ebay vintage goodies

For  the past week I have been furiously  bidding on  vintage  ebay items for up coming classes that i will be teaching. My winnings are starting to trickle in through the post. Boy what  a small bowl full for so much bidding. Oh and a quote for the day.................

"The  greater danger for  most of us is not that our aim is too high and we miss it, but that it is too low and we reach it" --Michelangelo

Steam Punk Millie

I am thinking about submitting this new creation as a class idea for art fest 2010. I hope Tessha Moore  Has I sense of humor. 

Somerset Studio

I got my Somerset Studio  today  and my sister Lorrie's  and my art work collaboration is in it and   Becky Bunns   art work  is in there too!!! Thanks to Jenny Doh, again!! Oh and and funny husband story.  When you google "Julie Haymaker" , the page will come up that says my blog has moved and that you need to " click here" to visit the site. I asked my husband if he ever visited my blog and he told me he had tried but when the page said "click  here" there wasn't a button to click ( he would be very bad at linking from blog to blog)   So now I have a red "enter" button just for him on my welcome page . He really likes to push my buttons!!! 

Clothes Pin Chic

More playing with ideas with my sister. Bliss studio had these cute glitter covered clothes pins for sale . SOOO.... lorrie and I went home and guess what?? We did our own version. Here they are and she has  them listed on her etsy site user name= lilylovkin.   I love  them  hanging on a line under my Lori Messerol Painting from Earth Angels. My sister and I both have several of her pieces. Hmm guess we have the same taste too. But she is the one that is always turning me on to new discoveries. Like going to art fest years ago. I had never heard of the fun of art retreats... well the rest is history. Oh I ramble....

A Clean house! What a good felling.

Yesterday I cleaned  the house ( I am still at our little condo in Scottsdale). It always feels so good when everything is all clean. We have had the place for almost 1 1/2 years and it is slowly falling in to place, decor wise. My husband loves simple and clean, I do too , I think and then stuff  just starts to sneek in. Oh well. 

The doll party!!

Then when I came home and all was  put away   and  I had cleaned up the house from frenzied kit making   . I went to bed  tired but happy with a plate of these yummies for dinner. 

The  "Enchanting "doll makers

What not to do when black spray painting doll body parts on my ceramic tile patio floor... OPPS( it came up with a good washing of paint thinner.
What  a blast . I did a private workshop yesterday at Terri Rumin's amazing warm and inviting home with a group of  equally warm and inviting friends. It was so fun. We took our  time as we created our " Enchantment" music box dolls. And feasted through out the day on the BEST yummy potluck.

Everyones dolls turned out wonderful as this was a very talented group of women! 

While all this is going on Cal and Q-tip wait patiently for me to come back home to Santa Fe . I am in Az at the time . Which is kind-of nice because I get a lot of creative stuff done....BUT Miss Cal terribly and oh maybe I miss that" big fat putty tat" too.....

O.K. then when I am finished with getting ready for class . I will go on to hopefully finish . "Till the Cows Come Home" a work in progress . For several days , cows have been drying on cup warmers all over the house. Last night they got their first coats of paint.

Today I am getting already to teach "enchanted" at Terri's. She has arranged a girls doll party for her doll making group . They get together once a month and make a doll. Doesn't that sound fun! Hopefully Photo 1 will turn into photo 2 at the end of class

O.K. Peeps!!! A  Sr. moment ohhhhh noooooo- It did not dawn on me to post the amazing Jane Jollee Pollacks Art retreat at her UNBELIEVABLE home on Coronado Island off of San Diego. She is  a SWEETHEART and is planning an amazing retreat over june 6th and 7th. I think there may still be some space available. Oh and you can take classes from me too and other wonderful fun stuff, beach combing( a fav. of mine!!) good eats, etc. and wonderful company !!! Email her at    arttakesavillage@aol.com  or visit the link at the left for details. It will be the best of times!!! I am one lucky girl to have met Jane and I get to spend the weekend getting to know her better!!! You NEED to visit her site too she does some amazing things   "Art takes a village"  you can link it at the left on my link list. And if you have extra art supplies you do not need she sure could use them for her cause.   

more stuff

I'm always yelling at my mom for buying more "Stuff"  and  dragging it home. I guess I do the same thing. Except mine is always "good" stuff!!! Right??? Oh  I think these things will turn into projects I will teach. I am full of ideas for them.....

bundles of fun

More fun stuff. After making all the felt pieces. Lorrie and I made them into fun mixed media embellishment bundles and then she did some felted needle work mixed media pieces. She has them all on her etsy site .It was so fun. She leaves in the A.M. I hate it when she goes it is always my best time when we are together.

