All good things must come to an end....

I know, you are wondering what I am talking about right?  Well, we have lost our meeting place effective 1 January 2012.  It seems the power that be at Baptist Medical Hospital have decided to limit the use of the Azalea Room to health related meetings only.  It was nothing that we did wrong - but the hospital is undergoing renovations (we've heard this before) and will do their training at the Medical Park.  I have checked with West Florida Rehab and they said "NO".  So, we need to find a new place and that is where you all come in - help us find a place to meet and paint.  This will be our main topic of discussion at the next meeting.  Put your think caps on and come with some new ideas for the clubs.  See you on 1 October where Francis will paint the match boxex she brought last month.

Painting Ornaments in August

Ready to paint ornaments again?  This week we will be painting the snowman on the left (taught by me) and Linda will teach a decoupage ornament.  Just bring your regular painting supplies (you will need a small scruffy brush), and pot luck to share with the group and be prepared to paint from 10 am - 3 pm.  Possibly even longer.  We will try to squeeze in three projects.  Lucy was planning to teach this month but she has been quite ill and will not be able to make it.  I know everyone had a good time last month painting with Margaret and making that cute angel with Crystal.  Thank you to both for volunteering your time to teach.  We all appreciate it so much.  Just as a reminder, please bring smaller bills than a twenty - the projects cost $1.00- $2.00 most of the time and the teachers do not carry a lot of change on them - so please, bring one dollar bills.  (there will be no meeting in September).  See you there,

Christmas in July - sorta....

Well, I bet you are all sweltering in this heat.  If it helps you can think about the Christmas ornaments we will be painting this weekend.  We have several people lined up to teach a class so be there at 10 am so we can have a short meeting and get to painting.  Margaret will start with this cute ping pong ball snowman.  I will teach - something - haven't figured it out yet.  Nothing like waiting til the last minute.

I hate that I missed the seminar with Nilda last month.  I heard she was excellent.  I am including a few pics that Barbara took. 

Be sure to bring your regular painting supplies.  The teachers will supply the project and the paints.  See you there,

Ultimate Dog Tease

Mama's Song by Carrie Underwood (with lyrics)

Nilda Rodriquez Pencil Seminar

I know all of you had a great time this weekend painting (or coloring???) with Nilda this weekend.  Pencils seem to be the most popular thing to do now.  I look forward to the photos that I am sure Barbara took.  I received an email from Margaret who spoke with Sherry Nelson recently.  Sherry lives in the hills in Arizona which have had some major wild fires lately.  Sherry's home has escaped the fire and all is well.  This is the website you can check - http://www.inciweb.org/

I will be in New York this week so I will post more about the next meeting which will be our ornament paint in, when I return.  Remember we do not have a meeting in July due to the holiday - we will meet again in August.  See you then.

June Meeting and Paint In

Our next meeting will be June 4th at 10 am.  Sherry will be teaching that fabulous clock ornament she had at the Christmas party and every one fell in love with.  You will need to bring your regular acrylic painting supplies and the following:


Brushes:

# 2 and # 8 Shader          #10/0 long liner         #5 Angle Stippler          Medium Crescent Stencil Brush


· Snowflake stencil or stamp ....if you don't have this, I will have mine for you to use.


· Compass


· Miscellaneous: Matte varnish of choice…Pencil…Ruler…Stylus…Tracing paper…Transfer paper and usual acrylic painting supplies.
 
I will supply the paint, glamour dust, stretchy tape, etc.


Cost will be $15 each member.  This will cover the cost of the clock parts, disc, the shared paint, glamour dust, and stretchy tape.  

If you plan to attend the Nilda Rodriquez seminar on June 25-26, you will need to sign up at the meeting.  She will be teaching the following projects in color pencils and mixed media:

Linda will be at the meeting with the sign up sheet.  You all had so much fun at the Pat Lentine seminar and this one looks to be just as nice.  Of course, we will have a pot luck lunch and afterwards, the members will take Nilda to dinner, everyone is invited.

May Paint In

Our May meeting will be held 7 May at 10 am.  Our President will be teaching a class on pansies.  She will provide the material, just bring your regular painting supplies.  The class will be in acrylic and will cost $5.  She is only charging the cost of copies, surface, and the use of paints so this is a good deal.  Don't forget to bring a dish for Pot Luck Lunch.  I won't make this long - don't have a lot to say so I will enclose a photo and will see you Saturday.

