Category Archives: Artist Friends

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Paper craft a Halloween gift bag or trick-or-treat bag

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Halloween Gift Bag or Trick-or-treat Bag

Halloween Gift Bag or Trick-or-treat Bag

Booooo!   Halloween is rapidly approaching and I am posting a Halloween craft each week as part of Terrorific Tuesday.  This week,  I want to share with you this paper bag that I decorated to use as a Halloween gift bag or a trick-or-treat bag.  In addition, this will make a cute Halloween lunch bag for you or your children.

  1. I started with a plain gray gift bag.  The spooky haunted house and the bat are die cuts using Halloween dies by Brenda Pinnick for Sizzix (available currently in craft stores).  Other supplies needed are  – black Sharpie pens(felt tip and thin tip),  glue stick and black, white and yellow cardstock.  Optional – I used crystals heat set with a wand for the cat eyes.
  2. Draw ghosts and cut out.   Draw and cut out black top hat and cat from black cardstock and a moon and window light from yellow cardstock.
  3. Arrange haunted house, cat, moon, bat, and ghosts and glue.  For the ghosts, glue the bottom point areas so that the tops can stand out from the bag.  Glue the cat except for the tail.
  4. Draw the word Boo and small bats.

If you are carrying a bottle of wine to a Halloween party, you can use the same design on a wine bottle bag, just spread the design elements more vertical.

I hope each of you is enjoying a nice fall and your preparations for  Halloween festivities.

(C)Phyllis Dobbs.  This design is for your personal use and enjoyment.  It may not be used for commercial purposes without the written permission of Phyllis Dobbs

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Terrorific Tuesday – Halloween Crafting

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terrorific mosaic

Yep, it’s that time. It’s the first official post of Terrorific Tuesday!!! Eleven artists posted projects over the past week on their blogs in celebration of their love for all things Halloween. The pics above are in order with the links below, so check out these spooky and inspiring projects by some of the most inspired crafters on the “web”.

Eye of Newt Necklace Melissa J. Lee treats us to this stunning necklace filled to the brim with lots of texture and gothic appeal!

Halloween Knitting Patterns Sarah E. White whips up some insanely fun knitting patterns on her About.com Knitting Blog. Learn how to knit a ghost, pumpkin hat, Halloween bag and more!

Spooky Googly Eyed Crafts Alexa Westerfield a.k.a. Swelldesigner creates 6 projects which includes a frame, pumpkin, and fashion accessories with her crafty stash of googly eyes.

Trick-or-Treat Candy Pot Phyllis Dobbs paints up an adorable pot that will make all the little ghosts and goblins smile.

Owl & Witch Halloween Cards Brenda Pinnick uses her Sizzix dies to craft these totally spooky cards. So swell!

Franky Halloween Card Marice Rodriguez crafts up this adorable glittery and colorful Halloween concoction on her Flickr page.

Resin Halloween Cabochons Tammy Powley’s experiment with resin turns out to be a success! Check out her adorable cabochons and ideas for using them on her About.com Jewelry Making Blog.

Pumpkins & Swirls Halloween Candle Kate Pullen shows you how to make this beautifully-inspired candle using simple rubber stamping techniques on her About.com Rubber Stamping Blog.

Crystal Web Necklace Margot Potter a.k.a. The Impatient Crafter wins the webby award with this dramatic necklace using CRYSTALLIZED™-Swarovski elements and Beadalon silver plated wire.

Happy Haunting Collage Lorilyn Hurley of the Dream Life creates this collage filled with vintage goodness and an oh-so-risque flying witch!

Halloween Ephemera Collage Christina Tuey a.k.a. the Collage Contessa shares her artful wall hanging filled with all kinds of whimsical Halloween goodness.

If you’d like to participate, please read more about it here. It’s open to all bloggers out there who want to join in! So join back here next Tuesday for another helping of inspired ideas!

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Free giveway – Look at this limited edition Giclee Print that Artist Brenda Pinnick is giving away.

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 I guess I shouldn’t be sharing this with all of you because I want to win it!  But being the kind-hearted person that I am, I am sharing this opportunity with you.

