a new feature we’ve added to our website is the virtual classroom.

people are always asking when and where i’m teaching… and usually the
answer is rubydog’s art house. but not everyone can take the time to
see me in my vancouver location, so the next best thing is the virtual
classroom. here you’ll be able to take classes at home, in your own time, on your own schedule [wearing your pjs and bunny slippers if you want].

the virtual classroom will include a variety of classes such as rubberstamping, mini-albums, holiday and technique
based classes. here is how it will work:

1. sign up for the class by visiting the virtual classroom
2. click on the class link you are interested in and pay for your class through our online store
3. receive access to our exclusive, comprehensive classroom PDFS, sketches, video clips and audio introductions [as applicable]
4. following the step-by-step workshop instructions you will complete your new project or learn a new technique
5. visit our exclusive Google Classroom Group for inspiration, questions, comments and sharing your projects

in addition to the classes i will be teaching, we will also be having fabulous guest instructors such as

• claudine hellmuth
• genevieve simmonds [paperWERX designer and We DARE You author],
• becky olsen [our street team fearless leader]
• and others to be announced…

our first class is almost ready for registration and should be available early this week. the workshop is based on the above sample image, a transparent mini-album. it’s super fun and really doable in just a few hours… 
i’m off to finish my lesson plan and get the class ready for registration. check back here to see when the class content is available.

have a greaet sunday!

a mosaic of my recent works… so cool to see it like this!
Enjoy =)

My ETSY Collages, originally uploaded by studiowerx.

i’m pretty sure. no, i’m convinced. lulu is losing her marbles.

for the last few weeks she’s been wandering around the house, looking UP. yep. up. here’s what going on…

lulu perches on my bookcase. yep. about 7 feet up in the air. she hangs
out. legs and arms hanging off the edge of the bookshelf. well a few weeks ago, she nailed a spider [a big one too - you go my four-legged pest controller] along the upper part of the wall where  she was lounging. she smooshed it good. played with it first. ripped off a few legs. but in the end, that 8 legged freak was dead.

so now… she patrols the corners of our ceilings. head up. chirping and chattering away like a momma bird to her young. she’s looking for more spiders, tiny no-see-um flies that sneak in through our window screens, the odd mosquito… she’s on hunting mode in a big way.

now don’t get me wrong. i love that we have our very own pest control. we never have to worry about big [or little for that matter] spiders, bugs of any kind or [god forbid!] mice. she’s the man for the job. pouncing and punishing the pests as an example to their bretheren that this house is a ‘no-go’ zone.

ok so here’s where is gets a little annoying and really funny. as i said, she is constantly looking up. chirping at NOTHING 99% of the time. chirping a dust motes pretending to be no-see-um flies. chirping at her whisker shadow that looks remarkably like a spiderleg [or so it seems]. chirp chirp chirp. it’s cute, but man, a few hours of chirping ‘did you see it? did you see it? where’d it go? ‘ can start wearing on you. here’s the funny…

many of you know that my dh terry [t] is tall. 6′2" to be exact. so, to satisfy lulu’s need to exact revenge on the menacing pests in our home [can you FEEL the sarcasm?], he will LIFT HER UP TO THE CEILING! yep. he picks her up, hoisting her up to where the wall meets the ceiling, and SHOWS her the area she is chirping at. it is freaking hilarious! this tall, lanky man holding a furry, unbearably cute kitty to the ceiling of his home, just so she can be reassured that there are no beasties lying in wait for her.

lulu chirps at the ceiling. paws out for inspection, she searches the corners and crevices to ensure that there really isn’t anything there. she sighs [yes. you can actually hear her sigh] in disappointment when there aren’t any kills to be had, and t puts her back on the bookshelf, floor or  whereever he scooped her up from. this usually satisfies her for about 15 minutes. then chirp chirp chirp and the cycle repeats.

so for the last week or so, if i can’t find t around the house, i have a good idea where he is… i just listen for the chirping. he’s probably holding up his furgirl, lulu, to the ceiling. together, they carefully inspecting each wall crevice and corner for multi-legged predators. ahhhh… the life of a tall guy and his mentally unstable, ‘the spiders are going to get me’ kitty. it’s charming, sweet and infinitely funny.

i finally got in on one of those ETSY Treasury thingies… so cool! it’s a chance to highlight your favorite stuff on ETSY and if you’re needing some exposure, adding a few of your own pieces to your treasury listing doesn’t hurt. here is the link to mine…

i’m also now doing commissioned mixed media portraits! check out my latest listing for more information. the nitty gritty of it is you send me your photo, we determine the size you want, discuss color options and then i create your special commissioned artwork. fun and really cool [in my humble opinion].

have a great back-to-school week everyone! watch for rug rats in the crosswalks…

i love long weekends… i’m feeling super productive lately and having the long weekend gives me additional time to let things percolate in my head.

usually, i’m working on multiple artworks at the same time and feel the need to finish pieces before i lose my creative train of thought… with a long weekend that need to get things finished, before i’m back to the ‘real’ 9-5 work, is put aside and i can really focus on what i’m doing. did that make sense??

the downside of all this creative productivity? the vacuuming isn’t done, i really should dust, the laundry is piling up a little bit, we’re eating leftovers for dinner [or ordering in]. but at least my bathroom and kitchen are clean. ahhhh well. t understands. he loves the new works and is encouraging me to make more pieces… isn’t he the best?

btw, i’ve added an ETSY widget to my blog so whenever new pieces pop up, you can see them right away on the blog menu…

thanks for looking and enjoy what’s left of the long weekend =)

i’ve sold a few pieces in my etsy shop [yay!] so i started working on a few new artworks to fill out my available space.

the two latest collages are african-american, fashion inspired [yeah yeah… what else is new?] pieces and i think they turned out quite cool. but you can be the judge of that =)

enjoy…

just released: a new line of digiWERX digital papers. introducing… Pharmacie

this new digital paper collection PHARMACIE is named after the authentic 1890’s doctor ledger pages, french pharmacy labels, old book text and vintage letters used in the collages. the collages created with these treasure trove of antique papers are overglazed, distressed and stained with acrylic paint to create unique backgrounds for any paper arts project.

the collection is inspired by my recent flurry of artistic exploration and have formed the base of more than one of two of my recent esty collages. they are perfect being used as scrapbook papers, hybrid paper arts porjects, cards and tags.

i hope you enjoy making cool stuff with these digital papers as much as i enjoyed creating them. thanks for looking [and buying].

have a great labour day weekend everyone!

this week, i was a lucky recipient of the new DARE book by the famously infamous effer dares.

gen, my local scrap-girlfriend and paperWERX product designer is 1/4 of the effers and was an integral part of the development, design and publication of this book. so… since i was having a bummer [i’m in major pain] kinda of week, i took thursday off work to rest and recoup, and read my new book.

gotta say, as a collector of idea, instructional and inspiration books… this one is right up there in my top 5 faves. it’s real. REAL. four girls [and contributing artists] scrapping and journaling their lives in a real, honest way that is as artistic as it is deep. ok, sometimes, it’s not so deep and that is just fine.

gen, kristina, nisa and meghan should be very proud of this huge achievement. the achievement is not only the publication of their incredible work and words, but also that they are showing people alternative ways to scrap their lives. they revel in the not-so-great moments and so-so photos. show you how to embrace the faults of yourself and make changes to better yourself, but in a non-preachy, life experience kinda of way. they encourage you to scrap what you want, when you want and HOW you want. throughout the book their mantra is that these are your stories, your pages and ultimately should be a reflection of YOU. and they DARE you to be you… no one else. just you. what a concept…
and that is very, very cool.