Upenover Make-Over

So, guess what?  Upenover: Land of Joyful Art is going to be getting a bit of a make-over in the near future.

Here's what happened.

I launched my original business back in November of 2010.  It was my first official declaration to the world that "I Am an Artist."

I received a lot of positive and encouraging words.

But no money...................ok, I made 4 sales.

I have a few theories as to why my art hasn't become a booming success, adored world-wide.

Here they are:

a. I didn't promote my business well enough.  My big efforts of "marketing" were: hosting a family party where I displayed my work, and announcing my business on Facebook.  Later, I opened an Etsy shop (which is where I made my 4 sales).  And that's about it.

b. My art was too "froo-froo" as I'm calling it:

My original business card

I do still really love my original art, but I'm feeling that I need to branch out a bit from the pastels, and maybe create a few pieces that don't have any pink in them at all (gasp!).  I found that I didn't really know where to display my art in my own home because it didn't even match my decor (I have a lot of bold/bright colors in my home).

c. I had a new baby.

My special baby boy (boy #3 for me) was born May 1, 2011.  My schedule, of course, got flipped upside down, and my lovely artful business got put on the back burner for awhile.

So, now that some time has passed, I'm feeling like I can dive back into my art, but I also feel that it needs a little "sprucy spruce."  That's my term for "sprucing things up."

So, this is a quick mood-board I created to define, in a way, where I'd like my business to go.  (Don't look at the logo too closely - it's a work in progress).

We still have cupcakes and pink, of course, but I've added more bright colors and a contemporary feel to it.

I'm also changing my business name from Upenover: Land of Joyful Art, to Upenover Design.  I really wanted to focus more on the "Upenover" part of it, because that's my special made-up word from my childhood (my magical, make-believe land where anything is possible).

So, I still want to incorporate my original art pieces, but I just want to expand and broaden my collection, ya know?

This is all in the works, but I have to warn you that I'm a bit slow.

My deadline for myself to re-launch Upenover into the world is February 2013 (hopefully sooner!).  And here's some reasons why it's going to be an awesome success (to counter my above excuses):

a. I'm totally going to promote it better.  I'm studying and researching some great ways right now.
b. It's going to appeal to more people with the incorporation of more contemporary colors.
c. My baby boy is not an infant anymore, and I'm finding that I can devote some more time to bettering my artsy biz.

Also, one of the main differences is who I'm going to be promoting my art to.

When I originally launched Upenover, I had no idea what a Surface Pattern Designer was.  I did not understand that world at all.

I've since had my mind opened up to the possibilities through the ecourse that I've been taking: The Art and Business of Surface Pattern Design.

I now am completely fascinated with the idea of licensing my work.  Ahhh!  The possibilities are endless and amazing!!  I love that I can take just a piece of one of my images, and create a whole collection of surface pattern designs:

Fun, huh?

So, my plan is to work really really hard for the new few months, learn all I can about the business, and expand my portfolio.

Then, I will do a re-launch of Upenover out into the world.  I'll keep learning, and creating, and promoting, and not give up on my dreams!!

Yay!  : )