When the opportunity is eye opening and jaw dropping..
It’s happened to me 3 times now and only once was my little shop been ready to jump that high. Each time I spend a good amount of time gobstopped at the size and, dare I say it, prestige of the opportunity. I always double down and think about how to get ready for the next time. That is incredibly difficult. Just say the words, Single Mom, then Homeschool. It’s quite the load. Adding Small Business owner to the stack, well… lets just say I give myself a ‘little’ slack for not producing more, but not much. I do want that nice carrot!
I always feel such honor when someone approaches me for such a grande opportunity. And it’s so out of the normal of my little life, I’m afraid that I do a fair bit of ‘wait, what?’ before I figure out what their exact needs are. The first time I’m afraid I stumbled around for a few days like a over caffeinated owl. You have to remember I’ve been making masks for sale for just 3 full years. I have no art degree. I have not studied with any masters and haven’t taken an art class since high school. Art has always been there, but never in the forefront till now. Youtube and a few mask makers and paper mache artists are dear friends.
So when someone working with Vogue Magazine online asks if they could rent my masks for a couture photoshoot in Paris that Celine Dion may be at (say it with me ‘WAIT, what??), of course I’m floored. Talk about a huge leap and since I didn’t have enough masks in stock, too high for me. But wow…
The second time was an artistic director in Dubai who needed a custom mask for a dancer designed, made and mailed in two weeks. I’m super proud to say, I got that one. It happened, I still love looking at the photos. After it arrived safely and worked well for them, I did such a happy dance!
This third time, was a large order of decorated pointe shoes for an event for a world renown dance company in New York city. This inquiry was less of a shock and can be doable, my work just needs to be pitched upstream. That means I really must get a portfolio hand out, both in paper and digital ready to go. And I was so proud when I got my business cards made. Time to scale up again!