Good Christmas Reads / Studio Progress

I've been working hard trying to clean up drawers and cupboards, etc. so I can start moving back into my 'new' studio.  Yes!  The workers have finished.  It's so light and bright.  I love it!  The wall color doesn't look all that different at first, but then, once you're in there for a bit, you realize that it's so much better because the yellowy cast of the old color is gone.  The color is lighter and will influence colors less when doing my art.   Love it!

I'll keep up my blog posts the best I can, as well as updates on how my clean-up work is coming along, so keep checking back.  I have a LOT to clean up.  I've gone with less furniture in the entire room, as well as the living room, which we had to put back together once the excess furniture from my studio was back out of there.  I've changed the furniture layout completely.  I like the spacious look.  When Joey saw it, he didn't say a word, just stopped dead in his tracks.  He noticed it was all different ... and it's not even close to finished yet:)  I still have about 3 pieces I'm trying to decide if I want to use.  Decisions ... decisions ... decisions.

As for clean-up, every single thing in my (huge) storage room is completely covered with a thick layer of white plaster dust.  I'm not sure how I'll tackle it all.  It's killing my asthma.  I'm doing some cleaning each day --- starting in early in the morning and working for about 5-7 hours straight and then letting up in the afternoon.  I'm going through lots of clothes changes, lots of face masks, lots of breathing treatments, and lots of showers:)  I need to finish it all so we can get the furnace ducts cleaned and I can breathe again.  I cleaned up everything that's already back in my studio, as it was covered with the nasty dust, too, so I do have a clean place to work, but I can smell the dust from the storage room all through the downstairs.  The bathroom is still covered, so I have to tackle that, too.  If I can finish the clean-up by Christmas, I'll be a happy camper.  I need to do it as quickly as possible, so I can breathe again.  I miss stamping!

So today, I have something different for you than art inspiration.  I have 2 recommendations for good Christmas reads.  I love to read and I like to read/reread Christmas stories this time of year.  Here are 2 good ones.  These are both quick reads and lots of fun.  I hope you'll give them a try.

I'm a sucker for a good dog story.  This is just plain a good story and I loved it.  It's by Greg Kincaid.

Richard Peck is a great story-teller.  He's actually from central Illinois and used to go to our church years ago.  You'll find a lot of laughs in this story.  This would make a great Christmas gift for anyone who likes a good story.

SPECIAL NOTE:
I've been working on my 2019 schedule and have posted classes and events for January - June of 2019.  Check it out here!


IMPORTANT INFO AND REMINDERS: 

--- Dec. 3-31 / Double Class Chips and Rewards Tokens

If you're not familiar with my rewards system, click here to learn more. 

--- Available to Customers Now / Stamparatus Bag
     Keep your Stamparatus protected and all your accessories for it organized.

--- Dec. 5 - Jan. 2 / Year-End Closeout / While Supplies Last

Cutest Little Copper Tin for Christmas

I needed a little gift for a special someone recently and this is what I designed for her gift.  I think it's really cute.  Having this darling DSP makes it easy to create a special gift for someone.  It's filled with coordinating little gift enclosure cards.  These make cute little cards to share a special 'just because' note in someone's lunch or on their desk at work or whatever you'd like, in addition to using them as gift enclosures.  The tin has as many uses as your imagination can dream up.

SPECIAL NOTE:
I've been working on my 2019 schedule and have posted classes and events for January - June of 2019.  Check it out here!


IMPORTANT INFO AND REMINDERS: 

--- Dec. 3-31 / Double Class Chips and Rewards Tokens

If you're not familiar with my rewards system, click here to learn more. 

--- Available to Customers Now / Stamparatus Bag
     Keep your Stamparatus protected and all your accessories for it organized.

--- Dec. 5 - Jan. 2 / Year-End Closeout / While Supplies Last

Joy ... Simple Joy ... Down in my Heart

I directed the Children's Choirs in my church for nearly 20 years and loved every minute of it.  I had between 20 and 30 in each of my 3 choirs ... ages 2 1/2 through grade 7.  We put on 2 musicals a year and sang in church twice each month, along with having weekly rehearsals for the school age children and Sunday School music times for the little ones and, of course, Bible School in the summer.  It was quite a program.  One of the songs I taught the little ones began: "I have the joy, joy, joy, joy down in my heart ... down in my heart to stay.  They are simple, and worthy words by which to live.
Here are some of my joys today:
- getting my MIL moved into a smaller apartment in the Congregate at Christian Village in her town.
- getting to see my grandchildren often and getting to be an important part of their lives.
- making birthday cards for our church to send each month --- spreading the joy ...
- knowing the workers are nearing the last week of work in our home.
- playing with my fur babies each day.
- even though we can't really decorate for Christmas this year, enjoying our beautiful neighborhood of gorgeous lights.  They really did an outstanding job this year and I love it.
- teaching my art classes and seeing first hand the joy I can share with others.
- knowing that my 'students' are sharing their cards and projects with others ... spreading the joy ...
- making cards and gifts that I can share with others --- spreading the joy ...
- knowing in my heart that I have the love of God and the peace and joy that brings to me.

I'm sure there are many others, but those are at the top of my list right now.

So ... I had some pieces left from my Santa's Workshop DSP ... and ... I had these 'JOY' wooden letters on hand for quite a while.  I decided to decorate them to coordinate with all my Santa's Workshop projects.  They turned out pretty cute.

Adding snowflakes and ribbons really dressed up my wooden letters.  For the 'O' I wanted to add a large snowflake to the center.  It's double-sided and hangs in the center, suspended by some Baker's Twine.  It's cut from Glimmer Paper, so it's very sparkly.  I also added sparkle to the letter itself.  After attaching the DSP and letting it dry, I added a top coat of clear Gesso and, while it was still wet, I sprinkled Dazzling Diamonds Glitter all over it.  It's very sparkly!

IMPORTANT INFO AND REMINDERS:

Here's the link for the magnetic pad to fit your Stamparatus:
https://www.stampnstorage.com/magnet-pad-for-stamparatus-tm/

--- Dec. 3-31 / Double Class Chips and Rewards Tokens

If you're not familiar with my rewards system, click here to learn more. 

--- Available to Customers Now / Stamparatus Bag
     Keep your Stamparatus protected and all your accessories for it organized.

--- Dec. 5 - Jan. 2 / Year-End Closeout / While Supplies Last