Myrtle was Mobile at the Mardi Gras!

This was my "plan B". The Myrtle (mini) float. I had to make Myrtle mobile so I could pull her around at the (newly located) Mushroom Mardi Gras this weekend. You should have seen the looks she got! People loved her! I draped a little red wagon with some embossed silk fabric and tulle. Then I set Myrtle on her stand inside the wagon and gave her a little skirt to hide the ugly metal stand. I displayed some of my collages around the bottom at the base of the stand. As I was walking with her, a group of teenage guys passed by and said "wow, that's way cool"! lol! I wheeled her all over the festival on Saturday and Sunday and handed out my flyers (below). Hopefully I'll get some calls for my classes. I listed my workshop dates and times on the back of these little flyers which are the size of a quarter of a sheet of paper.

A couple of my 11x14 collages (below) that I revamped for display on the Myrtle float.

"Old Hollywood" Collage on Canvas

"Touch of Tuscany" Collage on Canvas

Prep for Mushroom Mardi Gras Festival

I made the flyer (at the bottom) to hand out at the Mushroom Mardi Gras festival next weekend here in Morgan Hill, CA. The flyer actually looks a little different than this but for some reason it didn't copy over to my blog in the same font and text size that I used. This is basically what it looks like though. I am placing four of these on a page so each one is a quarter of a page in size. I'll copy them on brightly colored paper and cut them using the paper cutter at the copy place. They will be small "handbills" to hand out to people at the festival. Then when someone seems interested and wants more info. I'll give them a more detailed brochure/schedule. Beautiful "Myrtle the Mannequin" will be with me.

Hopefully she will attract attention and interest some people into wanting to know more about Collage Cafe Art Studio! I'll be setting up a MySpace this week and I still have to paint two racks/cabinets, move all my stuff in, hang my art /decorate, get the copies done, get my hair cut and cover that damn gray, etc... etc.... etc...! Yikes, I'm coming down the home stretch! I better get my "butooty" in gear! (did I spell that right?) Well there won't be much time for sleep this week! I'll need the old cover stick under the eyes at the festival. Oh, nevermind, I'll just wear my sunglasses instead, lol!

Collage Café
Art Studio
* Collage * Altered Art * Assemblage

Open Studio
Every Friday Night
7 – 9 pm
$ 25.00 @ the Door
*Choose a Project *All Materials Included

*Beginners Welcome *Teens to Adults

17415 Monterey Rd. #202

(2nd floor above "Just Breakfast")
Morgan Hill, CA 95037

*Monthly Workshops
*Custom Art Parties available

Contact: Stacey Dean (Artist/Instructor)
stacey.collagecafe@gmail.com
www.collagecafe.com
www.collagecafe.blogspot.com
www.myspace.com/collagecafe

Best Mother's Day Gift!

I forgot to tell all of you what a wonderful Mother's day I had. It all began when I found out on email that I had received a two year subscription to Somerset Studio Magazine from my husband for Mother's Day! He also informed me that "it comes with a free clip art CD"! This sounded so funny coming from him because he genuinely sounded excited about it. Usually if I show him something in my Somerset he tries to seem interested but I know otherwise. I told him this was the best Mother's Day gift he could have gotten me!!! I'm so excited! I just got the current issue of Somerset and Cloth Paper Scissors so I know what I'll be doing tonight. I hope tonight when I go to sleep I have "visions of collages dancing in my head". Or... maybe I could have "champagne wishes and collage dreams"! Okay that's enough already, ha! The remainder of my Mother's Day was spent at my bff's house for a BBQ where I had entirely too many mimosa's causing quite a headache, but it was fun!

Birds of a Feather

Here is a cute little birdhouse that I made. I love the new trend of birds, nests and eggs. I've been seeing a lot of them the past year or so. I've even seen them at Anthropology. There is something so comforting about them. I'm seeing lots of aprons as well. I think everyone is especially needing comfort and security right now with the state of the world, etc... These things really represent a feeling of home and security to me.
I found this little birdhouse at the Dollar Tree. It was painted an ugly orange color and had some weird flower painted in it. Believe me it wasn't cool. So I painted the entire thing burnt umber. When that was dry, I painted crackle medium all over. I let that dry for about 30 minutes and then painted on a coat of Italian sage. As it dried it began to crackle. I took a wet sponge and rubbed off some of the sage paint in other areas to make it look aged and weathered.
I decoupaged pictures of seed packets, birds, nests and flowers on to the house. I had a painted and rusted small Altoids tin that I had made so I broke off the lid and decoupaged a picture of a bird inside of it. I glued it over the hole of the birdhouse. I glued moss, tiny eggs from the craft store, seeds and feathers around the front and sides. I glued a small scrabble letter "B" in the corner of the tin. If I were a bird I would love to live in this little house, except how will I get in? My door is glued shut, lol!

Collage Cafe Art Studio

I spent all night (till 1:30am) painting the new studio. That's me on the ladder and yes, that's wine on the shelf below to the left. One must have inspiration! Good thing I didn't fall off that ladder! That's my daughter Natasha (below). It was so good of her to come and help me paint and keep me company. Thanks sweetie!
As you can see the studio is becoming a lovely shade of "bambooish/sagey" green. A "new color" that I mixed myself with some left over paint from Becky (bff) and some other paints I already had. I also mixed in a few little bottles of folkart acrylic colors. I actually wanted the color to be lighter so I kept mixing in white but it didn't seem to make much difference. Finally we just went for it and, well, it's pretty darn green, but I'm really liking it. The room has a good earthy, happy, feeling. I'm starting to feel right at home. It's like my new little creative nest is being born. I can't wait to start moving in. I'm going back today to do paint touch ups. Then I'll clean the floor which is a beautiful hardwood and then start moving in. I want to be all in by the weekend and hang up my art and display my class examples. Next week I'll update my brochure and summer class schedule and make flyers to hand out at the "Mushroom Mardi Gras" festival here in Morgan Hill (May 26 & 27). If you're in the area please stop by and say hi!

Mommy and Me Collage Time

Mom and I worked on collages together when I was in AZ visiting. This was my Mom's first attempt at collage on canvas. She usually paints and sews so she wanted to try something different. She was a natural at it! I worked on an 8x10 canvas for my sister and brother-in-law. It has a sailing theme using a picture of their sailboat and other sailing elements. Here is the initial layout (below). I arrange and lay everything out and then I take a digital picture of it. Then when I take everything off to start decoupaging, I have the picture to refer back to so I don't forget. Thank God for digital cameras! Here is the finished piece (below). It was displayed at an auction to advertise a sailing trip on their boat being auctioned off to raise money for their children's school. It is now on an easel in the den of their home. Here it is being displayed at the auction (below).
Here is Mom's collage layout (below). The style is "shabby chic/cottage, what else! I don't have a picture of the finished piece because she was still working on it when I left AZ. This is good start though don't you think? Hurry up mom I want to see how it turns out!

I'm Back from Arizona!

Actually I've been back for 3 weeks now but I've been so busy getting my new studio ready that I haven't had time for blogging. My 2 weeks in AZ were wonderful, fun and relaxing. Mom and I went shopping at this awesome antique mall. There were rows and rows of booths with everything you could imagine. It was like going to a history museum. We spent at least 4 hours in here looking at everything.There was a darling "shabby chic" booth that my Mom fell in love with. She is very into the whole cottage look and has decorated her entire house this way. So cute!


I bought some cool old photos (adopted ancestors), some antique silver teaspoons and some old fashioned clothes pins to incorporate into some of my future collages. It was a fun day!