Girly Giveaway!


How Girly Are You?
(If you're a guy reading this, well, I'm sorry. But guys can be a little girly too!)

If you read my last post called 'A Few of What's New', you might've read all the way to the end of the post where I talked about the Girly quiz I took on Facebook. On the spur of the moment, I decided to offer a Giveaway for everyone who adds a comment to my post! It's my first ever Giveaway, and I'm all excited! All you have to do is to tell me how Girly are YOU! You don't have to take the quiz on Facebook, but if you do, please list your score. Sheesh, don't even worry about those dang quiz scores on FB, they are hardly ever right. Heck, I don't even know if I'm really 100% Girly, but sometimes I'm about 1000% Girly, especially when it comes to my sewing and crafting. The truth of the matter is that I always thought I'd be a mom of girls, but when God gave me boys, well, something had to happen with all that unlimited Girly-ness inside of me!

So, give me a holler, a jingle, or post a comment, heck! send me an email... so you can be added to the giveaway. I'm going to make the cutest, girlyest, needle felted something cutiepie. When I choose a name on Friday, August 7th, well, it might be you!! So, tell me; Just how much of a Girly Girl are YOU??!

A Few of What's New

I have had a few very creative weeks as of late, and would love to share some of the "What's New" with you! Take a peek, and then take a moment and let me know what you think :o)
New for the Fall will be Women's Vests made from a combination of recycled felted wool, cotton designer fabrics and recycled fabrics. Here's the first one, titled "Peaceful". Each will be unique, one of a kind, only available in a One-Size-Fits-Most format. I am very excited about this development, and only hope I can manage to crank out several in time before the Holiday shopping season gets underway.
Most beloved and beholden (for me right now :o), a Book Cover Creation for an upcoming Needle Felting class at Paper Tales. Though it's been many years since I was an avid scrap booking person, I still have fondness in my heart for this creative endeavor. When Michelle and Diane asked me to come up with a book cover for the chipboard books they sell, it was an easy task to accomplish, and I loved creating this felted cover. The Needlefelted Book Class will be offered Sat, Sept. 19th from 2-4:30 pm. The cost is $58.00 with all materials included, except for the needlefelting mat and needles/needlefelting pen. (You can purchase these supplies on the day of the class at a discount) Sign up early since the class will be limited to 10 people! Call over to Paper Tales to enroll; 619-222-2510.
Oh, Nellie, will you take a look at this! This is a sweet creation is made from one of my very favorite old tablecloths. I took it out to use it last week, and low and behold, the patched hole in the very middle of the tablecloth had come apart, and was now a gaping Black Hole, ner' to visit the patching wand again... Just not able to bear putting it into the give away bag, I decided the tablecloth needed repurposing as something very sweet and girly. Add a singing needle felted bird, and voila! The most adorable girlie-ish dress (made from a top and a skirt) possible! Now on sale over at Austin's Gallery, but certain to not remain there for long!

On a side note, I took a quiz on Facebook called "How Girie are you?" My result said I'm 100% girlie. Now that didn't surprise me one bit! How about you? If you are on Facebook, take the quiz, and let me know your result. If you're not on Facebook, just let me know what YOU think your Girlie level is. I'll plan a drawing for everyone who comments, and the winner will receive one very girlie needle felted item from my shop. The drawing will take place Friday, August 7th. Good luck, Girlie girls!

This One's For The Ladies

Finally, ladies, here they are! The photos from our fun Felted Birdie Pin class. We had a busy and fun class last (last) weekend at Paper Tales, and everyone's birdies came out beautifully!!

Holly and Nancy are a mom and daughter pair, one of two mom and daughter teams who took the class. I just love the mom and daughters, for the way they work together, and help each other out. Poor Nancy had only just found out she'd broken a bone in her hand two weeks ago. Holly and I were there to step in for Nancy when the needle felting became too much. Ouch, poor Nancy. I sure hope you're feeling better by now...
Sandra is a very accomplished crafter and doer and lover of all things handmade. She has had this fabulous shop called Under The Sun, and we keep running into each other for many Paper Tales events. It was a real treat to have Sandra take my class :o)
Mom and daughter team #2, Wendy and Diane arrived from the hot Arizona desert to cool off at the coast, and take in a felting class. How I wish I'd written down the name of their scrapbooking store in Phoenix. It sounds like such a fun place, with a great product mix.
Irene was a fast worker, and kept the group's pace up so we didn't fall too far behind with all the talking!

Lisa and I were the slowpokes of the group. Lisa was the careful worker, while I did all the talking. Well, okay, so I taught the class... But, I love that Lisa! She has attended every class I've taught. Pretty soon I'll be able to hire Lisa as a helper since she'll know all the tricks up my sleeve! You go, Lisa!!!

There were a few ladies who I missed taking pictures of (I'm sorry!), but you are here with us in spirit. How I wished I'd taken a group photo of all the Birdies. They were so dang cute!!!

Thank you Kiddlins!


Well, here's a spot to visit if you are into cutie pie kiddie clothes and more; kiddlins. I didn't know about kiddlins, but Shirlene contacted me to let me know she featured one of my birdie pins on her cute site. Good golly, you can find everything from the shoes to the clothes to the accessories to the furniture for your special wee ones on this site. Give kiddlins a visit and see if there's anything there you can't resist! (All I can say is that I'm glad my kids are teens now, so I can't be TEMPTED!)

