My World .. in Color

Everything rusty

2010-07-05T10:16:00.001-04:00

It's taken more effort than I'd imagined to get settled in, here in northern Virginia. Even with all of the help from Ian, Bobbie and Vicki, there are still some boxes to unpack after 3 months. I must admit most those boxes are filled with stuff that I might not use regularly. Eventhough I have loads of decorator items, I have a space above the fireplace which is an opening between the living room and dining room (which is my little office). I let my fingers do the web-walking and found a local antique town...called Lucketsville, just outside of Leesburg. Fabulous finds, salvaged items both indoor and out.

Picked up the blue shutters, they'll provide a large background for hanging 3 pieces of Micheal deMeng art! (I'll post those tomorrow). Yes, he was here in northern VA. (Angela's Happy Stamper)

Nothing seemed to be just right to put in that pass through space. Until I spotted the wire orb. Had to have it. It's big, round, rusty and perfect to hang. Couldn't beat the price either... I think it was $20.

Here's the other rusty piece that is now in my living room. I need to create a base for it to stand on.... don't want that rust to stain the carpet. But it just adds a bit of whimsy to the room. Nice paint job by Bobbie and Vicki!

I really liked the rusty ladies, but they are both large and very heavy and there's no way I'm hauling either one of them up several flights of stairs! But they can still make appearances in a collage piece.

Here's a shot of the inside of the Design House. This place is filled with one of a kind decorator pieces, and the lamps are to-die-for. Very very artsy. I just happened to buy a couple of reclaimed feed sacks to make up a couple of pillows, and hopefully there will be enough left over for a mixed media piece.

Gotta run.. have to keep working on that base for the rusty wire sculpture. I think I'll add a little patina to the metal pieces, too - bring in some cooler colors.
More next time........

It's Getting Close

2010-03-24T01:58:00.000-04:00

I'm in the midst of packing for my move to Virginia. My friends have been helping me get all of my accumulated stuff into boxes. Only one day left. They have decided to ban me from buying any paint related product for the next 6 months, however I'm not quite sure how they can control that being so far away.

So Far Away..doesn't anybody stay in one place anymore... a Carole King song from way back. I vaguely remember seeing her in concert in college. It's funny how some memories are vivid and yet others seem to be just barely there.

I've already been searching for local stamping/art stores in my new neighborhood. And wouldn't you know it, in May Micheal DeMeng will be teaching 2 classes. Gotta sign up for at least one. But before I do that I suppose my stuff and I need to get there first. (Back to packing)

Met with the Churchgirlz last night to make cards. And tonight myChurchgirlz small group gathered together to bond, eat, talk, laugh and cry. I'm so blessed to have such close fellowship with them. I'll miss seeing them every week; but there's Facebook, Skype, webcams and phones. It's the hugs that can't be replicated, . The Churchgirlz memories are very vivid and will stay that way, I just know it.

Hugs to all of you, Sharie, Bobbie, Debbie, Britt, Natalie, Monica, Nenette, Angie, Joan, Chris, Barbara and Vicki. Thanks for sharing and caring, loving and laughing..you're the evidence that God really does love us. MUAH

You gotta have friends....

2010-03-09T09:21:00.000-05:00

One of my favorite songs by Bette Middler. Having my friends over helping me to pack, share memories, laughable moments and even serious thoughts, is a warm and fuzzy. Reflecting on times in life when you've done things on your own and I mean alone, can be startling. Did I really do that? One big lesson I've learned is that having friends is priceless. My friends are my family and I have a family of friends. Sharing the good stuff and the not so good is what bonds us. From the celebratory clinking of wine glasses to hugs and tears, laughing so hard while driving that you have to pull over to side of the road, hours of sitting together working on projects quietly, or not so quietly, nudges to let you know " you're doing it again!".
I glanced down at a box of thrift-store purchased toys that I use in my art, that I just packed. Perhaps only a few would understand the contents, and my friends get it, which is good thing!

So here's to Friends and Family!!! Love you all! "Cause you gotta have friends to make the day last long"

Last Piece Before Packing

2010-03-05T15:41:00.000-05:00

Moving requires packing and packing is not my favorite thing to do. The nice lady from the moving company just left, so now the packing can start. Yesterday I took a look at my art room/office, which is packed with stuff and is visually overwhelming. I happened to see a couple of 12 x 12 canvas paintings that I started several weeks ago and decided to dive into some paint, knowing that I'd forget about packing, at least for another hour or two.

