This weeks Studio Saturday is on the house.
Really, there’s no place like home and it’s on the house.
I get many requests for custom buttons. I have really wonderful client that has been purchasing buttons from me for use on her fun clothing. She has great little boutique in Montpelier, VT, The Cheshire Cat. Lucy designs and paints her clothing line. She also creates them for another boutique in NC. Several weeks ago Lucy called and told me she needed a house button, along with other button styles in my Original Collection.
I had to design and produce a new button. Not a big deal. She didn’t give specifics on the type of house she would like. I had ideas rolling around in my head, normal realistic type house, Dr. Seuss house, house a child would draw, etc.
Here are a couple sketches.
This is the first attempt. Nice suburban house, but not what she wanted.
I spoke with her again and she then told me what she saw in her head. A button shaped like a house, triangle on top of a box, simple.
2 artists passing in the night, each with their own concept. My first thought when she told me that she needed a house button was a basic child’s drawing. I thought, nah that can’t be what she wants. I should have listened to the voices in my head from the beginning.
The question for this Studio Saturday is:
What experience(s) have you had with a design interpretation/misinterpretation?
Leave a comment and you could be the lucky winner of one of the new House buttons. Colors will be a suprise! I’m still interpreting those for Lucy also!
Stop by tomorrow for gossip in the Bead blogging neighborhood.
Don’t forget the new ABS $10 Tuesday. A project for you to create for $10 or under, every Tuesday. I may be offering free shipping….luring you to come back 🙂
Tari Sasser of Creative Impressions In Clay
rosebud101
October 25, 2008 at 1:19 pmI have a client now that asked me to make her 2 angels that are 2 inches high. Now, I honestly can make 2-3 inch beads, but all the details are melted in. I have learned that when you begin to add sculptured details, that creates a real problem. I have also learned, I’m not very good at angels. I have referred her to Marcy Lamberson. I just wasn’t happy with my angels. They won’t be in my etsy shop. I am hoping that my client has contacted Marcy. I think she will be extremely happy with her work!
Tari of claybuttons
October 25, 2008 at 1:24 pmI have had to refer clients to others. Honestly, I can make about anything. But do I really want to and would it be as good as the person that does it on a regular basis.
The request I get the most at shows are for animals. Dogs usually. Yes, I could have an entire line of dogs. There are far too many breeds of dogs to even begin to undertake that venture. Others are already doing it!
Gaela
October 25, 2008 at 5:13 pmFor some reason, I haven’t had this problem to happen with making beads or jewelry. But I have had it happen in my sewing business. This young woman wanted a bell sleeve for her simple wedding gown and every design I came up with just wasn’t the sleeve she had in mind. I normally make my own patterns, but this time we ended up going to the fabric store, looking through patterns books until she found exactly what she was wanting. Now I know a new kind of bell sleeve!
Tari of claybuttons
October 25, 2008 at 5:23 pmThis happened when I was freelancing a lot doing layout They had something in mind but didn’t share their vision. Go figure!
Gail W.
October 25, 2008 at 7:56 pmMy experience happened the other way around for me,and I should have know better.My brother is quite skilled at carpentry and carving.One year I asked him to carve him something specific-me.This was to be a Christmas
present for my husband,an expensive,wonderful present!Well,my brother sees' me different than I see myself.I relearned several lessons that Christmas&even worse,I have to see it nearly every durn day!
CreekHiker
October 26, 2008 at 3:15 amI’m actually blogging about a custom order on my bead blog. Part 2 should be up in another day or two.
My customer wanted me to make koi fish but when she saw them in person, she realized she wanted the bead hole oriented differently. I have to say after attempting that tonight…it’s much hard to to do and I’m worried they aren’t as cute as the 1st ones… We’ll see.
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Tari – What a lot of people do for the dog show world is only make the top 10 – 20 breeds. Or they sell their work at Specialty (breed specific) matches. Just an idea…
:-) MaryLou
October 26, 2008 at 4:25 pmWell, I don’t make beads, but I certainly USE lots of beads to create my beadwoven cuffs. I’ve had a few people make special requests for designs; and luckily I’ve always been able to come up with something they like. In some of the cases it’s taken more than one try, but the experimentation is part of the fun.
🙂
Oh2122
October 27, 2008 at 1:56 amI am so thrilled, and can’t wait to recieve the bezel! I think it’s just the push I need to try resin.
I have not tried making beads yet, but hammering wire has been quite an adventure. It’s taken a while to get my stride going, and I have a small plastic container full of weirdness to prove it.
JenniferJangles
October 27, 2008 at 12:55 pmTari,
I do custom work all of the time. I always explain before I start that it’s going to look Jangle’y even though it’s custom. So far, I haven’t had problems but I don’t think someone would ask me to do something if they didn’t want polka dots and stripes all over it!
Thanks for following me on twitter, I am following you too.
Jennifer
beadbabe49
October 28, 2008 at 12:00 amI once had a custom order for a bracelet in red, black and grey…I ended up making 3 before getting one she wanted…the next time I took a custom order, I told them we needed to draw out the design before I started on it…lots easier to do 3 sketches than 3 beaded bracelets!
Tari of claybuttons
October 28, 2008 at 12:08 amI had to start charging a research, design, prototype, mold fee. People expected all the time and money to come from my end. I got burnt on this before. This way you have less backing out and they are committed if there is a fee. It’s no longer just a whim. The houses I did gratis because I knew it would pay for itself and she is a good customer.
crystal
October 30, 2008 at 12:12 amI have had great interpentations on the Herb Mandrake done for me from a few etsy artists.
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