Busy days before a quiet weekend!

Today I did up a few samples for my classes in Scottsdale next weekend. Here is a look at them.The Patera Class the Rubbermoon color pencil class and the Golden Paste Paper are just three of the five classes I will be teaching.
I must say I had a great time at both Stampin From the Heart in Culver City and Island Images in Gardena. Karen and Kimi are both incredible storeowners willing to do what it takes for their customers! Both stores had an excellent and very different array of stamps especially JudiKins. I enjoyed all the folks who came out for classes both stores had very cheery fun ladies.
I can't wait to come back for a visit to both stores!

What's going on?

Well I am back from another successful cruise with the gang. We had a great time playing,drinking eating,eating and eating! A big THANKS to all the cruisers and especially Anne Garcia who organizes this trip!
Thanks to Tim we learned a new addictive dice game as fun as BUNCO...Left,Right, Center is the name I think! Very easy...if you know your right from your left...very fun! Also a big thanks to Terry and Susan Tyson for a nice visit and Robin Knutson for all her help!
I have a bunch of pictures to download and mucho repacking to do but I will be ready for this Friday at Stampin' from the Heart and Saturday at Island Images see the schedule for ph#'s. there is till room for some classes.
Also Check out Judi Watanabe of JudiKins new blog which she just started today! I am sure she is putting on as much info on JK stuff and her CraftTV Weekly spots!

Indianapolis, The Cruise and BeYond

Back from Indianapolis where I saw my friends from CoffeeBreak Design Mike and Chris Meador. They had loads of new stencils (Which I will have on the cruise this weekend!They are so cool I covered my datebook with them using copic markers, the new Inkssential (Ranger) white pen and the Spica glitter pens.I will have to show you that when it is finished.
Meanwhile I am preparing for the cruise and for classes the following week at Stampin' from the Heart in LA and Island Images in Gardena see my schedule to get in on those classes.
Here is a little snippet of a card using Copic markers the stamps are from Carmen's Veranda.

Albuquerque Show

Back for a day! Just another turn around trip. Heading for Indianapolis later this week.
We had a great time in New Mexico. We hit all the high spots in the state making a giant loop. Spending our first night in Flagstaff waiting out a bit of snow Elaine shoveled out the truck bed on day 2 so we could get the trunks back in.
The next day we got into Albuquerque shopped a bit at the Magnolia gallery and headed over to Rhonda's for Elaines shrine pin class.Rhonda's store was great a huge classroom, lovely people! We had a wonderful time Thursday and Friday!

Heading for Albuqurque New Mexico

Hitting the road again this time for Rhonda Creative Craft
Center. My classes are full and I am looking forward to hanging out in a town I have not been to in a long time. Also looking forward to seeing people at the show itself I hope everyone in the area will come out to see Carmen's Veranda!
Packed and ready...OK not completely...still doing laundry, last minute things to take care of like hooking up with a couple of store owners in the LA area Calling Karen & Kimi tomorrow) and cleaning out the car!

My CHA Favorites

Here is my list for best of CHA
Chris Cozen's book for Design Originals called Altered Surfaces ISBN 157421636 So good I put it on my slideshow. The best book I have ever seen explaining acrylics in simple English!Order it TODAY!
Mist -It from Inspired Craft not too big not too small and great for personal use as well w'ill even stream gels. I can't wait to try paint in it and bleach too!
Goldens new line of Digital Mediums Put these new grounds on anything you can run through a printer and it is an INSTANTLY better and clearer print.

Top Rubberstamp line booth display B-Line Absolutely Beautiful best looking booth of the show! check out my links for all these folks.
CHeck back tomorrow for more on CHA

surviving CHA

The Creative Zone

My friends Michael & Judy Jacobs have a fantastic new website I suggest everyone go check out www.thecreativezone.com . Loaded with great paper and book art tips it will be a wonderful resource for any artist.
GO NOW check it out!

Cairns & Puppies odd combo I know....

Lately

Back in the desert for a few days till CHA.
My dad likes to play with rocks so here is his latest cairn and
one of my brothers got a couple of new puppies so I thought I show a picture of each.They are pretty cute, eh?
The demo at Saltwater went very well. If you get a chance to check it (Saltwater)out do! Downtown Fullerton is a great place to shop.
This week before I head over to CHA I hope to check out a few of the galleries here in Joshua Tree including Art Queen. 29 palms and Joshua Tree are home to many murals as well as galleries as well as a few good thrift and antique stores. This time of year the weather is usually great except for the occasional sand storm or flash floods, HA, we have had both this past week!

unscheduled appearance at SALTWATER in Fullerton CA

I will be making an unscheduled stop at Saltwater & Friends 122 N Harbor Blvd Fullerton Ca this Saturday February 3 noon to 4pm, demonstrating for the Carmen's Veranda corner of the store. If you have never been to downtown Fullerton it is a cool shopping area with loads of charm and plenty of great places to eat. S&F has ( besides rubberstamps) antiques, collectables, loads of gift, items, candles, jewelry and lots of seasonal stuff for Easter and Velentines Day.

