Girl Crush Seattle & a 'small' note...

on friday i headed across the bridge to the big city to set up Girl Crush Seattle with the peachy Danielle and the 'always peachy' Assemble Shop. i managed to snap a few 'snappy snaps' of which you can peruse below, scattered amongst the ramble...

after which i came home and paced and pottled and fretted about my talk.

then Our #3 wisely pointed out how hard can it be? i was having to talk about myself, nothing to learn and remember new, just everything inside of my head and my experiences. well that little bit of wisdom was a tremendous help and i went to bed super duper early at 9:53am to be exact. slept like a log but a log who has very vivid dreams as is the norm for moi. none of the dreams woke me so that meant a good nights sleep like a log as far as i was concerned.

i awoke fresh as a 43 and half year old daisy and decided my braids needed little bits of rag ribbon in them for good luck. i pinned on my 'little lucky bunny' badge gifted to me by Danielle the day before and once again (at precisely 8:17am) headed back across the bridge to begin our big artist tea party day.

oh and what a day it was.

instantly i was at ease meeting the other crushers. we sat around a large table and the day past in the blink of an eye. i must tell you i have never had such an opportunity to share my story and my insecurities before and one may think that is quite daunting to do, but not so, not when surrounded by others who all had something to share and in turn we all understood and then we pondered and we searched for solutions and sometimes, perhaps its true, solutions cannot be found at that particular moment but somehow i do not think that matters, for just knowing another understands, has the same fears or experiences is always a comfort...

the food was most delicious and in the afternoon we had cupcakes 'dottie angel' style kindly donated by Trophy Cupcakes of Seattle, i bought my little deer home from my cupcake to keep forever and ever to remind me of this wonderful amazing day.

later, around 4ish we started our art work. it is through Danielle inviting me to be part of her art tea parties that i have started my collage work again. and so i was most happy to spend a few hours with others, sticking and pasting with tongue slightly stuck out in concentration to produce a little bit of something which makes me happy. all of our pieces will be displayed at Assemble Shop which is tres lovely of Andie and Emily indeed. hip hip hooray for Andie and Emily!

i do not have pictures of the day, alas and alack i was in the thick of being part of it, but i do know fellow crushers have some, when and as i see them put online i will be sure to highlight them. chances are it will not be here but over on my facebook page so best to look there.

"where?" "there... there on the stairs, a little mouse with clogs on, well i declare, going clippity clop on the stairs"

(could not be helped)

and my talk? well yes of course the very thing that had me fretting, talking in public. i am delighted to report it went well. i did not require my note cards, i did manage to talk about myself and i think include most things and most importantly, no one fell asleep! so a success i would say.

my little bit of collage art created at Girl Crush Seattle

and on that spiffy note, i must tell you my 'small note', but 'oh so important' note. my lovely book writing buddy Rachelle, as i tippity tap this post, is in the air winging her way across the pond to visit for a whole week.

(breaking news just in, she is not in the air but stuck in a plane on the runway that won't go and told it could be a while, hours even before they take off. oh pants of the very big kind indeed)

we are beyond giddy, (not about the stuck plane and Rachelle in it obviously) we are besides ourselves. for next week is 'show time' for the book photographs. our photographer , the 'ever so lovely' Cath will be arriving on weds and we will start the task of snapping one half of the shots for the our Granny Chic book! it is quite the marvel i do believe, for Rachelle and myself have written this book through a common interest that has grown into an amazing friendship, resulting in a book to be published this autumn and what i think most amazing and which i do believe shows how extra ordinary it all is. until this evening, when i stand in arrivals at the airport waiting for her plane to arrive (eventually), until that moment, we have never actually met before and yet we feel like we have known each other all our lives... extra ordinary indeed.

Tif

footy note:

many thanks to all the lovely crushers who came on saturday, you are the bees knees indeed!

if you wish to find out if an artists day and tea party is happening in a city near you over the coming months than take a looky over here

a ‘crafty day’ workshop at Hope & Elvis, old blighty...

Tif and Rachelle (panini & bernina) are delighted beyond all delights to offer 2 ‘crafty day’ workshops this summer in old blighty. If you have a crafty soul and a granny chic heart, then perhaps you may wish to spend quality time with 2 crafters whose love for handcrafted and secondhand goodness knows no bounds.

