Sponsor Spotlights: Andrea Scher, The Word Cellar, Stacy Kathryn Art and Illustration + Creative Courage

I like to think of my sponsorship program as a way of playing matchmaker. These weekly sponsor spotlight posts allow me to do just that - play matchmaker between you and some really amazing people who are providing unique and well crafted offerings. If you are interested in becoming a sponsor (includes your ad on the sidebar + ongoing spotlights), please send me an email at kellyraeroberts@gmail.com for further information!

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Join Andrea Scher for the January session of Superhero Photo! 

and her brand new course Elevate the Ordinary!

The Superhero Photo course is all about creating a new way into joy, gratitude, and appreciation. Andrea will guide you through 6 weeks of lessons, photo prompts and activities that will transform how you take photos and bring more color and magic into your life.

We will hone our technical skills while opening our eyes to the beauty all around us.

We will find ourselves in that sweet spot where creativity, play and aliveness intersect.

We will have more access to joy.

The Superhero Photo January Session begins Monday, January 9th. Register today with the coupon code KELLYRAE and you will get a $20 discount!

Elevate the Ordinary begins Monday, February 13th. For those of you who have already taken The Basics (this summer or this fall) please join me for Elevate the Ordinary! A brand new course where we will continue our exploration of making magic out of our ordinary days.

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Calling all writers and “wish-to-be” writers to The Word Cellar. Would you like gentle, useful

feedback on your writing? What about personalized creative coaching? Let me (Jenna McGuiggan) be

a supportive and honest guide along your writing journey.

Here's how it works: You'll email me your work, I'll review it and then send you written comments on what's working, what could be improved, and suggestions on how to move forward. As your writing coach, I'll help you to follow your dreams and find creative clarity by asking questions, listening, and recommending books, resources, and creative practices. We'll meet via phone or Skype to discuss anything related to writing or creativity. I'll serve as your sounding board, cheerleader, nurturer, and brainstorming partner – whichever you need. Whether you need one session or ongoing monthly support, let me know how I can help – and I'll design a custom package just for you and your writing wishes. Learn more or contact me to find out how we can work together.

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Hi, my name is Stacy Kathryn and I am an artist and illustrator! Creating art has been something I’ve gravitated towards my entire life. My dream is that my works find their place in this world, and help others create their own views of the world in the movement of the brush strokes, the vivid colors, and the concepts of life as only art can reflect. This path is an adventure, and I’d love for you to join me on it. Check out my blog and website for more art and inspiration.

Be sure to visit my etsy shop, I have all new art pendants and holiday cards available. Since I've been a huge fan of Kelly Rae for the last four years, and love being part of this community, I'm offering a special discount to Kelly Rae readers. Just enter the code ‘POSSIBLE’ at checkout and receive 20% off your order.

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Would you like an extra boost of courage to kickstart your creativity in 2012?

I’d like to invite you to join Creative Courage, an e-course about finding, following, and realizing your creative dreams. Creative Courage is a holistic guide that provides the tools you need to make your goals real and connect with like-minded women.

I'm Stephanie Levy, an American illustrator living in Europe, and the next session of Creative Courage will run from January 9th – February 24th, 2012.

I've invited 12 expert guests to join us for exclusive Creative Courage interviews. Our special interview guests this session include: Andrea Scher, Kelly Lynn Jones, Mati Rose McDonough, Heather Smith Jones, Belinda Kemp, Jennifer Louden, Janine Vangool, Amy Ng, Amelia Critchlow, Kate Swoboda, Michelle Ward, and Jill Bliss.

This amazing group of women from around the world will share their secrets on how they have accomplished their dreams of publishing books, building online businesses, creating workshops and e-courses, and earning a living as successful, thriving creative artists, illustrators, authors, coaches, and instructors.


Creative Courage is your invitation for 7 weeks of fun, color, inspiration, and tools to begin an inspiring, new creative life in 2012. As a unique bonus, we will take a *virtual field trip* to Barcelona, and I'll even send you a personal, illustrated postcard directly from Spain!

I hope you'll come celebrate the new year with us! Find out how to sign up here: http://www.stephanielevy.blogspot.com/p/e-courses.html.

