Monday, November 1, 2010

I LOVE Living THE GILDED LIFE!

001 Gilded Life Plaque

Last weekend I was VERY BLESSED to again live large with Debbie Murray & her beautiful daughter Shea Fragoso. These two gals are amazingly talented & so much fun. Where did this Art Event take place? In their home which USED TO BE a church.

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Yes, a real church that Shea, her husband Robert & Debbie all worked together to make into their home & studio. I have been to 3 Art Events there this year & it is truly a blessing to be in this inspiring magical place. Below is Debbie & Shea (thank you Jessi for letting me borrow this photo because I never caught them together for a photo shoot) holding our first project which was a beautiful CROWN!

Shea & Debbie by Jessi

The attention to detail these gals put into one of these events is amazing. Below is one of the 5 tables set for us. BEAUTIFUL doesn’t begin to describe.002 Table Set

And a close up of one of the table arrangements shows the beauty.

003 Centerpiece

And you didn’t go hungry I can assure you.

Food Collage

There’s Heather putting the finishing touches to this amazing Brunch they served.

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And remember I told you my Precious SANDY was coming to town for the event? Well here she is getting a cup of coffee & there’s Susie (one of our tablemates) as well as SWEET Tisha (from California too) talking to Debbie (behind that coffee pot).

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And I had to share one of my favorite photos of the weekend. Sandy darlin I LOVE YOU!

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Speaking of our table… I borrowed this shot from Jessi too. Thanks Jessi

Our Table by Jessi

At our table on Friday was Sandy & I with our NEW friend Cindy Cane. This was Cindy’s first Art Event like this but, I think she’s HOOKED! And then there is Susie, Gail & Valetta Now onto the projects… Day One was the crown being held by Debbie & Shea in the photo above. Day Two was the Crowndalier shown below. Mine is not finished but, I am going to get it done this week & will post a finished photo. The crowndalier is much larger than the first crown & is meant to hang with LOTS of goodies hanging from it. There was a LOT of construction in both crowns.

Picnik collage Crowndalier

Day Three was a soldered necklace. I have soldered for almost 3 years now & this class even made me say a few bad words(My sweet friend Charlotte said the same thing & she too is a very experienced solder artist). I LOVE the way the piece turned out but, using THREE layers of glass made things TRICKY! Below is the class sample. Shea had this on display for us during the entire event & on Saturday night the sample went MISSING. We were searching high & low. I had remembered seeing her son Nico running around with his “Treasure Bag” (as well as seeing his toy gun laying on the table where they had been selling some extra supplies)& suggested she ask him if he knew where the necklace was. Sure enough… in his “Treasure Bag” was the necklace, some yards of crystal trim & $50. Yepppppppppp I know little boys!

Necklace Class

And let’s look at a few of the Crowndalier’s made in class. Here is a table full of crowns (The one with the feathers is Sandy’s) & then there are some of Day One’s class projects waiting to be claimed as well as another Crowndalier .

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Picnik collage Sandy's crown

Lisa & her ADORABLE Christmas Crowndalier! If anyone reading this knows Lisa’s Blog… please send me the link!

Picnik collage Lisa's Crown

And Rita with her gorgeous finished piece with that amazing gold beaded fringe on the bottom. LOVE IT!!!! Each one was so different & unique.

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And let’s not forget Jessi & her wonder. Jessi is a HUGE FAN of Barbie & she made hers Barbie Bling to the MAX! Isn’t that cute of her showing Charlotte her prize? And the other photo is of it finished hanging in her studio (another photo loan)

Picnik collage Jessi's Crown

As promised below is my finished crown from Day One’s Class. The first photo is a close up of it sitting on a lamp on top of my piano in my entryway. I chose a black & gold paper as opposed to Sandy’s choice of light paper. It really changed the whole look & feel of the crown.

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And a few close up details.

Picnik collage Day One Crown Details

I hope you enjoyed today's glimpse of A GILDED LIFE! It’s GOOD to be a GILDED GIRL! I hope you’ll come back to see a tour of Debbie & Shea’s amazing studio coming soon in another post. Have a great week.

HUGS! Charlene

27 comments:

Createology said...

Oh My...I am in complete awe. This home, this creative event, the crowns made, the soldered necklace! Over the Moon!!! Happy Autumn...

Linda @ Itsy Bits And Pieces said...

Looks like a great time~ I love all the wonderful crowns!

Bunnym said...

Gorgeous! Simply Gorgeous!

love ya,
bunny

Nan said...

Charlene you are always doing the most fun projects and going to such fancy events. Everything looks just wonderful and I'm sure you all had such a great time together.

Hearts Turned said...

You ARE a gilded girl, my friend! LOVE all the adventures you're having! What amazing things you're learning and creativing!!! Now we just need to get together someday so you can teach it all to me! (tee hee!)

Glad you're having so much fun, and SO glad you share it all with us homebodies!

Happy first of November to you,Charlene!

Julie

Lisa said...

