Jill's Pottery Playdate

Here are the kids' mementos from their trip to the EarthGirl Pottery Studio...

Here's the Earth Girl herself - Jill Wiener -- with Charlotte and Aidan on the porch...I am constantly amazed by her; she is wonderfully generous in sharing her studio, her gardens and her time with those of us who are her...well, her fans!

Last month, when the trees were still green and summer was still in season, we visited Jill's studio in rural Sullivan Country, New York for her "2nd Annual Pottery Playdate"...it really was a day we'll all remember forever...

Bella and Aidan rolled and pulled...

Allie loved it all...she made a footed vase...

It was magic to play with the clay Jill so effortlessly (ummm shall we say years of practice and a true talent!) whirled into shapes...she made planes that could perch on cups, birds, rockets, whatever the kids could think up and demand her imagination spurt out from idea to those magic hands...

Logan's hand built masterpiece!

Shannon loved making cups!

Here are the kids prowling about her studio...

The girls point out their creations...next step...the kiln.










Here's a peek at the rest of the barn...

...it's loaded with Jill's fanciful work...vintage props and tons of charm.

And a peek as we headed outside for lunch under the trees...I love her collection of chippy chairs...

While our work dried and Jill readied it for the kiln we dined alfresco near her pond and waded in her pond.

I cannot thank Jill enough for the fabulous day, and the wonderful memories she gave to all of us that were there.

No doubt, the "3rd Annual Pottery Playdate" we hope she'll host next year will be once again the best day in our summer.

xxoo Jen

Earth Angels

Last Issue Announced

I have followed Mary Engelbreit's "Home Companion" magazine for so long now...first as a reader, then a monthly advertiser. The cheery issues have come and gone...and perhaps I am grateful, now more than ever, that I have tucked them away.

Earlier this month, Belvoir Media, the magazine's publisher announced a "suspension of publication"...here's a link to the press release announcing the December - January issue as the last....

http://www.maryengelbreit.com/PressRoom/MEHCSeekingPublisher.aspx

The press release reports that the studios of Mary Engelbreit and the other aspects of her business are healthy.

I will miss the magazine's quips and quotes, the artful stories and -- the oh so cute -- monthly paperdoll...Mary's illustrations and happy, colorful style crept into my consciousness in 1983 when I first saw her work. When I was 14 my sister-in-law Joanne gave me a Mary illustrated card. It read, "Life is just a chair of bowlies."...it still makes me chuckle to think of the little girl peering over the arm of an overstuffed chair (encrusted in Mary's omnipresent cherries) to ponder stacks of bowls... Like so many of my paper mementos and treasures, it's tucked here somewhere in the boxes of keepsakes, buried away and awaiting discovery. The magazines will get their own box now too.

...And so, a fond farewell... and thanks to all who made my participation in the pages possible...especially Teresa Fox and Barbara Jones... and a thanks to Executive Editor Barbara Elloitt Martin and her genuine interest in the Earth Angels artists -- many of whom have graced the magazine's "Artist's Studio" feature over the years.

Should I hear of better news for "Home Companion", I will fill you in...as ever, stay tuned! And fortunately...for readers seeking a good dose of artistic inspiration a new magazine is born. "Where Women Create" launches on November 1st...

xxoo Jen O'Connor

Earth Angels

dolls and a date

As many of you know, I am passionate about the art dolls of my friend Nicol Sayre. They are about my home and bring me great joy... I am especially partial to her seasonal creations.

And so, I am particularly thrilled whenever Nicol is able to send me some pieces to share with Earth Angels' customer friends...

...here are some images of the latest arrivals, all are lovely, some eerie in their beauty and sentiment at this, the most liminal time of the year as we celebrate All Hallows Eve...

AND WONDERFUL NEWS!
...looking ahead to the next season...

Nicol has just agreed to attend our 2nd Annual Heart of Winter Celebration here in Warwick, NY as one of our featured artists.
So SAVE the DATE...
Saturday, January 31 & Sunday, February 1, 2009
…details to follow…Here's Nicol with Debbee and Stacey at the 1st Heart of Winter this past February.

