Jamie's Blog

I Don't Care

May 10, 2012.

I was reading all over the web everyone all a flutter this morning regarding the whole Mom breast
feeding her....I don't know 9  year old son (okay he is almost four.....but still) on the cover of Time Magazine.  I read a lot of comments for and against the photo.  Mother's saying it was beautiful, others saying it was gross - and so goes another ridiculous worthless argument about who is a better mother.  

I even started to get involved in the dialogue and started imagining my post on this attrocity to society.  Ya, but not for or against breast feeding toddlers, because I am more concerned with the poor boy and what he may will go through as he grows older.  I mean, was anyone thinking of that four year old boy being a ten year old, a fourteen year old or a seventeen year old trying to date a girl?  I am sure the "Boob Man" jokes will be making a big pressence tonight on Late Night TV.  That poor kid, he will most likely be ridiculed forever, even when he  just orders a chicken breast.  I seriously was gonna dedicate a whole post to it, and ask my soon to be thirteen year old what he thought.....and then I sighed and said to myself, "I don't care."

Not to sound insensitive or crash - but I don't care.  I don't need to spew my own over-inflated opinion out there (even though the irony that I just did is not lost on me).  I don't need to tweet how for/against/agast I am at the provcative pose she is making on the cover.  It's her life and it is her bed (and her son's bed) that she has to lie in....no pun intended since the story is about that type of parenting.

I Don't Care Anymore

I loved being a part of the Mommy Blogosphere for a few years (even though I detest that word).  It was fun to write for an awesome website that got tons of comments and I liked writing about controversial subjects.  Going to Blogher was amazing, meeting some of my heroes in person was amazing.  Getting all the free food, drinks & silly crap they gave away - all Amazing.  I was all about linking, commenting, blogging and staying up on the stupid Twitter feed.  

Now-a-days, I really have no desire to spend countless hours doing all that any longer.  I still love me some Facebook (and now Pinterest) but I don't want to dedicate that much time to the craft of blogging.  The end result (for me) was not as rewarding as one would have thought.   I loved it at the time.....now, ah I am going to say it, "I don't care".

It's not that I dislike or am jealous of the other bloggers out there - it just does not interest me any longer.  Sort of like battling over breast vs. bottle - those days are long gone and I don't care what anyone (or how) they feed their kids.   Everyone seems so damn sensitive these days if other people do not conform to their ridulous standards.  As long as it does not affect me and my children, "I don't care."

Now, don't get me wrong, I still love to blog/write and I will probably do it till I die, but eh.......not religously, not daily and not for profit.  Unless of course some editor comes a callin' and asks me to write a book or my super duper ever exciting memoir...then okay - I will do it.  But until that fantasy comes to life........I just don't care.

I Used to Care, But Now I Don't

I used to go after press for Jamie's Painting & Design and more importantly Jamie with a vengence.  I was a rapid Mama Grizzly Bear on a mission and I was actually quite good at it.  Maybe not so much good - but I had a good story and most times were at the right place at the right time.  Other than getting into People Magazine and on the Oprah Winfrey Show or in her magazine, I accomplished everything I ever imagined for my business in the eyes of the press corps.  

Also, I am not proud to admit this, but I used to turn green with jealousy when other entrepreneurs in my industry (or just close to it) got awesome press.  I assumed they were showered with sales, celebrity clients and calls from......Oprah of course after they were featured in some magazine.  I would obsess over it and would waste countless hours courting that very magazine that just ran a story similar to mine.....ya, not proud of that.  Eventually it would work out and I would get the press from that magazine, a newspaper, TV show - whatever, it came at some point.  

Again, sticking with the theme of this post, I just don't care anymore.  I mean if it happens that would be great - but I am not in the mood to go out and try to get it with my mouth frothing while I repeat my story for the 45th time to some reporter.  I am more a 'Been There, Done That' kind of girl.  The reason being is most of the press did not put $$$ in my pocket, or even equal sales.  Press did equal more press (which is a whole other post about people only want to write about you if some other reporter already did) but it rarely equaled sales.  I loved me some press, but I could not and can not pay for college bragging about being on Dr. Phil.  So......don't care.

I Could Care Less

I have mentioned many, many times how I kept up on my competition pretty closely for many years.  There are many reasons why I did this and I stand by my choices for doing it.  I really think you (me) need to know what is going on in your industry so that you can stay ahead.  This is especially important when you are a young company and a newbie to your industry.  You can not lay on your laurels - because frankly you don't have any.  

Fast forward to what is coming on our ten year mark this November and well, I guess I will take a peek once in a great while at other companies.  Honestly, most of my competition is gone - that is not me bragging, they just are.  Many, many small companies went away in the Recession or they licensed their work to larger companies.  

Also, the trends in the Children industry have sort of hit a lull in my humble opinion.  There are not exciting color combinations and amazing designs coming out these days.  I remember reading that in a Recession (or Depression) people go back to comfort foods, calm & safe colors and designs.  It makes sense and it made for a boring few years of designing new products.  So, now a days I will keep an eye on some othe companies but I am pretty sure if they develop a new design before I do, it won't be the end fo my company or the world.  I tend not to care if they do or if they don't.

What I Do Care About

I know this post sounded very negative and I yes I am singing that 80's song in my head as I write it, but stay with me.  As much as I enjoyed carying soooo much too much about these distractions in the past, I am glad I don't any longer.  I can focus on my business and my family.  I can spend my time caring about getting out good products and getting them on time to our customers.  I still want our customers to love our products and I still care about making them.

I still get excited about new designs.  Even though it has been two long years since I came out with new designs for my company I have worked on designs for sports teams, schools and various licensing companies.  I care about new partnerships, relationships and promotions with other companies.  I care about new customers (and old ones) instead of my competiton and my presence in the press.     I care about me and my happiness, instead of bending over backwards working 24 hours straight to please a channel partner that won't even pay me on time.  I care about my family and our quality of live instead of my blogs popularity and the number of readers I had last week.

So while the rest of the internet blows up over the latest boobie sighting, I will not be joining the conversation.   I am pretty sure my son's email is blowing up right now with this one photo being shared amongst all teenagers around the country.   I am going to spend the evening with my family and most likely explaining to my son about the dangers of a controversial photo and how it can haunt you....forever.  

New York Times Baby

As I mentioned in my last post I had the good fortune of being interviewed by the frickin' New York Times a few weeks ago.   And, then the misfortune of the photographer coming to photograph me for the piece.  It went live last night and I was able to post it on Twitter and Facebook.  Most everyone was very positive and gave me major props.   If you read all the way through you will see my good friend Jennifer Christensen (she was my inspiration for saying NO) interviewed also.

So this morning I did go rush out and purchase one, okay three copies of the paper.  I kept singing the old "Cover of Rolling Stone" all day today.  I thought it was funny....my kids not so much.  My new nickname around school is Jamie "No I'm Not" Lentzner.  I heard that the article was passed around a lot today around some Bay Area schools, amongst volunteers, PTA boards and us ex-volunteers who were happy to NOT be at school.  You can read the article here:

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Frazzled Moms Push Back Against Volunteering

Drew Kelly for The New York Times

Jamie Lentzner, of Foster City, Calif., feeling overwhelmed, put an end to her school volunteering.

By HILARY STOUT

Published: December 1, 2010

IT was last spring, somewhere between overseeing Teacher Appreciation Week and planning the fifth-grade graduation party, when Jamie Lentzner, mother of two in Foster City, Calif., reached her breaking point. 

She had already designed the fifth-grade T-shirt, taught art twice monthly to three different classes, and organized movie night, restaurant night and beach night fund-raisers. She was overscheduled and exhausted. She had scant time to help her children with their school projects because — coincidentally — she was always working on projects for their school. “You’ve got to stop,” said her husband, Darin, who worried that the constant stress she seemed to feel was damaging to her health.

Ms. Lentzner realized that she had spiraled out of control. She vowed to put an end to all this volunteering — and to recapture some of the serenity in her family life that had vanished because of nothing more than a well-intentioned desire to pitch in.

Today, more than three months into the school year, Ms. Lentzner is a new woman. She has yet to attend a PTA meeting or decorate so much as a classroom doorknob. When she saw her name listed as chairwoman of the annual Donuts for Dads Day (another event she oversaw last year) on a volunteer sign-up sheet, she whipped out a Sharpie and crossed it out.

“No, I’m not,” she wrote.

Her business — she designs children’s room décor — improved, and at home, the change has been striking. She has time to play Ping-Pong and Wii with the children. She hosted 27 relatives and friends for Thanksgiving last week, and for the first time in years she enjoyed the holiday. “I told my husband, ‘I am not stressed,’ “ she said. “I did not have some event hanging over my head, or a T-shirt design that had to be done. I think I finally have my priorities in the right place.”

Around the country there are a number of altruistic, devoted and totally burned-out mothers just like Ms. Lentzner who are becoming emboldened to push back against the relentless requests from their children’s schools for their time. What started out as an admirable civic gesture somehow snowballed into an inability to say no to any committee assignment or project request, and spiraled into night, weekend and after-school commitments, middle-of-the-night e-mail exchanges, as well as frozen dinners, takeout pizza and baby sitters at home.

With the holidays approaching, the call for parental help at school has reached a fever pitch, but this demand is not just seasonal. As local and state economies continue to struggle, budget cuts to rich and poor school systems are increasing the reliance on unpaid parent help. The need is so great that some school districts, like a couple of specialty schools in Prince William County, Va., have made it mandatory to commit to a small amount of volunteer time, and others are considering it. In San Jose, Calif., one elementary school district has been discussing a proposal that the families of its 13,000 students commit to 30 hours of volunteer work during the year.

Many parents are happy to volunteer uncoerced, and most everyone recognizes the worthiness of the cause. But the heightened need and expectations are coming at a time when many parents have less and less time to give.

