Sunday, December 28, 2008

Holiday Reflection...


Look at those happy faces! Santa was super good to these little boys! And we haven't stopped playing with that Wii ever since! My arms are sore, my legs are sore and I think I might have a little bit of a cold coming but I couldn't be happier. Patrick's off from work this week, we've got three parties this week and a whole bunch of household projects but we're together and we're happy. And that's all that matters.

Every year the Holiday's are stressful and full of way-too-much-to-do-and-not-enough-time-to-do-it stuff until that day. Then it's here and it's joyful and finally peaceful. OK, OK, it's not all joyful and peaceful but it's the Holiday's and it's supposed to be full of family chaos. That's what makes it so joyful and the love you feel from the family, well, I hope that brings all of you some peace. To know your family is safe and healthy. Or even if your family isn't safe or isn't healthy, it's truly a time of reflection of what you have and what you can strive for in the future.

Which brings me to my next thoughts... 2009 goals. Most years I sit and write down my goals for the following year. I haven't completed the list but I have already put some things in motion that will push me in the right direction. For instance, one of the items on my 'goals' list was to get a blog award. I know, I know, this isn't something I can just ask for or something that I can obtain myself but it's something that I want. I've had my blog now since July and I was hoping that sometime within 2009, I would be nominated for some type of blog award. Corny? Yah, maybe but hey, these are my goals! Imagine my surprise when I opened my email on the 27th and found I had been given a blog award!!! WOW!! Already my goals are coming to fruition! I hope some of the others come this quickly (say, like those 10 pounds I need to loose before my Sister's wedding - yah the dress just need 10 little less pounds in it. ugh!).

So, I'm thrilled to tell you that the lovely Sharon House has nominated me for the Marie Antionette Real Person Award! Wow! I'm super honored.


As with any blog award, it comes with a price. Here are the rules for this award . . .

1. Please put the logo on your blog.
2. Place a link to the person from whom you received the award.
3. Nominate at least 7 or more blogs.
4. Put the links of those blogs on your blog.
5. Leave a message on their blogs to tell them.

So here goes...

I nominate, my good friend Bernadette. While she wishes she blogged more, the quality of her blog posts are most important. She's got some fabulous photography on there!

I nominate, Sherry Goodloe. She's got a fabulous blog give-away right now. Check her out, her art rocks! - OH, yah and she lives in the most artistic place on Earth, always got some art show around or near her!

I nominate, Lynne Forsythe. A true nut but a very creative nut! Lynne can change anything and everything with just a little ink!

I nominate, Cheryl and Megan Darrow. OK, these ladies just KNOW how to keep it real! They are an inspiration to all. - And don't forget to check out their videos, this week looks to be a funny one!

I nominate, Janice Reynolds. Every day she creates a new ATC for us to look at and enjoy. She's a fabulous artist!

I nominate Suze Weinberg, since starting her blog in July I've been hooked. Reading every entry on melt art, UTEE, beeswax, the need to spay or neuter your pet and most recently a "Chanukah Sermon".

And Lastly, I nominate Calv, because real men play with stamps and ink! If you haven't already, you've got to check out his blog. He's been inking fruit for some time. It's fun to see what they look like.

And to all those other people out there I didn't nominate, many of you deserve it too. Thank you to all of you out there in blogland who inspire each of us every day. I hope that 2009 is a wonderful year for everyone!!

Monday, December 22, 2008

Happy Holidays!!

The Holidays are always a busy time of year. For just about everyone. I'm going to go 'no blog' for a few days and I thought I would leave each of you something special.
Just for all my blog friends, I thought I'd give you a Christmas Card.

I sent out 50 of these, 45 in Pearl Metal and 5 in Aluminum Metal, so you choose which you'd like...







I hope you all have a Wonderful Hanukkah and a Merry Christmas. Stay Safe this Holiday Season! I'll be back to some regular blogging after Christmas.

Sunday, December 21, 2008

Warm and Cozy...

