Want to learn some Home Décor secrets? Plus join our fun free creative challenge
In our upcoming course ‘MATS: Creating Collections for Home Décor’, top art director Margo Tantau shares finishing techniques for metal, fabric, glass, ceramic, and wood used for products in this market. These are very cool techniques that you can play with on your product to make your presentation to the client even more exciting and marketable, and include such things as:
- Placing pom pom trims or embroidery on a pillow
- Embossing, shaping, or silkscreening on metal
- Painting or decoupaging on metal
Example of the wide array of finishing techniques used on ceramics at Anthropologie. Learn about these techniques and how they can really make your great art look even greater on products in our class. Photo by Lilla Rogers.
Finishing techniques are all the cool treatments you can put into your pitch to make your product even more exciting.
These awesome products are all created by Lilla Rogers Studio artists for various home decor companies. Imagine seeing your art on these cool products in the stores! Learn more in our class. Photo taken by Lilla Rogers.
Understanding and knowing about different techniques is a great way to stand out, to be creative, and to show that you know how to add value to a design.
Every day next week, we are going to share a few of our Home Décor Secrets on the MATS blog, along with a fun creative prompt. You don’t have to be signed up for the class to get involved. Anyone can join in and start to explore the fascinating (and lucrative) world of home décor! We hope you’ll find them inspiring, and feel confident to try new and varied looks in your product pitches. That, in turn, will make your pitch more desirable and unique.Be sure to follow us on @makeartthatsells on Instagram and tag your work #matshomedecor so we can see it.
In class, we share a ton of insider secrets, to give you loads of design ideas for your arsenal. As a result, your art will flourish, you’ll sell more, and you’ll be having more fun!
If you want to thrive in this market, be sure to sign up for Creating Collections for Home Décor which starts on Monday, August 7th. By the end of class, you’ll be ready to pitch your creative ideas to dream clients in home décor.
If you’re secretly (or not-so-secretly) wanting to get your own home décor collection, I truly hope you’ll join us in this wonderful course. You’ll be surrounded by like-minded artists of all levels that are there to support one another, and Margo and I will be there to guide you every step of the way.
Winner announced for the Instagram competition to win a spot in Bootcamp
AND we have a winner! Congratulations Bonbiforest
The competition (info here) was to share images inspired by the Monday Moments blog series we recently ran. You can see all the action for Bootcamp on Instagram here using #artbootcamp Registration is still open, so come and join us for 5 months of art making for the price of a latte a week!
How would you like to get something from a top art agent every single Monday, for five months, to grow your artwork and your career—for the price of one latte a week?
Now in its fourth year, Make Art That Sells: Assignment Bootcamp 2017 with art agent Lilla Rogers is an exciting, structured five month e-course full of all-new assignments and bonuses to inspire you to make great art that attracts work. Class started this week, but still time to register and join us!
Lilla has written brand-new fabulous Minis and Assignments for you, so you can attract work in the hottest markets.
Here’s what you get:
// Monthly assignments. Five in-depth, inspiring assignment briefs in the hottest art markets, written by top agent Lilla Rogers. They’ll encourage you to explore your style and create professional-level art for your portfolio, while having fun along the way!
// NEW! Trends. Lilla’s Trends boards. Isn’t inspiration what you crave? Each month, you’ll download a cutting-edge trend board with gorgeous color direction to inspire you further. (see sneak peeks of the boards below)
// A community. Some say our community is the most supportive of any they’ve experienced. You’ll enjoy an invaluable community of like-minded artists of all levels to inspire, support and motivate you.
// Public Gallery Exposure. Show your work! You’ll have the option to post your work to a public gallery where it can be viewed by peers, art buyers and industry experts. Who knows who might spot your work?
//NEW! Ask the Agent: Facebook LIVE with Lilla. Ask Lilla your questions in a live real-time video each month! (Plus Lilla always has words of wisdom, show and tell, giveaways, and other tricks up her sleeve for you in these popular live events.)
Bootcamp: Win a free place with our fun Instagram competition!
We are excited to be running a fun competition for you to win a spot in our MATS ASSIGNMENT BOOTCAMP, starting on Monday, March 6!
