CraZy gOOdNeSS!!

If you've ever read my blog you know I am wild for journaling and for Teesha Moore's journaling style in particular! In my opinion she IS the journaling queen! As the organizer and creator of ArtFest, ArtFiberFest, and most recently JournalFest, she is wildly talented and a huge supporter of the Arts. She rarely teaches, but to much to my delight she has spent the weekend creating and uploading videos of her making her signature journals and her process for filling them with art. If you love journaling as much as I do, or just want to learn more about art journals, go grab something to drink, find a comfy spot, and check out all of her videos on YouTube. There are at least 6 of them and I think she is still uploading as I type. Yippee, I feel like a kid on Christmas morning I'm so happy! Enjoy!!

The Big Apple

A few weeks ago I went to the east coast to meet with a couple of girlfriends Leslie and Keli. We had planned our trip last spring in hopes of spending time together creating, with a little side trip into New York for shopping. We've heard great things about wonderful little places, where friends have found hidden treasures, and we had high hopes of finding such goodness for ourselves!

We took the train from Philadelphia to NYC, and Leslie found the perfect hotel just across the street from Penn Station. We hit the ground running for the next two days, in search of unique art supplies. We didn't do one tourist attraction, but indeed found the most amazing stores!!

Here's the view from our room, right on Madison Ave. We got lucky and were able to check into our room at 11 when we got off the train which was so nice!
Leslie mapped out Manhattan and the 6 or 7 places we wanted to see. Along the way we walked through Broadway, Time Square, Madison Avenue and the Fashion District. 
I didn't take any photos of the places we visited, as we were completely absorbed by all the great stuff we found, and in some cases had to dig for. After a full day of shopping we needed a little fuel {{wink}}! Here are a few photos of what I brought home....

There's nothing like a vaca with your girlfriends, and though I love Mr Warren dearly, it's just a different trip altogether! Thanks to Keli and Leslie for a great girls getaway! I can't wait until we do it again in the spring, next time in the Great Northwest when we head to ArtFest.

I love Tim Walker's work...

I just happened onto Tim Walker's work, and love his use of color and imagination! Check out these Flickr photos....

1. Tim Walker en ciclic, 2. Tim Walker, 3. Tim Walker en ciclic, 4. Dress Lamp Tree by Tim Walker, 5. Cinderella with Balloons, 6. tim walker, 7. amazing image by Tim Walker - summer feel, 8. Shona's Tree by TIm Walker, 9. Tim Walker, 10. Tim Walker en ciclic, 11. Tim Walker en ciclic, 12. Tim Walker en ciclic, 13. Tim Walker en ciclic, 14. Tim Walker en ciclic, 15. Dress Lamp Tree by Tim Walker, 16. Tim Walker en ciclic

Leavin' on a jet plane...

To see these two happy girls, yahoo!

You know how life seems to get crazy right before vacation? Well, the madness has begun! I leave Saturday to catch up with two of my favorite girlfriends in Philadelphia, and I am crazy busy trying to take care of silliness that no one but me cares about. I do this to myself... trying to have the house just so, with a "to do list" a mile long. My son and husband don't care about any of it, and it won't bother them a bit if I simply pack my suitcase and kiss them goodbye come Saturday. I know that really it's my anxiety; I don't like to fly! I'm trying to distract myself so I don't think about calming walking onto the plane and casually sitting there for hours and hours, while we go blasting thru the sky at 900 miles an hour, and at 40,000 feet up! Oy, I make myself nuts over this stuff.... moving on!!

Here's where you come in... the three of us are going into New York for a couple of days and if there is anything SpeCtaCuLaR we should see or do, please let me know. We are going to Tinsel Trading, Metaliforous, M&J Trims, and a couple of other places. We aren't big into frou~frou or glitterama... but prefer instead shabby, old, vintage pieces for altered art embellishments, and perhaps a great, yet casual place for dinner and drinks. I personally would love to find tarnished silver servicing pieces, and white ironstone for my house. Hopefully at the flea market in Pennsylvania. Anyways...

Thanks in advance for your help guys, enjoy your week!

My weekend in photos...

I am wiped out today, but it was all for a great cause! This past weekend Nancy and I hosted Iva Wilcox and Colleen Moody for 4 classes over two days, and a Trunk Show on Friday evening. It was a creating marathon and it was a blast! These two women put together wonderful classes and everyone had a great time, while making fabulous projects. I didn't take as many photos as I thought I had, but here's a peek at our fun filled weekend at Gilding the Lily...

Iva taught the first class Saturday morning, The Witching Hour. Iva had created a witch's shoe from a vintage chocolate mold for each of the students. Then they embellished and decorated the sweetest little Halloween Witch's Shoes. As I watched the class, I kicked myself for not having signed up for this! I think Iva felt my regret and she very kindly (and generously) gifted me the class sample. I AdoRe it!!! Thanks so much sweet Iva!


On Sunday Colleen taught her darling sculpted half dolls that we then attached to vintage photo frames and embellished with millinery flowers. Colleen had an extra kit, and asked me to join them in this project. I have always LOVED dolls and was thrilled to create these little treasures!


