Happy Monday!

I don't think most of us think of Monday as "Happy" days.

After all, it's the day that most head back to work or school. But today was an exceptionally nice & happy Monday for me, especially after a busy weekend with in-laws in town!!

Nothing too out of the ordinary today, except that I (should say we, because mom & Kim were there too) made a new friend today. Her name is Nancy Glass & she is a fellow crafter (you can visit her website HERE)! She first bumped into mom & Kim a few weeks ago at Hobby Lobby. They got to talking about selling our crafty stuff & her crafty stuff & info was exchanged.

CardArtByNancy (this will be her Etsy name when she's up!)

Nancy is a super nice lady & feels like an old friend already! She makes wonderful cards & sells them in local shops, but is wanting to list them on Etsy. That's where I came in! You see, mom & Kim put way too much faith in my ability to run our little Etsy shop & talked up those abilities to Nancy. So, of course she wanted some pointers & I was happy to share what little knowledge I have of Etsy! We all spent a lovely breakfast getting to know each other at SNOOZE this morning & then I popped open my laptop to show her a few things about Etsy. I certainly hope that I didn't fill her head with too much from bouncing around the Etsy site & talking of all the social media sites & blogs out there!! In the end, we all agreed to get together soon to craft & talk some more!!

Afterward, I came home to catch up on some pix for my Creative Cuts & More post (I still haven't finished my Marie book, but I had to post what have done for tomorrow), as well as take some of the tin I did in our first Art Group meeting last Tuesday! Here's what I made during our day of crafting...

I'm calling it "Johnny's lost his head!"

We had such a blast pulling these little tins together! It was great to see all the different ideas come together! (I'll post a link to some other pix as soon as I get it from my fellow group member!) And, I believe some of us found a new obsession!! I have ideas for a ton more of these little tins!! I haven't decided whether I am going to sell this one or not.

Then as I was driving home, I got a nice little evite to a friends b-day breakfast in a couple of weeks! (You know who are!! Thanks!!)

That's all that made my Monday a happy one!

Tomorrow I am spending the day with my wonderful gal-pal Shirley at IKEA (she hasn't been yet!) & probably try to craft a little before Maggie comes home from school.

And, hopefully on Wednesday evening I will get to have dinner with one of my oldest friends (way back to Kindergarten!)! That's all that's planned so far, but who knows what life will bring this week!

TTFN!

A Vamp by any other name

Happy Monday to everyone!!

Just checking in to say hello & to share my latest Altered Tin creation!! I made this little sample for my first Art Group project - which starts tomorrow!

Front

 

Opened

 

Left side Glitter Girl

Right side - Atheist Girl!

Backside Vamp

Isn't it fun! I have printed a bunch of images for all the group members to play with & a ton of embellies to add to the inside of their tins! It's going to be so much fun!!

I was hoping to write a little more this morning, but I have to get the Mags off to school! (Last half day! Wahoo! Might actually get some time to myself this week!)

TTFN!

Another Great WWC Giveaway!!

This is a little copy/paste/repost of another great giveaway from the wonderful women over at Where Women Create! 

Every Friday they feature an artist & that artist usually gives away a great prize to one lucky reader! This past Friday featured a mother/daughter duo that started an amazing business together - The Gilded Girls Stash Society, & I just happen to be taking one of their classes next month at The Creative Connection in St. Louis...read on to learn more about their venture!

--------------------------------->>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>-----------------------------------------

Fabulous Friday with Debbie Murray and Shea Fragoso

 

   
Being a mother/daughter design team definitely has it’s advantages. Take for instance the seed of an idea that came last fall. Sitting in our studio pondering the future, a chance thought began to develop into an exciting possibility. With the bond that we share (some might even say the same mind!!), when one spoke the other knew EXACTLY what was being proposed and how to proceed to the next step.
Thus, the Gilded Girls Stash Society was born.


