We're in Batik heaven

All those long,luscious strips of beautiful batiks
and nothing to do with them?
Right......
Share them with the world around us and create
our own little batik heaven right here at Random Arts.
That all time favorite woven ribbon served as a great
carrier to attach all these strips of batik, and one
thing led to another and it got longer and longer.
All of sudden we had a banner and then we had
side banners and now we have leaves on the
banner and words on the leaves.

Any other suggestions?
We have more batik!

Back to play...

It's time to get back to "work" for me after my little Costa Rican adventure and that starts with scheduling upcoming classes and events. Let's start with Jen's Eyelet Bound Book on Sat. October 10th. This is full day filled with paper creations, book binding, a little sewing and a lot of FUN! It's only $50. for the entire day of instruction and all the materials are included. Don't miss out as the space is limited. Call or email us to register. 828-749-1165

Time: 10 am till 4pm

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Wed. October 14 - 10 till 4
Louise McClure's Charms Galore
Join Louise for a fun filled day creating
a multitude of unique charms with modern day shrink plastic,
mica, images, UTEE, and more.
You will have the opportunity to view, up close and personal,
some of her finished creations which incorporate her charms.
Each one is sure to inspire you to use your
charms in very special ways.
$50.

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Susan Edmonson's "sticks and stitches"
pendant workshop.
Sat. Oct 24th
Join quilt/mixed media artist, Susan Edmonson
for this unique workshop using canvas, paints,
stitching, beads and... her inspiration.
Your imagination will take you where you want
to go, but Susan will be your guide gently
encouraging you to "fly" with your creativity.
This can be hand stitched or free motioned
with your sewing machine. Either way
it will become one of a kind "wearable art".
10 am till 4pm
$65

Sustainable, Eco Friendly, Enviro Conscious

The driver from Finca Rosa Blanca drove us
through little villages and farms to our final destination
in the beautiful Central Valley mountains of Heredia, provence in Costa Rica.
It is surrounded by towering "Higueron" trees and exotic flora.
There are views of the cloud forest, volcanoes and coffee plantations nearby
from it's 4000 feet above sea level location.

Each of the 11 private suites is architecturally interesting
with it's curved windows, doors, hand made tile
and bright colors. Our room was an inspiration in
and of itself.

Leo took us on a 2 hour tour of their very small but
productive organic coffee plantation.
They grow 30 acres of Arabica hard bean coffee which is
certified organic by international organization called OKO Garantie.
It is also certified sustainable by the Rain Forest Alliance and ICAFE.
Native banana trees planted within the coffee rows provide
shade and nutrients while rows of lemon grass
filter run off water for recycling.

The rain fell mid afternoon into the spring fed infinity
pool that features solar heated chemical free water.

Organic banana leaves nestle my
warm & inviting gallo pinto, sauteed bananas
and locally raised scrambled eggs
This "tipico" Costa Rican breakfast is
prepared each morning by this amazing chef,
Jose Pedro Alas Villafranco.

The show continues...

The ONE and ONLY mixed media sculpture
found in San Jose, Costa Rica.
Looks to me like they are still working on it.

A couple that we met here from Charlotte, NC
call these the camouflage trees. Up close the
muted colors of rust, ochres & chartreuse blend
with the brown earth tones. LaSabana Park in
San Jose is filled with these trees and no one seemed
to know, or care, what they were.
What a great background for art work, huh?

Each night we sat here on the terrace and played
cards, read, visited with other Americans & Canadians.
The peacefulness of the night overlooking the pool
was always a soothing way to end the busy day.

But, during the day, this crystal clear pool was
my respite.

Another flower market on Avenida Central in Downtown San Jose.

Costa Rican Observations

While enjoying the lush grounds at the
Finca Rosa Blanca coffee plantation in
the provence of Hererdia, Costa Rica,
these unusual plants caught my eye.
These unique flowers filled with water as the rain fell
and continued to look as though they stayed full
the entire day. Quite an amazing plant in my estimation.

