ArtCricket

Journalfest - Yeah Baby!

Lucky me! I was in Port Townsend at Fort Worden again last week, this time for Journalfest .

This rainbow greeted us wednesday late afternoon and everyone took it as a positive omen of wonderous adventures to come!

I love being yards from the water...

downtown PT from a pier

First class on Thursday was with Traci Bautista - my book is upside down int his photo, long story

so here's another pic back in my dorm room, right side up! Diet Coke on the window sill to keep it cold...cause it was just a wee bit chilly, especially for this desert rat.

 

Traci demo-ing

the view from Traci's classroom...

Next day was class with Anahata Katkin, Papaya Design 

 

Anahata demo-ing her technique

class room pic...

and if you read her blog, you'll recognize this man ... anahata's hunka, hunka burnin' love

Set out one day after class to snap a pic of a deer..had to drive around three blocks to find this doe:) that's just one of the delights of Port Townsend. there are deer everwhere. One evening I had to stop for a buck in the middle of the road. Then I saw he was standing there looking at his doe and their baby, on the other side of the fence. They are so close that if you have your car window down, you can smell the musk. For the life of me, I don't understand how and why people hunt and kill these beautiful, serene creatures.

 

and also took this very "typical" PT pic

My last class on saturday was with Roxanne Padgett

 

I only partook in lunch at the Fort Worden cafeteria this time so I had a chance to dine at dinner with Michele Unger a few times at the Noodle House next to the Rose Theater in downtown Port Townsend. In fact, some how or other I managed to enjoy asian food every night I was in PT!

Here's me and Michele

Journalfest was about a quarter of the size of Artfest and was a chance to reconnect with some of my California Art Girl friends... here's Maria with her beautiful new Stephanie Lee journal

 

and Roberta having the time of her life at after class journaling time in The Commons and thinking, "boy, what I wouldnt give for some decent Mexican food right about now!"

 

and Karla, after exclaiming over and over in class, "I am an artist!" showing off her great pages from Anahata's class ..we had alot of fun in dorm 225 after classes and until the wee hours of the night and next morning...

Saturday morning before class I had breakfast downtown and found this...

Left on Sunday to spend the day in Seattle...

 

The GPS shows me in the Fry!

 

This woman, an apparent Burning Man refugee , ran out barefooted on the deck of the ferry to be one with the icy cold wind. Some pre-teen boys were watching her and their commentary was hysterical...one even saying that he couldn't look cause her underwear was showing. I guess you would have had to have been there...but it was pretty amusing. (pic taken from i-phone form inside, where it was cozy warm).

After sleeping on this torture rack for four nights at Fort Worden I was very happy

to pass out in this on Sunday night at the Mayflower...zzzzzzzzzz

 

after visiting somewhere I haven't been in years...Archie McPhee

 

new, larger location and they continue to offer the odd and unusual like these acupuncture mannequins.

 

 

Obligatory trip to the market. Jennifer told me about an antique store on a side street...which i found, but only about 20 minutes before it closed. Next time, next time:)

 

Gotta love what you find in cities....

Went to Daiso ...the Japanese $1.50 store - LOL and Uwajimaya, the Japanese super-store...WOW! Both are in seatle's international district

Many, Many thanks to Tracy and Teesha Moore who started the Artfest retreats over 10 years ago. They are kindness and light, creative genuises and genuinely good peeps. 

I have to admit, I didn't want to leave my fellow art tribe members...it was that much fun!

Have Creative Adventures Everywhere!

Michele

Catching Up

 A month without blogging. Lot sof reasons but basically this is my motto for now:

Picked this stamp up in Poulsbo, WA on the way to Artfest

Nikki, my niece, celebrated her 30-something birthday last weekend. Isn't she beautiful?

John and I both thought it odd that the pine cones fall off the tree and land right side up...I saw this one actually fall and right itself...quite fascinating

Art and Soul instructor Kelly Rae's art is being sold at paper Moon in Plumgate Plaza in Reno. Kelly's are the pieces directly over the woman's head:)

I am working on Misha and Linus' relationship although I can't trust them alone just yet

Misha loves to sit with Linus on his perch and stare out the window 

and John is finally back from down under and managed to sneak this bee-uti-ful shell home in his suitcase

have a creative week - I promise to be a better blogger!
Michele

P.S. check out the Artown Calendar !

Artfest ATC Artist Trading Cards Countdown

Countdown to Artfest and I thought I'd share about how I am not ready and have to work today, Monday and Tuesday and catch a 7 am flight Wednesday and how freaked I am...so why not blog???

