13 Days of Christmas - Day 7

Day 7 is Vivian!
Viv is fabulous at making very detailed little bundles of whimsy!
This is the group of them (photo from Viv's blog)

13) Days of Christmas - Day 6

Day 6 is me!


This is my gift all wrapped up. I recycled a bird seed sack and cut it into small pieces, sewed them into small pouches and then stamped a 6 on each one. then I punched some holes in then and tied them up with yarn. I love white and red. So pretty......

I made some decoupaged glass ornaments. First I made collages and then I decoupaged them on to the backs of glass hearts.


Then I collaged the backs. SO one side is under glass and one side isn't.


I'm sure that everyone expected a stitched ornament (or gift) from me this year. I hope that I didn't disappoint anyone! I really wanted to try these :)

13 Days of Christmas - Day 3,4,5

Oops -- I went awol for a few days -- I even missed Five Faves Friday! (it will return next Friday)

Day 3


Day 3 is Elizabeth. Elizabeth was our lovely hostess. I give many thanks to any American host of a swap that has me in it. Not because I'm difficult, lol, but because they have to do extra work to get my package back to Canada. THANKS for having me, Elizabeth!

Elizabeth made us pretty hanging fabric cones. She sun-printed the fabric herself. It is so pretty and this photo really doesn't do it justice :)


Day 4

Day 4 was Leslie.
She made these super cute little snowmen and trees in a basket. They are so fun in the tree!
Here is a shot of them from Leslie's blog -- I love them all grouped together!


Day 5

On the fifth day of Christmas Patti and Elizabeth were channeling each other :) Patti made ths sweet vintage cone. It was nicely wrapped in a piece of muslin (all ready for me to use when I make some fabric tags for Christmas gifts)

13 Days of Christmas - Day 2

Day 2 was from Mary Zimany!


I love Mary's packaging. I'm not sure if she put the bags through a printer, or not. I'll report back on that :)

Again, some hard-to-photograph glass...
This is very 3D inside a watchmakers case. It is so pretty. I'm going to have THE BEST tree this year!!

13 Days of Christmas!! Day 1!

Our 13 Days of Christmas started of a bit later than intended (we were supposed to start opening on December 1), because Canada Post decided not to be super speedy :) But the gifties are finally here safe and sound! Let the rumpus begin!

These are all of the wrapped gifts:


I've decided to open Day 1, 2, 3 and 4 all at school this week to make it easier to photograph. Won't all of my teacher friends be jealous?

Day 1 is from the WONDERFUL Barbara Burkhard!

Here it is all wrapped in black and white splendor...


And inside was this beautiful delicate ornament! So difficult to photograph, but I didn't do a bad job, I don't think. It is a clear glass ball with a transparency inside. I've seen tutorials of these around blogland lately -- and I think that barb did a fabulous job!!!


The ornament was nestled inside of this pretty winter cuff.


Barb has set the bar high for the rest of us to follow!!!
Thanks Barb :)

Another simple card

This is one of my favourite cards. I love the simplicity. And the pine cone stamp is fabulous, isn't it?

Holiday cards 2011!

I've been making cards! (not that I've had much time with all of these craft shows to visit :)


I like the simplicity of these... and of course, using up fabric bits is high on my priority list...


But I love playing with washi tape too!

Five Faves Friday! Salty Snacks

I love salty snacks. Problem is, sometimes I eat a whole meal while I'm snacking.

My favourite salty snacks!
1. Cheese and crackers (Triscuits or Wheat Thins)
2. Plain ripple chips
3. Nuts and Bolts (Bits and Bites)
4. Nuts -- Peanuts, almonds, pistachios....
5. Olives

Wychwood Barns Holiday Art Market

December 4th & 11th, 2011
Barns Holiday Art Market (at Artscape)
Artscape Wychwood Barns, 601 Christie Street , Toronto
12-5

OOAK - Stacy Cameron

Another one of my favourite OOAK artists is Stacy Cameron. Stacy makes BEAUTIFUL jewelry from silver and copper. I have many of her pieces! She's in booth O-06. She'll be filling up her etsy shop after the show, so be sure to check it out in December.

