I posted this comment on Facebook yesterday:

Do you think they put surveillance cameras above the paint chip color sample section to look for repeat offenders? Seems I have gathered quite a collection. I might be addicted…..

I found out that I am not alone.   Mary suggested recycling them and I liked that idea alot because I recycle everything – really as much as possible.   4 people liked my status comment.   I would have company visiting me when I got caught swiping those precious pieces of colored paper in the paint department.   Moving up to collecting the paint chip booklets has magnified my addiction and I have some company in that area as well.   Most of us sound like repeat offenders and need some outlet for this before we are all wearing orange at the bars that don’t serve wine and cocktails.

So I am thinking of planning an event at Jersey Made.   A “Paint Chip Detox” night…..    Bring your paint chips and we will make something useful and recycled out of them.    There would be a class fee of $15 to help keep Jersey Made going.  This would include supplies and light refreshments (no- I am not going to make you drink paint but that might be a good punishment for our little petty crime  LOL!!).  

Now DO NOT run out to the local hardware stores and pick up even more paint chips.   That would take the fun out of this project.  Instead search your house or garage or wherever you might have stashed these paint chips and bring them along with you to “Detox” night!   I will bring some of mine cause I sure do have enough to share……

Please leave me a comment here on my blog (NOT on Facebook) to let me know what you think.   Every person who responds here will get a special gift the night of class…..     Have I mentioned lately how much I like comments?   It really encourages me to blog more often and it always brings a smile when I see notices that I got a comment.

Here are some questions for you to think about and maybe include in your comments….

1) How long have you been a paint chip junkie?

2) Have you ever considered using them for another art project?

       a) Did you ever made the project?

3) Would you have your paint chips gathered and be ready for “Paint Chip Detox” on Thursday, January 14th at 7PM?

 This is starting to sound like a colorful idea LOL!!!

As always, thanks for reading……

I joined a group on Facebook called “Artist Trading Cards”.   A friend had told me about a recycle swap that was to be made from at least 50% recycled items.   I am a recycled artist so this seemed right up my alley.   The inspiration was a little slow to come on how to do my ATC’s for the project – probably because there was a wide range of recycled items that could be used that deciding which one was a challenge for me.   Then in the mail arrived this magazine all about chocolate.   Inspiration struck for “Remnants of the Chocolate”.   This is a limited edition ATC card – only 6 were made.    5 will be sent for the swap and 1 will get 4 ATC’s back.   The last ATC will be sent to Kelly as a little thank you gift.

Here is the link for Artist Trading Cards on Facebook:

http://www.facebook.com/topic.php?topic=12573&post=82527&uid=2204569726#/group.php?gid=2204569726

Here is the magazine and the playing cards that I used for the card base.

I attached pages of the magazine onto the playing cards.

But then I had to add more!!    Remnants of many different types of chocolate were used.  

I kept adding wrappers and bags.   I made a ‘fringe’ that slipped thru the 2 slots across the top of the cards.  Did you know you could curl candy bags just like ribbon?   hehe

Then I added some words too!!!

Work It!    hehehe

Oh yay!!!  This card is #4 and Kelly will be receiving it shortly…..

On the back I printed out labels that stated my name, the swap and the # of cards that I am trading.

I have been working on this project for a few weeks now – a little at a time as the chocolate vanished from my world and the wrappers accumulated.   Plus I had some help from friends who contributed their wrappers so I could make these ATC’s quite colorful.

One of the classes that is planned for Jersey Made will be a once a month ATC Club.   We will learn different tricks and techiniques and swap a few too!!!

There are a few reasons why I like ATC’s:

1.   they are pieces of art – although they are small

2.  can put alot of time into them but still see them completed

3.  I can collect other artist’s work too!!!

4.   I can use recycled stuff and all the bits of paper that I cannot throw away until I do something with them…..   

5.  fun to do and try out a new technique

My ATC recycle swap are 100% recycled!!!

Now I just have to wait for the post office to bring me the ATC’s from the swap!!!   That is the part I do NOT like…..waiting!

Have you ever had a dream?  

Something you reserached, planned, and envisioned?

Something that just seemed so perfect it could only feel like a dream?

Something that has been in your thoughts and prayers for several decades?

