Workshops – Page 10 – Karla's Cottage

So nice, we are doing it twice- Welcome back, Birdsong!!

By Karla Nathan / January 1, 2012

Happy New Year!!

I can't think of a better way to start the year than by planning parties to look forward to.

Birdsong 2011 was sooooo fun, I just have to do it again! For 2012, we will gather at my cottage on Friday April 27 and Saturday the 28th.

Please feel free to add this button to your blog

I hope you can join us for the party!

Sign ups are open first to previous attendees starting January 1st.

After one week, the registration will open to new friends.

To join us for a weekend of creating, please check out the Birdsong webpage for the Pay Pal button, at the bottom of the post. If you would rather pay by check, please email me.

Cost for the weekend is $295

And if you can't wait till then, you are invited to an afternoon workshop in the studio on Saturday Jan. 14th to make a wire wrapped wreath with two ephemera covered, nesting love birds for Valentine's Day. Email me for details, it will be $75 for all materials, and lunch included.

EDIT: The date and price for the class has changed to Saturday January 28th for $65

You will get two, 3 hour classes each day, along with, lunch, drinks, and treats. You are also welcome to stay and finish up projects and talk with friends at the end of the day, if you'd like a bit more time to play.

Each morning we will have some mingle time with coffee and chatting before we begin our classes.

On Saturday night, we'll have a little swappin/shoppin party with pizza and wine, vendor tables filled with vintage goodies, and luscious swaps to trade artwork.

Please let me know if you would like to host a swap.

This event will be held in my studio in Lawrence, KS. The studio is at my cottage, on ten acres right on the edge of town. I live 50 minutes from the Kansas City, MO airport and ten minutes from many hotels.

This will be a casual event, down-home and comfy. No reason to wear a party dress to work in, I'm a tee shirt and jeans person myself. I want you to feel relaxed and at home while you are visiting. Remember, you will be a guest at my home, not just a student at a workshop!

Our theme for the weekend will be nature inspired, just right for a Springtime celebration. What better way to welcome Spring than being with a group of creative women and honoring Mother Nature with our art?

Photos of the classes and info about what we will be making are to come soon.

Lisa McIlvain will return with her bag of arty tricks for one class, and my talented buddy, Beth Leintz will also be sharing her skills for another class. I will be teaching one class each afternoon.

Lisa

Lisa McIlvain's work has been featured in mulitiple Stampington publications and she teaches at Paper Cowgirls as well as many other Texan locations throughout the year. You can see her work at:

http://tarnishedandtattered.blogspot.com/

Beth

Beth Leintz is an avid antiquer and sells her estate sale and auction finds at antique malls, shows and on-line. She enjoys using vintage paper, notions, trims & fabric in collage and quilting creations and her work has been published in Simply Handmade, Sew Somerset and Art Quilting Studio. You can visit her at:

bethleintz.typepad.com/gathering_dust

Karla (me)

My own work has also been featured in Stampington/Somerset publications as well as Romantic Homes, Romantic Country, Better Homes and Garden Paint Decor, and others. I've done over 50 articles as writer, stylist, designer, or artist. My background is in painting, but I have a love of all things vintage and pretty. I also love having company here at the cottage and look forward to seeing you here!

If you would like to be a sponsor for this event, please contact me at

karlanathan@sbcglobal.net

You will be listed on this blog, on my blogroll, and on Karla's Cottage on the sidebar for a year.

****************************************************************************************************

And for more news, the sale in the Boutique and on Etsy has gone so well that I am amping it up for the new year!

Use this link

and type in the code:

2012

then hit recalculate, and save 40% in the boutique!

And in Etsy, use the code:

happy2012

to receive 50% off.

Best wishes for the new year, and some class announcements

Workshops

By Karla Nathan / December 31, 2011

The class I taught in California at Kim's house went well and the ladies made some very pretty wire wrapped wreaths. I enjoyed it so much, I'll be doing a few more of these workshops, with variations on the theme. This one is called "Song of Spring" and features springtime colors with a turquoise egg. I'll be teaching it at Paper Cowgirls this spring.