“Volunteerism is way down at our school this year,” said Gary Parkes, the PTA president at Carmel Elementary School in Woodstock, Ga., a suburb of Atlanta. At the school’s recent annual fall festival some games had to be closed down because of a lack of adult volunteer supervisors.

Economic necessity, Mr. Parkes said, has forced some stay-at-home mothers to go back to work. “People are so busy trying to stay afloat, they just do not have as much time as they would like to give,” Mr. Parkes said, adding that he has heard similar laments in regional PTA meetings. “This seems to be a problem for a lot of schools.”

(Mr. Parkes has been getting creative. He reached out to the Cub Scouts to help with the fall festival and recruited the girls’ lacrosse team at the high school to operate the crazy-hair and face-painting stations. He is also exploring arrangements with the R.O.T.C. and with corporations that have public service programs.) 

Other forces are at work besides the lack of free time. The growing world of mom blogging has provided ample forums for exposing the darker feelings of motherhood, and a number of women have taken to cyberspace to gripe about school volunteer work. Some complain that the system preys on maternal guilt and that it creates a sense that a mother’s worthiness is measured in how many hours she puts in at her children’s schools. Under the headline “Just Say NO to Volunteering,” Sarah Auerswald, a former PTA president in Los Angeles, wrote in June, “What I am about to say is not very PC, so get ready: Moms, stop volunteering so much.”

Ms. Auerswald, who estimated that she had sat through 1,000 meetings over the last 10 years as a volunteer, said all her work for the schools had left her “a run-down, crabby, resentful wreck.” Worse, she said in an interview, “My kids got really resentful.” When she would leave them with yet another baby sitter, or drag them along for yet another Saturday Clean-up Day at school, they implored, “Why is it always you who has to do everything, Mom?”

Ms. Auerswald emphasized that her children’s school had a very real need for parents’ volunteer work. But she said she has learned that parents need to set realistic expectations about what they can accomplish and how much of themselves they can give.

Because the work is unpaid, some volunteers say, few realize the toll it can take on people. “I know a woman — the work she did for the public schools was so critical — she made me look like a loafer,” Ms. Auerswald said. “Then her husband left her because she was never home.”

That news was startling to Ms. Auerswald. “Not that my husband was leaving, luckily,” she said, “but he was not happy about how much I was doing.”

Part of the burnout stems from the fact that in most schools a small number of volunteers shoulder the vast majority of the work.

Everyone recognizes this, but they can’t help but wring every ounce of commitment out of those who seem willing. Consider the case of Zan Jones.

Ms. Jones is a mother of two in Keller, Tex., who works part time as a booking manager for professional speakers. This fall she was co-chairwoman of the Scholastic Book Fair, a commitment of five full days on top of the multiple meetings required to organize the event. And the decorating.

This year’s theme was superheros, so Ms. Jones made the sign with Superman saying, “It’s a bird, it’s a plane, it’s a book fair!” She made tall buildings out of cardboard boxes. She stuffed the Spider-Man costume that she had found and bought herself. When it was over, she helped pack everything up and take the money to the bank.

That’s a lot of work — especially since her children don’t go to the school anymore.

Near the end of the summer, Ms. Jones’s children, a third grader and a fifth grader, were accepted to a charter school, but she felt uneasy about breaking volunteer commitments she had made to their old school. And, apparently, the school was desperate for help.

“They were panicked,” Ms. Jones said. “There was not one mention of ‘Oh, don’t worry about it.’ If there was, I probably would have taken it and run with it.”

Still, Ms. Jones insisted that she was happy to help, and no sooner did she fulfill her commitments at the old school than she started volunteering at the new one. She has chaperoned three field trips, worked in the library and helped set up a “mad scientist” dry ice center for a Halloween party. But she admitted she considered bowing out.

“Selfishly, I thought, ‘Oh my God, this is my chance for a clean break,’ ” she said. “I thought, ‘I can go somewhere where no one knows me, and I can sit silently under the radar and not volunteer.’ ”

But, she explained: “My kids really like me volunteering. Their faces light up when I’m there.”

That is what most parents assume — that school volunteer work is in the best interests of their children. But some veterans are skeptical. Jen Christensen’s epiphany came on her 41st birthday in May 2009. She was presiding over Teacher Appreciation Week at her children’s school in San Mateo, Calif., and getting up daily at 4 a.m. to work on the school auction. She was so overcommitted, she said, that she could not find time to celebrate.

What hit harder still was that she had given up working when she had children to be home with them — and now she was continually leaving them with baby sitters because she had to attend a meeting at school.

The next fall, Ms. Christensen declared herself off-limits to all school volunteer requests. “I said: ‘I’m done. I quit. Don’t call. Don’t e-mail.’ I said I have given so much of myself. I’m spending 50 hours a week working on a volunteer position. Where does it end? You want some blood? I wouldn’t even let my husband write a check.”

Ms. Christensen added: “It felt fabulous. I took a step back and was able to see what was wrong and appreciate the opportunity I have. I don’t have to work, and being able to spend time with my kids is what my job really should be.”

She noted the simple pleasure of reading with her 8-year-old son, Owen, in their special “reading chair.”

“It was calmer in our home and I think everyone was much happier,” she said.

Some of the push-back stems from just plain irritation over the way volunteer requests are made, often involving large numbers of increasingly desperate-sounding e-mails. A few years ago, Karen Bantuveris was on a plane on a business trip. “I looked down and literally saw my BlackBerry fill up with reply-all e-mails about whose turn it is to help at recess and to bring snacks,” she said. “The more I talked to working moms, the more I heard: ‘I can’t volunteer anymore. This is ridiculous.’ ”

Ms. Bantuveris put her training as a management consultant to work. She invented an online system — similar to the popular Evite invitation service — that sends a calendar of volunteer opportunities and allows parents to sign up for those of their choosing without multiple e-mail exchanges. She now runs a company called VolunteerSpot that markets the system, coordinating 460,000 volunteers, 75 percent of them parents in schools.

Even among those who have made the break from volunteering, there is always guilt. “There is such a need,” Ms. Christensen said. Her year of saying “No” ended when school started this year. But still she is a far cry from her old über-volunteer self.

She agreed to be a “room parent” for the third grade, which means she plans class parties. And she did consent to oversee the kitchen-tour fund-raiser, but she is now “kind of regretting it.” It is scheduled for September 2011, Ms. Christensen said, noting, “I still have time to get out of it.”

Readers' Comments

Readers shared their thoughts on this article.

• Read All Comments (82) »

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

So that is that, I was in the New York Times.  I can scratch it off my bucket list (I don't have one but if I did I would put be in the New York Times on it).  Once I get on the Oprah Winfrey Show (you did not think I would not reference her did you?  I only have till September 2011) and my products in People Magazine I can say I have done everything.  Everything as far as publicity goes that is.

New York Times Came a Knockin'

Just A Silicon Valley Blog Post

After the supposed end of The Silicon Valley Mom Blog I didn't give my posts much thought.  I owned them, I could re-post them and/or just let them live in the Blogosphere.  I enjoyed writing for the Silicon Valley Moms Blog a lot more than I thought I would.  I wrote about events at school, my crazy family and mostly my children. 

This June I was very fed up, frustrated and burnt out from volunteering at my children's school.  I listed all that I had done on this blog and then made a public pledge to not do it again on SV Moms Blog.  I got a lot of comments on and off line from other volunteers like myself that were done with a capital D with volunteering. 

Two weeks ago I received an email from a reporter at the New York Times  who read my post.  She asked if I would speak to her about my volunteering or lack their of.  She wanted to hear how this year was going and if I had kept up my pledge.  Without thinking I said "Hell to the Yes!", or maybe I thought that in my head and just replied very polite like in an email.  Either way I was interviewed the following day.

New York Frickin' Times Interview

Rule one when you get an interview with a very reputable news paper (or any publication) - get the  time correct.  And me being a veteran of countless interviews (okay a dozen or so) I am always prepared and I always get the time right.  Ya, not so much.   I bounced, or stumbled out of bed at 6:30 a.m. and downed two cups of coffee for my 7:00 a.m interview.  Then I waited and waited.  I waited some more. And then waited a little bit longer.  Then I drank more coffee. 

By about 7:45 a.m. I was freaking out and bouncing off the walls.  I looked at the email for the 45th time that morning and realized I had the time wrong.  Don't ask me how or why but I was under the impression the interview was at 10:00 a.m Eastern Standard Time....and uh, it was actually 10:00 a.m my time, Pacific Standard Time.   So now I was wide awake just waiting for the interview.  By the time she called (the correct agree time)  I was the babbling laughing volunteer from Hell.  I was interviewed for over 30 minutes and am pretty confident that I sounded like an insane rabid parent.  Yes, I am scared of what will be taken from the interview.

I calmed myself down by remembering some past interviews.  Having been interviewed in the past I was not even confidant my interview would even be a part of the article.  This happens more than I care to admit.  I have said it before, and will continue to say it - press is good.  All press is good (Jamie's Painting & Design never came up in this interview).  I am fine, the whole article may  not even ever be published.  I did not get my hopes up.  Then last week I got an email.  I had to be in a Photo Shoot, with my children like in a few days........ah, come again?

Ready for My Close Up

When picking out our clothes I tried not to over think it, but I wanted us to look good - so I totally over thought the whole thing.  I figured my kids should dress as casual as possible without looking like we were trying to be too causal - this is not as easy as it sounds.  The urge to dress my children in their holiday finest, get hair cuts and polish their shoes was very tempting.  Sadly I cancelled the fancy up-do, professional make-up artists/stylist and put away my formal gown, diamond tiara and fur.  We were the Lentzners, and we were going with jeans.

