Gone for a month.

I'll try to update if I can get my hands on a computer, but otherwise... I will be taking a one month hiatus from now until early March. This time tomorrow, I'll be arriving into Hong Kong- which is where I'll be spending most of my time (with a mini trip to Tokyo thrown in for good measure).
I'm going to take lots and lots of pictures of just about anything and everything, from lovely store displays to elegant architecture to my own purchases, to show you girls.
Until then... I'll miss you all dearly.
Au Revoir!
Photo cred: Hong Kong- The City of Nights (Lights) Photo Gallery
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we're still winners!!!

The Network for Good grant contest is officially over and even though A Place to Bark didn't win the $50,000 grant, we are still winners!!!!


I just got off the phone with Bernie, she is 180 miles away from Chicago with her 41 dogs and 1 kitten all on their way to new homes and we were talking about how much GOOD has come from this!!! This has been amazing!! We have made new friends, we raised over $42,000!!!!!! and we have a matching grant of $35,000 from the Zoline foundation!! So we have raised $77,000. WOWZA!! and all because of each and everyone of you!!!

We truly felt everyone's support for this cause and it is so touching to see everyone rallying behind Bernie's effort to save the lives of these animals. Together person by person, we did what we thought we couldn't do. This has been an incredible experience and it brings me to tears. Not because we didn't "win" because when you think about it -- we did win!! Each and everyone of you made this fund raiser drive a SUCCESS!!!! We raised a total of $77,000 because of YOU!!!!!!! THANK YOU!!!!!

Bernie says she will still be able to build a shelter with the money raised. It will have to be a smaller shelter but it will still happen. We can all follow the progress on her blog here!

I would also like to thank you my blog readers! I was worried that posting so much about this effort might be off putting to my readers, but I have been thrilled and delighted at the new friends I have made, and the outpouring of support that you have shown for A Place to Bark and this cause that is so close to my heart. Thank you to each and everyone of you for helping, spreading the word and being supportive of the animals!!!

What happens now?
Now Network for Good will audit all the donations from the badges to strip off the duplicate donors to get to the "real" results of individual donors. In 30 days they will notify the official winners. Could A Place to Bark still win? In theory that could happen if one of the other badges had many duplicate donors. A Place to Bark will still receive $1,000 from Network for Good for placing in the top 8, so that is wonderful!! All the final contest details are on this page here from Parade Magazine who sponsored the challenge.

Donation Gifts/Prizes
Bernie's husband Jeff is furiously inputting all of the donor's information into a database, it is taking some time because we have so many donors (yay!!!!) as soon as the database is built we will select the winners of the donation gifts and artwork. not to worry! I will keep you updated here!! We will do this as soon as possible!!

I will post any other updates I can think of here! Thank you for bearing with me with this fund raiser drive and thank you for your amazing support! I promise I will be back to art stuff in my next posts!
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only two hours left!

There's only two hours left in the Network for Good $50,000 grant contest! yipes! This is so stressful I can hardly look. Right now A Place to Bark is badge #5 by about 100 donations.

Click here to keep tabs on her badge ranking. The way they have the badges listed it is confusing but the ranking goes like this:

1      2
3      4
5      6
7      8
9      10

Also just FYI --- it is confusing in the contest rules but if you read further on this page you'll see that only the first 4 USA badges and then the first 4 International will win. At first when you read it looks like the top 8. :(

I was just talking to Bernie on the phone while she is is sleep deprived and driving 42 animals from TN to Chicago for adoptions -- she says she is at peace with whatever happens. We are thrilled and excited to have already raised SO MUCH money for A Place to Bark, that even if the additional $50,000 grant doesn't happen it will be OK. Thanks to all of your amazing and generous support this has been an incredible success even if we don't win the extra grant -- we still win!!!

It would be great for at least one animal rescue to be in the top 4, so whether it is A Place to Bark or 11th Hour, we are OK with that. At least we know animals will be helped. Each and everyone of these charities does good work for wonderful causes so whomever wins, it will all be for good!!

It's the last two hours.... here we go!! keeping fingers tightly crossed!!!!

here we go!!

23 hours left in the Network for Good $50,000 grant contest! Go BERNIE!!! Keep tabs on the badge rankings here!

EDITED Wednesday 11:10pm EST: akkk! Bernie just dropped to spot #5! If she's at #5 she won't be eligible to win the grant. this is so stressful. I can't look anymore! this is making me a nervous wreck!! deep breaths!!!

This is a photo of Stanley -- our kitty that we got from Bernie's rescue. Stanley told me that he wanted to send a special good luck wish to Bernie to thank her for saving his life. Bernie got Stanley from animal control when he was just two weeks old. Because he and his litter mates needed to be bottle fed he would have been put down by animal control. But Bernie whisked him and his siblings away and bottle fed them until they got big and strong!! And now he's our baby! Thank you for our Stanley!!

We are all sending GOOD LUCK wishes to A Place to Bark and to Bernie! Tomorrow Bernie will be transporting about 40 dogs from Tennessee to Chicago for adoptions so she won't be able to be online when the contest ends at 3pm EST. I'll be keeping her updated!!

I know all of you are keeping your fingers tightly crossed for Bernie and so are we here at the Hellmuth/Lester household! THANK YOU to each and everyone of you for spreading the word, telling your friends, posting to your blogs. Without all of your help we wouldn't even be in the running!! You all are amazing!!

I think I have bugged everyone I know in my whole life about donating to A Place to Bark. My neighbors are starting to run away when they see me! But I will say this one last time (I promise!!!!). There is still time to donate! Your $10 donation can make the difference between A Place to Bark winning this $50,00 grant or not. Visit the A Place to Bark web site or the A Place to Bark Blog to donate.

Also just this quick note:

We have gotten some emails that the donation badge is not showing up. Yipes! If you don't see the badge, please CLICK HERE TO DONATE VIA DIRECT LINK!!!!

AND....

Also don't forget we have many donation gifts available to a few lucky donors, click here for the full list! Some new items just added too!!

