Friday, October 12, 2012

Portland Picts!



I'm Back! Well, I've actually been home for a while now, but the jet lag, lack of sleep (due to a week-long slumber party with this lady) and general business of Mommyhood has kept me from sharing the shots longer than I anticipated. Having said that, we took several Instagrams along the way and thought you may want to see what we were up to . . .

Before I left, I did something rather drastic (for me ;) and dyed a streak of my hair blue to match my businesses cards. Crazy, right? I know, and I have to say, I felt kinda cool for doing it. I mean really, if not now, when? Here I was before the blue really faded:


And here are the postcards I took with me to be used as trades:


Now, the first class we took was a two day workshop with the ultra cool Jessie Reno:


We worked on creating layered backgrounds rich in color that came from using only red, blue, yellow, black and white acrylics. It was amazing to see what he could pull out of that:

One of my backgrounds created in class

And what Jessie was able to do with his!

He was such a dynamic teacher. He used the word "Dude" a lot (which we were all repeating by the end of the two days) and really encouraged us not to think to much. The objective was to let go and just create, allowing the magic of the experience to influence the pieces. He used his hands and fingers as his main tools, mixing colors in his palm as he went. I will never think of paint the same way again . . . .

Our last day of instruction was a one-day class with the completely delightful Mindy Lacefield. Honestly, I loved her. She was sweet and kind and gracious and her class was right up my alley (what with her cool colors and little girls):

Mindy at work

One of the backgrounds I created in class

Some class examples

As with Jessie, Mindy encouraged us to let go and play. We doodled, made messes and used neon colors! We worked on painting girls in her style and tapping into our child-like selves. I adored her and would encourage anyone to take advantage of her courses, you'll be thrilled that you did!

And when our classes were over, we went out with the beautiful Heather Henry and her hubs for dinner in Portland!

Daniele, Heather and I
(I also received a gorgeous painting from Heather
which I will show in an upcoming post)

The last day of our trip was spent as tourists, doing touristy things and seeing as much as we could of the city in the few hours we had left:

Using The Max

Hidden hearts

Art everywhere. Including Daniele's pink hair!
(See why I was inspired to color mine blue?)

The infamous Voodoo Doughnuts

And my goal to find: coffee art!

It was a great trip - full of art, inspiration and a little girl time. After all, what more could a busy Mommy want than that? 

Thanks for coming along with me,
Kristin xo

30 comments:

Daniele Valois said...

I wub you!!! and I will go back to Portland with you any day!

Daniele Valois said...

I guess I better write a post now! :P

peggy gatto said...

Love your reno hands and the paintings!!!
Wonderful!!!
I took a class from him last year and loved every minute!!!

Erin K said...

Hi Kristin! Oh wow, so nice to meet you too and thank you for the visit to my little blog. It brought such sunshine to my day. ^_^ I love your mermaid you created for Cameron's Mermaid Swap and your blog looks so gorgeous as well!

Christine said...

what a lovely week, nice work, and I love your hair!

Carmen said...

Looks like you had so much fun... and thank you for linking to Jesse and Mindy. Two more people for me to discover :)

The hair really suits you - all over next time? :D

Humberto Dib said...

Great work, Kristin!
Cheers from Argentina.
HD

Unknown said...

It looks like the two of you had an awesome time.I love the backgrounds you shared and the rest of the pictures too. Thanks for sharing.

Unknown said...

I will just silently be jealous here in N. Florida.

Giggles said...

Thanks for sharing all this great fun so we can live vicariously through you!!! Love the blue streak, you can also get real hair colored extensions put in or do it yourself that hold their color better. People with fun colored hair, different piercings and tattoos scream artist to me!!
Those classes look so fun!!

Hug Giggles

Tracey FK said...

sounds like a simply amazing trip and I kind of love the blue hair... maybe it should be freshened up and be a permanent addition...xx

Carin said...

So glad to finally hear the stories behind the IG photos that kept me entertained while you were away (right down to the last $20!). And I agree, that blue streak should be refreshed, it looks so cool on you! Love the dynamics between you and Daniele btw. You two crack me up with your in jokes and (cool) silliness lol. Fun!

Valerie-Jael said...

