March FabUlousness recap: N’awlins - Laissez le Bon temp rouler!

Yup, I was on a plane at o'dark thirty on a Sunday morning.  Let me just say
there was no hair & makeup go'in on til about an hour before landing in the Big
Easy!  My flights were on time, my bags made it and my rental car was a tad
bigger than last year's Matrix.  Had my Yahoo maps ready and was not about
to end up driving back & forth on the Causeway like last year.  But, of course,
there had to be a snag, as in a parade!  God bless these people, they will use
any excuse to have a parade and make me take a detour -   REALLY!!!  I was
literally a few blocks away from my destination but couldn't see across the
street through the sea of people.  After a few distress calls and U turns, I
made it.  The birthday girl was wait'in at the front door and we must have
hugged for at least 5 mins.  She was a friend of my mom's way before I was born and they kept in touch their entire lives.  We've become very close since my mom passed away 9 years ago and I've decided I'm going to visit her every year for her birthday.  This year, I missed it by one day because of the Moulin Rouge event, but she didn't care as long as I got there.  She is just the cutest thing ever and I love her to pieces.

This part of my trip was about spending time together, shopping and eating.  And
boy, did we ever!

I went from cold & rainy California to hot, sticky and 100% humidity in NOLA.  I
love the food but no so much about feeling like a wet rag!  LOL  For the
birthday dinner, we went to a local teppan grill restaurant for her first
experience which she loved.  Our adventures included eating tons of seafood and of course, I had to have my beloved muffalatta - yum!

I had seen a feature on the Food Network about an ice cream shoppe called Creole Creamery and we made a bee line there.  They had cream cheese ice cream with chunks of red velvet cake in it - OMG!  There were several trips to TJ Maxx, which is too far for Miss Leah to drive and she is now proudly a Maxinista!  We drove down to Bilouxi, Mississippi to Beau Rivage casino where there was some BIG winnings go'in on!  Check out Miss Leah with her whopping $11.05 ticket from the Phat Cat penny machine!  That's 10 times more than she won last year; just wait til next year - WOO HOO!

 
While I was on the plane, I read a feature about the New Orleans Roadfood
Festival.  It just happened to be held on my last day there down in the French
Quarter.  It was like city food festivals where they have a "taste of" with
plates ranging from $2 to $8.  There were 3 blocks on Royal Street lined with
restaurant booths from small locals to biggies like Antoine's and Court of Two Sisters.

 

There was also the world's longest oyster poboy sandwich made with about a thousand oysters from Acme Oyster House.  It was made by 24 of New Orleans' best chefs (and a few helpers) and stretched along 3 blocks on Bourbon Street.   Each chef was assigned a car-length section of French bread and there was everything from classic to crazy.  As soon as they finished making it , it was cut into pieces and offered free to the crowds and it went really fast!  

We spent the afternoon in the Quarter and made one last trip to TJ Maxx before I
headed to the airport for my next adventure in Texas - Round Top!

March FabUlousness recap: Moulin Rouge – c'était Magnifique!

WOW, I’ve got so much to share that I'm gonna break it down into a couple of posts!

First up is Moulin Rouge, hosted by Kim Caldwell.  This was an over-the-top,
elegant affaire where 70 women were transported to the days of  decadent French charm.  The entire room was decorated in deep burgundy, rich gold, fleur de lis, Eiffel Towers and tons of feathers.

                                                                 
                                                                    Our table, Day 1
                               Moi, Charlene, Debby, Kim, Lulu, Holly and Christine

                                          Day 2 with one of the Moulin mannequins  
The event started with a vendor night overflowing with yummy supplies and hand
made items.  Here’s just a sampling from Dyanna Cooley of Broke Jewels and Deb Hodge of Breathing Beside Us.

  

Our first day of classes were a stunning necklace, Tres Jolie, by Shea Fragoso, and a cute 3-D paper project, Show Time at the Moulin Rouge, by Jenny Heid & Aaron Nieradka.

There was a short dinner break and then the much anticipated swaps!  There were
tags, banners, canvases, paper dolls, garters, bracelets, necklaces, journals,
mini books, jewelry boxes and pillows.  And they were all absolutely amazing! 

I participated in Le Bijoux Box swap hostd by Denise Hahn.  How cute is her sign made with chalkboard paint on a silver platter and blinged out -- Love it!

I received a gorgeous box filled with frozen charlottes and vintage findings from Lonnie Jenck.  You can see the box I made for my partner, Valita, here.

 

I hosted the FabUlous Vintage Pocket Pillow Swap and my girls pulled out all the stops!  Here are all the pillows wrapped up pretty. . .

And here are all 14 of them on display . . . (open the photo to see all the FabUlous details).

One of the most notable swaps in our group was between Maureen Kosewic and Karen France (neither of them have blogs!).  Just to show you how talented these girls are, Maureen went the extra step and hand wrote the most detailed and fascinating story of how all of the items on the pillow were collected by it's French owner in the 1800's.  I asked her to read the story as she presented it to Karen and everyone in the room was totally captivated.  Great job, Maureen!

