Two Fabulous Sites you need to know about BEFORE the Holidays

Happy Holidays,

A couple of sites I love that will be of big help in the last minute holiday frenzy...

One, Smitten Kitchen, has a recipe for the decadent and

oh so simple "Christmas Crack". The only time I make this is when I am taking it with me to a gathering where it will all be inhaled - so that I won't eat it all myself!

http://smittenkitchen.com/2009/04/chocolate-caramel-crackers/

I've signed up to receive emails from this site because the recipes are terrific - and the pictures make me want to rush right to the kitchen (or to the store to get whatever I am missing.)

The second site is Michelle Allen's. I met Michelle at Artfest last year when I was lucky enough to take a class from her. She is every bit as happy and energetic in person as she seems on her blog. It's one I check in on regularly as I love how she shares her life as well as her creativity. These gift labels will definitely be adorning many of my Christmas gifts..

http://allendesigns.typepad.com/blog/

She's generously created these tags and some address labels that are downloadable from her site for us to use.

Wishing you all a creative holiday!

Lori

Holiday Greetings

There are going to be some very lucky people who will find beautiful, heartfelt mail art in their mailboxes this season. A variety of scrapbook paper, paints, stamps, stickers, and various other ephemera went into the creation of the fabulous letters above. Just as important though, were the contents - there was a lot of love being poured into these beautiful gifts. This is the season when it is so easy to get caught up in the doings and the chaos of holiday preparation and we forget about the love, gratitude and generosity that are the foundation of the holidays. This month's workshop was all about letting someone know how important they are - I think that the writing of the letters was truly as wonderful for the authors as it will be for their recipients.

Happy Holidays,

Lori

Check out this video! Also, have a look at Cheryl's link on the left hand side of the page. She's been quite prolific since moving to Victoria and has lots of wonderful inspiration on her blog. You can sign up to be updated to all her new posts as well.

October's Wine, Women and a Paintbrush

These are photocopied self-portraits, over-painted, and collaged. There are a couple more to add as soon as my camera battery is recharged..

March

The gathering of women at this workshop was amazing. The connections, the interactions, the surprises were truly fantastic and it was just a great place to be for a few hours.

Someone suggested recently that perhaps, in light of our focus on process rather than outcome, we shouldn't be putting the finished pieces up on the blog. That they essentially defeat the purpose of letting go of expectations in order to really be present at the evening, letting whatever happens, happen. It makes me think about the need for both - the ability to, in the moment, let go of outcome, judgment and expectation, and also, in the end, to honor the outcome, no matter what that is. It seems to me that as women, and caretakers, we spend alot

of time giving - usually without expectation - and probably not nearly enough time appreciating or being appreciated. So maybe Wine, Women and a Paintbrush is a

place for both. An opportunity to let go of the daily responsibilities for a couple of hours but also to acknowledge and be acknowledged for what we've accomplished.

These pieces turned out beautifully. There is so much thought and heart in every one of them. You could feel that in the room and it showed in the way that women who'd just met were there for each other with support and guidance.

Fabric Paper

A new twist on collage. This process uses cotton fabric - or, in this case, an old sheet from value village. We added glue and images from magazines and cards to make quite a thick but flexible cloth. It has endless uses - book or journal covers, framed as is, cut up to use in other projects, part of an art quilt, postcards, the list goes on. The best thing, however, about our February evening was the conversation about life and love and where we belong.

What a Start to 2010!

(If you click on one of the above images, you'll be able to see the journal pages more easily.) January's kick off evening was such a blast! We chose a project that we plan to be adding to over the course of the year - an art journal. There were a couple of guidelines but no real plan - as you can see from the photos. Just an opportunity to fool around with paint, ink, stamps, collage, whatever! I love how vibrant they all are. We finished with a new twist - some downtime to use the journals and record whatever you felt like recording.

Our plan is to either bring the journals to each session or we will provide you with paper that you can add in later so that we can continue to journal about the processes, ideas, insights or whatever else is on your mind that evening.

If you were unable to join us, we'll have kits available each evening for a nominal fee so that you can catch up at home. It's easy, messy and very fun!

Our next gathering is Thursday February 11th. We had to make some changes to accommodate various kid activities this weekend. Sure hope that you're coming!

February Date Change

Hey Everyone,

Please note that we've changed the dates this month to accomodate various child activities. Hope to see you next Thursday the 11th!

Celebrate What's Right With The World Video by Lazarus! - The Resurrected - MySpace Video

Happy New Year!

Here's a piece of a wonderful video to help you get your year off to an inspirational and positive start!

Celebrate What's Right With The World Video by Lazarus! - The Resurrected - MySpace Video

The Magic of the Holidays

This month's intention was to remember and revisit the wonder, magic and meaning of the holiday season. With a great, relaxing intro from Cheryl and a wonderfully inspiring bit of music, we were relaxed and ready to dig in to all the watercolors. A little drawing and painting, some memories, and lots of creativity.