October 2013 Scribnote

COMMENTS FROM OUR CHAIRPERSON

Our July meeting was attended by 17 members and we were very happy to add more chairs to the table to accommodate everyone.  Our dream is that we fill that room and have to find a larger one to fit us all in. 
Pat West was our demonstrator in July and talked about Sharon Zeugin, writing on black arches cover with Clorox and then coloring the letters in randomly with colored pencils or with pastels.
 

Bleach technique done by Connie

  

This was a new technique for many, but reintroduced many of us to the workshop we had 6 years ago at Fernwood.  I think I speak for many in saying that when we volunteer to demonstrate a tool or technique, we take out all the supplies from that workshop and remind ourselves of how much we enjoyed the workshop and what we did so that we can share with our members. 

 Thanks Pat for a great demo. 

August….one of the most fun meetings of the year.  On August 3 we got together at my home for our annual picnic.  I love opening the door to my calligraphy friends walking in with their dish to pass and to smell the aromas.  The food is always incredible and we always want a new recipe from one or more of the dishes.  This year it was Renee’s Avocado Salsa Dip, even with all the garlic in it! It was delicious as well as everything else that was brought.
  We first had our meeting talking about upcoming meetings, and our Barbara Mann workshop coming in October. 
 Maureen Trubac did a marvelous demo on how to patina metals.  The sun was shining brightly and made some beautiful designs on the metals.  Next it was time for our book exchange. 


Our Beautiful Books

The books were lovely and we all appreciated the time it took to make them.  We also had a raffle of $50 toward the upcoming workshop in October which was won by Marty Mitchell. 

Then it was time to eat.  My husband was the griller of the day and made us turkey and apple sausage on the grill outside while we took out our dishes to go with it.  Everything was yummy as usual.  The weather was so pleasant that we were able to sit outside and enjoy the day.  Last year it was so hot that we had to be inside.  It’s the Midwest…wait a day and it will change. 

 Thanks to everyone who attended and I hope you all had a great time.  I know I did! 
 

Denis Brown visited at our September meeting…..that is, Denis Brown’s DVD.  Thanks to Renee Tuveson and her husband for bringing the DVD and all the equipment to play it during our meeting on a large monitor so we could all enjoy it.  We loved watching Dennis demonstrate the letters of the alphabet in his italic style.  Denis is a master of calligraphy and design who has been in South Bend to teach some of us many years ago and we greatly appreciated that opportunity.

We also had a bevy of show and tell items.  There were several new books, purchased by members in different places, like an old John Stevens book, and books on collage, doodling and zentangles.  I guess it is time to go through my old books again to see which ones are way past their prime so that I can make room for some new ones.  Thanks to everyone who shared.
 

Show and Tell: Tunnel book by Angie West

Show and Tell from Pat West "Metal Patina

 

Hopefully everyone is working on or thinking of what they will exhibit at Moontree next year in Plymouth, Indiana.  Early next year we will have a schedule of when to drop off your pieces to Anne Binder and a committee will hang them up at the venue.  We are very excited about exhibiting as a group and hope you and your lovely artwork will be part of that showcase for May, 2014.   I challenge everyone to create a piece to hang or a book to exhibit at Moontree to showcase our talents as calligraphers and/or painters. 

Lastly, we send our condolences to member Susan Kavanaugh upon the passing of her husband Tom.  Our thoughts and prayers are with the Kavanaugh family.  Also to the family of Gwen Weaver, alented calligrapher and teacher.  Gwen taught a few classes to our guild several years ago.  We will miss Gwen’s amazing lettering styles that we continue to explore. 

FUTURE WORKSHOPS

Barbara Mann will be in South Bend to teach a two-day workshop called Paintbox Flowers on October 5 and 6, 2013.  Barbara is a member of our guild living in Michigan and gave a workshop several years ago.  We are so glad that she will be joining us again.  The workshop cost will be $90 or ($105. for non members) which will include the supplies that Barbara will be bringing.  The supply list can be sent via email to those taking the workshop.  We have also ordered journals; a brush that Barbara recommended and Arches text wove that will be available at the workshop. We still have a slot or two left if anyone still wants to join us.  Please email gvanderhey@hotmail.com asap. 

 The workshop will be limited to 18 people and will again be held at Whispering Pines Apartment Complex in Mishawaka.

Julie Wildman – We have scheduled Julie Wildman from Chicago for our 2014 spring workshop. Please put April 26 & 27 on your calendar for next year. Julie exhibits at the Newberry Library every year and that is where we talked to her about coming to South Bend for a workshop.  Check out wildmandesigns.com to see her lovely work.  More information will follow regarding this workshop in the near future. 

