Iโm not religious, but I am bound to somethingโa values system more pluralistic than any single tradition, pulled from many. Connected to the ethers, to divine energy, to the shared moral weight that runs across Buddhism, Sikhism, Hinduism, early Christianity, Islam. They donโt agree on much. But they all circled the same handful of traps.
The noonday demons arenโt dramatic failures. Theyโre the predictable responses of humans โ and I argue businesses โ under sustained pressure who havenโt built the structures to catch themselves.
The April issue of my newsletterโSage Adviceโ is a field guide to all seven โ and how they show up specifically for creative entrepreneurs. Link in bio.
#WeirdSpecialty #doingitonourterms #creativebusiness #creativeentrepreneur #smallbusiness
๐ง๐ผ๐ป๐ถ๐ด๐ต๐ #๐๐ฒ๐ถ๐ฟ๐ฑ๐๐ฝ๐ฒ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ฎ๐น๐๐๐๐ฎ๐น๐ผ๐ป ๐๐๐ฎ๐ฟ๐๐ ๐ฏ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ธ ๐๐ฝ, ๐ถ๐ป ๐บ๐ ๐ต๐ผ๐บ๐ฒ, ๐ท๐๐๐ ๐น๐ถ๐ธ๐ฒ #๐ด๐ฒ๐ฟ๐๐ฟ๐๐ฑ๐ฒ๐๐๐ฒ๐ถ๐ป ๐ฑ๐ถ๐ฑ.
โข What emotion are you currently feeling when you think of your work or profession?
โข What does inspiration feel like, or mean to you right now?
โข How are you remaining curiousโจat this exact moment?
What began as intimate monthly gatherings in my Hudson Valley home is becoming something larger: a national and international network of independent creative women committed to economic solidarity and genuine collaboration. The directory, chapters and community infrastructure are being built deliberately and carefully.
๐ ๐ผ๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐๐ฎ๐ถ๐น๐ ๐ฐ๐ผ๐บ๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐๐ผ๐ผ๐ป, ๐ฏ๐๐ ๐ณ๐ผ๐ฟ ๐๐ผ๐ป๐ถ๐ด๐ต๐ ๐โ๐บ ๐ท๐๐๐ ๐ฒ๐ ๐ฐ๐ถ๐๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐๐ผ ๐ด๐ฎ๐๐ต๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐๐ถ๐๐ต ๐ฟ๐ฎ๐ฑ, ๐ฐ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐๐ฒ ๐๐ผ๐บ๐ฒ๐ป ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐ฑ๐ถ๐๐ฒ ๐บ๐ผ๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ฒ๐ฝ๐น๐ ๐ถ๐ป๐๐ผ ๐๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐ถ๐ ๐ณ๐ฒ๐ฒ๐น๐ ๐น๐ถ๐ธ๐ฒ ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐ถ๐ ๐บ๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ป๐ ๐๐ผ ๐ฏ๐ฒ ๐ถ๐ป ๐ฏ๐๐๐ถ๐ป๐ฒ๐๐ ๐ณ๐ผ๐ฟ ๐ผ๐๐ฟ๐๐ฒ๐น๐๐ฒ๐.
#getwithit
gJ
Gretchen Jones is an advisor to creative entrepreneurs, strategist, consultant and business developer. A portrait to align with her new @weirdspecialty web identity, coming soon.
Decided to bring back my #keythemesoftheweek posts to share pertinent insights from the diverse clientele I work with that may create meaningful impact for your businesses too.
แดสสแดแด แดสษชษดษขs แดษด แดส แดษชษดแด แดสษชs แดกแดแดแด โ
๐ฆ๐๐ฟ๐๐ฐ๐๐๐ฟ๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ณ๐ผ๐ฟ ๐ฎ๐น๐ถ๐ด๐ป๐บ๐ฒ๐ป๐ ๐ฏ๐ฒ๐ณ๐ผ๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐ฝ๐ฟ๐ผ๐ฏ๐น๐ฒ๐บ๐ ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ถ๐๐ฒ. Whether youโre booking events, taking on editorial clients, opening a design commission, launching a product, or onboarding a brand partnership โ your intake process, your scope language, your positioning are not administrative tasks. Theyโre infrastructure. Done right, they do the vetting for you and attract the right people before they ever reach your inbox. A contract clause can be a philosophical statement. Let it be one.
๐๐ผ๐๐ป๐ฑ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฒ๐ ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐น๐ถ๐๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐๐ถ๐๐ต ๐ถ๐ป๐๐ฒ๐ด๐ฟ๐ถ๐๐. My therapist likes to say: boundaries are for us. For the publicist, the architect, the creative director, the wellness practitioner, the brand founder โ discerning how you need to work and building that into the baseline isnโt a limitation. Itโs what makes your practice uniquely valuable. But modeling standards without understanding why you hold them? That will lead you astray every time.