I've also made one up in pinks with two nesting love birds for Valentines Day, called "Song of Love". If you'd like to make one with me here at the studio, please email me for details. It will be on Saturday, Jan. 14th at 10am. I'll fix up some lunch and tasty desserts, and we'll spend the day playing with my vintage goodies.

Everything you need to make one will be included in the kit, but I'll also have tables of goodies to chose from so everyone can personalize their creation. I love it when no two come out the same. We'll add some crystals, charms, and decorated tags to the trailing ribbons too.

We will wire wrap and bead the wreath itself, and add a nest made of ephemera. The two birds will also be decked out in old papers, and then surrounded with lace and velvet leaves.

And at my house, a project isn't complete till you slap a few millinery blooms on it. I hope I'll see you here for the playdate! $75 for the class (includes lunch and treats) and all you need to finish your own wreath.

And if you'd rather come to play in the studio for a whole weekend… Sign ups for Birdsong 2 begin soon! On Jan. 1st, returning guests can reserve a spot, and after a week, we will be welcoming new friends to our flock of Birdsong friends!

My resolutions for the new year?

1- I will have more classes throughout the year. And I'm going to make sure I follow through with that right now, this is one resolution that won't be broken. I was so happy to be able to teach and travel in 2011, I want to do more of that.

2- Use the Good Stuff (well, I already do that, but I have to push myself to not hoard it. I won't that that for granted, it needs to be a resolution again this year.)

3-Share the wealth! Yes, I'll make sure all of my arty kits for classes are brimming with the Good Stuff that I love.

4-Enjoy the moment. I won't be freaking myself out about upcoming events, and will enjoy what is right in front of me NOW.

I'd add something about gettting to the gym or eating better, but I know not to push it.

. I used to think resolutions were silly things just waiting to be broken, but over the years, I've learned to take the new year as a time to reflect and honestly plan out what I want to see happen in the upcoming seasons. I make a promise to myself to do better, or accomplish something I'd like to do. It helps.

I wish you the best of luck with your pledges for 2012, too.

Pretty, pretty, pretty, I love Kim’s house! plus a Boutique sale and a giveaway

Food and Drink, give away, the Boutique at Karla's Cottage, Travel, We're having a party, Workshops

By Karla Nathan / December 23, 2011

Everything at Kim's was pure perfection, she has major decor, design, and detail skills.

And the ladies who came to spend the day were such fun! I hope they enjoyed my two classes as much as I enjoyed sharing the tips with them.

There were gifts galore too. Kim gave us all the table decorations she used to foof our seats, I already have these wings on display in my own holiday decor.

And the generous attendees all included me in their swaps, even though I didn't have time to participate. (photos to come, you'll be impressed with their work!)

Kim's house was sooooo pretty. I said that word so many times, that I sounded like a broken record. Or a dimwit with a pitiful vocabulary.

Can you blame me? Pretty was everywhere.

Kim was attempting to show me around when I arrived, when I caught a glimpse of her studio through the open doorway and I was magnetically pulled into the prettiness of the room, with no hope of stopping myself. I just had to explore that space.

But it wasn't just the studio. The whole house is that great. This is the bedroom that Jessi and I shared, Kim's daughter, Kate, gave up her room for the whole weekend.

My main project was a wire wrapped wreath, with lace leaves and a nesting dove. I brought a table full of "extras" for everyone to play with. Ribbons, lace, beads,glitters, etc. When I teach a class, I think its only fair to include everything you need in the kits.

But- its good to have an option to personalize the piece and have some bonus goodies to dig through.

Don't we all love to dig?

Everyone's project was unique, no two just the same. Just the way I like it!

We also played with paint, and I explained some of the techniques for short cut painting tips that are on the side bar of my blog. I'll have some pictures of that later, as well as a bigger sample of the work. Kim and I painted her nightstands using the same steps that we did on the small wooden boxes that I brought for the class.

