Today we’re speaking with Elizabeth Schowachert, a self-taught artist who has built a beautiful creative life combining a successful handmade art supply e-commerce shop, with her own art practice, and teaching both in person workshops and online. Elizabeth has a passion for travel, ink and encaustic painting and creates insanely cool brushes and tools for artists. If you have ever had an interest in creating your own e-commerce business, we know you’ll learn some great tips from Elizabeth on res...
Apr 27, 2022•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 69
Last week, we introduced you to Mel Armstrong, a surface pattern designer, children's book illustrator and top Skillshare teacher, among many other things. So if you haven't had a chance to listen to that episode yet, be sure to check it out. Today, she's back to share with us her five best tips for getting started with children's book illustrations. STARTIST SOCIETY SHOW NOTES & FREE PDF TIPS DOWNLOAD : startistsociety.com/childrensbooktips/ Sign up for Mel's new Joy of Surface Pattern Desi...
Apr 20, 2022•4 min•Ep. 68
Today's guest calls one of Laura’s favorite countries on the planet home, New Zealand. Mel Armstrong has had an amazing life journey. She's gone from being a professional ballet dancer to a web designer, award winning illustrator and surface pattern designer. She's illustrated 15 children's books so far, she's a top Skillshare teacher, works with an agent to license her work globally and she's a mom of two amazing kids. In this interview, we discuss her varied career, her new course, her Spoonfl...
Apr 13, 2022•42 min•Ep. 67
Last week, we introduced you to artist and designer Brittney Lewis. So if you haven't had a chance to listen to that episode, be sure to check it out. Today she's back to share with us her five best tips for making sales on Society6. STARTIST SOCIETY SHOW NOTES AND YOUR FREE TIPS PDF DOWNLOAD : startistsociety.com/society6tips/ JOIN THE STARTIST SOCIETY FB GROUP: facebook.com/groups/startistsociety/ FOLLOW STARTIST SOCIETY ON INSTAGRAM: instagram.com/startistsociety/ LIKE WHAT YOU HEAR? BUY US A...
Apr 06, 2022•6 min•Ep. 66
As part of our ongoing print on demand series, we've been introducing you to different companies and marketplaces and are supplementing our own experience by interviewing artists with expertise in different areas. In this episode, we're excited to introduce you to Brittney Lewis, an artist, photographer and outdoor enthusiast obsessed with travel, journaling and being in nature. Her colorful, bold work includes surface design, typography, photography, ink and more. We specifically invited her to...
Mar 30, 2022•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 65
Dave Conrey is an artist and designer from Southern California, currently working towards building a client free creative business model. When he isn't working on his own creative projects, he spends his time exploring new resources for creating and selling art and then shares what he learns with his fellow designers and artists. He also makes cool things so others can go make their things and put more cash in their pockets. The number of things Dave does makes our heads spin. He paints, he desi...
Mar 23, 2022•1 hr 11 min•Ep. 64
Back in episode 9, we talked about how we just might be art supply addicts and have WAY too many of them. When you live in small spaces or have limited real estate to park your art supplies, organization becomes really important. Laura’s condo is an organized chaos of supplies, while Nikki’s has historically just been chaos! In this episode, we share our best ideas for keeping our supplies organized and accessible in small spaces – and Nikki tries to figure out what she’ll do in her new bus stud...
Mar 16, 2022•35 min•Ep. 63
Last week, we introduced you to Danielle Harris, who helps creative entrepreneur focus on marketing strategies and tactics that will give them ethical and sustainable growth in their business. Today, she's back to share with you her five best tips for marketing your business without feeling overwhelmed. STARTIST SOCIETY SHOW NOTES & FREE TIPS DOWNLOAD PDF : startistsociety.com/marketingtips/ JOIN THE STARTIST SOCIETY FB GROUP: facebook.com/groups/startistsociety/ FOLLOW STARTIST SOCIETY ON I...
Mar 09, 2022•8 min•Ep. 62
The focus of this podcast is helping artists who are getting started with their art businesses. We tend to keep things lighthearted, but with the events that have happened in the last week in Ukraine, we felt drawn to use this platform we have grown to help support those in need. We have decided to donate 100% of the profits on our Startist Society shop, as well as both of our individual POD shops on our own websites through the end of March 2022 to TogetherRising who are supporting organization...
Mar 04, 2022•1 min
Danielle Harris helps creatives prioritize marketing so they can share their gifts with the world. Helping creative entrepreneurs focus on the marketing strategies and tactics that will give them ethical and sustainable growth in their business is her goal. In addition to her 10 years of experience, Danielle has a BA in Marketing, a Master of Science in Marketing and an MBA. If she's not qualified to talk to us about marketing, we don't know who is! STARTIST SOCIETY SHOW NOTES: startistsociety.c...