Tif and Rachelle (dottie angel & ted and agnes) will spend the workshop wisely wearing their rose coloured specs and showing you how to make a lovely piece of ‘handmade whatnot’ you may then proudly hold in your hands and return to your clan with tear of joy in your eye, exclaiming

“me and my crafty soul made this today!”.

Teaming up with the ‘ever~so~peachy’ Louise of Hope and Elvis at a wonderful setting in Nottinghamshire, the day will comprise of a morning and afternoon class, a ‘most delightful’ lunch and heaps of vintage textiles, trinkets and treasure to rustle around in.

Both days are offered over one weekend, so if you are a Saturday folk or a Sunday folk, hopefully one of those days will suit you nicely. This lovely event is a ‘one off happening’ for this year! Tif and Rachelle are more often than not, separated by a large pond, so to have their crafty granny souls together in one place is a rarity indeed.

Spots for crafty souls on these workshops are limited, so in the pursuit of fairness, places will be reserved on a first come basis only.

Very important thing to note:

Booking will OPEN at 7.30am Monday 19th March UK time

And not before!

All nitty gritty about the workshop, including booking is handled by Louise,

So to find out more, to see how, what, where you book your ‘crafty day’ place, before you set your alarm for an early Monday start, please look over at this very nice page

Yes, it is quite true to say, Tif and Rachelle, along with their little vintage suitcases will be most thrilled to be travelling to meet so many lovely crafty souls this summer in Nottinghamshire.

Tif 

footynote: it would appear those pesky passing gnomes have been up to no good with their pesky ways and my font. despite this, i have offered them shelter for the night and a thimble full of orange stew :)

GIRL CRUSH ~ seattle... having no doubts about it

for most of my life Mr Doubter has lived in the shadows. sometimes he casts his shadow in my direction and other times he leaves me be. the days he leaves me and my creativity alone, those are the days my creative soul gets to shine, the sky is the limit, it is just me, my imagination and my hands to make what we will. 

and the days he looks my way with his shadowy presence, well those are the days i tell myself, i am not alone, i tell myself all creative artistic souls have their own Mr Doubter and the shadow he brings. i have never asked if this is the case, for it is my comfort inside of my head, that on those doubting days, i am not alone and i do not wish to learn otherwise.

and so that is why today i am really rather happy to be introducing my friend Danielle to you. Danielle is the brilliantly creative brains behind The Jealous Curator, an extra ordinary presence in cyber land. just her tagline of  'damn, i wish i thought of that' really says it all. she curates and highlights creative souls from all over the world and she does it brilliantly as The Jealous Curator. however very few folks knew until recent times, Danielle is also an artist of mixed media collage work and like so many, it was not an easy thing to put her work out into the public eye. through talking with other artists and creatives, it became apparent she was not alone. with all the incredible works we see daily, it is indeed very easy for us to let our Mr Doubter slip from the shadows, take position upon our shoulders and question our creative worth.

Danielle's cogs turned and with it a wonderful idea was born. why not talk about this, but not in cyber land, but together in reality, in a creative environment, where we can discuss how we get past staring at a blank canvas, how we can believe what we create is worth something, where we can find confidence within a group of others and in time Mr Doubter can for once and for all slink back to his shadowy corner

GIRL CRUSH workshops & tea parties are in my books, the bees knees!

and i am more than a little chuffed to be collaborating with Danielle and the peachy Andie & Emily from Assemble Shop in Seattle to offer a day of talking, creating & eating fine food. at the end of which, we will have 'assembled' a collaborative, mixed media piece of artwork which will be displayed on the gallery wall for others to see!

you can see all the nitty gritty details here and also the list of fine and dandy artists Danielle has lined up throughout the USA. 

i know for me, this will be a defining moment, i have no doubt on this. it will be good to share with others the 'whys and wherefores' of my Mr Doubter and how i have come to terms with him in my life and how indeed perhaps his very shadowy existence is the very reason why i do what i do. for i love to create. apart from my family, friends and critters, it is the very thing that makes me want to get up out of bed everyday and live. there are no words i can find to describe how much it makes my world happy and therefore i cannot allow that shadow to take 'the fragile happiness' away from me. and so you see, in a way, his very presence makes me even more determined to continue listening to my creative soul, not be riddled by self doubt and to allow myself and my creative soul time to shine

