I just wanted to share

a bit of my Easter decor --

Y'all know I lead a busy life and I've not got out my 'summer' stuff yet - 

the birdhouses and spring flowers, etc. 

  But I wanted to add some cute rabbits to my spring stuff...

So while I was traveling for work I did a quick walk-through 

of an antique - up-cycle shop - and look what I found! 

A-DOR-ABLE.

I mean, seriously...

HOW CUTE IS THIS?

 I'd previously purchased this little guy at Cracker Barrel 

[shocker: I paid full price - but he was was just too precious to pass up - ]

 I love this big bunny planter on my table - 

sitting in a milk-glass platter 

that I purchased during out trip to California last fall - 

and filled with lots of tiny mini candy bars -

Just the perfect  touch of vintage charm...

 I put the little tri-bunny candy dish [filled with robin's eggs - yum] 

on one of my home-made pedestals 

[glass plate glued to a heavy glass cup]

with a previously thrifted bunny and cute sign [new] from Kohl's...

  I added fresh flowers from the yard

to bring a little of our gorgeous spring season inside.

[I think this little guy is The Cutest.]

And now we're looking forward to good time with our boys and their gals tomorrow!

We're having brunch,  and I've already got the deviled eggs, spinach /goat cheese nests, and ham done... should be yummy! -  I hope so , anyway!

Happy Easter everyone!

As we apporach Easter

Here's a favorite little photo of mine - 

Aren't those the cutest little guys ever?!

[Easter 1993 -]

I said before

 
 ... this was an entire weekend of artsy goodness with Junelle at Donna Downey Studios!  [There’s just something special about spending earmarked time 
with people who enjoy the same passions as I do -]

After we felt comfortable with the art journal process we switched gears and Junelle walked us though creating on wooden blocks… we sanded and gesso’d them first, of course.  Then we started creating... Junelle showed us, step-by-step, how to create a peony – and somehow my entire video is of the view looking OUT THE WINDOW of the studio – 
must have clicked the wrong button – ha. 
But I enjoyed watching her process in person!

And then creating my own.
This is my flower block – during the process – 
which is messy, I won’t lie – but fun… and I loved how it turned out. 
[Again, I used that wax paper from our sandwiches – I’m SUCH an up-cycler – ha.] 
 
We had three blocks we could use and I did this one, a girl with boots, and some wonky mail boxes… fashioned after a photo I took of the mailboxes outside the studio - 
I love them so much that I just had to continue sketching them - 
and finally got what I wanted -

... pen and water color -
I love everything about them – the simplicity, the rural look, the daffodils! 
This is probably one of my favorite pieces ever…. 
Happy. 
It's sitting on my desk at work...

We had an awesome time – 
and while I only knew these ladies previously from our on-line classes 
it was so fun to get to create together!
In person! 
I LOVED seeing all the different things that everyone created throughout the weekend!

Again – so fun to meet Junelle IN REAL LIFE! 

Such a sweetheart with a heart for bringing women to the Lord.
Much thanks again to Donna and Bill and staff
for a wonderful  - wonderful - weekend!

GO HERE TO FIND OUT MORE ABOUT DONNA DOWNEY STUDIOS
After the whirlwind weekend of art 
I had just enough time to walk through IKEA 
[about an hour, seriously]
before heading to the airport to catch my plan home…  
And time wasn’t my only problem – I had VERY LITTLE space in my luggage… so I ended up purchasing only a few pillows, but at $4 each I just couldn’t pass them up!
 [I ordered the much-treasured cart on-line once I got home 
 – will share it in my studio re-do in a few days…] 

It was one great weekend – and I’d do it again in a heartbeat – only I’d probably buckle down and drive that nine hour drive [but I’m sooo NOT a good car traveler --] mainly because I’d forgotten how very small those little commuter jets could be – lol…
 Still, an hour and a half vs. nine… I don’t know….

 [Much thanks to Donna for taking so many photos and 
sharing them with us to grab on facebook!]

A couple of weeks ago I had

the AWESOME opportunity to take a class IN REAL LIFE with the 

fabulous, oh-so-talented, [and humble] 

Junelle Jacobson. 