Oh the weather outside is frightful~! And has been for about 44 hours. I'm telling you, I don't think it has stopped snowing in my area since 2 pm on Friday. And it's 11:30 AM here on Sunday now. When we woke this morning to make pancakes, here's a photo out my kitchen window into my backyard and a photo out my side door onto the driveway and street...



And it's still snowing! And supposed to continue until this evening at about 8, with maybe a little rain mixed in. School tomorrow - I doubt it. I'm so glad I finished my Christmas shopping on Thursday of last week. And last night, all wrapped. Yup! I'm ready! I'm gearing up.
Friday, Patrick came home about an hour early and I didn't have to work so we finally had time to set up the new living room. I have it on good authority that Santa is going to bless my boys with the one thing they want the most... Wii. Yup, Mr. Claus called and told us that maybe we should think about rearranging our living room as this game can get pretty physical. This also led Mr. Claus to recommend that we get a flat screen LCD TV and mount it on our wall where perhaps it would be safer. And, oh yah, by the way, that's a joint Christmas present. Ah-hem. Oh, really. Mr. Claus already had the TV picked out and (ah-ha!) it arrived on December 5. ~Only to sit in my living room until last Friday. Yes Mr. Claus is always well prepared but knows there are limitations to Mrs. Claus and sometimes waiting and not overloading her with work is the best way into her heart. So, the TV is up... but the living room isn't quite clean yet (notice the vacuum and the box?)
In the picture, Bryce is playing Super Nintendo's Zelda. Wait until they see the NEW Zelda. Oh, my!! And look, I surprised Krystal with a picture. She's so cute but so scared of the camera. After I took this shot, she ran upstairs and didn't come down again until I put it away. Silly Puppy!
I postponed my Winter Canvas class until next Saturday. I did do a private class for two ladies that came up from Rhode Island. They were already on their way and since I was already at the Scrapbook Cupboard, why not? The class will be on Saturday, December 27th from 10AM-12PM. If you're in the area and want to take the class, call the store.
Today, we're going to get a new mattress and box Spring. After Patrick snow blows the driveway for the 5th time (yup, 5!). The boys are outside right now enjoying the snow and I'm going to start cleaning up the house for Christmas. With all my crafty obligations, I've been real slack on cleaning my studio. What a pit!
I have some new organizational racks I'd like to use, so hopefully I can figure that all out before Wednesday night.
Oh, and before I leave, I thought I'd share Whitey's new home.
On the dry sink in the living room. Patrick and I are thinking this is probably the best place for him. So, here's a cute photo of Caleb and his fish. That fish is like a dog, very curious. Follows you around everywhere. Greets everyone that walks into the kitchen. A couple of weeks ago, I had bought an Algae eating fish but when I fed it the Algae wafer, it died and so our other fish, Baseball. So all we have left is Whitey. He wasn't looking so good for a while but he bounced back and now better than ever. Do fish get lonely, though? I hope not.
Oh, one last thing. Patrick just came in. He measured the snowfall so far. 17 inches. And it's still falling. We have another 8 hours of snow fall. Yikes!

Thursday, December 18, 2008

Tired... and done

I'm done. Finished. All my Kandi samples are completed and have been photographed. I'm going to send them out Saturday morning. ~ I dare not leave my home tomorrow as it appears that a large pile of white, fluffy precipitation will fall upon me. They are predicting between 8-12+ inches here in my area.

Yikes!

So tomorrow I'm going to type up the directions to each project, clean my area, start wrapping Christmas gifts and spend some time with my kids. Maybe we'll even start a snowman! Oh, and I have the rest of my Christmas cards to make and send. I'm proud to say I sent out 21 today! Only about 29 more left to send...

As for tonight, I'm going to curl up with a book and hit the hay early.

Wednesday, December 17, 2008

Very Special Christmas Card...

