Getting back into the zone :)

It's been a long time since I did anything remotely creative and I miss it so much! I did embellish a couple of T-shirts for Maddy though last week. I thought they came out really well :)

Ruffle bag...

I saw one of these online and thought I'd have a go at making one for my niece's birthday. She loved it!

It's so nice to have some time to make things again now that the holiday season is over!

Christmas Gifts!!

I actually managed to finish the gifts for the family in time for Christmas! Now they have all been received I can share some of the things that I made :)

A pair of wine bottle lamps for Rita with personalized labels...

An embellished purse for Eileen...

A personalized advent calendar house for Jen, Rich and Mya...

Inspired by the fabulous Etta - "Curious Specimen" ornaments of Gregory and Declan...

And a personalized family wall hanging for Pete and family made from their favorite words and colors...

The responses were so great - I felt like a million dollars! It was really difficult to get them all done in time since we moved house and I started a new job after I had gotten started...but I'm so glad I stuck it out. Think I'll do it again next year. I may need to get started now ;)

Sundress for Haiti

Project HOPE Art is an organization dedicated to inspire, heal and improve the quality of life for children in need through the creative process of art.

Their website says:

“We believe that there are not words as powerful as a single drawing, sock puppet play, mural, photograph or creative enterprise. Using art as a catalyst for healing and expression we intend to initiate whimsy and wonder while infusing creativity into disaster stricken communities. So often children are not part of the conversation within a hard hit, natural disaster area. We bring their ideas, thoughts and emotions to life in full color regardless of language, creed or custom. We do this using art as the Universal Language."

"Earlier this month, when Project HOPE Art was at Nadine’s orphanage in Port-Au-Prince, it became abundantly clear just how few clothes many of her girls have. The things they do own are very worn at best, some just barely holding together. HOPE Art would like to change this, with a personal touch, by starting a Homemade Dress Drive (link to blog here). We are inviting all seamstresses, beginner or advanced, to make one or more simple sundresses (our goal is 30) which will be hand delivered to the orphanage by the end of the year. This project is being aided by an online pattern company “oliver + s”, who has kindly agreed to let us use their free sundress pattern, which you can download here."

I really enjoyed picking out the fabric for my special little girl in Haiti and although I'm still very much a beginner seamstress but I found this pattern really straightforward and loved the dress that I made:).

The amazing Etta!

While we were visiting friends in NC, I got to meet the amazing Etta! Here she is showing me her basement studio. I have never seen such an amazing creative space in someone's home before!

I think I have about 5 different colors of sewing thread...maybe 6...

And her work...OMG...totally gorgeous...

Sewing is her favorite thing...which explains the stockpile of thread :)...

Although it seemed to me that she can pretty much make anything...

I took about a million photos and have some great ideas for Christmas gifts now...if there's time of course...I can't believe it's August already! Thanks Etta for everything - not only are you an amazing artist but a great cook too. Hope to see you again soon :).

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...