This is the little witch I made on Saturday with Colleen... how cute is she?! I am wild for these little dolls and have a feeling I will be creating many more for the holidays.
One of our regular students Carole Emmans was unable to attend her classes at the last minute. She had been looking forward to this for quite some time, and is a huge fan of Colleen's. Colleen was so sweet to take a special photo just for Carole. We all missed you greatly Carole, and hope all is well in your corner of the world.

Thanks to Nancy, Colleen and Iva for a wonderful weekend! Thanks also to all the great students who make my job so much fun, you guys are the best!

SpOOky HaLLoWeeN Fun...

I know it's a little early for Halloween, but when creating for the holidays it's never to early to gather great women and stir up a little creative fun! This weekend I taught my Spooky Halloween altered book class and had the best group of women join me. 

Here's Glenda holding her book. She began dressing the cover with old victorian pieces pulled from old clothing. She shared a beautifully tattered jacket that she purchased just for the trims and fabric, what a great way to use these pieces that can't be repaired. Her book is really beautiful, and I can't wait to see it finished!
Jeanette and Jackie created wonderful paper witch's for their books using old photos that were copied. Jeanette embellished a picture of her daughter as a young girl, while Jackie altered a beautiful photo of herself, adding quite the appropriate tiara on top!
Barbara and Mary kept the class laughing and are great friends, and wonderful artists!
Joanne used a printed image for her little witch and then glammed her up! I think this was one of the most fun parts of the class. Seeing everyone with alter old family members into such great characters. 
Somehow I missed taking any photos of Lisa and Yvette. They created such great books and I'm sorry I didn't take more to share! If you two are reading this, please e-mail me a few pictures if you will. Lisa brought a fabulous print of her Dad as a little boy, and we talked her into making him a witch with a skirt. It is the cutest thing!

Thanks ladies for a great day, I can't wait to gather with you all again!

fall is just around the corner...

This past winter during the cooler, shorter days of the season, I gathered four artful friends to work with me on a Spooky Halloween project for Stampington. Mendy, eb, Keli, and Leslie all indulged me in an altered book round robin, and happily the results were picked up by Jenny Doh, and are featured in the latest Somerset Studio. It's fun to see our work next to the work of women I have long admired, including Karen Cole, Iva Wilcox, and my very own, Nancy Jamar.

And speaking of Nancy, I'm also celebrating her article in the October issue of Romantic Homes. Her treasured Gilding the Lily has a beautiful spread with wonderful photos of the shop and its wares. Yeah, Nancy!

Well, my calendar and these magazines say fall is quickly on the way, now I wish someone would tell the weather man! It's suppose to be 94 here today... I hope you all enjoy the long weekend with a cool drink and these yummy magazines!

getting some work done...

Most of who know me, know that I don't work... well, not really. I do have a very part time job as a personal assistant, but I never think of that as work as it's only 3 or 4 days a month (perfect if you ask me!). But earlier this summer, Nancy of Gilding the Lily asked me if I'd like to take over booking classes for her shop. Of course I said yes, as it gives me the opportunity to bring some of my favorite artists to Nancy's wonderful customers, and to get to be involved in the art I love so much. It's a win, win situation and great work if you can get! I just finished putting together our Fall Schedule, and I think we've added some wonderful new teachers to our family, including Iva Wilcox and Colleen Moody both of whom will be in the shop in late September. Here's a sneak peek at some of the class projects coming in the next month or two...

Yep, I guess if I'm going to have a job I'm lucky to have two that I enjoy so much. Hope your summer's been great, and I hope to see you in one of our classes soon!

back in five minutes...

Sorry for the unexpected blogging break, but there are only a few more weeks of summer left and I'm completely enjoying them. So until I'm back, here are a few beautiful photos of Lisa and Tim's great space at Country Roads in Orange...

a whirlwind summer...

I'm sorry it's been so long since I've written. I've been coming down off of a very full past few weeks. Having had Judy Wilkenfeld come in to teach our group last weekend was such a treat for us all, and a real honor for me personally. To spend two full days in her workshop was great, but it flew by as good times often do. I'll share with you what I made in her class in my next post.

My girlfriend Nancy hosted a Trunk Show to coincide with Judy's visit and it was an evening of fun and great shopping as always. I love sharing Gilding the Lily with others, and I think everyone found amazing things there. Thanks for opening the shop to us, Nancy.
Friday night kicked off five days together with some amazing women, who are just the most fun. Joanna was able to join us, and make a long weekend of it. It was great to get to know her, and we fell in as though we had all been friends for years! What a kind, gentle, creative soul she is... and what a great addition to our group.
Judy is so talented and her books are full of such amazing detail. That's what drew me to her art and prompted me to ask her to come teach, when I met her last year. I love that she so generously shares her knowledge, tips and techniques for reproducing the effects she is known for, in such an easy~going manner. I couldn't have asked for more from her, or for a more relaxed creative workshop. I encourage any of you to study with Judy if you have the chance. Hopefully we can do this again the next time she comes to the states. 

Thanks to all of the women who joined us, I hope you'll share your books as you continue to create in them. Please feel free to add your photos to the Yahoo Group so we can all see the wonderful work you do. And lastly a special thanks to Leslie for all your help and support, I could not have done this without you!