Pen Dragons Workshops in Kalamazoo – Letters inspired by and based on Adolph Bernd with Peter Thornton, November 2 and 3, 2013.  Peter will also be teaching a masterclass on Friday, November 1.  Please see: http://www.pendragonscalligraphy.org/PDF%20Files/PETER%27S%20FLYER%20080813%20Lucia-w.pdf for more information. 

 

Are you on Facebook?

 If so, look up your favorite calligraphers because they are on Facebook also.  I like to look at Barbara Close, Reggie Ezell, Julian Waters, John Stevens, Rachel Yallop, Pendragons, Capital City Scribes, Yukimi Annand, etc.  There is a lot of beautiful calligraphy on these pages that will get your inspired. 

WEBSITES TO ENJOY)

Festisite.com (click on

http://www.card-making-magic.com/cardmakingtutorials.html

CCM: Creative Card Making (Facebook)

http://www.flickr.com/photos/8764890@N04/with/8125252436/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=coEMPv5zaVQ (Pat Blair – miracle wedge demo)

 

 

I enjoy sharing new websites that I have come across in our blog.  If you come across something that you think would interest the whole group, please email them to Ginny, or Renee, and we will get them on the blog for the next quarter. 

American Frame – Just a reminder that if you order from American Frame, please mention MCG, and they will give us a small stipend.

 

 

 

October 5 & 6 – Barbara Mann Workshop

November 2 – Angie West – Versals and Thomas Ingmire

December 7 – Annual Christmas Get Together at the home of Pat West.  We will have a card or ornament exchange again this year.  Make one card or one ornament only, for a raffle.

 

Stay tuned for announcements of the 2014 MCG year. 

Cut the schedule of dates in the newsletter out, and put it on your fridge for future reference.

 

ANNUAL MEMBERSHIP
Annual dues of $15 are due in July. Our annual dues have not changed in many years and are put to good use for supplies for our make it/take it meetings, annual raffle in August, and, at the end of the year, we give to local charities. Please remember to send your dues to the MCG post office box as soon as possible.

OFFICERS
Ginny VanderHey, President 574/262-1345 gvanderhey@hotmail.com
Sharon Esmont, Vice President 574/272-5481 Sesmont@aol.com
Maureen Trubac, Treasurer 574/272–0733 maureentrubac@hotmail.com
Pat West, Secretary 574-612-9328 pwpatwest@gmail.com

Jo McPherson, Study Group Chairperson, jobakestwo@centurylink.net
Renee Tuveson – Blog Coordinator rtuveson@hotmail.com

If ever you would like to add to the newsletter/blog, please contact one of the officers, and we will get that information to Renee Tuveson. Something you have done or have seen would be welcomed into our information.

 

July 2013 Scribnote

July 2013 Scribnote 

COMMENTS FROM OUR CHAIRPERSON
For months I would tell myself that I needed to put up a table in the basement, bring my paints, tools, paper, etc., down two floors and do some paste paper.  It didn’t happen, but, I can’t tell you what enjoyment it is to have 12 friends come together to make paste paper together.  Members bringing their own supplies and sharing tools is a bonus which is exactly what we did on Saturday, April 6. For some, this was the first time making paste paper and for others, they have done so many times. We all came out of the all day- play day with lots of papers blowing in the wind on their way to the car in the spring breeze.  We also had a demo from Lauren Matacio showing us what she learned from Lisa Englebrecht a few years back, as well as bringing some supplies for us to try picture transfers.  Thanks Lauren for the great demo! It was a jam packed day on April 6 as we ate our lunch and held our meeting as well as have our usual show and tell.  

We want to welcome Kerry Conroy and Laurie Henley who recently participated in our April and June meetings.  

On April 13, Maureen, Ginny, Angie, Connie and Lauren, who met us in Chicago, took the South Shore from South Bend to Chicago for the juried calligraphy exhibit.  We especially wanted to see the piece by Scribes Six, the calligraphers from the Pen Dragons guild in Kalamazoo. Our 2 ½ hour ride to Chicago went by quickly as we chatted on the train.  At one of the stations, our friend from Kalamazoo, Tina Cronkite, got on the train and somehow got in our train car. We got to see her beautiful work from the Laurie Doctor workshop a few months ago as we rode along.  Arriving in Chicago, the five of us crammed into a taxi and headed down to the Newberry Library.  The snowflakes were flying and the wind was blowing, so a cab ride seemed prudent and got us there a bit quicker.  The exhibit was wonderful with beautiful work from the likes of Timothy Botts, Mike Kecsec, Rosie Kelly, Julie Wildman and, of course, Reggie Ezzel among many others.  What eye candy!!! I think we looked through that exhibit room three times.  We also were treated to demonstrations and had our names done in a couple of lettering styles, one being Middle Eastern, which was very cool to see our names written this way.  The last part of the day at the library was to see two slide presentations.  The first was by Jane Farr of the Kalamazoo guild who talked about traditional calligraphy and modern calligraphy.  The work was stunning.  The second presentation was about the piece done by Scribes Six from Kalamazoo and Grand Rapids and how they put together their monumental piece.  It was daunting to see it in person.  A beautiful piece that will hold up for a long time to come.  Our trip would not have been complete without having visited Dick Blick and Utrecht as well as Paper Source for art supplies.  We all wish we would have had more time to spend in the stores, but we had a 4:43 train to catch and we had to keep moving.  If you have the time next year to see the calligraphy exhibit in Chicago, I urge you to go and see the wonderful work produced by calligraphers in our neck of the woods.  They are awe inspiring!! I’ve got my reservation for next year to go again to enjoy beautiful letters.  


