Butterflies Emerge! Part One

Butterflies have always been a lovely symbol for me.  The meaning and symbolism of these fascinating, beautiful creatures goes deep. They go through so many stages; birth, journeys as a caterpillar, quest for food, struggles for survival, risk, darkness, quiet, and then metamorphosis into something new.  Along the way instinct takes over but also a trust in the unknown that there is more to come.  Wow! How amazing!

Photo by Henry Holcomb

I feel like my artistic journey has gone through similar stages.  There is the larger picture of discovering a path that has lead to weaving and all things textile along with a discovery that I do have an artistic look at work and life.  It was always there.  As with many things in life, it just took a long time to realize.  It didn't happen without the help of others who saw it in me first.  I will always be grateful for their encouragement and support. But despite this larger recognition of discovery, there is always the dying and emerging of the parts within.  The caterpillar/butterfly repeats this pattern and survival of the generations goes on.  This dying/emerging thing also happens for me in my work and business enabling the work to go on.  Always present is looking toward doing a new thing - emergence. To emerge, something must change.  It can not stay the same. No looking back!

Many times if you look close you will find butterflies on or in my work.
 Butterfly Jacket by Judy Connor Jones

I mentioned in earlier posts that 2012 was a year of possibilities; exploring and developing new work,   a time of learning how to use social media, developing new marketing strategies, working on a new website, and finding new ways to sell my work. I spent most of the year concentrating on these possibilities while searching for answers that would work.

I'm happy to say the Butterfly is beginning to emerge in 2013 with many of these goals in progress or met.  As part of developing new marketing strategies my new and improved website is up and running.  It took 10 months from the time the contract with the web designer was signed to the completion.  The results have been fantastic. Thank you to Steve Culp of Culp Design, www.CulpDesign.com. It was a lot of hard work, back and forth, and took a lot of time to get all the pictures and content together and written. Feedback from family and friends was crucial in knowing how others perceived it, what content they would look for, ease of use, and the overall impression they got when they went to the site.  If you haven't been to it recently, please take a look at www.JudyConnorJones.com.  Let me know what you think.  What do you like about it?

Studio

As part of the new marketing strategies, you can now sign up for my e-newsletter by going to the website and clicking on the cute little "Mail Chimp" monkey icon on the Home page or by going to the Contact page.  This will take you to the sign up sheet. By signing up for the e-newsletter you will receive up to date information on what's new in the studio, occasional special offers,  show updates, and when and where you can purchase my work.  I promise not to bombard your inbox with newsletters.  You might receive 4 - 6 per year. You will always have the option to unsubscribe, although I hope you will want to stay connected to the news around and about the studio. If you have topics about my work that you would like me to discuss in the newsletter, e-mail me at info@judyconnorjones.com and let me know.  I will try to answer questions in each newsletter.

I look forward to this new adventure in my relationship with you, my supporters and followers. Let's stay connected. I always appreciate having a dialog with you. Thank you for being there as we journey together.  Here's hoping you begin to discover the Butterflies in your life!  :)