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Hanukkah DANIELLA day

Happy Hanukkah Day 3

I want to tell you about my friend Daniella Woolf.

I will be shameless about my plug !

Daniella is a superstar in the world of ENCAUSTIC (wax) art and she JUST came out with a DVD, which she sent to me for Hanukkah.

I don't even know where to begin.....this DVD is nothing short of AMAZING. Even the packaging is a work of art.

I  follow her BLOG, Encausticolopis. I have taken classes with her twice in CA, been to her house and have seen one of her exhibitions in Kansas City (below)

She has come and visited me in New Jersey & we've schmoozed & had sushi. She has a great sense of humor (evident below in one of our wax classes) where she attempts to engage students in the art of cigar smoking using a torch to light the way !!! Joking...just joking ! You'll understand the whole torch thing after you watch the DVD.

but really......she does wonderful, unusual, inspiring and very unexpected things with wax

 

she'll explain how she 'thinks' and what she sees as 'elements'. You'll see just what she does with her journal papers (sampling below) ...which is fascinating.

 

and what she has done with her mom's old checks...and why.

 

which is nothing compared to what she has done with tea bags.....OMG !

she brings a "textile sensibility" to the ancient medium of encaustic. In her words: "In merging these two disciplines along with my limited choice of materials, I create a newly formed language." and you can see how she does ALL of it in this 2 hour treat for the eyes.

Believe me...you will never want the 2 hours to end. Everything Daniella does is 100% original and very 'her' and very different and did I say....very amazing.

and all of it very achievable.

 

and, she teaches at WaxWorksWest, Corralitos, CA owned by my fabulous friends Wendy & Judy...two other mega talented wax & sculpture artists. I have the BEST friends !

 

 

  Get yourself this DVD....or, have someone else buy it FOR you. Spend the moolah for it.....spend it ! If you love wax it will be the best present you could give yourself.

a note :

 Encaustic painting is the oldest known painting technique dating back over 2000 years. Beeswax is mixed with damar resin to harden the wax and pigment is then suspended in the wax *medium. Each layer of an encaustic painting is fused to the layer beneath it with a heat source. ...the *'medium' used in the video comes from Clairvoyant Encaustics. Her name is Fanne...tell her I sent you !

the Hanukkah Continuum

Oh deer.....

some of you emailed me and asked "Do we also celebrate Christmas"? We don't.

The Lenster and I are both Jewish and we follow those traditions.

Many years back (& for 16 years) I fulfilled the role of cantor in my synagogue. The cantor is the person (& it can be a lay person)  who leads the congregation in music, which is a super important part of the Jewish prayer services.

Once my crafting life became non stop it was hard for me to give full time to both.

Now I am slooooowing everything down because life itself makes that happen ! HO HO HO !!!

But, I am NEVER too old or too tired to open prezzies  like this wonderful paperweight that Julia sent. And...her terrific tip was that she uses one just like it as a weight when she's gluing something. Look for them at Pier 1.

I am a big fan of the funny Anne Taintor products. I have her napkins, fridge magnets and cards. Now I have more..a book and a notepad, thanks to Julia!

and, she never forgets my kitties Mollie (8) & Sterling (17)...and they'll never forget her either..I show them her picture and say "Look what Auntie Julia has sent you" !!! They Meow their thanks & jump up in the air with their little catnip mousies.

This package was wrapped so fabulously. I swear it looked soldered, but I'll bet 10 to 1 it's Platinum UTEE !!!

and speaking of UTEE...this is a little project I did last year for Ranger that uses the wrong side of a canvas so it creates a shadowbox. The dreidels are all UTEE that I poured into a mold I made from a real dreidel. The Hebrew letters are outlined in Tiara GLITZ Stickles.

the little UTEE tiled pictures of me are done using a silicone rubber ice cube tray. Place your photocopy in the tray face up, pour clear UTEE over it.

Oh yeah...& don't forget...there's 20% off everything till Monday on the website.

********** so, as night draws near....********

we have just lit candle #2. A bunch of us got together to take the show on the road.....in the freeeeezing cold we went "Hanukkah Caroling" (if there is such a thing) . Bundled up to the hilt...armed with mega amounts of hot chocolate....spirits high...we sang !

Marshmallow anyone ?

