A Big Success!

It was long, and we were tired, but the Holiday Market of the French American International School was a success!

Rosana and I had tables right next to each other, which was nice. I had another jewelry vendor on my other side, and we all had a good time. It was entertaining to watch all the goings-on, from students on stilts, to classes singing Christmas carols, to contortionists, to the French wine guys flirting with the young women, to kids trying to persuade Moms that they need their ears pierced.... you get the idea .

And in between, Rosana and I each sold a healthy amount of work, so we were happy.

That's my last show of the season, so I'm ready to rest. Think that will happen?

Angels & Crepes!

I haven't made angel earrings in a long time! But it seemed a good idea to stock up for this show. It was kind of fun... not what you'd call "art," but sort of a guilty pleasure . It brought back memories of my early days of beading. And now I have a lot of them for the Holiday Market this weekend. I hope it will go well. I've never done such a long show, but I think it will be worth it. Not just for the sales, but new exposure, which is so important.

I hope you will come and see me. And while you're there, get some freshly-made crepes, sample some French wines, and taste some fine chocolate! Maybe you can watch my booth for me, so that I can check out those tasty things myself!!

Details in the posting below:

Don't Forget the Crepes!

Be sure to remember to come visit Rosana and me as we sell our artwork at the Holiday Market of the French American International School of Portland.

In addition to about 45 vendors, there will be winery representatives hosting wine tastings, a chocolatier, fresh crepes made on-the-spot, french pastries, and so on. This is going to be so much fun!

The event is being held Saturday, Dec. 8th from 9 am to 6 pm, at:

French American International School
8500 NW Johnson Street
Portland, Oregon 97229
Ph: (503) 292.7776

There is also a preview for the school's families on Friday from 3 to 6 pm. If you can't come Saturday, come on Friday, but be ready for carpool traffic!

Featured Artist

Did you notice that I'm the featured artist on our ORA Blog page? Check it out:
northwestjewishartists.blogspot.com

Our New Nephew

Life goes on. My brother and his wife are so excited about the arrival of their new puppy. They named him Elvis. He's a "Schnoodle," which is a Schnauzer-Poodle mix. You know about the designer dogs, right? They used to be called mutts, or mongrels. Now they're 'designer dogs', and they cost more than a pure-breed! But I gotta admit, he's adorable. And since he's half poodle, the idea is that he won't shed much. With his black face and bottom, and white in the middle, he looks kind of like a saddle shoe! I can't wait to meet him, but it won't be until January. By then he'll be quite a bit bigger, but that's okay; I'm sure I'll still be crazy over him.

I hope this works out for them. They've wanted a dog for a long time. And we get a lot of joy out of ours. Hmmmm.... I should post a picture of him, too! Heeeeeeeere's.... Nacho!

Best-Laid Plans

Years ago I read a semi-humorous newspaper column about how arrogant we are to think we can plan our day, let alone our year or our life. One can never really know, or control, what will happen. I am constantly reminded of the wisdom of that column.

So yesterday was the Hannuka Gift Fair that we've all planned for and worked toward. Hadassah did a lovely job of advertising and preparing everything, and everyone "planned" for a festive and successful event.

But no one could foresee the passing of Jewish Portland's pioneering leader, Rabbi Yonah Geller of Shaarie Torah. His funeral was held yesterday at 1:00 pm, and was of course the focal event of our entire community. Many people made the effort to come and support the Hannukah Fair vendors earlier in the day, which I found very touching. But after 1 pm, the place was very quiet.

Of course, it was disappointing for the hosts and participants in the Hannukah Fair. But really, it wouldn't say much for Rabbi Geller if his passing DIDN'T have a profound effect on every Jewish gathering in Portland. Life goes its own way, and we have no choice but to follow. Death has its own commands as well, far byond our our feeble efforts at "control."

Baruch Dayan Ha'emet.

Hannukah Gift Fair This Sunday!

All the Hannuka vendors you could want, all in one place! And food, and music. And I'll have a table there, of course.

When: Sunday, November 18, 2007
9 am - 4 pm
Where: Congreation Neveh Shalom
2900 SW Peaceful Lane, Portland

Sponsored by Portland chapter of Hadassah

Come and see me there!!