In San Jose, Costa Rica, the capital city, we spent
much time walking through the sometimes
hazardous sidewalks & streets. Hazardous to us because the
driving practices are clearly dangerous and
hazardous because every sidewalk, anywhere you go
has holes in it... BIG holes. Holes big enough to
lose a child, even an adult. No marking, no covers,
no warning, just a hole.
I could do an entire photo essay of the holes
found in and around San Jose.
So, while avoiding the holes and the
possible broken bones we would duck into
interesting museums that we found enroute.
That was part of our adventure
and in the Teatro Nacional, we found a lovely
exhibition that included textile work by
Dinorah Bolandi
along with a friendly tour guide
from Overseas Adventures that was happy to
include us on the tour.

A simple path leading to the spa
at our hotel in LaSabana Park, San Jose.
Simple, clean, undisturbed, nurturing and silent.

On the wall grew contrasting vines that
grew profusely as grass and created instant
attraction. Inspiration for color choices in an
upcoming journal page? Maybe so.

The colorful display of local flowers spill
over into the Mercado Central in San Jose.
Everyone has fresh flowers in their house and why
not? With the temperate climate, only 9 degrees from
the equator, of course everything would flourish.

Believe it ....or not.

See that rusted wholey paper as the background?
That is how I started this project.
I thought that it would make really nice rolled
paper beads with a coating of UTEE (ultra thick embossing powder)

In my spare moments at the show in Blowing Rock, I
started the process and lucky for me I had the
gentle guidance and expertise of jewelry artist, Louise Mc Clure
to assist me along the way.
She knows everything about connections and wire
and beads and design and composition so having
her by my side was a big big help.

So, off I went on my adventure to create the beads
and I must say it was quite fun.

I distressed a shiny chain in Blue Patina
and watched it turn dingy. What a concept huh?
Rinsed it in water and wiped it off.
Presto, a distressed finished to along with my beads.

After each bead was rolled up, I applied embossing
fluid and UTEE. Then I heated it each one
with several applications of UTEE.
You can see the shiny-ness of that process on the
dull, rusted wholey paper.

With Louise's assistance I created multiple beads with
some African trade beads, recylcled glass beads and copper
wire.
It was an NO RULES experiment in full force for me!!!
What fun and I love the results.

The crowds loved us!

This past weekend was great fun in Blowing Rock, NC
as we unpacked our "assorted goods"
for the Believe in Yourself retreat.

Returning friends from past retreats enjoyed the
weekend shopping frenzy with us.
Many thanks to all of you.

Happy, creative shoppers enjoyed demonstrations at
our booth along with
seeking out the perfect items to include in their
nature journals.

Who's your Da da?

Linda & Opie's book is finally here! Actually it's early as the release date was in October.
The first time I heard of this husband and wife team was in a studio publication written by Teesha Moore. SHE discovered them and that was it! Then they "happened" to be in Saluda for some unknown reason and spent the weekend at our place. It was pretty primitive back then but they didn't seem to mind. ( you know artists) Then Opie and I discovered that we have the same birthday, June 10th. Gosh that was long time ago, at least one other book ago Now we see them from time to time at different shows but we are pleading with them to come to our new studio to teach for a weekend - heck! Why not a week?


What about their new book?

Inspired by the "Dada" notion of making art from materials
that would not typically be combined or expected to go together,
and driven by a similar sense of irony and humor,
this exciting book by Linda and Opie O'Brien
shares their unique approach to making mixed-media dolls.
It is not only a "must have" volume for anyone interested
in found object art and the human form,
it is a thoughtful and provocative exploration of the power,
symbolism, and cultural significance of dolls and representational figures.

Wait ! ! ! There's more.... full color pages, lots of ideas
tips, techniques and way out fun!

Color this, Journal that...

Just in!
New book written by Diana Trout is here!

It's all about mixed media techniques for "free expression".
One of the first things that Diana writes is
"forget about the labels such as artist or writer"
Just do it... no pressure to "be an artist".
She suggests that you leave the the labels out
and simply be a person who enjoys making art and writing.

Her book also contains great step by step, full color instructions
that will make the process of art journalling
easy with full color techniques throughout such as...

I like the matte feel of the paper and I enjoyed
deciphering her scribbles around
the book pages. It shows me that she is just like
us, trying to figure what goes where & when & how.

Each page of instructions and how-to's are clearly
written with a common sense approach to materials.
All in all I would definitely recommend this
book to someone looking for some simple,
no frills approach to putting the paint down.
And, the side dish of encouragement
goes a long way.

Egg Crates + Sparkle = Wow Factor

What do you do with vintage egg crates?





You create a window display with other organic
elements such as handmade paper
& vintage, leather luggage.

