Yearning for the Playground? Grab Your Artbox!
834 Arkansas Street by Laura Ann Studio for Emily Beaven, Compass.
May 2020
Window to The Bay #2
Happy Friday, and Happy May Day! I hope this note finds you continuing to stay safe and well. Here in San Francisco it feels like spring, right as our shelter in place has been extended to the end of May. I’m glad to see that real estate agents continue serving clients creatively with virtual tours as I continue painting Window to The Bay watercolor house portrait gifts remotely. I’ve been thinking of this painting, commissioned by San Francisco Compass real estate agent Emily Beaven pre-COVID, because of how much it encapsulates what we’re all experiencing. The image of a sweet boy and his dog, gazing longingly out the window toward the Bay and their favorite playground, reflects what we’re all going through as we wait out this pandemic. Read on for the full story behind this portrait, an interview with Emily, and printable coloring pages.
By the way, if you’ve come across Window to The Bay as a forward, subscribe here to receive an uplifting portrait story in your inbox every First Friday!
*Custom seller and buyer closing gifts painted for San Francisco Compass real estate agent Emily Beaven (*family names changed for privacy).
Capturing Memories, Building Relationships
I am grateful to San Francisco Compass agent Emily Beaven for planting the idea behind Window to the Bay a few years ago. We met while serving together on the Junior League of San Francisco’s home tour committee, and she was the first to commission one of my watercolor house portraits as a personalized gift. Emily helped her clients sell a San Francisco condo as the family moved to the East Bay for more space. Emily shared with me all of their stories – how they loved their Potrero Hill neighborhood, specifically the local playground and park nearby, and the nostalgia they felt for the downtown skyscraper and Bay views they’d left behind. Working from these stories, Emily’s snapshots from the front windows, and an Instagram family photo, I sketched out this panorama capturing the home’s exterior along with the dog and the family’s young son gazing out at their beloved neighborhood. What a memorable keepsake gift to take with them to celebrate and remember good times from one chapter to the next!
Meet Emily Beaven
I’m delighted to feature San Francisco Compass real estate agent Emily Beaven as my first “Window to The Bay” interviewee and I hope her insights inspire others to turn transactions into relationships!
1. What’s the “why” of your business?
EB: I grew up in hospitality as did my father and Grandmother - it’s just part of my DNA. Being of service is by far the most fulfilling aspect of my work. I have the pleasure and responsibility of helping clients with one of the biggest and most important decisions in their life—that’s extremely rewarding!
2. What is the key to developing a relationship with a client?
EB: Being able to truly listen and understand your client’s wants, needs and motivations is the key to any great relationship. You have to constantly nurture your relationships and anticipate their needs. I am truly always thinking about my clients. Whether it’s informing them of a new local law that might affect their property, a business opportunity that could be fruitful, or someone in my referral network that could be helpful to them—service shouldn’t stop at the close of sale.
3. What do you love most about where you live?
EB: I am truly blessed as we live in a national forest - the Presidio. We have the privacy and nature of life in Marin all while living in San Francisco.
www.emilybeaven.com
Emily.Beaven@compass.com
#WhatsYourWindowtoTheBay?
What are you doing to keep joy and gratitude going through the circumstances? I recommend therapeutic coloring for adults as well as kids! I’ve transformed Emily Beaven’s house portrait commissions into “Color-On” Coloring Pages (DOWNLOAD HERE). Print, color, post, and tag @EmilyABeaven and @LauraAnnStudio with the hashtag #WhatsYourWindowtoTheBay so that we can see and repost your work.
I’m also delighted to collaborate with Princeton University as a licensed artist with my series of 10 watercolor campus portraits transformed into a Princeton “Color-On” Coloring Book (DOWNLOAD HERE) to help lift the tiger spirits through virtual spring semester. Print, color, post, and tag @LauraAnnStudio, @Princeton, and friends on Instagram with the hashtags #VirtualPrincetonU #PrincetonU #Princetagram and #ColoringRoar to spread the cheer - enjoy!
With love for the every day and special days,
Laura Elbogen
PS Do you know a friend or realtor who could benefit from these relationship building tips or closing gifts? Share this page!