Tif 

an eclectic handcrafted dottie angel camp...

oh yes indeedy, i awoke this morn with a giddy feeling, for today is 'dottie angel camp' details day! Angela and myself have been working on the nitty gritty. i am beyond giddy actually, i am trying to think of a word that goes beyond the feeling of giddy but i can't so therefore i will say 

"i am giddier than i have ever been before"

because i just have to recall in my little cogs the peachy weekend i spent with dottie angel dearies in september 2010 and the thought of being able to share another weekend with another fabby group of dearies has me beyond giddy.

so if you feel a little crafty, and even more so, you would like to feel a little crafty with moi and other crafty souls then please do visit here where all the nitty gritty details can be found. Angela will be happy to answer any questions because she is good at that sort of thing. she has a little cap which she wears saying 'important question answerer' and so obviously without doubt she is very qualified

ritchieacecamps@yahoo.ca

we will also be taking a jolly to the thrift store downtown where upon we will pottle to our thrift store hearts content. in my head it reminds me of my clan when they were itty bitty and would go on school excursions, perhaps a walk to the village to collect nature goodies. all holding onto a long rope less one should wander away... i see dearies all holding onto one long garland less i lose one such is the gigantic-ness of our thrift store but then again most folks have cell phones nowadays so perhaps i need not fret.

well there we have it, i am tres giddy and i hope you are giddy enough upon reading all the blurb (rain coat bit included) to pack your little suitcase full of vintage fabrics and head to the bright & crafty lights of Seattle for 

an eclectic handcrafted workshop with a vintage vibe

with me

she is wishing you a particularly splendid one whereever and whatever you are doing this weekend ~ Tif 

a dar~ing, clue~ing, hint~ing kind of day...

today i have donned my businessy nitty gritty cap 

so i may tackle my businessy nitty gritty stuff with authority. 

i thought my cap rather bedraggled 

leaving me no choice but to perk it up 

by wearing a bright green floral frock & cardi avec elbow fabric patches. 

so far i have dibbled and dabbled upon Colin the computer for near on two hours, 

all the time dingly dangling the carrot of a 'gold sticky star' so i may stay focused. 

do you like clues?

 hints?

 possible snippets of something interesting? 

i have no idea if monday is such a day for such things, 

but whilst wearing my businessy nitty gritty cap

 i am overcome with throwing caution to the wind, 

gathering up my authority on such matters as 'hints and clues' 

and saying

 "why yes it is Tif, it is the only day of the week worthy of such matters"...

how daring, how clue~ing, and yes, how hint~ing can one get?

Tif 

packing for a spot of beavering...

tomorrow, myself and Miss Ethel are leaving the shed for a visit with my adopted auntie. Miss Ethel is particularly tres delighted as she has not left the shed for a spin since last September. i am packing up lots of vintage fabrics and lace, where upon arriving at my adopted auntie's lovely old grey cottage by a babbling brook, we will spend many quality hours beavering away together making apron wraps. we are being most disciplined and will not spend our time chin wagging as we are apt to do, only to find several hours later we have achieved nothing for our time spent together other than putting the world to rights.

my adopted auntie has done a cracking job at rustling up some more lovely high hope flags to hang in the shop window. we have been most happy with how well they have sold and i in turn have been most happy with the results of cutting up all the leftovers she kindly saved for me.

little itty bitty high hope strings, all doing rather a lovely job of making it look like Spring has Sprung in my studio. which of course it has not and i do believe as tomorrow is the first of June it is likely to not Spring at all this year and now i am just hoping Summer does us the pleasure of his company before we go 'a little spare' in these parts.

the itty bitty strings are to travel the seas with me to England in three weeks time. along with the large high hope flags, they are destined to bring a certain dottie angelness to a lovely cottage by the sea. if indeed you are thinking you may like to visit this cottage by the sea and spend some quality time learning the way i 'patch and a piece' secondhand fabrics together then it would be lovely to have you join us. we still have a few places left, so if you are sitting on the fence pondering if this is something you may like to do then please do get in contact with either myself or Angela so we may help you get down off your fence and pack up your vintage stash and head to Suffolk in July. did i mention before that Our #1 will also be joining us, yes indeedy she will be my right hand man (or girl as the case maybe) and i am thinking, i could not ask for a better assistant, yes grand stuff indeed

she has packed a suitcase, just in case she is tempted to stay a while with her adopted auntie ~ Tif

and off she goes, exotic fringe, granny undies and all...

