Thursday, June 16, 2011

Unmasked Retreat Update

Well its taken awhile to finally get my feet back on the ground.  Slowly catching up with things.  With the Brisbane Expo last week its pretty much taken until now to stop and take a breath – but its more like a gasp as next week Al and I are off again to New Zealand to SENZ to take some workshops over there.

I really want to say a huge THANK YOU to everyone who attended the Unmasked weekend and made it such the success it was.  It was awesome.  We have had so many positive comments coming back which has been lovely – so thanks so much everyone.  Naturally there are things that we will also try to improve on for next time but for the first one i think we did pretty OK.

Thanks heaps to the girls who took the classes and to all of you who participated and got their hands “dirty”…hehehe i just loved watching those of you who are usually very “clean” crafters trying to do the mixed media projects and keep hands clean (not looking at anyone Lynette) …. i don’t think so….

Massive thank you to Al for all her help, to Bec, Sherry, Chez and Lynette for your classes and make and takes. And for you lovely ladies who helped set up and clean up – we couldn’t have done it without you. And also to the Geelong Conference Centre’s staff – for just making it all so easy to arrange and your help but most of you to all you lovely ladies for getting in there, mixing, making new friends, taking off those masks, being YOURSELF and having fun…..

Until next time……

Here are a few pics of the weekend to remind us of the fun we had…

Thanks again everyone for one of the best weekends i have had in a long time.

For more fun – if any of you are interested.  The 3rd Annual Scrapbooking Cruise is now taking registrations. For more information you can download a brochure HERE.

Sunday, May 15, 2011

Day 1 Schedule and Need to Bring

Not long now.
Here is the first day schedule.  Especially for you girls who are coming from Interstate - there is plenty to do if you arrive early as the Conference Centre is located right near the Botanical Gardens and The Geelong Foreshore.

Can drop of bags whenever you arrive in Geelong
Check in to rooms from 2pm
Register 5pm
Dinner 6pm
Class 1 commences 7.15pm (flexible)
Free Scrapping 9.30pm onwards

Ok girls here is the list - there may be a few exta things added over the next day so please check back her day before you leave.  We are trying to have a stash of some things in case you may forget something.

GENERAL LIST
CUTTING MAT - this is not optionl
General Scrapping tools
Old clothes
Apron
Baby Wipes
Adhesive - e.g. Pritt or something for embellishments
Ribbon Adhesive if you want to use ribbon/lace
Tape Runner or tape
Scissors (for fine cutting)
Craft Knife
Rubon Tool
Stapler
Tweezers
DIstress Tool
Sanding Block
Acrylic Block
STazon or Memento (a permanaent ink)
Black/White Journalling Pens
Distress Ink pads - Frayed Burplap, Old Paper, Walnut  (will be a couple to share but if you have your own it would help)
Scrap Dots (if you have any of your own - again will be a tube to share)

SHERRY's Class
Modge Podge (if you have any) - we will have some to share
Favourite decorative punch (we will have some to share)
An old Womans Day or similar
7 Gypsies or Tim Holtz tapes (washi tapes)
If you have a bag of your favourite scraps of the following
-  cardstock or patterned paper that is your favourites
-  rub on alphas (will have some to share)
-  mini letter stickrs (will have some but you may have some coloured ones)
-  other stickers you are in love with
-  heat gun (if you have room in your suit case)

MEL's Class
- a desire to get dirty….lol (hands only girls)
- photograph of yourself (well just from neck up) Head to be approx. 4cm wide, 5cm in length  (THIS IS NOT OPTIONAL....lol no excuses )…
- any stencils or masks that you love.
- lace, paper doilies or buttons etc that holds any sentimental meaning and would like to include on a piece of artwork
- any old fave rubons etc

As with Sherry’s class we will supply a table worth of products to share but feel free to bring some of your favourites along if you have any – again this will show you how to use up some ‘older” things that you have lying around and turn them into something completely in vogue now

Al's ClassPhoto Required:
6" x 4" - cropped down to 5" x 4.5"

Optional Kit
Bring along 6 – 8 black and white photos of yourselfe.g. types of photographs, where you have been, come from, things you have achieved, something you used to do and wish you did again, things you would love to do, dreams. Anything that tells a story about yourself.
This kit will be available for you to scrap but we won't be going through this is a class format.

