A 'bac' Sabbatical

I'm taking another day or two off from blog. The old back is at it again but I found (and was impressed!) with a Quick Care ER on Hwy 200! I should be back at in another day or two.

One of my favorite things!

Yes, my blog is more than just chatter on family, friends and artwork! It's also a place for book reviews and now!! TaDa!! Cosmetics..ok, not really cosmetics but cosmetic tools! I've had this lip/eye liner sharpener for years! And I mean years (you can see the picture below on how old it is - and yucky!). So today I splurged a whole $2.49 and bought a new one! It's by Revlon and just great (picture on the right). WOW! I can't believe how great this sharpener works! Check out the perfect points and it's enclosed! This goes to say..you need to replace your 'tools' more often! I guess it doesn't matter if it's an art tool or cosmetic tool! Lesson learned! This old one has now been laid to rest! Forever! In the trash! Good bye! Thanks for the memories!
Now a little artwork....my beaded bird is coming along. My next bird post will be a finished piece! I just have a little on the head to finish and the branch, which should take about two 1/2 days of evening TV watching!
And since I don't have enough to do, my friends back in Michigan (Carol T. and Mary) signed up for an online Mixed Media w/paper and cloth class with Jane LaFazio (through Joggles.com). Not sure how or why I signed up too...I certainly don't need another project but figured, worse case, I could print out the lessons and work on later. But...I did start the first lesson which was creating background pieces. Here are some that I did. I pulled my back lifting Mandy again this a.m. so I won't be working on (or taking more pics) until Monday.
Tomorrow (Sunday) Carol and I are going to the Master Garden show here in Ocala. Weather is beautiful and we always enjoy our day at the garden show. I'll post pics on Monday. Until then, check your 'tool' box and get rid of some old 'tools'. Time to revamp!

Not slacking, just busy

No, I'm not slacking off just darn busy! Of course some of that 'busy' time is eating dinner out! Not complaining by any means!! We/I have been running everywhere but my nights are still for beading and doing hand work.

Here's my beaded bird...it's suppose to be a Western Tanager but I was following some color choices from an applique pattern..dummy me didn't bother looking up the 'real' bird or I would have chosen different colors. That's ok..I can make another one using actually colors. I'm still happy with him. The unfilled line you see above his tail is the branch, which will also be beaded. I'm thinking I'll use beads on thin wire for his feet to sit on the branch.

And I finished my donation piece for SAQA's 2011 online auction. It's 11" x 11"; my screen printed fabric; hand and machine stitching, foiling and hand beading. I just have to put a sleeve on it and mail in. Cross one more off the old project list!
This is detail of one of the circles. I was going to cut out circles from the circles and make holes but decided it might not show up that well. The purple is silk dupioni that I happened to have brought with me! I just (also) happened to have a small dk purple piece for the binding..just enough!

No bike riding today...cleaning instead...legs cramps at night are really getting bad again so I'm going to take a day off once in awhile and, advice by my son, to drink more water. What goes around comes around, right! I'm always telling him to drink more water. Guess I should practice what I preach! temps already 72 and expected to get up to 80's today. Nice breeze so it never seems that hot...gotta love Florida weather!

Weaver's Meeting

This is the weavers mascot, Tilly (her mom is Caryl who was our hostess again today! Tilly is just checking to make sure there aren't any more ladies coming to the meeting. Isn't she a doll!!!

There are lots of pictures of our show and tell as well as our afternoon program in this post. So for those interested, grab a glass of wine, margarita or cup of tea (boring!). Hope you enjoy seeing our efforts today!


This is a woven towel Betty made - actually she made many of these for another weaver's exchange she's in. Click on the picture to see the detail! And Betty is now a quilter too!! She took a quilting class using her hubby's T-shirts from his walk races he's been in. Isn't this great! What a keepsake for him! Betty is doing a really nice job and just has the border(s) to put on.

And here's another stained glass piece Susan is working on. Beautiful isn't it! Wait until you see her next stained glass piece!! It's huge and amazing! What talent!

Mary was working away on this sweater she's knitting. It's either for her hubby or for herself. And I thought she was knitting it for one of us!

