Run don't walk....Big Giveaway

This is the "Giveaway of all Giveaway's!" FAVECRAFTSBLOG is giving away Lisa Pavelka Signature Series Polymerclay tools and DVD...

The deadline is April 3, 2009 at 5:00 pm CST.
There are several options to get your name in the hat too!
Don't miss this opportunity to get a set of "Top Notch" tools and Lisa's DVD... :)

Weeping Willow and Ice Storm 2009

Its been a real bad one here in Kentucky...over the past week we got several inches of snow...then a horrible ice event arrived.....couple more inches of snow ending the storm...there are still over 300,000 without power..17 people have lost their lives...I had several family members in the Louisville area without it for 24 or so hours...and close friends in "The Knobs" in Indiana had a tree come through the 3rd story of their home and also no electricity for a few days.....so again I am feeling so Blessed ... I planted a Weeping Willow in memory of my Mom and Dad in our yard years ago...

*We had one in our side yard when we were growing up...we spent a lot of time there...when I was very young I had a play house next to the tree....and we would sit at the picnic table with neighbors and friends and just shoot the breeze!...

That's ME!...and my playhouse...****hhmmm maybe we pulled out a lawn chair to two too!!...that's our weeping willow right there with the chairs leaning on it.....

I planted this weeping willow in our side yard several years ago....as you can see we had a pretty bad ice storm in 2003..and I thought this picture was depicting a true weeping willow! :) It recovered and grew into this massive one pictured below....

You can see the damage the Ice Storm of 2009 has caused this once beauty...:( I will do my best to save it.... I hope you and yours are safe and warm...or cool if you are in a warmer climate!....I will leave you with a few more pictures I snapped from our yard....

View from my Studio window...

The "GateKeeper" I love the icicles hanging from his cheek, nose, and chin... *His expression kills me!!!... Blessings~Melanie:)

Ya Gotta have Faith

I was enjoying my morning coffee.....making my rounds on the net....when I found myself in my 2 basenjis favorites folder....I went here to visit their breeders site..... and thought I would check in on FAITH when I scrolled down to The Latest News and found there will be a new addition to the family....please take some time to read about Faith, her forever family, and see if you aren't just as touched by Faith as I am....God can do anything..."if you don't have Faith you really have nothing" <**that is what my heart says!....and that is what gets me through each day!....now that I found Faith the biped dog she has brought me closer to God and I thank you for that girl!....

I want to share my little friend I named Faith...I found her outside my studio window and captured this photo....

now if this squirrel can hang upside down with her tops of her feet against the feeder and having no tail to balance with and have supper at my bird feeder... then that view of Faith gives me strength ....

I will leave you with....And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love. 1CO13:13

Blessings~Melanie:)

Kudos Ron Lehocky :)

I don't have a subscription to PolymerCafe as of yet so I have been bugging my poor Barnes & Noble store for over a week to get my copy of the Feb. 09 issue... by golly it came in and I just got finished thumbing through it.... reading Ron's article....I knew that he was going to be featured in this issue....showing his heart techniques...and sharing his passion for children faced with physical or mental challenges....I have 3 of Ron's beautiful hearts and I wear them proudly!...I just felt so compelled to get to my Blog and do a post featuring Ron.... I am one of the blessed *(approx. 20 members) of The Kentucky/Tennessee Polymer Clay Guild that get to spend time with an Artist/Humanitarian like him... :) Ron was featured at Polymer Clay Daily recently....again hats off to you Ron!...I cannot wait until we all get together again....I just hope it's soon...I need a polymer clay fix!....also I meant to post this photo from our last Retreat in my previous post...I will add it here OK?

...Thanks I feel better now!....look close and you might see some familiar faces....of course Marla Frankenburg and Kim Cavender....*they were there to teach us for three days....but...hmmmm....is that Leslie Blackford I see right there?....and on her right....*our left...that is Cynthia Tinapple from Polymer Clay Daily...wow there is Ron Lehocky in the back perched up on the railing....I hope everyone that spends time here reading my blog is having the most Wonderful of Holiday Seasons and I wish you the Hap, Hap, Happiest of New Years!

Can We Catch Up?