And if you don’t know what Bootcamp is, where have you been?! In short, it’s a brilliantly fun five month online class to strengthen your portfolio and keep you motivated through to the summer, all for less than a dollar a day. You can get the lowdown here, and see some of the testimonials from previous years here.
Here’s what you get:
// Monthly assignments. Five in-depth, inspiring assignment briefs in the hottest art markets, written by top agent Lilla Rogers. They’ll encourage you to explore your style and create professional-level art for your portfolio, while having fun along the way!
//NEW! Trends. Lilla’s Trends boards. Isn’t inspiration what you crave? Each month, you’ll download a cutting-edge trend board with gorgeous color direction to inspire you further.
// A community. Some say our community is the most supportive of any they’ve experienced. You’ll enjoy an invaluable community of like-minded artists of all levels to inspire, support and motivate you.
// Public Gallery Exposure. Show your work! You’ll have the option to post your work to a public gallery where it can be viewed by peers, art buyers and industry experts. Who knows who might spot your work?
//NEW! Ask the Agent: Facebook LIVE with Lilla. Ask Lilla your questions in a live real-time video each month! (Plus Lilla always has words of wisdom, show and tell, giveaways, and other tricks up her sleeve for you in these popular live events.
A word from Lilla Rogers
*Note: MATS courses can be taken in any order, and many people repeat them because they grow so much with each round of the course
Want to WIN A FREE PLACE on Bootcamp?
Help us to spread these powerful inspirations and win a free spot in Bootcamp! (If you’ve already registered, you will get your money refunded.)
Just follow us on Instagram (@makeartthatsells) and share an image inspired by Lilla’s new Monday Moments series and you could be the lucky winner. Be sure to do the following:
*Not transferable. There is no cash alternative. However, if you win and have already booked your place on Bootcamp, you will receive a full refund of the amount you paid.
Here are the Monday Moments that have been published so far!
Have you seen our new Monday series of affirmations with short and sweet videos from Lilla to get your week off to a creative start? You can see the first two here, and keep an eye out on the MATS blog each Monday for more!
RULE YOUR OWN LIFE #2
Rule Your Own Life (see the ‘Monday Moments’ post here)
MAKE MORE ART #1
Make More Art (see the ‘Monday Moments’ post here)
Have a good week!
The MATS Team
***
How would you like to get something from a top art agent every single Monday, for five months, to grow your artwork and your career—for the price of one latte a week?
Now in its fourth year, Make Art That Sells: Assignment Bootcamp 2017 with art agent Lilla Rogers is an exciting, structured five month e-course full of all-new assignments and bonuses to inspire you to make great art that attracts work. Class brings on MONDAY 6 MARCH.
Lilla has written brand-new fabulous Minis and Assignments for you, so you can attract work in the hottest markets. Don’t miss out on this brilliant opportunity to build your portfolio at a very do-able pace over the next five months.
***Deadline extended*** Win a place on ‘Illustrating Children’s Books’
Would you like to win a free place on our hugely popular course ‘Illustrating Children’s Books? The class will run again in January 2017, and we are offering two free spots, worth £399, for creating an awesome children’s book cover based on the assignment below.
***
THE SUGAR PLUM FAIRY’S ADVENTURE
Assignment: Create a children’s book cover for the book title “The Sugar Plum Fairy’s Adventure”. Be as creative as you like! Be you with a vengeance.
WHO CAN ENTER:
All levels are welcome! Everyone is welcome! (you do not need to have taken a MATS class to enter) Let’s have some fun! If you have not taken the Illustrating Children’s Book course, check out our FREE 5 part video series to give you some insight and some tips.
THERE WILL BE TWO WINNERS: Lilla and Zoe will choose as follows:
- Best in Show
- Random Pick
JUDGING CRITERIA
—Character design
—Lettering of title
—Concept and Style (imaginative, witty, beautiful, quirky, etc.)