This past weekend in Riverside was lots of fun, hanging out with Auntie Amy and Jennifer was wonderful. They have a very up to the minute stock of supplies and goodies and that carmel popcorn is KILLER!!!!
We had a nice day of classes and a good show on Friday and Saturday.
My cruise cohort Anne Garcia came by our booth hunting down great stuff for the cruise www.artsdemer.com Plenty of folks already have contributed to doorprize cache!

I hear the weather back home has been as crazy as down here in the desert. 2 ft of snow compared to high winds,rain and flash floods hmmmmm hard to choose!

Hey go check out http://pagesage.typepad.com/ for a little blurb on me and Page Sage!
It is always nice to have nice things said about you isn't it?
Thanks a bunch to Suzanne Lamar for putting up with me!

Hitting the Road

Well my second trip of the year begins this week in Riverside at Auntie Amy's.The year always begins with Grapevine TX and its a runaway train of a time after that! No matter how well it starts I just feel like I am always just catching up, doing what I can to eliminate disaster while running between airports. A driving trip is so much more relaxing so with my kids watching the homestead I hit road. First stop Salem Or to visit my other mother Shirley AKA MA Goose and Hank. Then on down to Fresno to see my buddy Sue and husband Bill (Sue owned Stampacadabra the best stamp store ever in FRESNO) and on down to Joshua Tree to visit the folks! Of Course Tapas is with me and I get to see my other dog Hamish.

Texas was GREAT as usual

I don't have any picture yet so I'll try to post them when I get a chance.
Next trip is to Auntie Amy's in Riverside CA there is still room in the Friday Class!
I will also be demonstrating for Carmens Veranda so stop by and say hi.

On the way to Texas

I will be heading out for Texas soon and wanted to say I hope y'all come out to see me at the JudiKins booth at the Heirloom Grapevine show this coming weekend. Scan down a bit for a picture of the Imprints class in Fort Worth.If you can join us give Tina at the store a call!
Here at home this birdhouse is about 2 feet tall and it is sitting on a 2foot high stump!

Imprints this coming week, Auntie Amy NEXT!

OK the show season officially begins this week in Grapevine TX. Do not forget to stop and see me at Imprints or at the Grapevine Heirloom Show for Stamp Masters Friday night or at the Imprints demo with Coffee Break Designs. On Jan 24 & 25 I will be at Auntie Amy's in Riverside store teaching there is space in the Friday session so check with them ASAP at AUNTIE AMY'S
These are samples of the pieces we will be doing in the Micro Glaze class in Riverside.

Meanwhile back at the ranch....
It has been snowing little bits today the weather is warm and many of the giant icicles have fallen some as big as 3 inches in diameter and 2 feet long

Amy from Beeswax

Also check out Amy from Beeswax' chatterbox blog. She has some Gorgeous lampwork beads on there!

RUBBER STAMP CHAT

BTW if you haven't yet joined rubberstampchat.net go do it NOW! PLEASE!
It is a great group of stampers with a ton of info and loads of lovely cards and galleries.

Imprints Texas

It is time to think about the road already! My first stop this year is at Imprints in Fort Worth TX.
The first class for me will be Faux Metal Madness 6pm on Jan 10th. I hope you can join me! Here is a sample. Many techniques are covered in this class using foils, embossing powders and much more. Call Tina at Imprints to sign up ASAP 817-294-4600
Mike Meador (COFFEEBREAKDESIGN) and I will be doing a SPECIAL demo at Imprints on Sat after the show too.
At the GRAPEVINE Heirloom show our first Stamp Masters event is Friday Night Jan 11th for info and tickets check out the Heirloom link below!

Happy New Year

Well I guess I should start putting away the Christmas stuff

Rubberstampmadness

The all time great Rubberstampmadness has a nice blurb about my blog on the surf city section . Thanks RSM! http://rsmadness.com/surfcity.html

Books DVDs and such

Sorry I had to make a change on my template to fit the slideshow of my books and DVDs. I must admit I was lazy and did not put this info on earlier. click on and it should take you to Amazon where you can purchase my stuff new or used. I love it when you can support local stores but I know many of you don't have stores close by.

Happy Holidays

The end of the year again, yikes. It has been snowing quite a bit almost four feet high around the house much of that is from the roof 9snow sliding off) although there is a good 2 ft on the ground.
Tapas and I spent Christmas down in Coeur d Alene at my daughter's new house. It was nice not having to drive back and forth. Had a great time while I was there got into the first two seasons of Weeds. Ate some pizza which I cannot get delivered at my place.