On April 20 and 21, Rosie Kelly was our instructor for a two-day workshop in South Bend. Rosie brought some new designs for us to create and also gave us some direction on whether or not to write on a particular piece we did. Rosie is the sweetest and kindest instructor and we love her dearly for coming to South Bend to inspire us! (See Maureen’s thoughts on the workshop below)

Sharon Esmont was our demonstrator for the May 4 meeting and helped bind the recipe pages we made last year.  Sharon copied the smaller pieces we made for a collaged cover and those sheets were used to make the front and back covers.  Thank you Sharon for helping to bind our calligraphed recipes and for all your organization in supplying all the necessary tools to complete our cookbooks. My cookbook will be on my coffee table for all to see.  

Our June 1 meeting was jam-packed with fun.  First we had our regular meeting including lots of show and tell. The best show and tell for June was Amber Schindler announcing a new little calligrapher will be arriving in November. Congratulations Amber and we wish you lots of love and prayers. After show and tell, I demonstrated a Louise Grunewald exercise and some brush lettering.  Brush isn’t the easiest to grasp at first after using the nib, but it is one of my favorites since Reggie presented it in 2000.  Practice makes perfect and I hope that you continue to use the brush to letter.  It’s a good carry-with-you tool that you can use to write on just about anything.  Also, we raffled off a Letter Arts Review magazine to anyone who does not currently have a subscription.  John Neal Books generously offered a free year’s subscription to LAR to anyone who already was a subscriber.  The winner of the first of four magazines was Connie Wendt.  

Amber Schindler has chosen to resign from the position of Secretary in light of her new responsibility of becoming a mother for the first time.  She will be available to help anyone interested in serving through this wonderful volunteer opportunity as long as she is able until later this year.  Thank you very much, Renee, for graciously accepting the role of Blog Coordinator for our guild.  We appreciate your time and effort. Amber’s duties include taking notes at the guild meetings and being part of the support group to make decisions on upcoming instructors, meetings, etc.  Please consider being a part of the guild board and email gvanderhey@hotmail.com if you are interested.

Rosie Kelly Workshop

Rosie Kelly’s workshop was an inspiring adventure into designing with letterforms.  We loosened up by scribbling in sections of a sheet of Arches Text Wove using overlapping textures in pencil, sumi and walnut ink and a variety of pencils, leaving room for text and embossing.  Gesso was randomly placed on an additional four sheets of paper, left to dry to be used later to add words, color and/or texture.
Next we were introduced to making marks on paper using sumi and/or walnut ink from a squeeze bottle with a very small nozzle allowing the ink to practically dry.  The next step was to wash some of the ink off with water creating a background of muted color and dark marks which were allowed to dry completely.  We then added color, connecting marks and textures.  
This workshop provided us with a wonderful collection of new methods to create new art. At the end of the workshop we displayed our pieces and with Rosie’s and our participants insights, we knew where and how to continue to grow.                                 Maureen Trubac

Rosie guiding us

And more from Linda Bravata

How do I begin to write just a couple paragraphs about the “Design Workshop” with Rosie Kelly!  We learned a plethora of ideas to incorporate into our art.  Probably one of the most fun and unusual techniques we did was using small squeeze bottles with stainless steel tips in .5 mm, .7 mm or .9 mm to write with or use to make designs.  Because it was a tool very different from a pen in that you couldn’t be precise, it gave one the freedom of “going with the flow”.  My set of three squeeze bottles with tops was by Jacquard…yup one of those things you buy and don’t really know what to do with and there it sits.  NOW I am using it and having fun.

