Sweet Marie-Pour l'amour du francais itty bitty book swap IS NOW CLOSED...

thank you to all of the overwhelmingly and enthusiastic responses to this new project of mine found over here and here...we have a full list of amazing artists who have signed up to create one-of-a-kind itty bitty pages re: Sweet Marie and anything French...i truly appreciate everyone's keen interest in this special art challenge. i'm thinking of adding one more special person to our list but i've got to talk it over with my partner-in-crime, my sis, Mary Ann to see if adding one more page will be too much to ask the other artists to add to their contribution.

Anyway, just writing this post to let you know that this swap is now full...

(photo found on internet)

Merci and Au revoir...until next time...

xoxo jo ;)

announcing the long awaited "Sweet Marie-Pour l'amour du français" itty bitty book swap...

(Various photos of France found on internet, courtesy of Microsoft clipart)

(Various Marie Antoinette photos courtesy by and found on internet)

('Marie Antoinette' Photo by and courtesy of Lady Reading Website gallery )

I love Sweet Marie and anything and everything French...ever since I saw Kirsten Dunst in the remake of 'Marie Antoinette', my love of the French truly came out of hiding...I've been thinking about France, searching for anything French, listening to French music and creating things about the French...my sis, Mary Ann has also introduced me to flickr a few years ago...and I'm a loyal follower of hers in many of her flickr art group/challenges. She has helped me with my first flickr group, 'Sweet Marie-pour l'amour du francais' and I am so happy to see so many other lovers of 'Sweet Marie' and anything and everything about the French. This group has grown and the photos that are being submitted are quite lovely!

I also have been enamored with those itty bitty books that my sis and our flickr group have been creating...so without further adieu, I'm announcing a

'Sweet Marie-Pour l'amour du francais' itty bitty book swap

in my flickr group

This art challenge will follow my sis' fabulous tutorial instructions here, here and here.

Basically, participants will be limited to 25. So we'll be making 25 itty bitty pages.

If you're interested, here's the basic 411 (based on my lovely sis' basic 411 info):

1) send me an e-mail me with your basic 411 (full name, blog/flickr sites, e-mail, snail addy) to jo @ labourof_love@hotmail.com (labourof_love at hotmail.com). I will keep a running list of participants in my flickr group so go there to check out if you made it in...I'm only taking sign-ups until Monday, August 4th, 2008 or until we've reached 25 participants

2) make 1 original (2.75 inches x 3.5 inches) on cardstock paper and color photo copy the rest (24) on cardstock. Then embellish as you wish, leaving about 1/2 inch space on the left side for binding purposes

3) Pages must be mailed to me by the deadline date: November 1st, 2008

4) Nominal fee of $6.00 (US) or $8.00 (International) requested (shipping+front/back cover & binding costs) can be mailed to me or if using paypal, e-mail me and I'll send my paypal info to you)

5) Theme: Marie Antoinette or anything French

Here are some links to check out more pics of Marie Antoinette:

marie antointette pics pics1 marie movie marie gallery or
go to Catherine Moore's site to see her beautiful "Queen of Tart" clear stampers and order some to use in this challenge...;) I know I will...(plus hopefully, I'll be getting one from Catherine soon-yipeeee...see post below...)

Hoping to see some sweet pals join me in my very first itty bitty book collaborative!
Bonne Nuit...
xoxo jo ;)

add a bit of whimsy to your blog!

(photo by and courtesy of the amazing Catherine Moore from this neat site )

my sis, Mary Ann, is one lucky lady...she had the opportunity to meet with the amazing, Catherine Moore...artist, author + creative extraordinaire at the Assemblage Studio (Teresa Gifford's beautiful studio) early this year. Catherine is creating new widgets for her blog and workshops and she's asking if anyone would like to add a bit of whimsy to their blog please go to Catherine's blog here and add the above widget to your sidebar on your blog...and Catherine will give you one of her stamps as an appreciation gift. You'll be able to choose from a variety of beautiful stamps that Catherine has created to add to your collection. Catherine exudes creativity and kindness...thank you Catherine for sharing such beauty with us! Please go visit her...you will truly have neat surprises in store for you-and you will not be disappointed!

xoxo jo ;)

ahhh...Summer Birthday Virtual Tea Party...