An idea to share all of the yummy goodness that we use in our own studio with women all around the world seemed like a dream come true. The initial concept was hammered out into a final plan that would send vintage and vintage-inspired textiles, trims, paper, embellishments, millinery and jewelry findings to their new homes both here and abroad.
We were absolutely amazed when we hit our initial target number of members. A simple blog post announcing our new endeavor was uploaded to our blog, with an opportunity to “fly blind” with us, before we even posted pictures of the actual “stash”. Imagine our amazement when we not only sold each and every spot we had available, but we began a waiting list from month one.


Hunting and gathering each month’s product for what we call our “box of beautiful” is a thrill that will never get old. Digging through a millinery store’s inventory from 1940 and finding the blush pink velvet posies that complement a linen fabric, is a rush of joy that only a crafter’s soul could understand. Discovering the gold tipped angel wings found behind a box of funky glass beads that make you audibly squeal with delight will forever thrill.


All the dust from the boxes yanked down from the top shelf, all the miles racked up on the car for the good of a dig, all the Starbuck’s Venti black iced tea that are required to keep you going on a hot summer’s day, are nothing compared to the emails and comments of women who “get us”. When they email to let us us know that they just received their boxes and jumped up and down in their living room while covered in glitter and tulle… well, that is priceless.


The Gilded Girls Stash Society was an epiphany. It was something that we were meant to do, for us and for the “Gilded Girls”. We are honored to hold this task we have been trusted with by so many.

Each month it is a joy to curate these treasures into a cohesive “story”. We take inspiration from birthstones, flowers-of-the-month, holidays, and of course the Seasons themselves. We try to stay very true to our vintage roots while introducing variety and the element of surprise.


Membership in the Gilded Girls Stash Society also includes access to a private blog where tutorials are posted several times each month using the items from the kit. This is a very popular component of the Society, and we always look forward to seeing photos of the work that members share through a Flickr group and Facebook page.




Don’t you just love it when a plan comes together? We treasure everything about this amazing creative journey we are on, and all of the wonderful people and places we are getting to know!
We are also so very happy (and honored) to be teaching again at The Creative Connection. Last year was a magical experience for us, and we will truly never be the same. And this year promises to be even better. We hope you will join all of us in St. Paul next month, and make some magic for yourself! Please visit us at http://whathappensnext.typepad.com/

 {Romancing the Wristlet}

{Count your Blessings Necklace}

A little Marie & Altered Pages Challenge Piece

I have been busy this past week working on the Marie Antoinette book & thought I'd share some of the work in progress...Caution, these pix are not the greatest! I plan to photograph the whole book in better light when it's done.

Also, at the end of this post is a little 5x7 canvas I did for the August Challenge at Altered Pages. The theme is "The Last Flowers of Summer."

Inside/First page

Pages 2-3 The young MA meets Louis

The wedding

And here's my Altered Pages piece:

Digital image: "At the Beach 1907" collage sheet

That's it for tonight!

I'm off to la-la land now!

TTFN!

I didn't win, but...

After checking email, Facebook, their blog & websites all morning long,  I come to find out that I was not picked to receive 2 free passes to The Creative Connection Event.

BUT, my hubby said we could swing the cost for me to go!!! 

{{Doing a little jig right now!!}}

I am sooooo thrilled to be attending this amazing conference! I just registered for my panels & classes minutes ago! (Sad to say one of the one's I wanted was already closed! That's what happens when you wait too long to register!) My hotel reservations are made & now I just have to figure out how to use my miles to get my flight booked!!

Here's a look at the classes I'm going to take:

Dream Big Art Journal

• The Dream Big Art Journal with Traci Bautista.

This just looks like an amazing intro into art journalling, with a twist - it's all about business & goals! I am hoping this process will take me in new directions!

http://www.thecreativeconnectionevent.com/class/tcc-handmade-classes-2/dream-big-art-journal/ (the 1st part of this class is the one I missed out on, but she said we can take them separately.)  