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Big thanks to my sponsors! It takes a lot of courage to create a business from dreams, and I'm honored to highlight their bravery + and their offerings. If you are interested in becoming a sponsor (includes your ad on the sidebar + ongoing spotlights), please send me an email at kellyraeroberts@gmail.com for further information!

scenes from around here, holiday time.

 

It was truly a wonderful Christmas season - the first one since my parents moved here from Florida. We decorated. We ate. We played hilarious games over wine. We watched movies. We sat around. We got out and about. We took videos of True.

Here's a little peek into the last couple of weeks around here:

 
 

 

 

Really, REALLY looking forward to ringing in the new year. It's my absolute favorite tradition to celebrate the old, and welcome in the new...a review of 2011 coming up and what I'm hoping to manifest for 2012. Thank you, holiday season 2011. You were awesome.

Sponsor Spotlights:

I like to think of my sponsorship program as a way of playing matchmaker. These weekly sponsor spotlight posts allow me to do just that - play matchmaker between you and some really amazing people who are providing unique and well crafted offerings. If you are interested in becoming a sponsor (includes your ad on the sidebar + ongoing spotlights), please send me an email at kellyraeroberts@gmail.com for further information!

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“Life Book, a celebration and honouring of YOU”, is a year-long mixed art class organised by Tamara Laporte from Willowing Arts. She is joined by 15 incredible art teachers who are all gearing up to share their mixed media techniques with YOU! Themed around self-development and healing, you'll be creating a minimum of 2 loose mixed media art journal pages per month (through a minimum of 2 lessons a month) which by the end of the year you will bind into a glorious journal (a Life Book!). This gorgeous book will have chronicled your journey, artistic growth and personal development for the year! Come join the 540+ students who have already joined Life Book on an EPIC year-long mixed media art journey NOW! The course begins on January 1st 2012! (All videos and PDFs can be downloaded and kept – plus there are going to be many extra activities in addition to the 32 lessons you're already getting). Read the WEEKLY year schedule by CLICKING HERE. Come join now! http://www.willowing.org/lifebook.html

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My name is Katherine Quinn and I am the New Zealand artist behind Sleep And Her Sisters. I sell my original works to 9 galleries around New Zealand and have three online shops where I also sell originals, prints and other goodies. I live with my two children, 18 year old Hannah, 6 year old Ben and our 11 year old cat... Holly. I work from my kitchen table at our home in the sunny Hawke's Bay where I love to create with paint, chalk pastels, graphite, paper and also dabble in making a little bit of jewellery. At the moment I am working on a project to create 7 sisters... characters that I hope will one day feature in a book. I also love to collect things. My favourite colour is a soft, pale, antique sort of blue.

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My name is Helena Chutjian mom of 3 amazing kids, 3 sweet rescue critters and wife to my wonderful husband who I have known since I was 10. I am usually covered in wood chips and paint working on my latest carvings, scouring the beach for driftwood to carve, digging in the dirt surrounded by plants and flowers, and just about always, with my daughter Hope by my side.

After moving up and down the east coast as a Marine Corps family, we now call Beaufort home, a historic little town by the sea and an endless source of beauty and inspiration.

In my folk art shop you'll find hand carved Santas, snowmen and gnomes, birds and ever changing art.

To Kelly Rae's loyal readers, please take 20% off of your purchase at my shop by using the code kellyrae.

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Hello and Merry Christmas! Lesley Myrick here. I'm an artist, designer, and adventurer. I create collage art with words that make my heart happy (like inspiring quotes and scripture verses), and sell personalized collage art, collage art prints, and now gorgeous blank greeting cards (eek!) at my Etsy shop. Stop by my shop this month for a 15% discount with code FRIENDOFKELLYRAE. I also blog 5 days a week at lesleymyrick.com about art, photography, design, pretty things, and life as a freelance artist. Come by and say hello - I'd love to connect with you! xo

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Do you want to live a creative life but don't know where to start?

Do you live a creative life but need help staying in-the-know?

Do you teach creative living and want to promote yourself?

