Blogging: Vice or Vision

Image from the Blog Herald. 

Why have a blog? Is it a vice or is it a vision? Some people knit to keep their hands busy, others smoke. I found blogging became my favorite spare time filler a few years back. At first the blog filled those spare moments at work to dash off my thoughts about a project detail or product I liked. Then, I found it became an addiction that usurped my time when I should have been working, sleeping, paying attention to my family and MY LIFE. Blogging is something I do as a past time, not a full time job. If you find yourself blogging in the wee hours of the morning, communicating with your blogroll more than your clients or family, you may have crossed over into the land of blog addiction. To test your blog addiction, click here.

Not one to fall prey into addictive behavior, I saw a pattern and learned to curb the amount of time I spend on this page. A) Blogging is a fun past time, but this isn't my day job. B) I enjoy getting away from the computer. Work, clients, activities in my life that take precedence over the blog. C) It takes time to create stories for the blog. Before I knew it, I was bombarded by press people looking for a landing page to promote their clients' latest hot new product. It takes time to keep up a blog on a daily basis and I had to ask myself is it worth it? Truth by told, I don't care how many hits I get, and I don't care if I am on your blog roll or not. I am not one to follow the crowd to keep up.

"The time it takes to work 

on a blog worth it?

PR people, please excuse me if I can't answer all your emails requesting blog space to promote your latest dinnerware pattern, air freshener, rugs, and what nots. I am sure your products are fabulous, but I have to draw the line somewhere. I say let's get back to magazines, have your client buy ad space in magazines. People: buy and read magazines! It's awful so many great magazine bit the dust in the last few years. The down side of blogging I see is that it contributed to killing magazines. There are thousands of bloggers out there clipping and scanning pretty pics out of magazines to create their own sort of blog magazine. That's fine I suppose if it makes you money, but that's not for me.

If it's not making me 

oodles of cash, why blog? 

Hats off to those of you who have the wherewithal to keep up with yours on a daily basis. I will not be joining that master group any time soon, it's a full time job blogging daily. I know some of you have parlayed your blogging into cash producing ventures, and that is truly fabulous. I have enjoyed meeting wonderful people through my blog, and the new career opportunities that have been made available to me through this blog. But for me, this blog will remain an extension of my work focus: kitchens and cabinetry design and a smattering of baths and tile. When I have time to post about something wonderful, I will do it, but for now, you can catch me commenting in 140 words or less on Twitter as @cabinetgal1.

Times up, spell check, preview, and publish! I'm done with my blog writing for today.

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Live from KBIS, through Tweets!

Brizo Panel Discussion, Form that Functions. 

Left to right: Janice Costa, Jason Wu, Judd Lord, Cheryl Kees Clendenon

<<<<Streaming news from KBIS via Twitter>>>>  

Here are highlights from the Brizo Panel Discusion held at KBIS 4/17/10, Chicago. Read what's trending: 
Photo brought to you by Andie Day from Twit Pic, Brizo Panel


@InDetailSays,@brizofaucet, #kbis2010,, Brizo RSVP faucet. Judd sees trend toward less visual clutter and #JasonWu agrees


@InDetailSays,@brizofaucet, #kbis2010,, #jasonWu finds that fashion is iinforming many industries including #k&b industry through color, texture & especially technology !


Kitchen_Sync 

  

RT @brizo: #Jason Wu on success: design philosophy is qual. vs quantity; creates things relevant for the next 20 years. #KBIS panel


Kitchen_Sync 

  

RT @saintpetepaul RT @brizo #JasonWu: "Color and texture - that's all we do in so many ways." Sees more mixing than streamlining. #KBIS


JTGoldberg 

  

Not surprising: #Blogger19 rocks! RT @saintpetepaul: @Modenus: @InDetailSays is bringing down the house at Brizo panel discussion.