Mar 02, 2022•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 61
Last week, we introduced you to selling print on demand products on your own website. So if you haven't had a chance to listen to that episode yet, be sure to check it out. Today, we're back to share with you five tips for profitable print on demand sales on your own site. STARTIST SOCIETY SHOW NOTES & FREE TIPS DOWNLOAD PDF : startistsociety.com/podtips/ JOIN THE STARTIST SOCIETY FB GROUP: facebook.com/groups/startistsociety/ FOLLOW STARTIST SOCIETY ON INSTAGRAM: instagram.com/startistsocie...
Feb 23, 2022•7 min•Ep. 60
Now that we've explored print on demand marketplaces like Society6 and Spoonflower in more detail, we want to dive into how you can add Print on Demand products to your own website through providers like Printful, Printify, Gooten, and more. In episode number 50, introducing you to print on demand, we talked about all of the pros and cons of the different options and having print on demand products through your own website gives you the most control over your pricing, your profitability, and you...
Feb 16, 2022•38 min•Ep. 59
Last week, we introduced you to Ashley Beasley of Presutti Design. Ashley is a surface pattern designer who's kicking ass on Spoonflower and Minted, among other things. So if you haven't had a chance to listen to that episode yet, be sure to go back and check it out. Ashley offers a beautiful and meaty guide on her website to everything Spoonflower, but today she's going to share a little taste of her best tips for getting started and making sales on Spoonflower, which we're also providing to yo...
Feb 09, 2022•13 min•Ep. 58
A few episodes ago, we introduced you to print on demand marketplaces, specifically Society6 and Spoonflower. Today, we're excited to introduce you to Ashley Beasley of Presutti Design. Ashley is a surface design artist based in Houston, Texas with a focus on repeat patterns, stationery and print on demand. She believes in keeping things fun and authentic and sharing how she juggles working full time, being a new mom and keeping up with her passion for design. Since she started participating in ...
Feb 02, 2022•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 57
Last week, we interviewed Jenni Kowal of Anytime Creative and we talked to her specifically about her Kickstarter campaign for her Self Care Adventure Cards. We wanted to add some extra tips on getting started with your own Kickstarter campaign, so we asked Jenni to come back and share her best tips and tricks, which we're also providing to you as a downloadable PDF. Read the transcript in the STARTIST SOCIETY SHOW NOTES : startistsociety.com/kickstartertips/ JOIN THE STARTIST SOCIETY FB GROUP: ...
Jan 26, 2022•12 min•Ep. 56
We have a lot more to share with you about print on demand, but we are taking a short break from this series to talk about another way to get your art and products made without investing a whole lot of your money up front. As artists and designers, many of us are interested in finding ways to get our artwork on products in the world. Rather than waiting for the perfect collaboration with a company, you can create those opportunities yourself with crowdfunding. It can be very confusing where to e...
Jan 19, 2022•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 55
Last week, we shared all about getting started with print on demand marketplaces and how you can create either a Society6 or Spoonflower Shop. This week we share 10 of our best tips for increasing your POD marketplace sales. Read the transcript in the STARTIST SOCIETY SHOW NOTES : startistsociety.com/podsalestips/ JOIN THE STARTIST SOCIETY FB GROUP: facebook.com/groups/startistsociety/ FOLLOW STARTIST SOCIETY ON INSTAGRAM: instagram.com/startistsociety/ LIKE WHAT YOU HEAR? BUY US A COFFEE BOURBO...
Jan 12, 2022•6 min•Ep. 54
For the first episode of our second year, we're taking you back to where we left off with print on demand. In Episode 50, we introduced you to the different types of print on demand services and talked about the pros and cons of each. This week, we're going to go into more detail about print on demand marketplaces... specifically Society6 and Spoonflower. Marketplaces are great when you don't know where to start and you just want to get your art out in the world without having to manage the tech...
Jan 05, 2022•34 min•Ep. 53
This week marks one full year of Startist Society podcasting for Laura and Nikki! They share how they plan to celebrate - Nikki with bourbon, naturally. In this episode they look back over their first year of podcasting and talk about what they’ve learned and what challenges they’ve experienced. They reminisce about some of their favorite episodes and share some plans for the upcoming year. TOPICS DISCUSSED: What Laura and Nikki have learned from one year of podcasting Clips from some of their f...