Brenda Pinnick has a Friday give-away on her blog EACH Friday.  This is her first give-away and is a signed, limited edition giclee print of her latest painting.  I just love it and some very lucky person is going to win it.  The models for the two kitties Brenda’s very own sweeties Luke and Nugget.

If you don’t win today’s give-away, check back each week because she is having a give-away each Friday. 

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Happy National Women’s Friendship Day! Guest Blogger Debba Haupert of Girlfriendology.com

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 Sept. 21st, 2008, marks the 10th celebration of National Women’s Friendship Day (NWFD). The celebration day was created in 1999 by the Kappa Delta sorority to remind us to appreciate and celebrate our friendships. NWFD is a great ‘excuse’ to get the girls together and have some fun. While it might be too late to meet-up on the 21st, you really can celebrate this special occasion every day – so plan some fun events with your girlfriends!

Cincinnati Women Event

Check out these ideas for great girlfriend get togethers:

  • Happy hour, dinner, lunch, brunch or any opportunity to eat, drink and be merry with your very BFFs. Plan a GNO with your favorite gal pals for a little ‘girlfriend therapy!’ Reconnect with your friends and spend an evening laughing away all your concerns.
  • Mani, pedi, massage – the works! Grab the girls and head to a local spa or salon for some pampering together. Then ease back into the real world with an after-the-spa dinner together. Consider this: a recent study by Dove indicates that 70% of women feel prettier because of their girlfriends. So get your pretty on by spending time with your BFFs!
  • Go old school and pass some notes (real paper) with your girlfriends – take a class together! Learn how to knit, cook, bead or speak French together. Take a scrapbooking class, go to a wine tasting or do yoga together. Spend time and learn together – it’s guaranteed that girlfriends make learning much more fun!
  • Road trip! Autumn is a great time to go to an outlet mall or a fall festival. Celebrate Oktoberfest with the girls, there’s bound to be one close by, visit a nearby town for a fun weekend festival.
  • For starters…start a book club, a gardening group, a gourmet girlfriends monthly dinner. Plan a way to see each other more often and have fun on a regular basis. And invite some new women to the group – the more the merrier!
  • Start shopping! Remember when we got back-to-school clothes? Maybe we should start that tradition over for new fall fashions. Go shopping with your girlfriends. They always give the greatest shopping advice!
  • Surprise! It’s a girl’s get-together! At an early celebration of NWFD this week, a group of girlfriends told me that they have a monthly surprise get-together. They take turns planning the super-secret event. An email shares the date, time and meeting location – but no one is told what they are doing. Everyone shows up and just participates in whatever the host planned. Find some spontaneous girlfriends and have fun!
  • Beyond the fun, the laughter and the shopping treasures, here’s the real benefit of time spent with your gal pals. It reduces your stress, and positively impacts your health, happiness and longevity. So, make plans to spend time with your girlfriends and tell, or at least show, them how much you appreciate their friendship. Make memories together. Laugh. Cry. Then laugh some more. September 21st , or any day of the year, life really is better together – with your girlfriends!

Debba Haupert created GIRLFRIENDOLOGY – the online community for women based on female friendship. Inspiring semi-weekly podcasts, videos, blogs, contests, reviews and more can be found at www.girlfriendology.com. Join in the appreciation and celebration of the wonderful women whose friendships make us healthier, happier, less stressed, live longer and even feel prettier. Thanks girlfriends!

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A weekend in Atlanta – good friends and good food mix well with a business trip!

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I just returned from a terrific weekend as a house guest of my talented and gracious friend Brenda Pinnick.  I went to Atlanta for the gift market in addition to some brainstorming time with Brenda.  Brenda and her husband are wonderful hosts (and their kitties are just as gracious and friendly).

We attended the gift market, meeting up with artist friends Stella Violanto and Andy Mathis .  Andy exhibited at the market with his booth serving as our meeting point.  Unfortunately, he was located very close to the cash and carry section.  I’m afraid that we “cashed and carried” too much, but hey, I’m only human and who can pass up all the fun jewelry.

Brenda, Stella and I walked the market for trends and connections for our art licensing businesses.  We all went to dinner together at one of my favorite restaurants in downtown Atlanta, Azio, where we were able to catch up with our chatting since there was no “cash and carry” nearby to distract us.

