Road Trip

Road trip! I will be spending the next 2+ weeks teaching throughout southern California and Mexico. And with the "real feel" temperature in NYC a balmy 8 degrees, this trip couldn't have come at a better time. I am excited to be seeing some old friends once again and finally being able to meet some of my long time Internet peeps for the first time as well.

My travels start in San Diego where San Diego Book Arts is hosting my two-day workshop Mixed Media Memoire. If you are in the neighborhood, they are also hosting a Meet and Greet book signing  at McCoy House in Old Town State Park on Sunday 2/2 from 4:30 to 6:00.

From there I head to Long Beach where Orly Avineri and I will be co-teaching If Walls Could Talk - a two-day, texture-making, art-journaling, book-binding experience. I will then be teaching Background Check at Gilding the Lily in Fullerton. Following this, Orly and I get to repeat our collaborative experience If Walls Could Talk again a few days later in Redondo Beach.

I next head to Pescadero on the southern tip of Baja in Mexico where I will be teaching a two-day workshop called El Libro Abierto - The Open Book. This will be held at the amazing home and studio of Patricia Larsen.

You can join me on my trip via my frequent updates on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. And stay tuned for  a recap on my blog when I return home.

If you are interested in taking a workshop with me, you can see my 2014 schedule here. Registration is now open for workshops in NYC, Connecticut, North Carolina, New Hampshire, Ohio, and Australia. Registration will soon begin for classes to be held in Massachusetts, Maryland, and Pennsylvania.

CHA 2014: Post 1

I recently returned from the CHA Mega Show that took place in Anaheim, California. Sponsored by the Craft & Hobby Association, this now annual event brings together manufacturers, retailers, designers and other creative professionals for a blockbuster conference and trade show. Hundreds of companies exhibit their newly released product lines as part of The Marketplace. The Education component includes workshops, business seminars, and demos. Round table discussions, chapter meetings and networking events make up the Community component. And of course, there are endless informal connections happening round the clock.

I have been a Designer member since July 2013 and this was the first show that I have attended. It by far exceeded my expectations and I am happy to say that I met my goals of leaving both exhilarated and exhausted. Of course leaving the single digit temperatures of NYC and spending time in the 80 degree weather in Southern California was an added bonus!

For the many of you who could not attend, the following is taste of CHA 2014!

The event took place at the Anaheim Convention Center.

The weather could not have been better.

So much effort goes into planning and set up before the show even opens.

Day 1 marked the start of the Education Program and the first of my two workshops.

Some of the 51 people who attended my Mixed Media Magic Canvas class.

A special thanks to Spellbinders for sponsoring the workshop and providing their expertise, assistance and product. Also extending thanks to the following companies who graciously donated supplies: Tsukineko, DecoArt, and Fun Stampers Journey.

The show floor opened on Day 2 and the Education Program continued.

The crowd was excited waiting for the doors to finally open.

People eager to see and buy the new product releases flooded the booths.

On the afternoon on Day 2, I taught my second workshop.

50 people attended my Art Journaling: The Basics class.

We even made some art in between all the laughing.

Many thanks to the following companies for generously providing supplies: Spellbinders, Authentique, StencilGirl Products, Tsukineko, Prima Marketing Inc., and Blue Moon Beads.

That evening I attended a Bloggers Networking Reception sponsored by Prime Publishing where bloggers met with company representatives.

I left with both new connections and 4 bags of swag! Thanks for the generosity.

For me Day 3 was filled with meetings, seminars and a few very special events.


My publishers North Light Books and F+W Media had a booth and sponsored a number of book signings. Special thanks to my publicist from North Light Meaghan Finnerty for setting this up. I had a chance to spend time with my editor Tonia Jenny and also with Tommy Semosh from NL.

I had a great time signing copies of my new book The Mixed-Media Artist.

Both Rosaland Hannibal and I are contributors to Quinn McDonald's new book Inner Hero Creative Art Journal, and we joined Quinn for her signing.

On Day 4, I briefly walked the show floor one last time and packed my bags to head back to NYC -- also know as Winter! The show continued for one more day after I had left.

Though I said goodbye to CHA for 2014, you do not have to just yet. Stay tuned for several more posts highlighting the booth, products, and people of the CHA Mega Show 2014. Stay tuned...

CHA Mega Show

This week I leave the frigid temperatures of NYC and head to the sunny skies of California. I will be attending the CHA Mega Show in Anaheim. For my mixed media art peeps who may not be as familiar, this is the annual trade show sponsored by the Craft & Hobby Association. CHA, according to their website, is an "international, not-for-profit trade association consisting of thousands of member companies engaged in the design, manufacture, distribution and retail sales of products in the nearly &30 billion U.S. craft and hobby industry."

This will be my first CHA trade show since becoming a Designer Member last year. I couldn't be more excited and I will be busy every minute. I will be teaching two workshops that I designed specifically for this event. The first, Mixed Media Magic Canvas, is sponsored by Spellbinders and I will co-teach this class with Stacey Caron, the company president. The second workshop is called Art Journaling: The Basics.

I will also be holding a book signing for my newest book The Mixed-Media Artist at the F+W Media booth as well as joining Quinn McDonald as a guest contributor at a signing for her new book Inner Hero Creative Art Journal.

I will be attending a variety of art and business workshops, spending a lot of time at the Spellbinders booth, and meeting many of my online friends for the first time. In between, I plan to "walk the floor" and see the hundreds of companies who will be there, revealing their newest product lines for the first time.

