my first fried twinkie ever.

If you've never been to the War Eagle craft fair in Arkansas, you should really try to go just once.


 And if you do go....here are a few things to keep in mind.

 #1 It really doesn't matter if you go at 9:00 a.m. or 1:00 p.m., you will be stuck in traffic for at least an hour....so be ready to entertain yourself.

#2 The traffic really isn't that bad...because you are surrounded by Arkansas in the fall. And it is gorgeous.

#3 Watch out for Turkey legs in the parking field. We ran over this one. It made me hungry for a turkey leg. And then I saw the grease stain on the tire. And I still wanted one.

#4 Put a bird on it.

#5 War Eagle has amazing food. I decided to try something new. A fried twinkie. My first ever. And probably my last. It tasted like a funnel cake.

#6 Funnel cakes and kettle corn are delicious.

#7 Cotton candy is delicious too. Especially to kids.

#8 There are some pretty cool crafts at War Eagle. Many of the things I saw were from Pinterest. Some were new to me...and I thought, hey, I wonder if I can find a DIY for that on Pinterest....or hey, I could probably figure that out...and do it with my students....I wonder where I can get 50 metal rods?

#9 Wear comfortable shoes.

#10 Or just have someone push you in a stroller.

#11 Real craftsmen are so cool.

#12 Some people are hard core about craft fairs. Rain, sleet, or two broke feet....they are there. (Back to # 9, wear comfortable shoes.)

#13 Arkansas really is beautiful this time of year. My favorite part of the whole event was sitting by the river, enjoying the shade, watching the people.

Some of my favorite memories are days like this. When the sun is shining, and I'm trying something new. I'm so happy to have my new camera. It was a fun day taking pictures and telling the story of War Eagle. 

Creative Friends

Wow. So I totally organized the photos into this post ages ago...but I am just now getting around to writing it up. 

Without naming names, I just want to say in writing that I have been blessed with some amazingly talented friends this year. They are the kind of friends that love art. They are the kind of friends that are excited about pinatas, magnificent corpse drawing, and blind contours. They are the kind of friends that will crochet stuffed foxes, prepare film all old school in the dark room and go local to clay studio openings.

To the outsider, none of these photos go together. But for me, they tell a story. And I am so thankful for a great group of people who appreciate the handmade, hand drawn, creativity outlet, silly sketches and all the other fun things that I have been craving for years.

Like I said, these photos might not make any sense to you....but they mean the world to me.

Nelliepalooza the 4th

Wow! What a lovely weekend!!

It was the perfect rainy, stormy weather to stay in and work on crafts.

Here are a few of my favorite pictures from Nelliepalooza.

I'm planning another crafting retreat March 30th-April 1st, if you are interested, email me for details!

Shrinky-Dink Rings at Nelliepalooza

Live blogging at Nelliepalooza!!

This weekend was my 4th Nelliepalooza crafting weekend with friends. The first night we had 10 girls stay the night, with 14 staying the second night and about 3-4 that were in and out all weekend. Many people worked on scrapbooking and photo scanning/digital photo books.

Some worked on cards (like me, 100 days till Christmas and my cards are done!). And others worked on a whole assortment of crafting projects. My friend Karalee showed everyone how to make shrinky-dink rings. Super easy and fun.

How to make Shrinky Dink Rings:

1. Cut the shrinky dink to 5 1/2 X either 1" or 1 1/2" or 2" depending on how wide you want your ring.

Then draw a design in permanent ink. (think sharpies!)  Many of us had our stamps so we made some great rings with Stayz-On ink and stamped images.

2. Heat up the oven, following the directions on the package.

3. Remove shrinky dink ring from parchment-lined cookie sheet, fresh from the oven, using tweezers
Lay on a pot holder and quickly and carefully roll around the barrel of a plastic 'thing' about the same size as your finger. I used a glue pen, others used markers, or glue sticks.

4. Enjoy your custom rings!!