I have still been unable to access my old email contact list so I am going with what I have for now.  As I said at the last meeting, I need you to send me an email so I can add you to my address book.  If you received the notice on the blog update, please forward to any member you have an email address for.  Thanks much.

Please note that the Minutes are published at the top left side of the page under "Minutes".  Please click on it and if there are any mistakes or misunderstandings please be prepared to bring before the chapter at the next meeting.

I know that everyone had a great time painting with pencils with Pat Lentine this month. Wasn't it fun and very interesting. Who would have thought you could layer one color over another to achieve such pretty paintings? If you enjoyed the class be sure to sign up for the Nilda Rodriquez pencil seminar in June. Linda will have the project pictures at the next meeting so you still have time to sign up.

Thanks to all who stayed and helped clean up the room after the seminar. Barbara, our Chapter Historian, took a few pictures of the classes for you to enjoy. As I told you earlier, I have been unable to retrieve my email from Outlook Express since my computer crashed. My new Windows 7 does not allow access to Outlook Express - so please help by emailing this update to any member you may have an email address to. I will be posting later today the projects for the next meeting.

  

R.I.P.

My computer has died - and it was so young. I purchased it only two years ago - a Hewlett Packard. Needless to say, I am very sad because I have my entire list of email contacts and all the important emails saved in folders which I no longer have access to. I have purchased a new Dell but the Windows 7 does not have Outlook Express any longer and that was my primary email. So, I cannot access the converted list of pencils or the pictures for this weekend's class. I hope everyone received their list prior to the computer's demise. This weekend we will host Pat Lentine. The class will start at 9 am, please remember to bring a dish for lunch. I was able to find all the pencils for the class and the paper. The best place to purchase these items was at Lenox Bookstore across from Pensacola State College. They had everything I needed and their prices were actually better than Michael's or Hobby Lobby. If you have any questions about the class, contact Linda. I cannot forward the blog to anyone until I figure out how to get my contact list. In the meantime I hope if you are reading this you will forward to anyone in the club that you have an email address with. See you tomorrow,

March is here already

Can you believe it??? We are already about to have our third meeting of the year. As I said in my last post we have a few things to iron out but it won't take long. And we need to discuss what the club's plans are for this year - then we can eat and have Janice teach her Dishcloth Angel. For the angel you will need:

a dish towel
a dish cloth or wash cloth
and a pot holder (square or rectangle)
five feet of coordinating ribbon (or just bring in your spool of ribbon)
and you may want to throw in a pair of scissors.

Class fee will be $8 with $3 going back to the club treasury.

These make the cutest gifts or to tie to the top of a package for a bridal shower. Something nice and easy to do and I know you will enjoy it.

In case you didn't get the email, the Decorative Painter will be mailed out the week of 7 March but if you can't wait you can check it out on line. They have some pretty projects in it this month.
Enterprise Wiregrass Decorative Painters (click on their name to go to their website) will host Brenda Harris the month of June I believe. Check out their website at http://www.wiregrassdecorativepainters.org/. I don't believe they have made their project selection as of yet. Several of us have attended classes in Enterprise and they are a great group of ladies. Unfortunately, we are no longer able to stay at the military base (the civilians have taken over the temporary housing and raised the rates from $27 to $72 a night). So we now have to get rooms at a nearby hotel. Still we have a lot of fun together.

I apologize for getting this out so late but it has been a busy week - my teeth have been cleaned, my eyes have been prodded, my veins have been drained, the twins have been squeezed flat, and my little nephew has had surgery to replace a shunt in his brain (fourth time) - but I will be at the meeting Saturday. Hope to see yall there.

Happy Valentine's Day

Hope you all have a wonderful Valentine Day. Our meeting last week was interesting. Our new board has some work to do. Thank you Margaret, for teaching the Long Leg Chickens. It was a lot of fun. It is great to be able to paint something without a lot of stress involved. Next month Janice will teach the Dishcloth Angel. I will add more info once I have spoken with her. By now, you should have received an email with the attached list of pencils Pat Lentine will be using in her seminar class scheduled in April.

