HOPE is in the cards

My friend Lynn sent me this link today and I loved it so much, I thought I'd share it here. THe idea is to send a card of encouragement, just because. Positive energy through the mailbox sort of thing.

This post is originally from Jenn Mason from EveryDayArtistStudio.com. Enjoy!

"We have a fantastic week planned for you full of HOPE and fun and Give-Aways and HOPE! and did I mention HOPE?

This week we’re working with Hope is in the Cards to celebrate a Week of HOPE!

(from the Hope is in the Cards site)

Retailers across America are coming together to bring HOPE to our country, one card or letter at a time. Many of these companies are giving away free postage with any greeting card you buy at their store that week.

Some are including free HOPE cards with any on-line order. And some are even giving away HOPE cards AND postage! It’s a collective effort to put one positive, real card or letter into the hands of each American – 300 million positive messages in all!

Please, support these businesses and the HOPE movement. Send a note of thanks or encouragement to someone you know the week of September 1st to 7th. What a great way to celebrate Labor Day!

Russ Haan, Founder
Hope Is In The Cards
info@hopeisinthecards.org

Here’s how to Make Hope Happen

It’s easy to take part in the HOPE IS IN THE CARDS campaign.

Send a card of thanks or encouragement.
Write and mail a real card, today. Send it to a friend, a family member, or anyone who might need a little lift in their life.
You can buy a card from any card shop or retailer in America. You can also view a list of retailers who support the Hope Is In The Cards campaign.
Make your own card or buy one online.
Write or stamp HOPE on the back of every envelope you mail.

Participate in a HOPE event.
For other ways to spread HOPE, check out our Friends of Hope.

So, break out those stamps, and send a card today, or every day! We’ll be spending the week encouraging you to do so with Bookshelf blogs on mail art, card making and letter writing. We’ll also have some free HOPE clip art on Back to school Tuesday, some celebrity blogging from card industry celebs, a give-away from Photostamps.com on Thursday and MORE!

So make sure to come back every day this week to help us spread the HOPE. Share this on facebook and spread the word on twitter too. We need everyone to do their part and send a card of HOPE today and all week! (and all year!)"

Peace, love, and glitter!
Kathy :-)

P.S. Check out my new book and product line!

Postcard Greetings

Have craft supplies, will travel. Just because you are going on vacation doesn't mean you have to leave your scissors and glue stick at home. Pack a thin minicrafting kit so you can whip up custom greeting cards to send to friends and family back home. As you buy your postcards, take a minute (honest, that's all the time this project will take) and glue them to the front of blank cards so you have more room to share your getaway adventures. This project is a great way to pass the time on the road and is mess-free. To make it even speedier, prep the blank cards with scrapbook paper and foam core before leaving on your trip.

Supplies
Postcards
Blank notecards (jumbo size)
Scrapbook paper
Aleene's Tacky Glue stick
Thin sheet of foam core
Scissors

Directions: Cut the scrapbook paper to fit the cover of the card. Affix in place with the glue stick. To add a lifted "dimension" to the card's look, cut a 1- by 3-inch piece of foam core and glue it in the center. Trim the white edges from the postcard and glue to the foam core. You can embellish with eyelets, decorative staples, brads, small crystals, ribbon and rubber stamps.

Variation: Make a set of cards, wrap them in a ribbon and give them as a gift. Instead of using them as cards, insert in matted frames and hang as wall art. Look for gift shops that carry boxes of postcards. That way all the cards will have a similar theme.



AND - if you like the postcards (Romance Pulp Postcard Box) I used, here is where you can buy them!

Peace, love, and glitter!
Kathy :-)

P.S. Check out my new book and product line!

Easy DIY Postcards!

LINK

Peace, love, and glitter!
Kathy :-)

P.S. Check out my new book and product line!

