Two Painters In A Pod . com

Faux Painting Podcast Two Painters In A Pod Original Podcast Posted May 11 , 2007

Hi… I’m Debra Conrad and this is my podcast all about my favorite subject…

Decorative Painting for Fun and Profit!

Welcome to Two Painters in a Pod, The original Podcast for Painters.

Thank you for joining me for my first podcast. I’ve got lots of information to share with you, so let’s get started. 

I’m planning to do a new show about once a week; - Sometimes less (I do take vacations)

We’re going to be talking about ways to have fun with decorative painting and make money with it too.  I rarely get tired of talking about Faux and Mural painting and I am so excited to be talking with you about decorating your spaces or earning a nice profit with Decorative Painting.

Their really won’t be a shortage of topics to cover, and if you have any ideas just drop me an email at debra@twopaintersinapod.com.

Today… I want to tell you a little bit about why I am doing this podcast and then I want to also share with you some topics that we are going to be covering in future podcasts.

First of all…I want to make sure that you know that podcasts and podcasting are just a way of hearing this show, when and where you want to.  Podcasts are in a format that allows you to download the “show” and listen on your computer or you can transfer the audio download to any mp3 player and listen to me where ever you want.  It’s like having a “TIVO” just for audio content.

What this means to me…is that it allows me to become a radio host.  I can talk about every thing and anything I want… I can include commercials if I want….and I can do interviews if I want.  It’s all about sharing ideas and information with you.

I am not a professional radio host…you can tell that!  I don’t have the best broadcasting voice and I’m sure I will get nervous and tongue tied at times.  It will get better as we go along.  I’m sure I will learn more about mics and other equipment from the pros. 

That is exactly the way you should feel about your painting!  You may not be a professional painter right now…but with time, practice, patience and a kick in the pants   J  You could be painting your way to big fat profits!  I did it, and I have friends who did it… and I’ll bet you can too.

I got my first itch to do decorative painting in 1990.  I have always loved to decorate and try new things.  At that time I had a retail store that sold local crafts and décor items.  While on vacation, I stopped at a book store looking for decorating books and I found the book that started it all for me.  Decorative Style by Devin McCloud. 

You can find a review of this book at: http://debraconrad.com/im-an-artist/

This book is 350 pages of amazing information… some ideas, I haven’t seen anywhere else.  Kevin was a set designer until he went into the interior decorating business.  Now…I know you might think it’s strange to use set design in home decorating…but that couldn’t be further from the truth. 

Home decorating is “set design” … and you need to know how to create hundreds of different options for your clients ranging from styling to color.  You have got to know how to do this work yourself.  You have got to get imaginative ideas from all kinds of sources and then figure out how to implement them into your décor style. 

The first thing I taught myself out of this book was how to get a “verdigris effect”.  I was reading about how I could take plastic or new metal objects and make them look like old weathered copper or brass with green crumbly salty-looking corrosion.  This was and still is a very popular finish for décor items. 

I thought the only way to get this “look” was to use toxic acids and a very time consuming process – and the item had to be copper and brass. Imagine…I had just found a way to get this look on PLASTIC or any metal object.  I hit the yard sales.  This process was so easy and cool looking, and here is the kicker!!!  I was the only one in my area who had figured out how to do it!

And…. the items flew out the door of my little decor shop. 

Over the next few years, I tried many of the faux effects from this book and others.  Sponge Painting was coming into style…and I learned to do that look… (not like it was hard to learn).  I did it in a few rooms in my home and I was hooked on what paint can do to transform a room. 

So where does that leave you and I??? Well this podcast is going to appeal mostly to those that want to get into the business of decorative painting or are already painting and not making much profit… (boy.. I have been there).   This podcast will even appeal to the professional painter that is making a profit and has employees, although I think that I will try to interview as many professionals as I can.  They have so much knowledge, and I love to learn something new, don’t you?

Before I go any further…I want to give a shout out to my good friend and painting buddy, Tawn.  She is the reason we are called “TwoPaintersInAPod.com…but that is a story I’ll share with you in the next podcast.  The logo at the top of the web site with the two little painting peas was drawn by Tawn.  She has done a ton of header graphics and other web art for me.  If you are interested in contacting her about doing some graphics for you… you can email her at tawn (at) twopaintersinapod (dot )com.  She is more fun to work with … and at this point she is just starting on the graphic thing so she isn’t toooo busy yet.   You won’t be sorry with Tawn in your arsenal of business product designers.

Okay, so now let’s cover a little bit about what this podcast will cover in each week’s episode.

Each week’s topic will be a small – tiny slice of life as a professional decorative painter.

I have to make a confession to you.

I am not doing much decorative painting myself at this time.  I am of baby boomer age and have been painting on a ladder and scaffolding for over 15 years.  I love what I do and have many clients waiting for me to “get back to work”. 

But…I have some back issues and some neck issues and ….well I won’t bore you with any of the details.  I would love to be painting every day, creating art in people’s homes that they can enjoy and be proud of.  And… well I’m not painting now so I thought I would share my ideas and experiences with you.  I think decorative painting is one of the best businesses in the world to get into, and yes, you can make a profit in this business.

I hope to soon have my co-host/ painting buddy Tawn to share my weekly banter and she will probably pick on me as well.  I’ll keep her a secret for now…I haven’t quite got the gist of recording telephone calls yet.  So I hope to have that going soon as well.

So… every week we will look at

• Painting how-to… I might give some insight to a painting project I have done,
• How to get new clients… this is always a popular subject for new business owners,
• What products I have used and recommend… You will be surprised as how much you can spend on products you don’t really need,
• Some project ideas… I’ll share some ideas we had and how they were implemented.
•  How to go about promoting yourself – including what materials you will need.
• Or we might talk about the challenges of the decorative painting business… and how to provide good customer service even when the customer is a nightmare.

You will find a description of each week’s podcast on the website.  I will list all the links, products and resources mentioned in that weeks episode.  If I can I will post photos and/or instructions as well.  I hope to be able to offer transcripts of each show as well. 

I highly recommend that you visit our sister websites…

• Learn new and different painting techniques at www.thatpainterlady.com,
• Sign up for THAT Painter Lady newsletter on that site as well.
• A ton of Painting for Profit Information www.fauxpaintingforprofit.com
• Along with a Professional Painting Newsletter.

So, regardless of whether you’re a beginner, a seasoned professional or somewhere in between, this podcast is going to be full of useful information for you. 

I want to thank you for listening to our podcast and sticking it out until the end. I am brand new at this…and I am sure I will get better as we go along. 

Send me your feedback on the site.  Every week you can use the “comment” box on the site or by hitting the big ??? question mark button and asking a question.  I’d love to know what you think and I’d love to know what you want me to talk about on this show. So I encourage you to give me your feedback…I am very curious to know what you think about the first show…because the first one will probably not be up to anyone’s radio d.j. standards, but it will be fun for all of us to connect and learn about the Faux Painting Business.

Oh … and the sound might be awful. You might here Ted or Suzie in the background (the two little Yorkies in my life).  Or a jet might fly over while I am recording…I live near an airbase.

So that’s it for this week…tune in next week and I’ll give you the scoop on how this podcast and site got its name.  And I will be sharing ideas about where you start  - “Getting Started” in the decorative painting business.