Monday, April 25, 2011

What are you waiting for -

IMG_3796
This last two weeks have been a perfect example of what you can achieve if you really want something and take a hold of your dreams… (more of that on my blog)
Too often we put ourselves in little boxes and live up to other peoples expectations and ignore our own dreams and aspirations.
I struggle to live up to my own expectations let alone trying to do what others are expecting from me.
You know what thing that has really struck me between the eyes the past few weeks is this:
LIVING up to OTHER people's EXPECTATIONS make the REAL YOU INVISIBLE…..  You have to be yourself.
The Unmasked Retreat’s purpose is to encourage the ladies to be themselves, in a comfortable and friendly atmosphere where they won’t have to worry about what others think either of them personally or of their art. They will have the opportunity to try new things and possibly rediscover dreams that may have had hidden away in their hearts and hopefully by the end of the weekend they will leave more confident - personally and/or creatively.
We will be running numerous classes, make/takes and spoiling these ladies with product and giveaways all inclusive of the cost.
If you have been thinking of coming this is your very last chance - we are leaving registrations for the Unmasked retreat open until 6th May….  Don’t miss out.
Why not ask hubby to spoil you this Mother’s Day.

Thursday, March 31, 2011

another EXCITING class

Class Three:  Wall Art with Lynette Carroll
For all of you who are attending Unmasked we are really excited to announce that Lynette Carroll WILL be coming down for the weekend and is going to teach one of the workshops.  And OMGosh, – its stunningly gorgeous.  If you know Lynette she does the most amazingly intricate stunning beautiful  (do you get the picture) projects and both Al and I were extremely excited when she agreed to come and take part in the weekend.
Portrait 1For those of you who don’t know Lynette, she is a former scrapbook store owner and has taught at trade shows and consumer conventions extensively throughout the United States and in Japan, The Netherlands and Australia.


Lynette’s work has been published in “PaperCrafts”, Paperworks”, “Cards”, Paper Trends”, “Scrapbook Creations”, Scrapbooking Memories” magazines and her work has been featured in several overseas magazine publications in Japan and Australia.
Being one of the original design team members for K & Company, she spent 5 years creating projects including scrapbook layouts, cards and altered projects for product packaging, idea booklets, company catalogs as well as projects for trade show booths.

Lynette has also been a design team member for EK Success Brands (including Martha Stewart Crafts, Inkadinkadoo, EK Success and Dimensions) and Cosmo Cricket in the United States and Delish Designs in Australia.
We saw a little snippet of what she has in mind for you all and it has blown us away – YOU ARE GOING TO LOVE THIS CLASS.  Not only are you going love the project but you are going to be using product that has not even been released here in Australia yet and quite possibly be the first to use this collection in a class. 
Further information on this class will follow soon.  Stay tuned.

Tuesday, March 8, 2011

a little class info…. things to collect

Class details are still being finalised but thought we would give you a little insight into a couple of the classes.  We would like you start looking in your scraps and putting away a few things to bring along with you to Unmasked.  All product WILL be supplied to do the class and we will have a stash of the following things to share but a couple of the classes are designed to show you how you can use up some of your own personal stash – therefore if you have any of the following that you love or something that means something to you, and still haven’t used them, well now is the time– they will come in handy for one of these classes – these won’t necessarily be held in this order.

Class One:  A WOMAN ON A MISSION(Sherry Mendoza)
Sherry bio picSherry Mendoza is from Sydney, she is part of the Tattered Angels, Helmar and  White with 1 design teams and until recently the Technical Editor of Scrapbooking Memories. 

