We don’t really know how to start this post… and to be completely honest we didn’t know if we should even release it. We’ve gone back and forth, side to side, up and down debating, but we truly want to be open with all our readers/followers because we know there are others out there going through this very same thing. And one huge goal of ours is to inspire as many people as possible. Soooooo no smoke and mirrors here people, just REAL thoughts. Here goes…

Some of you may or may not know but for the entire existence of Purple Nickel Studio we have both worked regular full time jobs on top of running our own business. We’ve kept it under wraps unless someone asked and even then it was a sore subject. We wanted our photography clients to see us as professionals and gain our trust. We LOVE our business and have spent every extra second, minute and hour we could find in the day working on it. It was EXHUASTING!!! We rarely got to see our close family (who all live within driving distance of us) and close friends. Needless to say we never had a day off. First we were ok with it, because we knew it was needed to grow our business. But after 3 years, it definitely drains on you, your relationships and ultimately your business. We couldn’t help but ask ourselves ‘when will our time come, when will our business be full time, when will we not work two jobs?’ Everyday we punched the clock at what we called our ‘robot’ jobs we knew this wasn’t who we are. We were wasting away all while knowing we could be spending time taking Purple Nickel to the next level. Ugh… it was a bit depressing to say the least. And worst of all, as we focused all this energy on working two jobs our relationship began to suffer. Yes we saw each other ALL THE TIME, but there was little time to do the things we love like going to see a movie, checking out our favorite shops, taking a day trip, spending time with our family/friends and most importantly working on our home remodel we started over 3 years ago!!! All of this was put on hold. It made us sick to our stomachs. We had lost site of who we were, what we were passionate about as individuals and as a couple. We knew we had to do something about it, but isn’t it sad how a little piece of paper (MONEY) can strike fear into your heart and stunt your growth. Until one day all that fear gets tossed right out the window. Noooo we didn’t win the lottery (well financially speaking). Three weeks ago our lives were turned upside down. We were informed that our ‘robot’ jobs were no more, our location was closing down and there were NO available positions for us. What were we to do? The answer was simple!

How we are moving forward…

Yes it happened sooooo fast (a matter of a few days), but when we sat down and discussed our future there was only one conclusion… to pursue our dream we call Purple Nickel Studio!!! Excited, nervous, anxious, scared, excited (did we say that already?) were the emotions we felt. Are we really gonna do this? Fear of change and loss of quote security did wash over us, but at the same time we couldn’t help but feel a little relieved. For the first time in our lives as individuals and as a couple we are free from working for ‘the man’. We now can create our own schedules with greater flexibility, give wayyyyyyy more attention to projects that have been put on hold, spend time with our family/friends and first and foremost expand our clientele. What a breath of fresh air… Heck we’ve had our studio location for months and have barely used it. That is going to change and it’s changing today!!! No more wondering ‘what if’. Life is way to short. No one is dying, it isn’t the end of the world, instead we’re choosing to live to our full potential. March 28th (today) is our first official day in our new full time positions. We’re moving our workspace out of our home and into the studio as we need to separate work from personal time . We just aren’t the ‘work from home’ type of people. We will finally get to be in a space that inspires and motivates us. We’ve got BIG plans for our business and we can’t wait to start rolling them out. Just imagine the new possibilities we have now that two brains can focus solely on our passion. It’s going to be endless… but in a good way. They say things happen for a reason and this was the kick in the pants we needed! OK, OK I hear the music starting to play… time to wrap this up. One final thing, we’d like to extend a hugh THANK YOU to our family/friends that have supported us along the way and most importantly our wonderful clients who have allowed us to share a piece of their world. It is why we do this. And to those we have not met, we cannot wait to get to know you.

Here’s to jumping off the cliff and creating the biggest splash EVER!!! (Now if we can only remember to wrap our arms around our knees for a canon-ball and NOT do a belly flop… cause OUCH… those sting)

Here’s to the first day of the rest of our lives!!!

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I’m excited to share these Senior REP cards I did for one of our awesome clients… She rocked her session + had a killer personality, thus why we thought she’d make a perfect SeniorREP!!! If your interested in becoming one of our SeniorREPs just drop us a line.

Anyway, enough about that. I want to take a moment and give a little insight on how I approach design. I don’t call it my philosophy just yet because in my opinion it takes years to develop a true succinct way of doing things. So for now let’s just call it a bit of my philosophy. My approach is simple… stay simple! I really don’t know any other way to describe it (mainly because I suck at writing). For me, a successful and powerful design breaks it’s components down to the absolute essentials. In other words, how can I communicate my intention with the least amount of fluff. For instance, when I sat down to layout these SeniorREP cards I knew I wanted to use a bold graphic, the least amount of text possible and one powerful image. I’m drawn to straight lines (almost obsessive about it), whether it be in architecture, furniture, typography, etc. They are in everything I design, one way or another. I am also on a constant search for order. How things come together in space is just as important as the information itself. I guess it’s the only way my tiny little brain can comprehend it. If something is too busy, I go NUTS!!! So looooong story short that’s a bit of my design philosophy. Key point, strip whatever it is your designing down to its core. Because the core is the central, innermost part of anything… according to Dictionary.com

In case you’re wondering, I used Moo to print these cards. If you haven’t heard of Moo Cards then you’ve officially been living under a rock. Kinda like that guy in the Geico commercial. We also provided our REP with a cool carrying case (also by Moo) so she can pass out the cards in style…

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