on my nightstand

On my nightstand are two books by Danny Gregory. He’s the Author of  An Illustrated Life and Creative License.

Danny is best known for his book Everyday Matters which he talks about how he started sketching as a way to cope when his wife was in a terrible accident that left her a paraplegic.

The focus of all his books is getting people to sketch/journal about their lives as a way of recording/journaling and mediation.

It’s a topic that keeps coming up for me. I want to sketch/journal on a regular/daily basis but then I never get around to it. "real work" gets in the way etc. Well this year I am determined to make it a habit. You'll be hearing more on myblog later about that!

If you like the idea of bringing more sketching into your life, check out this free ebook from Michael Nobbs (who also struggles with chronic fatigue like me!). What I love about his web site and blog is that he shows how to work art into your daily life in tiny and manageable amounts. Sign up for his newsletter for lots of good tips too!

flavor for mixed media - book giveaway!

When Mary Beth Shaw asked me if I would be in her new book Flavor for Mixed Media I said yes right away! Although I also let her know that I don't cook so I would have a hard time coming up with a recipe unless it was cereal or microwave popcorn! I love Mary Beth's work and couldn't wait to see what she would create for a book project.

Flavor for Mixed Media doesn't disappoint. Tons of techniques, how to demonstrations, interviews with a wide array of artists and recipes too! You will want this book!

below here's my section in her book and she did a lovely write up on my work! Thanks Mary Beth!

** CONTEST IS OVER!  THANKS FOR PLAYING SCROLL DOWN TO SEE WINNER **

THE BOOK GIVEAWAY:
Now you can have a chance to win a copy! Mary Beth has generously offered to give away one copy of her book to a person who comments on this blog post. Winner will be selected at random using random.org number genetrator. So leave a comment below and make sure to include a way to contact you if you are posting anonymously. I will select a winner on Friday March 11 at 5pm EST.

EVEN MORE GIVEAWAYS!
THEN it gets better! I'm having a giveaway of a pack of Claudine Hellmuth Studio Sticky Back Canvas on Mary Beth's blog. So make sure to stop by there to leave a comment!

**** WE HAVE A WINNER!!****

The random number generation selected number 48 which is Janice! Congrats Janice! thank you to everyone for playing!

 

the art girls guide to paris

I have been to Paris 3 times so far in my life, but I have never been with my friend Carmi.

When she goes to Paris she sees it in an entirely new way. Undiscovered jewelry stores, antique markets and little treasures that I never in a million years would have found on my own.

Well now you can have Carmi's guide to Paris and take her along with you on your next trip!

She self published a book on Blurb called The Art Girls Guide to Paris. If you are into art or anything arty you will want to check this book out!


A description of the book in Carmi's words:

"This is the guide book to Paris I wish someone had written for me ten years ago when I first started going to Paris. I have managed to learn more and more about Paris each time I visit. Like any grand city, it could take a life time. For those of you who have followed my travels to Paris on my blog I hope you will be happy to hear that I have pulled all my research and tips into this guidebook!

This book began as a quick email. The email turned into a memo. Then the memo turned into a blog series. All because ten to twelve times a year I get a message which always begins with "Hi Carmi, I know you go to Paris every year, do you have any recommendations for us?"

I think of going to Paris as a workshop. It is my opportunity to see new colours, new embellishments, new designs. This is what inspires me.

Friends and strangers write to me after my trips. They want to know where I stay, where I go, what I eat and most importantly where do I get all the great things I show off on my blog? I hope this book answers many of those questions!

I start this guide with an example of my typical eight day schedule, followed by a lot more detail of the places I visit."
--------------

Beware though! I read it, loved it, put it down, looked at Paul and said "when can we go to Paris?"

15 steps to freelance illustration

I recently read Thomas James new ebook 15 Steps to Freelance Illustration.

I am so excited about this book! Whether you are new to illustration or have been working in illustration for awhile, this book gives you action steps to get (or keep) your career on track.

Illustration is always a mystery to me, I seem to get jobs in spurts and never seem to have the steady flow of illustration work that I would like. It's so nice to have this book to refer to for guidance on the best way to go about cultivating a steady stream of good illustration jobs.

I love that it is broken down into manageable size "action steps" that you can follow along the way and gives clear advice and includes a workbook so that you can personalize the steps to your work.

Thomas also creates the Escape From Illustration Island podcast, I am a big fan and listen to it every week. I was on episode 29!

Join the Craft Corps!

I am so excited to be in Vickie Howell's new book Craft Corps. This book is perched right on my nightstand I am savoring reading it every night!

Vickie is a TV show host, author, knitter and savvy business gal extraordinaire. So when I found out I was on her short list to be in the book, I was beyond honored, thrilled & excited all rolled into one!!

Vickie has a "book trailer" and you can see my Vespa Girl artwork animated in it:





OK after watching that, you know you have to have this book!! Visit The Craft Corps web site for all the details!

breaking into freelance illustration

I am excited that I am in Holly DeWolf's new book "Breaking into Freelance Illustration" It's a good read for anyone in the illustration business or wanting to try it out! Right now it's on my night stand and I am really enjoying it!

