Inspired!

I had such an unbelievably amazing time at 'Inspired' - Donna Downey's Art Retreat in Charlotte, NC. It was a birthday gift for my 40th from Michael and a complete surprise. I have no idea how he knew that I really wanted to go and it actually made me cry when he told me I was going :). Inspired is a 4-day event with workshops covering a wide variety of different arts and crafts. All instructors are really well-recognized in their respective fields and the classes were small enough to get individual one-on-one instruction with these incredible women too. As soon as I arrived I was greeted by Donna and her husband Bill as if I was a long-lost friend! They are so incredibly friendly and made me feel so welcome:). I have been following Donna's 'Inspiration Wednesday' videos on her blog forever and it was great to see the actual finished products. I bought a blank Inspiration journal so that I can start one of my very own ;).

We were given a goodie box when we checked in and giveaways throughout the event. I only just made the baggage weight requirement on the flight home I had so much stuff! I loved my handmade nametag and apron the best:)

My first workshop was with Christy Tomlinson (Christy's blog here). I was really excited about this one since I love her work and have been wanting to create a 'proper' multi-media collage forever. I was thrilled with my creation in the end and wanted my first piece to reflect my gratitude to my husband for everything...

The following morning we had class with Trish Baldwin (Trish's blog here) to play with wax.

Encaustic is an area I know nothing about which was pretty apparent in my end result! I 'threw my dolly out of the pram' a bit and actually disposed of my piece because it was so rubbish and everyone around me seemed to be creating masterpieces. So childish. Ironically, in the end I think I learned my most important creative lesson in this class, i.e. to let go and try new things with an open and positive spirit. I realize now that just because something isn't comfortable at first doesn't mean you won't learn to love it and create something amazing:). The next class was jewelry making with Becky Nunn (Becky's site here). I learned a bunch of new techniques to get a more profession-looking result and got the opportunity to play with products like Gel Du Soleil...

At dinner, Donna had everyone sing 'Happy Birthday' and congratulate me on my recent 15K. Donna has been such a running inspiration for me since she completed her Half Marathon so it was very special coming from her:).

The next morning we printed onto canvas and fabric with Alisa Burke (Alisa's blog here).

It was really good to get messy and let go :). I thought about how well Michael must know me now to have booked this trip and remembered the House of Blues where we met...

In the afternoon we worked with Lolly (Lolly's blog here) to make a fabric tree picture on canvas. I felt ready to get a bit more 'creative' and make something different in this class. I decided on an owl to serve as a reminder that one of the (few) upsides to aging is acquiring wisdom:). Hot-gluing jute on to the canvas required a massive amount of patience (not exactly my best attribute), so after 4 hours of literally blistering my fingertips with hot glue and nearly losing my ever-loving mind, it was so exciting to have a result that was truly my own :).

At Tracie Lampe's class (Tracie's Etsy store) we learned how to fuse plastic together to make purses. I love the idea that you can create from trash and help the planet a little ;)...

Here are some of Tracie's fabulous designs...

We actually turned this...

Into this...:)

I think in the past I have considered art as primarily a solitary activity. Creating in groups was a total eye-opener for me so now I'm following some blogs to stay up-to-date with both events like this and local gatherings also so that I can continue to create in this way.

All of these ladies were so creative and I learned so much from each of them. Brenda for example had painted a case to bring her art supplies in. She was featured in the latest edition of Art Doll magazine and it was the first time she had even submitted a piece!

I haven't done anything like this before and found it a bit intimidating at first since all of the ladies I met were so creatively talented:). However I can honestly say that every single person I met was really friendly and aside from learning so much from my classmates we had a lot of fun too. It seemed like I laughed from the minute I got there to the minute I left! Learning and laughing - two of my favorites :) Thank you ladies, thank you teachers, thank you Donna and thank you Michael for an amazing, inspirational experience that I will never forget...