Cut 'n Paste

Crafting up a storm!

A few years ago I read a quote in a novel about someone who found their "Contentment in Creativity". For whatever reason the sentiment of those three words really resonated with me, and I think about them often. This week, my contentment has been found working on concepts for upcoming workshops. I have a million ideas, but it's all about refining them and turing them into a project which students can complete during class time.

I am pleased to be sharing that I will be one of the instructors along with Terri Brush and Amy Hanna at Spring Art Camp April 11-15, 2013 hosted by Terri. I know that it's a long way off, but Terri's events usually sell out well in advance, so if you're interested, check it out!

Back home from Sweden

I returned home early this week after a whirlwind trip to Sweden for the Sweden Scrap Happening. It was pretty cold, but there was only a dusting of snow on the ground, which (I was told) is much less than normal for this time of year.

This was the convention center where my hotel room and the event was located. I loved the bright yellow buildings. So crisp and colorful! The building on the left had my room in it, and the one on the right, in the back of the photo, had more hotel rooms and the dinning hall. When I took this photo I had my back to the building which had the shop and workshop rooms in it. 

I had the pleasure to teach to two different sets of ladies (and one creative guy!). A special thank you to each student for being so creative and such a pleasure to teach. I felt very welcomed and accepted.

Here is one group of students watching a demonstration:

 
The 'upstairs' group with their finished albums:

The 'downstairs' group, also with their finished albums:


I wish to also publicly thank my host Katarina, who took such good care of me and made me feel so comfortable. Thank you for hosting such a smooth running event Katarina. It was a delight to be a part of your first Scrap Happening!
(Sorry that this photo is so blurry)

I had a wonderful time, and can't wait to go back sometime!

Hugs...

Workshop in Sweden

I am happy to announce that I will be teaching a fun filled scrapbook workshop in Sweden Feb 25-26 at the Sweden Scrap Happening. Scandinavia has been such a welcoming market to the Melissa Frances brand, so we were delighted when the invitation came to come in person and teach. I can't wait to get to know my host better and meet her customers, whom I hope will become friends by the end of the weekend!

Here's a little bit about the class: We will be using the Melissa Frances yearly calendar mini album as our base and embellish it using products from our 5th Avenue and brand new C'est la Vie Collections. We'll talk about the best way to make a durable covering for chipboard bases, what mica is and how to use it, along with tips and tricks that Carolyn has picked up in her 12 years of scrapbooking. Class will also contain products from American Crafts and Bazzill.

Please note that the real project will be slightly different from the promo image seen above as we will be using some of the new products just released at CHA in the workshop!

Handmade Album

Hi friends, I hope that you each had a very Merry Christmas celebration and that you have health and happiness in 2012!

I wanted to share an album I made from scratch as a Christmas gift with you. This project was so much fun and it will be the inspiration for one of my 2012 workshops.

Panama Recap

I arrived home from teaching late Thursday evening, and finally have a few more photos for you!

I stayed with my host and her family at their apartment, which was right in the heart of Panama City, only 2 blocks from the waterfront. The view above was taken looking left from the balcony of the apartment. I was seriously not excepting the city to be as beautiful as it was, and I feel in love with the beauty of it.

I had the pleasure to teach four workshops, and unfortunately only took about 3 pictures (some scrapbooker I am, eh?). This one was from the Hodge-Podge Album workshop and unfortunately, some students had already left to go home.

 
A HUGE thank you to Telma (the gal on the far right of this photo) who was my translator for all four classes. And to each of the students, thank you for coming to spend some time with me, it was a pleasure to meet you and I look forward to doing it again...soon!

Pink Aqua Weekend Teaching recap

I arrived home last Thursday after our fabulous time in Israel and I finally have a recap of the teaching portion of the trip to share with you.

The Pink-Aqua Weekend took place at the Shefayim Kibbutz Hotel, close to Tel Aviv and the sea shore.


 Each of the event attendees stayed at the hotel, which really helped build the sense of community at the weekend.

Natasja Verbeek and I were the instructors and the students were split into two groups for the duration of the weekend. When I was teaching group "A", Natasja was with group "B" and vice versa. I had been warned by my host before teaching that the Israeli girls were a loud, boisterous group, and not to be alarmed if they wanted to do their own thing in class as they are also highly creative and love to divert from the class project. I can happily report that even though the above is certainly true, we got along swimmingly. I don't mind loud and boisterous as long as everyone is having fun, and indeed I think fun was the key thing the girls had all weekend.

 Here is the whole gang....or at least most of them ☺
 Me teaching - thanks Tsila for the photo!
 The girls hard at work during class.
 Here is group B (I think) and I after the mini album workshop.