Well perhaps that is why today was such a really big day for me.  

There WAS a store in the Mill Race Village of Mount Holly that was available for rent.   But it’s not anymore because the lease got signed today.  That store will now become the home of Jersey Made.    A combination of artistic handmade items made by local New Jersey artists and a wide range of classes.  

Located 33-35 White Street, Mt Holly NJ 08060  (it’s not too soon to program your GPS or nubie or whatever those gizmos are called  – hehehe)

The entrance to Jersey Made…..

The front porch – oh my!   I have some awesome lawn furniture that a friend passed along to me.  Instead of being under plastic covers under my carport they get their own porch area!!!

Another door on the opposite side of the store.   This will come in handy when Mill Race Village has big events or whenever we need extra flow through the store!

Please notice the holly bushes out front – perfect!!

I was so excited to have the keys that all activity stopped until I could get a picture!!!  This is gonna be so great….    It is hoped to have Jersey Made all set up within the next few weeks.   Mill Race Village is hosting “Creativity for a Cause” on Saturday, November 28th so it would be great if the doors could be open so we can participate – at least a little bit!!!

And it came with a skeleton key for the bathroom door.  LOL!   Why that is needed I do not know but skeleton keys are high on my list of favorite antique things.

So this is where I will be from Wednesday to Sunday each week.   It will be so inspiring for me to be in a creative environment, planning classes, making samples and meeting people!   I’m so happy that Abbie will be participating too – she brings a wealth of talent to Jersey Made.   The logo that she designed is so perfect!!!  

Can’t wait to see this hanging at 33-35!!!!  

It seemed I was the only person who signed up for the class at the Gypsy Fish so it had to be cancelled.  I was really disappointed but it was so gracious of Kecia to invite me to still have the Baby Shoe class at her home.  

So I packed my baby shoes.  My Mom had carefully saved a pair of shoes for each of us.   My name is still on the bottom in Mom’s handwriting.   The laces have become yellowed with age and the many layers of white polish were flaking off.  I am a toe scuffer from way back!   I was able to find a picture of me when I was actually wearing the shoes (or shoes very similar to these) and that is what I used for the class.

Thus the beginning of my new vocabulary word.  

When a friend asked me “what will you do with baby shoes?” I answered “kecia-ize them”.   She probably thought that was a crazy answer but it is so true.  Kecia has a unique style and techniques that are great to learn and help me to reach outside the box.   

So with the help of Kecia Deveney of Lemoncholy’s Studio here is what my baby shoe looks like now…..

When you look into the shoe you can see me wearing the shoes.  I have always loved this picture of me and my sister, Amy.   Since I am the oldest of the 3 sisters this picture reminds me that once upon a time my sisters looked up to me.   Touches your sole, doesn’t it?   LOL!!!

I still have to make a way to hang my shoe but left class with plenty of ideas.   A little hint:  the old shoe lace will be involved.   I promise to post a final picture as soon as it is ready.

Kecia-ize  v. to create art from an unusual source and make it into something spectacular that will awe everyone who sees it.     n.   kecia-ized …as in “Holly’s baby shoe has now been kecia-ized”

This Sunday, September 27th from 11AM to 4PM I will be showing my artwork at Arts In The Park.   I have attended this show for many years and always dreamed I might be ready to bring my creations to such a show.  So I was thrilled to be accepted into this show.   I sort of amazed myself for even filling out the application but I have many awesome friends encouraging me and helping me to go in the right directions.

Check out their website for directions and all the fun things that will be going on this year.

http://www.burlcoarts.com/ArtsinthePark

Please notice my coasters are pictured under the Fiber Art section.  

When filling out the application it asked if I would be demonstrating.   I checked yes.  Hehe!   So once I was accepted the wheels started to spin on what I would make as minor panic set in as well.    I wanted it to be small enough to not need much table room, not involve anything too messy, and something inventive that would capture their attention.  Of course it had to be recycled!!

About a month ago I woke in the morning with an idea in my head.  There I sat wondering why I was barely awake and yet had this clear vision of a recycled project to make.   So I went in my art journal where I had sketched out the idea that day while still foggy with sleep and have come up with a little project that I can demonstrate.   It’s simple, easy, clever, not messy, recycled, and cool!   Imagine all those things wrapped up in one.    So I made a few samples and was happy with the results.