After listening to a teacher poetically one day about foamies, I picked up a container of sea monsters and with the help of alcohol ink and stickles and lumiere made these oddities:

Their head dresses are sea monsters or octopus legs (I cut off the heads). there are some other versions in the works...I will be painting all the eyes tonight, at a little art gathering. 

I got a little worried that the above would be a little too "off" so I made some sweet ATC's using a photo I picked up at a garage sale last week and some (of course) foamie starfish...

Yes, I have no defined style...I am all over the board, but that is OK! Gotta keep flexible.

And here's one more photo...love the AM sun streaming in thru the kitchen window...starfish inked and stickled late last night and waiting for a home before I go into work today...a little out-of-focus, like me!

Have a creative day ---I'm taking kendrick/englebreit and colby next week - can't wait to see y'all!

Michele

Artfest ATC Prep Part 101B

My Goal is to have all my ATC's done by tomorrow night and post photos...wish me luck! But in the meantime, thought I'd post a shot of a batch in progress...it is pretty sad when the only flat surface left in your house is on top of the stove, but oh well - some of you might be able to relate!!!

John wanted me to make flames and take a photo of one of them with her hair on fire. I can only speculate what the double meaning was there!

Michele

ATC Trades Lunch Box for Artfest

A little project for Concroption - taG sent us each something to alter and I received a lunchox..which sat on my kitchen table for weeks until I decided what I wanted to do with it.. I sanded, gessoed and painted...with golden fluid acrylics, lumiere and alcohol inks...then used Golden matte medium to apply trike girl (sassafrass lass paper) and lettering (painted Tim Holtz grungeboard letters) and e6000 to secure the glass discs from Michael's. 

I'll be using the box for all my artfest trades ... leaving for Port Townsend on April 1 and have so much to do before then! Jeanne, an artfest virgin, came by last night and we went thru her supply lists, so I could share some of my veteran tips. She has the most amazing trades...they could easily win best trade of the year! Amy joined us later in the evening and I'm feeling very good about recruiting her for next year - LOL!

The weekend is almost here - have a creative one!

Michele

Artfest

Artfest class list for next April 2009 is on-line this am... Artfest  ...click on artfest retreat to go to the class schedule. Wow! 

Artfest Photos - But I'm Still Not Unpacked

This t-shirt is all about the Port Townsend vibe.

Thought I'd better post before I started to forget everything - but I'm still not unpacked and my art supplies are still on the dining room table .... and are my taxes done???

I flew into Seattle at 7:30 a.m., picked up my rental (a red Pontiac G-5, not what I requested, couldn't see a thing, hoped for the best) did some damage at Impress, a fabulous rubber stamp store in Tukwila, and then headed to downtown Poulsbo, a Scandanavian-type town on the way to Port Townsend. My reason for visiting was Rubber Soul - which didn't disappoint.

The gals at Rubber Soul recommended a refueling stop at Chimacum Diner, on the other side of the Hood Canal Floating Bridge, the longest floating bridge in the world located in a saltwater tidal basin...here's the bridge Yes, I take photos while driving, but I draw the line at talking on my cell, driving, taking photos and drinking a diet coke - LOL!

They told me the diner had the best chocolate malts and onion rings! What a vacation taste delight!! And no, I didn't eat both! But it was a hard choice --- they also had great looking pie, the likes of which I've not seen since I lived in Iowa for a few years...

and here's an artsy neon shot with my point and shoot...

Continuing on I stopped by Akamai Art and Glass Supply store to pick up my pre-ordered Golden products - i also stopped there on the way back. the owners, Johanna and Shirley are very friendly and there store has an incredible selection - dare I say it is better than Dick Blick?? From there I went to my soon-to-be home-away-from-home - a cabin at The Swan

That's the view of the Sound from my window. Divine! The cabin was simple but perfect for one creative type, which is code for Very Cozy.

Wednesday night, after dinner, is trading frenzy time. Loads of keen fun and lots of chatter, laughter and a lot of squeals of delight!

Everyone can donate a trade for the raffle - they're all hung on the trade wall...

There is also a gallery where Artfesters can exhibit their work and sell if they'd like...I picked up a piece by
Tyn Atol. It is mixed media of a bird on a quilt - i will post it soon!

Rise and Shine! Time to get ready for Class!!!!

My first class on Thursday was Lisa Bebi's Family Paintover Class. Here's a photo of my table-mate, Marsha, and her treasure! I won't be showing you my piece, but I did learn some good techniques...and learned that when using acrylics, you can paint over and over and over....

