I Won! Thanks, Meylah!

Are you familiar with Meylah? If you’re creative, if you own your own business, or if you have an Etsy shop, Meylah is a wonderful resource.

I’ve subscribed to Meylah for about 4 months. Some of my favorite posts were:

How to Get Started on Facebook

Maintaining a Consistent Brand

Tips and Tricks for Craft Blog Success

That’s just a sampling. There is sooo much more on Meylah. Then one morning I saw this -

The last line was what got me – All In One Place. I have the blog. I have a website. I have an Etsy store, a Zazzle store, Facebook, Twitter – and the list keeps growing. Daily.

But my focus was actually narrowing. I kept coming back to my PIY (paint it yourself) kits. As my goals became clearer, Meylah offered an invitation to win a store on their site. All you have to do is write what your passion is and how a Meylah store would benefit you.

Here’s what I wrote -

“My passion is teaching. I love creating tools that allow others to feel good about themselves. My medium is paint. I have developed a foolproof method that allows people who say "I can't draw a stick figure" to paint wonderful art.

I am a self-taught artist. I have reached the point where I can paint anything and be happy with the results. But what I've discovered is the joy is in the creative process, not the completed painting. Sharing this process with others is my passion.

I used to teach dance to adults. They'd come in, shrouded in t-shirts and sweatpants, shying away from the wall-length mirror. Shoulders slumped, they'd move their bodies to the music. After a few weeks the sweatpants were replaced with dance pants. The t-shirts came off. And then the magic happened. They wouldn't just move their bodies to the music - they'd Dance! The joy in their faces, their entire being, was the reward I received as their teacher. This is my goal now with my PIY (paint it yourself) kits.

If you want to be an artist, you'll take classes, study, and hone your skills. But if you just want to paint something pretty for your home or for a gift, you want to do it quickly, without years of study. And you want a satisfactory result. Think Rachael Ray & her '30 minute meals' as opposed to Martha Stewart's 'plant & till your garden, harvest tomatoes, & make a simple salsa.'

I've developed the tools for a quick painting method. Along the way, people realize how fun and relaxing the simple process of moving paint around on canvas is. It's just dancing with paint and a brush. I want to be the female "Bob Ross" of the new millenium.

How do I know my method works? I've taught hundreds of women how to paint in 2 hour forums. They walk in, no experience, no brushes, nothing. They follow along with me as I paint, and in 2 hours they leave with a beautiful painting. Every time. Can this be translated thru print & video? With your help, I believe it can.

My dream website includes my PIY kits with full downloadable tutorials and videos. Links to online painting workshops. A storefront with paintbrushes, canvases and paint.

I have a blog. I have a website. I'm filming videos and creating PIY kits. To have them all in under one domain is my dream. To put a price on this is hard. Since I'm dreaming, I'd like to see if available for $30 a month, with options for expansion. I pay $20 for my website now and my blog is free.

I want to win your contest and be one of your success stories. Imagine a site where you can go to download instructions to paint anything from a simple flower to a full blown wall mural.

Or perhaps a Christmas image that you paint once, then scan it & print it on to iron-on transfer and make aprons & tablecloths & your own scrapbook paper - from your own artwork!

Can't you just see the blogosphere full of projects made from PIY kits?

I can hear Etsy shop owners saying they always wanted to paint and now they have the tools and are creating their own beautiful works of art for sale.

Yes, I am dreaming big. My passion is big. I want to share my joy of painting with the world. And your website would make this a reality.

 

Today I got an email stating,

Hi Colleen!

CONGRATULATIONS…you are the first winner of Meylah’s What’s Your Passion? Name Your Price! Contest.  We were so inspired with your story about your dream to teach and your passion for art that we have selected you as the first winner of our contest! 

Being a skeptic realist, I thought it was probably just a marketing scheme. But then I said, Who Cares? It’s an answer to my prayers to have one site with all the facets I want.

I don’t have my Meylah fully built yet. But I’ll get it all together in the next day or two. Right now it will have all of my painting tutorials & line art – for FREE!

You can do it too! What’s your passion? Wouldn’t you love to have one site that includes a store, your blog and your tutorials? Just head over to Meylah and request your invitation. I think we’re getting in on the ground floor of something really, really big!

Oh, wanna know the name of my new site?

Paint It Yourself!

I’m so excited, I can’t see straight! My mind is reeling with ideas for PIY murals, Halloween art, Christmas goodies, etc., etc.

Stay tuned! And let me know what you think of Meylah and if you get invited to have a store/blog there too! We can have our own little creative Meylah group!

Colleen