When I arrived, she had a pristine, newly painted, chalk board door.

And I had the honors of supplying its first drawing.

Kate has tamed a feral cat and it adores her. So, my thought was to add the kitty to the picture, and have it play with the ribbons dangling from the wreath that we were making that day.

I have more photos to share after Christmas, but for now, I really need to get shopping and wrapping! Sugarwings has been ill since I got home and a lot of my time has gone to snuggling instead of prepping for the big event this weekend. I hope Santa can find my chimney, because no one in this house should count on gifts from me…. I'm not prepared!

Speaking of gifts- don't forget that you have till Christmas to win a special, surprise gift from me. Any comment this week, any post counts.

Also, if you have Christmas gift cash to buy your self a gift, come on by the Boutique. Everything is 30% off if you use THIS LINK.

The only catch is, that I won't be doing any mailing for a few days. You might not recieve your box till after New Years.

And if you click on the website directly, you can't get the sale price, its only available from THIS LINK

When you fill your shopping cart, you need to type in the words- happyholidays – then hit "recalculate" to get the special price. Its simple to do.

Merry Christmas!

Hitching up the reindeer, hopping in my sleigh and taking a trip!

holiday decor, vintage paper/collage art, Workshops

By Karla Nathan / December 16, 2011

This weekend is going to be really special! I'm on my way to sunny California to hang out at Kim's and be a guest artist at her holiday gathering.

Its not easy for me to be away from home this close to Christmas. I'm a homebody all the time anyway, but December is when I really settle down into my nest!

But this weekend will be a wonderful, holiday happening, so that will help me feel less homesick for my own Christmas tree.

I've been to two of Kim's large events at the Belmar in Manhattan Beach, and they were over the top fabulous. I love attending her themed workshops. I'll be going to Breakfast at Tiffany's this spring too.

Knowing how wonderful all of her arty gatherings are, I am thrilled to be teaching at this private one at her home.

I'll be away from my computer for a few days, but have prewritten some posts to pop up while I am away, so please do come by. And all orders between today and Monday will be sent on Tuesday the 20th.

The class will be this wintertime wreath, with a nesting bird. I'll be teaching a spring time version of the same wire wrapped wreath at Paper Cowgirls in March, too. Maybe I'll see you there?

Angels with no head, angel heads with no body, and bottle brush trees in bottles

holiday decor, Workshops

By Karla Nathan / November 21, 2011

If you have purchased my Mini Dressfrom tutorial, don't forget that there are patterns in there to make angel wings for your lil' gal if you want to make a cherub for the holidays.

This one that I did is a little different than the ones in the class, I didn't have the wires coming out of the topper piece, instead I topped it off with a glass button.

Which goes to show you just how flexible the class is. You can customize your dress form as you'd like.

Or if you don't want to make your own…. this one is for sale…

You can find it here.

Is it weird that I like to make paper clay heads and stick them on something that is not really a body? I've been mixing and matching trees, heads, spools, and bottles and feel a bit like that experimenting neighbor kid in Toy Story who mismatched toy parts.

Although mine more shabby chic not sinister.

This angel rests her head on a spool with a mini wreath on it.

I've also been topping bottles with trees.

And stuffing trees into bottles.

Or sticking trees on teensy little pots.

And some bottles have angels as toppers.

This tree is on a spool, all decked out with lots of Good Stuff on it.

And if you'd like to deck out your own tree, I have some plain trees on plain spools too. Ready for you to get creative on.

I'll leave you with some photos of what's new in the Etsy shop and the Boutique.

Sepia and winter white trees…

Red velvety ribbon (a whole roll of vintage trim!)…

A hand tatted little bag…

More decorated trees…

Pink grapes-Pink beads-a Pink doll dress…

A pink carnation…

More pink trees…

And lots more. Thanks for looking!

How to dye crepe paper

how to's, how-to projects, Once upon a dream, Tutorials, vintage paper/collage art, Workshops

By Karla Nathan / October 13, 2011

For the welcome night class I am teaching at Once Upon a Dream, I needed a pretty ruffle to top off my Prize Ribbon Sprite brooch. Plain crepe paper was nice, but I thought it would be better with tinted edges.

