Seasons Greetings!

Sending you wishes of peace and calm during the holiday season.

I find tranquility by going outside and taking in nature's beauty. This is my "CHRISTMAS ROSE." I discovered it's full bloom on Christmas morning.

Mother Nature brought me a splash of orange in the form of a lily against my weathered fence on Christmas morning.

Mother Nature knows what a California girl I am and how I enjoy my sunshine so she brought me some on Christmas day. And because you can't have everything, I still had to deal with cold air. But I'm not complaining cause I've seen what some of my blogger friends are going through and this is nothing compared to those freezing temps!

Christmas in Los Angeles came and went quickly. How about where you live? Hope you all had a good day spent it doing whatever brings you happiness. Peace to all.

Artventurous Xmas Tags

Stamps were carefully selected for my Xmas cards, er, Xmas tags attempt.

BLACK CHRISTMAS TAG? Sure, why not? I was thinking jewel tones, grunge, different. The blue tag looks lighter in this picture. It was actually a dark blue tone. I later painted a dark hunter green tag. I wanted the darkest green possible so I mixed Ebony and Christmas green together.

With a little extra color and stamped images, another look developed. Now what do you think of that black tag?

Fortunately, I had some left over art doll kits from previously held workshops. With a little glue and patience my tags were complete and ready for the post office.

I know what you must be thinking. "Those are Christmas cards?" Well, no but yes. They're Christmas cards ala Stampmaiden. I'm a lost soul when it comes to card making. Put a blank folded card in front of me and I don't know where to begin. I get a little further with a piece of cardstock because at least I know how to fold it in half. Sadly, that's as far as I get. I need direction when it comes to creating a card of any kind. BUT put a blank tag or blank ATC card in front of me and I get right down to business. Paint is something I feel very comfortable with and with little effort on my part, Christmas tags were created. A little stamping and embellishing was all that was needed to finish them off. Yes a little time consuming and different, but well worth the extra effort.

Artventurous Spirito

This very cool art box belongs to Artventurous Spirito, Roxy. She found this treasure in an alley! Isn't that where most treasures are found? She added the collaged images and dangling bottle - my favorite element of all!

Oh wow! Would you look at the fantastic backgrounds created on these tags by Artventurous Spirito, Roxanne! She's Roxy's niece, you know, the alley treasure hunter. LOL! She plans of assembling her sassy chicas later. Can you see them in little bags next to their tags? Click on the pictures to take in the cool details and wonderful colors.

Artventurous Spiritos making art.

My completed workshop sample board made it to the store on time. Coming up with background colors is not as difficult as designing outfits. It sometimes takes up to 3 trial runs before it finally feels right. I was very happy and relieved with the results.

In between work overload, aging parents, holiday parties and hectic schedules, I was caught making art! Don't ask me how it happened; let's just say it was out of necessity. Samples were needed in the shop and there I was running late as usual and pulling all nighters. How many times have I told myself to stay ahead of the game when it comes to my workshop samples? Too many. I just don't listen to myself - shame on me. After the first sample, I got caught up in this crazy mood which I'm calling Artventurous Spirito. There was no stopping me and I was lost in the world of colorful backgrounds splashed with stamped images and sassy looking chics.

Today I led a workshop at Stampin' From the Heart in Los Angeles where a few more souls caught the Artventurous Spirito bug. It was great to be surrounded by a group of like-minded women. All went well and they left with a new stash of tags to keep or give away and, most importantly, a happy heart. Not much more a workshop leader could ask for.