I signed up for this amazing event over five months ago - 

I wasn’t disappointed.

 [I can’t get enough of this favorite little owl of mine]

Throughout this post I’ll be sharing bits of the art we created during the weekend 

 [partially so Junelle’s mom can see that we DO finish things… lol]  

I absolutely adore how Junelle brings her faith to her art – how she weaves in her relationship with God to the pages / projects she creates [and inspires us to create as well!]

It was so precious when she was a bit overwhelmed 

with all of us fan-girls taking her photo as she started our class—

 [BUT WE WERE THRILLED TO BE THERE!!]

 Then Donna came back in the classroom and joined in the fun.

I know I’ve shared more than once that I think Junelle is a wonderful art teacher – when I take her on-line classes it really does feel like she’s sitting right beside me showing me how to sketch each little piece of something and add water colors or paint and papers, then splatters or ink to give it that perfectly imperfect,  finished look.

She opened a whole new aspect of art when she taught me the basics of water-color – love that. I also REALLY LOVE her whimsical take on sketching and water colors and art in general.  It’s taken me back to what I’ve always loved to do and help me make it better [I hope -] 

GO HERE NOW TO LEARN MORE ABOUT HER AND HER CLASSES.

So, anyway, I hopped on a plane and took off to Charlotte , NC 

all by myself one Thursday afternoon… 

[Was THRILLED] to meet one of my bestest friends from college for breakfast the next day – It was just so wonderful to sit down and catch up on each others' lives.

And I LOVED the little town we met in [Statesville], although, I think the guy who took our photo had had a little too much caffeine [we met at a coffee shop!] 

Our bad for not checking it before we left…

Then I headed over to the Donna Downey Studios – I’ve taken classes with Donna before [first back in 2008 in Chantilly, VA – then at her Inspired Event in 2009 – then at scrapbook stores in Georgia – and most recently [only – NOT] at Spark, in Utah, during 2011.]

I’m always inspired by her art and how she’s so willing to take risks and try new things

 [and put in the work to become proficient at it too!] 

So let me just say – HER STUDIO IS AWESOME.

 And for $10 / day you can go and create there using all of her goodies!! 

I wish it were closer to home!!! 

 And even though we are very different - 

 I think she’s a hoot.

Soooooo ----

Junelle started us out teaching us how to sketch basic spring things – lol – 

the name of the class was “Letting Our Inner Gardens Grow” – 

So it was definitely garden themed…  

From sketches she walked us through some basic water color techniques – LOVE. 

Then we started our art journals… 

I chose a little square book by Max Lucado 

and hoped to use some of the quotes in it as part of my art… 

What says spring more than forsythia and redbud trees?

 [A total copy from an on-line friend –  Thanks Rene – yours is better!!]

Once they were ready she walked us through different ideas for the pages inside. Junelle was very hands-on and walked around our little group and offered praise and assistance as needed. We used water color and acrylic [and anything else we wanted from The DD Studio] to make our pages come alive. And since I’m still grieving my mama’s death 

as well as the recent loss of my cousin, you can see that some of my pages reflect that as well as the goodness of God [even when I don’t understand His ways…] 

And yes, you can see that I’m still working on some pages…

Of course, we had to do a lamb or two – always SO FUN. 

I’ve not decided on the verse / journal / quote for this one yet. 

And Junelle suggested we try a black background 

[the ‘Timeless, Boundless Love’ was in the book already –]

I covered the insides of my book with the paper 

our sandwiches were wrapped in – lol – I loved that newspaper print!

[Remember I used it for the bird’s nest on this page as well --

it's a favorite page of mine -]

And I incorporated some of my travel stuff and stamps from Donna’s studio – 

with hand-drawn flowers...

And drew one on my girls with the song – I Need Thee Every Hour Most precious Lord… I need thee – HOW I need thee… every hour I need thee…

So meaningful to me right now...

Then finished up with another of Donna’s stamps – quote in the book 

and a little water color bird flying free from its cage… 

I love this little book that depicts a bit of where I am, right now, in my life. 