My orginal layers consisted of gesso, textured with whatever tools were handy at the time. Several figures were cut out of magazines that served as templates. I laid in a couple of my favorite colors phthalo turquoise, quin magenta, indian yellow hue, gently washing them over the canvas, lightly misted with water. I placed my people templates on the canvas, trying to achieve some movement and energy, tracing around them with a graphite pencil. Then with torn book pages I filled in the figures, using fluid matte medium to attach. I added more paint so much that I ended up,not with mud, but with a very dark area in the lower right quadrant of the canvas. Not liking it, I took a dry brush, with titanium white and laid the white paint around each figure, blending lightly. Then with a light wash of hansa yellow light, once the white had dried, I went over the entire canvas. Once pleased with that, I switched over to oil pastels and painted the figures using very light colors, then outlining them with blues and then a little black. Next I put in the quin magenta circles and squares. This still needs a few words and some additional visual connections added. I'm pleased that I turned to oil pastels, as they provided variation to the usual recipe of paint, paper and gels.

I have to start packing.... but I'm packing the paints last.

Road Trip

2010-03-04T13:30:00.000-05:00

After a 3 day trip to Washington DC, I flew to Chicago, (never put the suitcase away), to drive to LV with Lindsay.

(Taking the very long route from Dulles to Georgetown! - just a little lost)

It was a very cold Tuesday morning when we left Elk Grove. Ian, got up early and came out for hugs.

We drove through to Joplin Mo the first day, had a bit of snow and rain. At the hotel in Joplin, Lindsay found the song 'Oklahoma' on You Tube, and we played it repeatedly until we had the lyrics down, so we could sing it as we crossed into Oklahoma. Corny, but fun.

As I kid I always wanted the big green Sinclair blow up dinasaur, I was so busy taking this picture I missed the big dinasaur located below the sign.

Day 2: Big driving day, Joplin to Albuquerque. Oklahoma was pretty mild, Texas had snow on the ground in some areas. Finally getting to New Mexico, they put up a sign, just for us.

Our stay on the east side of Albuquerque was less than stellar, but our early and very spicy lunch in the historic district, made up for the lackluster pizza and cheese sticks from the night before....

the cloud formations were fabulous in New Mexico

Flagstaff Az

Day 3: We headed into Flagstaff, which was so gorgeous. After checking into our hotel, one of the nicest Marriot Courtyards, by the way; we showered and drove to the Mall, so I could get a pair of decent sunglasses. My $3 ones had scratches on the eyeball area therefore weren't the best for driving. After trying on hundreds of pairs, we settled on a fabulous pair of DNKY's, then headed for IHOP. We were craving breakfast late that night, and had the best service at the Flagstaff IHOP. But of course , after putting syrup on everything, our perception of life was very sweet!

Day4: We slept in and then headed for the Grand Canyon. What a spectacular view up there. It was cold but we were able to spend several hours going to various points on the south rim.

Posing at the Grand Canyon

Day 5: A very early start leaving the GrandCanyon at 7am we travelled through the rest of Arizona and onto Nevada. We rolled into town around 10:30 am. Las Vegas, here we are! Took the rest of the day to get Lindsay settled in.

I flew back to San Diego Sunday morning, finally at home. Ran over to see my artist friend Chris Cozen at Stamping Details. We hugged. We'll stay in touch. You see I'm moving to Virgnia! Sadly I'm leaving friends, my arty friends and my church girlz as well as my good friends that I've worked with for the last 10 years. Good news is that I'll be rejoining some friends and living in a place where I'll actually have an entire room dedicated to my art.

The next few weeks things will be packed and a new journey will begin. I'll keep you posted!

Look what's in the oven

2010-02-11T12:30:00.000-05:00

Just the other day my daughter was telling me about all of the cooking and baking she was doing. December was the last time I really cooked or baked so I decided it was time to turn on the oven. Look what I made, baked snail! Not as delish as Lindsay's cookies, but he's very cute and has zero calories.

I couldn't decide which color beads to use for the eyes, so he was baked eyeball-naked.. This snail is not anatomically correct, but you get the general idea. Don't know where he's destined to go. He is smooth on the backside, so he could be attached to a frame. Yesterday he went for a ride in the car, perched on the dash. Maybe he should dangle from the rear view mirror!