Here Comes Hanukkah

Well....things have been pretty hectic over here. I got on some kind of a whacked out cleaning kick and now I'm in total overload. I'm not as bad as those people on the hoarders TV show...no, no, no..so, don't go worrying about me (at least not yet...LOL)....I'm just trying to stay 5 steps ahead of myself. And tonight....well.....

It's Hanukkah

For starters....a big box was waiting for me on my front porch.

it was from my darling friend Julia Andrus in Utah. It was FILLED with all sorts of wrapped Hanukkah goodies

 

I know the rules...I'm supposed to open 1gift a night for 8 nights....ARE YOU KIDDING ME ! WHAT AM I.....5 years old ??? Not happening...ripping open the wrappings....

#1...a gorgeous jar of vintage German glass glitter....copper colored. Holy Shit ! It matches my hair. The bottle has a crown on it. I am smiling. B-I-G.

more...more....a wallet with a crown. Damn..I am getting sooooo into this. This crown business.....my head is swelling. I think I'm a queen.

 

a crown and pearl necklace on a ball chain. I don't think I can take this..my heart is pounding. My head is swelling. It's crown overload !

well....there is more...but..I am going to make you wait for it so I can share more of Julias fun gifts on Day 2 of Hanukkah.

HOWEVER....not to be outdone....another box arrives

it's from gorgeous Angela Bannatyne in Florida....I can't stand it....It's a CHUTZPAH mug. Chutzpah, for those uninitiated in Yiddush. Chutzpah means: Shameless impudence, brazen nerve, gall, effrontery. In other words....someone who has Balls ! No not Xmas balls...the other kind of balls !!

 

now checkout the inside of this mug...I am flipping out !

so....what does one do on the first night of Hanukkah? Well..it just so happens that this year it also falls on a Friday night.... which is the Jewish Sabbath (called Shabbat) so we go to temple, light the Menorah, have services, have fellowship (called an Oneg Shabbat) and celebrate. I might even have to pretend I'm five and spin the dreidel.

The Lenster gave me beautiful flowers and a CHICOS gift cert.

I Love The Lenster !

and...just so you can be in the same Happy Hanukkah spirit as me....I uploaded me singing the blessing over the Hanukkah candles on YouTube. Why the upload is fuzzy is beyond my technical scope...it was peachy fine when I sent it over.....but...I'm hoping you enjoy it anyway!

To Russia, with love

Forgive me.....been such a busy day today no time for real blogging. But, I did want to mention that we have been really cleaning up the office and we keep finding things we'd forgotten we have there. Sounds like my house after the paint job !

Dove of the East made this GORGEOUS (and I do mean gorgeous) Russian tri-fold set. It's retail value is $50. It comes PACKED with 14  12x12 scrapbook papers, rub ons, 8 sheets of alphabet stickers, a full sheet of acrylic rubber stamps and Russian themed brass trinkets and brocade ribbon. It is an absolutely incredible set.

we have added to it

we are including 10 more items....another $50 worth of Dove of the East luxury brocade ribbons and trinkets and charms and lockets, they all come in organza bags. They are really beautiful. The ribbon alone is amazing...some with mirrors on them.

and we have only 3 sets of these items left......these ALL INCLUSIVE items....meaning...we are offering this $100 value for $50 +s/h and the first 3 people to contact Maureen at the office will have them. There are enough supplies in this deal to last you all year & then some.

We hope you'll help us to clean out some great left over product. We'll all benefit ! Just let Maureen know you'd like them and you and she can work it out in emails or, if you prefer,  over the phone 732-493-1390 M,Tu, Thurs, 8-3 EST.

also.....we've got some extras of my MELT ART MADE EASY DVD.

Now $18.00 +s/h while supplies last. Originally $24.99

The holidays are almost here...great gifts for friends.

Little Life 'Altering' Things

Do you own (or wish you owned) a WACOM graphic tablet. I found something online that I'm passing along. We all like learning stuff...right? So..who cares if you actually have one of these...I just think it might be interesting to learn about it.

Check out some time-saving, wrist-saving, creativity-inspiring techniques made possible by Wacom’s Intuous graphic tablets. This is a special much-requested one-time FREE ONLINE CLASS  and it's tomorrow only. You might want to sign up.

http://creativetechs.com/training

**********************************

so, I promised more house pictures but the weekend kept me so busy I didn't get around to it. (A Round Tuit below...ha ha)

You know my obsession with birds. WELL...I got these fabulous metal bird napkin holders from ZGallerie.

