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April 27, 2011

It is not inspiration Wednesday but...

I did make this on the plane somewhere over the pacific...
Just landed in hong kong, one more flight left to go!

Sent from my iPhone

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April 26, 2011

random blathering vlog...

garden jelly roll

clean and shabby "soon to be" online workshop

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April 25, 2011

Sponsor Spotlight: Altered Angel

I have exciting news about one of my long-time sponsors, Altered Angel. Owner Mary Harrell has taken a huge step and opened a brick and mortar store in the Atlanta area that has everything you need for every kind of paper crafting. She’s got paper, embellys, stamps, ATC supplies, canvas, alterable books – you name it, she’s got it - including the largest selection of Sizzix dies in Georgia. The new store is the perfect compliment to her online store, which has some of the coolest products, a must-see for paper crafters!

Don’t forget to check out Altered Angel's Blog and “Like” them on Facebook (for the latest updates on what’s happening online and in the store!

What else is exciting? You can visit me at Altered Angel July 15-16th when I’ll be teaching three of my classes, Butterfly Moments, Heart & Soul and the Inspiration Journal. So stop in and visit Mary and ask about registering for one of my workshops. The store is located at at 5184 McGinnis Ferry Road, Alpharetta, GA 30005, or call 678-368-4483.

Hope to see you in July!

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April 22, 2011

inside the studio...

i have been seriously tearing it up in my home studio for the past 2 days! i have been making stuff, recorded the first of the pan pastel workshops and i am still going. it might look like a mess but it is all strategically placed in my own personal oblivion!

and that's not all!

we got in some awesome new stuff in the shop like these new hero arts stamps

i have already grabbed mine...love flowers! lots and lots of flowers. my mind is reeling!

if you come in the studio on saturday and find an easter egg, open it up to find a percentage off, you will get the percentage off your entire purchase!!!

and for my not so close by friends, we are offering 25% off my entire new home decor line, iphone4 cases and plaques!

use coupon code: decor

happy easter everyone!

04:17 PM in dd studios, in the shop, inside the studio | Permalink | Comments (8) | TrackBack (0)

April 20, 2011

inspiration wednesday + video

couldnt get the idea of red moldeling paste and the 6x6 crafters workshop template out of my head last night. i had to see what it looked like in tangible form today in my journal. even got a little pink floyd in my journal today.

IN LOVE!

watch the pages as i create...

inspiration wednesday 4.20.11 from donna downey on Vimeo.

supplies used

inspiration journal
6x6 brick template
modeling paste
GOLDEN quinacridone crimson acrylic paint
KROMA iron oxide acrylic paint
palette knife
gesso
GOLDEN gel medium
neutral gray PAN PASTEL
mini tag
date stamp
vintage trypewriter
notebook pages
tiny attacher
vintage photo distress ink
broken china distress ink (went back and added color to my image transfer)
crushed olive distress ink (went back and added color to my imagetransfer)
foam blending tool
heat gun
bone folder
ink jet printed images of original art

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April 19, 2011

busy, normal day...

up early and my mind is spinning!

i am working on an exciting new series of pan pastel online workshops. should be ready to launch the first one in mid to late may. here is a little snippet of some of the projects i have been playing around with.

also been working on embroidering more of the nametags for inspired. (this takes longer than i thought. that is always the way!)

had to pull in some recruits. (cheryl got a big batch of them coming your way today!)

inspired countdown!

{only 21 more days!}

put together a downloadable supply list for inspired. ladies this might make prepping a bit easier!

just ordered the new signature event necklaces for inspired. went in a different direction and they make me so HAPPY!

designing a couple of ideas for NEW t's and sweatshirts.

a million and one details to finalize and i love every minute of it!

it is going to be incredible!

inside the studio..

off to the studio now, have a couple of friends traveling to visit and shop! cant wait to see you renee!

we are a full house tonight for APRIL ATC CLUB workshop! love me some poppy art!

have a great day and see you tomorrow for inspiration wednesday!

12:18 PM in art | Permalink | Comments (9) | TrackBack (0)

April 17, 2011

Great wolf lodge

Our special family overnight.
Thank you grandma cookie for this amazing gift. We are having an incredibly fun time.

Sent from my iPhone

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April 15, 2011

Sponsor Spotlight: ScrapScription

If you like the idea of a kit club, you will LOVE the kits put together from my good friends at ScrapScription!

ScrapScribers is ScrapScription's monthly mini-album kit club. As a ScrapScriber member you are guaranteed ScrapScription's 15th of the month kit each and every month! No need to worry about missing out on a fabulous kit, you will automatically be billed and sent your ScrapScriber kit each month.

As a member of ScrapScribers, you will receive your kit at a guaranteed discounted price of $32 each month. In addition, every 6th kit will be shipped free of charge! Finally, with your 12th kit you will receive an additional FREE ScrapScribers member's only kit that will not be offered to non-ScrapScribers’ members.

ENJOY THE RIDE - CHIPBOARD BRACKET COVERED ALBUM Learn to take life a little easier and slow down to soak in all the little things and just ENJOY THE RIDE! Spring is a perfect time to renew ourselves, slow down, and breathe deeply as everything starts to blossom and bloom. Jillibean Soup has captured the essence of this lighthearted season in their new release called Blossom Soup! We loved the cute bicycle icons used throughout this line as well as the flowers, clouds, and butterflies that these papers and embellishments are bursting with. You’ll love the clean lines and cute graphics of the die-cut shapes that fill the pages of this album. And we’ve included some warm Kraft accents with the corrugated flowers and bird and burlap chipboard alphabet.

Also new in this kit are Jillibean’s newest addition to their “pin” line called Sugar Picks – a butterfly pin and a flower pin which again coordinate perfectly with everything in your kit. But there is even more newness with the mini chipboard banner pieces from Maya Road and even one of the brand new Filter Flowers from Fancy Pants! So, new season and new products abound in this fun, joyful album!

As a special offer to all Donna Downey blog readers, if you join ScrapScribers before the end of April, your first kit – the April ScrapScriber kit, “Enjoy the Ride” - will be shipped free of charge – a savings of $5.95 for new domestic memberships and $7 for new international memberships!. When checking out, enter DDBLOG as a coupon code to receive this discount. For more information, visit the ScrapScriber page.

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April 14, 2011

new toy!

Janome FM725, what is it you may ask?

while teaching in canada i met 3 amazing ladies, all with these really cool handmade fabric journals. i had to know more and as i began asking questions, they told me about this "felting machine".

naturally thinking you used a felting machine with felt, i was immediately intrigued because clearly these journals were not made of felt.

they quickly told me you can run almost anything through it, felt, cotton fabrics, ribbons, lace, satin, yarn...my head i think exploded. oh the possibilities

after chatting for about 20 minutes i immediately knew i needed this machine. i ordered it online right then and there and it was delivered while i was in europe.

basically a sewing machine with no threading, just 5 barbed needles that magically punch holes through layers of fabrics onto a felt bottom layer (at least that is all i have tried thus far) forcing them to blend together to become one new texturally fantastic fabric.