Kitchen_Sync 

  

RT @brizo: #Jason Wu on success: design philosophy is qual. vs quantity; creates things relevant for the next 20 years. #KBIS panel


Kitchen_Sync 

  

RT @AndieDay: @InDetailSays,@brizofaucet, Panel agrees that multigen design is relevant -sandwich gen may have adult child & parent home


CocinaDesigns 

  

RT @KitchAnn_Style: {Judd Lord} "There's a trend for less visual clutter" in product design and home decor#KBIS #BRIZO


brizo 

  

@cabinetgal1 @Kitchen_Sync Judd tweeting: Yes, in direct response to it. We are inundated with tech. We want to strip it away. #KBIS panel


Kitchen_Sync 

  

RT @brizo: @indetailsays Many clients in her area want to be green but don't want to bear the expense. #KBIS panel


cabinetgal1 

  

RT @DebbieSchaeffer: Fabulous time at KBIS! It all started with keynote speaker Sergio Zyman focus on Scientific Marketing. Lots of...


Kitchen_Sync 

  

RT @brizo: Jason Wu: fashion and home not two different worlds; designers have a lot in common. #KBIS panel


Kitchen_Sync 

  

*grin* RT @brizo: @indetailsays Aging in place can be a touchy subject. Sometimes you phrase it as a recommendation and do it. #KBIS panel

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I'm with Coco!

2010 is looking like a very good year. There I said it. Recession, so what? Last year was probably the toughest of my entire career with jobs downsized, coming to a halt or put on hold indefinitely.  There were so many of us in my industry here in Southern California that never saw it so bad. It felt like a depression. 


So where am I now? I will sum it up by saying I'm with Coco! Yes, I took the lemons life handed me and made lemonade. If Coco can do it, why not me I thought to myself.  

 http://www.facebook.com/imwithcoco

What's that you ask? If you haven't been following television media news about The Tonight Show and The Late Show, let's just say Conan O'Brien relationship with NBC ended abruptly.  "In Facebook terms, Conan O’Brien’s relationship with NBC just went from “it’s complicated” to “is single.” (MSNBCNews.com The Scoop). The same theory that applies in Conan's relationship applied to me as well. I am not too proud to say I took my lumps this year with lack of work. I have always enjoyed working in  Kitchen and Bath Design Showrooms, but with showrooms barely surviving, I had to figure out how to reinvent myself, take my job skills and love for all things kitchen and bath related and figure out what I could do with all this experience I have. 


My qualifications and skill set doesn't translate well into medical or insurance work. Now what? 


I got my degree in something else entirely, attended design school soon after that and then learned everything I know about my industry from on the job training and additional courses and studying. I love what I do, but where do I go from here when everything is at a standstill?  I can keep showing up everyday as an independent salesperson but that ain't paying the bills. 

O'Brien's public statement goes on to say " For 17 years, I've been getting paid to do what I love most and, in a world with real problems, I've been absurdly lucky." 

A NEW ERA CALLS FOR A NEW PARADIGM
I too considered myself fortunate for 14 years getting paid to do what I love most, in a world with real problems, I too have been absurdly lucky to have had the opportunities that have come my way. I have learned the business inside and out, from selling plumbing fixtures to helping out in the custom shop learning how to sand, stain and glaze doors. (Thanks L. Landsman! You are the best!), to designing and managing a design showroom. I have done it all and I love it! 


Someone (who does not understand the nature of our business) once asked me why I was concerned about what the plumber was doing. It is because what you do not know puts you in a position for getting in trouble. It's not that I want to do the contractor's or plumber's job, but you have to know the language of the business to communicate with your trades. It's that simple.  


Although I would like to say I came away with the same $32 million dollar golden parachute that Conan did, I came out of this recession stronger for it and with my sense of humor intact! I scrambled when I saw the market drop out. With the Expo stores closing, thousands out of work and even Home Depot maintaining hiring freeze's it didn't look good. I felt like Rose in the movie Titanic holding on to the railing for dear life before the ship went under.  I am proud to say I have worked hard to stay off of unemployment and have taken several temporary part time jobs to keep my self going when times where toughest. 