Well...today was a real scorcher out there...what I needed was a lil' break and enjoy some of the beautiful weather here...so happy that my lil' gal, Shioban, helped me prepare for our lil' celebration outdoors. I participated in my sis, Mary Ann's flickr group-Vintage Tea Room's Summer Birthday Virtual Tea Party...it also is her special B-day and she lucked out having a b-day party the way she would like it...wish I could have spent it with my mom + sis...but my lil' ones have school and we can't miss anymore days... My sis and mom, really probably had a feast...I could smell it now...man, wish i was there!!! I truly bet it was amazing!!!!!!!!

This is what I had at our special party: lil' creamy veggie finger sandwiches all shaped as bunnies, butterflies and hearts...cheese+crackers, assorted delicious cookies, homemade raspberry bars, raspberry rendevouz tea, pizelles, strawberries, chocolates...

mmm....so yummy!
this is my special tea cup...bought this cup several months ago at P.O.S.H. Chicago... i LOVE that shoppe!!! so many neat French lovelies over there! i think i need to re-visit that shoppe, find some wonderful goodies and take some pics!

the raspberry rendevouz tea was delicious!!! (and let's not forget this GORGEOUS cake...it's divine!)


mmm...i adore my raspberry bars...been making these for YEARS!
for more beautiful tea time...go here ... you'll be wishing you had joined in on the fun!!!

all in all...it was a fantastic day! a bit hot w/pesky lil' flies but watching the lil' ones eat all the goodies made it so worthwhile!!!
Happy B-day, Sweet Sis and thank you for hosting such a wonderful Virtual Tea Party...Loved it all!
Bonne Nuit
jo ; ) xoxo

Virtual Summer Tea B-day Party::July 27, 2008::ALL DAY

Please come and join in on the fun-this is my sis, Mary Ann's, lil' baby...all you have to do is take some pics of your tea party, preferably, b-day themed and share it on your blog and/or flickr...
Can't wait to see how everyone's summer b-day tea parties went! For more info, check out my sis' blog and see all the beautiful tea parties being held today!

Bonne nuit! xoxo jo ;)

Sending sweetness on your Special Day, REYA!!!

Today is your day...

Hoping you have the most wonderful+sweet day, Reya!!! Enjoy every minute+cherish the moments!!! Wish I was there with the lil' munchkins serenading you a great song and sharing this special day with you!

Thank you for all you do + for the wonderful support/encouragement you have given me in my quest to find my true passions...I love you and hope you have the most Beautiful Day and YEAR!

xoxo jo ;)

Rendevouz de minuit::Midnight Rendevouz...

this is the backside of the itty bitty page: front side:

whew...31 of these lovelies...

created 31 vintage prom dress pages for my sis', Mary Ann's, itty bitty book swap for more beautiful vintage prom dress go here...wanted to represent a lil' bit of the French...hmmm...what would it have been like back in the '50's in Paris during prom?! hope it gets to my sis on time...my Pop is going to specially hand deliver them tomorrow via driving 2 hours to her house...psst...her b-day is this Sunday...going to have a virtual tea party on that day...won't you join us? more on that later...enjoy the pics...



totally loved creating this...took me a while but i finally finished...can't wait to see the whole fantastic book of gorgeous prom dresses and the artists' interpretation of their vintage prom dress!

have a sweet night!

bonne nuit! xoxo jo ;)

Tending to the garden...of creativity

returned from our holiday...it was FANTASTIC! so many things to share...

will post pics of our trip in a later post...now it's time to tend to some wips!

have a wonderful day...

xoxo jo ;)

Gone fishin'...for serenity+creativity...a place to dream...

Will be gone for the rest of the week...gone fishin' with my lil' munchkins, sister, Mary Ann & sweet Mom...looking for serenity+creativity...

(All photos in this post were taken by me- @ Labour of Love 2008 at the Rotary Gardens in Wisconsin)

can't wait to learn a new art technique ...

take in the natural beauty...

spend time with loved ones + play with the lil' ones...

and discover new passions. See you next week and have a
wonderous weekend!

Au revoir! xoxo jo ;)

Got Fleas?

(Photo courtesy of Michael Kett's amazing flea circus website)

Saw a really neat show at our library with the kiddos this past Saturday. It was Professor Marvel's Amazing Flea Circus! Please go here to see some pretty amazing stuff...
WOW! The lil' ones and I were pretty mesmerized by the whole show. Mr. Kett truly delivered an excellent + amazing show. All about 'fleas' and their magnificent performances. We saw a 'flea' pick out a card (we're talking a gigantic playing card-5x the size of a regular playing card) from the audience who guessed '8 of spades' and pick it the right card UP...never knew how much strength they had! Saw another 'flea' (with one leg-his name was 'Pogo'...go figure?!) climb a ladder, a tightrope and jump from a high position into a tiny lil' pool...and it really splashed us!