BOOK REVIEW: Damas, Dramas & Ana Ruiz

Damas, Dramas, and Ana Ruiz: A Quinceañera Club Novel by Belinda Acosta


My rating: 5 of 5 stars
It's all about mothers and daughters in Acosta's debut novel. Misunderstandings, harsh words, and mega drama are on tap here, but in the end it is all about the LOVE. This book was funny without being corny, sexy without being raunchy. Great suggestions for music, food, art and even unique names. A very pleasant surprise, read it in five days, story moved swift. As a mom of a two teens, there was one unexpected story line that broke me down to tears, you just have to read the book to see what I mean. Great book!

View all my reviews >>

Peace, love, and glitter!
Kathy :-)

P.S. Check out my new book and product line!

INSPIRATION FRIDAY: Skelekitty!

I've noticed a new kitty on the crafting scene - and she literally is...a kitty! This friendly feline has her own web site, a blog and gobs of personality. I was recently able to grab hold of her and ask her a few questions before she sprang out of my hands to go back to her owner's art room. Can you say finicky? By the way, her owner is the talented Krissi Sandvik.

CraftyChica.com: Tell me how you came to be, Miss Skelekitty? Did you get shortchanged from your nine lives?

Skelekitty: Heck no, my nine lives are just beginning! I was introduced to the world in the summer of 2006 when Krissi donated the very first Skelekitty piece a local kitty rescue's annual fundraising auction. Krissi has always loved animals and became fascinated with the Day of the Dead celebration when she lived in San Francisco's Mission District. She thought the spirit of Dia de los Muertos (that is, celebrating the lives of loved ones) fit in perfectly with a kitty adoption organization. Pretty soon, people started asking to see me in more art, so Krissi created a whole line featuring me and my skelecritter pals called Skelekitty and Friends.


Q: And now you are a rockstar kitty - you have a line of stamps in your likeness! Tell me, how did you decide on the poses for the stamps? Did you get final say?

A: Well of COURSE I have final approval on all of my images - I'm a kitty who's definitely not shy about speaking her mind! The stamps were chosen by the nice lady who runs Stampa Fe art stamps in Santa Fe, New Mexico - she picked her four favorites to start off with. The response to the stamps has been so positive, you may be seeing some brand new Skelekitty stamps (and maybe some other skelecritters) soon.


Q: Tell me about your owner, I hear she is very crafty!

A: She sure is - she's always gluing something to something else and started Sacramento's coolest FREE craft night, Scary CRAFT's Night of the Creators. Even her MAIL is crafty! Here is a tutorial!

In addition to her paintings, she makes quilts, reconstructed clothing, shrines, jewelry. Krissi has always loved language and writing and has started to play with photography too! She especially enjoys a challenge where she has create outside of her comfort zone.

Q: How does having a pet helps a person's creativity?

A: Animals are wonderful muses because they are so loving and funny. One of the most popular pieces was inspired by a hungry kitty rubbing against her human's legs when they come home at night.

The antics of Krissi's kitties and dog are often the inspiration for paintings. Anyone who has ever lived with a cat or dog (or small children) will be able to relate to "The Two Sides of Skelekitty."
Q: Will you share your favorite pieces by your owner and how she made them - I'm sure you sat and watched every moment of their creation, right?

A: I imagine everyone expects the portraits of me are my favorites, but they'd be wrong! Like Krissi, my favorite pieces tend to be ones where she experimented by using her favorite imagery within a not-typically-Krissi themes. Painting The Roses Red, which was created for an Alice in Wonderland themed show, is a good example.


I also like the pieces she makes with a real sense of irony, like her "Diet Shrine" art quilt.

Krissi Sandvik. I must share that she told me she never was a fan of glitter until she went on the Crafty Chica cruise and became converted. I think this picture proves that! Krissi is a mixed media artist based out of Sacramento, CA. Visit her blog to see more of her work at http://www.krissisandvik.blogspot.com/

Would you like to submit an article for Inspiration Friday? Click HERE for the guidelines. -SUBMIT your piece with INSPIRATION FRIDAY in the subject line and email to kathy[at]craftychica[dot]com


Peace, love, and glitter!
Kathy :-)

P.S. Check out my new book and product line!