Last Wednesday the photographer arrived at my home.  Now, I have to preface this with the fact that the exterior of my house is a disaster.  We are in the process of having the entire house stuccoed, painted and we are replacing all of the lights.  When I answered the door I caught our photographer looking around at the plywood very skeptical.  His eyes kept darting back and forth from the plywood srewed to the house, and a bulb hanging where my light would be.  When he finally made eye contact I could have sworn I saw him sigh.  He was probably expecting Ma Kettle wearing overalls and smoking a pipe.

I took him to all the rooms, seeing which one had the best light or the best angle for him.  Even with turning on every light in the house my home for him, he was not sure about where to photograph us.  After walking back and forth for about ten minutes he still had not found a good spot.  The front yard was out of the question since it would look like we lived in an Appalachian Wooden House and the playroom ( that would be the garage) had ourdogs in it.  I was starting to get nervous.  After two tours of the Lentzner home I caught him eyeing the backyard.  This was not going to be good.

We Have Dogs & Standing Water

As he leaped out our back door and into our backyard swamp I blurted out, "We have Dogs! Watch   where you....step."  I watched him grimace as he took big then small steps while trying to examine his surroundings.  He danced around, eyeing the ground as if he were about to step on a land mind.  With the 3 solid days of rain, followed by 3 days of near freezing weather - my kids had not been out to uh, clean up after our pets. It was not a pretty sight, puddles, mud, poop and some dead plants - I was mortified.

And of course he decided to photograph outside.....yep, even though I was casual I was still rocking my cute suede boots.  Boots I did not want covered in dog excrement.  The children to were told to play soccer and look natural.  After they fought over which ball to bring outside we all dodged dog poop and mud for 10 to 15 minutes.  I am sure the look on my face was part disgust and part shock while I was being photographed.  Nothing says "Working Mom" like a mother and her children playing soccer in a mud/poop swamp.

We then took photos in our kitchen, in my office and me looking out the window at my dinning room table.  I still don't know if I was supposed to look happy, sad, confused or dignified.  I just hope the pictures came out decent.  The article is scheduled to be published Thursday, December 3, 201o.  I am hopeful that we/me sound and look decent and normal and sane.  It could happen.

Don't Try This At Home

I have posted on this topic before, but I find that life just keeps repeating itself.  I don't want to say I put on my cranky pants today, I just feel like sometimes (being your elder and all) I need to give you some harsh lessons.  If you are an experienced business owner like moi, then this post will you do you no good.  However, if you think you may have once or twice (haven't we all?) over-stepped your bounds, read on. 

I find the longer I am an entrepreneur and own my own business the shorter my temper is and my ability to entertain idiotic odd requests.  These are in no particular order so do not think one holds more importance than another.  So if you are new to owning your own business and especially if you are a woman or a Mom, please read this list of things NOT to do:

What Not to Do in Small Business

1. Do not ask someone to borrow their biography/pitch/time line for your own publicity.  Do your own work!  Write your own biography and figure out what makes you and your company tick.  My story.....is MY STORY!  You can not use it, because it is mine.  You can try, I mean really - it is not hard I have had the story written over twenty times (and no I am not bragging), just do not ask me if you can borrow it....the answer is no.

2. Do not ask someone you do not know for contacts to a buyer, publicists, business owner or Oprah.  If you do not know them, you have no repertoire with them.  If you think it is okay to ask a total stranger for a contact that probably took them 3 years to get - then you are crazy.  Just because you read a blog post about someone does not make them required to share their contacts.  For the record, I do not know Dr. Phil personally, and I will not give you his phone number.

3. Do not copy my anyone's artwork or design.  I have gone over this for years, it is just wrong.  Come up with your own damn design....remember the Cheese it's commerical - get your own box.  If all you can do is look at someone else is doing and copy it, you are in the wrong line of work.  You are an entrepreneur, go create something amazing.

4. Do not spy on another company's booth at a Trade Show.  I mean by all means know what your competition is doing, but do not go up after they left and touch, pick, scrape and tap your competition's products.  They are probably watching you do that, and you look pathetic.  Take the high road, acknowledge them and then go back to your booth and do what you came there to do - sell products.

5. Do not screw your partners.  I believe in KARMA, and I think if you are a business owner and you refuse to pay the company's you work with then you are a big fat meany.  Worse yet is if you just up and walk away and leave those poor small companies without being paid - you suck.  Word gets around, us small business owners talk - it is not nice to steal from us.

6. Do not take what you have not been given.  Do not go and take photographs from some company and throw them all willy-nilly on your website.  We will find out.  Those photos are copyrighted and we own them.  Even though I am confident that you can copy/trace/duplicate any of my designs, that is not the point.  You have no right to offer to replicate them - it is against the law....and again not nice.

7. Do not tell one of your sales channels how you are going to copy a competitor.  Tsk, tsk, tsk on you.  You should be smarter than that now really.  All industries talk, and it does not take much to get us to spill the beans.  If you are planning on ripping off an idea one of your competitors has pretty much owned the market on, then keep it to yourself.  Your competitor will find out.....or she will figure it out.  I would actually suggest doing what you do well and minding your own business...but then again what do I know?  I have never had that happen to me.

8. Do not lie, be honest.  No one likes a liar, and we all know you are lying.  Tell it like it is - be honest.  If sales are down, own it.  If the Economy is kicking your butt - announce it.  Nothing ticks me off more than someone blogging, writing or tweeting (barf) how great business is and how the Recession is not affecting them.  Really?  Okay well if that is the case, and I doubt it - keep it to yourself.  When 95% of the country is suffering you should have the gumption to shut up, if you are doing so fabulous that is (and I doubt you are).

9. Do not blog just to get traffic.  I have been blogging for a long time, and I do it because I love it.  I am not Steinbeck, but I love to write and I felt I had something to share with other like-minded women.  If you are just blogging to brag about your accomplishments, announce a new design or because your web designer told you all the "kool kids" are doing it - you suck.  Yes, I meant that.  Blogging takes hours, it takes time and it takes someone with a huge backbone to blog about their industry and trials and tribulations of their business.  And on that note....blogging once every 3 months does NOT get you any more traffic, nor does it make you a writer.

10. Don't Lie or Fake it.  I have often written about how I would never let on how small my business was when it was run out of the house.  However, I did not lie - I always said, "We are in the studio" and that is where we were.  Faking it as an artist, designer or a very successful sales channel does not do anyone any good.  You just tend to  jeopardize your reputation.  People will find out if you are lying about your sales, employees, accounts or where you got your ideas.  Liars forget they are lying - remember that.

Okay, did not mean to be so negative....and no the Economy is not picking up.  I can honestly say some weeks are good, others are bad and a few are actually horrid.  I talk to lots ot people and this is the truth.  If you have rent and have employees - you get what I am saying.  I may not be saying it eloquently - but I am being honest.  So, to quote an old show from when I was a kid (Hill street Blues), "Let's all be careful out there."

The Whole Dr. Phil Truth, the whole Truth and Nothing But the Truth

October 15, 2009.

It has been almost 24 hours since I saw myself on the Dr. Phil Show last night.  In Northern California it airs at night, but I had already heard from friends across the country what was said, and how I looked.  I can't even begin to explain how surreal (and very uncomfortable, even after a glass of wine) it is to watch yourself on TV, hear your voice and to know  the show was edited.

 

 

Behind the Scenes at Dr. Phil

After the make-up artist, the hair person, the handlers and the producers all got us guests gussied up and wound into a total heart-beat freaking out panic, they escorted us down to the studio.  My husband could not come, we were told to leave our cameras/cell phones/purses in our room.  Heather Armstrong was told to stay put, me, Jessica and a woman named Melia (sorry about spelling) were marched down some stairs to where Dr. Phil was filmed. 

Once the three of us got to the back of the stage a producer type with an earpiece started dictating where we should stand and who was in front and behind us.  Oh wait, let me back up - there was a gaggle of women with purses laughing, giggling and holding pieces of paper standing in front of us.  They were all very animated and I was clearly confused.  Who the heck were these women? Why were they clutching their purses and how come none of them had their hair and make up done?  Who told that one to wear the tight tan suit with crocks?  Jessica informed me they were from the studio audience and were NOT guests.  I was still a bit baffled as I did what I was told by Gaffer man.

Stay At Home Mom's Over Here.....Working Mom's Go Over There!

If a camera had been on me when they started dividing us up by whether we worked or did not work you would have seen me start to panic.  I was seriously starting to sweat when I figured we were going to be in the audience (what?  I thought I was a guest?) and when I saw that the Stay at Home Mom's by far outnumbered us working mothers - I freaked.  The gaffer/producer dude was yelling at us to move from one side or the other.  I was having flashbacks from grammar school, like PE when the damn dodge ball team was picked.....I was a 40 pound weakling who was knock-knee-ed, guess when I was picked?

We were told to stay in our line (I was last - go figure) and we all walked down more stairs to another behind the scenes/seating area location to wait to be called up to "practice" where we would sit.  As we are all standing there one woman (I will call her Babs) whowaswearing a too tight suit, had dyed blond hair,and her roots growing out started asking questions to the group.  In a somewhat high squeaky voice she started quiet, but then got louder as the crowd answered the questions the way she wanted them too, "Who's a stay at home mom?  Are you a stay at home mom?  Raise your hand?  You are? Woot! Woot!  You are? (high fiving the ones that were) Yeah!!".  The women standing near hera with their hands up and their faces smiling with delight and glee.  Then Babs gave them the rally call they so needed, "Yeah!  Us Stay At Home Mom's we are going to RULE this!"  I was annoyed.

As I told Jessica (who was in front of me) she (Babs) did not KNOW me, she did not know who I was - I had a blog dam nit....and I was not afraid to use it. Then I started thinking, since when was it us against them?   I did not sign up for this.........I was gritting my teeth by then.  The only saving grace was that when we all got our microphones they passed on Babs.  She was all aflutter, since she was told (as she repeated) that she was getting one.  I am not embarrassed to say I was thrilled by this turn of events - but I was still petrified of what I was going to endure once I got out on stage.