This is a nail biter!! it's so close!! I can barley look at the badge rankings anymore, this is so stressful!!

Tomorrow at 3pm EST the suspense will all be over! tick tock!!
We can do this!!!!
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right now i am....

Nervously clicking the reload button to check A Place to Bark's ranking in the Network for Good Grant challenge. A Place to Bark has dropped to 3rd place!! yipes!! We need to keep it there so that we can get this $50k grant, if we drop any lower we could be out of the running. This is so stressful!!! And we have 1.5 days to go!! If you know of ANYONE who can donate $10 now is the time! akkk!!!


About A Place to Bark:
"A Place to Bark" is a private no kill rescue run solely by Bernie Berlin. All animals come from high kill shelters in the south and are on death row. Combining health care, rehabilitation, and working with animal welfare organizations A Place to Bark provides a true no kill vision. Registered 501c3 non-profit. Visit A Place to Bark's web site.
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Complete Prescription Eyeglasses

Zenni Optical $8 Rx Glasses are complete prescription eyeglasses. Only an $8.00 eyeglasses but it is already fully featured with high quality stylish frame,thin and light 1.57 index lens, anti-scratch coating, full UV protection, lens edge polishing and beveling, quality hard eyeglasses case, microfiber lens cleaning cloth and a full guarantee.

So, you can now happily say Best Thing Found: Zenni Optical which sells stylish prescription eyeglasses or maybe your Great Discovery: Zenni Optical with low prices but highest quality eyeglasses ever for sale online. Good Luck!
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Costa Rica Today

Costa Rica is now considered by a lot of people as their vacation capital. However, there are still a lot of people all over the globe who does not know all about Costa Rica. For them it is just another country in the world.

Well, it is good there is CostaRicaPages.com which was established as online business directory in 1998. The site gives you a complete and accurate informations about Costa Rica. From Costa Rica News to Costa Rica Real State or Costa Rica Property, this site has it all. Good Luck!
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smiling happy faces!

I spent a good part of today working on this video for Bernie at A Place to Bark. Look at all these smiling, happy faces!



There are ONLY 3.5 MORE DAYS LEFT to help A Place to Bark win the $50,000 grant!!

This is a cause that is so close to my heart, thank you for bearing with me while I make this last push for Bernie and the animals she rescues. Bernie and I have been close friends for 5 years and during that time I have learned so much about the horrors and sadness that can happen to these wonderful little creatures. I have spent days in sadness after hearing what she has gone through and the needless killing of these innocent animals. I can not do what Bernie does. I do not have the emotional strength. I can't even hear most of her stories because it sends me into fits of crying. She is strong and she is brave -- she fights for the animals who can not fight for themselves. I want to help her because she does what I only wish I could do.

Please keep spreading the word, just $10 ten dollars can make a world of difference in the lives of these animals! To succeed at the Challenge, the objective is to get as many people as we can to donate to our cause. Duplicate donations from the same individual will only be counted once. So tell everyone you know and get them to donate!! The heat is on and we need to keep those $10 donations coming in! I asked my massage therapist! And my neighbors! And all the people who I buy Girl Scout cookies from too!

If you think about it, what does ten dollars days buy now-a-days?? Not very much..
BUT your $10 can help A Place to Bark win this grant which will give Bernie the opportunity to build a shelter and save hundreds more animals from needless death!!

We only have until Thursday @ 3pm EST!! Let's DO THIS!!!

Also don't forget we have many donation gifts available to a few lucky donors, click here for the full list!


(to post this badge to your blog click the "share tab" to get the code)
Keep tabs on A Place to Bark's badge ranking here!!

About A Place to Bark:
"A Place to Bark" is a private no kill rescue run solely by Bernie Berlin. All animals come from high kill shelters in the south and are on death row. Combining health care, rehabilitation, and working with animal welfare organizations A Place to Bark provides a true no kill vision. Registered 501c3 non-profit. Visit A Place to Bark's web site.
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illustration friday: legend

Here's my submission for Illustration Friday's theme of "legend"


(click image to enlarge)

"her hair was the stuff of legend....."

This one is just a quickie that I created tonight for the theme. As soon as I read the theme of "tales and legends", I thought of a woman with giant hair. I have no idea why! So here is my entry! Happy weekend!
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aka "Scoodie"

I much prefer to call it the hooded scarf because it just sounds nicer, but if you've never heard of it... a scoodie is a combination of the scarf and hoodie. I've never even seen anyone rock this until Renee of ANTM Cycle 8, who wore one by Kasil, but by the looks of it- this trend just might be picking up momentum, with brands from Urban Outfitters (L) to Mike & Chris (R) selling them.

















The UO one reminds me of the winter D&G collection a while back- you know, the one with the fur boots, thick white knits, white short shorts, snow and the works?

While both those designs have its own merits... I, however, happen to like this one better. By the Korean brand Bone, it seems to be completely sold out in the usual online shopping websites- I found this in the beauty and fashion section of soompi forum, a korean/asian site I sometimes visit for street style ideas. It's very versatile and looks a whole lot warmer than the M&C one (cheaper too!). Much more minimalist and stylish that the UO pompoms in my opinion... even if they make me think of D&G!

And for those with a bit of time on their hands, here is a scoodie DIY if you have a spare sweatshirt at home.

Cred: fabsugar, soompi ,urbanoutfitters, youtube
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Finding Jobs

Finding Jobs using the internet is now the trend today because of its easy and faster accessability of job opportunities posted online.

I remember the time when I have to buy local newspaper everyday in order to look through the classified ads section for job vacancies. The informations that I would like to know was so very limited. Sometimes you could not see any job ads posted in the newspaper.

The generations of today are so lucky because of the advent of the internet. Companies who are in need of workers could post their respective vacancies online. Then, the job seekers has all the time in the world to look for the kind of job that is well fitted for his needs and qualifications.

