What I Learned at Plywood Presents 2015
I’m headed to the Plywood Retreat next week! Ah! I’m so full of nervous energy! I’m always so inspired by the Plywood community. This year’s conference, Plywood Presents, woke up something inside. It turned on the lights in a room where a lot of unhappiness was stored. Coming to the realization that I would need to confront that beast was really tough. I drove home from the conference in complete silence, filled with dread. I knew I would have to change my life. I was getting ready for it, and then God made it happen. Turns out, actually confronting the beast was simple. I was let go from my previous job the following Monday morning and re-hired by Paint Love the next day. It was the weirdest and most perfect chain of events I've ever experienced. Cheers! Here's a few things I learned from Plywood Presents:
If you are proud of what you’ve built and grateful for where you are, you’re on the right track. I think Kat Cole’s talk might have made the conference for me. It can be so hard to measure your success. And as a super achiever, that’s tough! I need to see progress. I need grades and report cards. I tend to get lost in the gap between how I think I'm doing and how I think others think I'm doing. I love using the “proud and grateful” marker for success. Go listen to her whole talk. It's so full of wisdom!
This speaker, Blake Howard, was on fire. Like 80’s music, flame transitions on fire. It was pretty great. I am so bad at having hard conversations. I will avoid, avoid, avoid. But I’m realizing, that those hard conversations have to happen. It’s better for everyone for those conversations to happen first thing. Be courageous and create relentlessly. It's the only way to close the gap between your high standard for art and design and your ability.
Ahh, Caitlin Crosby from The Giving Keys! She had so many great things to say, but one thing stood out to me. Don’t be so drained from your job that you don’t have enough left for your spouse. This simple phrase hit me smack in the forehead. I was in a situation where there was nothing left when I got home. I was bringing in a great paycheck, but I wasn't bringing in much else. Looking back on my life, I don't want to be just a great provider. I want to be a great wife, a great sister, a great friend, a great human. Now my work and life are a little bit more integrated. I'm working more, but there's more "me" left at the end of the day. So much better!
There was so much to learn, hear, gather and save up. I couldn't capture it all. I'm so incredibly grateful for the conversations I had and the people I've met. If you want to hear any of the amazing talks from this year's event, head over to Plywood People on youtube!
Peach Painted Notecards Up in the Shop!
I started painting these little peach beauties when dealing with stressful situations at work. I would wake up super early, grab my coffee and sit in my studio before the sun rose. Maybe I should have been doing yoga or running, but I didn't have much energy at that time. I would fill my jar with water and grab my mom's old paint brush and just paint circles. Circles, on circles, on circles. I was thinking I'd wait and paint these on canvas, but I had all these blank note cards sitting around and thought - why wait? I should just make something.
Just make something. I think this phrase has influenced my life in so many ways. It was a common theme growing up. I would sit down when I was younger and just make something. It didn't quite mater what it was. Usually it was an off shoot of the arts and craft trend my mom was trying out at the time. (We had and still have so much fun!)
I just had to make. Make do. Make it work. Make.
My work situation has changed now. I'm working with Paint Love and also back at designing with Mad & Dusty. There's still stressful moments, but the kind that come from doing something you really believe in. It's more of a "You're doing something that makes you feel alive and pushing yourself to your edges" kind of stress. I'm not painting as many circles, but I still love these little guys. I'm proud of the period of time they represent. These peach circles are a good illustration of the fact that life moves in a circle. That every end is just a beginning, and that every beginning is also an end in some way. It's a symbol of growth and renewal, but also of familiarity and stability. Life doesn't have to be perfect to be beautiful. Often, the most beautiful things are not perfect at all.
There's something so empowering about putting things up for sale. Ahh! If you'd like to purchase a set of three circle notecards, head over to our Etsy Shop and use the coupon code OCTOBER20 for 20% off the whole store. There's not much to choose from right this second, but we will be adding a ton of products this month! (Coupon will expire on 10/31.)
Thanks so much for reading and supporting Mad + Dusty as we grow!
Mads