The Fun Has Just Begun

Us "special Moms" all stood in the back as Dr. Phil talked about the topic.  One by one he said hello to us and one by one most of the Mom's were placed on the SAHM side.  I waited, smiled until it got to Jessica and then she said her now infamous quote, I was shocked.  I did take a step back, if you watch I turn to look up to the audience and I literally mouthed to my husband who was sitting there, "WHAT THE??"  His response ......he was laughed and cackled like a hyena - so glad he came. 

Frequently Asked Questions About the Dr. Phil Show "Guilty Moms"

Did Dr. Phil ask you those questions? Did you talk more?

Dr. Phil went to me first and said my name (edited out) and he asked about a post I wrote (edited out) regarding these stay at home mom's who said mean things to me.  I did not have any idea that I was first, all I knew from producer #2 was that I had to hit on the points about the blog when Dr. Phil spoke to me.  I said the quote, "Can't we all Get Along (channeling the great Rodney King)" - it was edited out.

Girl why did you not jump on her or throw your chair at her?

Had I know the topic and how Jessica felt I may have been more witty and more prepared for a bitch/slap girl on girl fight (doubtful but a strong possibility).  The truth is, I did not (and do not) want to be remembered as that beeotch on Dr. Phil who went crazy on a SAHM.  I know that Youtube is forever, and I know you can edit things to look one way....and I know someday my kids will not be so keen on all that I have said and done.  I also realize that I am not going to change her views and she sure won't change mine - so what is the point of throwing a few swear words and evil growls her way?  I do care what others think, and though I may be considered a bitch - I am not that big of a bitch.

What were you really thinking when you did that eye roll facial twitch thing?

I have no frickin' idea what I was thinking, heck they could have filmed that at a break or when I was begging everyone around me for a mint (I was).  I know I was shocked by Jessica's comments, I know I wanted to say something but only if I sounded articulate.  I now wish I said more - but I can live with how I was portrayed.

Was she for real?  What do you think about the show?

Having filmed it, seen the edited version and had sometime to think about the show I do have some thoughts.  I am surprised in this day and age that these polarized views are still out there and that we spend time arguing about them.  I was told by the producers that she was sincere and that she meant everything that was said - I don't know if that is true, but I am going to have to take it at face value.  I do know that her come backs and one liners were pretty crisp and either she is brilliant on her feet or she had an agenda for the show.  Either way if you check Dr. Phil's blog, The Huffington Post or lots of other forums on the web you will see Jessica got the conversation going, and going and going.  No one even knows my last name (which is fine) but they ALL know hers.

I do wish I had said more, I wish I had been a little more brave and shared my views and what I did for a living, but such is life.  I think I have a unique situation and something that other parents could learn from....but that will be my next talk show I get invited to be on.  Right?

My Claim To Fame - Dr. Phil Show October 14, 2009

October 11, 2009

So if you have nothing going on this Wednesday or you are totally into the Mommy Wars you may want to catch the episode of Dr. Phil.  It is titled Stay at Home Moms vs. Working Moms (dun dun dun dun) that was me doing scary ominous music.  And yes, I am a guest on the show, and I am hopefully not making an ass of myself...tune in for yourself to see.  I know what happened, I know what I said, I know what was said....and I know that editing can change reality.  I am going into this with both eyes wide open, and all fingers and toes crossed.  If you miss the first 10 or 15 minutes, you will miss me talking - after that I don't say much, but maybe a few eye rolls, nods and smiles.

I am sure you all recall I mentioned it about two months ago when I was flown to be on the show, blah blah - the red lipstick post?  Heather Armstrong?  Jessica?  Everyone I told about it kept asking if I actually went on air wearing the death/blood red lips.  The answer is NO.  I wiped it off even before the make-up artist could see me.  I was horrified - as I am sure I scared the be-jesus out of poor Heather Armstrong who I was speaking with at the ass crack of dawn.  The red lipstick was not filmed, I repeat I did not have the ghastly look of I suck the blood lipstick on when I met Dr. Phil....enough said.

I May Not Be Ready for Prime Time

So if you go to the Dr Phil site  you can see a brief synopsis of what the episode is about.  I am curious how they edit it, I am curious if I am edited out - I am hoping that I sound intelligent.  A few factoids and information about the episode:

• What happens on the phone with a TV Producer does not stay on the phone.  It is not like Vegas, whatever you say can and WILL be used against you....on the air.
• Dr. Phil is very tall and calm and NOTHING phases him.
• It is flipping freezing in a studio where a TV show is filmed and there is a live audience
• It is hard to talk when you heart is beating so hard you can hear it in your ears
• People say the darnedest things on TV
• Not all publicity is good....or it may not even turn into publicity
• Some people (okay women) I meet irritate the crap out of me on sight
• Some audience members are down right crazy
• Oprah Winfrey has the best looking audience ever.....no other show compares
• I find it hard to be witty and sound intelligent at the same time
• When on National Television it is a good idea to NOT be totally honest about your all your beliefs.
• Take notes when you tell someone something - they may ask you to repeat it
• What Dr. Phil says to you off the air is not the same as on the air
• Think twice before asking your husband to go with you to the Dr. Phil Show.
• Saying a prayer every night that I will not be some foot note on The Soup may or may not help

The Interview Process Begins

When being interviewed to be a guest on a show you may encounter many, many strange questions.    I don't know if that is the case with every producer, or every show but for me and getting me approved to be on the show, that sure was the case.  I had to jump through hoops, answer questions over and over and give an all over description of my looks (tattoos, piercings and facial hair to boot) for one interview.  Here is a brief time line of how the three days before they "booked me" for the show went early in August:

The Seed is Planted

Monday night I was checking email and I saw one from another contributor from the Silicon Valley Mom Blogs.  It asked if I had ever been attacked by Stay at Home Moms and if you had, Dr. Phil wanted to hear about it.  I emailed her back and said, "HELL YA!" (okay no I did not, but I said yes) and forwarded her the blog post I wrote about it happening to me once, twice, three times a lady.  She introduced me via email to a producer at the Dr. Phil Show and I went to bed.

Oh My What Have I Done?

Tuesday morning at the office I got a call from a producer (let's call him #1 shall we?) who had read my blog post (he loved it) and wanted to talk to me about what had happened.  He asked me numerous questions, wanted deets on scenarios and laughed at appropriate times.  He said that a senior producer may call me to get some more information.

Later that day, Producer #2 called, but she was more like a senior producer or #1 - but I am not sure.  She had me re-tell the stories I had told #1, she asked more questions.  I talked, I went on and on. She also laughed and took notes (I found out later).  She then told me that another producer would be calling for some background information on me.

The third producer called me and we gabbed for almost 40 minutes.  She was funny, she was totally enamored by my blog post...we were BFF's right away (she has not called since but whatever).  Anyway since we both went to SJSU and were both sorority girls we had an instant kismet - even though I was like 20 years older than her - but it was all good. 

She asked my age, my height, my religion, my political affiliation, my weight....yes she asked my weight.  I had to give a description of my hair, my face, basically I had to swear I looked like the photo I sent.  They asked if I was married (yes) , if we lived together (yes), if the kids lived with us (sometimes...no I meant YES), if I drank (no, but answer was yes), if I did drugs (no), was I ever arrested (no), in jail (um NO!), in a mental institute (does my house count - I mean NO!).  I had to tell if I was mentally ill, if I was stable, if I took any medications.  The best part was answering questions about.....my teeth.  The teeth questions were my favorites:

"Are your teeth crooked?"  no

"Are your teeth grey?"  no

"Are your teeth brown or chipped?" no

"Are your teeth crooked or cracked? Are they straight?" no and HELL NO  and YES - I had braces dammit! (starting to wonder who the guest are that Dr. Phil has on the show with all this talk of teeth)

"Are you missing teeth?"  What? Oh my god no.

"Are you sure?"  Yes I am sure!

At the end of the conversation #3 asks me if I have a burning question for Dr. Phil.  I think, I pause, I roll my eyes I am stuck.  I mean I don't have issues, I don't have problems I want discussed on National TV - I am racking my brain for what to say.  Seconds turn into minutes and I finally blurt out, " I would ask Dr. Phil what the hell I am supposed to say next time these Stay at Home Moms say these really mean things to me."  On the other end of the line I swear I heard a chuckle or a grunt - but by a MAN.  I ask # 3, "Um, excuse me what was that?"  She says, oh nothing....nothing.  Back to 20 (I mean 100) questions.

Producer #1 called later that day (if you are keeping track he was not the senior producer lady, but the first dude to call me).  I had to go over more stories, re-tell the comments made that I blogged about and then he asked if I knew any of the mean blogger comments I got on my original post.  I said no, but in my head I said yes.  He wanted to know if he could contact them.....um no he could not.  And I swore (lied) that I did not know them.  I discussed my business, my life, my situations with stay at home mom's and their opinions of me.

I May Need to Go Hyperventilate and Put My Head Between My Legs

The morning of day two starts with Producer #1 calls again, only to tell me (and I quote) I am fabulous....ah shucks.  We go over the same stories again, and again and then he asks for new ones.  I try but I am stuck - I swear I can not bitch about this any longer.  We talked for almost an hour.

I was asked if I had my kids in Day Care? (no).  Did I hate Stay at Home Moms? (no).  Did I hate working Moms who put their kids in daycare? (no).  Did I think Moms should work? (it is up to the individual).  Did I hate day care? (what? no). But why? (what?) I mean why you did not do it? (uh, just cause I did not do it does not mean I hate daycare.  My husband and I did not choose to do daycare).  So you hate Daycare? (WTF?  No, no, no just nacho cheese....I mean not my choice  - to each is own okay?). 

