*Squeal*

I would have posted this at 9:32pm on Sunday as soon as I walked in the door, had Blogger been co-operating... Apparently, Blogger felt the innate need to squelch the excited ramblings of crafter who just discovered a new medium of expression!

What a fantastic class we had with Donna Downey!  We had grand plans of arriving early to get seats in the front, but as expected, the best laid plans... you know the rest.

Holly and I arrived at Stamping Bella at 9am.  We had to trudge up two flights of stairs, with our supplies and we walked right past the room at first!  Donna was just handing out kits when we arrived - luckily there were two seats together, at the very back of the classroom.  At first, I thought it would be hard to see, but Donna was great about walking through the middle aisle and helping us as we progressed.

She would also demonstrate the techniques on random people's layouts.  She used one of Holly's canvases to show us how to make splotchy flowers from alcohol ink and blending solution:

My photos didn't turn out great because

a) I still haven't sent my 18-55mm lens in for repair so I was using my 50mm and

b) it was pretty dark and I didn't want to bump up my ISO too much (don't like grainy photos!) so I had to open up my aperture to f/1.8, which then of course shortens my depth of field...

{sigh} I think I need a new camera... 

FYI, most of the photos of me were taken by Holly with her camera.

Donna was an incredible teacher - funny, helpful, somewhat sarcastic (which appeals to me, because I am too!)...  I had just dropped my alcohol inks on my canvas and was carefully trying not to screw it up with the blending solution... Holly snapped this photo of her peeking over my shoulder - nothing like a little pressure!

As you can see from my finger, I fought with an alcohol ink bottle - and it won!  So Donna gave me a blending solution manicure! :)

Because the class ran over, I didn't finish my canvases... and because my studio is in total disarray, due to renovations, I can't finish them for at least another week or so. 

Probably longer, if we're being realistic.

And honest.

I will share this image, taken half way through the course.  I'm further along on the blue and yellow canvases but I will save them for the final reveal when I finally finish them.

I have to say, I was so inspired that I ran out to Michaels' today and bought gesso (pronouced jess-oh, not guess-oh!) and will go back tomorrow to pick up some modeling paste!

Donna also worked on one of my canvases - here, she's demonstrating how to add highlighting to a painted stencil image with oil pastels.  You can soooo tell that I'm a Type A personality from this photo... only a Type A would be peering over Donna's shoulder to make sure she didn't mess up her canvas! LOL!

Another great thing about Sunday... I was standing at our table, talking to Holly, when I hear someone call my name behind me.  I turn around and immediately recognized Isabelle Gagnon, from my Just Cre8 design team last year!!  She took the train in for the weekend for classes from Montreal.  It was so nice to finally meet her - she had to leave immediately after the class to catch her train, but I managed to get a photo with her.

Please just overlook the goofy look on my face here.  Must have been all the alcohol fumes... from the ink, of course.

I think Dorrie snapped this photo of Holly and I with Donna.  I'm not sure why I am making that face but with Dorrie behind the camera, it was probably for a good reason! :)

What a great time!  I am so disappointed that I didn't sign up for more of Donna's classes this weekend!  Maybe next time!

Thanks to Holly for joining me at the remedial table and for the laughs, even if you did ask me, inappropriately, if I was wet... ;)