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