Silly 1 Redux

Silly 1 Redux Registration Info

So excited to be back in Carla Sonheim's Art of Silliness Class! My daughter Madi and I have so much fun with this class. Silly 1 Redux just started this week, so there's still time to join if you'd like to have a little fun.

Here's a look at the type of silly work we've been up to so far:

On the last Cat one, I made a comment on the Flickr stream that I didn't know why my Cats looked so mad when they had such nice shoes on.  Well, the Cat people let me know that apparently Cat's don't like shoes. How was I to know? I'm a dog person. How funny that they actually look mad in the drawings!

"Art is magic to me." by Madi

New Jewelry to The Muse

Taking 40 new pieces of jewelry to The Muse today. Here's a sneak peek at a few pieces...

"It's not for the money, it's for the fun." by Madi

Love this quote!

"The way we choose to see the world creates the world we see." -Barry Neil Kaufman

I just had to share this quote today. I read it on Twitter yesterday and a light bulb kind of went off in my head. How true this is! I hope that you choose to see the world as a beautiful place today.

Fair Week

 

This week is Fair week in Frederick County, Maryland. If you live in the area, you know what a big deal fair week is here. The kids even get a day off from school just to go to the fair. 

Earlier this week I had the opportunity to spend the day with my daughter and her 3 lovely friends chaperoning a field trip to the fair. We spent the day looking at the animals and working on a scavenger hunt that the fair puts together to teach the kids a little bit about agriculture and animals. We visited the textile tent, and it differently got me in the knitting mood.  I pulled out the yarn last night after a long summer break.

We had the chance to watch a Mommy Cow lick her new calf clean just minutes after being born.

The girls loved seeing all the baby animals, like these adorable fuzzy chicks

Today was the day to go back to the fair and ride the carnival rides. Unfortunately, the weather didn't cooperate. We had about an hour of riding time in the drizzling rain, the it poured. We hid out in a wonderful Just Desserts tent and ate hot apple dumpling which seemed to help improve our moods. Oh well, there's always next year.

As far as jewelry news, I just finished up a new group of jewelry to take to The Muse in Frederick. I will take a few photos of the pieces to share with you before I drop them off next week.

"Rainy days can be made into sunny days if you give them a chance." by Madi

Photography

There is just something so magical about photography. Today, I'd like to share my son Ryan's photography with you. He just started taking a digital photography class in High School this year and I think he's doing an amazing job.

His photography inspired me to create the following Etsy treasury.

Look what I found outside my window - Etsy Treasury

 

I hope you enjoyed taking a look at all the captured beauty in today's photography album.


"An open mind is an open thought." by Madi

Zentangle Class

My Zentangle Class was great on Sunday! As you can see, everyone was busy and did a wonderful job. I really enjoyed teaching and am looking forward to doing it again. Zentangle 2 anyone?


"Find the pattern of Life." by Madi

Planning for a new school year

Here is my new school year planner that I made this week at Craft day. The back of the Planner is created from a great little mailing that I received this week from Etsy.  We had a great day creating and talking. Nothing like spending a day with friends, crafts and mimosas!

"An open mind is an open thought." by Madi

Artist of the Month - Anne Weil

Beach Photo from Anne's blog Flax & Twine

When I sat down at my desk to write this post about my fellow Creative Coconut artist, Anne Weil,  I was unsure how to begin. You see Anne wears many hats. Not only is she a Mother of three children, works two jobs, she has time to be very creative.

Anne lives with her family in Boulder, Colorado. Her children are 6, 7,  and 8. The youngest a girl and the other two boys. She works in commercial real estate and writes curriculum for elementary children. So, you think that's enough to keep anyone busy? Well, just hop over to her blog Flax and Twine and you will be amazed!

Sidewalk Quilt

Anne's blog is full of creative projects for young and old. Above is a great and inexpensive project for kids. They created a sidewalk quilt with chalk. Anne not only has beautiful photos on her blog about her projects, but she also has step by step tutorials.

Rainbow Jars

Anne enjoys a plethora of crafts. When I asked her what types of projects that she enjoys working on she said;

"I pretty much adore making anything with my hands: knitting, sewing, embroidery, crochet, paper-craft and on and on.  I have an impossible time narrowing it down to any one hand craft.  I think each skill has something unique to offer.  One of my favorite parts of it all is the design aspect.  I love to make something that really pleases me aesthetically.  I love making something that really “hums.”  When I say that, I mean that place in all of us that gets warm and giddy because something is viscerally a pleasure to look at and experience.  I also love making things that carry meaning and spark the imagination–material with which to weave a story.  Photography has become more and more important to me through along my path as well.  I  love it as a medium to capture that feeling that I describe above."

 Here are a few of her projects:

Bunny and Poppies Fabric Papercut with Frame - Available on Etsy

Hand Embroidered Note Cards

Paperboard Mystery Message

Baby Vest

Market Bag

Knit Pom-pom Beret - Available on Etsy

 While I was researching my post about Anne, I happened upon a wonderful post that she wrote called "I want to blog".  My favorite part is about her wanting to give herself space to explore her creativity.

"Now, I want to give myself the gift of more space, real space, space that is protected, to explore these creative desires.  But, I find myself faced with other problems.  Do I trust my creative instinct?  That is to say, even found, how do I own my creative being?  How do I explore it without any preconceived expectations. How do I value that love of making things?  How do I pursue my ideas with confidence?"

I asked Anne where she would like to see her art go in the future. Here is what she shared with me;

"I think the most critical thing about my creative work is that it continues to be an expression of me and the things I love.  I want it to always inspire me and others as well.  I most importantly want to continue following my creative instincts and see where that leads me.  It has been vital to me to find my own design aesthetic and strengthen my creative voice.  The blogging experience and others’ appreciation of my work has been thrilling to me."


I hope you enjoyed getting to know Anne and her many creative talents. If you'd like to visit more with her stop by her blog Flax and Twine or visit her Etsy shop.

Thank you for stopping by for this month's Artist of the Month post. Yesterday was Craft Day with the girls. We had a wonderful productive and relaxing day. I made a planner for the new school year and it really turned out great! I'll be sure to post some photos of the results when I get a chance.

"Being creative is an adventure of joy." by Madi