I should have started to figure out what or who they wanted me to portray - but I did not.  I repeated over and over that yes I worked, but only when they were in school and as an owner of a business I had that freedom.  I was trying to stay honest, trying to stay true to me but I was also being torn and did not want to come off as a hater of ANY Mom.  I mean who cares what you do - as long as it does not affect me or my children - we were all gooood.  Right? Wrong.

Hollywood Here I Come

At the end of the day I got a call from #3 and she was calling to let me know I had been chosen to be on the show.  She told me when I would be flying, where I would be picked up, who was with me, how much I could expect to get reimbursed and that she could not tell me anything else.  OH wait, she said one thing, "A semi-famous blogger may (or may not) be on the show also".  Ah......okay?  I mean hell I could be considered semi-famous, so could half the blogosphere.  When I asked if I could tell anyone on Facebook or Twitter she said........NO.

As soon as I got off the phone I contacted the original blogger from the Silicon Valley Mom Blogs and told her the news.  She emailed back, "OMG I think I am the stay at home Mom on the show".  Okay - that helped a little.  I then ran into my husbands office and asked begged him to come with.  He agreed and we arranged for him to fly out later the same day.

Either on Facebook or Twitter I got wind that Heather Armstrong was going to be on Dr. Phil too.  Coincidence?  No.  I had not read her blog in a long time and when I went over to Dooce and guess what I found - yep, she was on the show too.  And the show was not what I originally was lead.  It was the Mommy Wars, the SAHM vs. us WAHM or just us Working Moms - it was war baby.  I was so screwed.

A Real Working Mother or Publicity Stunt?

April 13, 2009.

I have been reading Working Mother for almost seven years. I was almost giddy when I got my first subscription the same month I started Jamie's Painting & Design.  I found the magazine intriquing, I felt I was part of a sisterhood of sorts, a club that I could call my own.   After all this time of reading the magazine - I am not feeling the love so much anymore.  These days, I have an almost love /hate relationship with the magazine.  I love the tips, the recipes and advice on juggling motherhood and working, yet I hate the cover Mom's, more tips on breast feeding and how to tell your boss you are pregnant (the two last ones I can skim over - the first one is a tough pill to swallow).  However, today I am in full 'hate' mode - just can't get past it.

Pretty Executive Mommy

In a nutshell, the May issue has a Vice President from Cisco on the cover (yawn).  She is a mother of two, she reports directly to John Chambers, manages 200 people and is the youngest female vice president (okay that part I like - busting the whole glass ceiling and all).  She did have one  tough pregnancy  and her parents divorced when she was a child - so there was some interesting information about her background I guess.  Her struggles if you can call them that are basically going to a neighbor's home to chit chat after work, try NOT to leave too many notes for her caregiver and....no wait that is it, she has no other struggles, oh I know she wants working parents to not feel guilty - okay Dali Lama

What I don't like is the coincident of this magazine hitting newstands right now, it leaves a bitter taste in my mouth.  Not a coincidence that  this issue comes on the heels of Cisco laying off more people as we ride the wave of 2009.  This time it was over 2000 people a few weeks ago - coincident I say no.  I think it spin at it's best - but then again I am a publicity whore and jaded in my old age.

Maybe it is also because the Economy still sucks, I am considering quitting my subscription.   With the country in a Recession or a Depression, she is who is on the cover?   I have probably put down the magazine more times that not in the past few years,  I am not interested in yet another Executive cover.

I am just tired of reading about Fortune 500 Company Executive Mom's and "How they Do it". Really?  Do I need an article to tell me how great she has it? How easy she has it with a caregiver, oh and do not forget her Executive Salary too - that helps, that is how she does it!  The last issue that had me fuming was the woman who was (yes an Executive, the CEO actually) and she had a cook, it was like barf, gee life must be hard when you get home.

Publicist Did the Dirty Work

What really irks me though is that are we so stupid as to believe that this woman got the email looking for cover Mom's?  Speaking of which, is not hard to get on - you can sign up at Working Mother, you will get emails when they are looking for a teacher, a social worker, a minority or an entrepreneur.  And yes it is exciting to get - even if I do not qualify,  it is irritating they always say you have to be attractive....no I am not kidding.  I am guessing that is not  a prerequisite for being on the cover of Entrepreneur or Fast Company - let me rephrase that, they would not say that for a Man.  Who cares if  you look like Steve Wozniack - if you are rich and successful - bravo!  How soon can we send a team of photographers and reporters to your home? 

The other funny thing is they NEVER are looking for an executive in these emails that go out to their readers...hmm, I wonder why they are on the cover so often then?  Anyone?  This is obviously the work of a very savvy publicist at either Cisco, IBM, Chrysler or Apple.  They  pitched this Mommy Executive to Working Mother.  I mean come on - this is not a struggling Mother, or a mother that is working in some 9 to 5 job - she is an Executive.   I get it she works hard too - but how many Executives with full time help can I read about?  What about the October issue with the Executive from Lehman Brothers....I could not make this up!

Do Real Mom's Equal Advertising Dollars?

Can't they put real Mom's on the cover?  Maybe some famous Mommy Blogger could grace the cover?  I don't need to read about some very high paid employee, I want someone that is either making a difference, or is just a regular Joe....er, Joann.  Maybe I am in a cranky mood because sales are down, or more friends and family are being laid off than I can count. 

The fact is I am sure an average every day Mom working as an engineer, or the lunch lady is not as glamorous as these Executives.  But I for one do not read Working Mother for that fluff - that is why I have my fluff magazines, I read this for knowledge, advice and help.  I am not dumb - just frustrated.  I am hoping the next cover Mom is at least inspiring..... I mean she is probably quite lovely and all - this is nothing personal against Ms. May.  But come on Working Mother step up to the plate, especially when the entire country is suffering.

Just a Small Amount of Local Press

February 26, 2009

So if you recall I posted a few weeks ago about how I had not one, but two separate interviews and two film crews (photographers really) come to my home.  It was nerve wracking for sure, but super exciting. 

Through the whole ordeal I had my poor family had to live with me being super-duper anal about their rooms and "bed-making skills".  Glad it was all worth it - check the magazine out below, it came out yesterday!

Bay Area Parent, March 2009

All press is good press right?  For a small business like mine - yes it is.  When the Economy is what it is - again, the press is good.  Just another plug - I got this Bay Area Parent piece from HARO, if you have not signed up for HARO (Help A Reporter Out) yet, I suggest you do.

It Takes Time

You never know when you are going to find a reporter that falls in love with you and your story.  You also do not know if they are going to hang on to your "information" for another day.  I like to go with the mantra, "To be at the right place at the right time - you have to be in lots of wrong places first."  To be honest I do not spend a ton of time (or money) on press, I just send in a few pitches or answer querries.  If you are able to make it part of your morning routine it is not that bad.

I got this small article from a querry back in Janurary and even though was not about my business, it did show my decorating skills and how passioante I am about creating special spaces for my children.  Now, I know if you read the article it does not do everything for me:

• The article does not list Jamie's Painting & Design with an address, phone number, prices, email, fax, website or directions

• Link to Jamie's Painting & Design website or the JPD Mom Blog

• Gush with compliments about Jamie's Painting & Design and our products

• Show pictures of my products or Me (no really I am okay with not being photographed this time)

It is just a cute piece about my children and their bedrooms and it may create some business, some buzz or something down the line.  It is funny about press, when you start to really track it and ask how someone found you - you will find whether the press actually created anything tangible.  Only time will tell, but I know it can work.  I was in Bay Area Parent three years ago and I still get peole today who come up to me and say they say me in the magazine.  I have gotten direct orders, I have had stores contact me - and the magazine came out three years ago!  Every little bit counts right?

Take a look - The kids sure look proud!  You do know after the photo shoot(s) they both decided that I should re-do their rooms again. 

Happy Late Valentines to My House!

February 15, 2009.

Ah shucks - my home is on parade.....sort of.  I woke up to this wonderful post yesterday morning on Lookiloos.  I can hardly read the glowing embarrassing article Sheila wrote, I sound like Martha Stewart on crack.   Well maybe not that crazy, but I do wonder what I was thinking when I started my business, right after remodeling our entire home ourselves.

After reading the post I started thinking about all the good things about owning your own business and why I really did love to be my own boss: 

Top Ten Reasons I love being an Entrepreneur

1. Always Something to Talk About- not that we don't all always have something to gibber jabber about, I know we do.  I always can join in on most nonsense talk at a party, my husband's work  event, sitting with the Mom's at school.  As an entrepreneur I can pretty much walk the walk and talk the talk with anyone.  I get what is like to stay at home, I get the business talk, I get the sales stress, the Economy...oy vey!  And sometimes I even blurt out things to shut some idiot up;

Idiot,"So as I was saying I have my own business, I am very successful and I live in Atherton*...do you know where Atherton is?  I own a home there...."

Me, "Ya, I know where it is.  So my tiles were on the Ellen DeGeneres show last year....do you know who E-L-L-E-N is?"

Was I childish? Yes.  Was it funny? Yes.  Did I shut him up? YES! 

*Just in case you do not know where Atherton is, it is one of the most expensive places to live in the United States.  It is just about 15 minutes down the freeway from me,  EVERYONE knows where it is.

2. Never A Dull Moment - If you have been reading this blog, or own your own business, this is a big fat - duh!  I swear the word bored or expression,' I have nothing to do', has probably not passed over my lips since I started Jamie's Painting & Design (or had kids for that matter).  I have a to-do list that never gets thrown out, I just keep adding things, ideas, inspirations....more blog posts!  It is a never ending list of continuing to improve, take down, re-do or change.  I guess the day I sit back and say I am done, I have nothing more to do - will be the day I quit.

3. I Am in Charge, Because I said So - This is a double-edges sword for sure.  The line from History of the World Part II, when Mel Brookssays, "It's good to be king." always pops in my head.  I enjoy most of the perks and the total control that comes from being in charge.  Yes, not everything is funky-dory, but most of the time it is great.  If you don't like being in charge - don't start a company.  I like it, I do.