Dec 01, 2021•17 min•Ep. 52
This week Laura and Nikki take a break from the usual interviews and educational topics and get more personal with a studio and life update. They share the latest projects they are working on, things they’ve accomplished both individually and as a team, some of the challenges they've faced over the last year, and they give some hints about what’s coming up in the next year and beyond. TOPICS DISCUSSED: Things we committed to on the podcast and how we did with them The new Instagram feature we ar...
Nov 24, 2021•43 min•Ep. 51
We've been teasing everybody about this topic for months and months, but today we're finally going to begin our print on demand series! There's so much to cover that we're going to break it up into several episodes. There are two options for printing: traditional analog-type printers and digital printing. With traditional printers you typically have to do large quantities of each item and there's usually a hefty setup fee. In this digital age, it's become a lot easier to simply print direct to g...
Nov 17, 2021•28 min•Ep. 50
This episode is perfect for any of our listeners who are interested in surface pattern design. Today we're speaking with Elizabeth Silver, a professional surface pattern designer and a licensed artist for the stationery, gift and textile markets. With 18 years in the industry and hundreds of designs in her portfolio, she also teaches beginner surface pattern designers how to move past overwhelm and obstacles to create a profitable creative business. She's passionate about keep it real business a...
Nov 10, 2021•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 49
In the last few episodes, Nikki and Laura have been talking about selling for the holidays and one thing that can really make or break your customers’ experience of your products is how you ship them. And when we say shipping, we mean a lot more than just the service and logistics you use to ship. We’re talking about the way your products are presented in the package, as well as the protection and container you use for the package to ensure that your products arrive safely. You want them to be p...
Nov 03, 2021•35 min•Ep. 48
This week Laura and Nikki interview Luan Jardine, a feminist mental health advocate and ambitiously creative Facebook and Instagram marketing consultant that Nikki met in Quinn Tempest’s Create Your Purpose Collective. When we decided to dive deeper into Facebook and Instagram advertising we immediately thought of Luan. We often think the goal of advertising is to sell all the things, but it’s also really important to make sure you’re reaching the right audience in a way that aligns with your va...
Oct 27, 2021•45 min•Ep. 47
Does it seem like the holidays come sooner and sooner every year and with it the pressure to get your holiday marketing plan in order? In this episode, Laura and Nikki chat about social media marketing, email campaigns and sales, breaking it down so it's not so intimidating and feels more doable. TOPICS DISCUSSED: Social Media The two main categories of social media and which ones you should choose Types of posts to consider How often to post Tools that can help you create video and plan / sched...
Oct 20, 2021•22 min•Ep. 46
This week Nikki interviews Laura about her experience with designing, making and selling greeting cards. Laura has been making handmade greeting cards for over 15 years and has professionally designed over 100 greeting cards for manufacturers and publishers in the craft industry. She believes there’s something really special about receiving something handmade or custom printed in the mail, especially in the digital age that we’re in. She shares some great tips and resources to help you get start...
Oct 13, 2021•37 min•Ep. 45
This week, we’re continuing our series about selling art for the holidays. Nikki shared last week that calendars have been her best-selling item ever. This week we're taking a deep dive into creating and selling calendars, with Laura interviewing Nikki about her experience. TOPICS DISCUSSED: How Nikki got started with calendars The timeline and process for designing calendars Different types of calendars you can create Designing your own vs using templates / online tools Nikki's fav print on dem...
Oct 06, 2021•28 min•Ep. 44
This week, Laura and Nikki begin the first of a series about selling for the holidays. We have episodes coming up about calendars, greeting cards, holiday marketing, packing and shipping your products and even a deep dive into print on demand! Today we're starting off with a discussion on products that are proven sellers for artists and designers during the holidays. If you don't know where to start... these ideas will help lay the foundation. Take a listen and let us know in the Facebook group ...
Sep 29, 2021•18 min•Ep. 43
This week Laura and Nikki chat with one of Laura’s favorite artists, Lisa Glanz. Lisa is a full-time illustrator with a passion for helping others achieve their creative goals. She loves producing professional resources for creatives, her textures and Procreate brushes are by far some of Laura’s absolute faves. Mostly self-taught, Lisa has created a thriving art business and is a rock star on sites like Design Cuts and Creative Market. She thrives on sharing knowledge she’s gained, both as a bus...
Sep 22, 2021•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 42
This week Laura and Nikki talk about how important it is to take the time to celebrate your wins – big or small. With all the comparison traps we find ourselves caught in, we tend to rush past our successes and jump right to the next hurdle we want to conquer and don’t congratulate ourselves for what we’ve accomplished. In this episode, we talk about the importance of celebrating, the mindset you need to create in order to do so and share some of our recent wins and what we did to celebrate. Rea...
Sep 15, 2021•11 min•Ep. 41
