I got to the airport and my friend Maria surprised me there. I didn't know she was going. We talked all the way up and that was really fun. At the other end I met up with Vivian McDonald and Traci Bautista and we drove up to Fort Worden together. I got to sit in the back seat of the car for the first time ever going up there and it was cushy! We stopped in Poulsbo and had coffee and pastries because you know, and it's been proven you don't ever gain an ounce on the way up to an art retreat!
Outside and around the corner of my dorm.
When we checked in there were so many people there that I knew, it took some will to go take our suitcases to our dorm rooms. But then, we just turned around and came back because it was already dinner time.
view from my dorm window
It was a much smaller group than I am used to so it was more personal and I enjoyed that. We ate dinner, traded things we had made and then went over to the theater for the opening night ceremonies. That was fun too and I met old friends and new ones. I really like meeting the new people. They are all so enthusiastic and fun. After all of this we walked back to the dorm and downstairs in the common area everyone was hanging out, journaling, trading, making jokes, singing, laughing, eating and staying up late. We did do that every night and I loved it!
Check out this amazing thing everyone got in their goody bag.
Three 1/3rd size sheets of special edition rubber stamps. One each designed by Teesha Moore, Tracy Moore and Tiphoni Moore. They are gorgeous! No I won't share.
After going to my dorm room I stayed up until 2am just rearranging things and getting ready for the next day of class and activities.
This was my view from the window first thing in the morning.
Inspiring to say the least.
I didn't sign up for breakfast. Too early for me to eat at 7am. I just waited until lunchtime at noon.
On my first day of class with Ingrid Dijkers, "Over the Edge", we cut down big cardboard binders and made interesting pages for journaling along this theme. Here are some of the pages I've started, cutting them into interesting edges. The first page is begun and we each got everyone's autograph. She was a really good teacher with so many ideas, lots of collage pages for us to use and a number of pages of notes she handed out that I will be using for working on this tome. Her books were amazing to look at. I am not a very fast worker so here are my humble beginnings.
That night after dinner there was an event called the "Journal Jam" and almost everyone got together in the commons to work on our journals and also in our friends' journals. Teesha had these larger than life size vinyl murals up that looked like her collaged girl series and each of the four "girls" had a round hole cut where her face was. Look at me!
and me with Maria.
Yeah we were laughing, non-stop.
It was a fun party and ended too soon. But that's okay because after that we all just went back to our dorms and houses and hung out in the common area until late, eating chocolate and some drank wine and we laughed and learned about each other.
the schoolhouse
The next day I had a class with Orly Avineri called "Attachment Theory" and that was really interesting. She had us do a few exercises that I thought were very original and gave us new ways to look at Journaling and ways to express ourselves. Here are just a few of my bits so you can't really get much of an idea about this class but I think it was a great class and I highly recommend it. She is a wonderful teacher!
below, a treasured note from my son
I'm just starting out here. I learned so much but I am slow to decide what to write.
HA!
I printed that photo out on my pogo. Those have really taken off. I talked to at least 8 people who had one and more who were off to go get one. These little printers are definitely a hit with the journaling and mixed media crowd. I was an early adopter. And yes I am truly silly but I don't care. It was great to get to be silly with people who were not worried about it. You have to love that.
Walking back to the dorm after class. It is fall, FALL, FALL!
Really? So I stopped to take pictures.
That night after dinner was the Artist's Sale and I got a couple of things that will remind me of Journalfest and the fun I had.
Here is a very nice journal I bought from Doris Arndt. She does very nice work and she's careful and the pages fit perfectly. They are black inside.
And then there is Daphne. I got her from Ty and Marcia Schultz. A couple who make curiously odd things from molds and other interesting parts. That's Daphne hanging in the dorm room while I am in class.
This is her close-up.
She's tough. She's a loner.
On the last day of class I had "Spiraled Re-Creation) with Traci Bunkers. I have always wanted to take a class of hers and so finally here I was. She was a thorough teacher and she explained many things about journaling I had always wanted to know. I love her rubber stamp line and I think I own most of it. Here are some photos of class that Roberta, a classmate took and posted to her blog.
We made spiraled journals with lots of different kinds of pages and design elements. I made two of them.
The covers of the small one are the corrugated pizza box. I still have to paint it and add more details. The possibilities here are exciting to me.
Inside:
I used some of my son's homework pages as collage fodder.
And the cover of my other one is the corrugated part on the outside.
That night a few of us went out for a fun dinner in Port Townsend and an opening night show over at "Artisans on Taylor". When we got back the last "Journal Jam Party" was well under way with a band, treats and lots of friendships blooming in our shared journaling adventure. I think Vivian and I went home last around 12:30. Hey, I was waiting for HER!
I didn't want to get up the next morning. No way, but I did. Dawn Sokol was waiting for me and we rode to Seattle together and went sightseeing until our planes were leaving later that night. Surprise! Maria was there and our new friend Onna and since I got to board first I saved them seats and we sandwiched Onna between us and talked all the way back to the bay area.
Sunrise on the last day in Port Townsend from my dorm window.
Daphne and I, we are all right. She likes it here and the dogs haven't found her and chewed her up.
sleeping on her tube mailer
her quirky shoe situation
Her freaky attitude.
Ah the memories.