OOAK Danielle Hession

If you are in Toronto, don't forget to go to the One of a Kind show this week! It's on until December 4. (10am-9pm Mon-Sat. Closes at 6 on Sunday)


Please stop in and see Danielle Hession. She's in booth K 53. This is the first year that she's done this show, but I've purchased work from her in many sales all over the city! She has so many beautiful collages this year... it will be hard for me to choose only one when I go back today!

CBC Charity Craft Show

(card by okku designs)

Wednesday November 30th, 2011
CBC Charity Craft Sale
Canadian Broadcasting Centre, 250 Front Street West, 8:30am-5:30pm
(click here for a list of vendors)

I'll be running there right after school to check out Fumiko Maehara's fabulous pottery. Her work is my fave and I own many pieces :)

Speakeasy Sale at the Gladstone

Thursday December 1st, 2011
SpeakEasy's Annual Holiday Sale
The Gladstone Hotel, 1214 Queen West, 7pm-11pm
(Toronto)

Five Faves Friday! TV shows

If it's Thursday night at 10 pm, you'll find me curled up on the sofa watching The Mentalist

My Five Favourite (current) TV Shows:

1. The Mentalist


2. Criminal Minds (I heart Matthew Gray Gubler :)


3. House


4. The Big Bang Theory (Mr B says that I remind him of Amy Farrah Fowler - my personality -- is this a compliment????)


5. CSI (Although I'm losing interest this season) (I miss Grissom so much)

It's all about the Hospital and Crime shows :) And BBT is just odd. I like odd.

I'd add Greys Anatomy, but I'm losing interest in it this season....
I'd likely enjoy Mad Men -- I hear that it's good-- but I've never watched it.
I think that I like Grimm -- but I've only seen 2 episodes.

Craftiness in Downtown Toronto

Craft Fairs coming to a (Toronto) neighbourhood near you!

Coming up This week in LeslieVille:

Thurs. November 24th, 6pm to 10pm:
Leslieville Wanderlust, an evening neighbourhood shop-hop & holiday kick-off along Queen East from Logan to Greenwood (think discounts, gratis treats, prizes & East-End good cheer)


Sat. November 26th, 11am to 5pm:
Crafternoon Tea, an annual holiday crafty/fashion market & charity tea party (25+ indie vendors of handmade gifts & wearables, plus a fundraising English-style tea to benefit Red Door Shelter).Held at Nathalie-Roze & Co. 1015 Queen Street East (on the south side, at Pape)

Christmas Book

I joined an exchange this year (with the Canadian Chickies) that was a book exchange. We were supposed to create or alter a book and make it Christmassy for the recipient to use as a journal, scrapbook, etc.

I decided to do a "Remains of the Day" Style journal.

I chose a rose coloured fabric as a base, with a green contrast. The ruffle of silk on the ribbon is my favourite embellishment.


Then I made 2 signatures of pages and stitched them in.


I hope that Heather likes it! Thanks for organizing us Dawn!


This last shot is the Ghost of Christmas Present(s)" AKA the reflection of Martha in the window :) . I took it while I was shooting the above photos. That's my school yard in the back ground. AKA the school with no balls. Sigh.....

Five Faves Friday! Favourite Hot drinks

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Five Faves Friday! Hot Drinks

It is hard to come up with 5 of these, because my #1 by far is tea.

My five favourite hot drinks:

1. Earl Grey tea
2. Chai tea
3. Chai latte
4. Peppermint Hot Chocolate (the Williams Sonoma super duper spendy kind)
5.French Vanilla Cappucino

One of a Kind Show

Many of you know that for many years (10!) I did the One of the Kind Show. I don't mean that I shopped it -- I had a booth there. It's not just a teeny weekend craft show where you have you stuff on a flimsy table. You have a whole booth - a mini shop -- for 11 days. It's a ton of work -- but very worth it. So many people ask me why I don't still do it. I don't have time to make enough stock to last one day, let alone 11 days! I've also completely changed my style, so I would have to be re-juried in. I would love to go back and do it someday though. I go for a few days ever year to see what's there, buy some food and visit my friends. You might see me sitting in booths helping out too.

