“Don’t you love New York in the fall? It makes me wanna buy school supplies. I would send you a bouquet of newly sharpened pencils if I knew your name and address.” – You’ve Got Mail
I adore fall. The idea of seeing so much beauty in the world that’s dying only to be renewed next spring is amazing to me. What a serious masterpiece God created. It feels a bit like Joe Fox in YGM: “I’ve always felt like Fall is a season of promise just as much as it’s about change. Freshly-sharpened pencils have always made me feel like I could do anything I set my mind to. Like I could accomplish anything if I just had a freshly sharpened pencil.”
School supply nerds unite because that’s one of the most romantic things I’ve ever heard.
And the promise that comes with freshly sharpened pencils? It got me thinking…
Joe Foxx has it right with the pencils, but it’s Kathleen Kelly style art that out-foxes Foxx Books style-art every time.
Wanna know what I mean?
In this blog, I’m sharing WHY Kathleen Kelly style art (a.k.a. Original art from artists) is kicking Foxx Books (a.k.a. Box store art) to the curb.
PS — if you haven’t watched You’ve Got Mail, you definitely need to.
“HELPING PEOPLE BECOME”
Kathleen Kelly worked in her mother’s bookstore growing up, and says this about it:
I started helping my mother here after school when I was six years old. I used to watch her, and it wasn’t that she was selling books, it was that she was helping people become whoever they were going to turn out to be. When you read a book as a child it becomes part of your identity in a way that no other reading in your life does.
— Kathleen Kelly in You’ve Got Mail
Wow — if that isn’t the truth. When I think of books that I read as a child, so many of them helped me become who I am today.
You know what? So does ART. Whether it’s an actual identity or an aspiration identity, art helps you become who you ARE. The emotional connection you feel to art can connect you to the world outside in a way that not much else does.
Art can convey emotions, thoughts, events in a way that portrays your life and feelings so uniquely that no one else could ever have anything like it.
“NOT LIKE A HAT”
Okay, let’s get real. Who else has impulse bought a (insert WHATEVER it is here). For me? It’s jeans. I’m a capsule wardrobe lover to the core but I * always * have a weakness for jeans. It’s a problem, and those half price sales at Old Navy get me every time…
Once I read a story about a butterfly in the subway, and today, I saw one! It got on at 42nd and off at 59th, where, I assume, it was going to Bloomingdales to buy a hat that will turn out to be a mistake, as almost all hats are.
-Kathleen Kelly in You’ve Got Mail
Like that butterfly? Typically, buying art isn‘t an impulse buy. It’s something you’ve thought about long and hard because most people don’t throw around money like confetti.
Instead? Investing in art is smart because you actually care about it. An impulse purchase of $15 print from the box store does NOT carry the same weight. It couldn’t!
We put our money where our mouth is — so where we invest it? It’s what we value.
“THE BOOK DISTRICT”
Now here’s perhaps (arguably) the most important reason why Kathleen Kelly style art kicks FOXX Books art’s booty.
“We’ll be the book district. If they don’t have it, we do.”
—Kathleen Kelly in You’ve Got Mail
THERE ARE SO MANY AMAZING ARTISTS.
For real, my friend.
There are such talented artists that exist in the world — and they’re spectacular. Their work is WORTH the price tag because of the thought, personal touch, effort, love, and so much MORE that goes into each piece.
Not to mention? It’s ONE OF A KIND.
So, as to this? The box store is fine. It has options. But original artists? Artists LOVE original artwork. Artists support other artists. By supporting one artist, you’re allowing that artist to continue working and creating BEAUTY, AND you’re helping them be able to pay it forward.
I don’t know that FOXX Books cared about that — more like the bottom line and comparing books to olive oil.
Here’s the thing, friend:
If you put The Shop Around the Corner and Foxx Books in the same hypothetical room, the cheaper options might seem better. BUT if you look a little closer, you’ll find that the value you receive from the small shop, the small business, the original artist — it’s completely incomparable to what you get from a big box store.
Ready to start (or add to) your budding art collection?
And if you’re wanting to DIY some artwork for your home? Tap the button below and get started finding your CREATIVE SUPERPOWER — and YES you do have one…