As a reminder to members, please read the booklet-directory you receive when you become a member of the club. It is the same one we update every year with new members home address and phone numbers. When we vote to have a certain teacher come in for a seminar Linda will request photos of the subjects she is willing to teach. When the teacher sends the photos Linda will put them out for the members to vote on. If you vote on a project you are saying that if that project receives the most votes and is selected, you will take that class. It is the only way the club can be assured we will have enough students to justify paying the teacher to come. If you decide you can not take the class for whatever reason - once you have voted and signed your name to that class you are responsible for paying for that class. However, it is your class and your right to sell it to another painter. If you voted for a project and it was not selected, you are not responsible for paying the seminar fee. Jackie has asked for a board meeting this month and there will be a discussion on this at the next meeting I am sure, so be prepared to voice your concerns at that time.

What has happened in the past is over and done with - let's look forward to a future of lots of painting and good times. In the meantime, have a wonderful Valentine's Day with the ones you love.

Great Chinese State Circus - Swan Lake

February Meeting/Paint In

I know all of you enjoyed Margaret's tips and techniques last month. Sorry I was unable to attend. I have a bug that just won't let go even when I think it is over it snaps right back to me. At any rate, other than a sore throat I am better and I hate that I missed the meeting.

To start off this new year Margaret has offered to teach the Long Legged Chicken Tote at the next meeting. She has found tote bags that are approximately 8 1/2" x 11" for you to paint on. This looks like a fun class so come prepared. You will need to bring the following:

A piece of cardboard to support the tote while painting (about 8 1/2" x 11")

Ultra Fine Sharpie Pen to outline the design

Grey graphite or use the General's Carcoal - 557-HB hard we used in Linda Sellars class

Your regular painting supplies - brushes, water container, tracing paper, palette, etc.

Paints and the tote will be supplied by the teacher. (Tote in picture does not represent the actual size of the tote.)

Cost: $15 per student

Lunch will be pot luck.

Remember the meeting starts at 10 am - PLEASE be on time so we can have a short meeting and get to painting. Also, check the sidebars to see the dates for the meetings this year along with who will be teaching.

I hope you have all received the information I sent out about national teachers coming to our area clubs. If you haven't, email me so I can have your email on file. See you next month,

Brenda

A New Year, A New Board..

Happy New Year to you all!! I hope everyone had a great Christmas. I so enjoyed having everyone over for the Christmas Party. Loved it even though I couldn't get my air conditioning to work until everyone was ready to leave. But I am not complaining - compared to the weather we are having this week I will take a little warmth over the cold any time. We sure have some great cooks in our group and we are always asking for recipes. So I will add another page to our blog just for recipes. Give me a little time to get this done, I'm not as fast as I use to be.

Check out the slideshow of the Christmas party - thanks to Barbara for playing photographer for the evening.

Our meeting will be held on Saturday 15 November at 10 am. Please bring your brushes and regular supplies. We will have a refresher tip and technique day after the meeting. See you there.

Brenda

REMINDER - our next meeting will be 15 January 2011. This will be a tip and technique teaching meeting, especially beneficial to our new members. So bring your regular painting supplies, see you there,

Our Annual Christmas Party

Our Christmas Party this year will be on Saturday night at 5:30 pm on 4 December. We will meet at Brenda's house, enjoy some really great food (bring a covered dish), play Dirty Santa and exchange a few ornaments. We will have several new members attending this year so let me fill you in on how this works.

We all bring a covered dish. I will provide the meat and the drinks. If your item has to be heated be sure it is in the appropriate dish to fit in my microwave oven. We will set up the buffet table - and it always looks so nice with all the food we have. Everyone will find a place to sit, get their dish and proceed to the food line. We eat and talk, then eat and talk some more. Then it is time for the fun to start.

Ornament Exchange - bring up to five ornaments to exchange. They should be handmade/handpainted (preferably) by you or someone else. Put them in a lunch bag and do not put anyone's name on it. We place them all in the middle of the room and everyone draws a number. When it is your turn you get to pull three bags if you brought three ornaments, five bags if you brought five ornaments. This is what I look forward to every year.

Dirty Santa. Purchase a gift (at least $15) and wrap it but do not put a name on it. Everyone participating will have a number. The first person will choose a gift from all of those brought to the party. Then the second person will decide to either choose a gift or steal the first person's present. A gift can only be stolen twice before it is dead. Then it continues until the last gift. The person who picked the first gift then can decide to keep her gift or steal any of the other gifts. It is pretty nice to be number one!!

This is such a special time for our group, everyone is in the Christmas spirit and it is the last time we meet befor the new year. So, please, join us.