Photography for Knitters & Craft Bloggers

• Photography for Knitters & Craft Bloggers with Gale Zucker.

I am always struggling with the best way to shoot our completed work for Scrap-a-Teeny Girls, so I am hoping this will give me some insight & allow me to be faster at posting stuff!

http://www.thecreativeconnectionevent.com/class/tcc-handmade-classes-2/photography-for-knitters-craft-bloggers/

Romancing the Wristlet

• Romancing the Wristlet with Debbie Murray & Shea Fragoso.

This looks like an amazing little jewelry adventure!! I love the vintage vibe!

http://www.thecreativeconnectionevent.com/class/tcc-handmade-classes-2/romancing-the-wristlet/

Studio Alchemy w/Laurie Meseroll

• Studio Alchemy with Laurie Meseroll.

Not entirely my style, but I am super excited to learn her techniques!!

http://www.thecreativeconnectionevent.com/class/tcc-handmade-classes-2/studio-alchemy-handmade-studio-art/

In addition to all the classes, the first day is full of informational panels about social networking, marketing & more!

I just can't wait & wish so much that my mom & sis could go with me!! But I promise to share all my new crafty-business knowledge with them & hopefully a few trinkets too!!

I hope that I'll have the chance to take pix & blog about it along the journey!!

Please Pick Me! I'm going through a mid-life crisis!

Dream Big Business Art Journal Class by Traci Bautista

I have been drooling over the amazing workshop event that is The Creative Connection for over a year now! After seeing what it was all about through the web last year, I knew that I wanted to attend it this year! But alas, money is tight & time is running out!
So, I am blogging about this for two reasons - first & foremost - because they TOLD me to blog about it to get 5 more entries to WIN 2 FREE PASSES for the weekend event in September & second of all, that's what we bloggers are supposed to do, right? Right!

There are several reasons I want to attend an event like this one...
One is that we (my mom, sis & I) have been struggling to be found in our little online/Etsy biz & I believe that this type of event would be an amazing learning tool with all of their panels throughout the weekend to teach me how to discover & fine tune your goals, & market our wares better through Etsy, social media & more!

Second, I think I am going through a mid-life crisis! {My husband is smack in the middle of his! HIS vice? Mountain climbing - not just ordinary hiking, but roping in & climbing crazy stuff with snow, ice & NO oxygen! He's off to Ecuador in December to climb 3 (YES, THREE!) 20,000+ peaks!!}
MY mid-life crisis is so much more tame! I want to CREATE ALL THE TIME! I want to either go back to school for some art training or I just want to try new art techniques NOW! So, this event is the PERFECT venue for this because I can dabble in any number of mediums for a fraction of the cost of actually going back to school! And, learn from those that I already admire for their passion & work! And, it's all in one weekend!

Thirdly,  you get to meet with all these artistic "celebs" that have made their artistic passion their careers! Imagine asking those that you admire most, "how'd you do it & still have a life?" Their insight could be such a powerful tool!!

And last but not least, all the AMAZING loot they giveaway & what I am sure is to be a lollapalooza of a market place to shop in!!! I had already figured a good amount of $$ would be set aside for that if I were to go!!

So, it they were to pick me, I would be ever so humbly thankful for the enrichment it will bring to my mid-life crisis!! Wish me luck & keep your fingers crossed for me!!

Free Vintage Photo!

This is my first attempt to post a photo for you all to copy for yourselves!

I found this awesome picture/postcard at an antique mall & just had to share it...

Isn't he just great! I can't wait to find a project to slip him into!!

Please let me know if the resolution is bad & I will try to post it again.

TTFN

Decadence is coming...

Just a little hint of what I am working on now.

Part design team commitment for Creative Cuts & More & part artistic journey for me!!

Stay tuned in! I hope to post more as I go along! I have a month to get this book done & SOOOOO many ideas in my head to get down on paper, paint or whatever I reach for! HA!

TTFN!