While the snail was baking, I grabbed my newest book purchase (thanks Vicki - she can spend my money faster than I can; so do I spend it at a snail's pace? groan.)

The sewing machine is not my best friend, but I love to work with metal and the stitch marks appeal to me. There is something very calming about repetition. I started praticing on copper foil, (purchased from Metal Amore' in Escondio) stamped with puff paint, acrylic, drizzled with Glossy Accents , and free-hand drawn heart with puff paint. Then heat gunned. I haven't applied any more surface treatments yet.

Then I just had to try making the pewter/felt book cover. I stamped a ginko leaf image on the butter-like pewter, embossed it, followed the directions and machine

stitched it with silver metallic embroidery thread. The cover is made from black felt, I cut mine too short, so i added a two inch spine.

(the spine is closest to you)

The pieces are stitched with material/felt/ interfacing/lining underneath. Sewing the metallic cord around the edges was the most frustrating. I should have read the instructions more closely, as I would have noticed that the cord should have been hand stitched first to avoid stretching the felt. Oh well, live and learn. By the way, does the stamp image look familiar? It's a Chris Cozen stamp. (Chris will be teaching at the end of February at Stamping Details) http://www.stampingdetails.com/. Chris has a new book out Mixed Media and Color - Fabrics,Quilts,Canvas,Papers. The store still has a few left.

Metal and Fabric, Mixed Media and Fabric.... I'm so inspired.... I gotta go

The House on Nest Ave.

2010-02-02T20:55:00.000-05:00

Sunday I posted that I'd be teaching an encore of my birdhouse class ; I still am, however, inspired by students in my classes I decided to make the basic construction of the roof and sides quicker so we can spend more time on embellishing these cute little homes. And we want to be done before kickoff this Sunday.
Anyway I had a blast the past 2 days working on this, which of course includes time for a coffee breaks. Did I mention a home made cinnamon cinnabon roll? Share? Sorry, don't understand that word when it comes to chocolate and homemade yeasty breads, or crunchy cheetos. Coming up with designs isn't very easy for me. I'm usually on a roll (yum) until I start getting into some of the detailing. For example, I soldered the roof peak before deciding how high to post the house address. This limited my connection options. There's usually a workaround... that's where 2 part epoxy glue is so helpful. Stinks, but bonds in 5 minutes. The layering of beads on side 1 took a while, mostly just choosing the ones that fit, or could be glued down nicely. I'm not too embarrassed to say it included picking up tiny bits with tweezers and having them shoot out and land in the mess-on-the-floor. Spent time scraping glue,paint and ink off of my tools, hands and craft mat. Much to my surprise the kitchen brush handle is now gold from the Rub'N Buff. Pics of each side are below; the house is actually level, my photography is just really poor on these.

Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Clayday....

2010-01-31T16:16:00.000-05:00

There needs to be an eighth day added to the week, or rename one of the days to 'Clayday'. I really like working with clay, however, I've been plugged-in, super-jolted- energized and inspired since I took Christi Friesen's class - Steampunk Hearts at CHA. I was introduced to her 'gotta have it tool' which you gotta have, as well as her new book, Steampunkery. It's filled with great photos, instructions and clever discourse throughout.

My friend Bobbie who is ultra-girly (not liking the Goth or Steampunk stuff) looked through the book, turned to page 32 and said " I really think he's cute", remarking about the greenish steampunk chameleon. (Who would've thought!)

So Thursday I started following Christi's well- written instructions on how to make the chameleon. Here's my first try as well as two other pieces that I made once I saw the cute-er-iness of the critter. Christi uses made up words like that in her book... here all this time I thought I was the only one who made up words (don't we all!).

The second project I did was the flower, however, I did add my own touches... not so much steampunkery, but more fantasy gardeny. For the rabbit, which was project number 3 (by this time I couldn't stop myself), there were no instructions, I just used the picture on page 85 as a guide. (I'd have a picture of page 85 but my camera battery is recharging right now).

My chameleon's tail turned out a bit longer than I'd like. Crazy how that clay just grows. I just love the chainery on the flower composition it adds the right amount of funness & movement to the piece. See that little snack pack of carrots on my bunny? They are strapped to her fluffy back with a 'leather' strap. Cool technique you learn from Christi's book. Go visit her site to see fabulous clay pieces. http://www.cforiginals.net/

Look what I found at the resale shop this week! This celluloid girlie is pretty beat up, had her feathers plucked out, but is in good enough shape to fix up and maybe make a mold.