4. Business School 101 Forever- I will never, never ever know all there is to know about running my own business.  It will always be a learning experience.  If I have figured out one aspect I have to teach myself something else to succeed.  The learning curve is steep and I am lucky to have smart people around me to help me out.  Sometimes though I just have to figure it out.  I have no IT department, no HR department, no I do not.  If there is a problem, I need to fix it....and usually fast.

5. Watch Mommy Work - Whether my children follow in my footsteps,  join the company or not, I know they have learned quite a bit.  They have watched my business grown, seen it stumble and probably learned a few bad words.  The best part is that they saw how I (with the help of my husband and family) started something from nothing and created a thriving business.  Sometimes I need to take a step back and acknowledge what we do is sort of cool....well at least my kids still think it is.  They can see that I can follow my dreams and still be a Mom to them.

6. Freedom Baby! - Even with the long hours, the weekends, the stress and the back breaking work I can take off when I want.  For six long years no one has told me how to dress (yes I wear slippers some days) or when to get to work, or whether or not I can take the day off.  I love the freedom!  Not to say the blackberry does not totally help (it does) but I am able to make my own hours, go out of town, leave work early, volunteer in my children's classroom.....and it is fabulous!

 7. Friends, Partners & Mompreneurs Oh My!- If I had not started my own business I would not be so blessed to call so many different women my friends.  Women I have never met in person, some I have spoken to on the phone, others I email on a regular basis and some we only speak through twitter.  I find some of these women are so supportive and so fabulous that I don't know how I would ever have succeeded without them.  Really a great testament to what  a great community of people you can meet on line.  My virtual support system is by far the biggest shock to me - I never imagined I could meet so many of you that say, "Yep, I get that."

8. Never say, "What Might Have Been."- I never have to utter those words, I took the plunge I tried, I am trying I am doing what I want. Selfish?  No - totally stubborn and an unnerving ability to do what I set out to do.  I refuse to take no for an answer.  I do not like to not try.  No one is putting this 'baby' in the corner - I will do what I set out to do.  I had two small children, no seed money, no partner, no experience - these things did not stop me.  I do not know how I did it (or others either) but I did it.  No matter what happens to JPD in the future, I will know I tried and I did what I set out to do.

9. What if you did....? - This is one of the most exciting things about running a business - the possibility of the unknown.  The question I ask myself, or others might ask with a new idea, a new way of looking at things - just new.  I can not imagine I would have this freedom if I was working for the man, or in an established huge company right now.  I love that I can take my business in a , I can try out a new product line, I can experiment with new things.  It is never boring I tell you.

10. It Makes Me Happy - I feel that running a business is very fulfilling and rewarding.  I get to make beautiful things for people.  I get wonderful thank you's, kudos, praise from customers and friends alike.  It makes me feel good.  I like that people like my work....and ya I am thinking the Sally Field speech in my head right about now, "You like me, you really, really like me!"  At the end of the day, whether I made a dollar or not - I know that someone is thrilled with a product I made.  I love that feeling.

Behind the Scenes of A Photo Shoot

February 7, 2009.

So um pssssttt........I have a little secret to share with you.  Not this Saturday, but the one before....ya, ya 24 robbers came knocking at the door.  I swear, is it just my age or my total juvenile way of looking at the world but that jump rope game pops into my head every time someone starts a story off with that?

 Anyhoo....sorry to get off track - I had an exciting if not stressful Saturday.  First a local children's magazine, Bay Area Parent asked to come by and photograph my children's rooms for an article on creative use of a small space.  I thought they were coming in April -  nope they would be here in like 8 days.

And if that was not enough, I also had the fabulous website Lookiloos come and photograph my home on the same day.  I thought they were just coming to look at one room....nope they got the entire house (except for my bedroom which I forbid them from entering, see photographs above & below).  And hold on to your knickers because it gets even better - my home is going to be featured in the San Jose Mercury News Home Section via the Lookiloos site.  EEEK!

Ya it was a cool day.

Things Are Not What They Seem

So you see some home photographed and you think (like me) my gosh their house is perfect, is there not a junk drawer, an unmatching blanket, kids art on the fridge or a basket for crap....er um stuff I can not throw away?  Well guess what I happen to know these people do have these things, they just hide them, as I did, when the photographers show up.  Shall we look at my poor bedroom that I refused to let anyone in:

First I had to make sure the kid's rooms were in tip-top shape, I had to do a few things (Abby's bedspread was in tatters - so thankful for Pottery Barn) and I had some scuff marks that needed painting  over, some artwork that needed hanging.  Remove some obnoxious dress-up (see exhibit A with the Yankee Doodle Hat Thing) and make sure my daughter did not 45 stuffed animals stacked around the room.

Shudder, even looking at this picture I am sort of embarrassed that this stuff was all in my bedroom when they came.  These items are all in my home, in one room or another and I had to find a place for them when the film crew came.  Hence.....you can see where they were stacked.

The problem with our home is that usually people would be putting these things into the garage, but our garage is the kids play room (that was being photographed also).  So I had to put them in some room, and I chose mine.  And as  I stated ealier - my room was TOTALLY off limits. 

I sent my dogs to my parents home for most of the day.  My husband took my kids to another friend's home for a much needed play date and my husband....gosh who knows what he did - I think he went to my office.

They Finally Arrive

I got to have a great talk with two of the three founders of Lookiloos - they were so much fun and totally personable at that.  We walked around the house I explained what I did and why and pretty much blushed and 'aw shucks' when they complimented my home.  Our home was a probate sale disaster ugly thingie covered in trees, ivy, rodents in the roof, brown shag carpet from 1970's....and we fixed it up.  You would never recognize our house from the way it was seven years ago.  The photo below is how it looked when we bought it....not today!  I still can not believe I saw the diamond n the rough from that.

So, while they are still talking to me and photographing every room in the house, Bay Area Parent arrives with a photographer to interview me and see my kids rooms + the playroom.  I am walking them through the house, showing them my tiles I made, discussing why I chose what was their rooms and how I started my business.  Then they ask where my kids are my kids......ah deer in headlights - "I uh, let me call my husband I don't know where they are".

I had to track them down (curse myself for not dressing them cuter) - they were getting hair cuts.  My Dad left his house, went to the hair salon, got my kids, brought them back for three picture....whew!  I was exhausted - but boy did my house look clean.  That does not even begin to tell you what I did in the week before with the cleaning, the scrubbing, re-arranging, primping and even a little bit of planting in the backyard - in the rain.  I know, I know I have issues, but in my deffense the backyard was going to possibly show up in some photos - and dead plants are not my thing.

I will keep you posted on the press and when (and if) it makes it to print.  I don't ever believe it till I see it and touch it.

Have Some Press Won't You?

December 4, 2008

In one of my last posts, the one about the Economy took quite a bit of time to write.  I did not want to come off negative, yet I wanted people to be realistic.  I know it's not vogue to sometimes tell it like it is is - but I think that is a trait an Entrepreneur needs to have.  I was honestly surprised not have seen more negative, if not combative responses or comments to my post.  I did get a nice comment from someone that asked about PR though, and that I can help with;

"One of my weaknesses is PR; I've never done it and have no clue how to go about getting press coverage for our products. Can you share some advice on this subject as well..."

                                                                                                                CarolMatisak of The Monogramed Divas

 Good at Getting Some Press

Getting press is a trial and error for the most part. The process is just as much about the end result as how you got there.  Sometimes it is who you know, sometimes it is just being the right place at the right time - and other times it can change your business (that would be when Oprah has you on her show and you sell 10,000 widgets in 10 minutes - ya that can change things).  Though I am not an expert I have had some amazing press and some incredible luck (not Oprah luck, but luck).  You can go to my website if you want to see the press we got - or if you are as tired of it as I am, please read on:

Who Am and What Do I do?

You need a good elevator pitch abut your product or what it is you do.  A quick one, that is one or two sentences.  Sarah Jane, of Sarah Jane Studios has a great one on her site.  Own that pitch, be able to announce it to a group of strangers, type it into an email when asked what you do - memorize that baby!  You can always elaborate and or condense but you have to own it.  Nothing is more frustrating then getting a 3 paragraph description from an Entrepreneur explaining what she does, why she does it and how she does it.  No one cares that your daughter ruined your prototype and that your fubbly wubbly husband wuvs you to death, no one - sorry.  The people that really don't care - journalists.

Journalists are very busy people and expect you to get to the point quickly.  Face it, if you are pitching them you are one of maybe a dozen or 3 dozen people.  Get to the point quickly, and if you have memorized the pitch then you can do it quickly.  Even if you do not get the piece, or get interviewed do know they will be more than likely to talk to you again than to old Ms. Crafty McCraftperson who's email was 4 pages long description of how she dries her flowers using the sun and her mother's special recipe.

But What is Your Story?

Second you will need a story about how you started your business or why you started or how you came up with this great idea.  Put this story on your website!  If your story is lame (I saw it on line and decided I could do that too) you may want to re-think your business model.  Also, throw some "human interest" into it.  For years anything written about a Mompreneur, Mommypreneur,WAHM (work at home mom) got instant attention.  You almost did not even have to try very hard to get a reporter to listen to you.  Now, I would say that story is kind of.....dead.  Don't shoot the messenger  - but the story has been played out.  Find an angle and own it - do your research, see what other stories resonate with you.  I am not saying lie, but make your story worth reading , write (or speak) well.

Second, you need to be able to adjust and massage your story depending on who you are speaking with.  An editor from Woman's Day and a journalist from Entrepreneur Magazine - different spin.  One wants the feel good warm and fuzzy 'I am a Mommy and I work" story, the other - facts, numbers, statistics.  Carrie Weir, a friend and another entrepreneur who was once a journalist claims your story is just as important as your product. 