Good Golly Miss Molly....where do ya start?...We will just say sometimes Life just happens and ya gotta do what ya gotta do from time to time...*and you are thinking what the Hell is she talking about? :) Life you know? I will start with where I left off a couple of months ago...with the contest...I didn't win...but I guess in the end I did win because I have a pretty much good to go Studio now! YEAH!... just more work on the organization part... Here is a picture of my work space all cleaned up.

and check out how this desk drawer worked out for my Premo!...I got this desk from a grade school that closed for only $10.00 and it even came with a "rat fink" in one of the drawers!

Now on to Key Mammoth Cave Retreat with Marla Frankenburg and Kim Cavender last October....* mental note:I have got to find more time to Blog! I had the best time with this group of talented people...Marla rocks!...If you ever get a chance to take a class of hers....do it!

Marla and Me!

an example of some of the different canes we learned how to make...

the flowers I made and the leaf and fern are Marla's work... *not bad for a novice like me!

When I met these two ladies and sat down at their workspace....It felt like I was at home...it's such a warm fuzzy when a friendship results in only 3 short days...They are Ellen Prophater (on the right) and Sue Sutherland (on the left) of Studio Shoebox...They do such beautiful work...I hope to make the trip to their home in the future to build on that friendship thing!! :)

We had a grab bag game where everyone made something from polymer clay....it was so much fun...what really set it all off is when it came to Kim Cavender's turn to pick a bag...and who's did she get...mine....I proceeded to tell her... "Kim put it back"..you don't want that one...believe me Kim...pick another...well she opened it and it was a necklace I made from her tutorial in Polymer Cafe June 2008 issue....when she opened it I said... "I told you so!!"...needless to say it was a good thing I had on my Depends!!...we all had a good laugh!!... *just kiddin on the Depends thingie!... hope I just made you laugh too!...

Susan Detwiler ended up with my necklace..and she was tickled to death as well as I when I saw how happy she was to get it!...

When it was my turn in the grab bag game I got a pair of earrings that Ellen and Sue had made!..Man oh man I was on cloud 9!!....here they are with a larger piece they gave me to make a necklace out of...awesome work...organic....stunning.... :)

Here is Leslie Blackford sporting her pair of earrings:

I played around the past couple of days in my clay...it's so hard this time of year to find the time to create....any who...I made this ornament for my newest Granddaughter Kiley...I covered a large Christmas bulb with a Skinner Blend....used some gold and silver Premo! mixed for the base of the bulb and notice the detail at the top where it will be hung...anal me...attention to detail....now I only have 4 more ornaments to make for the remainder of the Grand-Kids!

and last but not least my baby boy Sheldon turned 3 years old on the 15th....

Happy Birthday Sheldon! :)

I hope You and Yours have a Wonderful Holiday Season.... Be Safe....and God Bless You Everyone!....

THE END

This is the "Real Deal"....Reality Post

Lila of Lila Tueller Designs posted last month about the real deal!...How you can make everything you post on the net look so together....and you know so much of our time is spent sipping coffee in our p.j.'s at our computers...Now Chelsea from Vintage Chic is having a contest...The messiest creative space contest!! Who-da thunk it?.... so without further ado...I will let my pictures speak for themselves!

Whew...glad that's over...yes people this is the real deal...a narrow...kinda long room...my office/polymer clay studio...Lila and Chelsea my sewing area is in our living room and much neater in appearance...You know the room where guests come into your home through the front door?...I would just die if they came in through the back door!!...they would walk straight into this mess!... :) Some of this is packed up....a great deal of my polymer clay because I attended a Polymer Clay Retreat in Mammoth Cave Kentucky... with Artists Marla Frankenberg and Kim Cavender last weekend and I haven't unpacked yet...so I will clean up before I unpack...and my next post will be all about our retreat....it was a good-un!

"Blackberry Somethin" Recipe

kerry you asked for it so here it goes:

Blackberry Somethin

• 1 cup margarine *( I used butter)
• 2 cups flour
• 2 cups of sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 5 cups of fresh blackberries
• 2 cups or less of sugar

(heat fruit and 2 cups of sugar until bubbly)

Melt margarine and pour in 13x9 inch dish

Mix flour, 2 cups of sugar, baking powder, then add milk

Spoon mixture over melted margarine

Pour heated berries over dough
Bake 350* approx. 35 minutes

ENJOY!