Seek Your Course makes all that possible.

Seek Your Course is a database and online hub for connecting people with creative learning opportunities online and around the world.

* Through the Listings you can find ecourses, retreats and conferences with an art focus.

* Through Instructor and Retreat/Conference Profiles you can meet the artists and learn more about the events.

* Through the SYC Blog you can be inspired by interviews, book recommendations, guest posts and much more!

* Listings on many topics including: painting, drawing, blogging, entrepreneurship, encaustics, life coaching, photography, personal growth, and writing.

Come check it out: website | twitter | facebook

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My Creative Classroom is celebrating! We’ve been bringing online classes to crafters all over the world for 5 years. In celebration, we are announcing that we will be allowing lifetime access to course content on our site! Most of our classes will be offered for lifetime access! Lifetime access begins with classes taken this past fall and will include classes going forward.

My Creative Classroom is an online arts and crafts learning center. Offering over 100 interactive and in-depth courses are instructor led. The classes are filled with wonderful projects and techniques to help you get the most out of your supplies. From the Cricut to Tom bow to mixed media to rubber stamping to scrapbooking we have something for everyone. Don't miss out on classes starting January 23rd, including:

Expression 101
Beginner Copics
Textured Backgrounds
Card Boot Camp
Photo Organizing
Exploring Mixed Media

While you wait for the spring semester to start, take a look at our FREE classroom Everyday Moodling. In this free class Jeri shares her journey to finding the 'time' to be more creative. Just sign up for the MCC Newsletter.

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Big thanks to my sponsors! It takes a lot of courage to create a business from dreams, and I'm honored to highlight their bravery + and their offerings. If you are interested in becoming a sponsor (includes your ad on the sidebar + ongoing spotlights), please send me an email at kellyraeroberts@gmail.com for further information!

happy holidays

Hi friends,
Just wanted to say that I'm taking a bit of a holiday break to spend some downtime with my family. I'll be back in the next week or so with stories, pictures, and a revamp of this space, and some questions for you (I need your advice).

In the meantime, I'm chatty happy over on facebook where short status updates are becoming fun again (and also easy thanks to the iphone) as well as on instagram (Which, you know, is the best thing ever. It's like flickr meets twitter - like a tweet or facebook status update but in pictures. LOVE LOVE LOVE!).

And to all of you, whoever you are, wherever you may be, whatever you may be celebrating or grieving, i wish for you this: that you embrace the magic of the season. Let it open your heart and may you find all that you've been waiting for (peace, joy, forgiveness, love, excitement, hope, and on and on).

a toast, a celebration, a little bit of uncertainty

The shop is closed. It is closed. It is closed. (Can I get an amen?)

It's been a few very frenzied days (weeks?) around here involving late nites (like 2am late), lots of last minute hiccups, rushing, and a lot of hard work to get all the orders out and shipped. The shop, the dear dear shop, went out with a bang. It sold out of almost all the inventory and we shipped nearly 2700 products in the last month alone. 2700 products in one month, friends. 

Whew! My helpers and I are tired.

But I am so joyful to have it end with such enthusiasm and with so many goodies heading out for Christmas gifts. I can't thank you enough for your support of the shop all of these years. And I can't thank you enough for supporting my decision to take it in a new direction.

I wanted to clear up a few questions + concerns that have been coming my way:

- The shop will actually reopen in Feb 2012, but we'll only have matted prints and greeting cards and the occasional batch of original paintings. Keeping it simple, friends, and I am crazy excited about that.
- The ebooks and ecourses aren't going anywhere and will remain for sale.
- The gift + home decor products aren't going anywhere either. My licensing partners and I are going strong with some awesome products in the works. Although I will no longer sell them in my online shop, you'll still find them in stores nationwide as well as online vendors. I'll have a sneak peek soon of many many new products that will debut at the Atlanta trade-show in January!
- This blog isn't going anywhere. One of the reasons I decided to scale back the shop was so that I could reclaim this space for more writing and stories, so be on the look out for a blog make-over soon!

