• Straight edge ruler
• X-acto blade
• Scissors
• Crafting glue
• Paper adhesive
• Hole punch
• Felt tip pen
• Double stick tape
Wendy Addison was born and raised in St. Louis to artist parents. In 1993 she began work in her studio combining her love for art and antiques to create objects that evoke “memories that we don’t know we have”. She used only found & flea market materials, including antique tinsel, Victorian die cuts, old sheet music and silver glass glitter to create a signature look.
Wendy now sells her originals at her own store in Port Costa, Ca., called the Theatre of Dreams, as well as through Tinsel Trading Co. in New York City. Her designs are licensed to Midwest of Cannon Falls, as well as Tinsel Trading Company. She is currently at work completing a limited edition hand bound book of her drawings and poetry, entitled Theatre of Dreams, Notebook for an Imaginary Life. http://wendyaddison.blogspot.com/
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Students will learn how to combine natural materials and Dresden trims and die cut scraps to create a beautiful Victorian Fantasy Lady, similar to ones displayed under glass domes in the 1880’s. Using a variety of mosses, bark, ferns, shells, flitter and other natural materials, students will design and construct a dress for the Lady’s Bust, and print and add a message banner to go around her. All materials needed will be supplied, although students may bring anything they wish to incorporate.
Students will make their own display chandelier (not designed for real candles), for an enchanting addition to their home. Everyone will be allowed to design their own or follow a pattern supplied, in order to hand cut and glitter a three-dimensional chandelier that is easy to dis-assemble and pack and ship. Nothing can compare with the glimmering magic of real German glass glitter, which is made with sterling silver. All materials supplied for $10.
Kathy Curotto, former Style Editor of Mary Engelbreit’s Home Companion Magazine for seven years and previously a Contributing Editor since the magazine’s inception. Produced, styled and crafted many of the features and columns, including Out on a Whim, Handmade, and Pins & Needles. Responsible for the trend pages as well as instrumental in the daily visual construction of the magazine, Kathy brought her unique vision to a team of creative professionals.
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Award yourself best in show with these ribbon prizes. Participants will learn techniques in creating medallions and assemblage. Lots of vintage ephemera, crepe paper, ribbon, glitter, scrapbook papers and accessories, and other goodies will be provided.
• Scissors (including decorative edge)
• Adhesive
• Bone folder
• Personal ephemera, trinkets, photos, etc.
Feather your nest with these birds made from fabrics both vintage and new. Bird bodies will be sewn and ready for you to decorate with hand stitching, stuff, add legs and finally close up. Unique threads, vintage dyed hemp as well as other vintage fabric, quilting fabric, stuffing, wire, millinery flowers, beads, sequins and more will be available.
• Fabric shears
• Personal ephemera, trinkets, photos, etc.
Claudine Hellmuth is a collage artist, author and illustrator. She combines photos, paint, paper & pen into collages with a whimsical-retro style. She also creates custom artwork for clients using their photos!
She has been featured in the New York Times, Mary Engelbreit’s Home Companion Magazine, was a guest on The Martha Stewart Show, HGTV’s “I Want That” and the DIY Network’s program, “Craft Lab”.
In a partnership with Ranger Industries, she’s developed a line of artist quality paints and products under the brand name of, “Claudine Hellmuth Studio”. She has also written 3 books and produced 3 instructional DVDs about her techniques. Claudine’s studio and home are in Washington DC, where she lives with her husband, Paul and their very spoiled pets. http://claudinehellmuth.blogspot.com/
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Join Claudine to make “Sitting Pretty” photo sculptures! In this fun and whimsical 3 hour class, we’ll begin by exploring techniques to make your own fabric patterns using painterly techniques on Claudine’s Sticky-Back canvas. Then we’ll create photo sculptures from your family photos that can sit on a mantel, your computer or a bookshelf.
• A few black-and-white copies of family photos or antique images that you would like to use as your Sitting Pretty head. These should be good head shots from the shoulders up. My sitting pretty heads are usually about 1.75 inches tall for small children (chin to top of head) and 2 inches for adults and teenagers. It would be a good idea to bring a couple in a few different sizes just incase you decide you like a smaller or larger head on your figure.
• Fine-tip black pen (sharpie)
• Scissors (not your good fabric scissors—ones you don’t mind cutting metal with!)
• 2-3 quarter flats of different fabrics for the backing of your figure
• You might also want to bring items to further enhance your sitting pretty: beads, fringe bows, lace, buttons etc, it’s up to you!
• Roof flashing, enough to make 2 figures
• Templates for figures
• Complete instruction booklet so you can create more when you get home
• Paints to share
• Paint brushes to share
• Claudine Hellmuth Studio Sticky Back canvas sheets
In this exciting and fun 3 hour class, you’ll create hilarious puppets from your family photos in a new twist on the Victorian cone puppet! Amaze your friends and neighbors with the incredible moving action of the puppet! Inspired by Claudine’s collages—now brought to life with your own photos!