—Color Palette
—Overall impact of cover
CLOSING DATE: EXTENDED T0 11.59pm EST Sunday 4th December
WINNERS ANNOUNCED: Week of 5 December, 2016
Please see below for rules of entry
Here are some more tips to help you get stared. As we teach in our Illustrating Children’s Book course, there are 5 main ingredients to consider:
CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT
Who is your Sugar Plum Fairy? What does he or she look like? What colors come to mind? Maybe do the opposite of those colors. Don’t necessarily do the first thing that comes to mind. Can you go against type? Is she an urban character? What is she wearing? Is he an animal with wings? Fall in love with your character.
ENVIRONMENT
First off, what is The Sugar Plum Fairy’s adventure? Think for a moment about what would YOU love to have as your own adventure? An adventure can be an exploration of any kind. As a child, what was your idea of an adventure? Let your mind space out a bit. Is it a silly adventure? Quirky? Dreamy? Is she/he taking a risk? Why? Where? Once you know this, then you can begin to sketch out the location. She can be on another planet, in a space ship, at the North Pole, at a museum, in Hollywood, Berlin, Buenos Aires? At cooking school making cookies? Whatever.
Push it. Here’s what I mean. Let’s say she’s at the North Pole. The first thought is that she is next to the pole itself. Hmmm. Maybe she’s in an Igloo. Or maybe she’s at an ice cream factory. Maybe she is in the sled factory. See what I mean? Go the next step. Since this is a made up title, YOU can do whatever you want with it.
EXPRESSION
What is the expression on the face of the character? Can we tell? Is it reflecting the emotion of the story, or perhaps the quest of the Sugar Plum Fairy. Maybe it’s just an image of the character that gets us to fall in love with him/her.
POSES
The position of the character helps animate the character. Remember, often the children hearing the book read to them may not understand all the words but they can understand the images.
LETTERING
It’s so fun to make letters. Cut them out of paper, rubber stamp them, draw them. You’re the boss! Make sure the title is easy to read. It doesn’t have to be super huge but it needs to pop and we need to be able to read each letter easily.
RULES OF ENTRY
Here’s what you need to do to enter:
- Create a Children’s Book Cover in response the assignment above. If you haven’t yet taken one of our classes you can still enter. Please refrain from using the Lilla Rogers Studio or Make Art That Sells logos in your work.
- The cover can be any size (square, vertical/portrait, horizontal/landscape)
- Remember to include the title of the book and your name (i.e. Illustrated by Jane Doe) on the design.
- You can work in any medium – digitally or traditional
- Save your art as a 72dpi JPEG (save for web) at 650 pxls wide and use the following image title naming convention: FIRST NAME_SECONDNAME_ICBCOMP (e.g. LILLA_ROGERS_ICBCOMP.jpg)
- Email it as an attachment JPG to [email protected] by
Monday 28 November, 2016***EXTENDED DEADLINE*** Sunday 4 December (11.59pm EST) with ‘Sugar Plum Fairy Book Cover Competition’ in the subject title of your email. - Include the following details in your email:
- Your full name (and studio name if you have one)
- Your website link
- A list of what MATS courses you have taken (or if you haven’t taken any courses, indicate which free resources have helped or inspired you)
- OPTIONAL: 1-2 sentences describing the MATS experience as if you were telling a friend (if possible include what is different for you/your work as a result of taking the course) and if you have taken the ‘Illustrating Children’s Book’ class, please write 1-2 sentences.
We would also LOVE to see your images on Instagram, so please do share them using the hashtag #MATSkidbook (this is not a requirement to enter the competition and is optional)
THE SMALL PRINT: By submitting work for this competition you give us permission to share it on the website, blog and/or any social media accounts related to Make Art That Sells, Lilla Rogers Studio or Do What You Love at any time. You will not receive a fee for this, but will be entered into the competition to win one free place on ‘Illustrating Children’s Books’ (starting January 2017). The winners will be chosen by the MATS team and no correspondence will be entered into. There is no cash alternative and the prize is not transferable. You will retain all rights to your own work.
If you have already registered for the Illustrating Children’s Book class when we announce the winners, you will be refunded the necessary amount. (please note this will be calculated accordingly if you purchased a package during the Cyber Monday Sale Nov 24-28)
Can’t wait to see what you do!
The MATS team
Enter our Competition: Win a place on the Illustrating Childrens Book course
Would you like to win a free place on our hugely popular course ‘Illustrating Children’s Books? The class will run again in January 2017, and we are offering two free spots, worth £399, for creating an awesome children’s book cover based on the assignment below.
