Been there, done that....

I'm back from ArtFest!!!! WOW...what a week:) I had so much fun. I'm sure I'll be posting about it for some time as I process my experience and continue to be inspired by all that I saw and did. My classes were terrific and meeting so many fellow bloggers and artists was a blast! Teesha and Tracy Moore did an outstanding job putting this even together. They deserve a standing ovation. Ok, so here's how it went...Cassondra, Ms Citrus Faire picked me up at the airport and we immediately hit it off. We had many amazing conversations over the weekend. What an inspiring artist and person she is. At the gathering on the first night I met one of my very favorite artists, Celine Navarro. I didn't get a chance to talk to her much, but she seemed so very sweet and full of creative energy. Next to Celine (on the right) is Staci of Bailey's Bliss. What a lovely person inside and out. She gave me the most wonderful beautiful earrings as a trade. I also met Hope of Paper Relics. Oh my gosh is she a sweetie! Holly was there (see a picture of us on her blog). She's absolutely fantastic!! Heather of Portals zine fame. She is so much fun! Dawn too...she's looking for submissions for an art journal book. Check it all out here! Oh there are so many bloggers I met. It was fantastic!!!

Before I get ahead of myself, I must say that Port Townsend, Washington is a beautiful place. It's at the tip of the peninsula and this was the view from the base out at the water. Gorgeous!!The beach below was full of dift wood. I had so much fun gathering rocks and sticks and other treasures. This was the gorgeous sunrise on the first day. WOW!

My first day of classes was with LK Ludwig. I have been a fan of her work for so long. Her love of using natural elements in her mixed media work is right up my alley. She had her own books there and she went through them as she showed us different techniques. It was amazing to see these in the flesh.Here's a sampling of the goodies that I made (below). She showed us a technique for creating an image of a natural element onto mesh. Also a very very easy water transfer technique that works amazingly well. Along with a cold water dye technique. We spent a good part of the day outside tromping through the woods looking for natural elements for our projects. It was a lot of fun!

My second day of classes was with Lynne Perrella. Boy did she knock the lid off my usual way of thinking about art and creating. I love that!!!

I created this "mess" (below) in her class and enjoyed every second of it. Totally not the way I usually create, but she really challenged us to let loose! It has a slit in the middle, because she showed us the neatest technique to fold this into a book. Too cool!

The third day of classes was with the lovely and amazing Pam Garrison. Love that girl! Here's us posing with the canvas piece I bought from her on vendor night.

Here's Pam showing us the tricks of the trade.

Me posing with the cover of the ledger book I altered and re-bound during class.

It was a great class to end the weekend with. Lots of friends, playing with different mediums and enjoying some good times:)

It was sad to see my very first ArtFest come to a close. I had looked forward to it for so very long. It was an amazing experience that I will never forget. After we left Port Townsend, Cassondra and I spent the day in Seattle. She then headed home to Oregon and I had yet another day in the city. I explored on my own and had a great time before heading home to a family that missed me dearly:) I am so inspired by this amazing opportunity. The artwork that I saw was absolutely fun, funky and fresh. So much talent! I will post many more pics of all the inspiration from my trip in my next post. Oh yea and I got tons of cool trades too. Lots more to share...stay tuned!