Speaking of feathers, don't forget I'm teaching the Whimsical Birdhouse on Feb 7th (yep, Superbowl Sunday) at Stamping Details. This is an encore performance, maybe we'll change it up a bit in class, who knows, maybe we'll include a little steampunkery, or something new! P.S. We'll be done by the time the big game starts, so if you're a football fan and a crafter, you can have your birdhouse and game, too! Go to http://www.stampingdetails.com/

for more information.

Thanks for stopping by... Crys

Black and White and Zentangled all over

2010-01-27T11:33:00.000-05:00

Here are my Zentangle style designs used for cards. I just love the use of black and white. Just think of all the surfaces that could be covered using this technique... Chris Cozen used some Zentangle designs in her make 'n take last Saturday CHA. She had students incorporate them into a painted canvas collage.

The flower card is a small version of my 9 x 12 acrylic painting (scanned/contrast/hue changes/resized then printed on Krome Kote).

Here are some fabulous cards made by the church girlz. It's so much fun to make cards together, talk and just enjoy the time together, and we know that what we're making will carry a comforting message to a sister in need of encouragement.

Time to go to the dentist!Smile! Thanks for stopping by....

Look what I made at CHA ...

2010-01-26T12:26:00.001-05:00

With the guidance of talented artists...
Suzanne McNeill, Joanne Fink, Magdelena Muldoon and Christi Friesen, Sue Kelsey (no photo yet), Teri Spuerl (no photo yet).

But first take a look at what the Stamping Details booth looked like Thursday morning. All boxes loaded with a ton of products need to be stocked/merchandised, but first Vicki, DiAnn, Joanne and Clare enjoy watching Micheal make final adjustments to the racks. He must have been doing something very interesting or rare since Clare is taking a picture of him doing it. (Hmm) Smiling faces on Friday morning with the booth completed and ready for the crowds. Look who joined... Mike Strong!

Last night I made some encouragement cards using the 2 drawings below that I did Sunday after getting home from the Super show. I used the techniques learned in Suzanne McNeill's Zentangle and Joanne Fink's Zenspirations classes. I scanned these into Photoshop Elements, increased the contrast and printed on Krome Kote paper. (Pictured below are my originals)

The church girls really inspired me last night. So I got busy and did 2 more designs.

I lost track of time as it was getting late. (The clock was striking twelve and I was soon be a pumpkin) But I thought I could go a little longer... my little girl turned into a Jetson-like chick, I started to nod off... and whoa.. my pen suddenly scooted across the paper. Time to go to bed. Today's challenge is to incorporate that line in the drawing and camouflage the Jetson-like look. Off to work we go.

Thanks for stopping by... create at least 15 minutes a day.

Back from a long winter's nap

2010-01-25T13:47:00.000-05:00

Okay, so I wasn't really napping. I spent lotsa time with my kids (Ian, my son with girlfriend, Mandy) Lindsay(daughter)
and the rest of the family in Illinois..Soon it was time to leave (shed a tear) and return to sunny San Diego. Baking cookies and drinking wine is a good winter indoor sport that can be played anywhere, but is best done with family!

Back home and totally refreshed , I spent a day last week with crazy friend Vicki, working on UFOs. Vicki was working on a polymer clay mosaic and I was fixing/finishing a collage on canvas. We laughed alot and caught up on the latest goings-on, and we did get stuff done. Here's Vicki in the midst of clay and paint.

Here's a pic of her final piece.. great colors that represent an old world look. If I recall she used most black Premo with PearlEx applied before baking to get those earthy and stoney hues. Nicely done, friend!

I was fixing a transfer-gone wrong on my canvas. The large pierrot gel transfer didn't have decent black/white contrast, so it got lost into the background. And it was very fiber-y. I pulled out a recent purchase of Liquid Pencil, in light gray, dark gray and blue. I diluted the Liquid Pencil with both polymer and water, depending upon what look I wanted. (So it was really was whatever that was closest to me, the water or my paint palette). And I also mixed it with titatium white acrylic. Here's my first couple of layers

I applied the blue Liquid Pencil as well in some areas. I went back in with some white acrylic for details. You can actually buff this product after it dries and it does take on a sheen, just like graphite pencil work. I darkened the arm with Liquid Pencil as well. Oh, and I used the permanent product, so that further application of paint and glaze won't reconstitute the LP.