Finding Jobs is one of the sites where employers, recruiters, personnel managers and employment agencies from different companies posted their respective job vacancies. So, if you are looking for that dream job, with which you have been longing for so long now, then this is the site that you must not missed to visit. Hot Jobs are posted almost every hour. Therefore you need to visit this site from time to time in order not to miss that dream job of yours. Good Luck!
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whew! all done!

I just finished my smARTIST telesummit speech! I think it went well. I talked all about web sites and blogging for artists --- I got so carried away that I went over the time allotted. opps! Toby was snoring in the background, I hope no one could hear him!

OK I am off to get some studio work done! If you heard my smARTIST telesummit speech today and have any questions feel free to post them here, and I will answer!

project runway

I got all my work done for today so I am off to Lynn and John's to watch Project Runway! This episode is all about denim from what I can tell. Should be fun! More later!!

EDITED 12:20am -- that was a good episode! I am glad that Ricky won, I was torn between him and Sweet Pea. We all guessed it might be Ricky. We all knew Victorya would be out as soon as she started talking about her Mom and that she hoped her Mom would be proud of her. It's always a tell tale sign -- if they give you a bit of a sympathetic back story on the person -- you know they will most likely be the one out that week!

PS -- thank you to everyone for helping with the A Place to Bark grant challenge!! We are getting so close to winning the $50,000 grant for A Place to Bark!! Now over 1,100 donations!! Please bear with me while I continue to keep the effort going. We only have a few more days and we are doing so well. We must keep A Place to Bark in second place to win! Thank you for spreading the word and keeping those $10 donations coming in for this wonderful cause! Each donation counts toward keeping A Place to Bark in the running for this grant! For more info click here!! Many artists are also donating their artworks to the cause as gifts for your donations, click here for more info on the artist giveaways!
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it's tuesday!!

It's Tuesday and today flew by! I have been working away on custom artwork orders, spreading the word about the Place to Bark fund raising effort (we are over 1,000 donations!!!!! yay!!!), doing laundry, working on demos for CHA, making business calls, and listening to the first batch of lectures from the smARTIST telesummit (my speech is on Thursday @ 1:30pm!)

(click image to enlarge)
Here is a custom artwork order that was a Christmas present! It is a 18"x24" canvas of the Scrap in Style TV design team and was a gift to Jeanette Herdman, the president of Scrap in Style TV - she's the one on the right in the foreground. (I'm in it too, can you find me?) I have never done a piece with that ma ny people in it and boy was it a challenge! I was scared to death when I started it! There were so many pieces and parts to keep track of and to make it even more difficult, Stanley kept running off with various heads and I'd find them in the kitchen or in our bed! LOL! I am happy with the way it came out and so glad I had the challenge to create this!
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The Boys' Club- NYC style.

What with the writer's strike going on, and Gossip Girl on a hiatus because of it (Hollywood, please please please compromise already), I'm so thankful towards the new ABC show Cashmere Mafia. The description of it as a "thinking woman's Sex and The City mixed with the wit of The Devil Wears Prada" is totally spot on- especially since it's styled by the famed Patricia Field of SATC. The series revolve around the lives of four high flying career minded women in Manhattan who met at business school.
I'd like to introduce you to the "Cashmere Mafia", who are (from L to R): Caitlin Dowd, Mia Mason, Juliet Draper and Zoe Burden. Caitlin (Bonnie Summerville) is the Senior VP for marketing of Lily Parish Cosmetics and quite unsure about her sexual orientation. Mia (Lucy Liu) is the Publisher of the Barnstead Media with a fabulous corner office and sometimes wear the most stunningly outrageous pieces. Juliet (Miranda Otto) is the COO of Stanton Hall Hotels and Resorts and Zoe (Frances O'Connor) is a working mom and the Managing Director of Gorham Sutter's M&A division.
Throw in ex-fiances, cheating husbands and work crises and you have this hilarious and fun show to watch! For those Australians who are not fans of internet TV, Cashmere Mafia is coming to Channel Nine in February 2008.
Photo cred: cashmeremafia.net, Strictly Fabulous Style, wiki
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i'm hungry

I have been working so hard on artwork today -- here it is almost 10pm and I am starving. This is what I have eaten today: 1 bowl of cereal, 2 mozzarella cheese sticks, a handful of lime flavored Tostios. It's no wonder I am hungry! I am off to think of something to eat.

wow! we are doing it!!

I have been wearing out my reload button on my web browser this weekend checking the progress of the A Place to Bark donation badge all weekend!

A Place to Bark is now #2 the top ten badges. Almost 900 donations!!!!! WOW!!! Thank you so much to all of YOU for keeping this effort going. Each and every one of you have helped make a difference helping her get closer to winning this $50,000 grant for the animals in need.

Below is a listing all of the artists who have generously donated thank you gifts to those of you sending in your $10 donation to A Place to Bark. The winners of these thank you gifts will be chosen at random after Jan. 31st.

Click the link in each listing to visit the blog of the artist for further details!

  • original artwork by Tim Holtz
  • a lifetime membership to ZNE
  • original 16x20 artwork by Claudine Hellmuth
  • 5 signed copies of Collage Discovery Workshop: Beyond the Unexpected
  • original artwork by Sheri Gaynor
  • 5 original Artist Trading Cards by Bernie Berlin
  • original mixed media painting by Brenda Pinnick custom made for you!
  • 5 signed copies of Artist Trading Card Workshop, a book by Bernie Berlin
  • 10 archival prints by pet portrait artist Kathy Weller
  • a signed archival print by Melissa Langer of Pug Notes
  • a signed copy of The Impatient Beader by Margot Potter
  • a signed copy of The Impatient Beader Gets Inspired by Margot Potter
  • handmade original dog collar with interchangeable pendants by Margot Potter
  • a signed print of your choice from Noisy Dog Studio
  • a collage pack brimming with artsy papers from CollageJoy
  • two original collage artworks by Heatherly of Richmond St. Designs
  • grab bag of kitty and doggie stamps from Cat's Life Press
  • 2 Scrappy Cats skeins of yarn from Saints and Sinners
  • 2 collage prize packs from Christine Adolph designs

    • .....and more!This will be an on going list so check back for new updates!

