smitten with edgar guest

from the fbs (firstborn studio) archives

i love the folksy sensibility of this man.
as a young girl i purchased an edgar guest treasury at a junk store while on a road trip with friends. his poems never fail to speak to a hardship or joy or just plain old everyday living that i may be experiencing.


just thought you should know.

a handmade Christmas

"we keep hearing that a lot of gifts are going to be handmade this year.
what are your plans? "
Please take a moment to answer this...
Handmade Holidays "Questionnaire"

~image above from the book handknit holidays

bloomin'cool

i have some fab news to share and have been waiting
ever so patiently for the day to come when i could share it with you!

so here it is....

i had the absolute pleasure of being a contributing artist to
"in this garden" by angela cartwright and sarah fishburn
it will be released by quarry april 2009,it is sure to be a
visually delicious follow-up to the "in this house" bestseller!

"in this garden:explorations in mixed-media narrative"
can be pre-ordered on amazon
or
pick one up at rock paper scissors
where the garden will be bloomin' in april 09!

"sometimes in full flight from reality"

hmmm "what does she mean?"
"you have to read the book" she said.

the dealio...i was tagged by sweet marie
to write the title to my own memoir

in return, the rules are as follows:

write the title to your own memoir using SIX {6} words.

post it on your blog.

link to the person that tagged you.

tag 5 more blogs.

i want to read your memoirs lisa , carol , deryn , kelly & jen

i have been stumbled across

by paperback writer


color me flattered!

abc3d/abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz

turn down django for a minute{see over there,to your right...>
then flip through a good book and enjoy some catchy tunes!





per rag & bone
per shape & colour

moved

it is saturday.earlyish.tom is still sleeping.i am being quiet.
since i cannot start rattling around my studio,i sit here surfing.
i stumbled upon a site called fun forever...a site that looks like
it is fully loaded with much to explore..
i have bookmarked it for future quiet times.
i found cara barer on fun forever,her photography is beautiful
and the two pictures here are just a small sampling of that which can
be enjoyed.


oh and abelardo morell is worthy of perusal!

book autopsies

brian dettmer via the altered page

chain,chain,chain

here is corey modeling her most recent
"what's new" at rock paper scissors
acquisition! a PAPER CHAIN! i have never
stopped worshipping at the paper chain
altar,they are so relaxing to make and the
finished product is so satisfying!

remember those nifty gum wrapper chains?

my sweet colorado crony sarah sent me this

book(below),the one that was published in this book

and it is adorned with much delight,but mostly

i must say i am partial to the gum wrapper chain

embellishment! you can get a close up view of this

book while it is on display at rock paper scissors

for the next month!

a tender aged sarah,peeking out of the book!

thank-you sarah fishburn,you rock the most!

hangin' on the loop

pat & i took noah and chloe to the loop on saturday
and had a smashing good time! mugging for the camera here
with some incredible art at the craft alliance.


no trip to the loop would be complete without
stops at subterranean books,phoenix rising or
star clipper to visit the mammoth uglydoll!

sustenance at crazy bowls & wraps.
funday!

christelle in st.charles

two of christelle's beautiful,unique & thoughtful pieces.
the detail is just perfectly so,she is devinely talented!
visit here ,christelle's blog & her etsy shop here for
more inspiration.
it was wonderful to meet corey's best friend,
christelle lachapelle aka olive wimple last weekend.
she is truly a goddess...elegant yet approachable.a gorgeous,
natural beaut,with a killer wit!
i hope that next time(soon would be good!) that she travels from
connecticut to missouri,she can stay even one day longer...or more!
that would be lovely!

christelle demonstrating how to create her stunning winged pin
at rock paper scissors.

corey & christelle relaxing in the "salon"....

saturday was the grand opening of the the long
awaited "stationery salon" at rps,below you see
just a smidge of the comfy corner that will be
utilized by many a couple choosing wedding invitations,
party planners adding just the right touch for a special
event and mama's creating an announcement of a new
babe in the house...just to name a few of the many options
that will be available!

christelle & kate,all smiles after a day of demos,
workshops & trunk shows.
thanks corey for another good time at rock paper scissors
...always a joyous sisterhood in a supportive,fun & creative
atmosphere! mmmmwah!

little fat french knots...weeee!