The truth? I am nervous. I am excited. I am uncertain. I am a tiny bit stressed. I am curious of what it will birth. These are things I haven't felt in a long time (when it comes to my work) and I'm just going with it - trusting it will lead me to all things I want more of: time with my family, more art, more writing. We all have to take our own leaps. This is a big one for me, financially. But I just know in my bones the reward will be the greatest gift.

So with that, I'd like to say a bravo, a cheers, a farewell to the shop. And a huge thank you to you. More soon..
XO
Kelly Rae

Sponsor Spotlights: Sacred Cake, StencilGirl Products, Jennifer Rizzo, Susannah Conway, Illuminating Words, The Art and Business of Surface Pattern Design + Louise Gale

I like to think of my sponsorship program as a way of playing matchmaker. These weekly sponsor spotlight posts allow me to do just that - play matchmaker between you and some really amazing people who are providing unique and well crafted offerings. If you are interested in becoming a sponsor (includes your ad on the sidebar + ongoing spotlights), please send me an email at kellyraeroberts@gmail.com for further information!

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You want the jewelry you wear to be meaningful and expressive. Affordable, but not mass produced. You want your jewelry to be like you…timeless and memorable. One of a kind. How about something a bit different? Something with a history. Something with a story.

At Sacred Cake you will find affordable heirloom quality vintage assemblage jewelry combined with timeless appeal. Whether it is for your wedding, graduation, first date, a gift, or for your everyday victories; look to Sacred Cake for personal service that you can always rely on to exceed your expectations and make you feel as special and as singular as you are.

There is only one you. There is only one Sacred Cake. Every piece tells a story. What will your story be?

*Kelly Rae readers receive free shipping and a special gift. Visit my etsy shop and enter the code “ONEOFAKIND” to receive your free shipping and your gift. I’d love for you to visit my blog for more simple projects, stories and inspiration.

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They call me StencilGirl but I'm also known as Mary Beth Shaw, mixed media artist and author of Flavor for Mixed Media. Having hand-cut my own stencils for years, I first dipped my toe into the stencil biz in 2010. Today I am proud to partner with artists Patricia Baldwin Seggebruch, Judy Wise, Pam Carriker, Michelle Ward, Kae Pea and June Pfaff Daley to provide uber-cool artist designed stencils - the best in the mixed media world!! Thirty + designs strong, we add more all the time! Our stencils are made of Mylar and Laser-cut; they work for all mixed media applications including painting, rubbing, tracing, encaustic, stitching guides and more. Take a look for yourself at StencilGirl Products where we are introducing our brand new 6x6 stencils. Mention "Kelly Rae" in the comment section of your order and you will receive a free 6x5 stencil of your choice! (offer good in Dec. 2011 only, one per customer please).

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My name is Jennifer Rizzo and I am a rediscovered artist. I’ve been drawing, painting and creating ever since I could remember. For a long time I had pushed my gifts aside and it’s only been in the last few years that I’ve truly embraced them.

One of my passions is home décor and vintage items. I love to artfully create and find items that make a home beautiful and unique. In my shop I carry items such as tea towels, pillows, jewelry, vintage dishware and silver. Most of my items have a vintage flair. My Fall line is called The Vintage Tea Collection and I am so excited to be able to share it with you. You can view my collection at my Etsy store: Jennifer Rizzo or on my blog Jenniferrizzo.com

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The Unravelling e-course is an 8-week online class designed to help you heal the way you see your self and your world, using photography and journalling to access hidden thoughts and dreams and encourage personal realisations, all in the safe space of a like-minded community.

Photographer and writer Susannah Conway is your guide through this process, sharing her insights and wisdom gleaned from a four-year voyage through grief and healing. You don’t need any previous photography experience to do this course - all you need is a camera (iPhones are perfect for unravelling!), a journal and pen and an open heart.

Registration for the winter Unravelling: Ways of Seeing My Self is now open (class starts January 2nd) — you can see what past participants have said about their Unravelling journeys over here (there are videos too :)

If you’d like to start the new year in the company of like-minded women from around the world, Unravelling is the place for you :)

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I am Helen Lewis, the artist and owner of Illuminating Words. I bring my love of letters and words -- both the visual aspect of their shape, and the beauty and impact of their meaning -- to my calligraphy, mixed-media collage, encaustic, and design work. I am fascinated with the curve of an E, the elegance of old script, the crisp look of type marching across a page. I love the stirring in my heart as I read a meaningful quotation or line from a poem.