    Also everyone who has posted the donation badge or a link or a message of support to their blog, please post a comment in this post of Bernie's blog so we can keep track and extend a big THANK YOU!!

    Thank you to everyone who has donated and thank you to all of you for spreading the word!!     We can't slow down or stop thinking our spot is safe and secure. We have to keep spreading the word every day, for the next 11 days so we can get far enough ahead that it will be impossible to catch us :) I know we can do it!!!

    About A Place to Bark:
    "A Place to Bark" is a private no kill rescue run solely by Bernie Berlin. All animals come from high kill shelters in the south and are on death row. Combining health care, rehabilitation, and working with animal welfare organizations A Place to Bark provides a true no kill vision. Registered 501c3 non-profit. Visit A Place to Bark's web site.
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    Why Own When You can Rent

    I saw this phrase somewhere while surfing the internet last week. And I was surprised because it addresses to U.S. residence telling them "Why Own a house if you can Rent one." It implies that owning a property or a house in the U.S is already next to impossible because of the sky rocketing prices of real state properties and the high cost of building a house itself.

    These situations are already supported by the fact that the statistics of Americans with bad credits are rising with a steady and alarming phase as the time goes by.

    However it is good to note, that there is one website company whose sole purpose is to help Americans with bad credit loans. This is the BadCreditOffers.com the user's guide to bad credit. Good Luck!

    Labels:

    Anybody Can Read

    This article is a continuation of my previous post entitled Anybody Can Blog.

    Well, maybe this time, after successfully reading and following Anybody Can Blog, you are already enjoying your new found hobby - and that is blogging. Blogging is a very addictive hobby at that, specially when you know that somebody somewhere visited your blog and probably is reading your posts.

    Yes, you got it perfectly right. Your blog must have online visitors and probably read your posts. This is the only way you can go on blogging if your intentions, of course, is to make your blog go public. Otherwise you do not have to be worried about your blog's readers if you prefer to make it private.

    Generally, almost all bloggers choice their respective blogs be read by other people. Because, as a blogger, or a writer for that matter, there is no sense of purpose in writing articles if nobody reads it. The success of your being a writer or blogger depends on how many people is reading your piece.

    So, if you are now wondering, how you are going to start accomplishing those criteria I just mentioned above, below are the first basic steps you need to do:

    - be natural. Meaning when you write a blog it must be coming naturally from your senses irregardless of what topics you are writing about.

    - share your blog. Since you are "blogging naturally" you can now invite your family, friends, classmates, and others to visit your blog and ask them what they can say about your posts.

    Those are the basic things that you must observed when you want your blog to be read.

    Anybody Can Read all you have to do is to let them know that you have a blog worth reading.

    Once again, stay tuned with this blog because I will post in the near future the next steps you might need to take, for your blog. Or for your own convenience just subscribe here to make my future posts automatically emailed to you. Good Luck!

    Enter your email address:

    Delivered by FeedBurner

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    On a tangent. Model Inspiration.

    There's only one excuse for my lack of updating, and that is my inconsistent frame of mind- my flights of fancy I suppose. What with changing courses, changing universities, general upheaval and all that. Its high time I posted here.

    Some designers find that a true model makes a fantastic muse because of their chameleon-like qualities and fierce sense of style- I absolutely agree with that! So here are my picks from SS08 FW. And yes, I know it was so long ago... but I was looking for inspiration in what to buy when I head overseas (my GOD, I can hardly wait! 2 more weeks!).
    Two models, among a select few others, who give me major style inspirations are Lily D. and Irina.
    Lily's is always effortlessly chic and her tastes are actually very similar to mine. Irina does this rocking menswear influenced style which fascinates me endlessly- since men's clothing sometimes interests me more than womenswear! I'm pretty sure it's because of the clean lines and the tailored silhouette, as I generally prefer detailed, understated and classic with a twist to the more embellished, sometimes fussy look of skirts and dresses. It's sad, but I'm still at a stage where I mostly avoid floral and feminine prints with a vengance... so I guess no de la Renta or DvF for me!
    Photo cred: thecelebritycity, TFS
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    illustration friday: plain

    Here's my submission for Illustration Friday's theme of "plain"

    (click image to enlarge)

    "Maude always knew she was the plain one...."

    This image is was licensed as a greeting card design by     The Greeting Place and is also available for sale right now in my Etsy store!!
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    we're in second place!

    As of this posting A Place to Bark is in second place for the Network for Good grant of $50,000!! yay!!! Keep tabs on A Place to Bark's badge progress here.

    Bernie is SO grateful for the outpouring of support from EACH and EVERYONE of you!!! We couldn't do this without your help! One $10 donation per person is all it takes. Thank you for spreading the word to everyone you know!!!

    Thank you to everyone helping to support Bernie in saving the lives of all these wonderful animals!     She saved over 500 dogs and kitties last year alone. Imagine how much she can do with the backing of a grant! Visit A Place to Bark's Blog here!

    How to Donate:
    here's the badge to donate from:

    (to post this badge to your blog click the "share tab" to get the code)
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    so tie tie

    I am feeling exhausted, frazzled and emotionally overwrought. For one reason and another it's been a stressful couple of days. But I got all my work done for today so that is good! Now I am off to cocoon with a bowl of hot oatmeal, a snuggly blankey, my kitty Mabel (maybe Stanley will come too) and the Wonderfalls series from Netflix.

    mabel_sleeping

    PS     -- thank you to everyone for helping with the A Place to Bark grant challenge!! We are getting so close to winning the $50,000 grant for A Place to Bark!! Please bear with me while I continue to keep the effort going. We only have a few more days and we are doing so well. Thank you for spreading the word and keeping those $10 donations coming in for this wonderful cause! For more info click here!! Many other artists are also donating their artworks to the cause, and Bernie and I will be posting an updated post about it soon!
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    project runway

    Yay! New episode of Project Runway tonight! I have to say I did not think Victoria should have won last week. I hated her dress with the multicolored sparkles on the neckline. blech. I thought either SweetPea should have won or Rami. more later!!