...just email me at Jen@earthangelstoys.com if you'd like to receive an email with more details on the dolls or call me 8-8 NY time...

Enjoy your weekend...we are busy here decorating for Halloween and pulling together the finishing touches on our costumes...Halloween is big stuff in this house and in Warwick....Enjoy the coming festivities.

xxoo Jen O'Connor

Earth Angels

Whooo's Your Favorite

Today a customer asked me to tell her which are some of my most favorite of the recent arrivals from the artists."Who's your favorite?", she asked...Here are my picks...for one reason or another these are my current faves...

A happy and swingy kitty pin from Leslie McCabe...

Election time pals from Pat Castka...

One of Laurie Meseroll's latest 6x8s...



This large piece by Jennifer Lanne that is one of her best and the costuming wolf in top hat sends me....

I can almost never pick a fave among Jennifer Murphy's creations...but the little blue Bear called "Kelsey" is a winner...





Christy's punkin fella and witch...

Dara DiMagno's "3 Bears"...I do love those teddies!

Deirdre Friebely's apple picking gal and here ellie friend...
And so there they are...my tricks and picks....and perhaps my most favorite of all







...this black cat from Earth Girl that's sitting here on the counter giving me a look!

The artists have sent a wonderful grouping of fall's sweetest treats...original art in so many mediums.

And remember...it's almost trick or treat time...get those costumes ready!

Whooo will you be on Halloween?

xxoo Jen O'Connor

Earth Angels

Where Women Create PREMIERS!

IT'S HERE!!!! I am utterly thrilled to announce the arrival of the premier issue of "Where Women Create"...

Congrats go to Jo Packham for launching this fab new quarterly magazine. It picks up where her book left off...with more spaces, more women, more inspiring stories...












Where Women Create invites you into the creative spaces of the most extraordinary women of our time. Through stunning photography and inspirational stories, each issue of this quarterly magazine will nourish souls and motivate creative processes.

...It does just that, and goes beyond, taking you on tour to so many fab spaces of talented women in many fields. This magazine boldly transcends one style or story line and is ground breaking in its use of a first-person format. It deserves to be read! And, at 144 pages of juicy pics, it reads more like a soft cover book and keepsake that will sit on many a bookshelf.

Let me add that the Earth Angels "Secret Lab" is featured in this issue. There's a festive 10 page write up on me and my business, making this an especially poignant publication for all involved with Earth Angels (see the

dorky pic of me above, bottom left in the montage...yet again, I am in a national magazine wearing a crown...)

"Where Women Create" is produced by Stampington and it's available through pre-order at Earth Angels for the cover price of $14.99 + s/h...(it will ship on 11/1) You can also watch for it after 11/1 at many more locations including Borders, Barnes and Noble, Lowes etc!

You can call or email Jen@EarthAngelsToys.com to order it (8-8 NY time 845-986-8720...The first 50 orders will include a special discount coupon for your next Earth Angels website order...

Click this link to Jenny Doh's post loaded with sneak peek images...
http://jennydoh.typepad.com/crescendo/2008/10/where-women-create-omg-its-here.html

ALSO -- included in the pages of the premier issue are instructions for how to join the "SILVER SUITCASE SOCIETY"...this special group is a not so secret, secret society of creative women like us...

I will BLOG on this group soon...stay tuned.

THANKS to all at Chapelle, Stampington and Where Women Create who have made this journey possible..

It's been a wonderful adventure!

To those of you who already have the magazine in your hands...let me know what you think...

xxoo Jen O'Connor

Earth Angels

Today & Tomorrow

...there's an event in town this weekend celebrating the art and spirit of food...

Stone Mountain Junction

Sat, 10/18 - noon - 8pm

Sun, 10/19 - 1pm-6pm

I wish all the participants and supporters the best, and I am looking froward to going myself...

for more info visit http://www.babygrandbooks.com/

See you there

xxoo Jen O'Connor

Earth Angels

Make Time for Cheryl

...make time to meet her at the "From Our Hands" Show in Columbus on Saturday, 11/1...

