DIY Class-Make a wire DAD ornament

If you're in or near the KC area, I'll be in a show called the Just For Her event from June 12-14 at the Overland Park Convention Center. On Sun June 14, I'll also be teaching a quick (45 minute) class on how to make this wire DAD ornament. Dad can hang this wire heart from his rear view mirror in his car. Click this link to sign up! http://bit.ly/1GgUSwf

DIY Classes Coming Up Soon!

Hey there-I have a couple of fun DIY classes coming up soon that you may be interested in. The first one is going to be held at West Elm on the Country Club Plaza in KCMO on Sat May 30. I'll be teaching you how to stitch a KC pillow with my kit and then after the class, I'll put a pillow back on for you and ship it back to you. Pretty sweet huh? You don't even have to mess with sewing anything but the fun part--the front of the pillow. Cost of the class is $38.00 ($24 for the pillow kit and $14 for class/pillow back/shipping)

Questions? Just email me for more info or call 816-960-3765 to sign up.

I'll also be teaching a 45 minute DIY wire ornament class at the June Just For Her Event  on Sun June 14 from 2:30-3:00 at the Overland Park Convention Center. Cost of the class is $20.00. The show runs from Fri June 12-Sun June 14. Click on link above for more info or to sign up for this or several other classes.

What I'm Grateful For This Week

Thought I'd try something new. This is an amalgam of all the things I'm grateful for this week--some has been posted to IG, some to FB, some right here and some nowhere at all until now. As you'll notice, they aren't "prettied up". I want this to be more spontaneous.

This pretty lady turned 98 this week. I'm so grateful she's my mother-in-law.

This is a wire sculpture I started of the Nelson-Atkins Museum here in KC. Grateful to live in

such a cool city with a museum like this.

It was BEAUTIFUL here all week long and I loved it-last Saturday we took our dog to the dog beach at a park and then had a picnic on a blanket. 

I finally got my studio organized and hung all my work on the walls. That made me feel really accomplished!

Finished the wire piece of the Nelson. Grateful I had the time to do it. Wire is my first love.

Packed a BIG order for Uncommon Goods website. Love working with them and am grateful for em!

Finished a piece inspired by a friend's wedding dress that I'm going to give her next time I see her. Grateful for inspiration.

My new hydrangea tree is starting to bloom--and just when I thought I didn't have a green thumb. Grateful for a gardening miracle.

Made some KC blank cards this week and got them to a local shop, Shop Beautiful. Happy to have some of my work here in my hometown.

            Friends came over and we sat on my porch and talked until I got to light my chandelier. Grateful for friendship and for Studio M, who made my chandelier a reality.

Saw this GORGeouS car today. Know what it is? '46 Caddy. So glad cars like this

are still around.

So that's it. The week in gratitude. It's been a great week for more reasons than just this though. Hope you all had a good week too! What would your week look like?

KC Series: #2--The Kauffman Center

The Kauffman Center stands overlooking our city but not facing downtown or towards the river, rather it faces the creative hub of the city-the Crossroads District. It's a stunning building designed by Moshe Safdie, world-famous architect. When you stand inside the Kauffman you can look out through the glass wall that makes up one side of the building itself. At night the city lights dot the dark and in the daytime you have a view that's far reaching yet more intimate than from a skyscraper.
This piece is 12" x 12" x 1.5" and is mounted on gallery canvas and signed by me. It's for sale on my site here:http://bit.ly/1nAJ9xE