My first step was to dunk the top and bottom of a whole roll of crepe paper into a bowl of water. I didn't immerse the entire roll, just about 1/4 on each side.

While it was wet, I spritzed the damp edges with Glimmer Mist and let it bleed down into the paper.

On one side of the roll, I rubbed dark brown ink over the Glimmer Mist for a two toned effect. (Glimmer Mist has a nice sparkle to it!)

Then, I sat the roll of crepe paper outside on a sunny, breezy day to let it dry. It had to be completely dried out before I could make up my kits.

I'm happy with the way it turned out. I folded a section of the streamer lengthwise and glued it onto the back of the wallpaper medallion to make the ruffle.

The kits each have a teensy weensy Frozen Charlotte doll, a mini flower for the bodice of her dress, and flower petals for her skirt. The wings are ephemera, and all hand cut. Each flower petal skirt was trimmed up just to fit the little Charlotte it would be glued to.

Each prize ribbon has a banner with a fairy name on it too. No two kits are just the same. They took me ages to put together since I was matching the dyed ribbons and lace to the flower petals and wallpaper. Plus trimming all the little petals to fit the dolls. Its a quick class, about an hour. I knew the guests wouldn't have a lot of time to fuss with the project, so I had to make it simple to piece together.

I'll be making up samples of the finished pieces for the class, and when I get home from my wonderful trip, I'll have them for sale in the Boutique.

I hope all the care I put into the kits shows and that the students enjoy them!

EDIT- This post was written ahead of time, before I left on my trip. I'll have new posts all week while I am away, but might not get to answer all comments or emails, but I will be reading and enjoying them on my Ipad. Thanks for coming by! I hope to add some "Live" posts from the road too.

A new hat for a Romantic Gothic Ghost

Workshops

By Karla Nathan / September 15, 2011

Somehow, I doubt if I'll do much Halloween decor this year, with the remodel and my trip to Jenn's fairy event. I'm driving out there and spending time with my sisses on the way back.

Plus, the next couple of weeks before I leave, I get to have Sugarwings quite a bit, her dad is going to be away and her mom is knee deep in nursing school.

And did I mention the remodelling?

Last year at this time, Beth and I were working away at creating Romantic Gothic Ghosts. A blog with lots of romantic white Halloween decor and projects with videos, photos, how tos and lots of scanned ephemera to download and print.

I know I won't have time to do up my house for the holiday, but I at least wanted to make a little sumthin just for the joy of making it.

While putting this witch's hat together from the ground up, I took step by step pictures and wrote out directions. I've added them to the Romantic Gothic Ghost blog. If you already paid to take the classes (thanks!!!) you can still access all the projects and this one will be a bonus for you.

If you'd like to take the classes, check them out here: Romantic Gothic Ghosts

Its on the same page as our White Christmas classes, so that is the banner that is up. Sorry if that is confusing.

Last year's classes were such a blast for Beth and I to do. I miss them, hopefully I can put some more together sometime in the future. But at least I got to do this fun little witchie poo hat today.

(and yes, sweet Sissy, if you want it, I'll mail it to you! – my sis loves witch hats)

You have till Tuesday the 20th to leave a comment on this post

to enter a drawing to win the craft day giveaway from Beth, Mary and me.

A bag for Paper Cowgirls

paper cowgirl, Workshops

By Karla Nathan / June 11, 2011

One of the best parts about an art workshop/getaway, is of course the whole "getaway" part. Where you get to relish your time to do nothing but create, hang with creative types, and just be away from your every daywork and life.

I'm hooked on them. I've met the nicest people that way. One friend from Birdsong saw a cute cowgirl shirt at a garage sale and sent it to me to make something out of it for Paper Cowgirls.

