workshop retreat and other inspirations

Hi all, a warm hello to those who are still visiting :-) I'm so happy to see you here.
As it is - and will be at least for the rest of the year - (you and) I will have to settle for occasional posts and comments only further on. Family- and the rest of everyday life has become a struggle for me for quite some time and I/we need lots of time and patience.
Of course I'll do my share for my favourite design team from the de stempelwinkel blog but I have no clue how regularly I'll be able to share something else on my blog.

That said, I wanted to tell you about last Saturday, Oct. 25th.
I've been to Ede/NL, home of one of my favourite shops: de Craftorij. Lia and her busy and invaluable team had organized a craft retreat for Saturday and Sunday. I decided to join Andy Skinner's workshop. He shared some of his gorgeous timeworn techniques, using examples of wallhangers with a base from foam board. It's great stuff to work on :-)
This is what I did with all those yummieh fluid paints, embellishments, and loads of other terrific stuff Andy provided us with:

It was - once more - an overwhelming experience to join one of Andy's workshops and I just can't thank Lia and her team enough to keep cooperating with him and thus giving me and all the other enthusastic fans :-) the chance to learn from this great artist! :-D As I got to know him - well, the little bit I did *g* - Andy is a fun, patient, relaxed, down to earth .... kind of guy and I enjoy participating in his artistic skills an awful lot.
So, enough sweet talk, just take the chance to experience for yourself, you won't be disappointed.
I just relished working more or less concentrated (good thing you didn't see me, my cluelessness, and my mess LOL) in a relaxed atmosphere with so many talented ladies and without feeling the need to talk nonstop. I'm looking forward to the next time.

I also met and talked to some stunningly gifted and interesting ladies too, of course.
It would be unfair to name some and others not, so I'm just mentioning Miranda Bosch-Thurlings, who just released her first Art Journal book and who is rightly proud of it :-) It contains many many tipps and examples as well as comprehensible steps and explanations to start art journaling right away. Congrats, Miranda! Very well done.

Following one of her youtube tuts I painted a mobile case these days:

This, too, was lots of fun to do and I'm sure it won't be the last piece I made. Sadly I can't find anything suitable to treat like this around here at home just now ...

That's it so far.
Thanks so much for paying a visit and your patience with me ... hopefully :-)
Hugs, Suzanne xxx