the many adventures of a painter girl

Holiday Joy

Hi friends! Just a quick post...I'm up to my ears in tissues from my icky cold and the busiest time of year for my day job...Starbucks is CRAZY this time of year!!!

I took one of the tags from my last post to make this sweet little banner for a dear friend...she can probably guess it's for her so I kinda spoiled the surprise! 

I loved that little tag I made so much, I had to highlight it in a 'bigger' way!

I hope you take some time during this crazy season to enjoy the small things...family, friends, laughter, and JOY!!! 

Merry Christmas!

Chelle

12 tags of Christmas fun

are you playing along with the Tim Holtz 12 tags of Christmas? I sure am...well, kinda...

some of the Inspiration Emporium girls are having a blast following the fabulous Mario's BTS (behind the scenes) tweets and facebook updates...and we are cracking ourselves up and have way too much fun in the wee hours!

i have to say, this year the tags are blowing me away...number 1 and 7 are my favorites so far...absolutley gorgeous!!! and, to imagine, in person they must be even more breathtaking!!!

i do have some big plans to play along with the 12 tags once my 'work' is over and i have time to create...but for now, here is what i have been working on...

at Inspiration Emporium we love to send along a little gift when we can...a little 'thanks for shopping with us'...so i have been making some wee tags to send along...these are three that i have designed...

just sweet, simple and heartfelt gifts for our friends...

i hope you are enjoying the season and finding time to breathe, relax and create something fun!

we would love to have you play along...we are offering up a little incentive, read all the details here!

 

 

vintage Christmas hunting

this weekend i was on the hunt for a little vintage Christmas fun...i found some little things that brought me joy...

i have some big plans for these little finds!

hohoho...santa came a wee bit early for me...how could i resist that stinkin' adorable yoyo bracelet??? and those key rings, seriously? can't wait to share the fun i am working on with these great finds...stay tuned, my friends!!!

thanks for checking in on me...i appreciate your visit!!

chelle

loss

i learned a thing or two about myself in the last week...crazy how i think i have learned so many life lessons by the age of forty...but there are so many to come...

i had a huge loss last weekend...and to my surprise, i feel a need to blog about it...

meet big blue...

some of you may recall that i finally realized a dream last march...a dear friend and i finally took the plunge and started selling at a local flea market...we were so excited and have had a fabulous time hunting down vintage deliciousness to sell...

we have learned a lot along the way and have been so proud of our accomplishments...making fun things to sell and even going through our own collections and parting with some things we could bear to sell...

all was going well...we were on the verge of adding more venues...we couldn't wait to see what was next for our little venture...

now...this is the hard part...

big blue was taken from my driveway in the middle of the night...it was the truck we used for our business and along with my beloved old suburban, the thieves took everything for our flea set-up...all the personal collection display pieces, tables, canopies, and all the vintage merchandise...all the fun things we put our heart and soul into...all those things we took out of our homes that we told ourselves we could sell because we needed to make money...gone...

now...this is the easy part...

we go on...we grab ahold of eachother, we cry...we mourn the loss, we share the memories...we cry some more...

then...and only then...do we grab ahold of our boot straps and yank them up...we buy more tables, we buy more canopies, we search for more vintage deals, we make more fabulous projects, we make more vintage ephemera books & kits, we pour more of our heart and soul into our little business...and we move on...

because we don't give up...they don't win...we do...

we are strong enough, we are brave enough, we are crazy enough to give it another go...together...

so...look for us soon...at the little local flea market, at our etsy store, on our blog, and at the next indie arts craft fair...cause we got this...we can do this...we are only temporarily broken and closed for repairs...we will be back...bigger and better than before...we win, not them...

i love you one L!!!

chelle

Joyful Configurations

i am super excited to announce that i will be teaching at Inspiration Emporium!!! I love teaching and sharing my love of paper crafting with my students and have missed it dearly!!!

introducing...

JOYFUL CONFIGURATIONS 

 Sunday, November 20th, 1 to 4:30 p.m., $45

we will be making this custom Tim Holtz Idea-ology Configurations...full of fun vintage items...and, some new ones...you will have plenty to choose from in your kits, however, i encourage you to bring along a few little trinkets of your own to add! here is an example of adding your own personal touches...

the santa on top, pocket watch, boot, and bingo marker are not in your kit...everything else is the same just used in a different way or omitted...

we will be learning some tips and tricks to working with the configurations and making several sweet touches that make these boxes come to life!

you will be able to choose either style of box and can shop in the store the day of the class...there is every imaginable Idea-ology trinket you could possibly want to add to your own box!

class will be held at the Inspiration Emporium Warehouse located at 644 Eckhoff, Suite H., Orange (major cross streets are Orangewood and Eckhoff)

please don't hesitate to email me with any questions you may have!

Supply list (best to bring if you don't want to share with other students, but not required...all items can be purchased on day of class...while supplies last):

sunday junkin' in the rain

my friend and i hit the irvine flea market this morning...in the pouring rain...we decided we were 'hard core'...and then we first bumped...and giggled

there were deals to be had...the folks wanted to make something since they were packing it in by 9 am...what's a little water to junk?? 

dirt cheap...all of these fabulous finds...cheap, cheap, cheap!!!

there was more, but that's a secret...just until tomorrow though...

i am so very excited to be announcing a new class tomorrow on the blog...i cannot even express the joy i have to be back teaching...seriously excited!!!

thanks for stopping in...i always appreciate it!!

chelle

trick or treat

Happy Halloween!! I hope you have a safe and fun night!!!

chelle

tiddledy winks

sunday junkin' today was short, sweet, and fruitful...

there seems to be a theme lately...vintage toys...am i trying to stay in touch with my youth? i wonder...I was super excited to find that big box and baggie of marbles, super cheap and even had some steelies in there!

and, lest you think i am kidding about the vintage toy obsession...i can't seem to stop buying tiddledy winks! it was my favorite game as a little girl and i can't pass one up when i come across them!

i hope you found some time today to do something inspiring!

chelle

 

oh how i love me some halloween

i know...bad, bad blogger...i know this to be true...

here is a fun little thing i made for the Inspiration Emporium October Monthly Challenge...we were to use the colors orange, purple, and black on our project...

so i made me a little witches' hat...and i kinda think i'm in love with it!

ever finish a prject and just stare at it in awe? yep, this is one of those! mind you, i have also had the experience of finishing a project and staring at it in basic disgust wondering how i could have posssibly come up with such horrid choices...so this particular elation is a pleasant surprise when it occurs...

little details like the thumb print on the vial and snow cap mixative on the owl add to the over all vintage look...

i covered the entire hat with vintage sheet music using glue and seal then inked it up with black distress ink...the perfect base, don't you think?

the challenge over on the IE blog ends on monday, so head on over and get busy...you could win $50 in Emporium Dollars!!!

thanks for stopping in and seeing what i've been up to...i appreciate you!!!

chelle

 

remembering and honoring