Love the Limelight

One more important piece to this press puzzle - you need to love the attention.  And that is not like, I mean LOVE the attention - really, really.  You have to be a good spokesperson, have a good photo you can email in a heartbeat and like to smile while you talk about your baby...er business.  If you do not like talking about yourself or your company - press is not for you.  It has to be something you enjoy doing.  Also do not be too hard on yourself - know that you will fail, not everyone will write about you.  However, you just never know what may happen - if you talk to everyone you know something may happen to you and your business.  If you never talk about it, you won't make any good connections.

Be Realistic about the Outcome

Press and publicity is not the end all to the success of your business.  It can help, it gets your name ou there but it does not equal sales.  Trust me I know this from experience and from other women that have had a lot more press than me.   People magazine featuring your product does not guarantee sales, Ellen holding up your ornaments on National TV does not guarantee sales either.  Sometimes all press does is over-inflate the head and ego of the person, so be careful.  Once you are out there - you are out there, and your life is public.  Just make sure you are okay with that.  There are no alias's for running your own business.

Publicity for the Small Business Owner

February 25, 2008.

It is official, I get to be a contributing writer to this great group of local ladies, my peeps if you will out in the west - Silicon Valley Moms Blog that is.  I get to contribute posts to this great blog about Mom's (check out the site, there are other great sites in New York, Chicago and Washington DC).  So to thank everyone who helped me get where I am today, I have written a little acceptance speech:

"Um (fighting back tears) I would just like to thank the little people that helped me get where I am today- without you I would be nothing.  Thank you for the people I stepped on, the people I crushed and those that I totally beat to win this opportunity.  You like me!  You really, really like....excuse me while I barf in my mouth a tad, you know I am joshing you, right?"

Okay so I have Awards Show on the brain....I did watch the Oscars, and the (yawn) acceptance speeches were boring, the show was okay (though I am totally in love with John Stewart).  I really have been toying with this subject for a long time - Celebrity endorsements. 

The Oscars & The Celebrities

How much power or influence do celebrities really have.  How much money does it put it your pocket if one is seen and photographed wearing your shirt or getting one of your products?  Can a price tag be put on the celebrity that trots around town with your product on her adorable off-spring? Or her babies toushie?

The celebrity endorsement - is it all it is cracked up to be?  I wonder how you can equate a price tag to that.  I mean, I wonder why no one walked down the red carpet with one of my Name Plaques on their arm, or a Birth Certificate around there neck.  Ya, bit um unlikely right?

I am happy to say I have a few celebs with my products either given as gifts or they have them (or  so they say, they may have just chucked it in the garbage after, but I hope they have it).  I am happy to work with a wonderful boutique in Beverly Hills and I am always ready to do a favor or RUSH out an order - I mean it is Beverly Hills for pete's sake. 

I jump through hoops for the Beverly Hills Boutique.  Well, truth be told is I tend to set a fire drill off when any store calls in with a favor, I really think customer service is the most important part of my business.  The owner of this exclusive shop is very easy to work with, very kind, and I met her in person.  There is nothing like shaking hands with a business partner - I highly recommend it.  She has always been very good to me, and I will continue to jump through hoops for her - no matter who the customer is. 

Anyhoo - I digress, I do get a bit geeked up when I hear that I get to contribute to a gift basket for Adam Sandler, um I about pee my pants.  When I hear that Gary Shandling purchased a gift basket with MY birth certificate it in - woo hoo, I love me some of his shows!  When I get a thank you card from Charlize Theron, saying she loves the plates I made for her dog's - I scream and skip around the office showing everyone the note.  And, when the almighty Ms. Oprah Winfey sends a thank you card for some special ornaments I made for her dogs - I literally make everyone touch the card, in hopes that some of her "magic" would rub off on someone.

The Price of Publicity

I have been very blessed, very lucky and I have worked very hard for the publicity I have gotten  for Jamie's Painting  & Design.  For every pitch that landed me a product placement or a feature story, I guarantee you there are 34 in the garbage can.  For every letter or email, or no response that pretty much says, "Thanks but no thanks", there is ONE reporter that loves my products.  Persistence is the name of the game and follow up.  These days, I am not as dedicated to the press as I once was, nor do I have the band-with to follow up.  I should, I know but there are not enough hours in the day.  If you want press, go out and get it - it just takes a dedication and commitment.

We did use a publicist once, and she is an amazing woman and had wonderful insight.  We invested some money into our Pet line and then did a full publicity campaign.  The publicity we got was good, the Ellen Show was amazing and the price was (gulp) pricey.  We did well though - it was a good experience, but again my follow up was not what it should have been.  The fault is not on my publicist, it is on me.  It costs a lot of money to have the publicist do all of the work, and by work I mean:

• Send out product samples to possible publications, journalists, editors, TV shows, newspapers, e-zines and bloggers.
• Write a great pitch to tell journalists about your "pet project".
• Follow up on all these leads.
• Wait awhile then follow up again on the leads that look like they could be good.
• Send out professional photographs to magazines and newspapers that are interested.
• Follow up again on the leads.

The cost of a good publicist is anywhere from five to ten thousand dollars for any project.  I had one publicst from New York call me back in 2003 and offer to represent me for $5,000 to $8,000 a month retainer - I laughed at her, or snorted sort of.  Now, I know she must work hard, but I did not have that kind of disposable income. 

Do Celebrities or PR Equal Money?

This is a tough one to define, or determine.  The Ellen DeGenneres Show increased our sales I am not denying  that.  A now defunct Celebrity Magazine featured our plaque and it became a best-seller.  The other press we got never made much of an impact.  Though looking back I can equate a few things to press:

• Press makes people think your business is "the next big thing"
• Press opens doors for you, new accounts, new customers and new employees
• You never know when someone will pick up an old magazine you were once in

I think that to figure out whether a publicity campaign was a success or not you MUST look at the cost of the campaign, and then figure the sales.  As painful as this is - you have to figure out if the "Celebrity photo" equals sales, or if the feature in a local newspaper creates new accounts.  This is hard, I know - I love the publicity, but I sometimes question it. 

Easy for Me to Say

I am not the most famous person in my industry, not by a long shot.  I have used the press to my advantage in every way possible (trust me you have to) to grow my business.  I have had a lot of press, and I have worked for most of it - it was my core focus for quite awhile.  After having my share of some amazing publicity I am wondering what the price of fame is.  Does it put food on the table?  Does it open up doors?  Does it actually create more press?

The Best Press

Sometimes press comes much later, after you approached a reporter.  I commented on a Wall Street Journal article in January of 2004, it resonated with me.  Eleven months later the journalist was doing an article on families goals, entrepreneurs - she called me.  She quoted me.  I was in the frickin' Wall Street Journal due to a kind, well thought out email.  No agent, no publicist, just me sending a nice email.

The largest increase in direct sales was due to a product placement in Better Homes & Garden Kids' Room Edition (Fall '04).  Our direct sales increased 100% for over a year - everyone kept the magazine and continued to order product.  This was all from one simple email I sent the editor, alone.  I still talk with her, and I love to remind her how much of an impact her magazine had on my business.

So do you think publicity always equals sales?  Has anyone found it to change their business over night? Inquiring minds want to know!

A Little of This and a Little of That....

November 15, 2007.

Press for Warm Biscuit Bedding

Remember how I mentioned earlier how I did not care if the press said my name or my company's name?  Remember  how I was going to be the bigger person.....well I still AM!  I guess, I was being tested, because my name nor my company name was listed - and I could care less.

Today Warm Biscuit Bedding's personalized holiday plates (those would be some we made for them) were featured on the Atlanta Radio station KICKS 101.5.  The segment is by Katy Swab a shopping expert, we are also featured on her blog too.  She mentions our Thanksgiving Plate, our Christmas and Hanukkah Plates we make for Warm Biscuit Bedding.

Forum for Creative People

Someone at some point linked to my blog in an email, well I clicked on it and found this amazing place called The Switchboards.  The website states, "The Switchboards began when a group of indie business women decided that there needed to be a place on the web where they could talk "shop"....creative shop that is!"

I would highly recommend joining the forum and reading about all the topics they have.  The topics range from a directory listing of all the women involved (their are lots!) to deals, critiques, legal, PR, Hints, Goals and Link Exchange.  They have a Private Forum that I have yet to join, but it discusses more "sticky" issues for business women to chat privately. 

I love the quotes that are peppered through the site, the one I read today said:

"Diamonds are nothing more than chunks of coal that stuck to their jobs."

- Malcolm Stevenson Forbes

Some Good Reads

So if you are swamped with holiday sales and do not want to work, here are some more blogs to book mark.  Not that I would know what that was like, I am working very, very hard today!

My Little Dish - My good friend London (I know, blah blah blah we know about London) well she has decided to finally re-visit her blog (one year later that is).  The good news is she is really letting us take a glimpse inside her life and her work.

The Mommy Blog - I love this blog, and I may have mentioned it earlier.  I do tend to read it late at night and laugh till my sides hurt.  If you find your self snorting while reading, don't blame me!

Allen Designs - This a very talented artist named Michelle Allen and she has much information and great photographs.  I am still trying to work through the older blogs, but I love what she talks about.

Karla Dornacher - another artist blog, this is one of the blogs that got me thinking about what I was really thankful for.  She has a great style, and again still trying to play catch up.

Daisy Cottage - this is described as a "happy sunny place" where Kim shares her views on simple treasures of living, to thrifting and even family recipes.  I only recently found this but the photos alone make me want to re-decorate (once again).  Very happy place to go, and some more crafting, sewing ideas that I can so admire and covet, but so can not do.

Bloglines - if you would like to subscribe to any of these fabulous blogs or um like one written by moi - you can use bloglines.  It is like a newspaper that tells you when your blogs have updated.  I am doing it as we speak because I too find one I love then I lose it....