BTW,Vicki's house has a ton of cool things to photograph. I took a couple of her dolls.
Some Liquid Pencil drawings of these might be nice. I'll add it to my list of things to do......

Tonight is card ministry at my friend Shari's. A group of us get together monthly to make cards of encouragement that are sent to those who need uplifting, in our church.
Here's one of my cards for tonight. All rubberstamps are B-line images http://www.blinedesigns.com/. Bev from B-line was at CHA Supershow in Anaheim, doing demos at the Stamping Details booth (http://www.stampingdetails.com/, as well as Susan Mostek. I used colored pencils then scanned into Photoshop Elements and increased the contrast, then printed them out on KromeKote paper using my Konica Minolta Color Laser. I'm not fast at card making, so I do one and replicate it. I add embellishments on each one after assembling. Off to create another card.

Thanks for stopping by... Crys

2009-10-11T18:04:00.000-04:00

Sunday... Sunday... hmmm.hmmm.hmmm
I don't remember the words to that song.. Mama's and the Papa's I believe. Had a late start this morning, needed to get that coffee going. Once it's done and poured I usually (with blurry eyes) look at all my refrigerator postings. Ian greets me everyday (just love that).

This past week was a 'finish all unfinished projects' week. That means all colors on the palette. First item was to get an acrylic/collage piece done. Lemon Drop Kid - based upon a drawing I did last year. Inked the final lines and colored her face, now She is ready for cropping and framing - a bit more whimsical than my usual renderings.
Next ..on to finish my second birdhouse filled with bees and flowers. Get out the Van Dyke Red, Quin Gold, Cobalt Teal, Iridescent Pearl and Lumiere paints. This is made from castings I made using Delight air dry clay, Paperclay, Polymer (Premo) and Aves Apoxie Sculpt, along with Golden Semi Gloss Gel and paint mix that suggests the drippy honey. Wire spirals and lots of fibers were added.
I think this looks best as a hanging piece. It's called 'Bee my baby' Not quite what you'd find hanging in a baby's (nursery) room, however it might find it's way into someones sun room.

Chris Cozen will be at Stamping Details beginning Oct 30th-Nov 1st.

My friend Vicki and husband Ron are somewhere in Italy vacationing and hopefully having a wonderful time... can't wait to see all of her pictures.

Thanks for stopping by....

New Favorite Color(s)

2009-10-02T13:34:00.000-04:00

Van Dyke Brown and Van Dyke Red along with Violet Oxide have been on my palette over the last month. These 3 colors create such rich and exciting depth..... I can't stop using them. I used VDred on my birdhouse to create dark corners and contrast. Even used a little bit around the bird's egg. VDred was also used on the pink metal (embossed) roof tiles, using a wipe on, wipe off technique.

I also learned how to put a hole in the bottom of this birdhouse with a spade bit, attached to my BA (big ass) drill. (Thanks to the very helpful Home Depot employee in Poway. ) The hole is big enough to slip the top portion of an l.e.d. tea light into the birdhouse. A base was added to house to give it more prominence and hide the light base. I taught how to make this at Stamping Details and had a blast! There are so many talented crafters and artists who took my class... thank you!

Over the past 30 days a lot of paint and clay has been all over the studio!

Here are some photos from Micheal DeMeng's class at Stamping Details over labor day. (Before and After the DeMeng Makeover)

Well that's it for today. Thanks for stopping by!

Crys

Today's Color - Magenta + White + Torso

2009-08-21T22:43:00.000-04:00

It's Saturday already. The cupcake is almost done.. the frosting is colored with magenta and white. I saturated the frosting/molding paste with water then applied the paint. Then I piped on (using plastic pastry bag & tip) more molding paste where the frosting meets the cake mostly to cover areas where the metal didn't meet the dry molding paste. (Note to self, next time attach metal first then cover top with molding paste). While waiting for that to dry I popped a body in the oven .

To be anatomically correct it's a torso, made from wire, tin foil and polymer clay. This all started out as a simple project to paint up a balsa wood box and call it a day. But after searching for the 'right' pages out of an old book to use, which then morphed into creating a (very short) length of clipped,snipped old pages that now resemble, a paper garland. It is at this point when the project grew. The garland when curled up into a circle looked like a clown's collar. So I decided to make a body to put it on. Using Premo! I threw the torso together. I added a wooden head. The vision is that the torso (polymer guy) is being lifted out of the box lid by a balloon. All that is needed now is paint, wire and a balloon.

