Hannah Banana.

I got to spend the day with my favorite five year old girl (soon to be six) all day yesterday and we had so much fun! She was my helper at the shoppe, we made some art projects, and she was more than happy to demo the hula hoops for any customers that were remotely interested in purchasing a hula hoop (and we had matching sneakers!). Thanks for a fun day, Hannah...I look forward to doing it again! :o)

Simplify, simplify, simplify.

I am heading into week 2 of small business owning, and have been busy managing all of the unexpected details. But now that I am (mostly) unpacked from my travels, the shoppe is set up and I am finding my rhythm, I am trying to simplify, simplify, simplify! There is a yard sale in my near future, that's for sure! I know I have also been behind the eight ball on my blogging, which has been getting to me...blogging is like journaling for me and I miss it! I will be back in a couple of days with more fun stories to share and pictures to show. But in the meantime...anyone need any display stuff to set up a creative art display? Here's what I am trying to unload (tell your friends!):

Spinning display...uses standard bracket hardware

seafoam colored handcrafted shelf unit

print rack holder

2 pendant lights

Scrolly Mirror

Antique vanity top that I used for a jewelry display

Open for business!

Look out world...I am officially a NH small business owner. :o) The doors to my shoppe opened this morning and I am all smiles...groovin' out to some Simon and Garfunkel, hanging vintage clothes on the racks and ticketing my goods. I'm so excited about it all!

(Day before the opening shot, before I stocked the shelves)

That's me (with my homemade hula hoops in the back!)

Swing on by! I'm open Wednesday through Sunday from 10-6! Check out the shoppe at www.veggieartgirlboutique.com! :o)

Settin' up shoppe.

I am back in New Hampshire, working hard on my shoppe and getting it ready to open the doors on the 13th! Soooo...I will be a bit out of the blogging loop for a while as I am most likely covered in paint and dirt! But I'll be back soon. And here are a few pics of the happenings at the shoppe--lots of painting and colors and swirls! :o)

Decoupaged wall of old children's book pages

Ta-da! (it dried to more of a sepia tone...this pic looks kind of yellow)

So long, Asheville!

I have done more than I ever could have imagined I would during my time in Asheville. It has been a whirlwind of life experience that I will come away from even more empowered and with a stronger sense of who I am. I went there just to see and experience a different place, with intentions of living in a new community. It was no time before I felt I could call Asheville home, as it fit like a glove and I cannot wait to return! I have met so many wonderful friends and have truly had the best time. Thank you Cheyenne for being such an amazing friend and for giving me such a cool place to stay! Goodbye to all of the friends I have made; we will cross paths with very soon and I will be back! :o)

This morning I am leaving to head back to New Hampshire, but will be in transit for a few days with stops in D.C., New Jersey, Connecticut and more . My friend Jim is driving back with me--should be a fun roadtrip to say the least! I'll try to blog from the road, but if not, I'll see y'all when I get back!

So long, Asheville!

Ta-da!

And they're up! Ta-da! Here are the three panels I painted for Beans and Berries on Merrimon Avenue here in Asheville. It was raining when I took this pic, but they sure are bright and visible from the road!

On my way to where the air is sweet...

It is no secret that I believe Jim Henson to be the greatest artist of all time. He was a brilliant man who we lost too soon, but were lucky enough to catch what I believe to be only a glimpse of what he was capable of contributing to the world. So when I saw a poster on a walk down Lexington Ave. saying that Jim Henson's daughter was going to be speaking at the Asheville Puppetry Center's tenth birthday celebration, I had to go. (And bonus: Telly Monster from Sesame Street Talk was going to be there with puppeteer Marty Robinson) Talk about the universe lining up for you! So I bought a ticket and got all gussied up for the gala last weekend; what a FABULOUS event it was! (One of the best parts: the "adult" Sesame Street blooper reel! That was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to witness!)

This is Jim Henson's youngest daughter, Heather. What an honor it was to meet her! I expressed how dear her father's work has been to me since I was young and she told me all about working with her father on puppets, sets, and being surrounded by such creativity. We talked about what kind of tools Jim used to cut out the sets on the Muppet Show. I was shaking with excitement by this point in the conversation.

And then I got to meet Marty and Telly (this was one of the originals, who is not in production anymore)...

Marty Robinson (such a fun guy!) also has played Mr. Snuffleupagus, Slimey the Worm, Buster the Horse, Oscar the Grouch's neice and mother. He also played the Farmer in (one of my all-time favorites) The Tale of the Bunny Picnic and the face of Leonardo in the original movie Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

I know Telly is just fake fur and ping pong ball eyes. But he really does come to life in a way that made me want to talk to him. Marty is such a brilliant puppeteer (you should see his "puppet muscles")! And when I saw this tag...well, I had an actual momentary loss of breath.