So, there you have it please, talk amongst yourselves for the next three days.  I get to go away for the weekend to a great resort , alone with hubby and um, no one will give me my laptop.  So, either I sneak it in the car or I am gonna blog on my blackberry - not a pretty site.  Have a great weekend!

Say Goodnight Gracie

July 25, 2007.

I happen to catch a glimpse of an article about Oprah's fortunes, and how she is the highest paid woman, most successful, blah blah blah....but I had to read - you know how I love her!  Then I caught a glimpse of another article about the death of her dog - I was shocked.  I was so sorry to see her little Golden Retriever, Gracie had passed away, though I did not know I her I did have a connection to her...no I do not mean a strange stalker type, read on:

Way back in the summer of 2005 I was having a brainstorm session with a company we do products for.  We were discussing ideas, options, possibilities for new products - gabbing on and on.  She mentioned some press she had gotten, and we were commenting on the possible company's that would be featured on Oprah's Favorite Things Show (now defunct).  I then had an idea - why don't I make ornaments for her two cocker spaniels, and her three new golden puppies? 

We were giddy with excitement, I quickly painted samples for all five of her dogs and shipped them out.  We had them hand delivered to Mrs. O herself with a kind note.  They were a gift from our two companies.

Nothing happened.  The months went by and we never heard back.  No call to be on her show, no phone call for our products to be in her magazine.  No plane ticket in the mail to ask for me to join he for the holidays.  No thank you card in the mail.........wait a minute, what was this? What did we get in the mail come October?

An official Oprah Winfrey Show Thank You card - "....Ms. Winfrey received the Christmas ornaments you sent for Sophie and Solomon, Luke, Layla and Gracie.  Thank you for sharing such a wonderful gift with Ms. Winfrey and her little people with fur.  Please know she appreciates your kindness.  Sincerely, Executive Staff"

I made everyone in the office touch it for good luck.  I rubbed it all over myself for good Oprah luck - no not really, but it did seem magical.  An acknowledgment anyway - wow, an ada' girl from Ms. Winfrey - pretty cool.   And.........that is why I started my personalized line of ceramic pet products- we thought, if Oprah likes the ornaments, won't everyone want one?  I am pretty sure Oprah does not realize that she was the reason I started making personalized pet products, but she was.   

So, I just wanted to say how I am truly sorry for Oprah's loss.  I know what it is like to lose a pet, and it breaks your heart, especially such a young dog.  Sadly, this is not the first time we have lost a customer or someone that received one of our plaques.  A loss of any loved one, whether it be an animal or a human, makes you stop and look around and appreciate life.

Press or Just Hype?

pregnancy_cover
Originally uploaded by mama_lentz.

February 24, 2007.

Gosh, I hope that is what day it is.....I have been in a fever induced stupor for the last three days or four, but who is counting....now both my kids have it. What a fun-filled weekend we will be having!

There is a small blurb about me (with a photo yuck) in the March issue of Pregnancy Magazine. It's a very small blurb....however it says I started a 'home based business' and now run one. To me it sounds like I sell Tupperware or something off my kitchen table - whatever. I KNOW that is not the impression I gave to the reporter who interviewed me, but again - whatever.  No press is bad press...

So....where am I going with this? I consider myself a bit savvy on getting press, and able to tell the difference between press and advertisement....apparently I don't know everything.

A couple of weeks ago I sent out some of our new products to Trade Magazines, Newsletters, E-zines, to show them what we were releasing in 2007. This is something I recommend you do during the slow months and it's a great way to get press - it may take months to come to fruition, but it can create quite a buzz about your products. I sent out about ten emails and got one back, inviting me to participate in there, let's call it "Desingers on the Up". This was a reputable website, newsletter that recommends products, been on TV, etc. Large following of subscribers, and over 100,000 clicks per page (as the media guide states) when the "Designer Guide Thingie" drops.

So, after my fever subsided and I was able to read my email, I opened up the email and went over the requirements. Uh, ya...it costs upwards of a $1000 for them to "recommend" me as a great new upcoming designer. And, get this, if I am willing to pay extra they will write about me in there blog!!! Ooooh, I can hardly contain myself.

Needless to say I passed on the opportunity, I don't advertise, nor do I pay for press. Since I sell wholesale and direct, I do not want to advertise and compete with my sales channels. Also, I find this kind of press mis-leading.

So when reading press here are a few items to remember:

Just because you see a product or a company featured in a magazine or newsletter it does not mean that consumers are even buying the product. I know of a company that has been featured in numerous magazines, toots her own horn about all the great press she is getting to anyone and everyone. All of the websites that sell her stuff claim they have never, and I mean never sold any of her products.

Celebrity endorsing a product could mean a number of things. Companies often send products to celebrities, for free. Companies sometime send products out to celebrities, and just start telling reporters that celebrity loved it. Now, sometimes celebrities are clients, but don't believe everything you read. For the record, Charlize Theron, Adam Sandler, Roy Disney, Oprah Winfrey and Gary Shandling have purchased our products and/or have been given them as gifts - true story.

Lastly (this is what I just learned), companies pay for press. Sometimes an article looks like it is editorial, where it is actually an advertorial (very hard to decipher, this is an advertisement written like an article, it usually says in small letters: this is an advertisement). Other times a company has paid for the spot to get themselves featured as a great new designer, with no fine print saying they paid for it.

Don't get me wrong, press is great, I am a huge fan of it, it can help a small struggling business and it can put you on the map, so to speak. But please people, don't believe the hype....

TV Interview part II

View From the Bay 01-08-07
Originally uploaded by mama_lentz.

January 7, 2007.

Here is a quick shot of my daughters room for the TV show I was interviewed for back in November, View From the Bay (ABC 3:00-4:00 SF Bay Area and streamlined on the Internet, the segment airs Jan 8, 2007).  The segment was edited this week.  They were at our home for over two hours and we discussed many things on and off the camera.  Lisa Quinn, from HGTV was the person who interviewed me and I really can honestly say I totally enjoyed  myself.  She was so nice, as were the producer the camera man - it was a great experience.  They have since asked me back to possibly do a couple other segments for children's rooms, even a nursery with Pregnancy Magazine is in the talks.

Over the years I have been interviewed many times and this was by far one of the best interviews (well so I think now, wait till it airs tomorrow).  Regardless of how the segment is edited, I did really enjoy myself.  I had a good time, knew my products, knew the answers to the questions....whether I come off good or not at the time I felt it went really well.

Having been interviewed live vs. on the phone it is a different type of interview. Speaking with a camera pushed up right in front of your face is something you are just NOT prepared for.  This could be great for JPD and me....or not.  I am hopeful it goes well and I don't come off as a babbling, sweaty, over-animated woman, waving my arms, saying thank you and smiling like a mad woman.  And if I do.....well.....well, I um, I may have to change my name and move out of state and uh start selling something else.

Things I needed to remember when being interviewed on TV:

• Keep your arms down in case you are sweating (which I was)
• Talk slowly, speak clearly (I should do this all the time)
• Know what you want to talk about, what is your agenda
• Listen to the interviewer, pay attention to their agenda
• Smile
• Don't say um
• Be animated and excited about you are talking about
• Listen
• Do not talk over the interviewer
• Thank them, and thank them again and again (this was easy to remember) 

And last but not least I am sure you are asking how (I know you want to know) I got the chance to be on the show.....I sent a pitch to the show and other ABC shows when I was on EMHE.  AS soon as we got that show I wanted to expand on the publicity. I followed up to every producer I sent the pitch to, I kept calling to find out who got my information forwarded to them.  See the EMHE not a bad thing after all...that did work out for us!

First TV interview....

View from the Bay 01-08-07
Originally uploaded by mama_lentz.

January 8, 2007

This is a quick shot of my son's room. I will be featured on a TV show that airs tomorrow, showcasing what I did to decorate my son and daughters rooms. The segment also features my business and how I started it.

January 8, 2006.
View From the Bay (www.viewfromthebay.com)
3:00-4:00 ABC SF Pacific Standard Time Zone

The show will be on their website for 90 days. Our segment was filmed for the House Doctor segment. See the following photo for my daughters room.

JPD & PPG on The Ellen Degeneres Show

Pig
Originally uploaded by mama_lentz.

Here is Ellen's other dog, the ornament was also featured on the November 29, 2006 show (The Ellen Degeneres Show that is).  It will re-air on December 7th at 1:00 a.m. on the Oxygen Channel to boot.

So National TV for JPD and PPG....and this time you do not need to pin your eyelids open in fear of missing our image fly across your TV screen.

Late last week we sent two personalized (see previous post) ornaments made specially for Ellen (http://ellen.warnerbros.com/).  We got a call late yesterday from the producer asking how to spell my last name and how to pronounce it (Ha ha jokes on me she still said it wrong) but that was all they asked.

Then early this morning as I was driving my daughter to school I quickly checked my email (new blackberry is fabulous...no?) at the stop light (no I was not driving).  I almost crashed into the car in front of mine when I got an email from one of my channels congratulating me on having ornaments on the show. 

I have been on cloud 9 ever since!  I hope we can get it up on our site soon.  I have only heard from friends how the segment went, but I get to go home and catch it in about 30 minutes.  It's a real quick segment but apparently she shows the two ornaments, thanks me on the air, mentions where I am from and then begs for a tree (gotta go get her one now...).

So...not bad for a Wednesday!  And a quick shout out to my new buddy......THANKS ELLEN!!!  I OWE YOU!!!....pssssst could you put in a good word to Oprah for me!!

Ellen's dog Wolf

Wolf
Originally uploaded by mama_lentz.

November 29, 2006 featured on the Ellen Degeneres Show

EMHE Name Tiles

EMHE Name Tiles
Originally uploaded by mama_lentz.

Cheerleader Name Tiles made for the EMHE show. The colors of the letters can be changed, as can the 'look' of the cheer leaders. We also give the customer the choice to change the colors of the cheer leaders outfits