happy thanksgiving

May your heart be filled with gratitude and love.

Happy Thanksgiving, my friend. Enjoy your turkey.

silver bella classes

Want to see what I made in my silver bella classes...

Above is the group project from our first night, ingeniously designed by Teresa McFayden. What made the project super clever was that the pattern for the embroidery is actually a rubber stamp...stamped directly on the cloth and then embroidered. It was tough work in dim light, but I was so ready to create I whipped it up in a hurry.

On Friday morning, my first class was Tiny Treasures with Jenni Bowlin.

I made this sweet and tiny little book, bound on a key.

And this spool, wound with a little collage...

This would be such a wonderful ornament, filled with photos of the year gone by.

My next class was Christmas Paegant with Teresa McFayden. It was so much fun carving out a nook in a book and then making up a whole world to go in it. I loved the weathered floral print on the endpapers...doesn't it make a lovely backdrop?

On Saturday, my first class was Prada Schmada with Charlotte Lyons. I love the bag I made... Above is the front, below the back...

I stamped the all-over polka dot pattern using a potato...

Here's the sweet little pocket mouse I bought from Charlotte at the vendor faire, peeping out.

This little posie made a nice accent on the pocket, I think.

After Charlotte's class, we headed to the ballroom for a wonderful lunch and a visit with Mary Engelbreit. She was so down to earth and sweet.

And then you know what happened next...so maybe it's no surprise that my ornament made in my Sally Jean class was not so great. Not only was I in a fragile emotional state, I hada a blasted bum soldering iron.

I stamped the baby's name and 2008 on the back. I also wrote a little poem and put it in the collage about how he was a little bird who flew into our nests for a little while and into our hearts forever. You should've seen me, hovering over my project in tears, hoping nobody noticed. I covered up the poem with more collage...it was just too much for me just yet.

My last class was with Kim Kwan, Portrait Rustique. I was too tired to really put very much into this project...I guess that's what happens with the last class.

Next up, more swaps. Look for it tomorrow.

thank you...

Thank you all so much for your friendship and love. I know that you are praying for us and that we'll make it to the other side. My friend Hope stopped by yesterday just when I needed her most. And your comments lifted me up and made me feel stronger than I am.

I just wanted to say thank you to each and every one of you. Thank you.

breakdown

Something happened this weekend that I didn't expect. I had a little breakdown.

It all happened as I was in line to meet Mary Engelbreit. I had decided that, even though I'd forgotten the book at home that I'd wanted her to sign, I would share with her the story of how a book she wrote, Lovey Dovey, was so much a part of our love affair with Baby.

My friend Cindy sent the book way back when we were preparing for this new chapter in our life, when all of you wonderful friends sent care packages. It was a special book for her family too...in fact, she is called "Lovey" by her grandchildren because of it.

We started reading that book to Baby on the second day he was here, our little bird with a broken wing. It was then, with that book, that I started to realize what a special baby he is, how he seemed to be made just for us. He looked at every detail of every page. I can still see him holding the book close to his face and scanning the illustrations.

There were certain little things we'd do on each page...he'd point to the dog pull-toy on one page, and stick out his tongue and pant. On another page, "Chicakadee", he'd point to the little chick and we'd pretend that the chick walked up his pointed finger, down his arm, and kiss him on the cheek.

I know that if I had created something that had such an impact on someone's life, I'd want to know about it. I didn't go into all this detail with Mary. Well, even if I wanted to, I couldn't. The thought of this special details let loose a tsunami of tears. I couldn't hold them back. I think she understood what I meant. She was so nice.

Unfortunately, embarrassingly, some folks in line thought I was sobbing because I was meeting Mary.

Afterwards, late for class, I went to my room to gather up my supplies and just fell to the floor in tears. My whole body shook with them and there was a voice to these tears that hadn't been there before. I couldn't control any of it and I was terrified. I couldn't even tell that the sound that I was hearing was coming from me...it was foreign and distant.

I was angry at myself. How, oh how, could this be happening now??!

I tried to pull myself together.

There were a few more collapses, including one where I had to duck into the Business Center. I know that it was full of people checking email, etc. who were probably horrified at the emotional mess that landed in there. I tried to pull myself together. I did not want this to be happening...not now, not here.

As I passed the line of people waiting to talk to Mary, again someone yelled out "She's still crying!" I was so embarrassed.

I made it to the bathroom...really, this is endless. It was another series of unsuccessfully trying to pull myself together. I know I looked like hell. I could see it in people's eyes.

