Hello and 100th Follower Giveaway!

Hello there everyone! I want to clarify the giveaway rules and time sequence. The giveaway is going to run from April 1, 2011 thru April 15th at midnight. I will announce the winner on April 16th. There will be a really cool giveaway prize which I will post later. Here's the rules:
                               
                          1. You must be a follower of this blog.
                          2. You must leave a comment on this particular blog.

That's it folks! Easy Peasy! Love you all and I hope I get a lot of comments cause I love all of the folks that follow my blog and I do appreciate all of you. Don't forget to leave a way for me to contact you. Have a Happy Happy Day!

Barbara

You know you want to check out what's going on with all the rest of the Artsy Bloggers! Here's this week's linkups:

Beading Arts 
Do you like copper and turquoise together? Then you've got to check out this blog.

Creative Dreamer
 The March Creativity Invitation prompt is to create a journal page, and this month June has shared her techniques to create an entire journal... now she's giving that journal away. Come put your entry in!

Eileen- The Artful Crafter
Eileen shares directions for sewing a secret pockets hanger cover. This clever organizer can also be used to organize outfits.

Kim-Flowers and Art
Kim makes a bracelet out of wool roving. Come see how !!

Laura - Taz's Corner
Laura discusses the "art" of words

Made by Nicole
You'd never guess this pretty spring wreath is made quickly and simply with ordinary paper toweFun scrapbook idea for the pirate fan in the family.

The Kid's Fun Review
 Fun scrapbook ideas for the pirate fan in the family.

Cherie Burbach
Cherie talks about what to buy and what to skip at rummages this summer.

Look how close I'm getting!!!

Hey folks, look how close I'm getting to having 100 followers! I couldn't believe how close it was when I checked out my blog today. Sooooo, I'm thinking that I'm gonna have a giveaway! First off I've got to reach that 100 mark and hopefully go a few over. hint hint :-)  Then I'll have a two week period where people can comment on the blog, and then.......I'll have a drawing!!! As busy as it is right now in my life, I'm gonna have to give some real thought into what I'm giving away. I can guarantee that it will be a good thing. Any suggestions out there?  Looking forward to some feedback on this and more followers so this giveaway can start!!! March is Craft Month so I would love to get it started before the end of the month..

Barbara

Want to know what's going on with the Artsy Bloggers? Then link up here:
8 Fun Easter Cake and Cupcake Ideas


Easter's just around the corner, so here are some yummy treats to get you started.



Beading Arts

Cyndi posted a tutorial to show how she made her Bead Soup necklace!



Creative Dreamer

June shares a background technique for the visual journal journey going on!



Eileen - The Artful Crafter

Most silk scarf painting/dying is done with a stretcher frame. But if you don’t want to spend the money on a stretcher and are not planning a detailed design, this easy dye method can yield beautiful results as well.



Kim's Flowers & Art

Kim's goal: 30 journal pages in 30 days. Take a look at her progress.



Made by Nicole

What to do when paint smears ... troubleshooting mixed-media meltdowns.



Moore Gourd Whimsies

Barbara has some exciting news to share!



Yet More Ways to Use Up Rummage Sale Fabric

Cherie makes the third project from the fabric she bought for a quarter.

Such exciting new goings on!

I have had some major changes in my life lately! I must say they have been some really remarkable ones.  As many of you know, I've taken lessons from an extremely talently and nationally known gourd artist by the name of Joyce Campbell. Well we've become very good friends during this past year. I spoke to Joyce a few weeks ago and she let me know that she was going to be moving to California to be close to her mother who is 86 years old now. At that time she asked me if I would like to take over her business so to speak here in Arkansas where I live. I was soooo honored that she choose me to replace her in her classes here!! Of course I said yes and it's been a whirlwind ever since. I will be having classes every Saturday just as Joyce does at Hill Country Gallery in Mountain Home, AR. I'm also now an Associate at that Gallery and am trying to put many Gourd Art pieces in there. Therefore I've been very busy because I've got Gourd Art in several other places too! Here are a few of my current works:

Somehow I managed to cut off a little bit of most of the pictures but hopefully I will get better at doing this, and hopefully you can see enough of the picture to realize what I'm doing. I've been working on several other pieces lately plus I'm making a trip to purchase uncleaned gourds for me and also for my classes tomorrow. It's a 10 hour drive round trip plus some time to pick out gourds so it makes for a very busy day. ( at least 12-14 hours) I've been purchasing a lot of tools and mediums for the classes. Here's a pic of one of the classes and one of the ladies who made a couple of gourd art masks last week:

The classes are so enjoyable and you don't have to be an expert to take a class. The students just really have fun. I even have an 80 year old man who is really good. He and his wife spend the winters in the area and this will give them something to do. He also does stained glass and you should see what he's done with the glass and gourds! I will do my best to get more posts on my blog and do it more frequently. LOL Hope you enjoyed today's post.

Another very exciting and proud moment for me is the fact that I am now a part of the Artsy Bloggers group!! Every week we link you up to everyone in the group so that you can check out what's going on with everyone in the group. Here's my linkies for this week (there are three new bloggers in the group including myself):

8 Fun Easter Cake and Cupcake Ideas


Easter's just around the corner, so here are some yummy treats to get you started.



Beading Arts

Cyndi posted a tutorial to show how she made her Bead Soup necklace!



Creative Dreamer

June shares a background technique for the visual journal journey going on!



Eileen - The Artful Crafter

Most silk scarf painting/dying is done with a stretcher frame. But if you don’t want to spend the money on a stretcher and are not planning a detailed design, this easy dye method can yield beautiful results as well.



Kim's Flowers & Art

Kim's goal: 30 journal pages in 30 days. Take a look at her progress.



Made by Nicole

What to do when paint smears ... troubleshooting mixed-media meltdowns.



Moore Gourd Whimsies

Barbara has some exciting news to share!



Yet More Ways to Use Up Rummage Sale Fabric

Cherie makes the third project from the fabric she bought for a quarter.




Barbara