Some New Projects- Finished!!

As usual, I packed more projects and art supplies and materials to take along on our trip to the beach than clothes! One can always wash clothes, one cannot always make due when the perfect beads or perfect paper or pens are 5 states away in the workspace!!!!! One must have ones priority's straight!!!! The above book was one of the projects that I packed along to finish up. I did work on it a bit but spent more time other projects like my journals and beadwork.
I got the idea and the fabulous directions to create this book from the Fabulous Teesha Moore and her wonderful blog. On her blog, Teesha has generously shared video instructions for crea ting these wonderful handstitched Pillow books. Here is the link! If you have not been to Teesha's Blog, you are in for a treat and the videos that she has included are real gems!!!
This was a great project to work on when waiting for appointments or anytime I neede a bit of hand work to keep me busy. I made it all form scraps of Polka Dot fabrics as the gal who I wa smaking it for adores polka dots. Above you see a picture of it with the strap closure undone. I created the closure using a handmade beaded bead and then stitched on vecro dots underneath to keep the book closed.

Here is the back of the journal. I added four , 5 page signatures to the book using blank medium weight sketch paper. I used beads to attatch the signatures along the spine of the book- the beads also have polka dots!!!!

This was a very special present for my dear friend Robin. Robin is the friend who opens her Cape Cod home to me and my family, for our stays during the summer. Robin was alos the amid of honor at my wedding and I was an attendant in her wedding. I really enjoyed making this for her and I have heard that she was thrilled to recieve it!!! I am sure that she will fill it with wonderful things!!!

Here is a picture of the inside back of the journal.


While on the Cape ,I got many compliments about my Sea Foam bracelet. Upon coming home I started and have since completed another example of this type of beadwork. I am prepping a class to teach using this free form beadweaving technique at Artistic Artifacts. I hope to get my write up and picture presentation done by the end of the week.

The large sea glas type bead closure.

I thoroughly enjoy working on this type of beadwork, but I do need to work on broadening my color palette for these projects, as not everyone is as in love with the ocean color ways that I prefer!

Birthday Treasures

We still have about 1/3 of this lucious and oh-so chocolately chocolate cake left. It is SPECTACULAR with a hot cup of coffee, and DEEEEVINE with raspberry sauce!!! I will definately be using this recipe again- perhaps for Matthew's upcoming Graduation Celebration. If you are interested in the recipe, just give me a holler!! Perhaps the best part of this cake was creating it with Becca. She is becoming quite the dessert specialist!!
I had a wonderful birthday that extended from May 19th with the start of my advnetures at Art and Soul and culminated yesterday with a surprise in the mail from my dear friend Robin! It is a wonderful gift to have a family who is supportive of my artistic journey and takes joy from my love of this special retreat that I so enjoy.
After all, if Momma's not happy, NO ONE is happy!!!!! Right??!?!?!This wonderful piece was created by Julie Haymaker, the wonderful artist who I met at Art and Soul and who taught the first class taht I attended. You can see more of her art here. As we were all setting up for Vendor Night at Art and Soul, I cruised by Julie's table and this piece literally lept inot my hands. (Ok, a bit of artistic license taken!) But I could not take my eyes off of this piece. Brown is not usually a color that I often consider at all, yet this piece was screamng at me!! My Mom had given me a bit of 'Mad Money '
for an early birthday gift, hoping that I would find something specail at the retreat. Well, this was the piece. It occured to me as I looked at this piece that it was speaking of the changes that are fast approaching in the life of our family. We are all growing and coming and going and taking flight and hopefully returning home for visits. With Matthew's upcoming graduation, we are going to embatking on a new journey, so this piece was the perfect momento of this years Art Retreat.

I had spotted this glorious sterling and turquoise cuff bracelet at an Antique store in Fredericksburg, back in April. I came home and drop one or two, maybe ten, rather heavy hints about the location and availability of this glorious piece. Along comes Mother's Day and there it was!!! I was shocked and delighted. Apparently, my hints ahd been noted and acted upon and the kid's ahd gotten quite impatient. So I was gifted with this wonderful bauble for Mother's Day, so I could wear it at Art and Soul. After recieving such a gift I made them all promise that this would also count as a Birthday gift!

Look at this glorious card!! This arrived in the mail yesterday!! What an amazing work of Stamp art, I am going to frame it!!! Robin has outdone herself. Robin and her daughter Laurel attended a Rubber Stamp Convention in California several weekends ago. I have always wanted to see what such a gathering was like and they seem to still be going strong in California. They sent me these two wonderful stamps by involk Arts- one of my favorite stamp companies and Robin didn't know that. She knows me pretty well though!! Robin is a very talented graphic artist who always puts all of her creative energy and attention to every detail into everything that she does. She introduced me to Rubber Stamps when she discovered the Inka -Dink-A- Doo rubber stamp store near South Station in downtown Boston, when we were living in Boston back in the early 80's. SOOOO, Robin is partly responsible for the rubber stamp collection that lives in my studio!!!! Thank you so very much for thinking of me Robin and Laurel!!!!!!

All of my relationships and adventures have played a huge part in my artistic journey and I would not have it any other way!!!!