Thursday, October 25, 2012

The Art of Craft


 I'm super excited to have been asked, again, to be a part of this fantastic weekend with a really great group of creative women, both teachers and attendees:  The Art of Craft.  You can find all the details and sign up on The Art of Craft website right now, or on French General's website starting on November 1st.

The amount of participation and creativity that goes on each year during this fantastically hosted weekend never ceases to amaze me.  My fabulous family comes out in droves:  bar-tending, making delish food, hosting, meeting and greeting and general, all-around party-throwers to the nth degree!
And I'm always really thrilled by all the other artists and teachers that join in the big weekend, as well:  This year, French General has invited Pam Garrison, Charlotte Lyons, Arlene Baker, Jenny Hart and Rebecca Sower.

I'm teaching a really fun project, that fits right into my obsession with small works of wonder:  "Under the Bell Jar".  We'll actually build out parts of the bell jar and then create each individual pin that will eventually live in your own personal mise-en-scene.

And by Sunday night, with all the classes crafted through and the projects brought to light, we pour ourselves a glass of Lillet and toast this creative world with a talk by Nancy Soriano.

I can't wait!  And I can only hope you'll join us for this super fun, super creative weekend filled with old and new-found friends.  It doesn't take place until January 12-14th, but sign-ups begin now (because, really, whether you've accepted it or not, January is RIGHT around the corner!! where does the time go?!?!).

SIGN-UPS LINKED HERE

Tuesday, October 9, 2012

Type Rider



I love this story.  A typewriter.  A bike.  A storyteller.  And a public coming together that warms my heart. 

I find this story extra inspiring as I am, once again, beginning to write my own future story, a 'what may come' story. 

I lived my childhood on the coast of Southern California. 
My 20's in New York City. 
My 30's in San Francisco. 
And now, in my 40's, I'm setting out to see what there is in Los Angeles.
Creating the ideal, living the dream, and setting out for more keeps me going.

Wednesday, October 3, 2012

WORKSHOP : San Francisco


I feel like this may be the beginning of a major new chapter...
After teaching in Los Angeles, New York and France, I'm finally leading my first San Francisco-based workshop,

WORKSHOP:  CONCERTINA BOOK
SUNDAY, OCTOBER 14th
11:30am-2pm
Women's Building, 18th Street

Besides learning how to construct this very cool, old-fashioned  style book, you will receive all the  materials to work with.  I've gone deep into the vast resources of my studio collections, some items dating back to the 1800's, and put together an entire ephemera kit (that I can't seem to stop adding to!) for you to collage with.
Good, juicy stuff you don't want to miss!
I'll be posting images all week on the 8mm ideas Facebook Page, in  case you need more enticement...

Workshops are a fabulous way to get your creative on with a group of  like-minded peeps!  It gets us off line and into each others creative space, up close and personal.  I never thought I was one for group crafting, but I've learned the fun way, thanks to my good friend Holly, who took me to my very first workshop.  And, to my sister Kaari, who was the first one to start asking me to teach to adults.  I taught for years to kids, it seemed sorta similar and dubiously daunting (exactly).  And I've got my friend, T, to thank for getting me into classes that impressed me enough to want to also lead.
I've loved every workshop I've led:  It has been a thrill.

And that's why I'm so excited to do it here, on my own, creating the space...I'm renting a room at the Women's Building and it is gorgeous.  HUGE half domed windows, overlooking 18th Street, beautiful light, wide open room, in a building with so much history.  For just 3 short hours, one Sunday in October, I plan to turn it into a creative workshop space you won't want to leave.

If you don't happen to live in SF, but know someone who does, feel free to share the word.

Class size is limited.
So get it while the getting is good!

Tuesday, October 2, 2012

Sofia means Wisdom

Sometimes, I get a nervous feeling about moving to LA.  I compare things to SF, the same way I compared SF to NYC.  For SO many years.  Now, I realize, there are so many things I grew to love, I know I'll miss. 
So,  I want to make great strides, grand gestures, and cast my net wide to explore and grow to love LA.  I believe you're never too old to start again, there's always a new path to discover and hell, if you don't go in, you'll never find out.

Then, my sister texts me this photo


and it hit me deep in the gut, I remembered instantly why I want to move to LA.
Experiencing my niece and her incredible zest for new and love for friends, her joy at creating a Halloween costume, her unbridled passion for learning about things/people/ and places,  her unbelievable understanding of others at age 15,  and her total and complete get-up-and-go at all get-up-and-go opportunities, experiencing these things in person are incredibly powerful and life-affirming.  That may sound overly-dramatic, I guess, but I don't care one whit.  When I'm around Sofia, life feels really charged with goodness.

Of course you must have realized by now, the girl in the photo I'm referring to, my niece Sofia is not one of the girls in the audience with her arms crossed, she is the girl who is bouncing into the photo, with Panda Pride, as the school mascot.
High School Pep Rally:  Only Sofia can make it look so good.