Then you add unique jewelry pieces created
by local North Carolina artists
and you have created an amazing window.

Alabama Girls and more...

Left to right
Pat, June, Deborah
All from Birmingham, Al
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Just look at that pose! These gals just blew into
Saluda and took it by storm! Right girls?
I am sure they broke just a few speed limits trying to get here
before 5:00 but left with promises to
return bright and early the next day.

We spent an entire day "playing" in the studio
with new techniques with transfers, while doing some
Artist Trading Cards, collage, painting and so much more.
All they had to do is ask, & their request for
a "private party" was met.
They also got to meet Meg and soak up some
of her amazing creativity.

Luckily for them, our friends at The Oaks Bed and Breakfast
had a great studio guest apartment ready
and waiting after their long drive from Birmingham, AL.

We met these great gals a couple years ago
at Donna Downey's Inspired Artist Retreat
in Concord and ever since they were planning
their trip to Saluda to see us again.

Deborah actually participated in both of our
journal challenge books by sending her
art work for the collaboration.

Guess what? We had so much fun
that I am actually inviting them back again.
Do you see that girlfriends? YOU are invited back!!!

• • • • •
Ettamarie's Unique Sterling & Gem Creations

It's a long story but I met Ettamarie about
5 years ago when she came to take a PMC
workshop with Lisa Blackwell here at the shop.
She returned in a strange turn of events
with an overflowing inventory of
beautiful sterling jewelry that she has
been making & selling since that time.

I was mesmerized as l looked through her
bounty of gorgeous jewelry and carefully chose several
of her pieces to sell in the shop.
She uses alot of gem stones such
as Jasper, Onyx, Carnelian, Smoky Quartz,
Turquoise, Labradorite, and others
as well as Hill Tribe Sterling Silver from Thailand.

You will see me wearing some of this next time you stop by.
In the mean time, I will have to talk her into creating a blog so
you can link to see more.

Daddy Long Legs

Just minding my own business while
I stroll down Main Street .....
So, what do I do?
Stop in and see Amy at

Biddies Antiques
(828-749-9254)
in Saluda
I came across these
unusual dolls that she has for sale.

Are any of you doll artists familiar
with the work of Karen Germany
from Southlake, Texas?

These 3 dolls still have their original
tags on them and were made in 1992.
Not that old but to a doll artist and
collector I can only presume that
there are no 2 alike.

The couple are James & Olivia on their wedding day
and the other "soldier"
is James.
Amy told me that these sell for $900. on eBay
and I think that I saw a price of $150
on each of them.

They just caught my attention
and wanted to share with all of you.

Believe Retreat

There still might be openings at the Believe in Yourself Retreat
in Blowing Rock, NC
Sept 9th - 12th

I can't help but post more thoughts about the
upcoming Believe in Yourselfretreat
Blowing Rock, NC. Some of you are familiar
with this retreat that is coordinated by
Kristi Steiner and Susan Edmonson.
This, I think, is the 4th annual event
and our 4th time as a vendor.
We just love Susan and Kristi and the inspiring
and creative group of 50 artists gathering together.

This is the outside cover of Kristi's box
that gently holds the "Field guide to creativity journal"

Inside the journal are field notes
from nature walks created with copper mesh,
patina, fabrics and stitching.

Fern transfers onto Lutradur along with
special quotes make each artists work
unique and original.

r e - b o u n d

Creating Handmade Books from Recycled and Repurposed Materials

by Jeannine Stein

Available at Random Arts
FREE SHIPPING
in continental US

Re-Bound is a beautiful book on bookbinding with a fun green twist-all the projects use recycled and upcycled materials. This book shows you how to take everyday materials from around the house, flea markets, thrift stores, and hardware stores and turn them into clever and eye-catching hand-made books.

Jen tackled the cover project using little Starbuck cards for the cover, strips of text paper for the pages, misc. ribbons and embellishments, including die cuts from her last book class.

It was fast, easy and fun and I must say that she was quite happy with the results.

Check it out....

I've known this talented woman, Fulvia Luciano,
for a few years now and even though I don't
see her that often, it always feels like it was just
yesterday that we connected.

Fulvia is a mixed media fiber artist living in
Rock Hill, SC however her work reaches
world wide recognition.
Check out her blog to see more of what
she is creating. It's awesome.