Our things at The Phx Art Museum

Magazine Flower Pin

I was playing around with magazine pages recently and decided to make a flower pin. I first cut strips 1-inch by 4-inch, folded them in half lengthwise and then looped them to make bow-like pedals. I glued them together in a circle. Next, I rolled up a strip and made a rosette for the center and glued that down. I trimmed the edges in Crafty Chica paint, and then added some Bollywood Blue glitter for good measure.

I wasn't sure if this was a success or not. I liked it, but I was worried it looked too crafty. But I liked it and thought I'd show it off! I wore it to CHA last month and everywhere I went, people commented on it and asked for a blog tutorial. I'll post step-by-step pictures soon, but here is a picture - a little beat up after wearing it for several days, but it has held up pretty well, I guess!

Peace, love, and glitter!
Kathy :-)

P.S. Check out my new book and product line!

Journal pages in progress

Heavy watercolor paper, Crafty Chica paints, Crafty Chica papers and DIY Appliques. I folded the pages in half and threaded yarn and fibers through them. I added random decorations and then will journal with metallic pens whenever I'm inspired to do so!

I like having half-made journals around because I can work on them whenever I want, and I feel like the hardest part is done, the foundation. Click on images for a closer look.

Peace, love, and glitter!
Kathy :-)

P.S. Check out my new book and product line!

Secret crystal footage!

LINK
Peace, love, and glitter!
Kathy :-)

P.S. Check out my new book and product line!

Patrick is a one-man factory!

Patrick is trying to get a jump start on the season. These are goodies he made for Handmade Galleries in Los Angeles.
Painted skull mask.
Painted frames.
Cross made with Homie Saints.
Glittered corazon.

Peace, love, and glitter!
Kathy :-)

P.S. Check out my new book and product line!

Wrapping paper!

I had to wrap a gift recently and gave my Crafty Chica papers a whirl. Didn't it come out cute? I made a little glittered gift tag from the Crafty Chica Loteria game.

Peace, love, and glitter!
Kathy :-)

P.S. Check out my new book and product line!

The ofrenda

LINK


Peace, love, and glitter!
Kathy :-)

P.S. Check out my new book and product line!

Auction!

Auction!
Originally uploaded by craftychica

Patrick and I sitting on the couch before the new owners took it away...

This couch began as a dinge-y green upholstered thing. I told Patrick I wanted to paint it with semi-gloss latex and he looked at me like I was nuts. He told me it wouldn't work, it would just soak up the paint.

We all know what happens when someone tells us something can't be done...it took almost three gallons, and at one point I worried that he might be right - but by the third gallon, I knew this project would be a success!

It dried like vinyl, totally waterproof and scrubable. I think I just invented the word srubable! Anyway, Patrick must have been impressed because next thing I knew he started painting the mariachi guys on it.

I love it when I'm right :-)

Frida Sugar Skull Pumpkin

Frida Sugar Skull Pumpkin
Originally uploaded by Punkin Noodle

Punkin Noodle decorated her pumpkin like one of our Crafty Chica designs!! So cool!!!

mappy makeover

mappy makeover
Originally uploaded by colbylanedesigns

Saw this on Flicker and had to share!!

Caption from artist: this afternoon's art project with the kiddos, newly decoupaged old Singer sewing machine (my first machine!)

inspired by the Crafty Chica Kathy Cano-Murillo and her Crafty Chica-fied sewing machine

We had a great crowd!

Dancers before the auction!

link

Father and son bidders!

They bid on a bunch of stuff and won 3 items!

Crafty Chica fans (from India!)

Adorable and lovely!

This is my friend Karina and her son, Sawyer (on the left). He performed in the dance troupe before our auction. After the event, the security guard allowed us to go in the closed exhibit for one last look before it all came down. People started flooding in, it was awesome.