righty ho, just counting out 10 days worth of my little vitamins and wondering why i chose today to cut my bangs/fringe with the kitchen scissors. i am now sporting quite an interesting looking fringe line. i have told myself it is perfectly acceptable for it to curve up in the middle above my nose and that in fact many may think it the latest look from hair catwalks from glamorous places such as Paris. i am thinking a little exotic here...

however, i do not have time to fret about my exotic looking fringe, for i have critters and children to sort.

upon my pottling around the shed with 'post-it' reminders stuck to my chest i noted my daffs are looking peachy and springy. i am wondering if they will still be there upon my return, looking not so peachy and not so springy, it is kind of comforting to think they may well be... things like that make one feel like life may whizz on by some days and be a little surreal, but the things which matter most like family and their little habits, stay the same. yes it is quite true to say, i hope i do arrive home to find my daffs bedraggled and way past their best on the windowsill.

gosh blimey i am getting all melancholy on you dearest readers, i guess that happens from time to time especially when i am flying on my own.

let us move on from such thoughts and before i head off on my red eye to old blighty this may be the perfect time for me to mention my up and coming workshops on the beautiful Suffolk Coast in England, this summer.

yes indeedy i need to rustle up a few more peachy dearies so we may have a perfectly fabby time of things in a beautiful cottage over looking the sea, vintage fabrics and lots of time to stitch to our hearts content whilst Angela does a brilliant job of providing us with wonderful homecooked food. walks on the beach, tea around the firepit and quality crafting time with some lovely likeminded crafty souls...

if you like the idea of being a peachy dottie angel dearie this summer (i know i do), you can find all the nitty gritty over at Angela's lovely place. any questions or other such things you may be wondering about, do not hesitate to contact Angela at ritchieacecamps@yahoo.ca

if your questions are more along the lines of

"Tif, why would you chose to cut your fringe with kitchen scissors the morning of leaving to visit England and meeting all those lovelies you have lined up?"

or indeed

"Tif, instead of darning three pairs of tights in their heels and leaving it to the last moment, do you not think a trip such as this is worthy of a new pair of tights?"

or perhaps

"Tif, when will you be getting your derriere into gear and making summer apron wraps for your little shop?"

then may i suggest you do not send those to Angela because i am quite sure she does not wish to talk about my exotic fringe shape, nor my darned socks and quite possibly not my derriere.

however the little bit about the apron wraps, may i be so bold as to answer here and now since you asked so nicely. for indeed upon my return from recharging my british batteries, i have plans, big plans which involve me, my ever-so-lovely Miss Ethel and dottie angel's newly adopted auntie and her trusty sewing machine. together we will beaver like we have never beavered before and after we are all 'beavered out' i hope to have summer apron wraps, lovely high hope flags and little sunshine sacks hanging in the shop window ready to meet Mr Spring and Master Summer.

oh yes! i am positively looking forward to claiming back some quality stitching time for dottie angel

she is wishing you a peachy few weeks, perhaps a little beavering of your own and will be back before you know it, exotic fringe, granny undies and all ~ Tif

dottie angel workshop summer retreats...

as promised yesterday, i have note #4 in my hands, ready to share and it is a mighty fine note, even if i do say so myself. one that brings a little tear to my eye, silly i know but i can't help myself, some things just make me tear up and this is one of them.

so without further a do...

note #4:

i am delighted beyond all delights, indeed giddier then any giddiness i have felt before, to announce

two

back to back

dottie angel workshop retreats

this coming

July 2011

and the thing that brings the little tear to my eyes? well dearest readers, these two peachy workshops will be held in England! yes indeedy, i have been given the wonderful opportunity of returning home to where my heart is, so i may teach my craft to like minded souls courtesy of the brilliantly brilliant Angela of Ace Camps.

the retreats will be take place on the Suffolk Coast, in a cottage overlooking the sea, (sound familiar?), each retreat will consist of three nights stay, two full days of dottie angel workshops, (and i do mean full, we craft from morning to late into the evening if the dearies so wish). there will be walks on the beach, tea taken around the fire pit and more vintage fabrics in one room then you could ever dream of. to keep our crafty energies at maximum levels, Angela will provide wonderful home cooked meals along with snacks and beverages...