This year Toronto's One of a Kind Christmas Show will be held from Nov 24-December 4. It's held at the Direct Energy Centre at the CNE grounds (that's the huge building just inside the Princes Gate)

Show Hours:

Weekdays 10am-9pm
Saturdays 10am-9pm
Sundays 10am-6pm

OPEN LATE
Thurs Dec 1 10am-11pm

There are 800 Artisans there. If you have never gone, be prepared to walk, and walk and walk. The show is huge.

Over the next few weeks I will showcase some of my favourite artisans. Much of what they make isn't available online -- so you need to come down and have a look!

Check out the One of a Kind Show Website for more information, and to purchase discounted tickets.

Five Faves Fridays! Colours

I'm going to have a new feature on my blog -- Five Faves Fridays. You can play along on your blog too, or leave me a comment about your favourite things.

First Up -- My five favourite colours. You might think that it is silly to have 5 favourite colours. Doesn't that almost encompass them all? Well... no...

My favourite colours change and evolve. The following colours reflect what I am wearing , and the colours that I love to have in my home.

These are my current five favourite colours:

1. Grey -- I love all greys. I wear them and want to surround myself in greys.

2. Chartreuse. I am a picky green lover. I love the yellowy green of chartreuse. And isn't the name wonderful? I wear it in the summer, and use it as an accent in my home.

3. Brown. I love a deep, rich, chocolate brown to wear and to decorate with. It's going "out" of style a bit, but right now, I'm still loving it.

4. Black. I wear lots of black, and use it as an accent in my home.

5. Whites and naturals -- I love these for my home -- I have a very neutral palette, but I don't wear many whites.

What is your favourite colour? Are your favorites for the home the same as what you wear?

Fall/ Winter Craft Fair Roundup (Toronto)

( Needle Felted Fox by Lesley Anne Green who will be at The One of a Kind Show)

I love going to craft fairs. I like to see what is new, and who the up-and-coming artisans are.

I'm going to showcase as many as I can find in the Toronto area. If you know of any, please leave a comment, or email me!

I'll try to list them a week ahead of time and then a reminder a few days before they happen.

Here are the ones that I have so far (I'll tell you far more about them individually when their dates get closer). Put them on your calendar -- and let me know of any -- no matter how small :)

November 24-Dec 4 -- One of a Kind Show, Toronto (CNE)

November 25-January 1 -- Niagara Holiday Market (Niagara Falls)

December 10 - o'born Holiday Multiples Fair , Toronto (west)

December 10+11 -- City of Craft, Toronto (west)

December 11 -- Bazaar of the Bizarre , Toronto(west) (at the same venue/ time as City of Craft? I don't know how this works?)

(Plants You Can't Kill by Shannon Gerrard who will be at City of Craft)

I know that there will likely be some holiday show& sales in the Annex, at the Gladstone, some in the Beach, but I can't find dates yet. What's with that? I'm already playing my holiday music :)

(Pillow by Shannon Adolph who will be at The One of a Kind Show)

If you're itching to shop before any of these happen check out some of the great shows in the city that carry independent artists! (again -- please let me know of the many, many that I have missed -- I'm a west end girl :)

Wise Daughters Craft Market (west -- in the junction)
Fresh Collective (west -- roncesvalles, Queen, and kensington)

And don't forget to check out Toronto Craft Alert for all things crafty (a great resource for shops, supplies, classes, etc)

Chagall at the AGO

I spent part of this gorgeous autumn day at The Ontario Gallery of Art seeing the "Chagall and the Russian Avant-Garde" Exhibition.

My favourite period of Chagall was his "circus" period. I was able to see many of these in Paris many years ago. Still, some of my favourites were displayed here in Toronto:

(Double Portrait With Wine Glass)

(Blue Circus)

(The Dance)

I am a member of the AGO. Mr. B said that this was his favourite exhibition yet at the AGO... I'm not so sure.... Would it have been worth the $25 admission charge? Well.... it sure is more economical than flying to France to see them...... I'll likely go again to see my favourites again before they leave in January.....