There was this really neat trick:

The Great Alexander or was it Dominique? (another lil' flea) went between 2 lil' chalkboards with a piece of chalk (that a lil' boy was holding the whole time of the trick). The host-Mr. Kett, asked 3 different audience members to pick a number between 2-200. Then one other audience member (all are not related to the host because, most were moms or dads that I know of) added the three numbers to total 418. Then another mom was inspecting a telephone book that Mr. Kett gave her. She was instructed to go to page 418 and pick any random telephone number. We then all had to recite it 3 times'455-1163'. While saying the telephone aloud, you can hear scribbling...then in seconds the 2 chalkboards were released and viola...the EXACT telephone number was written on the chalkboard...WOW...amazing!!! The finale was a death defying stunt from "Victor" who went into a cannon and was shot out of it with amazing speed of 90 m/hour and shot through a paper hoop and caught with a mit from another dad in the audience...all I could say is if you want to be ENTHRALLED for 60 minutes...go see Mr. Kett's show when he's in town...just like in the 1800's travelling flea circuses, you will be intrigued from the very 1st trick...that's what using our imagination is all about. Go here to find out for yourself!

xoxo jo ;)

In the still of the night...week 2 Creating in the Midst...

This week's assignment for Melba's Creating in the Midst is to try to be 'still' to connect with your 'higher' self. Well, in my previous post, 'thyme' has been an issue. I feel like there's so much stuff to do and that I really 'never have enough thyme' to do anything else. This week has been no exception. I've been running around with the lil' ones making memories for them...doing/going/being with them...but I haven't much time for myself...me...this Thursday we'll be off on a mini-vacation with my lil' munchkins, my sis, Mary Ann and my sweet mom. My sis and I will be going here while on vacation. Hoping it'll be fun...never did anything like this before but I'm trying to connect with the 'higher' side of myself...the authentic one, as Melba has coined it. I've got a full plate of wips but I'm trying to tackle them one by one...my sister's challenge to create '31' vintage prom dress itty bitty book page is proving to be some challenge as I try to find the time to create them. I have an idea of what they should look like...it's just trying to execute them smoothly. It's just that the days go by so quickly with all the things I've got to do for the lil' ones...summer school, swim, gymnastics, library activities, playdates, housework, etc... and my nights are so short to even tackle my projects...well, because I'm sooo whipped by the end of the day.

So. tonight, it's trying to connect with my inner self...to be still and to try to think clearly...I'm here with my cup of chai tea, listening to Norah Jones cooing in the background...let's hope I make it before I doze off to dreamland!

Until next time, Bonne Nuit...

xoxo jo ;)

Thyme...?!

...pretty much sums up how i feel right now...

hope you're having enough 'thyme' to

do

what you need + want to do...

until tomorrow...xoxo jo ;)

Happiness to you...

Gail!

To my lil' sis...
Hope it's a good one...and all your wishes come true.
enjoy your day...your YEAR!
xoxo jo ;)

Creating in the Midst Wk 1: Just Breathe...finally a place to create...

Well...it's week 1 of Creating in the Midst Melba's Creative Blogger Group (CIM)and our assignment is to carve out some time to create a 'sacred place' and to just B-R-E-A-T-H-E. For some time now, it's always been me+the floors or me+other rooms. But you know what, no more hard+cold floors, no more hunchbacks of notre dame and no more searching for this or that. I finally have somewhere to create, to dream...to BREATHE...it's our lil' guest bedroom:

I do have a make shift studio in our basement that houses most of my supplies, decorations, etc...but it's soooo dark and not very inspirational. But for now, until I get enough TIME + $ to redo our basement, this lil' blue room will be my 'sacred place'...to read a good book, to write in my journal...

to listen to my sweet French Chansons...I adore their language...their sweet voices...ahhh to dream of Paris...

It has a door...and I could close it whenever I need to escape or to JUST BE. I could play my favourite tunes without hearing Hannah Montana or Batman screaming in the background.
I could just dream...get inspired...and create until...
my two lil' munchkins start screaming..."Mommy...____ did this, ___ hit me, or ____isn't sharing..." but that's ok...because, I'll know that my lil' blue room is waiting for me and when the lil' ones hit their noggins on their pillows into dreamland...well, I'll be able to escape just a couple of steps away from them and dream alittle too!

Bonne Nuit xoxo Jo ;)