One morning, on my way to breakfast, i was wondering where all the deer were that I saw last year...and then, magically, three Bambi's appeared --- I followed them into the grassy field in front of the school building and snapped this fun photo with my new camera...

Later in the day, on the way back to my cabin, I caught these guys out-of-the-corner of my eye and zipped around to get a closer look - they looked like statues in front of this home....

Here's a shot I took on the way to class with Lynn Perella on Friday - it is so wonderful to be right on the water! Lynn's class was my fave - I posted about it last week.

Thursday night is Journaling and the Bonfire by the Beach...I went down for awhile and did some more trading...but as you can see, there are some dedicated journalers....

Saturday was the Starburst Window Book with Melissa Manley ... here'a a photo of a classmate, Carol Brewster....

On Saturday, just like last year, my ADD was busting out, so I finished my class with Melissa Manley and headed to the beach to visit the Fort Warden Marine Science Center. I got to feed fresh fish to a sea urchin and take some cool photos...

Here's my Starburst book visiting the driftwood covered beach...

The inside of book is made using an origami technique - who would have thunk I could ever do origami!

After the Science Center I went downtown for the Gallery Walk and snapped some photos...\

First a snap of just a small portion of an Artfest attendee's Art Car...parked in downtown Port Townsend, a fun place to hang out after classes.

This year downtown P.T.'s First Saturday Gallery Walk coincided with Artfest and most of the merchants were pretty savvy about the buying power of over 500 women on vacation and looking for treasures

and some other pics taken around and about...

After the Gallery Walk I headed back to the Fort for dinner and then went to the Show and Tell, where lots of Artfesters exhibit what they created in their classes. It was a great place to get ideas for the classes I want to take in 2009. I tried to get into Anahata Katkin's Funky Wallpaper People class this year, but didn't. Maybe next year - I so badly want to make one of these....

Sunday morning, after 10 meals at the cafeteria, I was ready for something different. A shop owner recommended a breakfast joint called Landfall that was literally, right next to my cabin...but you know how it is. Every morning I'd take a left to my car instead of a right. Anywho, breakfast was great and I got to enjoy it with Artfester Shelly Rozen and her husband.

After breakfast, I stopped at Akamai and then set the GPS to Bainbridge Island. I have a half sister who I had only met briefly a few years back and decided to stop in for a visit. We had a great time and it was lots of fun getting to know her, her husband and then cute new puppy. I hope to be able to attend Artfest for many years to come and to visit with Nancy and her family every year as well.

Then it was off to the ferry from Bainbridge Island to Seattle...I can't even imagine how cold these two brave souls must be...

See you next year Teesha and Tracy and Port Townsend and most of all my Artfest friends!!!

Artfest 08 Glimpse

Here's a photo of me (ocean breeze hair) and my new idol, the one and only, the coolest, the magnificent Lynn Perella! Her class was perfect in all ways!

Here's a photo of the classroom and artists in action...

This was my second time at Artfest and the experience was a bit different, but all good.
I took a few pictures and will share them with you midweek...my eta for catching up on my zzzz's - in between working...

Stay Creative,
Michele

10 hours and counting

Hey there - Hi there....

Bocce(that's a pic of my princess) and Tootsie are at the vet, my art supplies are organized, I have one more load of laundry and I am totally deranged.

I love to travel and I hate it.

I am going to have a great time but I worry about the pets.

We had another earthquake - i worry we'll have the big one while I'm gone.

I'm excited to learn a ton of new techniques and meet new friends.

I hope I remembered everything - hope TSA doesn't tear thru my luggage like they did last time...see what i mean ---- love/hate!

See you next week!

Creatively,
Michele

Down to the Wire

Good morning -

Here's what I was working on last night...I think I'm up to 92 trades now - all these horoscope ATC's were hand lettered and colored...a wee bit of work. the cute fox stamp on the back is from Memory Box - nabbed at a Fiskers event, so I can thank Donna jean, Amy and Tracy for having that stamp in my collection.

To answer the question about Moo Cards...they are "calling cards" that have your photos or artwork printed on the front and your info (website or phone or e-mail or funny quote) on the back. They are printed and shipped from England and are easy-to-make and not very expensive. Plus, the folks at Moo cards sound like fun people and worthy of our support! I ordered some because people will be trading them at Artfest.

Off to work...have a creative day!

P.S> I am amazed they captured the "moo" url. Wouldn't you think the worldwide Dairy Council would have been all over that?