Brenda and I stayed up late, trilled with the time to do some more talking and brainstorming, which was aided by a couple glasses of wine.  I also had a tour of Brenda’s studio, which was very organized and inspirational and filled with her gorgeous fine art paints (she is one very talented artist).

It was such a fun weekend and now its Monday, and back to earth and my own studio. 

My heart goes out to all of you in Texas and the gulf affected by Ike. 

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Blackberry trifle dessert – Easy, fast and delicious!

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Blackberry triffle dessertLast night was my turn to host my girls’ poker group. Its a fun, chatty night, and we do manage to play a few rounds of poker between eating and talking.  My husband says that for refreshments, we should do like guys – beer and chips.  But we consider food an important part of our socializing and go way beyond chips!  For my dessert last night, I made this blackberry trifle.  It was very easy and you’ve probably seen similiar recipes in magazines with cherries.

As I was grocery shopping for the ingredients, I had a can of cherry pie filling in my hand when I spotted blackberry pie filling.  For some reason,  I was in a blackberry kind of mood so I switched the cherries for blackberries. Good decision!

This recipe is so easy and simple and very high in the YUM factor.

Brownies

Cool whip (I used the lite version)

Blackberry pie filling

Nuts (optional)

 

I used a turtle brownie mix to make the brownies (it had nuts in it so I didn’t add more).  Crumble some brownies in the bottom of your dish.  Layer on top with the blackberry pie filling and then cool whip.  Sprinkle nuts (optional).  Repeat layers until you run out or the bowl is full. 

 

I had brownies left over and donated these to my husband who was standing by drooling.  I used one can of pie filling, and had some of the large size Cool Whip left over to enjoy later.  Since it has no calories, I can splurge. The blackberry triffle was a hit at poker and some even went back for seconds!

 

A BIG thanks to my friend Debba Haupert for her blog post on our poker night!  Check her Girlfriendology blog out.  Its dedicated to all you girlfriends out there! 

 

(By the way, I did win a little – up 60 cents at the end of the evening!)

 

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New Designs from Brenda Pinnick – Halloween Die’s for Scrapbooks, Card Making and More

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Its been a few days since I’ve posted, but I’m happy to say that I have been busy working on my next fabric collection for Quilting Treasures.  I can’t go into details at this time, but its a fun collection that I think you will just love!

Time flies quickly and Halloween is only a couple of months away (yes, really, it is – I counted the months using 2 fingers).  My talented friend Brenda Pinnick has a new Halloween die collection with Sizzix and its simply to “die” for. Brenda Pinnick Sizzix Halloween I saw the collection at the recent trade show for the Craft and Hobby Associataion. The are just adorable – the entire collection of spooky Halloween scary stuff!  (I borrowed the photo from Brenda.) They are perfect for the hand made cards, bags and your other Halloween scrapbook projects. Check out Brenda’s blog for additional ideas and because its just a great blog.

In addition to fabric designs, I’m working on some freebies to post here, so check back soon.

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My friend, Audrey Jeanne Roberts, moved – her blog, that is!

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Scrapbook by Audrey Jeanne RobertsI went to visit Audrey Jeanne Roberts blog today and it was gone!  She is a very talented friend who does wonderful scrapbook kits.  (This is her latest kit – beautiful isn’t it!). Needless to say, I immediately contacted her to find out where her blog moved to.  Not only does she have a new blog address, she has a new blog store as well as a new website!  Boy, has she been busy, but that’s nothing new as she is very productive.  I’ve often wondered when she sleeps.

I had hoped to see her this summer either in Atlanta or at the summer CHA show in Chicago, but she will be taking a fun trip with her husband.  That had to be an easy choice to make!

So if any of you have not been able to find AJ’s blog, check it out with the links above and in my blogroll.

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Quilt Market – catching up with friends, a perk in addition to the beautiful colors of fabrics

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As I walk the International Quilt Market, I am always in heaven seeing all the beautiful colors of fabrics and quilts displayed throughout the whole show.  Another thing that I really enjoy about the show is catching up with friends, which I did last month at the Spring Quilt Market in Portland.

I think all of my friends are interesting and unique.  I remembered to take out the camera a few times, but not often enough, to capture some of these moments.