I think what's happened is that I've entered a new stage of grief. And I think it is in this stage that someone could really disappear into the darkness of it all. As someone who has never really experienced any sort of depression, it's scary. I'm not depressed, clearly, but I am here standing at the mouth of a cave that has no end.

I know you are all pulling for me, and I just know you'll fill up the comment box with encouragement. I appreciate that. More than anything, I want to be honest with you about how I'm doing.

We will make it through this...we have to. And I think that's the key in all of this...we have to get through this. We have to walk right through this stage with all the strength we can muster. There's no shortcut and no easy way.

I can feel the hand of God on me, helping me through. He expects us to get through it so that we can go on and help others.

Rich is having a hard time too. He doesn't really care to share his personal details on the blog, and I try always to respect that. But he's hurting deeply. We both need your prayers.

We are going to see Baby in less than 2 months for his second birthday. And we do ocassionally visit him by webcam. He seems to be doing well, adjusting to his new life fairly well.

Goodness, but do we miss him.

bella button fat book swap

This beautiful book was the brainchild of the fabulous Michelle Geller. All the participants sent in their fabric pages, decorated with buttons, and she put them all together for us to pick up on Thursday night.
Page 1: Julie Baxley
Page 2: Melissa Danner

Page 3: Michelle Geller


Page 4: Lonnie Jenck
Page 5: Pam Keravouri

Page 6: Stephanie George Hirschberg

Page 7: Stacy McGinnis

Page 8: Sandi Moran

Page 9: Mollie Morrison

Page 10: me!

I wish you could see it all in person...it just all came together so nicely. It's one of my favorite things from Silver Bella.

Tomorrow, I'll show you the goods from other Silver Bella swaps.

jiminy christmas

I'm cleaning out my workroom (I can't really call it my studio in the state it's in now). I'd rather be doing anything else. Just to give you an idea of how bad it is, I would love to have a shovel. That would be the most helpful tool at this point.

I promised myself after Silver Bella I'd tackle that space and make it very clean and organized and pretty. And most of all, child-safe. I need to be able to work in there with a baby safely playing at my feet. (we're hoping to have another friend come stay with us a while as soon as our hearts are healed a bit more)

I think Santa is bringing me a tv to put in there. It'll be nice to have the room prepared for such a nice gift. There's a tv in there now but it's way too huge to be in there. I don't have the real estate for that kind of thing taking up space.

Anway...just in case you were sitting there wondering what Amy Powers is up to today...there you go. Shovelling glitter and buttons and ribbon bits. Backbreaking work.

Rochambeau

I made a mistake and showed only the back of the very lovely peacock bag that Constance made...I've corrected it now and wanted to show you just how fabulous it is.

Maybe you'd like to see more of what she made to share...

This doll is really a handbag!

For these and more, visit Constance's inspiredfriends gallery...click here.

Tonight, I will show you pictures from Silver Bella. Although I have to admit I didn't take any from the actual event. I'm going to try to get some friends to share theirs. (Bellas, if you took some good pictures and you don't mind sharing, can you send them to me? amy (at) inspireco.com)

Also, the belated giveaway is forthcoming. Stay tuned.

i'm back!

Here I am with the lady who made it all happen, the fabulous Teresa McFoofalaFayden.

Tell me...Do you like my new 'do? For Silver Bella's prom night, I donned a pink beehive! It was so much fun to wear and there were really times during the night that I felt like a subject of the paparazzi! And guess what...I was crowned Sweetheart of the Prom!!!! What a thrill.

I have so much catching up to do and so much to show you. Soon, I promise. The links on the how-tos will be up very soon...

Until then, here's a look at the birthday invitation I made for my nephew Seth's birthday party.



Everytime I look at this it makes me laugh! I was snickering to myself the whole time I was putting it together.

The theme for the birthday party is spiderman but, well, I had to make it more personal for my sweet little guy. I tried to talk him into having a sweets party with a candy theme but he said "not everybody loves candy as much as we do, Amy!" How cute is that?

inspiredfriend, Constance Muller of Rochambeau

I'm so pleased to announce my friend Constance Muller of Rochambeau as my inspiredfriend! I can't wait for you to see all her goodies. Click here to see it all!

And a new issue of inspiredideas is up too! Check it out!

p.s. I just realized that many of the printouts for inspiredideas projects are not available. I'm going to try to walk Rich through adding those today over the phone...if that doesn't go well, look for them Monday.

p.p.s. Silver Bella is so much fun. Wish you were here!

meet me here tomorrow...