And I love that this art is just for me – 

there’s just something special about creating just for me – 

although, I hope you’ve enjoyed it too.  

Maybe it’s given you some ideas of things you can do?

For the front cover [which I ALWAYS do last for some reason] I decided to use one of Junelle’s quotes [from a photo I took of it --] – in her own handwriting [which is beautiful, btw.]

 I’ll share more about the weekend in a couple of days –

Side Note: I attended one of Donna’s Inspired Events a few years back, so I was aware of the attention to detail that she and Bill give to each person attending, and this little weekend was no exception. They are THE MOST WONDERFUL HOSTS and will do whatever it takes to make you feel special. Her mama makes the best lunches and they offer whatever your little heart desires in the way of candy, drinks, and goodies. As I said before we had access to tons of products in the classroom – and she has a WONDERFUL store where we could purchase just about everything we used so we could continue to play with it once we got home.

Here's a little [?!?!]

piece of art I created a couple of years ago - 

Made it for Drew  and now he doesn't really have a spot for it 

IT'S HUGE

[made from an up-cycled office white board!]

So it's coming back home to hang in the play room - fun!

I make no secret that when I am creating

I feel God's presence - 

Last weekend I had the wonderful opportunity to be a part of the 

'Let Your Inner Gardens Grow' 

class with Junelle Jacobson. 

IN REAL LIFE. 

ha.  

She's true to herself and to our Lord.

Sooo sweet, really!

The weekend was FILLED with art - 

sketching - painting on wooden blocks - and art journaling. 

[I'll get a post up soon with lots of details  ~]

I chose a little 7x7 book by Max Lucado to make my art journal - 

and here's a page I created... 

The main verse was on the center of the page: 

"You are precious to Him. 

So precious that He became like you 

so that you would come to Him"

With all the feelings of my not understanding surrounding Brian's death this just spoke to me... So I created this page and added the verse

"His eye is on the sparrow... 

and I know He watches me."

Because I do KNOW and BELIEVE that despite all the [tragic] things this 'ole world can throw at us - He watches over us and cares enough for ME [and you] to become like us so that we can live with Him eternally...

Process: I used gesso on the page [surrounding the quote,] drew the tree and bird in, added acrylic paint, and marker -- the bird's nest is made from the wax paper [with newspaper text] that was around our sandwiches - ha.

I left that plain [with no paint -]

We're thinking of letting EmmaLou

participate in 

The Running of the Chihuahuas 

this year.

[For the Cinco de Mayo Celebration up in Chattanooga...]

 I need a full body photo of her, 

and so far, this is the best I can get...

She's shy, you know, 

and ALWAYS turns away 

when the camera is pointed toward her...

ha

I know I've overloaded

my facebook posts with prayer requests lately -- 

but I have to ask, once more, 

that y'all remember my sweet cousin's family 

as they have visitation tonight and the service tomorrow.

Apologies to Mark for stealing his photo - 

but this just represents 'brothers' so well for me...

Love to all of of you 

as you continue the journey of saying goodbye...

Y'all I know I enjoy my art journals...

A couple of prompts from my classes this week -- 

Use stars and something cut out of a magazine...

 I often go through magazines and tear out titles that I want to use in my journals, 

but this week I just cut out stars - free-form... 

During Bible Study last week we talked a bit about 

giving praise to God FOR WHO HE IS... 

and this song just resonates with me...

Won't you sing along?

An update -- my cousin Brian passed away yesterday morning - please keep his sweet wife, teenage son, parents, brother, and all who knew and loved him in your prayers. 

[My brother and Brian -]
My first thought this morning when I woke up was 
'I wonder how Brian is today' 
--- It's still a shock  to all of us. 

So... I can't instagram this photo

and still get everyone in it - lol -

This is a favorite of the week - 

A few months back this little group of friends started what we call 'dinner club.'

The rules are simple - we meet every couple of months in one couple's home. The host couple provides the meal and we are able to sit and visit for as long as we want [without waiters rushing us out....ha.] And, while we've been gathering for a few months now - THIS is the only photo of the whole group together that I have!

It's been fun!

[Bringing back entertaining in the home...]