Charlene,
Pretty amazing stuff, I can see why you love it so. Can't wait to see you Thurs. night. We changed the venue to Maureen's store, around 8pm. Hope to see you there. LIsa

Jan Hennings said...

WOW!! Each of these photo's are just gorgeous and I love the crowns you made! What a beautiful Church Home!

Diane said...

Great photos...Looks like you had a blast Charlene!
I love your crowndelier! What a unique project =)
Soldering is an art. One I sometimes loose my patience on as well...

"Create Beauty" said...

That home, once a church, is SO AMAZING!!! And to hold art retreats there. What a dream!!!!
CROWNdaliers?!?!?! What a fabulous idea, and oh my, so fun to see the photos. Each ladie's work is so unique and charming. I am in awe.

~ Violet

Sixpence and A Blue Moon said...

Charlene thanks so much for stopping by my blog. Your blog is just gorgeous, and I love this post! I want to step into the photos and enjoy this delicious brunch, which reminds me of European breakfasts. I would visit a hotel in Brigg, Switzerland every October and one of the things that was magnetic and always drew me back to the place was the breakfast, where everything was served in ‘real’ silver dishes. I don't know, but it really did taste better there than anywhere else in the world. The minute I left there, I started looking forward to the next year. Gosh, I was probably wishing my life away.:)

I'll have to check and see if I am a follower of your friend. I find so many wonderful blogs that I could literally sit and do nothing else but visit blogs.

Hope you have a wonderful week!
Debra

Riki Schumacher said...

You guys out did yourselves on this project. What fun! I love the crowndeliers! Sooo darn cute. You lucky dog you. Hugs, Riki

Suzie Button said...

Hi charlene, lovely post! Your pictures are fantastic! We really did have a great time, didn't we?! Thanks for stopping by! Suzie oh, and YES i def. enjoyed baby madison this halloween!

Robin Thomas said...

Charlene! Your pictures are so beautiful. The events at the church are so wonderful, it's like a fairy tle. I am so glad you enjoyed it. Sorry I missed getting to see you. Maybe next time!

Cami @ Creating Myself said...

You are addicted! ;) Although I'm sure envious of this class....crowns, crowns & more crowns....love it!

Looks like you had a lot of fun @ Round Top and am I ever jealous of your MP bloomers. You lucky girl! Can't wait to see you in them.

I'm planning on going to Jen's Fairy Retreat too...maybe we can room together?

Francie...The Scented Cottage Studio said...

You find the most amazing events ...just visiting that fabulous studio would be an event and look look at the fabulous creations !
:))

MJ Ornaments said...

Wow, what an amazing church to live in! Everything is gorgeous, and I understand about soldering, I think some pieces are always hard to make. Take care, Martha

Hearts Turned said...

Hi, Charlene! Sorry I'm so late in responding to your seam binding question!

I really don't have a technique--unless you call squashing it into a ball really, really tight in your hand a technique!

Yep--that's all I do! I've seen more complicated steps before, but this is my method, and it works just great!

Hope you're having a wonderful day, my friend!

Julie

VS said...

So FUN!!! & I ADORE your crown...great job friend!!! I love the soldered piece & only wish I one day will be able to create something so lovely. Maybe when I see my friend she will help me master this challenge.
Big Hugs for you & BF,
Susie

Holly Loves Art said...

It looks like amazing time Charlene. Thank for sharing all the pretty pictures.

Thank you also for your thoughtful comments on my blog. They mean so much.

I hope you're having a beautiful day.

Holly

Lisa Phillippi llelsik@aol.com said...

That event looks Amazing...I wanna go next time! Everything about it looks fantastic!

Sandy Navarro said...

What a great post! Ya know I love ya too, girlfriend! Ours is a friendship that will definitely last a lifetime. I'm still working on my "Texas Adventures" post featuring my FabUlous hostess!

just me... jan said...

Charlene...I'm jealous that you've got your crown done! LOL I've still got work to do on both of my crown projects! I'm stealing your brilliant idea of extra gold braided trim on the inside base...genius! Sorry about Saturday...but eventually we WILL get together for that elusive lunch date! LOL
just me...a tad behind in projects...jan

Sandy said...

Charlene,

I dub you art event queen!!! Love all these fantastic projects and what fun you must have attending all these wonderful gatherings. Have a wonderful weekend!

Alisa Noble said...

Your crown turned out beautiful, Charlene!

My Shabby Streamside Studio said...

I love attending these events vicariously!


Bisous,

Sandy @ My Shabby Streamside Studio
http://myshabbystreamsidestudio.blogspot.com/

Anonymous said...

What fun to find out I am a blog star! Diane emailed tonight and told me to check out your blog....that my crown (and me) were on it! Such a fun class, and now I look forward to seeing you everywhere I too love to go - Round Top, Diane's classes, and of course Debbi and Shea's retreats. It is a Gilded Life! Rita Blanks

Monica said...

Your crown is magnificent, Charlene! And I love the Fall table decorations. So elegant and pretty.
Monicaxo.

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