I call Cheryl Kuhn "The Poet of Akron"...and well, she is that. Words and found objects tell her stories. And, while there are many who "collage", what moves Cheryl's "small stories studio" work apart from the pack is her soulful grasp of the poetry she chooses to illustrate and the inimitable style with which she melds the obscure and the castoff to do so.

Each of her works is not just a pretty assemblage, but a true three dimensional embodiment of the poem she has chosen to put into work. She concocts these pieces with an astute sense of balance and texture. This makes her creations as thoughtful and as a artful in composition as the words and well-formed story.

She works in a palette of black and white palette straying only to modest doses of color when a seasonal mood begs...like these Halloween witches. Yet, her work is never stark. It bears a depth of sentiment that bespeaks the heart of a poet.

Ironically, as much as Cheryl loves photos, it's tough to catch the art herself on film...yet her she is with two of her collector friends looking wonderful...

I am ever grateful that a casual e-mail from one of Cheryl's long ago customers led me to her...and that we walk a path together to share her work with her admires, collectors, friend and followers. The latest work she's sent us might just include some of my very favorite pieces... and please don't miss the chance to meet the artist and see her work in person...

You can meet Cheryl at the "From Our Hands" Show

Saturday, November 1 from 10am -4pm

at the Alladin Shrine in Columbus, OH

It's always a wonderful event...

http://www.fromourhands.com/

(...and you'll also find Earth Angel Lori Ann Corelis at the show too!)

...wishing I could be there...

xxoo Jen

Earth Angels

Wishing Nancy the Best

...after 10 years as Editor-in-Chief of "Country Living" magazine, Nancy Soriano has resigned. Nancy emailed to let me know that she will not be leaving the industry and, while she is sad to leave the family she built at the magazine, it is time for her to pursue other projects and ideas.

I want thank her for redefining and enlivening the pages of the magazine; she created in me an avid monthly reader.

And, I want to wish her the very best in her new ventures...

Many of you know of Earth Angels' wonderful relationship with the magazine and its fabulous editorial staff...
Here's Nancy at the Fair with Debbee...

You can read more about Nancy's contributions on Jane Dagmi's Blog:

http://www.countryliving.com/janes-blog/nancy

Nancy -- many thanks to you for your heartfelt support and genuine affection for the Earth Angels artists and their work. I appreciate and admire your style and savvy and wish you all the very best on your new path...

Readers...I will keep you posted...

xxoo Jen

Earth Angels

Tricks and Treats

...tis the season for treats and a wee bit of trickery... Who better than to master fall's playful mood than painter Laurie Meseroll?

She excels at color-play, wordplay and has the unique capacity to whisk humour into her work with rich textures, captivating scenes and just enough innuendo... Here is the diva herself in costume at Halloween & Vine. She's wearing a custom-made "teddie" by Letty Worley...Laurie and Letty concocted a plan for this outfit while they were in Columbus together for the Country Living Fair...you should have seen Laurie opening the express box at the front desk of the Sheraton in Petaluma...

those in the lobby never saw anything like this...

Nor have I seen Laurie do better for her current body of work. It boldly celebrates the whimsy of the season...brazen with orange, laden with glitter and a bit of black's nod to the darker side...fear not, sweet lavender peeks in along with white dots to liven the canvases.

She has used a marine-grade varnish on this batch of work lending a deliciously thick gloss to the surface of the pieces. Like fondant, or better...warm icing...

Her stylized characters hold hands while they trick or treat, prance across stage on horseback and attend a masque while wee dogs twirl in tuts. This is the stuff sweet dreams are made of and none finer to capture the mood of the season.

Laurie...thanks for the treats, for sharing your talent and for generally raising the inspiration quotient!

xxoo Jen

Earth Angels

PS

Michelle has just prepared and sent 2 e-mails loaded with details of Laurie's new work...e-mail me if you'd like to receive them.

Jen@EarthAngelsToys.com