Pat K. is gearing up for the weaver's conference and her classes! She wove (is that the right word??) this small purse. Pat even lined the inside. The yarn attached is the yarn she used to weave the fabric. Nice job isn't it!

I didn't catch where Pat saw and/or purchased these tatted snowflakes. Aren't they delicate. Sorry I didn't catch the name of the lady who made them.

Caryl has been working on her chair that one of her hand made dolls will sit on. Check out the bead work on the chair. Caryl still has some work to do but what a great start!

Here are Caryl's horse dolls she made for the auction at the school where she teaches. Aren't they adorable!!!!

This is an accordion book Caryl made for her grand daughter. It includes pictures of her kids, their pets and grand daughter. Check her out in the train engine! She's the conductor! Our Queen of Purple was busy making her towels for the weaver's exchange too. These were the softest towel! Betty thought they'd make a great pair of jammies! Not a bad idea!

Some extra towels Q of P made..and yes, they were just as soft!

I showed my beaded bird I'm working on. I did rip out an area in green and started over. I was stitching on two beads at a time but decided to string beads then couch them down. Works better for the wing area(s).

And I showed my 'Georgia on my Mind' piece. Long story but I'm thinking of redoing..actually making a whole new on...starting over. More on that later.

Our afternoon program was using metal repair tape to cover a book with. This is a method my friend Carol T. showed our fiber group last year. It's quite easy and for those interested you can see the process on my blog post from last year here.

Here's my buddy Susan working on her cover. She covered two books!

Ladies working hard!

Some of the finished books. Some added stamping on the front and some did stenciling. You can also add buttons, jewelry or anything to the front to jazz it up!

This was one of Caryl's books..she covered two books!

This was Pat's back cover! Isn't it cool! She did a stencil on her cover (front and back).

This was Betty's covered book. I love the sheep stamp!

These are Susan's two books she covered.

This is the back of Betty's book. Doodling! How clever!

This was Caryl's 2nd book!

Queen of Purple also made two books. These were little flip pads! You can cover anything!

Jan's 2nd book.

I think this was Betty's first coat of ink. Love the colors!

Emeril Look Out!

So sorry Chef Greg!! I kept referring to him as Chef Dave! Must have been the wine!! My apologies!!!

Just warning my followers, there are NO words or pictures of fiber art for this blog post. It's all about food today!!

Last night Carol and I took our cooking class from Chef Greg at the Artisinal Dish! What a great evening we had learning the fundamentals of cooking AND we got to taste test all the great food Chef Greg prepared for us!

I certainly picked up more tips and a better appreciation for cooking! Talk about inspiration! I love to cook and bake and now I'm really excited about trying some new recipes!

There were only five in our class but actually a perfect size to interact with Chef Greg. My friend Carol is on the left taking notes, then Kathy, Kim and I'm sorry but I didn't get the last lady's name.

We started off learning a basic chicken stock recipe, learning how to chop veggies properly as well as cutting up that whole chicken. Funny, I make Mandy poached chicken weekly and use the 'stock' to make her rice with. Big difference in Chef Greg's recipe and mine is I don't put veggies in Mandy's poached chicken...but I might start now!

This is chef Greg showing how to cut a 'tri tip' piece of meat. He made us Southwest Machaca Beef with Spicy Cream which was FANTASTIC!!
This was the Machaca Beef dish that he had braised for about 2-3 hours before our class. Here Chef Greg is using forks to shred the beef. He did mention we could use chicken in this dish instead of the beef. So guess what I'm cooking this week!!

The next dish Chef made was pan seared snapper with cherry tomatoes and black beans. YUM!!! Here chef is showing us how to fillet a fish. I'll just buy it from The Dish as they get fresh fish in each Thursday!

Here's our fish cooking! I do have a tendency to overcook my fish and I'm really pleased this was one of the dishes Chef Greg prepared for us. Now I can't wait for Thursday to pick up fish. Bob is going to eat well this week!

Chef is preparing our plates using the black beans that his assistance, Mary Katerine, blended with some of his chicken stock. The fish laid on top of the black bean sauce.