SNOW!

Just a light snow last night but it makes the trees so pretty. On the other hand my driveway is a skating rink. Spikes must be worn!

Thanks Marva

Thanks for this adorable fabric ornament. It makes me want to break out the Singer and whip up a few myself. Check out Marva's blog www.purplepaintsmuse.blogspot.com/ It looks easy to mail as well a big plus this time of year!

Vintage Stamps

I am shocked at how long it has been since I posted anything. No real excuses, I have been working at Creative Element and Spokane Art Supply a bit over the winter and by the time I get home it is dark and I am exhausted so I have been lazy.
I thought some of you old school stampers would like to see a VINTAGE stamp I found the other day at a thrift store here ...a 1988 PSX gem HAPPY WINTER. 25 cents what a deal. PSX used to have the most beautiful indexing and varnish it was easily cleaned up (almost black with ink when I found it). Back then they had a bunch of sort of primitive folk art designs that I love. I am always on the hunt for old stuff.

Not snowing but crispy

Today I am still packing up the leftovers and the weather is better. Lots of crispy snow outside but it was sunny so we(Tapas & myself )went for a bit of a walk in our woods. Crunchy would be a good description. I really need to take a picture or two of a bunch of things, the snow, the Christmas stuff I am making and the tree. Maybe this weekend, HA!
Updated my schedule a little for the beginning of 2008. It is not everything just what I have truly on the schedule to date. Keep checking back for dates and places.

the sale

Well it went just fine. A few folks got here just before the bad weather hit. They cleaned me out of a few things. Still plenty of stuff here though. stay posted if there is a chance of clear waether before mid Jan I will try again.
Today is a slush puppy literally. My driveway did not get plowed in time and now it is a soggy mess. The rain could clear it up by this afternoon I hope.

Getting Ready

I have most of the stuff out and ready for those who venture out this Sat. The weather look good so I hope you can make it.

The Big Deal

It is the end of the year and I need to clear out things I am not using so...I will have my annual Studio sale Sat Dec 1st at My Place starting at noon ending at 4pm.
Those of you that have attended in the past know what a great deal this is so if you are in the area do not miss it!
Other big deals... I am setting my schedule for next year and I am going to many of the Heirloom shows. 2008 will be my last year of all out travel after that I plan on doing only 5-6 out of state events a year gradually winding down and sticking closer to home. I hope you'll all pass the word so that I can visit with as many folks as possible.
I will post my schedule as it becomes available.
Here are a few photos from the past week at Stamper's Warehouse. There is a great bunch of ladies there that I totally enjoy when I am there and these are some pics of the last class there.

Sundays Class Nov 11th

Back from a whirlwind trip to the Bay Area.
I had a great timeThanks to Suzanne and the ladies at Stamper's Warehouse!
Pictures coming soon.
It looks like it will be a beautiful day for the Crazy Paper Class this Sunday email me to let me know if you are interested maryjomcgraw@aol.com.

Where I am this week and where to get Micro Glaze and Coffeebreak!

First things first I neglected to mention that I am in the Bay Area this week doing some work for PageSage amd will be at the Fabulous Stampers Warehouse on Wednesday at 6pm doing an ATC Pocket pack class( Scroll down for samples of ATC's). So if your are in the area please stop by bring along any books or DVD for me to sign.
Now about the Micro Glaze .....you can order it direct from Judikins.com but I would love it if you checked out your local stamp/scrap/craft store first they might just have it waiting for you. Rubberstampinglinksis a great place to find a store near you. CoffeeBreakDesign is reachable by the link on this blog (scroll down for LINKS)!

WHEW what a week! New Class Sunday Nov 11 th

OK not enough sleep adds to lack of brain activity!
I have a few friends out at the Mesa AZ Stamp Show this weekend so go check that out! JudiKins and my friend Elaine Madrid are out that way so say hey.
Also I am doing my crazy paper class again next Sunday ( NOV 11th) MY PLACE noon to 4ish email me for details. This is a sample of the many crazy papers we will make with paint, glazes, powders and more.
My Beeswax Class Is the afternoon of Nov 14th call Creative Element for details. Many waxy samples are on this blog so have a peek around the place. 208-667-0813
Check out all the stamps and supplies we have at Creative Element in these current pics!
I am pooped.... off to bed!

Altered books for Friends this Sunday

Hi All, this weekend I am doing a special class at MY PLACE for folks interested in Altered Books call the number on the schedule for details time ETC or contact me ASAP here through comments.
We will be covering quite a bit and you need to bring yourself and a book!

This weekend at Creative Element CDA Idaho

If you are in town this weekend I am doing my polymer book and molds class Raiders of the Lost Art.It is a four hour class giving you some basic polymer concepts and you'll end up with a small book and many molds for embellishments!
Call the store for more info at 208-667-0813
After the class (2pm) I will be demonstrating as much of the JudiKins product as possible. Judi sent a TON of stamps and product for you to check out!