She is the organiser behind Your Creative Journey http://www.yourcreativejourney.wordpress.com/ where she arranges workshops from local and international artists.  Check out this as there may be some classes you would love to attend – after Unmasked of course!!! 
In this class the lovely Sherry will teach you how to make an arty journal out of ----- ----- (try and guess – i wouldn’t have believed it unless i saw it with my own eyes)  you WILL be getting your hands dirty  (come on girls try to get over it and to get used to the idea – hmmm messy hands – i love mess) using glimmer mists, glimmer glams and paint. You will also learn how to use up your stash of bits and pieces and there will be journalling involved!
So if you have any of the following – stash them away.
- Tim Holtz or 7 Gypsies masking tape (only if you have it already – don ‘t go out and buy) – OK you can if you must.
- Old Rubons – black or white
- Alpha rubons
- Various alpha stickers in a variety of colours and sizes

You don't have to bring above if you don't have - we will have a stash of things to share - but you may have some of your own that you would like to use....

Class Two: SHE is an ANGEL in Disguise (Melissa Kennedy and Al Hannah)
She is an angel in disguise – (NO im not talking about myself), She is something, made from nothing,
She is delicate, but still strong,
She is torn but still together,
She holds pieces of the past and the future,
She is a reminder that all things are possible,
She is a work of art – YOU!

p1020249
Gosh its awkward writing about yourself but for those of you who don’t know us, we both work for Kaisercraft and have taught at numerous expos, conventions both here in Australia and o/seas.
In this class we are going to have lots of fun going completely off the page and onto a canvas.
Before we give too much away we would like you to start looking in your stash for any of the following;
- old dress making patterns (tissue paper – only need one)
- any stencils or masks that you love.  We will have some but you may own a favourite
- any lace, paper doilies or buttons etc that holds any sentimental meaning and would like to include on a piece of artwork
- any old fave rubons etc
- any favourite printed paper that you LOVE but haven’t brought yourself to use – though bear in mind this will get ripped.
As with Sherry’s class we will supply a table worth of products to share but feel free to bring some of your favourites along if you have any – again this will show you how to use up some ‘older” things that you have lying around and turn them into something completely in vogue now.

You will need for this class;
- a desire to get dirty….lol  (hands only girls)
- a photograph of yourself (well just from neck up)   Head to be approx.  4cm wide, 5cm in length…

Class Three:  Wall Art with Lynette CarrollFor all of you who are attending Unmasked we are really excited to announce that Lynette Carroll WILL be coming down for the weekend and is going to teach one of the workshops.  And OMGosh, – its stunningly gorgeous.  If you know Lynette she does the most amazingly intricate stunning beautiful  (do you get the picture) projects and both Al and I were extremely excited when she agreed to come and take part in the weekend.
Portrait 1For those of you who don’t know Lynette, she is a former scrapbook store owner and has taught at trade shows and consumer conventions extensively throughout the United States and in Japan, The Netherlands and Australia.

Lynette has also been a design team member for EK Success Brands (including Martha Stewart Crafts, Inkadinkadoo, EK Success and Dimensions) and Cosmo Cricket in the United States and Delish Designs in Australia.
We saw a little snippet of what she has in mind for you all and it has blown us away – YOU ARE GOING TO LOVE THIS CLASS.  Not only are you going love the project but you are going to be using product that has not even been released here in Australia yet and quite possibly be the first to use this collection in a class. 
Further information on this class will follow soon.  Stay tuned.

Class Four:  Just as I am.
Beautiful single page layout using a number of inking and fussy cutting techniques which you are going to love.  Layout will feature - you guessed it - YOU. 

Photo Required:  6" x 4" - cropped down to 5" x 4.5"

EXTRA  Double Page Layout :  She Did, She Can and She Will  (Designed by Mel)
You will receive this kit and whether you watn to do it at the retreat or at home is entirely up to you.

- Bring along 6 – 8 black and white photos of yourself.e.g.  types of photographs, where you have been, come from, things you have achieved, something you used to do and wish you did again, things you would love to do, dreams.  Anything that tells a story about yourself.
This kit will be available for you to scrap but we won't be going through this is a class format.

Friday, January 14, 2011

Unmasked - Retreat Update

We have had a number of people from Geelong asking if they can come to the retreat but not stay.
The answer is YES (there will be a $90 discount if you aren't staying).  but
If you decide you would like to come and not stay we will need to ask you to get your registrations and deposits in asap and payments to myself or Al prior to the end of March.  As we have a number limit we need to know how many people are definately coming to be fair to people who are enquiring about coming from outside of Geelong and Interstate.
Thanks Mel and Al

Sunday, January 2, 2011