Stop by my booth on Sunday and see the demonstration and I’ll give you a sample and an instruction sheet to take home!!!   This would be a great item to make with your kids!!!

Thanks for reading!!!

 I have 2 big shows in the next 2 weeks.  Om Baby in Point Pleasant on Saturday, July 11th and the Handmade Faire – Summer of Love in Medford on Saturday, July 18th  www.HandmadeFaire.com for more info….. 

So there is much I needed to accomplish this week.  I think I did fairly well but each project took me on a search and rescue mission for that one little thing that was needed to pull it all together.   This led to finding something else that was partially finished or set aside to do someday and that created all new inspiration for me.  Somehow in the midst of this chaos that was jumbling around in my mind I managed to create many things.   My greeting card display is what I’d like to show you today.

Abbie found these 2 shelves at a yard sale for $1. each.   They were covered with dirt but it showed possibilities.  The width of the 9 squares was a perfect size for my greeting cards.  When many of my cards got ruined at a recent torrential rain storm that happened in the middle of a show, I realized I needed a way to organize my cards and have something that could be packed up quickly.   The roof of the house was removed.   Spent lots of time using my Black & Decker Mouse Sander.  The board around the outside began flaking apart.  It’s not a partical board but more like recycled chips of wood.  This changed my design plan somewhat because I wanted something that would stop the chipping from continuing.  A happy shopped does not want splinters.  I found a heavier weight tissue paper that I could decoupage around the outside edges, overlapping it at the corners.  A Clue game board was used for the back.  Gosh it was fun using my jigsaw to rip off the excess.  Of course I missed in a few spots and had to do more sanding.  A final sanding after the decoupage and I now have a great display.  Rustic, recycled and unique it will lay flat on my table to compliment my greeting cards but also be attractive on it’s own.  I still have the other shelf which I am going to leave with the roof and make another display for my space.

A trick I learned when I rented space at a store is that I am paying by the square foot.  I was reminded of this on Friday when I stopped into that same store.  Some of the spaces were so tightly filled with stuff that you couldn’t even get in there to reach it all.  At the same time I enjoyed looking at all of it and spent a great hour seeing what I could find.  The same goes for my 10′ x 10′ area that I rent at art/craft shows.  So I have decided that a price tag will be placed on my displays as well.  I could always make another.  A friend stopped over yesterday and his words were “cool shelf”.  Well it sort of isn’t a shelf but it could be…..

I have a friend who brings over all kinds of interesting things to my house.  An assortment arrives with each visit.  Sometimes it is scarves or buttons or costume jewelry.  This last time it was 2 small plastic octagonal boxes.  There are no markings on the bottom so they probably aren’t antiques.   

They were nice – but boring!!!

I was already busy painting with the alcohol inks but using a cotton ball to decorate metal tins (another blog another day).  An old CD was used for my palette.  These types of inks dry very quickly so the non-porous surface of the CD works great.  I reached for a paintbrush to use some of the ink still on my recycled pallette to test a small area on a box.  I liked the results so I started painting the butterflies and flowers and leaves.   Slowly the boring blue box with the off-white decorations came to life….

It really is quite beautiful now.  What might have ended up in a yard sale pile for a quarter each has now become a work of art.  Re-created is the word I often use to describe the transformation that takes place.  I am off to paint the other one now!!! 

P.S.  Alcohol ink stays on your hands for a long time afterwards…  My boss is gonna wonder if my fingers are permanently raisan and silver colors LOL!    

Well I am a little behind on my blogging but life has been hectic.  So we will travel back a few weeks to Sunday, May 31st.  My neice got confirmed.  As her godmother I wanted to have an extra special gift for her.  You might remember the antique skeleton keys that I purchased at a yard sale awhile back.  

Well I spent a bunch of time with the Dremil tool getting the rust off and making them look really pretty once again.  This began the idea for my neice’s gift for her confirmation.   I added a Scrabble letter ‘G’ for her name.  Abbie helped me with some beads to decorate it a bit and we had to include a wheatback penny that we had spent all that time drilling and polishing too.