    EDITED THURSDAY 3pm:
    Ohh I loved last night's so show much. I went over to Lynn & John's to watch it so we stayed up way too late chattering after the show. I was excited that Chris and Christian won because I loved theirs the best. But was sad that only Christian got immunity. I was so sorry to see Kit go. her dress was pretty and beautiful and I thought that Ricki should have gone because his work has been weaker in the other shows. It was a super fun episode to see them working with more outrageous designs!! Looks like next week they have to work with denim, John looked ahead on the Tivo and it said something about denim. Jillian should be good at that, she wears a lot of denim.

    projectrunwaychallenge

    Here's a photo from our project runway pipe cleaner challenge. Each of us at Lynn and John's made something to wear out of pipe cleaners. We selected our item from a slip of paper in a cup. Our only materials were pipe cleaners and pom poms. I made the glasses! Lynn made the hat!!! Isn't that hat amazing!! Here's me wearing everything at once! It was super fun! I think we're going to keep the pipe cleaner thing going and see how many things we can make from pipe cleaners.

    More pics on Flickr here!!

    PS -- thank you to everyone for helping with the A Place to Bark grant challenge!! We are getting so close to winning the $50,000 grant for A Place to Bark!! Please bear with me while I continue to keep the effort going. We only have a few more days and we are doing so well. Thank you for spreading the word and keeping those $10 donations coming in for this wonderful cause! For more info click here!! Many other artists are also donating their artworks to the cause, and Bernie and I will be posting an updated post about it soon!
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    Start Up Financing

    Are you planning to put up your own small business by obtaining your Start Up Financing through online loans? However you do not know where and how to begin?

    Then do not be worried because a StartUp Financing is here and ready to help small business owners and entrepreneurs like you to obtain the very much needed capital for your success.

    Start-Up Financing offers only unsecured loans, lines of credit, and credit cards with Easy Process, Fast Funding and Excellent Service. As what EZUnsecured.com confidently claimed - "We make it easy for you, so don't waste time and apply right now!" Good Luck!

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    today is a good day

    Today is a good day! Paul got 4 tires on his car for free (all covered by warranty!) and I got carded at the grocery store buying wine. When I asked the check out girl how old she thought I was -- she said 23. Bless her heart -- she made my day!

    AND!!!!!!

    As of this posting, A Place to Bark is now the #3 badge at Network for Good and is in running to win the $50,000 grant!! We are on our way!! All because of each and everyone of YOU!!! But we can't rest on our laurels, she is only at #3 by a few donations and we need her to stay in the top 4 to win. Keep tabs on her badge progress here. AND keep spreading the word to all your friends and family to donate. To succeed at the Challenge, the objective is to get as many people as we can to donate to our cause. Duplicate donations from the same individual will only be counted once.     So tell everyone you know and get them to donate!! The heat is on and we need to keep those $10 donations coming in! Bernie is updating her blog daily with more donation gifts from new artists!

    Click here to visit A Place to Bark's blog to donate via the badge in the right side bar.
    We can do it!!!
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    it's a win-win!

    Bernie at A Place to Bark and I have been on the phone just about every 10 minutes so excited and thrilled at how much each and every one of YOU have helped make a difference helping her get closer to winning this $50,000 grant for the animals in need. She is now #5 in the top ten badges (BIG HUGE thanks to Tim Holtz for posting to his blog about it!!! You have helped SO much!)

    BUT she needs to be in the top 4 badges to win the grant, we can do it, we are SO close, thanks to all your help! To those of you posting the badges to your blogs and spreading the word -- thank you! thank you!!! Each $10 donation is important and helps her get that much cl    oser to winning!

    But we need more help to get A Place to Bark to win this grant! Let's make Bernie the number 1 badge!!! We only have until Jan 31st so we have to work quickly! I know we can do this.

    As a thank you for donating your $10 to A Place to Bark, Tim is giving away one of his artworks to a lu    cky donor and I am doing it too!

    You could win this 16x20 artwork or signed copies of my book!!


    (click image to enlarge)

    How to win:
    Everyone who donates just $10 before Jan 31st, will be entered into a chance to win a gift of the above artwork from me! I am giving away this 16x20 framed artwork to one person who will be picked at random from the donors. This artwork was featured in my book Collage Discovery Workshop:Beyond the Unexpected. PLEASE INCLUDE YOUR CONTACT INFORMATION WHEN YOU DONATE, SO WE CAN CONTACT YOU, ABOUT YOUR GIFT:)

    And there's more!!!! (I feel like that guy from the Oxyclean commercials!) I will give away 5 signed copies of my book Collage Discovery Workshop: Beyond the Unexpected to another 5 lucky donors!

    If you have already donated you are already entered. To increase your chances of winning have your friends and family donate and put your name in the dedication line when you check out. A reminder: we need the most amount of donors to help A Place to Bark win this grant, not the most amount of money. Each person who donates $10 will be counted only once on the badge, so get your friends and family to donate too so we can help Bernie win!! Paul and I and my mom and dad each donated separately so that way it counts as 4 people :)


    How to Donate:
    here's the badge to donate from:

    (to post this badge to your blog click the "share tab" to get the code)

    Let's help Bernie win this! She has saved 500 animals from death all by herself just last year alone, imagine what she can do with a grant!

    About A Place to Bark:
    "A Place to Bark" is a private no kill rescue run solely by Bernie Berlin. All animals come from high kill shelters in the south and are on death row. Combining health care, rehabilitation, and working with animal welfare organizations A Place to Bark provides a true no kill vision. Registered 501c3 non-profit. Visit A Place to Bark's web site.