Phyllis Dobbs, Julie Stephani and Carol ZentgrafJulie Stephani is sitting in the center and Carol Zentgraf is sitting on the right side.    Julie is the editor of Today’s Creative Home Arts magazine.  Carol is a very talented designer specializing in sewing projects.  Its always a delight to be with these two as our conversations are always filled with many, many laughs.

I have to admit that I don’t know the 4th person behind us. She surreptitiously joined our photo session. We were in the Home Arts booth and didn’t realize until later that we were posed in front of a photo in the booth background – she fit in just like she belonged! Also note my tote bag – made with my new Meow Meow cat fabric from Quilting Treasures.

Threaded Pear booth at Quilt Market I’m afraid that I interrupted Gina Halladay’s lunch in the booth of her and Stephanie Goudzwaard’s pattern company, Threaded Pear (introducing several new patterns).  Gina is such a cut-up, plus she looked simply fabulous.  I just loved the booth sign using red long johns – what a great idea and easy to spot!  Gina is also a blogger extraordinaire with her hit blog, Quilters’ Buzz.

Phyllis Dobbs and Desiree OvertvietAnother friend, Desiree Overtviet, travels a great distance to attend Quilt Market.  She is from Holland where she owns a very successful online fabric and quilt shop, Desiree’s Lappeteknikk.  Desiree is fun as well as very interesting.  I enjoy hearing about her life in Holland, which she tells with a humorous slant.  And Desiree is definitely a shoe lover, traveling with many pairs of gorgeous and stylish shoes including some Jimmy Choo’s.

Proof reading this post reminds me of two quotes.  “Laughter is the shortest distance between two people” (Victor Borge).  Plus “A good snapshot stops a moment from running away”. (Eduora Welty).  Note to self – remember to pull the camera out more often!

 


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Tagged by a friend – read fun facts about your favorite bloggers.

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I’ve been tagged by my friend Sue Zipkin.  She is an artist with a wonderful delightful style of art and color.  Her art appears on many products.  I actually bought several items with her images on them long before I met her.  Read about her tag facts on her blog.

Tagging is a different and fun way to read little know things about your favorite bloggers.  The tag rules are:

1. Link to the tagger.

2. Share 7 random or weird facts about yourself.

3. Tag 7 people, post their names and links to their blogs on your blog.

4. Tell the 7 people you tagged by posting “Tag you’re it” on their blogs in their comments box and explain the rules to them. Nobody is obligated! Just have fun.

My random facts:

1. I was not given a middle name when I was born, just the initial of my father’s given name. It was the same with my brothers. My father was Greek and we were told it was a Greek tradition. Later, I realized that my father had a middle name.

2. My secret dream is to write a novel. It will be a thriller – bodies and twists and turns, just no blood.

3. I’m a travel junkie. I try to learn as much history about the places I visit. And I love see as much as I can and will take off exploring, following streets on a whelm (as long as the area is safe).

4. I brought a little black kitten home 3 years ago against the wishes of my husband. The kitten was rescued by my sister-in-law and won my heart immediately. We’ve always had dogs and Danny didn’t like cats. Now, he just loves and adores our Kitty Kat as much as I do and is a converted cat lover. 

5. I collect quotes. Since I’ve had Kitty Kat, my favorite quote has become “You can’t outstubborn a cat” (Robert A. Heinlein).

6. I love nature, especially flowers and trees. Although its hazardous, while driving I look at trees and their shapes as well as watch for wildflowers.

7. I love color and buy things simply because of the color (usually small ticket items).  I love office products in exciting colors. I also buy fabric because of the gorgeous colors and as a result, I have a really huge stash of fabrics.

The friends that I am tagging are Brenda Pinnick, Anna Maria Horner, Gina Halladay (Quilters Buzz), Claudine Hellmuth, Audrey Jeanne Roberts, and Joan Elliott. You can check on their links at the right in my blogroll to read their fabulous blogs and their “tag” facts.

And here are a couple of pictures of Kitty Kat – he likes flowers as much as I do. Its amazing how a ball of fluff can warm your heart, whether it is a cat, dog or any other animal.Phyllis Dobbs’ cat 1Kitty Kat Phyllis Dobbs Cat