Listen to a great interview with Holly on the Escape from Illustration Island podcast!

free book giveaway!

I love a giveaway! The Memory Makers Magazine blog is giving away a free copy of my new book The Scrapbooker's Creativity Kit!


Hop on over to The Memory Makers blog to enter to win! Contest goes until Friday!

linky tuesday

A few more linky shout-outs to bloggers who have used the Claudine Hellmuth Studio products to make projects:

• Carmi Cimicata made a wonderful necklace using Sticky Back Canvas, Studio Paints and she even sewed on it in her sewing machine!
• Carmi also made Sticky Back Canvas ornaments, printed on the Sticky Back in her inkjet printer and then sewed on it. I asked her and she said it did not make her machine needle gummy at all! I am thinking I will have to try this!
• Ellen Hutson created a beautiful a flower embellishment using Sticky Back and a resist stamping technique. She also has a contest going to win a FREE set of Claudine Hellmuth Studio product. Click here to enter! Deadline is tomorrow!
• April Foster used Studio Acrylic paint in a super cute scrapbook layout!
• Lynne Forsythe printed her photo images on Sticky Back Canvas and then incorporated them into a layout.

Big thanks to the Memory Makers Blog for the wonderful posts about my new book The Scrapbooker's Creativity Kit! And thanks also to Lisa Harper for the mention on her blog too!

If you make a project post it to your blog using my Studio Line products. Let me know and I'll list it when I do another linky post!

scrapbooker's creativity kit!

I just got the advance copy of my new book The Scrapbooker's Creativity Kit! I am so excited to be able to share it with you!

This book isn't like my other books, it's based on an idea generation process that we did when I was in art college. I loved working in this method when I was in college and I still use it today I am excited to be sharing with you my variation of it with this new kit.

Here are a few photos so you can see what it's like:

This is the front of the kit, it's a box that you open up and all the goodies are inside. I love the packaging!

When you open the kit, this is what you'll see! At the top left there is a deck of word prompt cards and on the right there are the color prompt cards.

Opened up for you to see here - is the book part of the kit. Which explains the process, and is loaded with examples from designers in each section.

This is the back of the kit with the blurb! The book isn't available until January but you can pre-order it from Amazon now!

new books in my studio

I have two new books that just arrived in my studio all about paper folding and paper engineering. Both of these books are inspiring and make me wish for a little more free time so I can play and experiment with these techniques!

The first book is the The Pocket Paper Engineer by Carol Barton. What a great pop-up instruction book!

Here's a view of one of the inside pages. The books have little elements tucked inside pockets in each chapter that you can use to experiment with the paper folding techniques that Carol shows you. There are tons and tons of diagrams. Super detailed instructions with fold outs and pop-ups you can try right away. Turns out that Carol lives near the DC area and teaches classes, I can't wait to sign up for one!

The second book is Interactive Art Workshop by Kim Rae Nugent. I actually have a piece in the back in the gallery section! This book arrived arrived just about the same time as the Pocket Paper Engineer. Hmmmm.... maybe my muse is trying to tell me that I need to be doing more pop-ups!

Kim's book is an interactive treat! I love how she combines mixed media art with interactive constructions. One of the things that always intimidates me about making pop-ups is that I feel I would need to be neat and tidy with my paper and not get paint all over it. Kim, throws those fears out the window and shows how you can make interactive MIXED media art!

open crafty call for Vickie Howell's new book!

Vickie Howell is writing a new book titled "Craft Corps" focusing on the crafting community and the people who help create it.

Vickie is including 50-60 profiles of crafters of all ages and skill levels in her book.

Here's a quote from her blog:

"As part of the content, I’m hoping to include 50-60 short profiles of crafters of all types. If you knit, crochet, embroider, decoupage, paint, sew, bead, tat, work with ceramics, collage, etc.---I want to hear from you! Whether you’ve found success selling your handmade sock monkeys on Etsy or you crochet chemo caps for charity, I want to know who you are, what you craft and why you do it. YOU DO NOT NEED TO BE PROFESSIONAL CRAFTERS (in fact, it's preferable as the book's other content will focus on that)!"

All you have to do is fill out a form and email it to her! (all info is here on Vickie's Blog!)

Deadline to send in your profile is August 15th!!

lookie! my new book!

This weekend I was browsing around on Amazon and I saw that my new book is now on there for preorder! I wonder how long it's been up there and I didn't even know! Just goes to show you, it's good to search around Amazon once in awhile!

Here's a link to the book on Amazon.com It's a little different from my other books. It's not even really a book in the usual way one thinks of a book. It's more of an idea jump starting kit with a card deck and a matching little book. It does not have techniques in it, but will be full of inspiration and exercises to get your ideas flowing, whether for scrapbooking, journaling or whatever project you are working on.