day one: we will be crafting

summer apron wraps

upon donning our wraps and looking mighty fine, myself and my dearies will continue upon our path of recycled handcrafting and begin making

little birdie 'hangy-me-jigs'

the evenings will be spent 'a yakking and a yarning' with crochet or knitting in hand, no dearie need fret if crocheting is not her forte, for i or other dearies with 'thee knowledge' will gladly spend our time wisely helping others along the goodly and righteous path of yarny goodness

day two: will find us finishing up our little birdie 'hangy-me-jigs' and moving on to

little sunshine messenger sacks

perfectly suited to carrying a small critter, some yarn or a chocolate bar, if time allows we will take our left over scraps from our two days of beavering and create ourselves some 'happy scrappy' garlands.

both retreats are limited to 8 dearies, which i think will make for a wonderful crafting environment and maximum quality time spent together.

for all the nitty gritty on the trip details including dates, you can looky here

for all the nitty gritty on the itinerary, you can looky here

for all the nitty gritty on what Ace Camps are, you can looky here

and

for some wonderful 'kind words' from past Ace Camp participants, you can looky here

if after all that 'looky looking' you feel this may indeed be the retreat for you and your lovely stash of vintage, second hand linens to have a moment to shine, but you have a question or two that requires an answer, please do contact Angela, ritchieacecamps@yahoo.ca for she is in charge of this grand adventure and will bound to have all the answers you need

now of course some of you maybe thinking, England! Summer! The Beach! has Tif lost her little tiny mind! you can be rest assured i have not, for rain or shine, hail or heatwave, me and my dearies will be channelling our inner dottie angels and crafting to our little eclectic souls content in a beach house overlooking the sea, running barefoot if we so wish, spending our evenings by the fire pit, wearing vintage slips and living life the dottie angel way regardless of what Mr Weather brings our way.

for we all know through the wisdom of our own experience

"when one crafts, the sun shines all around"

she is wishing you the peachiest of peachy weekends ~ Tif

a perfectly peachy weekend...

my dearies were everything my high hopes could wish for

and so much more...

they came from illinois, california, texas, montana,

louisana, canada, hawaii and even old blighty.

suitcases crammed with their own

high hopes,

vintage fabrics,

sewing machines,

yarn

and

crafty souls.

it would be quite true to say,

upon the moment i met

jessie, rita, debee, lou, diana, lyn,

jade, chris, beki, eva, michelle and stacy,

i knew the handcrafted gods had smiled down on me.

as the weekend past,

holed up in our big old house on capitol hill, seattle,

we not only spent our waking hours wisely,

crafting apron wraps, vintage slips, bags, wall hangings and stools the dottie angel way,

but we also learnt

* everyone is important, even chickens

* random and wonky but never squiffy

* it is okay to keep canned pumpkin in vintage suitcases

* it is okay to be a vintage fabric geek

* granny chic is grand

* there is method to the madness

* never look left when going through customs

for me this has been an incredible experience

and one that i will never forget, a bit like a first love.

to be given an oportunity to meet like minded crafty souls en masse

after years of living in cyber world was such a treat.

since returning home to the shed,

i have been experiencing withdrawal symptoms.

for in the space of a few days,

my 12 'dearies of the utmost kind'

filled my world with their uniqueness, kindness and craftiness.

it would be quite true to say,

now they are gone,

i feel a little lost without them by my side...

of course we could not have 'beavered away' without nourishment.

angela, along with mary, whipped up a storm in the kitchen

and to everyones relief, not an orange meal insight.

indeed when mary was not in the kitchen

then she was my trusty assistant.

i think we all secretly wished to take mary home after the weekend.

even three days on,

i am still working on a cunning plan to have her move to mossy shed

there are plenty of photos for those that may wish to ganders.

i am quite sure many more will appear over the coming days

but for now you can take alooky

here

here

and

here

i am still a little gobsmacked even after a few days of being home...

to think so many lovelies took a chance on me and my dottie angel ways,

packed up their high hopes along with their imaginations

and truly made my first dottie angel camp

most peachy perfect indeed

she is thinking a nice dose of quality time with Miss Ethel will help cure her symptoms ~ Tif