Rings Soon To Be Seen In Belle Armoire Jewelry Magazine!!

Fabulous & Chic These Rings To Be Featured In Belle Armoire Jewelry Magazine

How wonderful to find an email from Cynthia Levens today, congratulating me on a soon to be published article in Belle Armoire Jewelry Magazine  : )

Featured will be these creative, Simply Pretty Stuff, up~cycled rings from spent shotgun shells.  Yep, how wonderful is that!

I had the most fun designing these precious trinkets and can't wait to share the how-to's exclusively through Belle Armoire Jewelry Magazine!

Let me know what you think!!

 

SteamPuffin SteamPunk!

Creating Steampunk Excitement

For those of you in the steampunk venue, you know all about Massachussett's Bruce and Melanie Rosenbaum! For those of you who do not, you are in for a treat

: )

I had been following Bruce and his steampunk victorian revival through his www.modvic.com website, which has grown, grown, grown leaps and bounds for the past several years. I first stumbled upon him by Googling for Victorian restorations.  Lucky me.  It was a new world.

And much to my pleasure and excitement, our son, master engineer, Christopher, and conceptual design genius of functional steampunk, Bruce have recently paired up to invent some pretty awesome steampunked, high tech stuff! 

Take a look at the beautiful and cool stuff both present and future, exhibitions and the like, on Bruce's website: 

 www.modvic.com

Check out the awesome stuff Chris had invented for industry, as well as for steampunk fun, at:

www.suprocktech.com

Meanwhile, hubby and I were so excited to meet Bruce and Melanie and tour their beautiful home.....full of fabulous architect and steampunk, of course!  They are terrific people, so full of energy, creativity.   We watched our son and Bruce brainstorm, and could literally see sparks fly!

 

Heat Source Recycler

Intelligent Appliance Energy Recovery Unit

OK, this may not be simply pretty stuff, but it is certainly pretty awesome stuff!  Go to this link and check out this cool invention which has the ability to recapture lost heat from things like clothes dryers and oil furnaces!  See how you can make one or get a unit for yourself.

www.kickstarter.com/projects/1729220401/intelligent-dryer-energy-recovery-unit?ref=live 

Doll Head Creepy

Dark And Stormy Nite In The Studio

OK this is trite, I know.  However sometimes things do seem a little creepier when it is dark ... and stormy.  

My studio is a wonderful and inspiring place, with bundles and bags, and pieces of things, glitter, and string.  Oh yeh, and a bunch of baby doll heads bought at a wonderful flea market event in Harper's Ferry, West Virginia. 

Inspiring does meet creepy on this dark and stormy nite!

 

Holiday Show at The Mansion

Holiday Show At The Warehime~Myers Mansion

Its that time of year again for holiday fun and excitement!  The mansion is beautiful this time of year with fall and soon to be Christmas decorations.  I am on a committee to organize this event, which is now in its third year, and it has been amazing to see how much this show has grown!!

This November there will be two auto harp performances by Linda Huber, and an appearance by the Hanover High School Choir, in Dicken's style costume, conducted by Debra Smith. 

I will be among some of the most talented of art chix in the area, vending for three days at the show, located on Baltimore Street in Hanover, PA.  Come out to see me and start collecting those one of a kind holiday gifts and treasures!

 

Ruth Rae Trade

Art Swap And Friends Made

While at Art Is You in Danbury, I got to meet a wonderful fellow artist vending as well.  Ruth Rae, a terrific mixed media gal (and author of two books) and I exchanged a bit of bling.  I loved her brass and resin rings, which will be featured in the next Belle Armoire Jewelry magazine.  She loved my perfume bottle necklaces!  Voila, a swap was had.  This is the bottle she picked.  

By the way, did I mention that MY pins...moi, me, mine.........will be also in the next Belle Armoire Magazine????  How divine! 

Ruby Red on Silver

Bling Book

Who doesn't like glittery things?  I love how this turned out............heartbeat red on glistening silver!

 

 

Perfume Bottle Necklaces .......MMmmmmmm

Bottles From the Past to Adorn Your Neck

These little gems charm anyone into wanting one!  A little glitter, a secret compartment, bling and personal notes sealed in mini charms.  Just so pretty.  Definitely iconic Simply Pretty Stuff.

 I have a few more books to showcase as well.  

 Check me out on Simply Pretty Stuff on Facebook and drop me a note!

 

More Of My Tiny Books to Wear Around Your Neck!

 

Art IS You ~ part 2

MoRe Candid Shots

Art Is You Festivities

New Friends Made & Tons of Fun Had At 

Art Is You

I had so much fun and excitement vending at Art Is You this year.  My most popular items this year were the tiaras of course and the perfume bottle necklaces.

There were stellar workshops with Thomas Ashman, Richard Salley, Ruth Rae, Annie Hess, Dianna Trout, and the list goes on....

Etching metal, making rivets, designing journals, creating dolls.......all this and more.

For me, vending at the event was so inspiring.  Being among those with such wonderful talent and creations was humbling.  I loved meeting people who I had only once read about at some point in my creative field tripping that I get to selfishly do on those rainy or off days.

One special new friend, Ruth Rae, www.ruthrae.blogspot.com 
was one such iconic woman.  Just love her writing and creative design ideas.  Her easy embroidering style on soft cloth and how she incorporates metal, found objects and cloth definitely had the ahhhh factor for me.  I was so excited to make a trade of one of my perfume bottle necklaces with her metal disc rings.  I oogled those rings for a whole day before actually getting to wear one.  : )  Look for her rings in the next issue of Belle Armoire Jewelry Magazine.  You will just have to get one of your own!   Bling ~a ~bling ~bling.

Here are some photos of all the excitement from the weekend.  Enjoy!

Personal Book Class in The Studio

Simply Pretty Stuff Student Work In Progress

A few weeks back, Kim, one of my best, best students!! works on her Life Journal Books.  Coming along fabulously..... Some final touches yet needed, but so very cool to this point, eh?

 

Cold Connections Chunky Book

Thomas Ashman Cold Connection Book

Mixed media artist Thomas Ashman helped students, created fabulous journal books at Art Is You this week.  How cool is this?????  Snip, snip, snip, hammer, torch, and patina your way to creative zen.

Just love how mine turned out, don't you?

 Learned a few tips to incorporate into all those Simply Pretty Stuff lov-a-lees I've been creating in my own studio...ou la la

Its a Barbie Girl!

Pretty In Pink

Simply Pretty Stuff

 Such a sweet surprise for me..... a perfect in pink Barbie Apron before I was off to Danbury, CT for the Art Is You show!!!  Fellow artisan and good friend Cheri Cline created this fanciful and most wonderful apron for me.  I was soOoooO 

excited.  How perfect is this to go with my Mary Jane tap shoes?!  Looking to wear it sometime on vendor day and during the holiday venues.  Thank you Cheri!!