I have a sneaky suspicion that the real reason I bought them is so I could.mold them ! They are a great size...

aaah...Mold n Pour

and then I also got this gear clock from ZGallerie which I'm drooling over

I showed you the living room a few days ago. The family room has a very similar  'feel' to it. I am a totally neutral colors kind-a gal. I like small splashes of pop...like the deep red wall (very feng shui...whatever that REALLY means !) and the funky painting from Home Goods that says "Life is always in Progress".....I'll say ! 

It used to hang somewhere else but I moved it.

  I have unusual things hanging all over...like these art dolls I bought at least 15 years ago. I guess art dolls have remained trendy for a loooong time...just get a bit dusty !

 

they are made from wood and are completely wrapped in cloth. They are amazing up close.

  and I thought I'd also share one of the very first pieces I ever made with UTEE, a heat gun, Perfect Pearls and Mold n Pour. It's still a favorite of mine.

****************************

very excited...a goody came in the mail today from my friend Donna Downey. A full sheet of deeply etched stamps that you can stick to an acrylic block. I'm singing "Oh Donna" in my best Richie Valens' 50's voice...really I am !

this is a gorgeous stamp set. Before I took the individual stamps apart from the set

I poured UTEE freely (no ink needed) over part of the images

added Perfect Pearls

and attached to a canvas

so, on that note....

just want to add a little reminder for Donna's  INSPIRED event

I'll be there teaching along with a bunch of other wonderful people. Donna only needs a few more signups for this to be a sold out event....I'd love for Y-O-U to be one of those who come.

Not quite Hanukkah yet, but....

my synagogue

 

held a fabulous kid-oriented pre-Hanukkah party today.
There was the balloon making girl...and I (being a kid at heart myself) stood in line for one of her creations

real..honest to GOD angel wings !!

and here I am with our Rabbi Brooks Susman..who is a REAL angel !

and the kids had fantastic craft tables where they made their own Menorahs from left over pieces of wood and tile (that's Jen & Jared)

 

great use of wooden thread spools

and metal washers

I mean seriously...these kids had an incredibly good time. They also bobbed for donuts. The trick is you aren't allowed to use your hands

Go Jared Go....

success !!!

 

and then what's a Hanukkah party without potato latkes

with applesauce

and a Kosher hot dog

and Hanukkah Gelt

and a Menorah

and spinning the dreidel

and making Hanukkah Sufganiyot (deep fried donuts)

and playing games

and celebrating everything !

a day with friends and their kids is always wonderful.

Happenstance

Pronunciation: \ˈha-pən-ˌstan(t)s, ˈha-p^əm-\Function: noun Etymology: happen + circumstanceDate: 1897 : a circumstance especially that is due to chance—

hap·pen·stance adjective

and that's exactly how I met Estee Bullock.

This delightful young man happened - by chance - to be sitting next to me on the train today. The Lenster, daughter Jennifer and youngest grandchild Jared (7) went into New York City to see WINTUK  (a Cirque du Soleil production) at Madison Square Garden. More on that in a minute.

Estee had on his headphones and was composing music on his MacBook Pro using the Mac program GarageBand and I was fascinated (being a MacBook pro owner myself !) ...so....I  initiated a conversation. I'm so shy you know !

And, let me tell you...for the entire ride into Manhattan Estee and I shared headphones as he told me all about his marvelous, blessed career writing and singing Christian music. He was on his way to a rehearsal for a play that was featuring his music. It made my ride into the city go so fast and was so wonderful. I have bookmarked him and I plan to watch and follow the fabulous paths his talent will take him on. Plus...now I plan to definitely learn to use GarageBand on my Mac !

If you should visit his site & send him an email or drop a comment...please tell him I sent you. I think he'd appreciate that.

and then, 45 minutes later...the train arrives at Madison Square Garden

 

and we head in to our front & center seats for this marvelous winter show geared so amazingly for kids. If you are familiar with the acrobatics of the Cirque du Soleil shows you'll know that every move they make is a treat for the eyes. This show had lots of skateboarding, bicycling, trampoline, acrobatics & the like, all of which the kids went wild for....adults too !

