Artbliss

Well, I'm back from Artbliss in DC and I was greeted by these beautiful welcome home flowers! They look like Fall in a vase!

It sure didn't feel like Fall yet, this was the reading on my car as I was travelling in traffic on I-495 on my way to the retreat friday.

I can't say enough good things about this retreat.  Cindy and Jeanette really created a wonderful atmosphere for everyone.  The venue was intimate and conducive to friendship and learning. We felt at times like we were the only ones at the hotel! There were giveaways, great food, a meet and greet with shopping and trunk shows held in peoples' hotel rooms where we were treated to beautiful creations along with snacks and wine. It would be an understatement to say a good time was had by all!  The leaf trade was fun and some even attached their charms to bracelets and necklaces on site.

So much time and attention on both the charms and the packaging, they are so lovely!

I thought I was taking a lot of pictures but came home to find that I took a lot in class and none outside of class, so i missed pix of good friends, boohoo.

Saturday's class was Hard Candy with Melissa Manley, one of the nicest teachers I have ever had, very knowledgable and laid back. I recommend her classes to anyone if you have the opportunity.

Here is Dawn and Christine at the torches firing their enameled pieces.

I made one completed bead and 2 pair of earring components during class and I'm hooked! Torch firing was so much fun, instant gratification and the possibilities are endless!

Saturday evening I had a class with Deryn Mentock wire wrapping and using resin to create earrings.  Deryn's display at the meet and greet was like looking in a huge vintage jewelry box FULL of treasures, which made it so hard to choose but my friends and I all left with some wonderful pieces of hers! So glad that she came out to the east coast to teach us, hope to see her back again!

On Sunday I had another class with Melissa, this time creating a locket using the rolling mill and hydraulic press ( insert Tim the tool man Taylors' growl here)

I'm afraid these new toys will have to be on this years' Christmas list!

This is where the magic happens,  that is my dear friend Bette on the left,  Ann Schermo at the press and Melissa seated at the bench.

Bette and I were table mates and shopping partners in crime for all 3 classes and i'm afraid her Christmas list looks a lot like mine!

To all those who were unable to attend this year, I would definitely try to make it to next year's event! I'm looking forward to it already!



Follow your bliss!

I'm off to ArtBliss, a new retreat , to meet old and new friends and take some great classes! These are the charms I have made for our "leaf" charm swap. The backgrounds are images of Van Gogh's trees and I have attached patina'd leaves to the back of the charm and wire wrapped Czech glass leaves and flowers to the tops, there are 22 in all, each different. I will post about my adventures as soon as I get back!



Mother's Day Cards | Happy Mother's Day Cards

By Jennifer Bailey

Warm greetings for your darling mom on Mother's Day! That's what Mother's Day cards are for. All year long, she does everything to make you comfortable and happy. You can strive to make her happy at least once a year on the day especially meant for her. Make her feel delighted by sending her a mother's card that conveys your special warmth and feelings for your mother and appreciation of all that she does for you. That is all your mother requires as a return for her love and affection, a reciprocation of her feelings. Honor the selfless love of your mother by thinking of her on this day. Choose a card that says flattering things about her and her importance to you, and stresses the fact that she means a world to you and to the rest of the family. Most mothers complain of being taken for granted by the entire family. This gesture of making her feel like the most important person in the family, around whom the whole family revolves, will make her feel really important.

You may even customize your card with great wordings or beautiful poems especially meant for Mother's Day. All this and much more is available for you to just choose and send to your mother. Beautiful images, wordings, poems and personalized messages make the entire experience of choosing a Mother's Day card a thoroughly enjoyable experience. You may choose to send her an e-card or may even choose from the printable card versions. You may even be able to color some printable cards in your favorite colors. It will make you feel that you have designed a personal card for your mother. Remember the way you used to cut out nice pictures, stick them on a piece of paper and design a card for your mother when you were a little kid. Of course, she would always feel thrilled with your creative experiments and would return your gesture with hugs and kisses.

This Mother's Day, awaken your creative instincts again and put together a lovely card for your mother, to make her experience the same happiness and pride. [http://www.WetPluto.com/History-of-Mothers-Day.html]Mothers Day provides detailed information on History of Mother's Day, Mother's Day, Mother's Day Cards, Mother's Day Crafts and more. Mothers Day is affiliated with [http://www.WetPluto.com/Fathers-Day.html]Father's Day Cards.

Article Source:  Mother's Day Cards

Summer Ends...Fall Begins

The past 2 weeks we have celebrated many things.

The official end of summer, Labor day,  always marks the slowing down of our pace at the restaurant and is a welcome time. My daughter always has a picnic at her house and this year was no exception.  However, they surprised us with a cake in honor of our 30th anniversary and then my parents surprised us further, arriving from Florida to take part in the fun! 

Our family remembered how we enjoyed our visit to Ocracoke Island N.C. so they got together to give us a trip back whenever we can schedule it ( hoping the hurricanes leave us something to revisit!)

We spent several days at the beach soaking up the last summer had to offer. This is my favorite time at the beach, only a few people, warm water and temps in the 80's.

There are some things that never change, generation after generation

-kids will forever run away when waves approach

-They love to be buried in the sand

-they don't mind at all if you have to dig, redig and dig yet again, their little tidepool

By the third time while I was digging I asked my Mom why was i doing this again? She replied , "you are making memories" I told her to remind me of that the next morning when I couldn't move!

At one point while I was taking some pictures I heard all this ruckus behind me and turned to find that a flock of seagulls had ventured over to our cooler and stolen a bag of chocolate animal crackers and were dividing them amongst themselves. I'm sure someone has a pix of me retrieving the bag, thankfully, it hasn't surfaced!