Beyond the classes, the ladies were all really kind and gracious to both myself and Rick all weekend. I could not have asked for a better experience. For those who attended the weekend and are reading here, thank you SO much for your positive energy. It was a pleasure to meet you, and witness your awesome creativity!

I would also like to take a moment to thank my host, Netanella. She gave me so much freedom in designing and teaching the workshops and trusted me to bring her customers something special. Thank you so much Netanella. It was a joy to spend time with you, your family and customers. HUGS!
 
Natasja, Netanella and I.

I have more photos from our time in Israel to share with you, hopefully I'll get them up soon. Have a great day!!

Where I've been, where I'm going....

 
(Photo Credit: Judaism)

Hi friends, it's been a while, hasn't it? Obviously my blogging has taken a back seat over the past few weeks. I do notice that I seem to do this each summer. As the weather gets nicer, I am tempted to spend less time tied to my computer and more time living life.

Over the past few weeks I've been immersed in the Vancouver Canucks run to the Stanley Cup (which we lost to a better team), work issues, teaching issues, and trying to enjoy my family. Crafting has also taken a bit of a back seat as I've been dealing with administrative things.

I will be heading out on Friday to Jerusalem to both do some tourism and teach at the sold-out Pink-Aqua event. I am beyond excited about spending time with my host and meeting the Israeli students. I still can't believe the crazy journey my life has taken -my job, and the teaching and travelling I am blessed to do, bring me a large amount of joy and I am so thankful for the opportunities that have come my way.

I don't know if I'll be doing a large amount of updating while I am away, but I will promise to try. OK?

Recap from Bikuben

(Photos from my Copic class at Bikuben) 
Hi friends, I know it's been too long since I've last posted here when my mother, who very rarely comments to me about my blog, tells me that it's time to update, LOL!

Since we last spoke, I have gone and come home from my teaching trip to teach at Bikuben in Oslo, Norway. It was my fourth return to this store, and as usual, I had a wonderful time with the students and my kind and welcoming host Ellen. I also was treated to a fabulous lunch with the lovely Synnøves at her gorgeous house and met for the first time Anne Kristine, who is a brilliant paper crafter with an awesome vintage style. Thank you to each student who signed up for the workshops. It was my pleasure to be there. I hope to see you again ☺

Heading Home....

 (A Statue in front of a Cathedral in the city)
 (Me with one of my hosts, Celie, whose name I am sure I just spelled wrong!)
 (An adorable tea towel that this sweet girl's mother made for me. How nice was that?!!)
 (The city was dressed in it's holiday finery everywhere we looked!)
 (Me, with Ginger (L) and Laura (C) from Glitz Designs  who were also teaching at the event.)

As I am writing this post, I am in the Chicago airport more than halfway home from Sao Paulo, waiting for my flight to Vancouver. I had a fabulous time in Brazil and want to publicly thank my hosts, Tarcisio and the super sweet coordinator who kept each of the teachers very well taken care of, Lucy Folch. The students in Brazil were really kind and warm, and TALENTED!!! Yes, they blew me away with the albums and projects many of them brought to show us. And their spin on the projects they made in class were fabulous.  I knew going into this event that Sao Paulo was the second biggest city in the world, but the fact was constantly brought back to me by the urban sprawl...the city went on, and on, and on....

I am looking forward to getting home. This will be my final teaching trip for 2010, and as I start to gear up  for 2011, I am so thankful for the events, and stores who have brought me to their customers this year. What a year it's been!

Back from Stavanger

I've been home for about a week and I am finally somewhat recovered from a whirlwind six day trip (including travel) to Stavanger, Norway for the wonderful Papirfest event. I've got to say, Norway, with it's love for vintage-shabby styled home decor and scrapbooking products has a huge place in my heart and I was once again so warmly welcomed and embraced by all those who participated in the event. A very special THANK YOU to Lindy, May Lis and Grethe, event organizers extra-ordinaire, who put on a great event and made me feel very appreciated. They were also surrounded by a fantastic crew of helpers who did their best to make sure that each of the teachers had what they needed. I am also appreciative of those who arranged for a little sightseeing (and a traditional Norwegian feast - minus traditional costume, much to my chagrin) for each teacher so that we could get to know Stavanger a bit before heading home. Thank you so much ladies!

Besides having some rockin' workshops, and meeting tons of new friends at the event, it was a pleasure to finally meet Johanna Tonnessen who has been a member of the Melissa Frances design team for a few years now. Although she was worried about her english being too difficult for me to understand, she spoke it perfectly well, and we had a really lovely time together. She took me to a super cool lighthouse (See photo above) and it was a pleasure to also see the farm where she grew up and meet her parents for a moment. I also had the pleasure of meeting Ingvild Bolme with whom I have been corresponding for about a year now. She was as sweet in person as I could have hoped and I loved getting to know her better.

Thanks again for a brilliant time Ladies...hopefully we can do it again :)