ponderings

Still in a post-CHA fog...

I've spent the last few days in a post-CHA fog...I haven't even unpacked! I seem to be fighting fatigue again, and it has been debilitating. All I can come up with for this post are random thoughts...

• School starts in 19 days. Not that I'm counting down or anything.
• Would it be bad to just have grapes, vanilla wafers, and gummy bears for dinner? Because that's all that's in the pantry.
• Gotta go shopping for my Art Unraveled class supplies. I am taking two classes...one by DJ Pettit and one by Raina Gentry. I. Cannot. Wait.
• Seeing all the Beijing Olympic promos really takes me back to our trip there. I can't believe it's been almost 3 years since we went to Beijng and Qingdao.

A few leftovers...

A few layouts I did several months ago for the sample issue of {entreARTISTES}magazine. These ones didn't make it in (which is fine)...just thought I'd share 'em!

CHA....

was wonderful not because of the new products (though they were cool), but because of the wonderful people I got to see and enjoy.

Celeste...so supportive, a great friend, a fabulous scrapper.

Kerry Lynn...talented and funny and strong and inspirational.

Jayne...funny as heck, so kind and welcoming, and gorgeous, too.

Amy...another smart, funny chick who could be a model...a digi goddess.

Allison...I tried not to stalk the Hambly booth too much...just did a few "drive bys..." LOL! But I love her & love Hambly.

Amie...great scrapper & friend, and she's a rockin' business owner.

Becky...so gracious and kind and I just love everything she does.

Lisa...the Maya Road queen. She is amazing, sweet, nice, and so tolerant of Celeste & I stalking her M&T table.

Doris...my fabulous roomie, she ROCKS the Jenni Bowlin stuff and is sweet & generous, too.

Celine...yay, I got to finally meet Celine in person! I got a copy of the new magazine and got to visit for awhile. She is so awesome.

Paula...kind, warm, a digi & clean & simple scrapper who simply rocks. Hard.

Emily...I always love seeing the energetic and fun Emily. She makes me laugh!

Heather...met her at the Two Peas social. What a sweetheart!!

Heather T....caught up with her in the Melissa Frances booth. Love her style, plus she's so nice.

Vee...LOVED meeting Vee, but we didn't get to chat much. Next time we're doing lunch, girl!

Christine...saw her in the Prima booth...sweetheart!

Scarlet & April and all the Studio Calico gals, Nicole & Nicole & Davinie...some of the nicest people I know!

Kelly...super nice & fun, she is such a fabulous scrapper.

Amber...got to meet Amber briefly, could she be any cuter??

Sherine...my good bud Sherine, owner of Scrap-Diner.com...I got to tell her what I wanted her to buy. LOL!

Kelly Noel...a great HOFer, always enjoy seeing her again.

Linda...another inspiring scrapper, so sweet!

Kelly Purkey...fun to meet her, got some good tips for what to do the next time I'm in Chicago.

Janet...talented, nice, with cute curly hair to boot!

And many others I don't have the blog links for...Melissa, Heather R (do you have a blog, girlie?), Aly D, Karla, Jennifer the new owner of ScrapGal, and so many more! I had a rough time getting home (the joy of standby...you trade the cost of a guaranteed seat for some inconvenience). Everyone seemed to be in the airport on Sunday...all the direct flights to Phx were oversold. So I hopped on a flight to Vegas, and only got a flight back to Phx through a minor miracle. The airline had screwed up and had neglected to book a pilot for the flight (yeah, minor detail). So it took hours for them to locate a pilot, and hour by hour people bailed and went to other flights...so I got a seat. Yay. And I am totally rambling.

Having fun with gel medium transfers...

Still reveling in visual journaling July...

And the talented Seth gave me two blogging awards...definitely check out his blog. His art work and journals are very inspiring! Thanks for the linky-love, Seth!

    

Now it's my turn to nominate blogs for these awards...