I stamped a card to go along with it using Stampin’ Up! ”Refuge and Strength” set.   The box is recycled and the lid was decorated with some beautiful paper that I bought at a yard sale.   Together it was a great gift set and I was really pleased with it.   More importantly – SHE was pleased with it.  In her thank you card my neice called the necklace “cute & creative”.

It is great to be able to make my own cards.  I had spent so much time on the preparing the making of the necklace that the card was left until the last minute.  Hehehe – I don’t want to mislead my readers into thinking that I do everything ahead of time.  Like most people I need a deadline.  My Mom is famous for her motto that she often reminds us “never miss a deadline” and she never did!   Deadlines help me keep up with things and often I have so many things on my agenda that I need to follow in the order when things are due.  This of course keeps me burning the midnight oil sometimes.  It is also the reason I am blogging at this late hour since I really had an urge to blog before sleeping tonight.

As always, thanks for listening to my tale…..

Well this was my first big weekend with my modified table display for doing shows.  I was really pleased with how things turned out.  My creations never looked better.  I am really getting the hang of this and liking the new direction my recycled creations is going.  My displays worked great.  Here is Elmer (my fiesty and curious cat) who decided that the first thing my display needed was for him to sit upon it.

My friend Carole assures me that Elmer was just expressing his approval.  Hehehe – she is in Elmer’s fan club.   I am fortunate to have a boss who rehabs houses.  He had seen my chicken wire display and mentioned that when he took out all the windows in an old house I could have them.  I quickly said “oh yesssss”.    He saved 12 of them for me in assorted sizes and the best part is he had the guys smash all the glass out over the dumpster.  The glass was a big mess and I was so careful not to get it everywhere or wake the neighbors with all the noise.  So that was a huge help.   Perhaps the posty notes I left all over his desk saying “don’t forget windows for Holly” was a good idea too!!!   So I just had to clean them up and do my re-creating tricks to make this spiffy new display.  There is ribbon across it so I could attach my greeting cards with clothespins.   Another display at hardly any cost and it worked really great.  I have considered offering these type displays to other artists and crafters.    I really enjoy taking all these stray pieces and putting them together into something useful.  Plus they are light and easy to store in my car.

Remember my curly willow blog and the wreaths that I had made with them?   Well, I finally found a great way to use the wreaths.  I made some bows out of scraps of wine fabric, attached some fake grapes and corks to make these cool decorations….

Here I am in my new space.  I really liked having the tent and found all kinds of ways to attach items for display with bungy cords and zip ties.  So I have some plans to further improve how my creations look at future shows. 

Plus I have decided that new tablecloths are the next order of business.  The tablecloth in the middle will be my inspiration to get 2 more to match.  Those are 2 of my favorite colors – Eggplant Engy and Forest Green – plus there are leaves all over it.  That combined with a few more displays and a sign to hang in the back of my space will be great additions in the future. 

The thing I didn’t take a picture of was my little car.  I have a Saturn and it was jam packed with stuff.  I couldn’t fit another tub or table in there and still see out the back window.  It worked out great though and I had plenty of room for what I needed.  Next time I will take a photo of that to share with all of you.  The logistics of packing the car was kind of funny.  It only went in a certain way but nevertheless I got it all in there.

Again, thanks for reading.  Your comments are always appreciated and offer great encouragement!!!

 Remember – buying handmade items made locally helps our economy where we need it the most!!!!

I have a puzzle of lighthouses.  It has been moved around and saved for many years.  Yet still the many projects that come to mind remain undone.  I have thought about putting some pieces together to show a single lighthouse and making a pin out of it.  I want to use them on a scrapbook or altered page. 

The above was written as part of the One-Minute Writer.  Their website/blog has an inspiration for each day and we spend 60 seconds writing about it.  Today was my first time trying it.  I am turning over a new leaf and focusing Monday to my creative side.  Well really I want to focus all my extra time but I got layed off from my Monday morning job so it seemed like the perfect time to change things around for myself.  It sure was an eye opening experience doing the One-Minute Writer and opened up some creative brainwaves.  I am sure the exercise is meant to expand my writing but since today’s subject and my whole focus seem to be evolving in a artistic direction, the word “puzzle” just sent me down this path.

So I think I will pursue my lighthouse puzzle piece projects.  Anyone have ideas for me? Sure would be glad for your inspiration…..