    It gets better!
    All donations made to A Place to Bark's Six Degrees Badge, will be matched by the "Zoline Foundation" up to $25,000.00!!! All donations up to June 1st will be counted for the matching donation from the Zoline Foundation. It's a win-win!

    thank you!!!
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    short post

    I have been trying to stay off the computer so this is just a short post. I spent too much time on the computer last week and my right arm and wrist have been killing me. ouch! more tomorrow!
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    Hosting Audio Ads

    There is one thing that I would like you guys to get informed. This is about the Hosting Audio Ads, where claimed to be the hottest adverting method since google adsense.

    This is better than google adsense because here you will be paid for every visitors and no click through are necessary. And, this newest adverting method is backed by one of the internet's leading search engines.

    Hosting Audio Ads even offered an affiliate program where a 3-tiers of income and the lifetime residuals promised to be huge. What you waiting for? You should act now because by February o1, 2008 the door will be closed to become an affiliate member. Good Luck!
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    illustration friday: stitch

    Here's my submission for Illustration Friday's theme of "stitch"


    (click image to enlarge)
    Ester enjoyed a day of shopping after realizing that she didn't have a stitch of clothing that fit!

    This piece was created as part of a line of 36 Go Girl! greeting cards licensed by The Greeting Place. Happy Weekend everyone!
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    How to Win Easy Money Playing Poker

    I promised to myself that I will no longer blog regarding online gambling. But, pardon me, this time I will make this post an exemption because of the usefulness of this product.

    The product is about the poker odds calculator which increases your chances to win more hands and ultimately, make more money. A poker calculator or known as holdem calculator helps you avoid simple mistakes, analyse the game better and strategize with ease.

    MagicHoldem.com is the site that offers this product. Better you must visit this site because you can download its free trial software. You can even easily navigate the site and understands well how and why you need the Best Poker Odds Calculator in order to win easy money playing poker.

    That is the usefulness that I am talking about which I need to blog. Good Luck!







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    change the world... for animals!

    Six Degrees has partnered with the Case Foundation to invite you to take part in America's Giving Challenge sponsored by Parade.

    It's your chance to get $50,000 for your favorite charity. Here's our opportunity to help Bernie at A Place to Bark build the shelter that she needs!

    As you know we got our baby kitty Stanley from Bernie at A Place to Bark. She is a close friend of mine and what she does each day to help animals in need really amazes me and often brings me to tears. So many animals out there need our help and Bernie last year saved over 500 dogs and cats from death and are all in happy new homes. it amazes me what one person can do!

    How It Works:
    The four charity badges with the most unique donations through America's Giving Challenge will get $50,000 for their cause. America's Giving Challenge runs until January 31st.

    What we need to do:
    Put this 6 Degrees Badge (below -- just click the "share tab to get the code") on your blog and help spread the word.



    Donate:
    If you are able donate , please donate via the badge a $10 tax deductible donation. We need the most people possible to each donate $10 to A Place to Bark. In order to win the grant we need to have the most amount of donors, not necessarily the amount of money donated.

    I get about 1,500 unique visitors to my blog every day. Imagine if every one of us donated just $10 in this cause! Bernie could win the challenge and then have enough money to build the shelter she needs for the animals!

    It gets better!
    All donations made to A Place to Bark's Six Degrees Badge, will be matched by the "Zoline Foundation" up to $25,000.00!!! All donations up to June 1st will be counted for the matching donation from the Zoline Foundation. It's a win-win!

    About A Place to Bark:
    "A Place to Bark" is a private no kill rescue run solely by Bernie Berlin. All animals come from high kill shelters in the south and are on death row. Combining health care, rehabilitation, and working with animal welfare organizations A Place to Bark provides a true no kill vision. Registered 501c3 non-profit. Visit A Place to Bark's web site.


    Thank you!
    Labels:

    busy busy

    Been working hard today to make up for lost time with headaches yesterday. I have emailed so much my right arm is killing me that means it's time to get off the computer! I am going to Lynn & John's for another Project Runway watching party tonight. Can't wait!

    PS. My Mom and Dad's new cat is home. He is hiding behind the toilet and won't come out not even for freshly cooked chicken breast. Should take a few days for him to adjust to his new home, poor guy!
    Labels:

    Shawty

    I do not know about Shawty until I visited the blog of Silkenhut's World. I could not believe it but the word itself is now commonly used most specially in several popular songs today. For example, Get it Shawty by LLoyd, Shawty by Plies Ft. T-Pain, Buy you a drank (shawty snappin) by T-Pain f Young Joc and Shortie Like Mine by Bow Wow.

    Well, for those who do not know the meaning of Shawty. Shawty, according to this source, means a Southern derivation of “shorty” or “shortie” — has multiple meanings, according to several Internet slang dictionaries. It can reference a good friend, a small child, a newcomer or even someone shorter than you. However, the most prevalent use, and the one found in those songs,mentioned above, is to describe a girlfriend or particularly attractive woman.

    Shawty is now one of the most searched keywords that hit the search engines today. If you make a post about it you will surely optimized your blog to make it more shawty to your respective blog's visitors. Come and join Silkenhut's World for this optimization campaign. Good Luck!
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    The RAT


    2008 according to Chinese Calendar is the Year of the Rat. This will commence exactly on February 07, 2008 and will end on January 25, 2009.

    The Rat was welcomed in ancient times as a protector and bringer of material prosperity. It is an animal associated with aggression, wealth, charm, and order. Source : Wikipedia

    YEAR OF THE RAT
    February 7, 2008 – January 25, 2009

    The Rat year is a year of plenty, bringing opportunity and good prospects. It will be marked by speculation and fluctuations in the prices of commodities and the stock market; the world economy in general will boom. Business will be on the upswing, fortunes can be made and it will be an easy time to accumulate wealth. However, this is also the time to make long-term investment plans as the bonanza the year of the Rat brings will serve to see us through the bleak years that may follow. All ventures begun at this time will be successful if one prepares well. But do not take chances or unnecessary risks: the year of the Rat is still ruled by the cold of winter and the darkness of night. Those who speculate indiscriminately and overextend themselves will come to a sad reckoning.

    On the whole, this will be a happier year than most: free from explosive events and wars and with far less catastrophes than, say, the years of the Tiger or the Dragon.

