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WELCOME to my little arty world! Trying to make art is a huge part of my life ... love nothing more than messing around with inks and sprays and generally making a mess!

Tuesday 7 November 2017

When Debbie met Tim

Is that REALLY my post title ...
When Debbie met Tim
you better believe it ... because I can't!

Never imagined for one moment I would ever get to meet the first person to influence my crafting in such a massive way ... was struggling making cards ... trying to find the "something" that I felt was missing and then i happened across Tim Holtz

Can't even remember how or where now 
but there he was using words like "distress" and "grunge" and doing the swishy-swooshy thing with his inkpads

Now, anyone that knows me knows that the swishy-swooshy thing is what I love to do most of all

and Tim Holtz is ENTIRELY responsible for all those tag cards you get sent
yeah, yeah, even though they are not "proper" cards and a few of you 
feel hard done by!
Tags are good enough for Tim so they are good enough for me !!!

So ... to Harrogate and the wonderful Art From the Heart workshop to attend Tim's Creative Chemistry Live UK workshop.

If I ever did get to attend a Tim workshop I always imagined I'd be at the back of some huge conference room, one of hundreds, with him a tiny speck in the distance and me watching him on a screen
Well, I was at the back (out of choice) of the room, and there was a screen but there he was just a few feet away from me and with just 24 students ... 
and Mario! 
Must not forget Mario!  

What with losing daddy and everything else that was going on we were not going to go to Scotland this year ... but then we figured Harrogate is on the way up north so changed our minds and just four days after getting home from ten days in Cornwall for Alfie & Nicola's wedding we packed up the caravan and it was a case of "Tim Holtz here I come!"  

Met up with my dear friend, Shaz (ShazSilverwolf) and before long we were sitting in the workshop hardly daring to believe it was really happening
Got to admit I kept nudging her and nodding my head towards the front of the class and mouthing "it's Tim!" to her

The workshops were just so brilliantly organised and Tim & Mario are just the most lovely guys ... having seen SOOoooooo many of Tim's video's I thought I  knew what to expect but I was wrong!  He is so funny and so, so talented and his style of teaching just blew me away ... from the get-go the atmosphere was relaxed and there was so much laughter and - well, it was all just simply perfect.

On our desks were our kits and an apron and all the tools & equipment we would need ... 

The kits were full of the ten tags we would be using - all prepared and ready to go by Mario and a gift of two bespoke stencils ... stencils that won't ever be for sale and were just for these workshops.  Lucky, huh!  

This is getting a bit word-heavy so will just cut to the photo's ... pretty much explains everything anyway ...



No, I did not use my apron ... no way was I getting it dirty!



  My ten tags 





 Then we were given a folder in which to keep them all 

Oh, I got an "awesome" from Tim for that tag!!!
But I cheated and used what I knew to be his favourite colours
I had pushed myself hard using colours I would not normally choose for the first three tags but then thought I'd do one in colours that are more to my taste ... dark side and grungy, you see!


 All too soon the workshop was over but the gifts just kept on coming

First was a zipped pouch in which to keep stuff we try out


Then came one of Tim's District Market notebooks in which to jot down all our ideas or notes on how we did something


And, of course, a notebook means an opportunity not to be missed!



Having heard of the trouble we all had to get our places at the workshop we were given a necklace with three lucky charms 
Believe me, we all knew just how lucky we were to be there


And finally a bag in which to take everything home


 So, when I consider I so very nearly backed out and didn't go I had the most amazingly wonderful time and would have regretted it for ever ... what an idiot I would have been!

I wasn't going to get a photo' with Tim but Shaz's husband Doug was having none of it and practically dragged me over to him announcing "she's a bit shy" ... so in this photo' Tim does actually have his arm around me !!!!!  An awful photo' as I look every bit at poorly as I was feeling (but that pales into insignificance alongside how very, very poorly my dear Shaz was feeling) and, hey, it's me with Tim!

And Doug was right, of course, that photo' was an opportunity not to be missed and I would have regretted not getting it 


 See, dreams can come true.









6 comments:

  1. Hi Debbie, what a great post. You've actually reminded me that I don't think I've done a proper post about our day. Was wonderful to share it with you too, can't think of anyone I'd rather have been there with.It was a lovely, lovely gift that can never be fully repaid. And yes, Doug can be very determined, and he knew you'd regret it forever if you didn't have the photo! Indeed, dreams do come true, and like you I never thought I'd be in the same room as Tim, especially in a small class like that. They are both so lovely, aren't they? Do you know, I took all my Tim books with me, and he signed every one for me? What a lovely, lovely man, and clearly we saw that how he comes across is not just for the TV/You Tube cameras, he really IS that friendly in real life.Was a smashing day I will always treasure. Thank you my friend. XxXx

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  2. I'm welling up reading this, Debbie. I was sooooo excited (and envious) that you were going and I'm so glad you did. You clearly had an amazing time. Dreams can come true. Keep inspiring us all. Lots of love. Xx

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  3. I am so glad you went! What a fab day 😍
    LLJ xxx

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  5. Fabulous post, what a lovely day it was. See, sign up, show up, do it. Not actually difficult! And I'm struggling with the concept of an apron that doesn't get used...shove it in a drawer to take up space and be a bit forgotten then? Hmmmm.

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  6. You are most welcome Debbie.
    Its a great photo to be honest it cant not be when you think about it! it has 2 fab people in it :)

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