Fun at April's

Page spread from Karen's folded paper journal.
 
This week we got together at April's.  She baked up a pineapple upside down cake to share with us.  Wow, that was delicious!  Thanks April!

Cover on Jan's folded paper journal using one of her hand cut stencil/masks.

April's completed shell angel.  This will make a great ornament for her Christmas tree this year.  Only about 284 days till Christmas!

Here is Mary's shell angel, beautifully framed.  Nice work ladies!  Thanks to Sharon, Mary's friend, for donating the shells and beads and idea.  It was a fun challenge!

April has been enjoying some doodling on decorative card stock using her Signo Uniball gel pens purchased at Jet Pens, where they have great prices.  We all love the white gel pens, they are the best for writing over just about anything.  These will be great additions to her card making.

This is April's folded paper journal, as she works in it.

Karen was busy making Easter cards.

Pinky continued making the iris folding cards.

She is becoming quite expert at it!

Mary brought some knitting to work on.  This will be a wash cloth.  Pretty colors!

Jan too was knitting, beginning a new hat.

April has a unique characteristic:  She collects dead birds.  Yes, you read it right, she collects dead birds.  She doesn't kill them!  No, she only collects fresh ones that she finds dead.  Here she is holding a bagged Gray Jay she found on her deck.  Evidently it hit the window too hard.  She looks like the cat who bagged the canary!

What does she do with them, you might ask?  That is what we all ask her, anyway.  She has great plans for them although she hasn't fully decided just what those plans are as yet.  In the meantime she keeps them in her freezer.  Here you can see two Varied Thrush, one Stellar Jay, one Western Tanager, a Red Shafted Flicker and one Evening Grosbeak.  We tease her mercilessly about this hobby of hers.

When Jan came across this picture in a Smithsonian magazine she couldn't help but alter it a bit before giving it to April.

We love her anyway.  

That's it for this week.  Be sure and return in two weeks for our next exciting adventure in art!  Happy Spring break!! 

4th Give-A-Way Starting Right Now!!!!!

This 4th Give-A-Way is provided by Mary Fox. It consists of 3 of her handmade cards, a pin cushion, some decorative yarn, some handmade tiny bags for cardmaking or scrapbooking, a white magnolia candle, a container of ultra fine glitter, flip flop ribbon for cardmaking or scrapbooking, navy blue post it notes to be used with light pens, tree stickers, Fun With Celtic Stencils, and various cross stickers.

We all hope you will leave a comment and possibly follow our blog to enter to win. Please leave your email, so we can notify you when you win. At that time, we will ask you for your address so we can mail your goodies.

Congratulations to Cheryl Keyes for winning our 3rd Give-A-Way today! Please send us your address, so we can mail your items won.

Best wishes on your entry in our 4th Give-A-Way!!!

Karen, Jan, April, Pinky, Lyla, and Mary

Sign Up For Our Second Give-a-way...Scroll Down.

Here it comes!!!! Our second of 6 give-a-ways is here and ready for sign ups. It will help us if when you leave a comment that you leave your email address also. That will make notifying the winner so much easier.

This give-a-way comes from our member, Karen Eshelby. It consists of a mixed media decorated round box just loaded with things to put on cards or use in mixed media art. It is full to the brim! The next item is a package of 87 sheets of colored cardstock/matstock 4.5x6.5. It is multicolored and textured...great to use when making cards or other mixed media art. Last, but not least is a package of five mixed media cards created by Karen Eshelby. Right now, I wish I weren't a member of the group and I could put a comment down. Karen makes the most fantastic cards.

Rules...Remember to make a comment under the pictures of the give-a-way on the blog. In your comment, please also put your name and email so we can notify you if you win. We would love it if you would follow us too. Next Wed or Thurs, we will annouce the winner & email you for your address.

S and B at Jan's

This week we met in Jan's studio.  We had two special guests, Cathy from Portland and Gwen from next door.  Here are Pinky and Cathy, having a good laugh.  Cathy brought two pints of Ben and Jerry's ice cream to share.  Yum!  Thanks, Cathy!

Gwen spent her time sketching, when she wasn't laughing and eating ice cream, that is.

Karen was creating cards....

and so was Mary....

while Pinky was working on her next crocheted rug...

April was creating some special gift boxes and Jan worked on some little folded books.  Both April and Jan joined in a Pay It Forward gift giving project where we will give away a hand made gift to friends who then agreed to give away hand made gifts to who ever will agree to give hand made gifts to...well, you get the idea.

Mary frequently is the photographer and doesn't get included in the blog photos.  I snuck this one in of her.

See you next week at Pinky's! 

Delayed Christmas Party Time!!!

On Tuesday, Jan. 3 the whole gang got together (Lyla...long distance) for our Christmas party. It just felt so good to see everyone again. I think it has been almost a month since we all have been together. There was sickness, trips, Dr. appts., you name it.

I don't think any of us did one creative thing on Tues...just lots of catching up with one another. I think we all brought something to work on, but just never made it there :>))It sounded like we all had memorable Christmas times.

April made us a wonderful lunch of salad with all the fixings and Christmas goodies to share. We even had a little glass of bubbly apple/peach juice after lunch and a toast.

We all draw names around Thanksgiving and that is the person we get a Christmas gift for. It is always so fun to see what everyone gets and to pass the gifts around for "inspection". It was such a fun day together with lots of laughing going on...

We will meet at Mary's, if the weather allows, next Tues.

Scroll down for more pictures of Tues. at April's.

Tuesday at Pinky's...

These are five of the calendar pages we did for each other. You can double click to see the detail.

I think it is true of all of us...we love the pages we get for our calendars. #1 is Pinky's for Lyla, #2 is Mary's for Karen, #3 is Karen's for Pinky, #4 Jan's for Mary, and #5 is Lyla's for April. I sure hope I got this right, as I think I got these a bit mixed up when jotting them down.

I have lots more pics and will just put them on here so you can see.

Next week, we are to meet at Karen's for some alcohol ink painting fun...see you there!

We're All Here!

Tuesday was another great day with the five of us physically, and Lyla...our co-partner in crime...long distance. We are so happy Karen is joining us again and feeling better each day.

Jan did the hostessing and served us her wonderful muffins to get us off to a good start. She also showed us two or three different online demonstrations of using different inks and making your own stamps. All of it inspired us to have a workday next Tues., here at my house, working with new paints and stamps, embossing, and heat guns. We are excited!

Pinky brought us all little cigar boxes...here we go again. It is to be a challenge, but we have awhile to work on them...no rules :>)) Make something from the cigar box...that is it! It needs to be done by Nov. 22. The last one like this was sooo fun and all were so different. That is what is fun about putting 6 different personalities together making art...super!

The pictures are top left...Jan showing us her latest project...a fantastic quilt using a method of doing one 12" square at a time, sandwiching them, and finally...putting it all together. It is just beautiful. Double click on it to see the detail.

Top right is Karen working on some cards and writing notes with them.

Next is April's Alaska journal she is working on. It will be a keepsake for her to look back on for many years. I know Amber will enjoy reading through it when she gets home at Christmas.

Mary and Pinky were working on crochet. Pinky worked on her rag rug in greens, beiges, browns and Mary was working on some wash cloths.

All in all...it was another too fast day and it was time to head home. The time always goes too fast for all of us! We did solve some problems of the world while we were together :>))