Thursday, October 28, 2010

"We're not made of money! We'll swim to Oakland!"

So, there's this thing. This "local artists showcasing their stuff" thing. And I'm going to be one of those artists. Showcasing my stuff. Possibly even selling it. You know, if anyone buys it. It'll be for sale, anyway.

It's tonight.

Tonight seemed a long way off, two months ago. Two months ago when my friend and I signed up, thinking, "Hey, this'll be a great way to remove our bullshit excuses and throw ourselves out there."

And don't get me wrong, I think we were right about that. But I've never done this before. I don't even have a goddamn etsy shop, which is ridiculous, because I think everyone and their mother has an etsy shop these days. (I should probably get on that, but it's not really high on my priority list just yet.)

But anyway, it looks like it'll be fun. Selling stuff isn't really the point, though I'll probably be thrilled if it happens. The point is, I'm actually getting brave enough to put myself out there---acting brave, anyway, if not really feeling it at the moment---rather than hiding out until I decide I'm "good enough", which of course, will never happen if that's what I'm waiting for. I made a ton of silly feathery hats and costumey shit, and I had fun making them. They make me smile. It's not exactly What I Want To Do Forever, but it's not like "dicking around on the Internet" is what I want to do forever either, and lord knows I do plenty of that. It's been a long time since I've looked on my work with anything resembling satisfaction. I'm finally starting to feel like the person I wanted to grow up to be. That's a really good feeling.

Still, it's a little nerve-wracking. If you'll excuse me, I have to go finish up some final touches, and then I'll be off in this corner, hyperventilating into a paper bag.

So, if anyone reading this is gonna be in the East Bay tonight, pop on by. Hosted by the Rock Paper Scissors Collective, at the lovely and historic Sweets Ballroom. Doors open at 7. Should be a fun time.

5 comments:

atimetorend said...

My aunt is an artist and lives in Oakland very near there. I would tell her she has to go and meet you! Except she is visiting here on the other side of the country, too bad... :^(

Wishing you lots of fun and success showcasing.

The Woeful Budgie said...

Really? Cool! Maybe our paths will cross sometime. Does she ever make it out to Art Murmur by chance?

Thanks for the well wishes. ^_^

atimetorend said...

I'll ask her this weekend. Sell anything?

The Woeful Budgie said...

I did, actually! I made a whole ten dollars, which I promptly went off and spent. ^_^

Really, it was just fun being able to have people come around, ask questions, try things on, see what different people were drawn to for different reasons... I even got to model some of my stuff during the fashion show portion, which was certainly a new experience.

Also, I was surprised by how many people there were first-timers like myself. I've got this tendency to assume that everyone else knows what they're doing, and I'm the sorry little noob. But it seems other people were looking at my friend and me, thinking the same thing. Heh.

Eventually, the more I got to interact with the other people there, the less intimidated I felt, and the more I was able to just relax and enjoy the experience.

atimetorend said...

3 months later...

My aunt was not aware of that event, but when I told her about it she said she would be very interested. Shoot me an email if you are showing your stuff there again?