We walked home, strolling along my favourite strip -- Queen Street West. I am so lucky to be able to live exactly where I want to live -- within walking distance of downtown. I love it! And I'm so lucky that Mr. B is a walker too :)

Happy Halloween!

I'm kind of doing a cross post of what's on my teaching blog.

But I HAD to show you the cool pumpkins that my class made today!


Look at the emotion!

see the rest here!

Poppytalk

Poppytalk is another design blog that I follow.

They too have put out a "lookbook" called Indie Love. It's a book of indie handmade and vintage goods from around the world.

It's the digital edition highlighting artists from the Poppytalk handmade shop.

Perfect eye candy. And it's extra special for me because Jan, the owner, is Canadian :)

This is a room with super fabulous wallpaper that she posted (and that I pinned :)

Source: poppytalk.blogspot.com via Martha on Pinterest

And check out this totally inspiring laundry room (definitely puts my concrete block walls to shame) . Jan has posted 12 Laundry Rooms (and closets) to be inspired by on Babble. (another one of my favourite sites)

Source: poppytalk.blogspot.com via Martha on Pinterest

True Colors

I finally had a bit of time to do some of my own art. Well, these pages are for Saundra's book. I'm currently in a "round robin". Some people have asked me what this is, and why I do them.

Well.

In 2004 I had to got to my favourite Rubber Stamp, Great Impressions (now Bizzie B's) store to buy a gift for my friend Meep. When I was there I saw this fabulous book -- True Colors: A Palette of Collaborative Art Journals, published by Stampington.


True Colors showcases the art of 15 amazing mixed media artists. Each artist chose a journal and a colour scheme and then sent it on to the next artist, who would work in the book, using the colours that the journal 'owner' had selected. This book was the most wonderful book that I had ever seen. Seriously.

I went home and thought about the book for days. At the time, I had NO money -- I was a single parent and I had gone back to school (teachers college). So I scraped together every cent I had and walked back to the store (it's about 5 miles) (each way) and bought the book. At the time it was $50 Canadian (our dollar was low). Pricey. But so worth it. It lit a fire in me. I searched the internet for some way that I too could do this. Then I found ArtChix Studio, and entered the world of online yahoo communities (Sadly, Art Chix doesn't have a yahoo group any more).

I found a wonderful Round Robin Group (thanks to Julie for believing in me and letting me join!). I now have many beautiful journals of my own... and I have personally met half of those True Colors artists. I've told them what an impact they made on my life. It truly was a life changing experience. Well worth the fact that we had to live on Kraft Dinner and Campbells soup for a month to make up for it (Sorry Miss L).

This led to an interest in Artist Trading Cards, and also to forays into many different kinds of mixed media. My deepest love is still for fabric based projects, but art journaling still is high up there in my list of things that I love to do.

Many thanks to Stampington and the fifteen True Colors Artists!
Please click on a name to visit their websites or blogs. Many of them teach -- I would not say no to a class taught by any one of these talented women :)

Lynne Perrella (buy her books or take her classes!)
Sarah Fishburn (Pasticcio Quartz is a must -read)
Teesha Moore (read the blog, go to the retreat (artfest) or buy some rubber stamps)
Marylinn Kelly
Linn C. Jacobs (sadly, Linn has passed away)
Michelle Ward (read her blog, take a challenge or buy some fabulous rubber stamps!)
Anne Bagby
Karen Michel (I can't even begin to gush enough about Karen)
Monica Riffe (no website :(
Claudine Hellmuth (I so want to take a class from Claudine! Please come to Toronto!)
Lisa Renner (I keep missing her classes at ArtUnraveled. Next year for sure)
Judi Riesch
Keely Barham (now Keeley Benkey) (Keeley is lovely)
Nina Bagley (Nina makes me laugh every time I see her -- she is so.... Nina)
Lisa Hoffman


You can read more about these artists on Seth Apters Blog

Lynne Perrella
Marylinn Kelly
Michelle Ward & Lisa Renner
Lisa Hoffman & Judi Riesch
Anne Bagby & Karen Michel
Teesha Moore & Monica Riffe
Sarah Fishburn & Keeley Benkey
Nina Bagley
Linn Jacobs