• A few black-and-white or color laser (not inkjet!) copies of family photos or antique images that you would like to use as your puppet “head.” We’ll be making one puppet in class so you only need to bring photos of the person or pet that you want to create the puppet of. The heads for my puppets are usually about 1.75 inches tall—chin to top of head. Please bring at least two copies of the head you would like to use. We’ll do a transfer technique with one of the copies.
• Fine-tip black pen (sharpie)
• Scrapbook papers or other cardstock to create hats or other embellishments.
• Items to enhance your puppet: beads, fringe, buttons, glitter, ribbon etc, it’s up to you!
• One quarter flat of fabric. Bring any fabric patterns you like to create the body of your puppet.
• Templates for puppet
• Complete instruction booklet so you can create more when you get home!
• Claudine Hellmuth Studio Paints + mediums to share
• Watercolor paper
• Paint brushes to share
• Supplies to create the puppet: cone, dowel, wooden ball
Charlotte Lyons’s creative repertoire includes a happy mix of design, art, and craft—as well as illustrated books she writes about creative life. Trained as a teacher, she has developed techniques for painting, needlework, felting, collage and design that infuse her work with the vintage charm of handmade keepsakes. Inspired by the humble designs of traditional art and craft and the inventive use of repurposed everyday materials, Charlotte’s work has been featured in Country Living, Victoria, Romantic Homes, Woman’s Day, Better Homes and Gardens, Where Women Create, Cloth-Paper-Scissors, Somerset Life, Green Craft and Mary Engelbreit’s Home Companion and on HGTV, CBS and DIY networks. Currently, she designs for licensing and teaches classes nationally.
Born and educated in St. Louis, Charlotte raised three artistic daughters in a bright pink house in Chicago. Presently, she lives in a green house in the lower Hudson River Valley of New York. http://housewrenstudio.typepad.com/
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This (faux) cuckoo clock is made from repurposed cardboard, potato prints and little pieces of scrap fabrics. To make our own, we’ll experiment with painting, printing and hand stitching. Simple sewing skills come in handy, but if that’s not your thing, we can easily work around that. The class kit will provide the materials you need (including the clock mechanism), though you might want to bring some pretty decorative accents (charms, textiles, fabrics) to mix in. All skill levels welcome.
• Paper crafting tools (straight edge, scissors and craft knife)
• A potato
• Masking tape
• 2 disposable foam brushes
• Craft glue
• Needle and thread
When I travel I always take one of these fold-up trays with me. It goes flat for packing, but comes in handy in the airport to manage my needlework projects as a work and storage surface. Then I also use it in the hotel room for jewelry. Made with family photos and lovelies from my vintage stash, it’s a little bit of home when away. We’ll be making these fold-up trays from vintage papers, fabrics, wallpapers, textiles and copies of photos. Your class kit will have everything you need, but I do recommend you bring some favorite images and add-ons of your own. That’s what makes it uniquely yours. All skill levels welcome.
• Paper crafting tools (straight edge, scissors and craft knife)
• Paper adhesive
• Craft glue
• Hole punch
Matthew Mead is a producer, stylist, author and photographer whose work appears regularly in Better Homes and Gardens, Country Living and Do It Yourself as well as his own new magazine, Flea Market Style.
Mead began his career in New York City working as a contributing style editor with Mary Emmerling on her magazine Mary Emmerling’s Country (Gruner and Jahr). His books include Gifts From Nature (Clarkson Potter) Easter Eggs (Chronicle Books), Kid’s Cakes (Chronicle Books), Entertaining Simple (Wiley), Matthew Mead’s Halloween (Time Inc.) Matthew Mead’s Monster Halloween (Time Inc.)
With a well-developed reputation in “how-to” home and food styling, Matthew and his wife Jennifer decided to situate their studio in Southern New Hampshire… “My family is there and the state is so beautiful in all the different seasons. We thought how appropriate to live in the country and produce spectacular images of real New England life,” says Matthew. “So we found an old building and started Matthew Mead Productions. MMP, Inc. as we fondly call it is a full service studio that conceptualizes ideas, scouts locations, crafts projects, and casts models for all types of images.”
“We love what we do, and we always look for new and challenging endeavors… many clients put projects in our hands and let creativity lead the way.” We specialize in lifestyle books, catalogs, and magazine editorial.” Visit Matthew’s website www.matthewmeadstyle.com and his new magazine blog fleamarketstylemag.blogspot.com.
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Crafters will learn how to create images of natural objects to turn into fun and sculptural wall art. We will actually create images using a camera and photo shop and print out created color images to make a “box top” wall collage.
Easy, simple but artful techniques for creating all kinds of artful hang tags for gift giving and interesting display. We will create tags using images, stamps and vintage finds.
Kaari Meng began French General over 12 years ago in an old barn along the Hudson River, in a small hamlet in New York called Grandview. After designing vintage-inspired jewelry for many years for Anthropologie, Kaari stocked the barn with the old beads, buttons and ribbon she had collected throughout France and the bead warehouses in Providence, Rhode Island.
