided to be who I am, not to create for others, but for myself…to be true to my gifts. This comes from a great line of feeling the fear and doing it anyway!! Here goes….
JeaneMargherite Curious. Creative. Captivating…
I am a red headed, whimsical lunatic, faerie follower, recycling enthusiast, errant wife and delinquent mother of three (that I know of). I am unabashedly honest, optimism is my superpower and I believe willpower is in general over rated (especially where chocolate is concerned)!
I am an everlasting conundrum…a top notch type A, Martha channeling organizer with an Irish Bohemian Gypsy Queen soul that is sprinkled so heavily in faerie dust that even the deepest crevices of my cleavage sparkle with magic. I hate being bi-polar, it’s awesome! And oh yeah another thing….I’m an artist!!
My inner world is heavily steeped in all things purple to the extent that others, when they think of me, often see the royal color in places it does not actually exist (but that just makes me giggle so it’s okay). I am a wonderer, a wanderer and I lust for adventure; which being the mother of three often happens only in the imaginative recesses of my mind (it’s okay though they like me in here). Being the captain of full blown catastrophes (as I am) it is probably the best place for me to explore unsupervised anyhow.
I am a deconstructive diva, a professional instigator and I covet deep dark chocolate. I write love letters to wine and never met a cheese I didn’t like! I swear like a sailor, I bring on the brouhaha and I am prone to inappropriate laughter, while embracing my crankiness as a personality plus. I am a fan of curiosity and experiment in savoring the world, whilst bringing beauty into this realm.
I create because it happifies me, and I would create regardless of my location, situation or circumstance. I have been creating for the full length of my life and have no intention of stopping. While in my studio (fondly referred to as “the cave”) preparing to be fabulous, I must prime my pump with a little Everafter (the movie) in the background, candles and sometimes incense. I sit at my bench, I fondle my tools, I wander the space waiting for inspiration to arrive, and thus I begin! As I do not sketch prior to discovery I often use an inspiration book to get the juices flowing – colors I love, combinations that make me smile and occasionally a dirty joke doodled in between.
What always pulls my focus is the unbelievable tenacity of the power that draws me to the gemstones. With the colors and qualities they possess, my need to work with them and thus marry them with my lovely found treasures (which each have a story of their own) is so strong it is impossible to deny. I connect with the sacred force of creativity that lives within my soul and I whip up wickedly wonderful delights!
I search out the splendor in the overlooked and underappreciated and I use my wiley ways to turn junk into jangle, mismatched into magic, gemstones into generous embellishments to delight and adorn. There is a tiny bit of my spirit infused into each one of my creations. I work with gratitude and great joy (for my gifts) as well as good intention in my heart. That magic I imbued travels with the treasures and in doing so those intentions help each piece become a bit more true.
The right treasure will call to you; you’ll be drawn to it, and you won’t care why. You will know it has chosen you the moment you see it and your eyes will sparkle with delight, your heart will skip a beat and you’ll want to grab it before someone else realizes the cherished prize that it is….THAT is where I find my bliss. That is why I create. That is who I am!
What Else You Say?
I am captivated by the strong pull of the ocean, a full moon and the mystical mysteries of the deep green forest. I am fascinated by magic, the faerie realm, dragons, castles and queens of all kinds. I have yet to meet a unicorn I didn’t like, and if I am very virtuous I hope to cross paths with one of my superheroes Sidhe Queen Scathnach from the Isle of Skye. Then perhaps one day I’ll live in a castle of my very own, with a closet large enough to hold my multitude of crowns!
Join the journey! Browse the treasures, find me in my other realms (Facebook, Twitter,LinkedIn, Pinterest, WordPress) or simply wander through the many doors you will find on our website, they are all full of surprises, mysteries, and fun….AND there’s no chance of your getting lost. If you go through the purple guilded door to the Faerie Festival, look for me at the Queen’s tea party…I’ll meet you there!
So, take that! It’s not on my site yet, but it is here, and I still think it’s wonderful! I hope you all do too!! Please let me know what you think on my FB fanpage….(if you really like what you read, you may even want to become my FB Friend! ) Any and all constructive criticism will be taken with a grain of salt, and all else shall be completely ignored! Thank you for your participation! I love you! I’m here till Thursday! Try the veal and don’t forget to tip your waitresses!! 
Now YOU GUYS!! Do it! Take your current Bio/Artist Statement and marinate it in Moxie!! It may not be appropriate in every single situation, but allow yourself to truly come through! Unabashedly! Say what you mean to say, tell people what makes you …YOU. Because that is in fact what makes your creations a one of a kind…because YOU made them. So tell the people how it is. I challenge you to write a new Bio! Even if you don’t consider yourself an Artist or Creative….do it anyway! Tell the world who you really are, blemishes and all, and do it in a funny way!! It’s actually quite refreshing. gives a good giggle, and can be something you cherish!
I would love, love, love to hear about anyone’s progress! Post it (or a link) on my FB page www.facebook.com/ShimmerlingsFanPage Share it with the Class, as my english teacher used to always say when I got in trouble for whispering in class!! HAVE FUN AND SHARE IT WITH THE CLASS!!!
Cheers!
JeaneMargherite Meria McMahon Murray Schintgen
(that’s my name, don’t wear it out!)
Check me out in my other realms…..