I plan to be a roving reporter and share my experience in real time with all of you via my sites: Twitter, Facebook, and (having just joined) Instagram. Be sure to follow me to see the updates. And of course I will share all this with my blog readers in a series of posts when I return. Looking forward....

New News

I have officially added two new live events to my promotional tour for The Pulse of Mixed Media.

On April 14th, I will be holding a book signing at Barnes & Noble, Rittenhouse Square, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Also attending the event will be contributing artists Leslie Marsh and Karen Cole. The signing begins at 11am.

On May 5th, I will be celebrating the release of the book with an event at Bellevue Art & Frame, in Bellevue, Washington, just outside of Seattle. Contributing artists Leslie Avon Miller and Donna Watson will also be participating. There will be an artist discussion, art demos, and a book signing. The event runs from 12-2pm.

I hope to add more events in the Northeast to my schedule but will not be able to add additional events in any other regions. Sorry Portland. I will miss you!

And please join me today when I co-host the Creative Mojo podcast with Mark Lipinksi. We will be spending two hours, from 3-5pm EST, talking about The Pulse of Mixed Media. Joining us will be 5 amazing, contributing artists to the book: Angela Cartwright, Pam Carriker, Julie Prichard, Michelle Ward, and Lisa Hoffman. This week just keeps getting better and better!

For up to date info on both my live and online events, you can always visit the links on the sidebar of my blog.

Events of the Week

I have a big week ahead for online and live events celebrating the release of my book The Pulse of Mixed Media.

I hope that you can join me live for some. If not, you can be sure I will sharing everything with you on my blog, my Facebook page and over Twitter @alteredpage.

31 Artists/31 Days continues. Join The Altered Page as I present the remaining 6 spotlight artists from my book through March 31. Leave a comment and you will be eligible for my giveaway of 3 copies of the book, 1 of which will be signed by many (and I mean many) of the artists in the book. Look for the names of the winners on my blog on Sunday April 1.

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Monday March 26

I will be in the Hudson Valley in New York at The Gallery Link within the Ellenville Public Library and Museum. I currently have an exhibition of 12 new paintings and 9 new mixed media works on display at the gallery. Also included within the show is the following interactive piece that will hopefully be filled by the end of the night.

The opening reception is at 6pm and it will be followed by an artist talk and book signing at 7pm. Contributing artists Canace and Denise Aumick will also be attending. Detailed information and directions can be found here.

I will be posting images of the opening and of all the artwork soon. And look out for frequent updates in my Etsy shop, as the artwork from the exhibition will be posted and for sale there soon. 

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Wednesday March 28

Join me at 3pm EST on Creative Mojo with Mark Lipinski, a live internet radio podcast. Mark is dedicating the entire show to The Pulse of Mixed Media and I will be his co-host for all two hours. We will be talking about the book and interviewing live five contributors: Michelle Ward, Pam Carriker, Angela Cartwright, Julie Prichard and Lisa Hoffman. This is a call-in show, so please be ready with questions if you like. And if you cannot listen live, the show can be found archived at any time.

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Saturday March 31

Join me for an artist panel sponsored by The Ink Pad in NYC. From 10am to noon, I will be with Danny Gregory, Roxanne Evans-Stout, Jill Zaheer, Karen Cole, Michelle Ward and Julie Prichard to talk about art and the book. There will a Q & A, a book signing, and an opportunity to see art from all the panelists in person. The panel is free but seats need to be reserved at 212-463-9876. Cannot be there? No worries. The panel will be filmed and shown on Create Mixed Media in the near future.

After the panel, I will be spending the afternoon teaching a workshop, which is now sold-out. If interested, you can contact The Ink Pad to be placed on a waiting list at 212-463-9876.

Mixed Media Dossier

Join me in New York City on March 31st when The Ink Pad in NYC will be holding a series of special events to celebrate the release of my book The Pulse of Mixed Media: Secrets and Passions of 100 Artists Revealed.

WORKSHOP

From 1pm to 5pm, I will be teaching a workshop called Mixed Media Dossier. In this workshop you will create a personal dossier - a handmade, mixed media journal that you can use long after the workshop ends. Use it as a daily journal or as a place to record a specific event or experience.

During the workshop you will learn a variety of mixed media techniques for creating texture, layers and dimension that you can apply to any future project.

A simple approach to binding will allow you to literally pull the entire project together and to add pages to your dossier at anytime in the future.

In the end, you will have a one-of-a-kind and highly personal keepsake.

Seats for the workshop are limited and must be reserved in advance. Click here to find out more information about the class and contact the Ink Pad at 212-463-9876 to register. Please note that the supplies for the class have been updated and the final list can be obtained when you call to register for the workshop.

Workshop has sold out. Thank you!

ARTIST PANEL

Prior to the workshop on March 31st, from 10am to 12pm,  I will be moderating an artist panel with contributing artists Michelle Ward, Karen Cole, Jill Zaheer, Roxanne Evans Stout, Julie Prichard, and Danny Gregory.

The panel members will discuss their contributions to the book, answer audience questions, show samples of their artwork, share their personal creative process, and sign copies of the book.

The panel is free and open to the public but you must contact The Ink Pad at 212-463-9876 in advance to reserve a place as seats are limited. This will be an opportunity to have a true insider's view and is an event not to be missed.

The Ink Pad

This arrived in my inbox this morning:

The Ink Pad is in New York City and I hope those of you who are near will be able to attend this day of creative exploration. Stay tuned for more details on my blog soon.