 
I swapped with my partner, Andrea Villareal last.  This is the beautiful pillow she presented to me and I love it!  Thanks so much!  You can see the pillow I made for her here.

As the hostess of my swap, I made a pillow for Kim and everyone contributed something to add to it.  Here’s the finished pillow and coordinating pillow case . . .

And while the swaps were going on, Christine Rose Elle conducted a stunning fastenator hat make ‘n take.

 
Day two classes were a dry erase marker board made with a vintage piano roll,
She Does All She Can-Can, by Kerry Lynn Yeary and an adorable paper clay doll with her very own stage, One Last Number, by Colleen Moody.

 

That concluded my amazing Moulin Rouge experience.  The last day of the
event was an optional all day shopping trip on a luxury bus, but I was on a plane
at o'dark thirty to New Orleans!

I'm having an Affaire!

Yes, you read that right; Stampington and Company's Jewelry Affaire Spring 2011 issue!  This is my first time being published and I'm so excited.  I, well we, owe it all to the talented and inspiring Natalie Hansen.  I attended Silver Bella in 2009 where I met the lovely ladies who participated in this amazing necklace round robin that Natalie hosted.  After seeing how all the necklaces were coming together, she took it one step farther and submitted our work to the magazine and there we are on page 128-129!

It was like Christmas every time I received the next necklace to work on and the best present was receiving my own necklace when it was completed and sent to me by Natalie.   I made the focal piece second from the left with the blue globe marble & metal piece that reads "hold dear" and the necklace I received is on the far left with the framed frozen charlotte.  I absolutely loved participating in this round robin and I hope it inspires you to put one together with some of your friends as well.

March FabUlousness!

I’ve got quite a few things happening this month, starting off with Kim Caldwell’s Artistic Affaire Moulin Rouge event which starts this Thursday night!  There will be French Martinis, FabUlous classes and amazing swaps, oh la la!  I've been busy gathering up supplies and finalizing the two swaps I’ve joined.  So, here's your warning . . . if you're in either the Bijoux Box Swap or my FabUlous Vintage Pocket Pillow Swap and don't want to see, STOP reading now!

First up, I'm hosting the FabUlous Vintage Pocket Pillow Swap.  This is a
one-on-one swap and I decided it would be fun to tell everyone who their partner
is so they have an opportunity to meet someone prior to the event.  The premises
for this swap is to take a vintage suitcase pocket, sew it to a decorated pillow form and add some French-themed FabUlousness.

 
My partner likes natural fabrics in neutral colors with shades of blue.  Voila, my creation . . .  I think she’s really gonna like it!

Next is the Bijoux Box Swap.  This is also a one-on-one swap but our partners are kept a secret.  We only know who we are creating for but not who is creating for us.  We are to take a vintage jewelry box, decorate it and fill it with our partner’s favorite colors and crafting supplies.  Here’s the decorated box, but I’m going to keep the contents a surprise.

 
Right after, and I mean immediately after as in the next day at o’dark thirty, I’m off to New Orleans to celebrate a very important birthday.  My second mom will be wait’in for me to hit the land of Mardi Gras so we can do it up right in the Big Easy.  And let me just say there will be some FabUlous eats go’in on while I’m there!

From New Orleans, it’s off to ROUND TOP where I’ll be gett’in crazy in Texas with a whole bunch of girlfriends and I’ve got just the right accessories in this here suitcase; what do ya think?

I’ll be at Theresa’s Blog party on the 27th and I sure hope to see ya’ll there!

I’ll be shopp’in at Roung Top til I drop for 4 FabUlous days and they tell me I’ll be plum tuckered out by the time we head home.  I’m not sure they know who they’re talk’in to here, so we’ll just see who drops first!  YEE HAW!

So, ya’ll check back in a couple of weeks and I’ll show ya my loot!  In the meantime, hope you have  some FabUlousness of your own this March.

8”ish” Things about Moi

Miss Cindy Crain of Lilly's Lace, has selected me as one of her Stylish Blogger Award recipients!  How FabUlous!

We are to share 8 things about ourselves that you, in Blogland, may not know and then pass this on to others.  I agree with Charlene that there are just too many FabUlous bloggers to choose from, so I'll just share my 8 and extend the award to anyone would like to share about themselves as well.  Let's see . . .

1.  I LOVE the color orange.  Of course, it has to be just the right shade, like the rose in my banner.  When I saw it at a local vintage shop, it was mine in a heart beat.  And of course, all of the rust tones go so FabUlously with my hair!

2.  Fine, I am not a natural redhead!  Yes, I pay BIG bucks for my FabUlous color, but I do love it.  I have my mom's green eyes and my natural color is a medium brown with a hint of red when in the sun.  Of course, that wasn't enough, so I went full out.   I've had several variations from auburn to strawberry highlights to full on strawberry blonde which was short lived because of the roots so I could only find my passport photo.

