While looking over House of Faux, I found out about artists who formed Sisters Hands, a networking and supportive resources group.  I was truly inspired by reading their story.  The ten artisans came together (nine nationwide, one abroad) by believing in “faux karma” - that if you lose your competitiveness and the fear of sharing, you will not only grow personally but your business will blossom as well.  Wow — I completely agree with this philosophy!  In our industry, some artists choose to be secretive about their techniques, their creative process or let jealousy/fear run rampant.  These artisans knew instinctively that sharing the joys of this field (along with its stresses) helps one grow, evolve and reach higher levels of artistry and camaraderie.  I had to stalk them talk to them and hope they would share with us how they came together in 2006 and how they work together today. ;)

In what was a first for our Faux-cus on the Pros series, almost the entire group was involved in the interview and tackled specific questions.  Normally, I take about five interview questions but each answer was so touching and/or had such a great message, that I decided to leave them all in and create a double-header.  So, this is Part One of our interview with Sisters Hands.  Before we get into our interview, I want to take a moment to let you know who the ten members are (in abc order) and have the chance to get to know them better by visiting their websites and seeing their outstanding work. 

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Susan Bickford of Singing Walls (Nashville, TN), Marti Carroll of Fauxscapes (Baton Rouge, LA), Elaine Castronovo of Creative Lane Finishing (Pittsburgh, PA), Cindy Everett of Designer Finishes Studio (Olive Branch, MS), Patty Henning of Fabulous Finishes (Detroit, MI), Renee Holder of Artistry in Faux (Little Rock, AR), Judy Norman of Decorative Illusions (Atlanta, GA), Krista Vind of Ufauxrea (Destin, FL), Cait Whitson of Carte Blanche (Scotland) and Julie Young of Julie Art (San Diego, CA). 

Here we go!

How did you meet and begin this networking path?

Marti Carroll says: This question can be answered in many different ways depending on which sister the question is being directed to.  The answer is as diversified as the group members!  This has been an accumulation of friendships that has been formed over time. Our beginning was based on a personal desire.  I have never been one to be in the public eye, especially on public forums and I had no local finishers in which to network with.  Although I would lurk on the public forums daily, I rarely posted.  What I was looking for were finishers who would be interested in a more personal setting in which to share ideas and support.  I had made many friends in the industry through classes and conventions and decided that it was time to reach out and try to design a support network that was more intimate than a public forum.  I called a couple of friends who are respected finishers that I would like to have join in on this idea and they were very excited about it.  I set up a private message board for us to chat on and we set down a few simple rules and that was the beginning.  We are usually in contact with the rest of our group on a daily basis, discussing everything from pricing projects to how to handle a kid crisis!  We love taking classes together or taking classes from members who are teachers!  We get together once a year for our annual “faux play”, which is a fun and exciting time to share ideas and play with new products!  And when we have a project that requires a few extra hands, we know that we have our group to help us out.  Over the last three years we have supported each other both personally and professionally….we truly are sisters at heart!!

Please describe working with your Sisters.  How do you prepare and execute a commission together?

Krista Vind says: Working with other members of Sisters Hands has been a tremendous blessing in both my personal and professional life. I love what I do, but I enjoy it even more on a daily basis when I share the work, the challenges and then the beautiful results.

One of the really empowering things about being a member of a group of extremely talented and experienced artists is that I now actively seek very large projects. In the past I was reluctant, and I am sure it showed in interviews and consultations, because very large projects were just SO much to bite off for one person. A concern for me was that when taking on jobs that could last months on end, I wouldn’t be actively marketing and my business would suffer after that one project was done. I did learn this lesson firsthand early on in my career. I was really starting to enjoy some success and recognition and was so pleased when I got my first really big job.  I worked on that job for 8 months and when it was over, even though I was so proud of all the work that I had done and my high profile client was ecstatic, I found myself out beating the street trying desperately to find business. In essence, everyone had forgotten about me while I was away. Those concerns are not an issue any longer. When I take on large projects, I try to bid them so that no job will take longer than a month to complete, so the size of the job dictates how many Sisters are needed to complete it in a timely manner.