I am extra excited because it has LOADS of contributors! Donna Downey, Kal Barteski, Christina Lazar Schuler, Ashley Calder, Gen Simmonds, myself of course! and TWENTY SIX others! I can't wait for it to come out and I hope everyone will enjoy it!

monday already!

Today was a busy day! More catching up, running errands, unpacking and then working on book #3.

I can't reveal yet all the details about book 3 except to say it will be different from my other books. This one isn't technique oriented -- it more of an inspirational jump start type book for scrapbookers, journalers and artists. I will give you a hint just for my blog readers because I love you so much. OK ready for the hint ... if you have enjoyed my quick collage podcasts you will like this new book! It will be out in the Fall, so not long to go!

waiting to play

This new book that I ordered from Amazon came today. I can't wait to test it out to see if I can create my own pop-up books from scratch. Now to find the the TIME to play! That's the hard part!

Chic style

I'm not sure what everyone else thinks of chic-lit, but I personally adore it! I've been re-reading them as an act of procrastination and they are so much fun, there's always a happy ending (well... at least all the ones I can think of) and most of the characters wear fabulous clothes! I do so enjoy the detailed clothing descriptions although the name dropping can get a bit much for some. Plum Sykes (the photo is of her way back in her Vogue days) is a serial offender in my eyes- her books were even called fashion porn by The Independent.

Here are my favorite outfits from the Bergdorf Blondes and The Debutante Divorcée respectively. Just for fun. Because I can.

Decked out beyond belief at all times in very, very petite skirts, tiny vintage couture coats, and sunglasses like a millenial Twiggy. She must have studied fashion in Paris... (Bergdorf Blondes)

Casually dressed she exuded a natural glamor that was low on bling and high on class. Her daytime uniform consisted of long, skinny pants fom Marni, little lace blouses by YSL, and miniscule, shrunken leather jackets from Rick Owens. (Debutante Divorcée)

Please go along with me here... I've been having a blank at what to blog about for the past few days, and this was the first thing that popped into my head!
Cred: Bergdorf Blondes, Debutante Divorcée, The Independent, wiki (for the photo)

baby book

Today the UPS man brought me a book that I submitted a project to forever ago. I had completely forgotten about it! 101 Ways to Tees Your Tot is all about altered baby clothes, I did an altered onsie.
(click to enlarge)
The didn't quite spell my last name right. They left off an "L" in Hellmuth. It's H-E-L-L like heaven and hell as my mom always says!

But hey, close enough!

And they got my web site correct which is the really important part! At least they didn't call me Christine like I got called on a magazine cover once, or Hellmouth, like the telemarketers call me. LOL!

all done!

I stayed up late last night finishing Harry Potter.

I am sad the series is over but I think JK Rowling did a good job of wrapping it up. A bit schmaltzy at the end but I lapped it up. I didn't mind a little schmaltz, these books are pure entertainment! Now it's over I feel listless.

Paul has to hurry up and read it so then we can discuss. The whole time while he was reading the last book, I kept interrupting him and asking him what part he was at. Drove him nuts!

Back to work for me! see you later!

last chapters

I got all my work done for today, now it's time to finish up Harry Potter. I have about 100 pages left from last night and I want to read them in one long delicious uninterrupted session. See you later!

weekend update

This weekend was of course all about Harry Potter for me. Paul got up early on Saturday and went to Barnes & Noble so I could have the book before I even woke up. Love my husband!!

But before I could settle down to enjoy reading, I had to get some work done. I worked on custom artwork orders, email, paperwork and such and THEN had a nice shower and got all ready to snuggle down to read! I read from 3pm-9pm and then Paul and I watched a movie, After the Wedding.
Linda you were right! Lots of eye and mouth close-ups in that movie. But it was good.

Today I cleaned the house a bit, Paul and I met my mom and dad for a nice lunch. Then I did some more work on custom artwork orders and also did some packing and shipping too. I just started reading again and plan to read well into the night! See you tomorrow!!

Harry Potter!

Tonight's the big night when the final Harry Potter book is released!

I don't plan to go to the midnight release, I'll get my book tomorrow.

Two reasons I am not going tonight: 1) if I get the book at midnight I will stay up all night reading it, 2) I have heard nasty people shout out spoilers when you leave the bookstore.

If you do go tonight, Newsweek magazine suggests wearing headphones and turning the volume up while you wait in line and as you leave the store. So then you can't hear people if they shout of any spoilers. Apparently in the back of the book JK Rowling writes about what happens to everyone later in their lives. So it would be easy to look and then tell people if you wanted to be a meany. I am going to have a REALLY hard time not looking myself. I have been known to race to the back of a book to find out what happens. We'll see how much self control I have!

I found this fun quiz, you can be sorted by the sorting hat and find out which house you are in. I'm a Ravenclaw!

Also my husband worked really hard on this Harry Potter section of the OrlandoSentinel.com. It's even got a flash player where you can catch up on what happened in all the other books! Handy!! Quizzes too if you are bored at work!