how could a french knot be the bane of my
existence? well,it was...until well meaning
friends,pat,nancy & kay(aka mom) each
shared their simple tricks for this technique
with me. [forever grateful,girls!]
these fatty knots were started on
this postcard announcing the new photography
exhibition at the foundry art centre
featuring the work of:
donald horstman
sia aryai
marion noll

must see.

must hear....music to knot by [to buy].


the be good tanyas


sasha dobson


erin mckeown,
to pick up the pace.

book signing

saturday march 3rd at rockpaperscissors
from 1 to 3pm,i will be signing copies of
the adventurous scrapbooker, yep,me!
it would be lovely to see you there!

for a change.

while perusing my image archives,i ran

across these and thought i would share

them! my friend,angie,created this

FUNky tree with magnetic words,

pretty doggone clever...but not surprising

coming from an artistic horticulturist such

as angie....dig it!

not your average scrapbook book

just one of lisa's deliciously detailed offerings!

unmistakingly steph....one of her visual,textural treasures!

my stuffed box of pages...a few familiar characters!

my favorite,sweet sarah's girlfriends textbook....O'! so happy
to be included as a best friend,along with christi & efrat!thank~you,
s,for the major endorphin rush...that is your friendship!

other artist's included,to name just a few,are opie & linda o'brien,
claudine hellmuth,nicole mc conville & erikia ghumm.your bookshelves will
not be complete without this book!
many thanks to katherine duncan aimone!

fine featherless friends!

made by our friend corinne didisheim,given
to corey & i by the most glorious gift-giver gf pat!
i will post more great goodies by other generous pals
in the days to come!
thanks for everything,everybody!

just know this...

circa 1965,altered image 2004
happy memories are true gifts! and
photos of those memories are the tangible
evidence!

meditation for the day
"life is not a search for happiness.
happiness is a by-product of living the
right kind of life,of doing the right thing.
do not search for happiness,search for
right living and happiness will be your reward.
life is sometimes a march of duty during dull,
dark days.but happiness will come again,as God's
smile of recognition of your faithfulness. true
happiness is always the by-product of a life well lived."
~twenty-four hours a day

prayer for the day
i pray that i can remember this when i am,how my friend karyl
so aptly puts it...over-dosing on life!i pray that i don't choose the
comfortable path but the right one...o' hear my prayer!

all i want for Christmas....

truly all i want to do is felted embellishments

at this point in my life! is that to much to ask?!

using these nifty tools from nancy's notions

and the instructions in this book & this book i

could be on my way...whaddaya say santa?

i've been good.

addendum;a stocking stuffer !

interconnected

pat's fabulous books from daniel essig's workshop last weekend,
a delightful show & tell at rps yesterday!

" I am not thinking of connections one might feel to other
"great artists" of the past or inspiring, high-profile contemporaries,
but the connections that help keep you happy in the studio. Artist
friends you get together with for critiques or just coffee and supportive
conversation.For instance I am in a group of four women who get together
for all of that, plus find venues to occasionally show together, and we encourage
each other in every possible way. Maybe you are part of a class or group that
gets together to try out new techniques once a month. Or do you have a beloved
teacher you still talk with on occasion who helps you feel connected to and
strengthened by your past. Isolation can cause fear and despondancy: the artist
alone in the ivory tower is often the one who commits suicide or stops working!
We are all interconnected and honoring and recognizing that is an immense comfort
and inspiration and source of strength for me, and I am sure for others too."
~ Nancy Bea

it has been many weeks since i have participated in studio friday.
today i checked in and found the above prompt and felt moved to respond.
i feel very fortunate indeed to have an intimate group of sincerely caring,
nurturing,divinely talented,giving{and hilarious!}artist friends,who
encourage and support one another[you know who you are!].
we meet regularly to connect,show & tell,break bread or whatever the day calls for!
for a boost in between,on any given day,i can go into rock,paper,scissors
....as soon as i walk through that 100+ year old door,i am home,in an artful cocoon
and am liable to see more than one of my cronies....ah the connection!

thanks,nancy bea & tine for this reminder!

an expression of.....

"feeling gratitude
and not expressing
it is like wrapping a present
and not giving it." -wm.a.ward

it has been a truly lovely birthday week for me,i find myself
among the very fortunate to have such thoughtful,caring,
creative,true friends and family.my heart and soul and well-being
have been filled to overflowing...gratitude looms large!!!!
thanks,
denise