Woot! Woot! Next Stop... Virginia!

Yeah, yeah... I know. Most trains go Toot! Toot! But this year at Art & Soul, we're aboard the Orient Express... a clever and creative locomotive, heading right for your favorite mixed media workshops! Our theme for this year, Orient Express is a great analogy for our events... with so many exotic workshops to offer, over a week's worth of time... you'll be on the fast train to uplifting your creative spirit like you took an artistic vacation. Woot! Woot!

And the next stop on this amazing journey is our Virginia Beach Event. Filled with such a variety of classes in all types of categories, you won't want to miss this Art & Soul in October. Here's just a sampling of what we have to offer this year (and a special offer at the end of this article)! Check it out...

Julie Haymaker Thompson's whimsical approach to jewelry makes this Full Metal Jacket workshop fun and easy. Using cold-connection techniques and tons of layering, these beautiful baubles will adorn you by the end of class!

Okay, seriously? This looks like something you can find in a high end interior decorator's store. But Tory Brokenshire can teach you how to Light Up Your Life all on your own, from wire form to finished lamp! How cool is that?

We've altered everything else at Art & Soul, so why not your jeans? Sandy Lupton helps you do the Hippy Hippy Shake as you alter and embellish your favorite comfy blues. The results are pretty adorable.

Do you Zentangle? Well if you have, you know... but if you haven't and you try it, you'll never ever stop! But how could you with such gorgeous results as these. Join Suzanne McNeill as she kicks it up a notch with color, not to mention some style and pizazz!

Are you a queen? Yes you are! So you totally need to make this stunning French Beaded Crown with A Gilded Life's girls Shea Fragoso and Debbie Murray. And you don't even have to bring a thing to their class! Now that's being treated like royalty.

Cathy Taylor takes you where very few have gone before... inside your electronic devices! Why? Well, it's for the purpose of repurposing circuit boards to create whimsical collages. Don't worry, your brain won't Short Circuit in this workshop, as Cathy is the most patient of teachers.

Get whisked away to a magical forest in Judy Porter's Woodland Whimsies workshop, as you learn to sculpt your own fairy, elf or troll in polymer clay. A fun and unique class that will surely appeal to your fantasy fetishes.

And there's really so much more that we have to offer this year. When I was reviewing all our workshops for this post, it was so hard to choose which ones to showcase. We've got amazingly talented instructors, with stunning projects and techniques to teach you.

Virginia Beach Art & Soul

September 29 - October 5, 2014

Virginia Beach Resort Hotel

Virginia Beach, VA

So check out our classes today. And, if you register before May 31st, you'll get 10% off all workshops. Simply use the code SPRING VA for your special discount! For more information on workshops, you can browse our website by workshop instructors, individual classes, or even by project photos. So grab a cup of your favorite beverage and have a look around.

Art & Soul Virginia Beach 2012...Wrap it up!

Wow, wow, wowie, wow! Now that we've all caught our breath from Art & Soul Virginia Beach, I wanted to highlight some more of the amazing fun that was had at this seaside venue! It's hard to whittle down which photos to share, as there were so many facets of this event that made it really special.

I know I sound like a broken record when i say this, but I think this was the best Art & Soul yet. So many new instructors — including Jen Crossley here, who came all the way from Australia to teach — added to the mix of interesting mixed media workshops we had to offer. New friendships were formed. Old friendships were rekindled. Lots of laughing and camaraderie. And a bunch of new jewelry was acquired! All the important things.

The buzz of excitement about the workshops we offered and the talented instructors who taught them were palpable. Imagine walking into your class and the teacher's table looked like this! Cindy Yost French left no stone unturned with her Bead Embroidery Meets Steampunk Necklace workshop. And the students did such a fine job of coming up with their own twist on this hot new trend.

Want to go out with a bang (or should we say a bangle?), then Sally Jean Alexander's Buckle Up and Bangle Down is the place to be! She never runs short of new ideas on how to combine beautiful, professional-looking soldering with a whimsical style and thoughtful composition. You know you're studying with a master when your student's projects look as lovely as this!

And whether it's hair for little dolls....

Or hair for big dolls (wink, wink), Lana Guerra's wit and wisdom always shines through in the unique workshops she teaches. Her Misfit Doll Making yields tiny Tim Burton-like puppets with giant hearts... while her Let's Wig Out class showcases her 17 years of experience as a hair designer making big, far out, whimsical, high fashion looks. Now that alot of hair!

Look at this piece from Jenni Horne's American Still Life class. Is that not the cutest thing you've ever seen? Her childlike views on painting really shone through in the student's work. Makes me long for those simpler times.

Annie Lockhart taught a workshop entitled, Hang With Me - A Magical Mobile and just look at the results!! I love all these weathered bits and bobs on this students mobile. Everybody's work was great in this class... like they'd been making mobiles forever. So well though out and visually balanced. Fun!

And then there was Suzanne McNeil's Spirit Doll class. Look at all these gourd-geous ladies and their unique dolls!

Kari McNight's Stamp & Stencils Journal workshop was a big hit. Students were passing around their journals at the dinner table that night, and everyone had something uniquely their own. That's one of the things I love most about Art & Soul... how each student's work is so different from the next.

Oh, and I also love my amazing assistant, (doesn't that just sound magical? well, she is!) Marie Kennedy, as well as the generous giving souls like Kat Allison. It just doesn't get any better than this folks!

And then there's down-time.... or is there? My roomate Margaret's hands just about keep up with all the ideas in her head... and she's got such great ideas! But like with so many, the creativity doesn't stop when the class is over.

The sand and sea air did such wonderful things for our spirits, but Art & Soul and everyone involved did so much for our creative souls. Thanks so much to all of you who made this possible and for coming along on this artful journey.

~ Glenny xoxo

© photos courtesy of Marie Kennedy