Holiday Hullabaloo!!!!

So so so excited to announce a new little holiday show I am putting together for the first Saturday in December! So far the funky art and craft fair features 10 of my favorite local artists and I hope to get about 10 more to participate! There will be everything from natural bath products to recycled art to fine art to well you name it! It will be in the back hall at Manitowoc Coffee. Make sure to tell all your friends! It is going to be a hullabaloo you will not want to miss.

For more information visit the Holiday Hullabaloo Blog!

The fabulous poster was designed by the hugely talented Tina Kugler. Hire her to make your posters, children's books or logo. You will not be disappointed!

Camera Love.

So I was playing with our new camera the other day. The light was so nice coming in the window I thought I would get out the tripod and try a few shots. Glenn♥ so sweetly gave me a few pointers about photography...I am a point and shoot kind of gal...and I took pics for about an hour. I love love love them! Tell me what you think!

Loved making this pendant so much using plaster of paris!

Did you know how much I adore trade beads? Well I do and used lots of them in this fun bracelet.

Mixed Media Monday

I've never participated in the great Mixed Media Monday challenges but when I saw the theme was moustache I knew I had to include my crazy moustache ATC. Had so much fun making this one and cannot wait to see others moustaches!

Creative Growth.

I've had an artistic awakening recently and the final step in realizing my path was the start of this art journal I call Creative Growth. The top pic are favorite pages thus far.

I mentioned in the previous post how doing an art journal has made me realize how therapeutic and free art can really be. No deadlines, no intentions of selling it, no pressure. It makes me giddy with creativity and excitement for the future! I have really enjoyed my almost 10 years as a shop owner but it is time for me to really go where my heart is taking me.

I have so many great ideas and with owning this fabulous building the options are endless. I want to paint murals and teach classes, I want to sell my art and jewelry all over the country and maybe write a book???? I am not exactly sure what the future holds but I am more than ready and willing to take it to the next level and I cannot wait to see what that future is! Changes will be slow and well planned but the thought right now is the store will close as a regularly open retail shop after the holidays. I may still have special events once a month or so but the store will really be open a few days a week to host classes taught by not only me but my network of super talented friends. It will be an open studio of sorts with lots and lots of goodies to play with and experiment with. So keep an eye on the blog I will let everyone know what is happening and please don't think of this as an end....it is a very very exciting beginning.

Ahhhhh vacation.

Even though it is over it is still fresh in my mind. It was a wonderfully relaxing week that made me really think about a lot of things. I am very sure now that I am ready to make some major changes and make steps to becoming an artist instead of a store owner. These steps will be slow baby steps but they will come soon.

While staying in a wonderful cozy cabin I had the chance to start an art book. I bought an old book from a thrift store in town and glued pages, ripped out pages and started painting. It was so wonderful to do art just for me....well everything I make is in part for me but this was made with no intention of ever selling it to anyone else and I really really like that.

This is what we woke up to on Saturday...yeah it's snow. But back to art....I am ready. Ready to eventually close the shop and really focus on my art. While I have loved my 10 years owning a retail shop I just want to make stuff. I do own the building so it will likely be awhile before I close close but hours may change dramatically in the coming months. I will focus more on classes and selling my things in other stores...which by the way if you are in Madison check out Anthology on State Street...they carry my goodies now....super duper excited. I also want to work on more publications and writing articles. All of this takes quiet time...uninterrupted quiet time that having a shop just doesn't allow for. I have always believed that we should be open to possibility and change and this is really feeling right for me right now. So where it will take me is a mystery but I am looking forward to the future!

VACATION!!!

Yeahhhhh it's vacation time! Time to embrace the peace and quiet. Time for starry starry nights, beautiful fall colors, hikes on the woods, and best of all no technology. Just Glenn, Molly, Holly and I enjoying our family. I can't wait to wake up and taking in the fresh cool air with a cup of coffee on the deck, explore wonderful little northwoods towns and check out beautiful waterfalls. Sounds great doesn't it?

Since I will be on vacation I won't have too much computer time. I think we may go into town to a coffee shop to touch base and honestly to check our Mafia Wars (slightly addicted to facebook in general) So enjoy the week....I know I will!

Inspiration

I love when something comes back to me and gets me really really excited that I am an artist. That's what happened this week with a great book I bought some time ago called A Charming Exchange It is a crazy fantastic book with so many great techniques it makes me crazy. My head was just spinning as I re-read this fantastic and inspirational book. I have spent the last two days in the studio taping and soldering and stamping metal. It has been fun and here is some of the outcome. A few soldered pendants, some great little beach glass pendants, and a copper bracelet that I am keeping for me! It has been really fun....maybe I need to revisit more of my art books!