1. Celeste. She's a great friend and one of the most talented people I know.

2. DJ Pettit. I get to take a class from her at Art Unraveled & I'm sooo stoked.

3. The incomparable Celine.

4. Miss K.L., the vintagey-collage goddess.

5. Christina, an artsy soul, provider of great inspiration.

I am so excited to be a part of this....

I've been keeping this secret for a long time, and I am so excited that I get to spill it now! The talented and wonderful Celine Navarro asked me to be part of her new magazine, {entreARTistes}magazine. It's an honor for me to be able to work with her and many other talented artists on this project. This is what Celine said about it on her blog:

"In every issue, you willl find projects created by famous and talented scrapbook artists all over the world, reports on events throughout Europe and the globe, tips to turn your photographs into art, sketches, challenges, galeries and other NEW columns in France.

Created for new and advanced scrapbook artists, {entreARTistes} magazine will make everyone happy! You will find through 88 pages much inspiration and techniques. With {entreARTistes}magazine, discover the real concept of a scrapbook magazine : you're not even reading a magazine, you're actually taking a class everyday!"

July's Poppy Ink...

 

Continuing in my "visual journaling July"...

 

I thought of another benefit to visual journaling...while you wait for your layers to dry, you can whip up a 5-minute scrapbook page:

Visual journaling

I'm taking July as my "visual journaling" month...so the following pages are created for the process, not for the end product. I am just practicing layering, experimenting, and having fun. Click on a picture to see it bigger.

Lynda Barry, where have you been all my life?

Do you need inspiration to create?

Do you want a push to create?

Do you want to enjoy a visual feast?

Then run, do not walk, run and buy What It Is by Lynda Barry...

It's hard to describe What It Is...it's unique and fascinating. It's part comic book, part collage art, part autobiography, and part journaling/writing workbook. Its principles are applicable to any kind of creating (writing, visual journaling, even scrapbooking). I can't recommend this book highly enough...it's fabulous. Treat yourself.

Inspired by Amelie...

The challenge this month was to tear up the pictures and use something red....the "red" I used was red paint.

Croppin....

Cropped today with the fabulous Julie and Debbie and Krista...sorry for the cruddy pics, I reallllly need a new camera lens. Mine is shot.

For interested family & friends...

Got the trip pictures uploaded here.

Chicago and Historic Nauvoo...

Spent the past week galavanting around in Illinois...enjoyed Chicago and the wonderful, spiritual Nauvoo.

Boys in front of Lake Michigan:

Boys & the Chicago Bean:

Our family in front of the moving and wonderful Carthage Jail. One of our ancestors, Stephen Markham, accompanied Joseph Smith to this jail and spent some time with him here. He was sent away on an errand before the martyrdom.

The gorgeous Nauvoo Temple: 

The Mississippi river, flooded over its banks:

A gorgeous sunset over the Mississippi. Can you see the heron? It's on the log near the bottom left of the picture:

We also saw a huge beaver in the river, swimming upstream. The boys had a blast with the fireflies, too. My kids had never seen fireflies, and there were so many of them flashing in the fields near the river. We had a wonderful trip. Now it's back to real life...

Getting my scrap on...

My June Poppy work...

Here it is!! I got going on this kit & couldn't stop....heh. Click on the layouts to see a better quality picture.

Poppy peeks

Been scrapping today...I think my mojo is still in Italy, but it's been fun.

Rome pictures...

  

I took 800 pictures in Rome...if you're interested in seeing any of them, I uploaded 210 of them in the Rome 2008 photo album (in the sidebar to the left). I know it's hecka boring to look at people's vacation photos...so they're there for friends & family who have asked to see 'em. :)

I've been AWOL, but for a good reason (and a bit o' Poppy)

Ciao friends...yes, I've been AWOL, because we have been cavorting on the other side of the world:

We got in late last night & my to-do list could wrap around my house twice, so I'll be back with more later. :) I set up my Poppy projects to post while I was gone, but it didn't work...hence the blank, curious post. LOL! The layouts didn't upload here well...click on 'em to see them clearer.