The weekend

Lorrie and I are having a creative blast!! We painted frames and hand dyed felt with vegetable dyes form my friend Jones's recipes . She is going to then create little mixed media pieces with these creations when she gets home. We also got her going with a blog .She did this kicking and screaming ,but I told her she had to stop being a blurker, as she loves to link around and blurk So  now she will have to be a participant . Welcome Lorrie, to the world of blogging . Oh she is at http://lilylovekin.blogspot.com/ on blogger

saving our small business

http://alwaysupward.com/blog/save-the-economy-three-stores-at-a-time/

I was visiting Lisa Kaus's blog the other day  and read about this project she had posted a link to on her site. For all of us out there that appreciate our little "Mom and Pop"  Stores of all kinds this is a site about the importance of  supporting them. Which one of those shops would you miss the most if it was not there???? Most of us in the creative world have many of these. Mine being Debbie Bick's  Frenzy Stamper in old town Scottsdale . It is so important at this time when our economy is having such a tough time to support these store s more then ever with our business. Please remember this when making your next purchase. Spend the extra time to stop by your favorite store. Say hi to a real store owner who may well  become  a very good friend   and who also really cares about you and appreciates you . Please  buy your purchases from them  it is such a  bargain for all you  will get for your money !!!

My SISTER is coming to town. I pick her up in about in 45 min. It is always my best time when I get to spend time with her. This is us "playing" 2 visits ago!!!

New Quaote of the day,  As posted on my friend Maya  Chappell's yahoo page....

There is nothing wrong with you.....Mati Rose Mcdonough  www.matirose.blogspot.com

I love this quote I shortened it a bit so it would fit on the art work 

"When you come to the edge of the light and must take a first step into the darkness . There will be  something to stand on or you will learn to fly"... I believe this was from the book Jonathan Livingston Seagull. There's those 70's again. 

29 years ago

Last week  on the 6th my younger brother Jimmy would have been 50 years old !!! Here he is at 16 Wow so "70's" . Today he is in my thoughts as he is  a little more then most, every year at this time. He was killed 29 years ago today  in a car accident and I still miss him..... I just wanted to take the time today to remember. Ya even in the 70's I guess he was kind of cute. I never thought so then, but in looking back I can see it...just a tiny  bit  and oh that horrible hair style, the look  all the boys  his age are wearing again... YUK!!!!

Happy Easter

I am spending the day with my cousin making paper clay pups!!! Also everyone light a candle for us Pleassssse as we have a second showing on our house and I HOPPPPPE we get and offer.

this month on Pfatt Market

Going for a ride...

It has  seemed a bit of late that  a lot of the "doors" I have been knocking on have not opened. And so I have been feeling a bit frustrated and stressed.( being the control freak that I am) It is so easy to want to find excuses for why life does not move in a direction you may think it should and put off taking care of your self when life dishes out a bit of excess stress. Well all of this has brought on some  soul searching  about my need to control and BOY I have not been able to control   much of anything as  of  late. So I decided to take control of the very simple things that I can and try my best to let the big things fall where they may. I posted this credo on my black board to remind me that life really comes down to the simple things.  I am hoping  this and a daily reciting ( or hourly) of  the serenity  prayer will help me relax a bit and just float...

My creation from yesterday. He was just the right size for my steam punk  vintage watch gears and parts I got on etsy...His name is Wuake Wuake. And he is on my Esty along with other silly things . 

 April 8th .Today is the 5th  anniversary of Mark's passing. I do not want this  entry to be about sad and depressed but more positive . I am sure if I was younger the passing of five years  would seem much farther in the past , but as I age time seems to just fly .  5 years seems like a blink of an eye  and only days  ago .  But as I reflect on the past  five years of my life, so very much has happened in what feels like such a short time and with that I  know it was not just "days ago" that Mark was here. It is my hope that   all  that has changed  in my life has been  due to the fact  that I  learned  with my loss ,  that  time is the most precious of gifts and it is not to be squandered . So in honor of Mark I am listing 5 major  things that have happened in my life in the past 5 years . I hope they are things that would have made him proud and happy  .

1= I remarried . It was Mark's wish that if I did so I should marry a good man . That I have done with my darling Cal.  

2=With Cal's help ,we finished the house Mark and I had started remodeling ( No small undertaking!!!!) and another wish of his.

3 = I traveled to Bora Bora , Mexico , Europe , and the Caribbean (twice) as well as many little get aways across the country most of them art retreats.

4= I mastered the computer!Which is such an aid in the completely  new direction my art has taken. No longer do I paint what art directors tell me to ... but I  create  what I want and I am loving it!!!

5 =We bought a 2nd home in Arizona .I will sneak this one in too .I got a dog, My sweet Peanut. And Mark's beloved  Boo Boo kitty is still with us. She is 14 1/2!!!

So Mark you said you knew I would find my way and I have . So here's  to you my" Handsome wonder boy". You are still in my heart and  on  my mind. Always and forever....

All I could say was UNBELIEVABLE! We went to the Dale Chihuly show at the Scottsdale Botanical Garden. It was just the most beautiful show! How does he do it!!

What a fun day At the Frenzy stamper !!! I took a wonderful 6 hour class from the very talented  Leighanna Light. My  art nest friend Lori took it too which just doubled the  fun!! I have been wanting to do a painting  for the condo in Scottsdale and I got it done. I also was thrilled to find out that Leighanna Lives in  Albuquerque.... Wow Only 55 miles away from home!!!