Ha ha, the number and cap lock was on when I typed the title in but I like it so I will leave it alone!
Ahhhh...blogging has seemed like such a chore lately so I haven't done much of it. I can't believe half of the year is almost over so I think I really need to get back into the swing of things.
This year so far has been like for most, mixed with immense blessings and with great turmoil and sadness.
Art-wise, I was asked to do some chipboard shapes for a company in Arizona called Leaky Shed Studios. I am in the process of finishing up this project. These should be in stores by summer. I had a hard time wrapping my head around bare chipboard until I saw their product and it's so beautiful and of the best quality. It will be such fun to experiment with these! I will also be teaching at a retreat in Flagstaff, Arizona this summer with an amazing group of artists.
Oh...and speaking of teaching...it's just been confirmed that I will be going on a 3 week teaching tour in
Oct - Nov to Australia with Prima. So excited!
All this activity has forced me to clean out my studio and office areas in my home. I have to be extremely organized to work my best. I can't stand chaos and I absolutely have to have pretty work spaces so this is taking some careful thought and a lot of time!
Between all this and teaching 2 weekends a month (that's a lot of class samples to make!) I haven't made a whole lot of art. But I can't complain. As you can see, it has been truly a blessed year for me so far.
But sadness has set in. I am packing today, to head to up north for a few days to start the cleaning of my mom's house. We have had to make that ever so tough decision to move her into an assisted care facility. She has had horrible health issues for the last 12 years and had a heart attack last week. We have put this off for as long as we could. The house is where I grew up...50 years old and 50 years of stuff in it. So I shall begin the daunting task of cleaning out and getting it in shape to rent out. I'm sure this will involve many trips this summer until we finish.
Well, that's it in a nutshell. The first 6 months of goodness and sadness. But then, that's what life is, isn't it?