2a. I have BIG hair; it's who I am!  A few of you have witnessed the process (Ok, ordeal) and can confirm that it does take a village to achieve this FabUlous big hair.  My hair is naturally stick straight and my mom didn't believe in straight hair so, she gave me my first perm when I was 18 mos old!  Yup, and I fell asleep in the high chair.  From then on, I had some kind of curled big hair.  I went from sleeping in bottle brush rollers, to plastic ones, to those awful pink sponge things to electric curlers and curling irons; I've used 'em all.  Doesn't matter the current style, my hair always has some curl, no matter what! 

2b.  I am nothing without my hairspray!  I was channel surfing quite a few years ago and stopped on QVC for a minute.  There was a hairstylist holding up a very long piece of his client's hair and he teased it and sprayed it and let go.  IT STOOD STRAIGHT UP!  OMG!  Who is this person, what product is he using????  Nick rocked my world!  This stuff is the bomb and I CANNOT be without it!  I have it on auto delivery; I get 2 cans every 45 days, thank you very much!  (I added a link to the picture just in case you might need some too.)

3.  I am addicted to SHOES.  I absolutely LOVE them!.  At last count (which was several years ago) I had over 400 pairs!  My most prized pair is from Christian Louboutin.  DH took me to Paris for our 20th anniversary and my primary goal was to get a pair of these amazing designer shoes.  We went to the original store and I have pictures in front of the store, inside the store, trying on EVERY pair in the store and outside the store with my FabUlous purchase.

  

4.  My rule for gift shopping:  One for them and 2 for me!

5.  If it's out there, I'll find it.  I have this knack for finding things.  I have friends who call me when they're in search of something and I almost always find it, whether it's in the stores or online. . . It's what I do.

6.  One of my mottos is "I gotta have my stuff."  Doesn't matter what it is, I gotta have my stuff!  I'm gonna be the bag lady with the shopping cart except that mine will be a train (long enough to hold all my stuff) and I'll be pushing it wearing my FabUlous shoes and BIG red hair.

7.  BLING!  I LOVE it, I'm OBSESSED with it, I gotta HAVE it!  Go BIG or go home, Baby!

8.  I am 36.  Yes that's right, 36 ALWAYS!  That's my story and I'm sticking to it!

So there you have it.  8 "ish" things about me.  The hair is a BIG deal, so it required a few sub-categories.  LOL  As you can see, I like to have a good time and don't take myself too seriously.  Laughter is truly contagious and I hope I've made you laugh at least once while reading this post.  Please blog it forward and share a little something (or 8 “ish” things) about yourself so we can get better acquainted.

A FabUlous gift from my Sister!

Little did I know that when my gal pal, Charlene, took an altered bottle class and showed me the photos, that this would be my Christmas gift!  How lucky am I!  I even unknowingly said “oh, you had us in mind when you were making it.”  I could not believe it when I opened the package, but I instantly recognized this amazing project.  Thank you so much my sister, love ya’ll lots!

Happy New Year!

This year I’ve been blessed with the opportunity to travel, attend some absolutely FabUlous art events and meet some of the most amazingly talented and kind-hearted women imaginable.  Thank you so much for all your kindness and willingness to share.  Blogland is truly a magical place.

May 2011 bring you the joys of family and friends, creative endeavors and laughter.

Hope You’re Having a FabUlous Holiday!

Swap catch up

Yikes, I’ve done quite a few swaps in the last couple of months and am WAY behind in posting about them so here goes . . .

September . . . I participated in Sara’s Charmed Heart Swap.  I had posted here about the heart I made for my secret partner and then I found out she was my secret partner!  I can’t tell you how excited I was to find out that we had been paired.  Robin’s heart is one of my most cherished swap pieces.

October . . . Miss Jodie suggested that I come up with a fall-themed swap so I created a fat book called Fall’in for Vintage Gloves.  We had 8 participants and each were required to use a vintage glove on their page.  I love how the books came together and how each girl’s page was so unique.  Yes, that’s me at age 7.  I asked each participant to send me a childhood photo so I could personalize each book.

Inside cover & my page  --  Back of mine /Charlene Gray

  Charlene Gray /Sandy Moritti  --  Back – Sandy Moritti/Pam Kern

Pam Kern / Jodie LeJeune  --  Jodie LeJeune / Sarah Huckman

  Sarah Huckman/ Joy Campbell  --  Joy Campbell / Karen DeCapite

  Karen DeCapite / Inside back cover

November . . . I had come up with an idea for a Silver Bella swap but was not able to attend this year.  I shared my idea with another Bella and she co-hosted it and represented me at this year’s event where the Vintage Bling Charm Swap was born.  The bracelets were absolutely FabUlous and have now become popular at other upcoming events.

I’m on break for the holidays, but I’m hosting a FabUlous Vintage Pocket Pillow swap for Moulin Rouge next March and it’s gonna be here before you know it.