In 1999, French General moved to New York City, where Kaari and her sister Molly, continued to offer treasures found within the flea markets of France in their shop on Crosby Street. In 2003, French General moved closer to Kaari’s hometown, Los Angeles, where she began offering workshop classes on small handcrafts made with vintage materials. Kaari and her husband, Jon, have written and photographed a handful of books, including the upcoming Handmade Soirees, (Chronicle 2009) and Treasured Notions—a collaborative book using the small beauties of Tinsel Trading (Chronicle 2010). This year will mark the introduction of French General’s fabric line, Rouenneries, developed and printed with Moda. Shades of red, old florals and ticking stripes dominate this first collection of old rural textiles—inspired by French life in the 19th century. http://frenchgeneral.blogspot.com/
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Using the basics of beading, students will learn how to make a vintage-inspired charm bracelet from a French General Bracelet Kit. Filled with old glass beads, and brass charms this is the perfect beginners jewelry class. We will learn how to use the three basic tools: needle nose pliers, flat nose pliers and cutting pliers as well as how to open and close jump rings, how to loop beads with head pins, and how to make cabachon charms. Each kit will contain everything one needs to create a complete bracelet. Colors available: antique teal or vintage garnet.
Jewelry kit, tools and glue will be provided. Students may wish to bring any small trinkets or charms that they wish to add to their charm bracelet.
Using a charm pack from French General?s fabric line and antique hemp from France, students will learn how to make soft fabric flowers embellished with buttons, ribbons and stamens. Each kit will contain everything one needs to create a handful of fabric flowers including patterns, pin backs, needle and thread. The workshop will cover the inspiration behind our fabric collections as well as color and design techniques for hand sewing.
Students are asked to bring their own scissors and are free to bring any small scraps of embellishment they may wish to use on their flowers.
Linda Solovic has always loved being creative. Drawing, painting, sewing and making things constituted the bulk of her childhood time. These interests continue to shape her into the creative person she is today. The inspiration and influences for her artwork are not the old masters but greeting cards, quilts, outsider art, vintage 50’s and 60’s children’s illustration, fabric, animated cartoons and movies. She is an avid collector of junk, cast off treasures found at flea markets and estate sales. They are carefully brought back to life in her artwork.
Linda runs her own illustration studio where she works on collages, gift, stationery and product development. Her clients include American Greetings, Hallmark, Scholastic, Klutz, Sesame Street, National Life, Santoro and Design Design. She also teaches illustration and licensed image design at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri. http://freshlyblended.blogspot.com/2009/03/linda-solovic.html
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Have you ever wanted to learn how to successfully work with color and pattern? Then this is the class for you. One of the strengths of my artwork is how successful I am at mixing different patterns and colors to achieve a sophisticated design. I teach illustration at Washington University in St. Louis and I instruct my students on how to use color and pattern. So while you work on your project, I will work with you as a class and individually to help you understand how to use color and pattern to enhance your artwork.
In this class, we will be making a piece of wall art using cut paper, stitching, beading and found objects. Our subject for the wall art will be a vase with flowers. You will receive a kit including coordinating papers, embellishments and patterns for the flowers and vase. There will be several different color palette kits so each student will not receive the same paper and colors. I will also bring a stash of patterned paper and embellishments for the class to share. I encourage each of you to do the same, bring paper, stickers, and embellishments that you feel will give your piece of art your personal touch. Working with your kits, using the class stashes and your own paper and embellishments, we will mix and match materials to create your piece of wall art. As you mix and match these materials I will be there to guide you. When we are done you will each have a piece of wall art that will be uniquely yours.
• Scissors
• X-acto knife
• Glue
• Glue Pen, like you use for scrapbooking
• Eraser
• Pencil
• Ruler
Sometimes the simplest materials, materials you see each day without giving them a second glance, can be used to make a wonderful and unique craft project. As an estate sale shopper, I am always picking up materials and trinkets that I have no idea what I am going to make with them. The item just intrigues me. In this case, I picked up a stash of old colored powder puffs. These powder puffs sat around my studio for at least a year until one day I decided I would use them to create flowers in a piece of wall art I was designing. The powder puffs worked so well, I then decided to create other projects and products using powder puffs.
In this class we will be using white powder puffs to create a Christmas wreath. We will first embellish the powder puffs with designs and trinkets and then glue them onto a floral ring to create a wreath. Each of you will receive a kit which will include the powder puffs, embroidery floss, embellishments and patterns for the designs that will be on each powder puff. I encourage all of you to bring your own embellishments…buttons, sequins, vintage flowers, whatever you have to make your wreath have your own personal touch. I would suggest you bring embellishments that sparkle and blend well for a wintry feel on your wreath. I will also provide a class stash of embellishments for all of you to share. When you are done, you will have a sparkly, wintry wreath to hang on your door or in your home.
• Scissors
• White thread
• Needles
• Glue Marking Pen that fades or washes off with water
• X-acto Knife
