Camp Minted Retreat 2019

I had the pleasure of being invited to Minted.com’s conference, Camp Minted in late July in Las Vegas. I am a veteran of creative conferences and this one didn’t disappoint. Minted.com put on an event that is perfect for their global artist community - a beautifully branded conference, workshops and presentations catered to their artists’ interests, their artistic and career growth and community building. Artists from all over the world came through to attend this fun event.

Upon registering you receive a tote bag in the camping theme filled with a t-shirt, water bottle, keychain and journal (that had the schedule printed inside - a huge plus)! Here are some highlights!

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We attended fun workshops like writing in sumi ink and learning advanced watercolor techniques!

Attending the sumi ink workshop by Deborah Velasquez at Camp Minted 2019.

Attending the sumi ink workshop by Deborah Velasquez at Camp Minted 2019.

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Pricilla Lee’s advanced watercolor workshop at Camp Minted 2019.

Pricilla Lee’s advanced watercolor workshop at Camp Minted 2019.

I also attended an informative presentation from Pinterest that provided tips on using Pinterest efficiently for promotion and driving traffic to your site and shop. I was very excited to sit in Adobe’s demo on their Textile Designer plugin for Photoshop. It was fascinating to see how to you can now make patterns easily in the program. It’s a game changer!

Adobe and Pinterest presentations at Camp Minted 2019.

Adobe and Pinterest presentations at Camp Minted 2019.

My friend, Agnes, provided a block printing workshop that ran throughout the retreat. She brought her beautiful blocks from her workshop company, Crave, to stamp on paper in fun colors. It was a hit!

Crave Workshop block printing workshop at Camp Minted.

Crave Workshop block printing workshop at Camp Minted.

What a treat to be entertained by the brilliant and talented, Adam JK. His keynote speech was hilarious, very relatable and inspiring. Perfect pep talk for us artists looking to make an impact with our creativity. He encouraged us to be authentic and put our ideas out into the world. We also received a signed, copy of his book “Things Are What You Make of Them” and we even got a photo booth pic with him! Thanks Adam for your important work and taking a photo with us!

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We concluded the retreat with a formal dinner ceremony. We took “class” photos in the year we joined Minted.com. I was in the 2013 class. I thoroughly enjoyed this conference. It was intimate, the minted.com employees were approachable and easy to chat with, they made you feel connected to the brand and a part of the community, they encouraged feedback on improving our experiences and provided great presentations and talks that aligned with our creative businesses and aided with skill building. I am so honored to be invited and can’t wait to participate more in their opportunities and growing brand. Thanks Minted for this special event!

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New normal

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Been spending a lot of time here lately and really enjoying it for the first time in a long time. 

It’s been quite a journey in the last few years - a disappointing tradeshow, the loss of my elderly mother (both parents actually) and the sale of my childhood home all felt like my world was upside down. When would I feel motivated, inspired and excited about life and work again?

I emerged from this funk over time and felt ready to empower myself to do the work to finally feel a sense of fulfillment and inner joy. I began experimenting with art supplies, taking online art classes, seeking guidance from friends and coaches and developing work I could be proud of. 
I turned a corner and through creating I have started feeling the life come back into me. I could see things clearly and am excited to sit at this desk and paint daily. 

This new normal is a great place to be and makes me look forward to seeing what I can do from here. I highly recommend spending time creating for the fun of it. It works wonders. 

***Keep an eye out here for announcements in the upcoming days. I can't wait to show you what I've been working on and will have exciting items for sale for the holidays! xo