10th Anniversary Post...Social Media on Off the Wall Friday

My First Post ...Hand Dying 2009

Wow!!  If you had told me that I would have kept this blog up for 10 years, I would have said, NO WAY!  Have you met me?  I have the attention span of a squirrel! Still, I've always loved technology and maybe that's why the blog has stuck when so many - many - many creative journals have not.  Not to mention it's so much easier to keep at it when you know that you're not the only one your journal is helping!!

The photo that inspired my Header 2009

Over the years, my readership (LOL do I actually have a READERSHIP??  giggle) has been a huge blessing and encouragement.  I remember when I started my blog, I felt like I was kinda on this creative journey alone...which is fine....but like Dorothy can testify to, it's much easier to follow the yellow brick road with your friends with you.  (Hey I'm still holding out for that makeover at the Emerald City!)

Before I get too much off the path with this Oz analogy,  I  just want to say THANKS!!!  Thanks for reading, thanks for connecting on Off the Wall Fridays, thanks for the encouragement, thanks for the comments....thanks for keeping me working at my passion,

My First Outdoor Show 2009

Which brings me to another thing.  Because of this blog, I get all sorts of emails from all sorts of people around the world.  I'm always amazed that people actually read, I swear!  This week I got an email from Liz in Houston who had found me on Pinterest.  (That's another thing, I'm always amazed that people pin from this blog to Pinterest!)  She asked for my Instagram hashtag so she could link back to my Instagram account.

Instagram account???  I'm supposed to have an Instagram account??  Well apparently!!  Once I started thinking about it, I definitely think that Liz was onto something here.  Maybe it was time to expand my social media footprint.

Why Use Social Media for Your Creative Journey

My Sewing Hole  2009

• Connection!  Well aduh!!  We all need to connect.  Before having my blog, I felt like I was a lone art quilter in a small town in Pennsylvania.  Now I've found my people.  We encourage each other;  We get each other when nobody else does!  "Social Media" is about the give and take between you AND your viewer!  What artist doesn't want THAT?
• Create Your Brand!  OMG, I just got an Instagram account and now I need a BRAND?!?  Seriously?!  Well no, I'm choosing not to take it too seriously.  But what I mean in this context is that along with creating our artistic voice you should be able to share it with the world and people will connect it directly to you.  I mean really....why be an artist if you're not sharing your work???  Also, you never know where this journey will take you.  You might start out quilting, then teaching, then writing a book, being featured on TV shows and working with Jennifer Sampou.... Ask Jenny  - she'll tell you!!
• Education!   Especially as art quilters we have a hard time conveying what we really do!  With social media, we can show exactly what we do and how we do it.  Education will lead to new followers and fans. It might even lead to a whole new generation of art quilters! 
• The Real You!  You know when I first discovered art quilting, I thought that these amazing artists were just so talented that they could create something that I could not.  (And some are- LOL)  What we didn't see in the old days is the trials and all the hard work that goes behind a great piece.  In fact, we never really saw the REAL ARTIST  behind those luscious quilts.  With social media, the viewer can now connect to the person as well as the art.  I feel this breaks down a lot of barriers between the viewer and the artist and makes the pieces all that more accessible to the average Jane!

So if you haven't taken the plunge into the social media world, I hope this will encourage you to.  And if you are like me, and only stuck a little toe into the big pool .... you might want to at least get wet up to your knees!    Chose the one that's right for you - there is Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, Youtube etc.

Tessa & I 2009

For now, you can find me here (of course!) and on Instagram under my new hashtag #piecefullyNina .  (Yeah, I was going to use #therealNinaMarie but I thought that was a bit too pretentious ....giggle)

Also, I am now going to start actively inviting Instagrammers to link up on Off the Wall Friday.  So if you know any artist that you think will fit the group and wants to link up a picture post for the week please invite them!!

Enough about me....

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