***
THE SUGAR PLUM FAIRY’S ADVENTURE
Assignment: Create a children’s book cover for the book title “The Sugar Plum Fairy’s Adventure”. Be as creative as you like! Be you with a vengeance.
WHO CAN ENTER:
All levels are welcome! Everyone is welcome! (you do not need to have taken a MATS class to enter) Let’s have some fun! If you have not taken the Illustrating Children’s Book course, check out our FREE 5 part video series to give you some insight and some tips.
THERE WILL BE TWO WINNERS: Lilla and Zoe will choose as follows:
- Best in Show
- Random Pick
JUDGING CRITERIA
—Character design
—Lettering of title
—Concept and Style (imaginative, witty, beautiful, quirky, etc.)
—Color Palette
—Overall impact of cover
CLOSING DATE: EXTENDED T0 11.59pm EST Sunday 4th December
WINNERS ANNOUNCED: Week of 5 December, 2016
Please see below for rules of entry
Here are some more tips to help you get stared. As we teach in our Illustrating Children’s Book course, there are 5 main ingredients to consider:
CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT
Who is your Sugar Plum Fairy? What does he or she look like? What colors come to mind? Maybe do the opposite of those colors. Don’t necessarily do the first thing that comes to mind. Can you go against type? Is she an urban character? What is she wearing? Is he an animal with wings? Fall in love with your character.
ENVIRONMENT
First off, what is The Sugar Plum Fairy’s adventure? Think for a moment about what would YOU love to have as your own adventure? An adventure can be an exploration of any kind. As a child, what was your idea of an adventure? Let your mind space out a bit. Is it a silly adventure? Quirky? Dreamy? Is she/he taking a risk? Why? Where? Once you know this, then you can begin to sketch out the location. She can be on another planet, in a space ship, at the North Pole, at a museum, in Hollywood, Berlin, Buenos Aires? At cooking school making cookies? Whatever.
Push it. Here’s what I mean. Let’s say she’s at the North Pole. The first thought is that she is next to the pole itself. Hmmm. Maybe she’s in an Igloo. Or maybe she’s at an ice cream factory. Maybe she is in the sled factory. See what I mean? Go the next step. Since this is a made up title, YOU can do whatever you want with it.
EXPRESSION
What is the expression on the face of the character? Can we tell? Is it reflecting the emotion of the story, or perhaps the quest of the Sugar Plum Fairy. Maybe it’s just an image of the character that gets us to fall in love with him/her.
POSES
The position of the character helps animate the character. Remember, often the children hearing the book read to them may not understand all the words but they can understand the images.
LETTERING
It’s so fun to make letters. Cut them out of paper, rubber stamp them, draw them. You’re the boss! Make sure the title is easy to read. It doesn’t have to be super huge but it needs to pop and we need to be able to read each letter easily.
RULES OF ENTRY
Here’s what you need to do to enter:
- Create a Children’s Book Cover in response the assignment above. If you haven’t yet taken one of our classes you can still enter. Please refrain from using the Lilla Rogers Studio or Make Art That Sells logos in your work.
- The cover can be any size (square, vertical/portrait, horizontal/landscape)
- Remember to include the title of the book and your name (i.e. Illustrated by Jane Doe) on the design.
- You can work in any medium – digitally or traditional
- Save your art as a 72dpi JPEG (save for web) at 650 pxls wide and use the following image title naming convention: FIRST NAME_SECONDNAME_ICBCOMP (e.g. LILLA_ROGERS_ICBCOMP.jpg)
- Email it as an attachment JPG to [email protected] by
Monday 28 November, 2016***EXTENDED DEADLINE*** Sunday 4 December (11.59pm EST) with ‘Sugar Plum Fairy Book Cover Competition’ in the subject title of your email. - Include the following details in your email:
- Your full name (and studio name if you have one)
- Your website link
- A list of what MATS courses you have taken (or if you haven’t taken any courses, indicate which free resources have helped or inspired you)
- OPTIONAL: 1-2 sentences describing the MATS experience as if you were telling a friend (if possible include what is different for you/your work as a result of taking the course) and if you have taken the ‘Illustrating Children’s Book’ class, please write 1-2 sentences.