Despite the hard times of this past year, I have been fortunate to have met many wonderful designers throughout the country, no- strike that, through out the world, and have been fortunate to form lasting friendships. One of the great experiences I had this past winter was being invited as a guest of Brizo to attend the Jason Wu Fashion Show in New York City sponsored by Brizo. I wrote about it here. I am grateful for the experience and I owe Paul Anater of Kitchen and Residential Design a great deal of thanks for being part of that brain storm session that resulted in bringing so many of designers from around the country together for the Brizo event. Paul has the right idea, what you put out there in the world comes back to you. I wish the best success for Paul and for all my Blogger19 pals. It's really great to be able to share in each others joys and success stories. This is the right type of thinking and has kept me positive during the harder days.


My New Life as a Cabinet Sales Rep. 
First let me say I have nothing but respect for outside sales reps. This is one of the hardest jobs ever. There is a lot of rejection and a lot of competition. But that's OK because I am in it for the long haul.  I now understand why sales reps just show up unannounced. Otherwise you would never be able to book an appointment with some people. So I am still in the biz., still loving what I do, still passionate about good cabinet design, and excited about meeting so many more great designers to come. My new motto: My goal is to make you look good! I will do what it takes to provide the best service to you as your sales rep. Return your calls and get back to you in a timely manner and make sure you are well represented.

So more news on this blog to come, still on kitchen and bath design, and more news from me but this time from the sales rep's perspective.

Here's to Coco!

This blog post is dedicated to a great salesman who just passed away. Lee Lubkin, it was an honor to know you. You touched a lot of lives and you will be missed!  

 

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Permission to make a mess granted.

You've got to love these creative marketing types that elevate making a mess into something fun to do and a chance to win a free faucet. Be sure to tell your friends to make a mess too and enter a chance to win "my faucet", ok it's really Delta's Pilar Touch 2 0 faucet, but I now have one courtesy of Delta and love it. By the way, it is pronounced "Touch-Two-Oh", not Touch Twenty. Don't ask me why, but I think marketing was being cute with a play of words using a take off of water's own molecular symbol, H20. Touch20, H20. Get it?   

Here's what you do: It's really easy.  Basically, you make a mess with the widget at  www.deltafaucet.com/makeamess. That's my gingerbread man finger painting below, cleaning up with my, eh- I mean Delta's Pilar Touch₂O Faucet. 

Play around with it. Don't like your creation? Wash the canvas and start over again.  Once you are happy with your finger doodles, submit it to the online gallery and enter your chance to win a faucet. It will send you a confirmation email asking if you want to enter the contest. Fingers ready? Go make a mess! 
www.deltafaucet.com/makeamess 

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10 ‘gee-whiz’ products that will rocket your kitchen into the future

Wondering what's the buzz on new kitchen technology? Check out this great little article on MSN, "10 ‘gee-whiz’ products that will rocket your kitchen into the future", by Christopher Sololmon, to see what's the latest in forward thinking technology for the kitchen. When I was contacted by Chris Solomon in January, I was happy to contribute my opinion on the Anvil Motion for the article and pleased to see another item that has been on my radar for the last year was also included in the article. I talked about Anvil Motion back here and Delta Touch 20 technology here, here, here, and here.  Happy to be your bird-dog on hot new items. Enjoy the article.

Neat ideas! 

Also, pleased to see another nifty new item, Drawer Vac, made the list too. When you see the article link at MSN, you will see it's useful application for kitchen clean up, but I have another useful idea for vacuums. How about bathroom clean up? I can tell you that some of my most creative inspirations come from the most mundane tasks, one of them happens to be blow drying my very thick hair. I have a lot of hair and lose lots of it every time I brush. I hate seeing hair on the floor and hate even more the time it takes to sweep up. I am also a neat freak, so I needed a way to make bathroom clean up easier in the morning. Here is my own neat idea for keeping the bathroom tidy in the morning. Install a roll out tray inside a vanity cabinet and install a portable hose vacuum. Power up, grab the hose and floor clean up is a snap! It's a quick fix to a messy situation in the bathroom, it's even more convenient if you can have an outlet installed inside the cabinet. If you can't afford to install an automated toekick vac, this would be the ideal solution. So far, I am happy with my low tech vacuum fix. Hair and dust bunnies be gone! Clean up made simple. Your family will thank you for making clean up easier.    

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