The cotton candy was served with these hats 

Wintuk is the story of  a boy named Jamie who lives in a city that has entered the season of winter. Although the season has brought ice, long shadows and intense cold, the most important arrival has not come: there is no snow.

Jamie takes it on himself to try and discover what has caused this. On his quest, he interacts with a variety of characters - ranging from high-energy urban street characters, to giant dogs, to talking marionettes.

At the end of the show Jamie comes home to Wintuk and the "paper snow" opens up from the ceiling of the theater and everyone goes wild.

 

and Jared pretends to catch them as if they were real flakes !

and they are EVERYWHERE !!!

When we leave to go home the weather has deteriorated outside and the snow is for real....

But we grab the return train home and all's well.

That's life...total happenstance !

Total happy !

oh....The weather outside was frightful

But the fire is so delightful,

And since we've no place to go,

Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!

(which it will tomorrow I understand)

in the meantime, The Lenster and I did go to a Holiday Party in Brooklyn, New York right near the Verrazano Bridge. The decorations were lovely

 

and the food was pretty fantastic. These were just a few of the appetizers

 

and the Italian dessert pastries. The Lenster sucked up the canolies before I could get a picture of them.

 

and, even the ladies room had lovely decor

 

tomorrow we're off to New York City to see WINTUK, Cirque-du-soleil.

We're taking Jennifer and 7 yr old Jared....I'm expecting us to have a great time and we're taking the train in...that's always cool...especially when it snows.

*********

but...before I hit the sack...here's another cool offer for someone who can use these fantastic corner rounders (1 is an 1/8 rounder, the other is 1/2 inch rounder)

they retail together as a $50 set. They are yours for $30 set. They're beautifully made by the people who make the Bind It All book binding machine & system.

Just email me if you're interested.

In a Bind

Okay...I know this seems ridiculous...BUT...let's give it a shot anyway...

I have 38 one inch cloth (like canvas)  bookbinding tape packages, 7 assorted colors, left in stock at the office. I'd forgotten all about them. They retail for $3.99 a set. Two per set. That's 76 bookbinding tapes.

I'd love for them to go to someone who makes books and can really use them. So...I'm going to offer them - all or nothing -  for $76. That's basically wholesale. You have to take them all.....

If that someone is Y-O-U just email me and I'll send them off to the the very first person to do so. S/H is whatever the U.S. post office says it is and, just so there is no issue with customs, I'd prefer U.S. buyers only..please.

The Lenster and I are off to a holiday party - the first of a few I have a feeling - 

in the meantime...here's another view of how the house is coming along. Living room area. Closeups (of some pretty unusual stuff ) tomorrow !

we go together

It's off to bed for me...it's been a busy day now that the painters have gone.

Re-thinking all the art I have in the house (warning: You will NOT see a single TRADITIONAL thing in Weinbergland. !), wanting to move some of it...change things up a bit, make old things look fresh, different.

So...I have rearranged the stuff over one of the couches and that's all I've got time for tonight to post. But, I do LOVE the idea that many of the pieces in my house came from art that my friends have made, art that I've found on my trips and some of it from me. I'll post as things go up on the newly softly painted light grey walls.

I like groupings.

I've had this calligraphic mirror for umpteen years. Its one of my favorites. I found it at a New York Stationery show many years ago. It was part of a booth display  & I convinced them that I just couldn't go home without it...so..they took it down from the display and I gave them good ole American cash!

The backgammon piece, as you know from a few days ago, I just put it together. and then...whaddya know....lo & behold..I found this old set of word cubes we'd bought years ago (remember them ?) and I placed it on top of the board. You can take out the cubes and make all kinds of new and fun sayings with them...or, you can make dirty, sexy, silly or just plain nutty sayings.

It currently says "do speak love not screaming wicked obsessive details" whatever the heck that means in real life !!!  

Then I had this clock that I'd bought ions ago. It never quite worked right (The Lenster finally fixed it tonight) so I hung that too. It fit right in with the other stuff, It's just made from a chunk of wood..that's it. Someone slapped on a few vintage looking items and that relegated it to the status of a much wanted item!

and, lastly...you saw the cabinet card piece when I blogged bout it during the summer. It's a rare find. It's really kind of old I think.

well....the idea is they all work well together just like the song says and now Im off to work together with my bed...I am pooped !