We enjoyed the unexpected company and my parents left to return home this past sunday. On monday the 20th our son left on his first ever flight, a trip to Alaska for his new job ( started Aug 27th with LJT and associates, an electrical contracting firm for NASA, as a remote telemetrist)

He did well for his first flight and is very excited to be there. Can't wait to hear all the stories and see the pix when he returns. The aurora borealis is over where he is staying and I told him to take plenty of pix for me, i envy the opportunity! Our daughter ( pictured above with her boys) began nursing school on the 20th also. 

So we have had a busy couple of weeks and now I am playing catchup getting ready for ArtBliss this weekend, making charms for our swap and gathering tools and supplies!

So goodbye to Summer, and hello to Fall and all the adventures it holds!

Pizza Mummies

Ingredients


English muffins
Pizza sauce
Black olives
Scallions
Red or green pepper
Cheese sticks or slices

Instructions


Heat the oven to 350º F. For each mummy, spread a tablespoon of pizza sauce onto half of an English muffin (toast it first, if you like).
Set olive slices in place for eyes and add round slices of green onion or bits of red or green pepper for pupils.
Lay strips of cheese (we used a pulled-apart cheese stick) across the muffin for the mummy?s wrappings.
Bake for about 10 minutes or until the cheese is melted and the muffin is toasty.


http://familyfun.go.com/

Hot Dog Mummies

Ingredients

1 11-ounce can of refrigerator breadsticks
1 12-pack of hot dogs
Yellow mustard

Instructions

For each mummy, separate one breadstick from the roll and use kitchen shears or a knife to slice it in half lengthwise to create two thinner strips.
Wrap one strip at a time snugly around the hot dog. Depending on the size of the hot dog, you may not need all of both strips. Leave about 1/2 inch of hot dog exposed for the face area and continue wrapping the top of the hot dog.
Bake the mummies on a cookie sheet at 350º for 15 to 18 minutes or until the breadstick wrapping is golden brown.
Remove the mummies from the oven and cool them for 5 minutes. Add yellow mustard eyes just before serving. Makes 12 mummies.

http://familyfun.go.com/

Apple Bites

Ingredients

Apples
Slivered almonds

Instructions

Just quarter and core an apple, cut a wedge from the skin side of each quarter, then press slivered almonds in place for teeth.

Tips: If you're not going to serve them right away, baste the apples with orange juice to keep them from browning.

http://familyfun.go.com/

Happy Jack

Materials

Self-adhesive magnetic sheet
Orange paper
Scissors

Black paper

Instructions

Stick a self-adhesive magnetic sheet to a piece of orange paper, then cut out a simple pumpkin shape. Cut a stem and facial features from a magnetic sheet that's been covered with black paper

http://familyfun.go.com/halloween/halloween-crafts/halloween-decorations/happy-jack-930930/

Skull Background By Mommy's Blog

I enjoy searching for pictures on the Internet and creating my own backgrounds. This background is made for Twitter backgrounds.

Flapping Bat

Materials

Bat templates (download them here)
Black craft foam
Red sequins
Black paper fasteners (or brass fasteners colored with permanent black marker)
10-inch piece of string or dental floss
Short piece of ribbon
A bead (optional)

Instructions

Click here to download a printable version of the flapping bat. http://familyfun.go.com/assets/cms/pdf/crafts/0903_foambat_template.pdf
To view the .pdf file, you'll need Acrobat Reader which is available for free from the Adobe site.

Cut 1 body shape and 2 matching wing shapes from black craft foam, punching holes where indicated. Glue red sequins to the head for eyes.

To attach the wings to the body, align the hole farthest from the rounded end of each wing with a shoulder hole. Use black paper fasteners (or brass fasteners colored with permanent black marker) to loosely attach the wings to the back of the body, as shown.



Next, thread one end of a 10-inch piece of string or dental floss through the remaining wing holes and tie it in a loose loop, making sure the free end extends beyond the bat's head. Tie a bead to the end of the string, if you like.


Tie a piece of ribbon through the hole at the bottom of the bat, then hang him upside down on a wall or window. To make the bat's wings flap, pull the hanging string.

More fun ideas http://familyfun.go.com/halloween/halloween-crafts/

Happy Anniversary

Happy Anniversary to the love of my life!

30 years ago today ( my we were so young then!)

Our invitation read:

This day I will marry my friend

The one I laugh with

Live for

Dream with

Love



I am happy to say that 30 years later I still feel the same way and more!

It hasn't always been easy but i'm glad we stuck it out and worked through life's trials and are getting to share in the rewards of our hard work.

Everyday i receive a thought for the day in my inbox and ironically this is today's , I thought worth sharing-

Friendship and Love

Friendships or marriages based on "dire need" or physical security are doomed to fail if each person in the relationship does not grow beyond his or her limited ways of thinking and reacting.

The ideal relationship is one in which each partner strives to grow. It is an ever-expanding commitment, mutually supportive of healthy interdependence. A healthy relationship encourages the seeking of wider mental and spiritual horizons; it is never threatened permanently by them.

TODAY Do I give my loved ones enough room to grow? Do I encourage my friends or mate to do things without me? Am I threatened by change or do I welcome it? Do I have the courage to do things on my own, even if my loved ones do not give me support? Do I have the courage and consideration to share my changes with those I love?

Let the purpose of all marriages and friendships alike be the deepening of the spirit and the enrichment of the soul.

You are reading from the book:

The Reflecting Pond by Liane Cordes



Early Halloween at my house

I love Halloween so much I decided to decorate my home early.

I purchase my decorations last year at Walmart and Walgreen's.

Crawling Spiders

Cool Idea dry rosses