Just Mary Designs

Last year I took a class called Flying Lessons from the amazing artist, Kelly Rae Roberts.  There were around 350 women who took the e-course along with me.  Together we have spent the last year pursuing our artistic endeavors, building our galleries of finished work, creating websites and stores, and sharing the journey with each other.  I have gained so much from these fellow "Flyers". Several of my classmates have crossed the line from classmates to on-line friends, and some have gone from e-buddies to real live friendships.  Whatever the status, this amazing group of women has grown together over the last year to wonderful new personal and professional artistic heights. One of the reasons that I feel so closely connected to them is the spirit of giving that surrounds this group.  We help eachother every single day.  We ask questions and someone knows the answer - from art technique, to blog or website questions, to selling work, to setting up art booths.  I am so proud of our latest endeavor - banding together to celebrate our own success by creating a scholarship for the next generation of Flying Lessons students!  Our little tribe of artists have raised enough money to sponsor 8 students in Kelly Rae's next (and last!) run of Flying Lessons.  And to top it all off - she is going to match our donation with 8 spots donated of her own!! If you are an artist wanting to take flight, click here to find the link where Future Flyers can submit a letter explaining your wish to Take Flight!!  The winners will be chosen at random, and will be announced on 8/29/12 both by our group and on Kelly Rae's blog!  I hope you win and begin a wonderful artistic journey of your own!  You can also read all about the journeys of other flyers on this page. If you are not quite ready for her whole course - check out her Flying Lessons e-book (see the right hand side of my blog for a link to click)! My flight in the last year has taken me on quite a journey - here are some of the highlights!! *I created a blog and website - Just Mary Designs was born! *I developed an art line called Body Fab-YOU-lous - marrying my love of mixed media art with a message close to my heart - dedicated to helping women find peace and end their struggle with weight loss and body image challenges. *I have sold 4 original paintings and around 25 prints!  I just picked up a paintbrush for the first time 2 years ago...so selling my work is an amazing accomplishment! *I was asked to create a piece that will be featured in a new magazine launch issue next month!  Soon I will be published - holy cow!! * I have taken many e-courses to develop my skills and in the process learned wordpress, photoshop, how to design patterns, how to paint large canvases, art journaling and more! *I have connected into groups where each day I am in contact with several thousand artists - learning and sharing! *I launched the daily email Body Fab-YOU-lous Love Notes - a little reminder that peace and love are available in your body right now.  I received a letter of feedback telling me that one of them made the reader weep with recognition.  That tells me these are important.  They are making a difference in peoples lives.  I'm also promoting inspirational art from my network of e-buddies - another way to give back to my artistic community! May your own year be one of amazing accomplishment, and your flight take you soaring to new heights!! Here is a list of my Flyer Sisters and their posts about their own flight! Janet Forrest http://www.tatterednworn.wordpress.com Cat Athena Louise http://www.catathenalouise.com Stacey Bockness Curry http://starhitchedwagon.blogspot.com/ Kris Lanae Binsfeld http://cherishdesigns.wordpress.com/ Renee Burke http://happilyeverafterbyreneeburke.wordpress.com Michelle Reynolds http://www.shellsinthebush.com Constance Rawlins http://livingwithinyourharvest.com/2012/08/19/fly-tribe-anniversary/ Kelly Hoernig  http://www.kellyhoernig.blogspot.com Cindy Jones Lantier http://www.lantier.org Kathleen Conard http://newfromoldcreations.blogspot.com/2012/08/giving-back.html Claudia Dow http://www.claudiadow.blogspot.com Susan M. Walls-Beverly http://susanscharmingtrinkets.blogspot.com/2012/08/flying-lessons-and-art-of-giving-back.html Linda Barutha http://baruthadesigns.com Linda Kinnaman http://lindakaysart.com/blog/2012/08/19/my-dream-journey-one-year-now/ Cheryl Dossey http://www.cheryldossey.com/ Sofia Dabalsa http://sofiadabalsa.blogspot.com Jill Lambert http://jill-lambert.blogspot.com/2012/08/the-spirit-of-giving.html Sally Rose http://sallyhow2.blogspot.com/ Ursula Smith http://EasyScraps.com/blog Deborah Eaton http://www.deborahgeaton.com/blog/ Lori Leissner  http://www.leissnerart.com/2012/08/giving-thanks-giving-back-giving-flight.html Creative Clearinghouse http://creativeclearinghouse.com/Online-Class-Reviews/blog/Ursula-Creative-Clearinghouse Lenore Angela http://www.lenoreangela.blogspot.ca/ Katharina Star http://www.blog.katharinastar.com Rachél Payne http://wp.me/pWRyw-10P Sherry Richert Belul  http://www.simplycelebrate.net/cherry-blossom-soup/gifts Deborah Velasquez http://deborahvelasquez.blogspot.com/ Shannon Etnyre http://www.livingwithumami.com Live Laugh Love Retreats http://livelaughloveretreats.com Kelley Miller Artworks http://kelleymillerartworks.blogspot.com/ Wini Dougall http://artloveandjoy.blogspot.com Carol Bray http://theredpaintedcottage.blogspot.com/2012/08/the-spirit-of-giving-back-by-giving-flight.html Tracy Yarbrough http://chickpeastudio.blogspot.com/2012/08/the-spirit-of-giving.html Diane Enright  http://dianeenrightphotography.wordpress.com/ Jamie Burch http://www.dancingdownserendipitystreet.blogspot.com/ Mary Cottingham http://www.barnbugstudio.blogspot.com Susan Dietz http://flutterbeforeyou.blogspot.com Lori Moon Studio http://lorimoonstudio.blogspot.com/2012/08/fly-tribe-blog-hop-giving-back.html Kim Hyer http://www.apaperaddict.com Tina Carlborg http://www.tinachicky.blogspot.com Catherine Pistone  http://catherinepistone.blogspot.com/ Mary MacIlvain http://maryart.macilvain.com/ Carolyn Chenault http://carolynchenault.wordpress.com/2012/08/20/the-big-giveaway

For the last 5 weeks I have been taking an e-course by Kelly Rae Roberts about how to run a creative business.  I have felt excitement, overwhelm, confidence, insecurity, techincally stupid, and artistically inspired.

I learned more about blogging, how to set up a creative website, the nuts and bolts of an etsy store, and how to connect it all to social marketing like my facebook page and my twitter account.

And check that out - I learned how to insert links into my blog!  ha ha ha

I have no idea where that knowledge will take me.... but I feel like I have grown for having taken this course.   And I'm grateful that there is a fantastic artist community out there who support the baby steps of growth for new artists like me!!