    Nonetheless, it will be spicy. It promises a lot of bickering, bargaining and petty arguments that will do little harm. A congenial time that will find most of us socializing and enjoying ourselves.


    Do you know how your average RAT can do? :
    • wriggle through a hole no larger than a quarter;
    • scale a brick wall as though it had rungs;
    • swim half a mile, and tread water for three days;
    • gnaw through lead pipes and cinder blocks with chisel teeth that exert an incredible 24,000 pounds per square inch;
    • survive being flushed down a toilet, and enter buildings by the same route;
    • multiply so rapidly that a pair could have 15,000 descendants in a year’s life span;
    • plummet five stories to the ground and scurry off unharmed.
    Labels:

    it's tuesday!

    This morning I went with my Dad to PetsMart to stock up on new kitten supplies. My Mom and Dad are getting a new rescue kitty tomorrow. A woman at my mom's work found this kitty wandering the streets and now he's going to have a new wonderful life with my Mom and Dad. Yay! We are so excited. I'll take pictures!

    After our errands -- the rest of the day was spent returning phone calls, emailing, working on my 3rd book, mixing paint colors, figuring out what I will demo at CHA, working on artwork, deciding I didn't like said artwork that I just worked on, getting a migraine, getting rid of the migraine, 2 hours later migraine comes back, chatting on the     smARTIST Telesummit preview call, and now blogging!

    My head is still killing me after two imitrex so I am going to call it a night. Tomorrow is a new day to get work done!
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    Boxing Day Sales 2007...

    ... was quite a success for me, because I got this incredible pair of Ted Baker heels for this great low price. I mean, it's almost impossible to say no when they were about 55% off and felt so comfortable! Not to mention the elegant shape of the heel!
    I think it was the cute row of buttons at the back that did it, because I'm normally not a fan of shoes with the pointed toe. And the green suede should look grand with perfectly opaque dark tights and something short, don't you think?
    Photo cred: myself
    Labels: , , ,

    let's keep the crafty in tv

    I was reading this blog and to my dismay found out that DIY is not going to air any more new episodes (or possibly ANY episodes for that matter) of Craft Lab (that's me with Jennifer Perkins hostess of Craft Lab), Uncommon Threads, Stylelicious, and Knitty Gritty!! akkk! Are you kidding me? Word is that the DIY Network is changing it's lineup to be more male oriented with more home improvement shows. blech.

    This is a horrible trend that is also happening over at HGTV where they are showing mostly shows about buying or selling houses in lieu of their old line up of crafty goodness.

    There is good news though! You can let the DIY network know you want to keep these shows on the schedule. CLICK HERE to send an email to the DIY network letting them know how much you love Craft Lab and the other crafting shows!! It doesn't have to be long, just let them know how much you love these show and how much you would miss them if they are gone. They really listen to viewer emails so if we all email we can make a difference!
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    super busy weekend!

    This weekend was CRAZY busy! We did some yard work to clean up after the freeze. Just about all our plants lived, only a few had to be dug up. I am SO glad I did all that work on New years day covering them. In another week or two things should start to perk up and look better in the garden.

    Then I put together a whole bunch of new office furniture for our computer room. I had been promising Paul for the last year that we would finally get "grown up" furniture (we have been using my desk from the 6th grade!). So we finally did! I ended up buying what my Mom would call "cheap and cheerful" -- a nice desk set from Office Depot along with matching filing cabinets. They came in these huge boxes in a million pieces and took just about 1.5 days to assemble.

    There is something very satisfying about following the directions and putting a piece of furniture together. I found it almost relaxing. I am so used to have to make so many decisions about my business and artwork, that I found it almost soothing to follow someone else's directions step by step for an entire weekend. The Zen of furniture assembly!

    I took photos of all the old furniture and put it on freecycle.org and already have some takers. I will be sad to see my old desk go. I have had that desk for more than 1/2 my life!

    Now I am worn out!!
    Labels:

    Anybody Can Blog

    Anybody Can Blog
    Although each of the world's bloggers would like to dispute this fact, we Pinoys know the truth: The best blog in the blogosphere is made in the Philippines. The best blog in the Philippines is made in Mindanao. And the best blog in Mindanao, some say, is made by Stentorized...


    Bwahahahaha.. I got you out there guys. Didn't I? Well, it is just my wish do not throw knives anymore, please.. he he he.

    Well, I just watch Ratatouille and the opening narrative of this film is similar to the one above I just edited or changed the words . I am inspired by the story of that movie. So, in line with the sub theme of Ratatouille which says Anybody Can Cook, I could relate the story to somebody out there that Anybody Can Blog. A common people like us could make it possible because blogging is not only confined to rich individuals or to big businesses.

    Each and every bodies could make a blog of his own if he wants to, even if he does not own a personal computer or a laptop. I could vouched this because when I started blogging I did it inside the internet cafe. Would you believe it?

    Here is the Main Ingredients to start yur Own blog:
    - you must have an email account preferably with google.

    - you must have a computer. In our case we can use one at any Internet Cafes nearest you.

    - you must have a free blog host. In our case, I highly recommended blogger.com or also known as the blogspot.com (just like this blog)

    So, you have now the main ingredients to make a blog. Now all you have to do is used those ingredients. First, go to the Internet Cafe, sign-up for an email account if you do not have one. If, You already have an email account sign-up with blogger.com and encode your email address here when you are asked. It will only take you 3 steps to make your own blogspot site. And right there and then, you can now start blogging.

    Simple isn't it? Anybody Can Blog , just believe it!

    Stay tuned with this blog because I will post in the near future the next steps you might need to take, after creating your own blog. Or just for your own convenience subscribe here to make my future posts automatically emailed to you. Good Luck!

    Enter your email address:

    Delivered by FeedBurner



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    2nd free smARTIST telesummit preview call

    Get started on your New Year's resolutions and join me Tuesday, Jan 8th at 7pm EST for a FREE smARTIST telesummit preview call!