French American School Holiday Market !

This is very cool! Rosana and I have applied to be vendors at this year's Holiday Market at the French American International School of Portland. We went out to see the site last week, and we were very impressed with their plans for the event.

In addition to about 45 vendors, there will be winery representatives hosting wine tastings, a chocolatier, fresh crepes made on-the-spot, french pastries, and so on. It should be a LOT of fun!

The event is being held Friday, Dec. 7th and Saturday, Dec. 8th at:

French American International School
8500 NW Johnson Street
Portland, Oregon 97229
Ph: (503) 292.7776

Don't miss it!!

Go !!!

Our "Celebration of Art" was a big success! I am sooo happy! The exhibit was beautiful, the musicians were wonderful, the customers were generous and supportive. Everyone seemed to really enjoy the event. Personally, I had the best show I've ever had, by far. I'm grateful to everyone involved. And really glad we hired Rosanne to be our event coordinator. She made all the difference in the world.
And I'm really tired... Good night.
(Click here for pictures.)

Get Set....

Well, we set up the Social Hall at Neveh Shalom yesterday for our upcoming Art Show. Everything but the art itself... tables, grids,
glass cases, lights, draping, flowers. It looks amazing! And man, my back hurts today! Of course, as always, it was interesting to watch the human interactions. There was excitement, nervousness, tension, pettiness, encouragement. Laughter, hugs, teeth-grinding, whispers, eye-rolling, just about everything. It's a very human thing, mounting a show.

It will all come to a head Sunday morning, as we bring in all of our artworks, and commence THE SHOW. It looks like we'll have good attendance... most people in the community seem to have noticed our flyer in the JewReview. I have high hopes for this show, and I think all the other ORA members do too. Wish us good luck... and come see us!

A Celebration of Art!
Sunday, October 28, 2007
9 am - 3 pm
Congregation Neveh Shalom
2900 Peaceful Lane
Portland, Oregon
Admission: Free

Website Update

Finished re-doing the bracelet page. Whew! Well, actually I still need to take pix of the new Mah Jongg bracelets, but basically I got the pictures all re-done so they should all load without using up the bandwidth.

I think that means everything is basically presentable. Still have to reduce picture files on some pages, but at least it should all flow properly. Actually, I shouldn't say that until I check it all. Tomorrow.

Get Ready....

Things are pretty hectic, getting ready for the big show. Setting up tables in the living room to design my display. Last minute repairs, pricing, signs, and... so many purchases! Tablecloths, jewelry busts, jewelry parts... it doesn't end. I still have to figure out lighting, but the car died, so I have to wait till tomorrow to check out Ikea.

Still working on getting my own website into a usable shape by the time of the show. It's coming along, but it sure is slow work! I really need better software! Also I need to take new pictures of many things, but there's a limit to my productivity....

Takin' Care of Business

Well, this was an interesting day! We had our big meeting at Neveh Shalom to review things for the art show, and get our booth assignments. Rosanne had us draw numbers out of a hat, and I got a great spot. A corner spot, so I can have two long tables, plus the half-circle rounding the corner. I've never had that much space! This should be interesting.

Some people were happier than others with their assignments, of course. But it was heartening to see people trading, and working together to make things work for everyone. Robin got the stage, and she was happy with it. I was glad it wasn't me, because of the lack of handicapped access.

I also managed to get photos of the final "hands" for the ORA website... Lynn's and Laurie's. Truly a victory of persistence! Will finish revising the ORA Contact page tonight. What a relief to finally have that little project done!

But the really amazing thing today was that the group had a surprise gift for me! In gratitude for my work on the ORA website, they all pitched together and raised some money for two gift certificates. One is for a luxury pedicure, and the other is for a significant chunk of $$ to be used on web design classes and software! Gee, how did they know I need (or want) them? Because Gary advised them. And they all managed to keep it a secret! I was truly touched, and very surprised. (The card depicted here plays "Takin' Care of Business" when you open it.)

This is getting exciting. And a little scary.... I'm gonna be a web designer.... I still think that's very funny!