Renegade Craft Fair: Chitown and my new City Series

Just got word the other day that I've been accepted to the Renegade Craft Fair in Chicago on Sept. 6-7! I've long been a fan of RCF and have been to this particular fair in Wicker Park several years ago, before these fairs grew so popular. It may have been small then, but I went with some artist friends of mine and we all loved the unique vendors that they chose, so I'm honored to be a part of that tradition. To celebrate that, I'm making a new series of city scenes in wire that will be followed by art prints, stitch kits and more. I had to do one for Chicago to announce the RCF (and I'll definitely do more) but for right now I'm switching back to my hometown. We have so many beautiful buildings here in KC that it's hard to choose which come first. I chose the Country Club Plaza because it's the reason why I live where I do (which is about 1 mile from the CCP). So, to kick off the City Series: KC edition, here's The Country Club Plaza in wire. It's on a 12"x12" gallery canvas and is for sale on my site here:http://bit.ly/SWafWl

Happy Almost-Valentines Day

I taught my first wire ornament class a couple of days ago here in KC at a gallery called Sav-Art Gallery (named after the owner, Mike Savage). I had a great time and look forward to doing it again. Here are some of the lovely hearts that my students made! Happy Valentines Day!

Atlanta Gift Show Recap-Patina Collection

I'm a bit late in writing about the gift show but I've been much busier since returning from Atlanta a few weeks ago. Last year was my first to attend the gift show and it remains to be a truly overwhelming experience for me. It's a super fun time and I'm so glad I went but let's just say it's waaaay different than being home alone all day in my little studio, working to the sounds of Ira Glass and This American Life! The Mart is a series of 3 interconnected 16-story buildings that are just packed full of products of all kinds: high end home decor, seasonal product, imported rugs, lamps, wall decor, kitchenware, etc. etc. I went to the show this year for a truly exciting event for me-the debut of my first large licensed collection of wire garden decor for Studio M/Magnetworks.
There are 30 products in this collection and since my photos don't do them justice, I'm using the photos from the Studio M catalog. I can't say enough good things about the Todd family: Curt and Sue Todd, the owners of Magnetworks and Studio M, along with their son Michael and his wife and sister-in-law, are some of the most genuinely nice people you'd ever want to meet. They really care about their artists and employees and treat them like family. They made me feel so at home in their showroom while I made some small wire creations for the retailers. And Anne Brown--well none of this would have been possible if not for her vision. She's an endless source of creative ideas, energy, and vision with a truly wonderful sense of humor and love of life! I had a feeling we'd be friends the moment we met and I'm so glad that came true and that I'm working with her.
As for the showroom----WOW! The team did a TREMENDOUS job and they won the "Best of Floor" display award again this year. Congrats to the team: Colleen Prout, Tammy Hickel, and Debi Baker! I posted some photos below of the incredible moss couch they built for my Patina collection display. Just wonderful.

Here's the lovely Anne Brown and me on the FAB moss couch!

A shot of the collection in the showroom-visit Studio M to see the entire line

Leaving For Atlanta!

I can't WAIT to go to Atlanta tomorrow! That's where I'm debuting my new wire garden decor collection "Patina" for Studio M/Magnetworks. If you're coming to the show, I'll be making fun wire art from 11-3pm on Fri, Jan. 10 and 11-1pm on Sat, Jan.11. The Studio M showroom is in The Gardens, 9-B-84 Building 2. Here's a shot of my large wire drum lampshade on the cover of their new catalog. More pictures to follow and a recap of the show next week!

Patina!

I'm super psyched to be able to FINALLY talk about my debut wire collection for home and garden made in partnership with Studio M/Magnetworks!! Here's a teaser of some of the pieces that will be debuting at the Atlanta Gift Mart this January. This collection includes trellises, hanging planters, garden gates, table sculptures, garden stakes and many other things that will make your garden stand out!

Fun Faux Photos!

Recently my wonderful friend Katrina Revenaugh let me use her beautiful home for a quick photo shoot of my faux taxidermy pieces along with my newest upcoming shop item: a DIY faux taxidermy embroidery panel. Soon you can stitch a pillow to go along with any of my faux taxidermy pieces!
I will be putting this in my Etsy shop by the first week of December and will post a link to it then.

Wire Art Prints

I have now added PRINTS of my wire art to my online shop--and you can choose the size and color! Click on link to the right to go to my Etsy shop.