A Great New Class... We Ain't Lion!

Need to fill your Friday afternoon in Minneapolis? Well... Erin Keck has a brand new class she's offering... Trash To Treasures - Creating Vintage Collage Jewelry. In this half-day workshop, you'll learn how to take scraps of broken vintage jewelry along with other embellishments and turn them into unique modern-day statement pieces. You can bring jewelry bits and bobs of your own, or Erin will have a treasure chest of junky jewels to sift through.

Trash To Treasures

Creating Vintage Collage Jewelry

Minneapolis Art & Soul

Friday, April 28th, 1:30-4:30

Come join us for this fun, laid-back and informative workshop! You'll leave with your own personal wearable art piece that's unlike any other. For more information on Minneapolis Art & Soul, visit our website and check out all we have to offer...

Up... Up... and Away... Our 2015 Logo Revealed!

We are so very tickled to bring you our new Art & Soul
theme and logo for 2015... 

Flights of Fancy!

The idea came about last year when a few instructors and attendees gathered after class and had a little brainstorming session. The thought behind it was a kind of Jules Verne inspired hot air balloon look. Jules Verne was a French novelist, poet, and playwright best known for his adventure novels and his profound influence on the literary genre of science fiction. You may remember him for his incredible stories including Journey to the Center of the Earth, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea and Around the World in 80 Days.

The incredibly amazing vintage-meets-steampunk artwork was created by our very own Art & Soul Instructor Leslie Brier. Well-known for her inventive mixed media art, Leslie has a knack for combining Victorian style objects with futuristic overtones. We knew in a heartbeat, she'd be the perfect artist to create this year's logo. And... you can experience some of Leslie's talent in person.... she'll be teaching at our Portland retreat as well as our Virginia Beach event.

So put on your thinking caps my little mixed-media mavens! I can't wait to see what imaginative things you come up with for trades, swaps, themed clothing and oodles of ephemera to bring along to our Art & Soul Retreats this year. Up... Up... and Away!

Button Up & Enjoy Some Alcohol...

Just wanted to pop in and show you some virtual eye candy of the wonderful classes we have at our upcoming Kansas City, MO retreat. Event though it doesn't start until March 19th of 2014 — it'll be here before you know it!


Jean Van Brederode has outdone herself again with this gorgeous Button Up! workshop. In it, you'll create a charming necklace of buttons, buckles, and bling! Upcycle those favorite glass, bone, shell, metal, or plastic buttons as you form a delightful mixed media necklace by encasing and attaching single and groups of buttons in attractive and unusual combinations. You'll get to explore many useful yet simple soldering and connecting techniques, and you will leave with a complete and fanciful ready-to-wear creation!


And Cathy Taylor takes you out of this world with her workshop on Creating Magic With Alcohol Inks. Ohhhh, those bright, beautiful, luscious, yummy alcohol inks. I love it so much, I think I'm going to have to go to Alcohol Inks Anonymous! You'll be enchanted with the amazing new techniques presented in this fun filled, experimental workshop. Using alcohol inks and some weird and wonderful tools, you will create incredible artwork even if you don’t have a background in painting. Quirky, unexpected, and surprising results every time you create. You'll love learning how to go with the flow!

Check out all of our fabulous Kansas City classes for 2014 on our website. Or you can browse by instructor, take a look at our example project photos, or view more of our instructor videos. Any way you look at it, we'd love for you to join us!

What's Your Re-Purpose?

Flea market find. Bizarre bazaar. Junk junkie. Picker. Hoarder. Magpie. Pack rat. Rusty gold. Roached. If you've ever taken a workshop at Art & Soul, you're probably familiar with some of these terms. Because, when it comes to mixed media... well... there's just something about recycling pieces of the past!

Rummage sale. Yard sale. Garage sale. Estate sale. Thrift shop. Salvation Army. Goodwill. Heck... how about the garbage! We'll go just about anywhere and pick up anything that strikes our fancy. I know some days I've found more goodies in the trash or on the ground at the flea market, than I've purchased from actual vendors!

Grungy. Grimy. Patina'd. Rusted. Scratched. Dented. Worn. Well-used. The bigger the story an object tells... the better. We seem to love that about the items we covet. They just look like they have a tale to tell. And the way Art & Souler's upcycle these beauties in our many classes simply amazes me!

And whether you use your vintage goodies for collage, journals, assemblage, jewelry, art dolls, sculpture or something else... your creativity makes my heart smile.

So tell me girls and boys... Where is your favorite place to shop for retro recyclables? What's the coolest thing you've ever stumbled upon? How do you like to upcycle your fabulous finds? Do share!