Empowering Mail Art

I am so happy that Hanna Andersson hosted an autumn postcard swap in addition to the one she did earlier this year!  I needed a reason to get creative and her theme of "empowerment" was the perfect inspiration.  I sent my five cards off earlier this week, but of course I couldn't help but make a few extras to send to friends in the coming months.  Thank you to Hanna!  If you are ever so inspired be sure to get in on the next one!  Go to ihanna.nu and sign up for her newsletter!

Cheers!  And thank you for visiting!!!

Everything but the Kitchen Sink a.k.a. Catching Up

It has been a while!!!  I'm making an early 2013 resolution to blog more about all the fun stuff that I do...because I've actually been able to do some art over the past several months and am on track to continue...so I have something to blog about!  Perhaps I have been busy doing art and not available to blog.  I should at least post something!  E.g.,  "Blogger not available...Doing ART!!!"  With a quick photo of what it is!  Hello...no excuses, now!

Here's a down and dirty (with lots of links!) summation of all (no, some of) the juicy stuff I've been doing:

I've been working in two art journals (some pages still in process)

finished altering another mini board book

and I have been working on a commission...a large painting for a friend's bedroom (not quite finished)

A lovely soul bought a FULL set of my Chakra Altars for her reiki studio, so I made seven (7) more to replenish the inventory at Lemongrass.

My DS (Divine Spirit) sisters and I have been meeting every Friday to let ourselves play and do group or individual projects.   Every endeavor includes a photo shoot, and Lori is a faithful blogger, so she usually posts about it on her blog.  (She won't mind if I send you there for more details...and eye candy, as her photographs are gorgeous!)  This collaboration has been a source of joy for me, and I look forward to every DSF at DSHQ (Lori's house)...even if we haven't planned on doing anything in particular.  Whenever we are together, it's a whirlwind of creativity and fun.

We made a set of "prayer flags"

decorated our faces for Dia de los Muertos

and made altars with the photos we took 

This is a kitchen-sink blog post...I realize that.  In future, I will be more focused and specific...and more consistent.  I realize there is a lot I want to share!  Thank you for visiting and please come back again soon.

Hopelessly Devoted

I know I'm not the only one who suffers this affliction.  So it's not that big a deal to confess to my addiction to paper/pens/office supplies.   This has been a life-long condition, as I have felt this way for as long as I can remember.  I'm not only inexplicably drawn to these things, I also must possess them, coveting and collecting like a hoarder.  Some journals/notebooks go unused for years!  I am selective...it can't be your ordinary spiral notebook or gel pen that seizes my interest.  I'm extremely particular about my pens:  They cannot be broader than .7 for writing, and I must have all colors of the ones I find that write smoothly and make me happy.  I really love my Pelican Jr. fountain pens (notice the plural here, each with a different color ink cartridge).  And the papers...I have many a Moleskine, and fell in love with Rhodia and Clairefontaine when I lived in France.  Just discovered Semikolon!  Yum yum!

Dangerous places:  BlickArt; Paper Source; any old-fashioned stationery store; any papeterie in France.

I have to avoid these places and if inside them, I must force myself to be frugal.  Restraint is an issue!  Comment and tell me about your addiction and dangerous places (I might have to go there)!

Gearing up for Summer Camps

Last year, I held a girls' artisan camp, similar to those I had held the previous three years.  Participants were mainly friends and classmates of my daughter.  They were all about 10 last summer, and starting to behave like true tweens!  We had a little round table discussion about what it means to be considerate.  I will admit that I had lost my patience several times before this discussion, but I asked for their forgiveness and they were gracious.  We had a great camp, but I was doubtful then as to whether I would ever do THAT again!  And here we are, heading into summer, and I'm going in!  We are going to focus on introspective personal art journaling...I think these 11-years olds are more than ready!  But we will probably fit in some sewn collage cards, friendship bracelets, mail art, and throw in a little dance party.  I will stay calm, be patient and give them clear boundaries from the git-go, but mostly, I think it will be lots of fun, and an opportunity for me to let go, play a little, and remember what it was like to be a tween! Here is a link to a slide show I created with photos from the camp.

Inspiration - The Colors of Sayulita, Mexico

We just returned on Sunday from a short but very sweet trip to Punta Mita and Sayulita Mexico.  We had such a relaxing time, and I really loved exploring the little town of Sayulita with my camera.  It was so worth the extra weight in my tote (since we checked no bags) to have the camera available to capture all the eye candy!  Here are a few of my favorite photos from the weekend.  Enjoy!