We would also LOVE to see your images on Instagram, so please do share them using the hashtag #MATSkidbook (this is not a requirement to enter the competition and is optional)
THE SMALL PRINT: By submitting work for this competition you give us permission to share it on the website, blog and/or any social media accounts related to Make Art That Sells, Lilla Rogers Studio or Do What You Love at any time. You will not receive a fee for this, but will be entered into the competition to win one free place on ‘Illustrating Children’s Books’ (starting January 2017). The winners will be chosen by the MATS team and no correspondence will be entered into. There is no cash alternative and the prize is not transferable. You will retain all rights to your own work.
If you have already registered for the Illustrating Children’s Book class when we announce the winners, you will be refunded the necessary amount. (please note this will be calculated accordingly if you purchased a package during the Cyber Monday Sale Nov 24-28)
Can’t wait to see what you do!
The MATS team
Want a chance to develop your own fabric line?
The UPPERCASE + Windham Fabrics New Designer Competition
We’re excited to share with you that Uppercase magazine and Windham Fabrics have teamed up for a design competition. The winning designer will have the opportunity to develop a fabric collection with Windham and will be featured in UPPERCASE magazine.
Read all about this fantastic opportunity and the competition details here. The submission form closes on September 12, 2016.
Good luck!
Make Art That Sells Team
Behind the scenes with… Evie Ashworth of Kaufman Fabrics
It’s Evie Ashworth’s turn to open the doors to her office at Robert Kaufman Fabrics.
Evie Ashworth at her desk at Robert Kaufman Fabrics
An established member of the textile industry for over 40 years, Evie has traveled the world to all production points from Europe to Asia and in between. She brought her expertise to Robert Kaufman in 2000 to establish a whole category of product specifically for quilt fabric retailers. She merchandised the line, introducing the concept of coordinated samples and print basics, including the trademarked Fusions(TM) brand, and today continues to ensure Robert Kaufman brand’s association with only the highest quality standards. Evie currently directs a large internal design team as well as several art studios abroad, to produce Robert Kaufman’s signature in-house Luxe and Gallery looks as well as a broad range with external licensed artists and brands.
Evie is a judge for the Global Talent Search 2016.
All images are courtesy of Robert Kaufman Fabrics.
Behind the scenes with… Noël Claro of Nickelodeon
Noël Claro gives us a tour of her office at Nickelodeon.
Noël Claro, Creative Director at Nickelodeon and Professor at Parsons The New School for Design
Noël Claro is a designer, art director, and professor at Parsons, The New School for Design. Her experience ranges from managing high-profile corporate projects at Nickelodeon to inspiring and mentoring small design teams and students at Parsons. Noël’s professional background is rooted in editorial design, advertising, promotion and creative branding. Her teaching experience covers a range subjects including design, illustration, typography, zines, merchandising and marketing. She’s not shy to rely on her stellar baked goods to provide inspiration and sustenance to her co-workers and students.
Noël is a judge for the Global Talent Search 2016
Behind the scenes with… Janine Vangool of UPPERCASE magazine
Janine Vangool, Editor of UPPERCASE magazine, shows us around her office and tells us more about her favourite object, a turquoise Royal Quiet De Luxe typewriter from 1956!
Janine Vangool in her office
Janine Vangool is the publisher, editor and designer of UPPERCASE magazine, a quarterly magazine inspired by design, illustration, craft and creativity. A playful exploration of creativity, an affinity for vintage ephemera, and a love of typography are some elements common to her magazine and book projects. She is obsessed with typewriters.
She took some pictures of her beautiful office for this Behind the Scenes feature. Step in!
All images are courtesy of UPPERCASE magazine.
What should an art agent do for you?
Are you making great art and are a bit at a loss as to how to find clients, deal with contracts and promote yourself while still finding time to grow creatively? Then you are probably wondering whether you should find an art agent.
“What I love about being an agent is bringing cool, great jobs and income to wonderful artists!” – Lilla Rogers
There are many advantages to having an agent, but it is important that you find the right agent for you. Not all agents are effective. As always, do your research!
