Try and Catch the Wind: Finding the Feeling Behind Your Business.

Happy Monday!  Today I borrowed from my Blog Post over at Awfully Grand. 
I wanted to share with all of you the creative process behind the new Zelma Rose website, Etsy Shop, and well, everything!  

This weekend, I spent a good amount of time knee deep in my website. Truth be told, Zelma Rose Handmade Goods, is looking pretty! I have a brand new Look Book shot by the super talented Sarah Deragon of Portraits To The People, a new logo, new designs and I'm loving this pink thing going on (Thanks Molly of Rabbit Foot Fern)!


In re-branding and working towards a more modern feel, I also wanted to say something new to my customers. Hiring people I trust to help guide my vision was invaluable. When we spend so much time, love and energy invested in our work, I think we can lose perspective of the bigger picture. I had been having a difficult time stepping back, looking at my designs and hearing what they had to say. Both Sarah & Molly were able to reflect my vision back to me, in ways that I didn't even know were there. They simply saw things that I couldn't. The photos in the Look Book have such a fresh and romantic look. The pictures, paired with Molly's beautiful and feminine pink logo, really solidified for me the message behind my designs and it is far different than the one I started with nearly 2 years ago.

www.elsiejoy.etsy.com

I'm a big fan of Lightbox SF and had worked with Genevieve on finding the story of Zelma Rose. I worked through many exercises, made inspiration boards and was, with Genevieve's help, nearly there, but something was still missing. I couldn't quite grasp the FEELING of my designs. What does someone who wears them feel? What do they dream about? What are they saying to the world? I was stuck.

It turns out, what I needed were fresh eyes. Sarah and Molly were looking at Zelma Rose from just enough of a distance to take in the the full picture. I gave both artists guidance, but they each followed their own thread to come to conclusions about who and what Zelma Rose is. A total game changer for me! With their images in front of me, full of feeling, I just needed to write!

Over viewing the Look Book photos and glowing about my new logo and branding goodies, a Bob Dylan song verse came to mind.

When sundown pales the sky,
I want to hide a while behind your smile,
And everywhere I look your eyes I find.
For me to love you now, would be the sweetest thing,
T'would make me sing,
Ah, but I may as well try and catch the wind.
~Bob Dylan Catch the Wind

I love this song. The lyrics, the music, it could very well be the perfect song, but why? I needed to connect with how I feel when I hear this song. Was it weird to create a company mission statement based upon a song? Probably. I fought it for a while, but the song persisted, so I made a list, a long list of words that come to mind when I hear Dylan's song. The over all result were words that describe the feeling of being in love. Fresh, breezy, carefree, romantic, fun, hopeful, love. The Zelma Rose feeling is a kin to swinging on a swing and leaning far back to feel the wind in your hair. Who doesn't love that!?

The rest happened rather quickly and creating a statement around this feeling kind of happened out of it's own momentum.

Here's the result:

Romantic. Refined. Modern & always illuminating. At Zelma Rose Handmade Goods we believe in beautiful design, fine hand craftsmanship, LOVE & going barefoot.

I'm still working on all of this. Everything is a process, it seems, but I am a lot closer that I was a few months ago. I'm a big believer of letting things breathe, especially when it comes to creativity. Seek out help with your business. Hire people you trust and LET THEM DO THEIR JOB! That's key.

What are you working toward this week? How did you find the feeling behind your own work?

Happy Monday!

xo

Lisa