Kari had some friends with her, they told me they were from India and they loved all the chica crafts. They loved that the colors and imagery were so much like their culture - the bright colors, shimmery effects, etc. They were so sweet. The little girls hugged me about three times each and I wanted to cry I was so happy. What a way to end the whole experience!

It just goes to show that art is universal, it belongs to anyone who enjoys it, no labels! We wanted to show that our Chicano art has a wide appeal and I am so proud that over the past 11 months, this show proved that!

THANK YOU to everyone for their kind words and support!

Winner of the chandelier!

Winner of the T-shirt chenille rug

There was a bidding war for it!

Winners of the chair!

Brent, my former co-worker from the newspaper and his girlfriend, Mindy. There was a bidding war for this chair, I'm so happy they got it!

Auction in action!

LINK

INSPIRATION FRIDAY: La Casa Murillo closes today.

I can't believe it is time for our exhibit to close! Today at 4 p.m. on the dot, the doors will close for the last time on our fantasy house. I am choking back tears right now. What a year it has been. This time last year, we were hustling like crazy. Our (real) house turned into a huge workshop. One project after another. The crew from the Heard sent staffers over in vans to pick up pieces and help us paint, glue, glitter and pack. In the end, we made more than 500 pieces ranging from a reconstructed couch to a mixed media headboard and glittered lucha libre banks.

My favorite memory was opening night. My dad came out to see the show. It was before he was sick - no walker, both his legs, no worries. He was so proud and happy. He went through each room and looked at each item in detail. Honestly, I think he was overwhelmed! At one point, he looked at all the crazy colors of the exhibit, laughed and said, "This is really the kind of house you want, Kathy?"

Another favorite memory is the Dia de los Muertos altar in the center of the gallery space.


We made it look like a huge cake with tiers. We set out index cards for people to write blessings to their loved ones who passed away. Within a month there were hundreds and hundreds of sentiments. The Heard staff had to buy albums to place them inside to make room for more cards. and those filled up too, so we bought more albums! To date there are thousands of cards. I'm not sure what to do with them at the end of the show. There is a lot of energy in those cards. It would be weird to bring them home, they are so personal from the people who wrote them. I want to do something happy and uplifting. Maybe make them into a paper pulp and make an angel sculpture. Maybe shred them and use them in some kind of art project.

Any ideas out there?

This is what will happen tonight. The show closes at 4 p.m. We've chosen 15 items to be auctioned off to the public. We will prep everything and at 6:45 we'll have dancers come out to kick off the event. I have a little thank you speech about what La Casa Murillo means for all of us, and then at 7, the auction starts. I have no idea what to expect. My last experience with a live auction was BRUTAL.

One time I gave a super cool altered crown to a live auction - the auctioneer put the crown on like a baseball hat - in front of a room of 2,000 people in black tie and glittery gowns and he said "Starting bid $250!"

I hollered, "You are wearing it wrong!"

He took it off and put it on like a backwards baseball cap. I sunk in my chair. No one bid. To make matters worse, he goes "Do I have $100?" *Pause* "How about $75?" *Pause* "$50?"

I wanted to crawl under the skirted table and go into the fetal position. Instead I sipped on my water. The people at my table (my newspaper co-workers) pretended to read the fine print on their event programs.

He finally goes "$25! - OK, we have a bid for $25!"

"Whew!" I thought.

I watched the auction assistant carry the crown down the center aisle in search of the mystery bidder.

There wasn't one. The auctioneer just made it up to get the thing off the stage.

Can you say crunch?

OK, I really need to steer myself back to happy right about now. It's all going to go good tonight. No backwards bidding! No upside down hats!

Anyhoo - if you live in Phoenix, hopefully you can come out and celebrate with us!