Happy Holidays!! Have you sent out your Christmas Cards yet?? I've been receiving Christmas Cards for about 2 weeks now. A bunch of photo ones - those are always great. You can see how big your cousins baby is, or how much like a young lady your friends daughter looks or even to see a little tongue peeking out of your niece's smile. It's nice to get those with the photos attached.
Today I received 3 cards. I'm so happy to receive all of the cards, they really do get me in the Christmas mood. I haven't finished mine yet so if you're expecting one from me, don't despair. They are almost done and will go out soon. Probably some tomorrow and then the rest on Friday and Saturday.
So, today. Today I received a Christmas cards from a group of friends that I haven't seen in a few years. What a wonderful thing to find in my mailbox. It was a wonderful card. Thank you, ladies! I've missed all of you.
And just for another sneak peek... I played with some metal today. For a Kandi project. I finished the project about an hour ago and I'm very pleased with it. Really, I wish I could share. I think some of this is some of the best stuff I've done.
.

I'm off now to address envelopes!

Monday, December 15, 2008

Having a fabulous time...


I've been having fun tonight working on my Design Team projects for Kandi. There's lots of hot wax and fun stuff being used. I'll definitely get everything done for Kandi by Friday night. Then I'll tote everything in to have them photographed (for me and someday for you) and then on Saturday AM, all my projects will take a trip down to sunny Florida. I've completed 4 projects and started another 2 with a 3rd in my head waiting it's turn. The request was for 6-8 projects and if all goes well, 7 will be headed out soon. I'm wicked proud of them. It's stretched me to work on something new, something exciting and something so versatile. I've already put a Kandi class on the schedule at the Scrapbook Cupboard. It'll be something new and it'll be a Friday Feature. So we'll probably go over the basics on how to use the tool and make a pretty project. Something easy. Here's a blurry peek at what I've worked on...

Sorry, that's all you're getting. But what I can show you is my work space and what's left (so far) of the wax. Considering I've created 4 projects and already waxed up quite a bit on my 5th, I'm thinking that a little definitely goes a long, long way!!
















So what else have I been doing? This weekend was great! Friday night I taught my first class on the three new Dream Weaver techniques. 11 people turned up and listened, learned and had fun. Then Saturday I did it again. 11 more people. So that's 22 brand new people who I have shared my own original Dream Weaver technique with. It was great. I'm so happy that I was able to create something new and original. And what was even better was on Friday, right before class, I got the mail. And in it was a card from Lynell Harlow herself! Introducing a new product to me that will come out next month at CHA. Not only did I get to see it, touch it and feel it, Ms. Harlow also wrote me the directions on how to complete the card. Now I can't wait to get my hands on some of the new stuff... Oh January looks so distant now, huh?

After my second DreamWeaver class, we had the Hero Arts Preview at the Scrapbook Cupboard. Some fabulous stamps are showing up for next Spring. YuuummmmyyyY!! I bought two of them plus some of the new Shadow inks. The inks live up to their names, shadow is right. They are very faint but leave a nice impression.

Saturday night I spent time with the family. Patrick and I rented Iron Man. Not too bad but I really wanted to see Wanted. Oh, well. Maybe next time.

Sunday was a resting day. I spent most of the day on the PC catching up on emails. I think I had over 100. Yikes! Then Sunday night, I gathered with 9 of my friends for some card making and Yankee Swappin'. What a great night!! I didn't finish my Christmas cards like I wanted to but I made almost 1/2. Not bad since we spent most of the night laughing, eating and generally showering each other with 'stuff'. My friend Mimi had a bunch of old Creative Memories stuff she didn't want and we all got to paw through it. Thanks, Mimi! We also got gifts from Susan (chocolates - yummy!) and Bernadette (ribbon and stamps - yes!!). Oh gosh I can't remember if anyone else brought anything else. There was so much love and giving, it was just one of the best 'friend' Christmas parties I've had. Thanks everyone!! - Oh and did I take pictures. Nope. But I believe Susan did and Traci and maybe Bernadette. Fran, did you? Hmm... Anyone else? I can't remember. Maybe if I score a nice picture I'll post.