    I'll be one of the speakers on the call along with Michael Bungay Stanier and Aletta de Wal    , along with Ariane Goodwin, host of The smARTIST telesummit.

    What's the smARTIST Telesummit?
    Ariane Goodwin, Ed.D. (artist career coach and author of “Writing The Artist Statement: Revealing the True Spirit of Your Work”) has pulled together a group of successful keynote speakers to help you move your art career up to the next level! I am excited to be among such recognized speakers as Jennifer Louden, Eric Maisel and others!

    Date: January 8 - Tuesday
    Time: 7 – 8 pm EST/NY
    SIGN UP HERE! IT'S FREE!!
    Labels:

    illustration friday: 100%

    Here's my submission for Illustration Friday's theme of "100%"


    (click image to enlarge)
    This piece was created for a 2009 calendar by TeNeues Publishing but I thought it could work for the theme. This cute gal (my mom when she was in her 20's) is just about 100% sure that this dress will fit!
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    Mindanao's Top 100 Blogs in 2007

    Presenting to you the Mindanao's Top 100 Blogs in 2007. The list, courtesy of www.mindanaobloggers.com, was taken from the registered blogs found in the Mindanao Blog Directory. The blogs’ ranking were based on the data taken from technorati and feedburner.

    From this list, I would like to share to my valuable subscribers, my frequent visitors and readers, and to my online friends the recognition of this blog by being the number 25th among the Mindanao's Top 100 Blogs in 2007. I thank you all. I would like also to thank Winston of Batang Yagit for the effort in coming up this kind of valuable list of recognition for the Mindanaoan bloggers.

    Congratulations to each and every author of the following blogs :
    1. http://www.alleba.com/blog
    2. http://www.mindanao.com/blog
    3. http://www.jehzlau-concepts.com
    4. http://www.batangyagit.com
    5. http://www.vinceleste.com
    6. http://spaceofinfluence.blogspot.com
    7. http://blog.jammedph.com
    8. http://aclworld.blogdrive.com
    9. http://www.dotastrategy.com
    10. http://ptlavina.wordpress.com
    11. http://www.jemme.net
    12. http://chingscdo.blogspot.com
    13. http://kirbitz.blogspot.com
    14. http://www.robilloblog.com
    15. http://www.blogsilog.com
    16. http://www.chikadora.com
    17. http://migs.wordpress.com
    18. http://teebob.blogspot.com
    19. http://davaosfoodhuntress.blogspot.com
    20. http://www.chartherct.com/
    21. http://www.angdabawenyo.com
    22. http://teremyblog.blogspot.com
    23. http://www.dahandahanlang.com
    24. http://politics.alleba.com
    25. http://stentorized.blogspot.com
    26. http://myconsolingasylum.blogspot.com
    27. http://prcboardexamresults.com
    28. http://conradmiguel.com
    29. http://riajose.wordpress.com
    30. http://rhodilee.com/
    31. http://ice9web.blogspot.com/
    32. http://siyete.wordpress.com
    33. http://www.hoopaddict.com
    34. http://cantilangnon.i.ph
    35. http://www.philippinesparadise.info/
    36. http://blog.wyzemoro.com
    37. http://richelle-rn.blogspot.com
    38. http://reyian.blogspot.com
    39. http://www.mydavaocity.com
    40. http://www.healthandwealthtopic.com
    41. http://mandayamoore-orlis.blogspot.com
    42. http://www.dingexx.com/
    43. http://ittalks.robilloblog.com
    44. http://www.cherylestorgio.com/
    45. http://www.jeanclairedy.wordpress.com
    46. http://taorinpoako.blogspot.com
    47. http://www.davaohotspots.com
    48. http://www.alternat1ve.com
    49. http://wggtah.blogspot.com
    50. http://www.southisms.com
    51. http://bananachoked.blogspot.com
    52. http://www.wordgodspells.com
    53. http://robstroy.blogspot.com/
    54. http://filipinonurse.blogspot.com
    55. http://istambay.wordpress.com
    56. http://www.robstroy.com
    57. http://rhyan.net
    58. http://marcospot.blogspot.com
    59. http://www.shopchicks.com
    60. http://doodleztech.blogspot.com
    61. http://pmvb.info
    62. http://shane.jaducana.net/
    63. http://www.davaoblogs.net
    64. http://dabawpinoy.blogspot.com/
    65. http://davaodeli.com
    66. http://sixpack.robilloblog.com
    67. http://crazydrunkguyv2.blogspot.com
    68. http://theusualsuspects.mobi
    69. http://aethen.blogspot.com
    70. http://care-for-your-health.blogspot.com
    71. http://showbizchika.dingexx.com/
    72. http://pidjanga.blogspot.com
    73. http://maying.writersnook.net
    74. http://fielsvd.blogspot.com/
    75. http://eetsie.eklaboo.com
    76. http://m2factorial.blogspot.com
    77. http://myflipflopsandnotes.blogspot.com
    78. http://student.batangyagit.com
    79. http://bacongco.com
    80. http://movie-music-review.blogspot.com
    81. http://neodavao.wordpress.com
    82. http://shyyen.blogspot.com
    83. http://celebpro.blogspot.com
    84. http://journals.aol.co.uk/jcjimc/BethanyChristianHomeforChildrenT
    85. http://mindanaokini.blogspot.com
    86. http://daracks.blogspot.com
    87. http://benhurjun.i.ph/
    88. http://www.odyscorner.com
    89. http://fencesitter.i.ph
    90. http://girlfromdipolog.blogspot.com
    91. http://writingedge.blogspot.com
    92. http://pc.batangyagit.com
    93. http://honeycaragos.blogspot.com
    94. http://cutieissa.blogspot.com
    95. http://iamsorceress.wordpress.com
    96. http://davaodiaries.blogspot.com
    97. http://theignatianperspective.blogspot.com
    98. http://periodicosurigao.blogspot.com
    99. http://www.bloggwing.com
    100. http://cutie.lecio.us







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