I would like to know if you are planning to attend so I can be sure to have enough seats at the tables. Please email me at bcueno@cox.net and tell me if you are coming, I would appreicate it very much.

I hope to see you all next Saturday. I just love this time of the year!!

November Paint In...

Well we won't be painting this month instead we will be making paper flowers with Linda. All you have to bring is SCISSORS (a hot glue gun, a stapler, and spray bottle of water will be helpful also). Linda brought in a few paper flowers last month and there was a lot of interest in making this a class project for November. Don't forget pot luck for lunch and we will see you there.

Although I was unable to make the meeting last month I understand everyone had a great time. Linda Sellars taught fabric painting and everyone went home with snazzy new shirts. We may have to try this again sometime.

Next month will be our Annual Christmas Party. Start thinking about the ornaments you will be giving at the ornament swap - you only have 53 days til Christmas which means you only have 32 days before the party. I will post more in the next few weeks.

See you on Saturday.

NWFSO Meeting 11 September

Well, all I can say is - if you didn't make it Saturday you missed out on a lot of fun. Margaret is so good about teaching and explaining the process that everyone walked away with a very pretty ornament. You see the background - bet you thought we decoupaged it on, right? We didn't. We used a stamp!! Imagine that, a stamp that could give such a pretty background to paint on. Margaret made it all seem so simple. I think we have finished painting ornaments for year, you should have some very nice ones for gift giving or for your tree this year.

And we had a big giveaway of books and some wood products. Edith Davis, a former member, was so generous in donating her Decorative Painters and books/magazines she has collected over the years. Since we had several new members and some who had lost their books either through fire or Hurricane Ivan, it was nice that they were able to pull a few books for their new collections. We can't thank Edith enough for her generosity. She even called to say she had a few more things to donate - I will bring them to the November class.

I would like to remind the members that the raffle we hold every month is a benefit to the club. However, we need donated items from you to continue. We were so lucky to have the Azalea City Chapter donate their books and tapes to us which we have been raffling off, but we will soon run out. Search your stash to find items you no longer need or want or purchase something you find at the store on sale - all items are appreciated. Thanks in advance.

Next month we have invited Linda Sellers over for a weekend seminar. Linda will be painting on fabric. She will offer the Toucan and Seahorse on Saturday and the Ants and a floral on Sunday. Here are two of the items she will be teaching. As soon as I get the other pics I will post them. Don't forget next month's meeting/seminar will be on 2-3 October at 9 am. We always start painting early when we have a seminar so we can get the most painting time in. Lunch will be pot luck. If you have any questions about the seminar, please give Linda a call. I will be out of town so I will not be able to attend. I know yall are going to enjoy this class, painting fabric is much more relaxing.

I will post again towards the end of the month. Til then.

We are still painting ornaments!

We will have our monthly meeting this Saturday at 10 am. Margaret is going to teach the holly and berry ornament. If time permits we may be able to paint one more ornament or we will have a demo. So get your paint brushes together and join us - but don't forget to bring something for pot luck lunch.

Next month we will have Linda Sellers teaching fabric painting. If you haven't signed up do so at the meeting or give Linda a call.

Here is the recipe yall requested from Jane. It was delicious, can't wait to try it out on the family.

24 hour vegetable salad

1/4 cup Tarragon Vinegar
1/2 cup white vinegar
3/8 cup salad oil
3/4 cup sugar
1and 1/2 Tablespoon cold water
(Put in a jar and shake or stir until blended)

In a large bowl:
(You can add or delete any of these vegetables you wish)

1 no. 2 can small English peas (drain and rinse)
1 no. 2 can french style green beans (drain and rinse)
l large onion sliced in rings
l large pepper diced
several stalks of celery diced
l jar pimento drained
fresh cucumber sliced
1 can yellow wax beans (drain and rinse)
1 can red kidney beans (drain and rinse)
1 t. salt
1/2 t. pepper

Mix the vegetables and pour the vinegar mixture over them. Refrigerate. Will keep a long time

See everyone on Saturday.

Painting ornament Saturday

In case any of you forgot, we will be painting ornaments again tomorrow at our monthly meeting. We had such a good time in June and July that we decided to continue the fun into August. I will be painting the little rose ornament and Barbara will paint the cutest little stocking ornament. If you purchased you packet last month don't forget to bring it with you. As always, we will have lunch so bring something to share with the group. See you there.