Here's the cupcake, which was really easy. The hardest part was cutting up the tin box and trying to remember that there was light molding paste in the pastry bag, not buttercream frosting.

Just a few miles north of San Diego

2009-08-21T11:15:00.000-04:00

There is an acre of land located in Rainbow called Silverado Trading Post (http://www.silveradotradingpost.com/) owned by Jeff and Candy Mack. (Not related to me but they are from suburban Chicagoland). The entire acre is filled with just about anything you can imagine, rusty, dusty, doors, windows, tools, silver, wood, plants and more. Not only did I find what I was looking for (rusty casters) but also a cat, two chickens and who knew... Julie P. (http://www.lostluggage.typepad.com/) daughter and friends. Shut the front door! (Oh I hope I used that phrase correctly.) What a nice surprise to run into her all the way up here. Hint: this is not a place to wear white clothes (Julie) or open toed shoes.

While purchasing the casters, metal tissue holder and rusty tin, Jeff and Candy were working on a big design project. Yes, they will actually design something for you with your finds. Right now they're working on a very special project, hopefully they'll post it on their website when it's finished.

Back in the art room, I'm making a cupcake from tin and light molding paste, first is a 2 dimensional cupcake, then the next project will be to construct a 3 dimensional cake (to be used as a prop in the Nutcracker, it's so hard to say no to one's sister) This should be fun, sugar-free and low cal.

Inked ! My first Doll

2009-08-20T11:35:00.000-04:00

Speaking of the Shop Hop.... I picked up Creative Cloth Doll Making by Patti Culea while browsing the shelves at Stamping Details. Not only am I attracted to bright shiny things, but also very colorful things...and before I could stop myself I was paging through this book. Gorgeous pictures of art dolls! It includes patterns to make your own.... I'm not so handy when it comes to sewing ... so I looked for the next best thing. A premade muslin doll body. I had an exciter pack of Dyna-flow sitting in my drawer of inks, not all the same colors, but close enough. Off to the kitchen.

I drew on the face then applied the dyes to the body. I wasn't all that pleased with the particular shade of blue, so I poured some turquoise Glimmer Mist in my watercolor dish and that did the trick. Then I used some Ranger Distress Ink Re-inkers, too. Then I used the same on the silk and ribbons used for the clothes and hair. After leaving everything to dry 24 hours and heat setting, I stamped images all over the body(Versacraft/Frabrico Ink). (Tatooing! No dolls were hurt during this process) I 'made' the clothes following the instructions as closely as possible. This included my requisite run over to Stamping Details to get sewing instructions from Nancy! I added fibers to the hair as well as dyed fabric softener sheet to give more texture to the hair. The dryer sheet gives the doll a nice scent, too. A quick run over to the Bead Gallery in Mira Mesa for some vintage beads was my final purchase for this doll. Here's a picture of Nanette-

Fun Weekend - So Cal Shop Hop - highlights

2009-08-19T14:51:00.000-04:00

Sunday morning 9:15 - Large cup o' joe from Tuscan Sunrise Coffee & Tea just a few doors from our meeting place Stampingdetails in Poway (http://www.stampingdetails.com/) . We piled into DiAnn's car at 9:30-ish, heading to Point Loma, our first stop on our day of 'shop hopping'

10:30 ish: Paper Tales

Ooos and Aaahhs, packed with eye candy for all kinds of crafters.

Next stop:

Scrapbook Your Life, but first -

Had to take a picture of DiAnn and Bobbie & the motorcycle.

After scooping up several templates (leaves, butterflies) to be used to create some collages, we pried the tall wire Eiffel Tower out of Vicki's hands!

From there we moved on to Ever After Scrapbooks.

More oooohs and aaaahs, yummy papers and ephemera, more picture taking, but not with my camera.... we posed outside the store with tiki lanterns. Now how fun was that!

Piled back into the car -

Around 2pm -ish we arrived at Pink Pineapple

Now isn't that sweet! Bobbie and Vicki checking out all of the embellishments. DiAnn was somewhere in aisles of paper, ribbons and scrapbook pages.

Stopping for a very late lunch........ feeling a bit more energized....we headed towards home.

We have to pace ourselves, as there's another week of the shop hop to go!

Later a brief stop at Cool Scrapbook Stuff ended the shopping part of the day, now just to hop back home.

What a great day to spend with friends...