I don’t know how much I’ve shared about my experience with Stacie Bloomfield of Gingiber and her Leverage Your Art class. I haven’t done a post specifically about it, and it is really important to me that I share with you today. It’s been challenging putting my thoughts in order, but The Artist Side Hustle Free Mini Course is starting on 8/16, so I’m out of time to dither.
Confession time! I’m an affiliate for this year’s session of Leverage. What does that mean? I applied with Stacie and she approved me to be a partner to help her sell seats in her class. I’m not going to exaggerate and tell you that Leverage changed my life to make commission. First, it didn’t change my life. It helped to understand what I want as an artist, what I want my business to look like, and gave me the tools to make all of it happen. And then I changed my life. Second, she isn’t paying enough for me to sell out like that.
I’ve taken two of these big ticket classes now. Both of them have been very helpful to me, even though they were not exactly what I expected. Bonnie Christine’s Immersion was great for learning Adobe Illustrator. I went right from Immersion into Leverage, and I found my tribe. I connected with a peer group of strong, smart, creative women. Some days I think my friendships are the best part of the course – I never would have connected to these people otherwise, and I prize these new friendships.
Stacie shares so much in her course. There is a ton of info on business development, resources, sales tips, and she is there to support her students with whatever they need. She also shares how her business grew. It didn’t just pop up overnight because she made one cute drawing and got lucky. No. This woman has worked her ass off for years, and is reaping the rewards (while still working really hard.) It’s so inspirational to not only know that I can achieve what I want, but also have the treasure map to see how to get there.
She also shares her failures. It’s nice to know that I’m not the only one who flops. The important part is that we get back up and don’t make that exact same mistake again.
Tangible things I’ve done because of Leverage:
1. Finally got my Rotation pattern in print.
2. Manufactured my needle minder.
3. Manufactured stickers and magnets
4. Personalized tissue paper and stickers for packaging
Other things stemming from Leverage – I stopped longarming for clients. There is not enough time in the day for me to do that and also be an artist. It hurt to trim that part of my business, but it has been so much better for my mental health. I’ve also limited my magazine submissions. Again, there is only one Jen here, and she gets tired. I can’t do it all, and I have to either hire out the work or let it go. Letting go has been surprisingly empowering.
This has been a lot of writing about Leverage. I’ll be mentioning it on social media and maybe once more in my newsletter or in the blog this month. The fact that I’ll make commission is exciting, but really a small part of the picture. I plan to take Leverage again this year and really buckle down on more of the ideas for my business. I want to build something that will generate a little bit of income for me and my family, and I want to be a part of the quilting industry.
If you are at all curious about Leverage, check out Stacie’s free mini course – The Artist Side Hustle. She’s got tips and tricks for making money using your art with just five hours per week. It sounds too good to be true, I know, but if Stacie is selling it, it is legit. Stacie helped me with my business, and I truly think she can help anyone. I’ll be participating in this class, too. I’m ready for my next win.
Oh, and if you don’t think you are an artist, let that go. If you have ambitions about being an artist, just be one. I get stuck all the time, telling myself I can’t draw, so I’m not an artist. 1. Not all artists draw. 2. My quilts are beautiful, and also art. I’m sure you have a similar story.
Finally, if you sign up for Leverage using my link, I’ll be offering a bonus of a live group coaching session in September. Right now I’m thinking of offering a session on getting patterns into magazines, but I’m open to suggestions. Sometimes I forget all of the things I know how to do, but I’m willing to share most of it.
“Oh, and if you don’t think you are an artist, let that go.” YES to this – yes, yes, yes! It sounds like you are prioritizing what is important to you, and I hope that the course on 8/16 helps you continue to refine.
Thanks for writing this review. If you were to only be able to invest in one of the two courses (immersion or leverage your art) which one would you pick?
I am an artist who has created a few collections under a sewing company but is now looking to expand into creating my own art business and making surface pattern design a career. I’d love to hear more about similarities or differences between the two courses 🙂 thanks for your wisdom!
Hey, Ali – I would recommend Leverage, 100%, but I feel like I vibe better with Stacie. Unless you are really needing help with Adobe Illustrator, I think you probably have all of the things you would get out of Immersion. Immersion was very specific – develop art, use Illustrator, then pitch. Leverage is more about all of the ways to grow your business using the art you are already making.