You may wonder about how this obviously affects the overall cost of a project.  When I bid Sisters projects, I include funds to cover travel expenses and labor. Generally, we call in others from the group based on the type of experience required for a particular job, the individual talents of each member as well as the geographic location of a member to the jobsite. Most often large projects are commercial (a store with an opening date) or a very large residence (someone is carrying a construction loan), so time is of the essence. The actual project price is not much different for group vs. single; it is just concentrated into a smaller time frame. When you are able to complete projects quickly, the constant change of project and scenery keep your outlook really fresh. Less time in the “execution phase” allows more time for the “design and creative phase”.

We have had the opportunity to bid projects as Sisters Hands, but for the most part, we are led by the Sister who secured the job and completed the preparations (bid, samples, etc). We are comfortable traveling anywhere to complete a commission.  Beyond the business aspects, it is not a job but a true joy to work with the talented ladies in this group. We have so much fun in all the projects we undertake, from work to “faux play” (our yearly gathering). We support each other no matter what life throws our way…..good or bad. I have no biological sisters, but I do have real sisters! 

What are some misconceptions about faux finishing that you encounter?

Cait Whitson says: The misconceptions I encounter in Scotland are various.  I chose to answer this question because I thought it might amuse to see attitudes that are 5,000 miles away and yet many of you will find them familiar.  First of all, the word “faux” is almost never used to describe decorative finishes. A faux finisher is referred to as a “specialist decorator” or a “decorative painter”. In this tiny country that is smaller than Maine and with a population of only 5 million, there is actually very little awareness of what in the USA is termed “faux” and we as a company are continually educating our clients. We have a panel van that has a description of our business on the side: Carte Blanche, Decorative Painters - Graining and Marbling, Paint Effects, Murals, Hand Painted Furniture. Despite all that information we come across people on weekly basis who will say “I’ve seen the van often……and what is it you actually do?”  I am not sure what more we can say to explain it. The terminology is misconstrued and misinterpreted regularly. I visited a client only today who said he wanted graining when he in fact wanted strie, I am asked alarmingly often if I do murals, I have been asked for dippling in the past, asked if I disturbed walls and had a designer ask if I could “do some blobby stuff”. We are often asked if the paint just does that when it comes out of the tin.

Many clients believe that good finishers can only be found in London. We constantly surprise people when we tell them that we are home grown. We even have the converse of this happening – clients who tell their friends that the work they have in their home, carried out by Carte Blanche, was actually done by a company in London. We, like all the best finishers the world over, are still fighting the sponging and bad rag-rolling image that has haunted the industry since the 80’s and the word “stencilling” is virtually a swear word.  I always think that Melanie Royals was so clever to invent the word Modello, a new word for a stencil, and I am thinking I might do the same in Scotland just so we get the opportunity to use them more often.

I think the biggest misconception is amongst the tradesmen that we work with…they are all convinced we earn an absolute fortune. I do little to dispel this as perhaps their belief, whilst at times misconceived, will turn into reality if we believe, too. 

What are some of the coolest items and/or products you’ve come across together?

Susan Bickford says: One of the most fun things we do as a group is get together once a year just to play with product and be creative.  All of us have a history with FE products, but we’ve also introduced each other to some other great product lines including Perfetto and Blue Pearl, Pro Faux, Texston, Wood Icing, American Clay, and Rosco Scenic Paints.  At last year’s gathering, we were fortunate to have some companies contribute products for us to play with.  Kathy Carroll shared some of her great Bella products as well as other products that she carries.  Misty Heath of Perfetto shared some of the new Villaggio, as well as Shimmered Suede and Portofino.  We were introduced to Blue Pearl’s great metallic glaze, and their Wood Gel Stain.  Rosco, a scenic arts company, shared their new acrylic paint line, and our favorite in that line - Crystal Gel - a great adhesive medium for a variety of thing including glass beads.  American Clay shared their Loma with us, as well as Manda Mudd, who shared their great 3 step textural product.  We all come away from our play time invigorated, producing and selling new finishes using all the new products we get to share and try out. 

…to be continued…

Phew!!!!  I myself am inspired by their thoughts and heck, all those great products to look into!  Thanks, Susan!  I found myself laughing at Cait’s designer asking for “blobby stuff” — and have also been asked if the product comes that way out of the can.  Um, no….  (Don’t even get me started on the “OH!  You do sponging!”  Sigh.)  I hope you tune in to get Part Two of our interview with Sisters Hands, including their future plans and what they say is the best thing that has happened to the faux industry.  Until then!