Opening night last October: Part of my craft group, The Phoenix Fridas. Emily, Carmen, me and Anita. Lucia, April and Leticia didn't make it that night.
The 1,000 bead chandelier!

One of the chairs I embellished of the Frida dinette set. That is a big applique I stitched on black glittered vinyl. I sewed lime green sequin trim, an applique in the center, flower and added rhinestones around the edges.


Display case outside the gallery.

Peace, love, and glitter!
Kathy :-)

P.S. Check out my new book and product line!

Adventures from a workshop

Earlier this month I taught at Art Unraveled and had such a great time working with these creative women. Maya and I left one hour ahead of schedule and we pulled into the parking lot, jumped out of the car laughing, carefree, excited to be early...and then (play DUN. DUN. DUN! music here) I opened the trunk of the car to find I left the suitcase of supplies at HOME!

Whoo, mujeres, I cussed up a storm (yes, the chica has meltdowns now and then, doesn't everyone?) and then hot tailed it all the way back home. At one point I had to tell myself to calm down, the world won't come to an end if my sewing class starts late. Life is too short to sprout an anger wrinkle. I figured I'd find a way to make it up to them. We were only 15 minutes late back to class, but no one seemed to mind. I walked into a room of smiling faces. We jumped right on task.

No one brought a sewing machine, but they brought lots of imagination and enthusiasm. I had my trusty Janome, thank goodness, and we made it work. Class ended at 9:30, but we left at 11 to make sure everyone had a finished bag. They all came out so cute!
One lovely lady, Theresa (I didn't get a picture of her, darn!) - she flew in that morning from Maryland. She went to see our exhibit at the Heard Museum, and then had dinner, and then took my class and then flew back home in the morning. I am beyond flattered that she came all the way from across the country just to see our exhibit and take my sewing class. I am not worthy!
One of my sample projects.

So, you know me. I don't use patterns. Many times I don't even use rulers. I eyeball everything and this is exactly how I teach my students in my class. I swear, every time I have measured twice or used directions or a pattern, I mess it all up and end up doing it my own way. Ironic for a person who built a career typing up directions! I like to share projects that you can look at it and say "I think I can figure that out!" My theory is that if you can learn to go by your gut and exercise your common sense muscle, you can make anything work. You are letting your eye for design lead you. (Sometimes after a try or two).

At my class this night, I explained this to my students. Most of them mini-clapped in delight. Two nice ladies looked a bit worried though. They exchanged glances and broke out their rulers anyway and even irons from their hotel room! They asked me a lot of technical questions and I got a bit flustered. I was worried too, was I doing the right thing? I was just about to doubt myself, when a spray of light came across the main aisle of the room...

A lady runs into the class and runs up and throws her arms around me.

"Kathy! I took your fabric collage purse class last year and your patternless instructions have set me free! I'm making purses like crazy, and I eyeball everything, it is so freeing to let my instinct guide me. I just wanted to come and tell you thank you! I feel liberated!"

I just about cried my eyes out. Not only because of her kindness, but because the two worried ladies had a new light in their eyes, like they were excited to get going on their project! They ditched the rulers! And you should see what they made! One lady was so cute, she goes, "I want to make stripes! How about - Purple. Red. Purple. Red?"

"Yes!" I encouraged. "Color contrast rocks!"

"Ohhhh! WITH GREEN THREAD!!!" she squealed...

"YES! YES! YES!" I squealed back.

She was soooo happy. And that was just one of the students!

Ahhh. Sigh. I'm excited for next year's AU!

NOTE: By all means, I am not saying to always ditch patterns or rulers. They are essential tools in crafting! What I'm saying is that it is OK freestyle now and then too. Each project is a different story, let it speak to you so you can get through it. It's good to embrace both the discipline style and the freeform method! I just happen to be more comfy with the latter...

Well, have a super day everyone. Hope all of you encounter nice people in your travels!

Peace, love, and glitter!
Kathy :-)

P.S. Check out my new book and product line!