I forgot to take pictures of both Mary Katherine and Mary (she bakes the best cookies!) who helped out so much last night...serving the wine (of course, we had wine!) and plates and just being so friendly and pleasant.

The picture above is the 'trio' preparing our dessert plate which was Fried cinnamon crisps with mango raspberry salsa and habanero honey! Talk about a great ending to a great meal!! Who knew....honey and a habanero pepper! Delicious!!!

This dish tasted as good as it looks!! And no, I'm not sharing the recipes!! You'll have to take your own cooking class with Chef Greg! Believe me it's well worth the time and money!! Thank you Chef Greg!! It was a great evening and one I'll remember for quite sometime.

Of course, I just love going to The Dish and seeing all the organic dishes they have prepared for the day. Also, they carry so many natural products on their shelves for you to choose from! So for our local Ocala folks, if you haven't been to The Dish (Hwy 27 & CR80), stop by! You're in for a treat! Try Mary's double chocolate cookies, if there are any left! Or the crab cakes!! Or the broccoli salad or.......yes, I've tried lots of their foods and will until we have to head back to Michigan!! Boo hoo!

Progress and playtime

Yep, I'm making progress with my 'Georgia' piece working on it at night watching TV. I still have to decide what to do with the border and I might have to either dye/paint fabric or make a trip to our local quilt shops. We have two nice shops within 5 miles from here and one is next to Panera's!
I'm also 'beading my bird' but I got bored with the browns so I started outlining with the green and orange. Doesn't look like much progress but I have spent several hours on this guy already.

Today the guys are taking the day off from golf and taking Carol and I to The Villages. For those of you not familar with The Villages, check out their web site here. We always have a fun day walking, eating and shopping at The Villages. This town is composed of two town squares and shops and restaurants galore! Always entertainment at the town square as well as markets from local vendors. You just never know what you'll find. Of course they have upscale shops as well (Chico's, etc.).

I'm off for my bike ride, then make some breakfast, shower and I should get some beading in before we leave. Temps are suppose to be in the 80's again today with a slight breeze. Perfect Ocala weather..although, the weather man just said we'll have a cool spell in the high 70's later this week. I'll settle for the cool spell..don't you love a Floridian's perspective on the weather!

Tioga Winter Art Fair

Today, our day trip was to the Tioga Winter Art Fair. Carol and I left at 9:30 so we could get an early start so it wouldn't be so hot (sorry for those having cold weather!). It was a beautiful day and the vendors at the fair were wonderful. There were over 75 vendors and each tent had amazing art work and jewelry.
The tents are set up in the street in this so called 'town' which reminds you of Louisiana and plantations. The houses are so cool looking with large columns out front and wrap around porches. Trees lined all over and just looks like something from Gone With The Wind. I didn't take any pics of the houses this year...I'll have to remember that next year.
This is where we sat outside to have lunch which consisted of sharing a grilled 3 cheese sandwich and a turkey/avocado/corn/you name it! sandwich. Yum!! Plus, they had the veggie crisps which looked like french fries but made of vegetables. SOOOO good too!! At least we did lots of walking to work off our lunch (no bike ride this a.m.!).
There were a few vendors that I was totally fascinated by their work. I'm listing their names and web sites for you to check out their work...They are each worth a few minutes of your time. Grab a glass of wine and take a peak at their work.
Mono prints on paper & canvas & other works: Bob Senesac Images
Mixed media work that will knock your socks off: Roz Miller
Beautiful photography on canvas! Jack Wicks
Chinese Art Work which is beautiful: Godwin Kou

One of the best parts of the art fair today was Tim Decker, an artist who was a crowd pleaser for sure! I've seen YouTubes of Tim's work and I'm sure you may have at some time as well. Tim does speed painting and the first picture we watched him do was of Bono..check out the next few paintings and watch the progress!! See if you can guess who he's painting.
Can you guess who this is going to be??
Getting a better clue?
How cool is that! Jimmy Hendryx!

I took this video of him when he was finishing up the Bono picture. We had a great day and I still had the afternoon to do some beading, sit on the porch, take Mandy for a golf cart ride and have a margarita! What a great day! It can't get any better than this!! And yes, I did my 'gift' for today!