In my pieces, I combine my own lettering and painting with various ephemera, including snippets from old books and dusty hymnals, treasured correspondence from earlier centuries, pieces of vintage sheet music or wallpaper, and character-filled faces from old photographs. Recently, I am particularly focused on the luminous qualities that the encaustic medium brings to the surface as these elements are layered and fused together.

Please stop by my shop or my blog to see samples of my artwork. Email me to inquire about commissioned pieces incorporating your favorite quotes or family photos.

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If you have ever dreamt of seeing your designs on stationery, fabric, homewares or other products, sharing your art through pattern, and monetising your designs this groundbreaking course is for you!

‘The Art and Business of Surface Pattern Design featuring Rachael Taylor’ is the definitive guide to becoming a surface pattern designer.

Module 2: Creating your professional identity begins on January 30 – secure your place now!
In this module you will learn everything you need to know to become an established professional surface pattern designer including how to start your own label, how to develop your signature look, how to understand and predict trends, how to put a collection together, how to protect your work, and how to create technical repeats in Adobe Illustrator.

In this course you will also learn how to isolate elements of mixed media artwork and turn it into patterns – and then mock that up onto products! This will be demonstrated using Kelly Rae’s gorgeous artwork! Register now

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Do you know how beautiful you truly are? 

Are you ready to discover the star in you and live out your dreams in 2012 and beyond?

Join artist & life coach Louise Gale and a community of creative souls to explore and identify your true self, purpose and passion and start living the life you were born to live. Together we will explore – discover - create a hand-made journal full of creative dreams and find the courage in you to be the star you truly are

All designed to help you live your dream life.

The “Big Dreams. Small Wonders” e-course is full of inspiring posts – stories – worksheets - audio, creative exercises and fun planning techniques, empowering you to go from where you arenow, to where you want to be.

You will leave the 6 weeks with a journal full of creative exploration, a clear idea of who you truly are, where you want to go and a roadmap to help you get there.

Be the shining star you are

The2012 journey starts on Monday January 9 and space is limited, so sign up today to take the first step to follow your dreams

You can live the life you were born to live

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Big thanks to my sponsors! It takes a lot of courage to create a business from dreams, and I'm honored to highlight their bravery + and their offerings. If you are interested in becoming a sponsor (includes your ad on the sidebar + ongoing spotlights), please send me an email at kellyraeroberts@gmail.com for further information!http://www.etsy.com/shop/sacredcake

life, a beautiful thing to witness.

I want to tell you how it feels like breathing, this love. Like deep, life affirming, breaths.

I want to tell you how everyday is a new discovery of deeper joy - for both of us. Him with his sounds and sights, me with my expanding heart.

I want to tel you how I could easily spend an entire day just watching this bright light. And how I do just that, all of the time.

I want to tell you how tender I feel toward them. How I could not imagine it any other way. How much I love all of this and how toddler-hood is the bees knees and how bittersweet it feels that time is moving forward and one day this will pass. I'm making all efforts to slow this life down, to pause as much as possible, to pay attention, to document it all, but mostly to just simply be present and soak it up....life. is. a. beautiful. thing.

holiday + home = cozy

Last year was truly the first time I had ever really decorated for Christmas. And I'm still getting my holiday decor groove, for sure, but having baby True makes this season feel magical in ways it hasn't for a long time. And that makes me want to decorate.

Here are a few snapshots from around our home:

And below is what the living room looks like on any given day. A total mess, but a joyful mess. Toys, books, sunlight. Love....

More soon!
Shop closes on Friday (I have so much to tell you about this decision. It has been a major major clearing for me). Please scoop up what you can and be sure to use the discount code of KRR20% before it's all gone. PS: Did you spy this large photo frame in one of the above photos? It's an absolute favorite and we've got a few left in the shop (20% off)!

XO,
Kelly Rae