Today, I spent a few hours with two of the most important people in my life....



It was nice to see them today. Bryce is enjoying his train set, Caleb's enjoyed the Brownies and I'm loving the cute little vintage glass pieces and photos I got today. If you still have Grandparents, or in my kids cases - Great-Grandparents, give them a call today. Tell them you love them. They love you!

After a fabulous visit with Gram, Bryce and I came home, Bryce went to school, Susan and I walked and then I started and finished a Kandi project. So there you have it. My weekend.

Friday, December 12, 2008

Metal Eye Candy...

While I'm busy with the beeswax, Sharon has been playing around with some metal. She took my class a few weeks ago on the Latest Trends for Mixed Media Yahoo group and she created a beautiful frame. A beautiful, huge frame!! Stunning! - And this was her first try.

For some metal eye candy today, check out Sharon's blog.

Thursday, December 11, 2008

Creating... but I can't share - yet

I've created AND completed two Beeswax projects today. I'm moving right along. I have a week before I have to mail them out to Kandi Corp for them to share next month at CHA. While I'm under wraps and can't share with you now, I promise I've taken photos and will share when given the OK.

I already know what two more projects are going to be and I've got them all sketched out, just tired tonight so it'll have to wait until tomorrow...

Tuesday, December 9, 2008

I got a call...

I got a phone call from California today. And when I answered, Lynell Harlow from Dream Weaver was on the other line! She was calling to tell me that she liked the three new techniques I created using the Dream Weaver pastes and stencils! How fabulous is that!

She also told me she was going to share my new ideas and techniques at CHA next month! How cool! So! If you're going to CHA next month, stop by the Dream Weaver booth and ask about the new techniques that Kim Parkinson created! How exciting!

I'm teaching these three brand new techniques THIS Friday and Saturday at the Scrapbook Cupboard. Both classes are Sold Out but I'm sure I'll incorporate them into another class soon! And in the Spring, you never know, Theresa Winters may just be on the road sharing these as well!

Here are the cards again so you can see what they look like:















The last one there, I did a small tutorial on it a few months ago. Right here on my blog. You can view that tutorial, HERE.
The Dream Weaver stencils and pastes are extremely versatile. Maybe it'll even work with the Kandi wax? I'll have to test it out and see!

Happy Holidays!

I had a great weekend! While not too crafty, I really started getting into the Christmas spirit. On Friday night, the Scrapbook Cupboard held it's Holiday party for those customers that participate in a swap. This is a great way to get all the swapping done before the holiday season. There were 4 swaps this year, Kerriann did 2 and I did 2. I'm happy to say that I've retired both of my Circle Journals. What's Cookin'? is done! Completed. Loads of yummy recipes inside.

My other circle journal, Where Should I go? was retired too. It looks full and fun and I haven't given it the due time to look through yet but I will. These are my 3rd and 4th completed circle journals. My other topics were "My Favorite Beverage" and "Pet Peeves". All my topics have spawned great ideas and fabulous layouts!


We also traded ATC cards at the Holiday party. We created 17 cards for this round. And the theme was "Christmas". Fitting for a Holiday party. Here are some of the photos of what we came up with...







My ATC card is the Santa one. He's on the left picture, in the middle next to the monkey. He is a stamp that I embossed with black powder, then I painted in the red and the facial color with a waterbrush and Lyra crayons. The the beard and the top 'fluffy' portion of his hat were Liquid Appliqued. It was fun but a lot of work to make 17. Our next theme is Automobiles and won't be due until February. Whew! I have some time to come up with something.
On Saturday, the family and I went Christmas Tree Shopping. We picked out our evergreen, bought it and brought it home. We set it up but didn't actually decorate it until Sunday. On Sunday morning, Kerriann, Susan and I went to a local craft fair where we, scratch that, where I bought tons of stuff. Then Sunday evening, I attended a gathering at a friends house. Her house was decked in Holiday Cheer. It was a great way to end a festive weekend!
Today I'm going to get to being creative. Maybe I'll have another post later on.