๐ฉ๐ผ๐ถ๐ฐ๐ฒ ๐ฎ๐ ๐ถ๐ป๐ณ๐ฟ๐ฎ๐๐๐ฟ๐๐ฐ๐๐๐ฟ๐ฒ. This is the thread that connects everything. Every touchpoint โ your proposal, your pitch, your product description, your policies, your first response to an inquiry โ should sound like you and reflect how you actually work. Thatโs not branding. Thatโs load-bearing.
What does your infrastructure say about the way you work?
โgJ
#weirdspecialty #creativeentrepreneur #creativebusiness #independentpractice
Beautiful day w/ @officeofopal shooting for my new iteration of self and services.
Lucky to work w/ such talented and kind women.
Closer to reveal, canโt waitโจ
#weirdspecialtysalon แดแดแด แดแดแด
Did you know a snake doesnโt shed its skin โ it outgrows it? Only then does it step out of an old casing that doesnโt โfitโ any longer.
Something is shifting. And honestly? Iโm relieved.
Over a cold, snowy winter I have sat with a hard, multi-part question about my work, my studio, and the salon Iโve built: what am I actually building, why should each facet of it exist, and for whom?
Recently, Iโve been watching โcommunityโ get thrown around quite regularly โ and socioculturally, socioeconomically speaking, I think itโs become hollowed out. Commercialized. Trending. To be honest, Iโve grown increasingly allergic to that version of it.
This observation pushed me to reflect on my professional endeavors and dbl down on discernment (as I am wont to do).
So I made some decisions.
I realized I needed to recenter my one-on-one client work. It was time to recalibrate my mission and build everything else around it โ including a full rebrand and service model update that actually reflects how I want to be of service. I also came to the conclusion that Weird Specialty Salon needed to change and decided to close Weird Specialty Studio.
Upon further reflection, I donโt just want to build community. I want to create something with meaningful influence and impact beyond gathering.
What I realized is that The Salon is needing to be grounded in something I believe deeply: independent creative women are an economic force for each other, and we need to prioritize not just supporting each other, but more earnestly investing in each others work. I want this project to become a genuine resource that encourages our commitment to each otherโs prosperity.
If youโve been part of the salon in any form over the past three years โ member, guest, curious onlooker โ you helped build something I can finally see clearly. That clarity is the whole point.
More soon. With gratitude and real excitement.
โ gJ
Synthetic Authenticity is the official aesthetic of 2026.
Youโve felt it โ now letโs name it.
Swipe through, then dive deeper into my latest newsletter via my link in bio.
#doingitonourterms #sageadvice #weirdspecialty
Taste is a mix of judgement, curation and intuition. It's knowing what to keep and what to let go of. What began as a subtle refresh evolved into something completely new. Inky blacks, hairline lettering, Deco inspiration, angles and curves. Exploration for a new visual identity and digital presence for @weirdspecialty . More to come soon.
To support, to establish, to have principle. Introducing Foundationsโan abbreviated brand creation offering for fledgling female entrepreneurs by Opal and Gretchen Jones.โ
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After years of guiding female founders, we sought to create a package tailored to those starting fresh, who are inspired to create something they always wish existed.โ
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As with our full service design projects, we are interpreting brand stories with presence and purpose. The foundations package is ideal for those seeking intentional brand fundamentals; it features a collection of visual identity elements for establishment: custom logo, color palette, typography selection and mini style guide.โ
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Applicants will work directly with Opal and partner Gretchen Jones of @weirdspecialty . A designer by trade, Gretchen offers tasteful strategic insights from her many years of working with contemporary, values-driven creative entrepreneurs.โ
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Read more and apply at officeofopal.com/foundations.
So grateful to have connected with @sarahkstudio recently. She is literally, not figuratively riding the same wavelength I am.
Super bonus, my dear friend from many moons ago @umajor shared these books on her stories, which led me to aggressively begging for copies to be shipped half way around the world to add to my client & #weirdspecialtysalon library.
The world can be so big, destabilizing and disheartening and then suddenly you meet someone from someplace very far away and are reminded that some of us yearn to be apart of building something better.
Thatโs hope for me, it pulls me up from doubt and fear to keep charging forth and asking the universe to help me be of service in ways that provide for more than myself.
Cheers to sarah! Your work has grounded me back down into the deep work! โค๏ธโ๏ธ๐
