Purple Monkey Manor

06/05/2026

I've decided to start a Substack newsletter. I'll be moving some of my past writing and all of my new writing to that platform. If you'd like to join me on this journey, please subscribe here: https://julienealwilson.substack.com/subscribe?params=%5Bobject%20Object%5D

05/29/2026

A client mentioned being worried that people might not know about an upcoming event.

And apparently my brain heard:

"Excellent. Let's spend the next several hours analyzing the entire thing."

I started noticing little things.

The QR code on the flyer couldn't be scanned.

Online registration cost more than calling.

There wasn't a Facebook event.

There wasn't much building anticipation before the event.

Then my brain jumped ahead and started asking what happens after the event.

Do attendees come back?

Do they join an email list?

Do they hear about the next class?

Or does everybody go home and all that effort simply evaporates?

At some point I realized I wasn't thinking about event promotion anymore.

I was thinking about how often small businesses work incredibly hard to create something valuable but don't capture all the value that's already there.

That's the kind of puzzle I enjoy solving.

I wrote about it this week:

https://purplemonkeymanor.com/blogs/studio-and-strategy/make-your-event-work-harder

05/26/2026

Not the sticky Goodwill bins that I know and love.

05/26/2026

You find a paint line you love. You find out you can become a retailer. The opening order sounds completely doable. So you sign on.

And then the math gets interesting.

Most people figure out the real cost of carrying a paint line after they have already committed to it. The stocking gap, the money cycling problem, the costs that never appear on any invoice. I wrote out everything I wish someone had told me before I signed up.

https://purplemonkeymanor.com/blogs/studio-and-strategy/what-it-actually-costs-to-carry-a-paint-line

05/25/2026

The prettiest booth doesn't always make the most sales.

I've seen beautifully styled booths struggle and booths that felt less polished stay busy.

But I think sometimes we spend so much time trying to create a magazine worthy space that we forget to ask a bigger question:

What kind of shopper am I trying to attract?

Tell me: Do you stage your booth perfectly or invite shoppers to your treasure hunt?

https://purplemonkeymanor.com/blogs/studio-and-strategy/do-pretty-booths-actually-lead-to-more-sales

05/19/2026

I found a vintage doll trunk at a thrift store for five dollars. It was scuffed, covered in old stickers, and smelled like decades of interesting storage decisions. I had absolutely no idea what I was going to do with it.

What it became is one of my favorite pieces I have ever made. Hot pink and navy, layered with an IOD Paradise Paint Inlay and the IOD Brocante Transfer, full of texture and depth and that collected-over-time look that is so hard to fake and so satisfying when it works.

It sold in my booth for $39.95. Not bad for a Tuesday afternoon and five dollars.
On the blog today I walked through exactly how I did it, including the part where I tell you what I would do differently.

This project taught me imperfect results and beautiful outcomes are not mutually exclusive.

05/17/2026

There is a particular kind of frustration that comes from finishing a project and then just... not being able to write about it. You know what you made. You could explain it to anyone who walked in the door. But the blank page sits there anyway.

For me that problem is also a physical one. Nearly twenty years of chronic migraines have made sustained focus harder on some days than others. There were projects I finished and never wrote about. Content that quietly disappeared into the pile of things I did not get around to.

AI changed that for me. Not because it writes for me, but because it gives me somewhere to start.

I wrote about exactly how I use it, what it does well, and where it falls completely flat. (Spoiler: it has a strong attachment to dashes.)

If you have been curious about AI for your creative business but not sure what it actually looks like in practice, this one is for you.

05/14/2026

I paid $5 for this at a thrift store. Here's what happened next.

A $5 thrift store doll trunk, a little DIY Clay Paint, an IOD Paint Inlay, and an IOD Transfer walked into my booth at the Painted Tree. It left for $39.95. That's the whole story, except it isn't, because the how matters just as much as the result. What I actually learned on this one is in the blog.

05/12/2026

🎉 BUY 3, GET 1 FREE 🎉

No codes. No catches. Just add 4 items to your cart, and the discount applies automatically at checkout.

Stock up on stamps, moulds, transfers, and more — get the least expensive one free. Sale excludes clothing and home decor.

Shop now 👉 https://purplemonkeymanor.com

Sale ends May 18. Don't wait.
Purple Monkey Manor IOD - Iron Orchid Designs Made by Marley Jami Ray Vintage
Sweet Pickins Milk Paint & Furniture

Make It Yours Again Tools for transforming the well-loved into the one-of-a-kind.

05/03/2026

I have a hard time throwing away a good tin. 🫙

Cookie tins, Pokemon card tins, holiday popcorn tins... they're too cool to toss, but using them as-is makes your home look like a recycling bin exploded in it.

The fix? IOD Moulds. Press air-dry clay into a mould, glue the casting right over that stubborn raised design on the lid, paint the whole thing, and suddenly it looks like a decision, not an accident.

I made two versions: a snowflake tin for holiday gifting and a bird tin that works year-round. Same basic process, completely different feel.

Full tutorial (with supply links!) on the blog 👇
https://purplemonkeymanor.com/blogs/studio-and-strategy/supply-that-changed-containers