Thursday, December 4, 2008

I'm loving Claudine's Paints...

I'm sure you've seen in my other recent posts that I've been playing around with Claudine Hellmuth's Studio Paints by Ranger. (Like Here, and Here, and oh yah over Here!) I love them, they are nice and creamy and richly pigmented. Since I bought them about a month ago, they've stayed out on my table and I've used them a lot! I've used so much of the Matte Multi medium, that I will need another soon!

When I saw the creation she made for the Hero Arts Blog, I immediately started thinking. What about a poinsettia for the holidays?? But you know me, I can't just do that, I need to add a little metal on too! So I did. But I didn' make it into a card (yet!), right now, it's a magnet. For your fridge or your memo board...






OK, the colors are slightly off. The colors on the left are closer to true than the one on right.

I used Claudine's Sticky Back Canvas, Modern Red Paint, Dash of Red Paint, Dab of Yellow Paint, 10 Seconds Studio Appletini Metal with border mold number B23, Ranger's Perfect Pearls in Sparkle, Cuttlebug embossing folder in Swiss Dots, the Multi-medium in Matte (Claudine's as well - BTW, have you smelled this stuff? YUMMY!!) and since I couldn't find a pointsettia stamp in my house, I used the left over Convertible piece from my Ornaments class a few months ago.

Here'a photo of all the supplies...

I didn't use any humungo for the metal, it stuck on just fine with the multi-medium!! How fabulous is that?
Today I'm going to be working some more with the Beeswax and I need to go over my Silhouette notes for tonight's class at the Cupboard.

Monday, December 1, 2008

Playing around...

I've been devouring 'everything' encaustic these past few days. I've taken some of the latest things I've learned and created a complete painting out of wax. This isn't for Kandi, this is just me playing. I also wanted to see how the wax photographed. I'm going to have to see how it does during the day, at night it's a little flat. Here's my latest creation, moments old...

Really the photo isn't too good. To feel it, it's just incredible. I'm definitely going to play around with this some more this week and get to making my projects ASAP. I want to mail them all out before the 20th of December. Only 19 days away!

Getting Ready for the week...

I finished my project that I'm teaching over at Latest Trends in Mixed Media. It's a Holiday Card Keeper. It's a cute project. Not quite my usual style and now thinking back on it, I should have debossed the words but... really, no art is wrong. Am I right? Starting on Wednesday, I'm teaching a 4 day workshop on this...
Oh, no... that's not it. That was it BEFORE! Here's what it looks like after...

A Special THANK YOU! to my friend Dana for providing me with the Cigar Box. It's the perfect box for this type of project.

I start my workshop Wednesday. I still have some typing of directions to do but I'm just about ready. Then on Thursday night I've got a class on the Silhouette Craft Cutter at the Scrapbook Cupboard. This is class 102, we're going over creating your own files for cutting. It'll be intensive. Lots of information crammed into 2 hours. On Friday night is the 2nd Annual Holiday Party at the Scrapbook Cupboard. This is for those customers who have joined swaps over the year. The ATC, Inchies, Circle Journal and Calendar Swap people will all be there. Swapping, Cropping and having fun. I can't wait. I always love to see what others have created.

I have some other things on my To Do list this week. The Winter semester begins January 19th over at My Creative Classroom and I need to get some classes together for it. My Sister's bridal shower needs to be worked on, I'm volunteering at Bryce's classroom tomorrow afternoon, I have Pine Cone Press tomorrow night, I have a doctor's appointment this week, the January calendar for Scrapbook Cupboard needs to be finished, we need to get a tree, oh, there's more but I'll stop there. I'm sure that I'll be back on here to tell you what's been going on. Right now, I'm off to play with some Kandi!

School's out ...for Summer?

Last night the Governor of Massachusetts cancelled all school until May 4th.  He did this on March 25th.  That is about 6 weeks of no sc...