I've Been Missing You...















... But it's not because I haven't been thinking about you! I've been putting a proposal together for the new Rady Children's Hospital, and my mind has been in the clouds of to-do's and what-if's. When my mind is in that location, well, there's just not much room for much else. But my proposal is wrapped up, CD'd, mostly all printed, and ready to be tied with a bow, ready for delivery tomorrow. Keep your fingers crossed for me :o)

And next on the agenda; the Birdy Pin class pictures! So stay tuned...

Thinking About Weddings...

Well, it's been nearly 18 years since I married my sweetheart honey Greg, but I couldn't help but think about all the wonderful times we had planning our big day when I visited this fabulous wedding site, Once Wed. I love the premise of "Designer Weddings for Less", I love the recycled wedding dresses for sale, I love the homemade style invitations from Bird and Banner. I love the just picked bouquets from the sweet garden flower arrangements.

But what sent me over the edge was the DIY section, and particularly the Rustic Wedding Cake Stand. Okay, now THAT about makes me want to get married all over again! Either that, or have a Wedding Cake Party where everyone wears white and dresses up in flowy garden dresses... walking around and sipping champagne, eating slices of this yummy cake... sigh... Just how DO I get manage to get myself into these sidetracked situations?!

Okay, back to the real world...

I want to thank everyone who signed up to take the Felted Birdy Pin class tomorrow at Paper Tales. The class is full, with two people even coming over from AZ(!) to take the class. Wow, now that's needle felting dedication! I have received several requests for a class in Coronado, and will put my thinking cap on about where and when to schedule this. We could really have the class right here in my own back yard. I'll keep you posted about this. Be sure to let me know if you're interested (if you haven't already), so I can add your name to the list.

Just a side note about Once Wed... they are located in PA. Seems like all the cool stuff is happening out in PA... What's up with that?!

Needle Felted Bird Pin Class This Saturday!

Hello all, and Happy Summer to you!

It's a joyful day for me when it starts out with the birdies singing from the treetops. Well, that is, if they don't get going too early in the morning! I really cannot take the mockingbirds with their all night songs, but we're not going there now...

So, here's how you can put a singing bird in your heart, or at least close to it, with a sweet needle felted bird pin. I am teaching this class on Saturday, July 11 from 2-4 pm at Paper Tales in Point Loma. The cost for the class is $33, and includes everything for making up this pin
except for the foam needle felting mat and needle felting needles. Please bring your own, or you can purchase them from Paper Tales for a 10% discount on the day of the class. Also, I recommend a 3-5 pronged needle felting needle holder for flat felting. You can also purchase these from Paper Tales if you don't own one.

Here's the beauty of flat needle felting: You can make pins, or felt onto sweaters, or anything wool, OR, you can use flat felted sweeties to adorn about anything your heart desires! Think scrapbooking, flower vases, multi media canvas art... why, the sky's the limit!

So, call over to Paper Tales at 619-222-2510, and reserve your space today! Happy felting!

PS. If you are a Coronado resident, and are interested in a needle felting class held in Coronado, please email me, call me (I'm in the phone book), or leave a comment here. If I have enough interest, I will schedule a class here in town. Thanks!!

Take a Sweet Peek

Sweet, Sassy, Sleepy...

=^_^= Hi there!

Perhaps you are a new visitor 'round these parts, and are a little curious about what goes on over here in Val's Art Studio. No sleepin' on the job! I am busy, busy, busy with the sewing, the creating, needle felting, thinking, drawing, painting, cutting, ironing, and the dreaming (most important step!).

Sassy critters, sweet singing birdies, crazy monkies, sleepy kitties... yep! You can find all that and more 'round here. What's most exciting is that they are all finding a home on recycled

and refashioned wool sweaters. The rounding
up of the old throw-away sweaters (coming mostly from donations and my special sweater shoppers- Thank you!!) is a very exciting part of the process. Open up a box postmarked "Colorado", and low and behold, warm and cozy woolens! Open a box from Aptos, Ca, and I might discover the finest of Japanese sweater cast-aways. Ohhh, what to make? What to do??

Toss them into the washer, and a spin in the dryer. Here they come, transformed like magic into a whole new being; felted! Off to sit and be pondered, then under the sewing scissors,
where the old sweaters become a new sweater, or maybe a purse, or a cuff, or a pillow...No one knows for sure, certainly not me! But soon they are transformed, and then they are whisked along to be placed under the needle- ...The needle felting needle, that is! Roving, fluff, yarn, embroidery floss. It may cause a stir and a sneeze or two, but what emerges is definitely a pleasure and a cause for a smile.

When you are in San Diego, take a visit to the lovely beach resort town of Coronado (just over the bridge), and stop in and take a look at my needle felted art creations at Austin's Gallery. Let me know if you need directions, or a suggestion for lunch or a spot to sip a glass of wine. You can generally find me at Austin's on Friday mornings between 11 and 2. I look forward to meeting you one day soon :o)

*Please visit this post for a more recent update. Thank you for your interest in what I do!

xx
Val