Wow, wow, wow, Dudette - looks like you had a wonderful time. I love your blue streak, I used to do red and green ones when I was younger! You have made some great art, and those voodoo doughnuts look amazing? Do they have a magic on them that lets you get thinner while enjoying them?? Hugs, Valerie

chrissie said...

Wonderful work and interesting classes-the perfect combination I would think. Your artwork is always amazing.

Love Chrissie xx

K J D said...

Ohhhh you are so pretty! I love your blue streak!!! Does Kendra want one now?! You may have started something!!!!!

Jessie Reno looks seriously cool!

It looks like you had so much FUN!

I love all your pictures, the voodoo doughnuts are h u g e ! Great hidden hearts too - I am seeing them everywhere at the moment.

Thank you for sharing :)

Karenx

SandeeNC said...

Dude!!( sorry couldn't resist!! lol ) Those voodoo doughnuts look amazing!! wow, what a trip, huh? Sounds like it was a lot of fun! waving hi from the hills of North Carolina :)

Joanna said...

Wonderful! LOVE LOVE LOVE all the fun you had and I LOVE LOVE LOVE your blue streak, what fun! I don't think I'm brave enough or young enough to do it too, but I so wish I was :)

xx

Carolyn Dube said...

What a trip! What amazing classes! What amazing creations! What a happy hand full of paint! Thanks for sharing the joy and eye candy (and voodoo donuts- had never heard of them before!)

scrapwordsmom said...

Such a DREAM!! Someday I am gonna do something like this...so fun, Kristin!!:)

Thanks for sharing all your fun with us...and your backgrounds are lovely.

Kyra Wilson said...

Love the blue! I want to put a color streak in my hair, but I'm at that point where I don't know if it would even show up, or if it did, I'd suddenly have to do something important and hide it.

Lovely trip! I need a trip like that! An art trip!

scarlett clay said...

I'm pea-green with envy!!~ that looks like such a blast! I love your background and all the pics! Your hair (and Daniele's) rocks and rolls and I've got to do this someday!!

Heather Henry said...

I am so, so glad I got to meet up with you two. It was such a blast to get to know you and have the time with you. I truly wish we could've had more time...a day in Portland would have been fabulous and I hope you will come again soon. My hub thought you two were awesome and I know he really appreciated being a part of it all. You are such an absolute sweetheart and so much fun to talk to.
Thanks for sharing the pics, I love your art, your spirit, your blue streak....everything!!! :) I'm so happy you two were able to go do some exploring, looks like you had a great day!!
Hope you are rested up and feeling better!
Cheers and hugs!!

Debi said...

Creative Carnivale!!!! what fun and you and your girlies are a colourful three.some Wow ...with all that inspiration you may never sleep again...♥Debi thank you for sharing your exciting trip.

Mandel said...

Wow, looks like you really had a fun time! :) I like your energetic background :) I would love to participate in such a class, too, but I haven't found something like this in Germany yet...
I love brightly coloured hair, too, but it would look strange on me, as I am working at the public administration... ;) ;)
Greetings Mandel

Terri Corona said...

I'm so happy you had such a great experience! Looks like you really made the most of it, good for you. I would love to take classes from both of those teachers, especially after reading about your experience.

And I love your blue hair! I colored mine dark red and cut it pretty short recently - I was going for more artist less accountant! As you say, if not now, when?

Cameron said...

What an amazing experience! I'm so happy for you and so jealous at the same time!! That's okay, right?! Haha!

...and the blue hair?! YES!

You rock!!

Mindy Lacefield said...

hey darling girl!! i'm so blessed to have met you and Danielle. what good times we shared. i just wish we had even more time to hang out. :0) yes, we will. i know our paths will cross again soon. what fun i had having you in class. i'm so in love with the work you created in class and adore you and the energy you brought into the space. yes. love you friend!
xo
mindy

denthe said...

Somehow I missed this post. Wow, you must've had a wonderful time! Two teachers that I would love to do a workshop with! Looking forward to seeing your finished paintings!

Suzanne Reynolds said...

You made some beautiful art at A&S! Was a pleasure to meet you in Mindy's class. Looks like you had a great time in P-town. Love your blog!

Ella said...

Wonderful! I love what you shared, so fun and freeing to go~ I'm so jealous ;D Happy for you! xo