Chalk Art

No, not the chalk art that’s on the sidewalk outside of our house, though it is beautiful!

Chalk art is a new (actually mimicking old) popular kind of art.

I may be weird when it comes to this kind of stuff, in that, when I see advertisements (of any kind – magazine, commercials, store windows) I notice HOW it’s presented, not necessarily WHAT they’re presenting.

I appreciate art in advertising.
I actually look for it.
I’m weird.

All that said, when I show you this chalk art, you may just start noticing it everywhere.

It’s quite beautiful.

I actually shared a picture of an example in this post, but here are a few more.

It’s on magazines…

… West Elm used it in their catalog…

Ralph Lauren used it in their stores…

Even Publix has this sign displayed right now
(that two different friends sent me pics of that they took with their phone and said that they thought of me when they saw it!  LOL)

There is this amazing chalk artist, named Dana Tanamachi, in Brooklyn… If you like this kind of stuff, you should definitely check out her website HERE.

So, there’s this coffee shop that opened up a couple of blocks from our house. I got all giddy when I found out it was opening.

I really really really like and want to support small businesses over the big chains… and in an effort to help them succeed (other than giving them my business) I like to offer my services, whatever they may be. … Not for pay, but to barter. I’ve done this with several local businesses and it definitely is a win-win situation! The business wins because they give you their services, but are only out the cost to them, and since I am offering a service and not a product, I am only out the cost of my time and supplies, which are minimal. Startup businesses are usually short on cash, so it tends to appeal to them.

So, back to the coffee shop…
The owner is a sweetheart and was LOOKING for someone to do her signs. Which, as you know, is my specialty. Sooooo…. we started talking. And after several weeks, I got started.

First up was putting the hours on the door and things like “Free Wi-Fi”.

Next, she had an entire wall painted with chalkboard paint… Which got me to thinking about all of that chalk art that I just told you about. She gave me creative liberty and told me to do whatever I thought would be best on the wall! (Don’t you love working with people like that?!)

So… using all of the inspiration I could find (and using Pinterest for what it is actually meant to be used for!) I went to work on it. It took over a week of spending a few hours each day, but I finally finished it!

Here are some up close pics of it.

[Obviously] I can’t leave the shop’s name, so it’s blurred out.

It’s not quite the quality of the work that I showed you above, but I’m happy with how it turned out and
I REALLY enjoyed working on it! It actually has inspired some other projects as well.

I did this for our local ice cream shop…

So, anyway, the whole bartering thing has really been awesome, because (well, because I love coffee, of course) but it also gives us something to do for free! The kids and I sometimes walk there for something to do during the day, and we go there on Friday evenings every so often to listen to the live [local!] music.

I also made a flyer for our local candy shop and was able to have Karis’ birthday party there last year.

I just am sharing these ideas to get your mind going. It offers a creative outlet, with a return to you of some kind… But also supports a small business!

I’d love to hear about any ideas or experiences you may have had with bartering!

{Linking to Tatertots and Jello}