Question about links

Hi all ,
I recently had a comment questioning my links. No screwing involved! Here is my process. If I like you, your artwork, your product or all of the above I will link you but I do expect a link to this blog in kind. Having said that check out the disclaimer on www.vivalasvegastamps.com

Bulb Planting

I have about 200 bulbs to put in today so I should get to it.
Thanks to all who posted about the beautiful fall color Here is one more fall photo.
Today is a gorgeous sunny autumn day perfect for planting bulbs and trees.

Home from York

Home at last for a while. York was nice and HOT! The people at the show were a fun bunch. This being the last show for me this year, I said my holiday greetings and goodbyes for the year to all the vendors then proceeded home with only an hour & 1/2 delay in Chicago. Not as bad as the nine hour layover after the Rhinebeck show.
AHHH HOME and all the fall fixin to be done, picked the last of the vegetables, brought in some wood, started the laundry and cleared the DVR. Now begins all the work of scheduling for next year, shows, stores, ETC!

The Great Art Adventure in Spokane

Well I lived through another busy weekend of fun and frenzied activity!
The Great Art Adventure is run by Spokane Art Supply and I hope that next year it will be bigger and better and many more stamps.
I worked for both Golden Paint and Jaquard for the event which was wonderful and took home great stuff from several other vendors including Ampersand.

OMni Gel, Micro Glaze and Tranz-IT

I wanted to post the answers on the front to these two questions/comments.

Yes I did do a book using Omni Gel ....Vintage Greeting Cards from Northlightbooks,
Since that book an even better product came along Tranz-it Gel From JudiKins, works in the same way as Omni with better results on more surfaces!

And What do I do with Micro Glaze?

There are four basics with Micro Glaze
1. Resists You can stamp with Micro glaze or mask with it to create resist effect
2. Fixative, waterproofing agent
3. Mix with Pearl Ex for a metallic rub on
4.It is a great buffing agent for all ink especially fluid chalks and alcohol ink

Altered Book Class Friday at the Rhinebeck NY Fairgrounds

Check out www.heirloompro.com for details.
See you there

Home briefly before RhinebeckNY

After a lovely and unexpected 6 hour layover in Denver I made it home!
Sometime today I will load up some pics of the show in Greenville. It is always a pleasure to be in the south where everyone is so polite and helpful we had a great time and a lot of steak!

See you in Greenville SC

I hope to see a few of you this weekend in Greenville. There are still classes availiable with several of the vendors on Fri check my link to www.heirloompro.com for info on all the classes.
Here is a close up of Tapas who turn 8 this year!

Autumn begins

Thought I would share my yard a bit, since it is just the beginning of Fall here, things are just starting to change. My Jack Russell terrier "Tapas" heads down the main path to the back of the property. My Borage is absolutely thick this year. The bees are loving it. This is one of the hammocks I bought a few years back on the cruise it did not get put up last winter and so I need a new one.
I am heading to South Carolina this weekend where I am sure it is still summer. Hope to see some of you at the Heirloom Greenville show. check out www.Heirloompro.com for info.

Back Home

Well after a whirlwind trip to Salem I am back!
Did some tree shopping at Bear Creek Nursery. Hit the big city wide garage sales in Scio with Ma Goose. Checked out some great shops in Independence Or and then headed over to Stampin Cat Studio for my classes. All is well with Lisa and the ladies in their lovely new space.The Bunnies are busy still loading up the joint with all the latest stamping stuff.

arabesque class

Here is the quickly shot sample for the Arabesque class at Stampin Cat Studio

Stampin Cat Sept 7-8 Salem OREGON

Hey for those of you in Salem OR or for the Portland area I will be at Stampin Cat Studio Friday and Saturday, Sept 7-8
3 Classes and a Free Demo check out www.stampincat.com or call Lisa for info at 503-390-2553
We are doing my new Arabesque Class(I will post a pic Later today.
Characters Composed which is an intensive Micro Glaze workshop here is my Frida Example
and a Diamond Glaze Master Class

Frenzy Stamper Weekend

Well I am back home for a day and just downloaded some pics from my trip.
I always have such a good time hanging out with Debbie. Her store is a warm and inviting( just like Debbie) place with tons of personality and a huge selection of stamps and product. We had a hard time fitting all the JudiKins stamps in, so many were just left on the counter!
I love going down to teach at FS plenty of room in the class area and so many familiar faces from the days of
Rubber Stampede( that was the original show in the area run by Elaine Madrid of Carmen's Veranda)
These are a couple of photos from the beeswax class, myself and Debbie and the store. sorry I took this one late in the day and it is a bit dark.