Bright and early tomorrow morning, meet me back here for the latest update of inspiredfriends and inspiredideas. It's a great one!

And oh my goodness! Silver Bella is amazing! I'm in heaven. Details when I get back...I'm too busy for much more than that!

chicken, head, off

What I'm doing today:

• Getting a haircut


• Getting my eyebrows shaped


• Meeting my friend Debbie for lunch


• Packing


• Getting orders out


• Going to the bank


• Cleaning so the house isn't a complete disaster

Last year, right before Silver Bella, I got my haircut too. It was the worst haircut of my life. I felt like an idiot the whole time. On one side of my head, my hair was all but 2 or 3 inches long...on the other side, up to 7" long. My name is not Cyndi Lauper. The year is not 1985.

(picture from CountryLiving.com)

This year, I hope to be sporting a much cuter, less edgy 'do. Really, there is nothing edgy about me.

I'd better get going. I'll post sneak peeks at my swaps later...if you're in any of my swaps, you should avert your eyes.

getting ready

Monday already? How did that happen?

I'm working hard to get the next inspiredfriend all ready to go before I head off to Silver Bella on Thursday. I want to make it so that all I need to do is push publish on Saturday morning and, voila! update!

Until then, you can still shop The Glitter Fairy's collection, including this very charming little glittery bird in her nest.

I'm also finishing up swaps, packing my supplies, and worrying about what to wear.

the cottage's open house

If you are within earshot, you have got to go to the cottage for some instant holiday inspiration.

Case in point, this fabulous wreath. It's made of the most lovely vintage ornaments. I kept thinking about it on the drive home. I decided I couldn't live without it so I called my friends Ann and Linda and told them to mark it sold.

Check the cottage's blog for more photos of what's in store...

courage in a bottle

I don't know why...maybe I'm just a sucker. But when I found myself in the homeopathic section of Whole Foods, idly reading labels, I decided that I needed this. It's not really that I am shy or timid. But the claim that this product will "bring courage and calm to face things that frighten or worry you..." well, it's worth a try. You put 2 drops in your drinking water. I'll let you know. *

I missed posting a single thing about voting and the election and the results. I don't typically discuss such things especially since there are some views that I hold that are not always very popular, based in my Faith. I must say though that I'm eager to see what this new day in our country will bring...and I hope that our fine new leader will usher us into this new day with all the energy and enthusiasm of his campaign.

I'm keeping busy, mostly getting ready for Silver Bella. I'll be at Silver Bella on the 15th, when the next update is to be. So I have lots of work to do to get that all ready to go. Unfortunately, sunny days have been few and far between and I have lots of photos to take.

Tomorrow is the Cottage's holiday open house so I'll be there as an auxillary shopgirl...at least in the morning.

In other news, I found the most amazing paper crafts store, right here in Northern Virginia. Goldens Hill Paper Crafts is operated from Ronnie's basement and is only open on Wednesdays (call first to be sure) but it is really a goldmine of paper crafting supplies! She tries to carry products that are not readily available at local scrapbooking or craft stores. And the very best part is that every single price was significantly lower than the regular retail prices!

I went with Hope and Pam and we couldn't have been more pleased with this shopping find. We've already made plans to be regular shoppers!

*I just read that Bach's Mimulus is 27% alcohol. Do you suppose that's the secret to relieve "naturally occurring nervous tension"?

deb...you won!

Comment no. 33: deb said...
The glitter fairy?? Can it get any better? Off to read!

You won! Now, tell me, my friend. Which tile letters would you like? Choose up to 10...and send me your address (amy@inspireco.com)

Yay!

inspiredfriend: The Glitter Fairy!

She's been on Martha 3 times, is as delightful as she can be, and now, she's an inspiredfriend! click here to see! You won't believe all the glittery goodness she's made to share with you, including her famous glittered fruit. And, just wait until you see the Glittered Goddess Award!








And the next issue of inspiredideas is up! Click here to see. It is a fun one, chockfull of great projects...







And the giveaway? Leave a comment below, and you have could win all of the projects shown above and featured this issue of inspiredideas...

the tiny walnut box filled with itty bitty treasures

3 of silver glittered snowflakes

the 3 colorful ornaments

AND up to 10 of the letter tiles, spelling anything you'd like!

Leave a comment below (anonymous users, please leave your name). Enter only once, please. Drawing will be held on Monday morning...winner announced shortly thereafter. Good luck!