My first thought, was why cut it up? Its a great shirt, I'll wear it as is! But sometimes I forget that I am no longer a "small". In my mind, I still think of myself as 30 years old and a size 6. Uhm…. that was over 20 years ago and that is a lot of time for opportunities to expand my waistline.

Small, schmall. Never again.

So, I cut out the Cowgirl lettering and some of the tee shirt around it and added it to a bag. It fit the bag much better than it fit me.

But my stupid sewing machine (I know it hates me, and plots against me at night when it is alone out here in the studio) refused to do any sewing today. So, I got out the Sealah Tape and Fabric Tack. Much easier!!

Don't forget, if you want a chance to WIN an online tutorial to make your own mini dress form, and embellish it (complete with vintage papers scanned for you to print and use) leave a comment.

The class is $15 if you don't want to wait and see if you win!

If your name is drawn and you've already purchased the class, I'll send you a kit full of vintage goodies to make your dress form.

Dress form collage patterns

paper cowgirl, Tutorials, Workshops

By Karla Nathan / June 8, 2011

While I am away in Texas for Paper Cowgirls, I have some new posts for you that I wrote in advance. I'll be back soon "live".

My bags are almost, very, very close to being ready to go to Paper Cowgirls. All of the kits are made and boxed up. I'm just adding tidbits to take along for the students to personalize each kit. And I had time to make some dress form tags too.

Its made up of ephemera and I also scanned it and added it to my Mini Dress Form tutorial site. So, if you are signed up for the classes online (only $15) its printable to use in your own art.

While I was making it, I traced the drawings I used and made a pattern too. That is now on the site as a little bonus project for the students to print and make their own dress form collages. (Just in case someone didn't want to try to draw the stand free hand like I did, I added a pattern for a stand too)

These print up nicely. I like to use matt finish photo paper for a really clear print. I cut them out and glued them to old repair tags, added trim and added one to each kit for the class in Texas.

Extra kits are made and ready to add to the Boutique, but I don't seem to have any time to take photos and add them. I'll let you know as soon as I get some ready for you. Thanks for all of your inquiries!

Ps- I'm going to have a drawing for a free dress form tutorial. Leave a comment if you are interested. If you already have signed up for the classes, the drawing will be for a free kit.

Piles and piles

Tutorials, Workshops

By Karla Nathan / June 2, 2011

I've been gathering stuff lately. Making piles all over the studio. This is a heap of bird cage charms that I bought to use on the tag books for our swap. There are over 100 swappers making tags, and I still have room for more if you'd like to join us. Most will get a bird cage charm, but I have a few other tidbits to tie on some here and there too.

This pile is just a few of the toppers I've gathered up to put into the kits for the Dress Form Tutorial kits I'm making for sell and for Paper Cowgirls. I can't believe I don't have all the kits packed and ready to go. It makes me slightly ill to procrastinate. But there has been a lot going on lately, between the long, holiday weekend and fun with babies.

The charms might look cute painted like I painted the key holes and doo dads for the kits. (In the foreground of the previous photo) They were shiny brass, I sprayed them with bonding primer, added a little Tim Holtz white crackle paint, then after they dried, I rubbed an ink pad over them to deepen the crackle effect. That might be a bit of work to do for 100 charms, tho…. but worth it, I think I like this look better. Oooh, and the birdie should be blue! Says the person who still doesn't even have her kits ready for next week.

Well, maybe. Sometimes, I need to reign myself in, I tend to over commit. And this is boating and travel season, so I should watch what I plan, making over 100 tags and putting the books together is a tad overwhelming on its own. Hmmm, maybe just white, not crackled and inked? But with a blue bird, of course!!!!!!!!

This week, I have pulled apart 6 hats to harvest the flowers for kits, torn pages from 4 books, cut circles from old rosey wallpaper, and decimated a few necklaces too.

Now, I just need to pull some of those piles together and slip them into bags. All the directions are printed, stapled, and piled up on the table next to lengths of ribbon and lace. But I have a feeling that as soon as I leave the computer, I'll be heading for the spray can of primer and spritzing those cages….