At one point, I was overwhelmed with all the information and techniques she gave us.  I was sitting there with a blank stare on my face and Rosie suggested that I use the Afrikan Alphabet of which she had given us a copy.  I started writing The Introduction to Poetry poem by Billy Collins that we also received from her and, after each word; I inserted one of the alphabet symbols.  As I printed out the letters, I ran them all together forming a square of words.  I added a little “Rosie” embossing and a piece cut from the “Do-not-take-your-squeeze-bottle-off-the-paper” design with spaces filled in with paint, squiggly lines or dirty water (loved the subtle color of the dirty water and from the splatters made with it),.  Actually, this was my practice paper and when cut up in small pieces gave a nice accent to the little piece of art.



"Inspiration" from Rosie




We were shown how to use gesso…many ways.  Put it down first, scraping it around the paper with an old credit card then paint with watercolors over that.  Put it down second…scraping it over watercolor to block out a spot for some writing or to “hide” an unwanted area.  Put gesso on your paper with the edge of a credit card to make some textured lines.  Another idea was to put gesso on colored tissue paper or rice paper and then etch into it when the gesso is still wet.           




Also from Rosie


 

 



Finally, Rosie’s workshops are ALWAYS fun and you go away with so many ideas and information that is very easy to incorporate into your artwork.  If you missed this workshop…I’m sorry.  If you get a chance to go to another one of her workshops, seize the day and sign up right away. Rosie will awaken your soul and art and breathe magic into your creativity.

Thank you, Michiana, for hosting her Design Workshop!

Linda Bravata       
    

August Guild Meeting – We have had the August meeting at Ginny’s house for so many years, she can’t remember when we started.  We used to be able to sit around the small table in the screen porch when there were maybe 8 people.  Last year, when it so very hot and muggy, we crowded into the family room in the air-conditioned house which was much more comfortable.  Hopefully, we can be outside again enjoying the fresh air and more elbow room.  At the August meeting we start at our usual time of 10 am, have our business meeting, raffle off a book or, as we did last year, a certificate to an upcoming workshop, have a handmade book exchange and then eat lunch together.  It is always a fun day and hope you will put it on your calendar for this year which will be Saturday, August 3, 2013.  

Anne Binder at Moontree…Anne is exhibiting at Moontree with stunning art and calligraphy for the months of May and June.  If you can’t get to Plymouth to see it, please look on Anne’s Facebook page.  Anne, her husband Bill and son Matthew hung the display where it will be until July 7.  Times are 9 – 11:30 and 12:30 – 3.  Weekends are by appointment only. Congratulations Anne on a beautiful exhibit.  



Anne Binder's "Book of Mary" Exhibit

Speaking of Moontree, this is where we will be having our spring 2014 exhibit.  This year’s meetings have been devoted to revisiting our past instructors in the hopes of inspiring you to create a piece or pieces for the exhibit.  We need all of you involved in this endeavor to make it a success.  If you feel you need help with the piece you are working on and don’t know where to letter or put a collage, please bring it to a meeting so that you can get our “expert” opinions.  We know that each of you will produce a spectacular calligraphy piece that you will be proud to show at the exhibit. 


Pat and Ginny at Anne Binder's exhibit

 

Pat West, Angie West and Ginny VanderHey took a field trip down to Plymouth, Indiana, recently, to see Anne’s exhibit, The Book of Mary and was certainly worth the trip.  The pieces are hanging from the ceiling and sway in the breeze.  It was enthralling to walk between the pieces to see Anne’s lettering and illuminations.  Next we saw Anne’s huge canvas book called The Crane Maiden that was just beautiful.  Again, the exhibit is only until July 7, so better hurry if you want to see it before Anne has Bill and Matthew taking it down again! Congratulations Anne, it was a lovely exhibit.




FUTURE WORKSHOPS
Barbara Mann will be coming to South Bend to teach a two-day workshop called Paintbox Flowers on October 5 and 6, 2013.  Barbara is a member of our guild living in Michigan and gave a workshop several years ago.  We are so glad that she will be joining us again.  The workshop cost will be $90 which will include the supplies that Barbara will be bringing.  We have not yet received a supply list from Barbara, but we will in the near future.  The workshop will be limited to 18 people and will again be held at Whispering Pines Apartment Complex.  

Julie Wildman – We have scheduled Julie Wildman from Chicago for our 2014 spring workshop. Please put  April 26 & 27 on your calendar for next year. Julie exhibits at the Newberry Library every year and that is where we talked to her about coming to South Bend for a workshop.  Check out wildmandesigns.com to see her lovely work.  More information will follow regarding this workshop in the near future.  


Are you on Facebook? If so, look up your favorite calligraphers because they are on Facebook also.  I like to look at Barbara Close, Reggie Ezell, Julian Waters, John Stevens, Rachel Yallop, Pendragons, Capital City Scribes, etc.  There is a lot of beautiful calligraphy on these pages that will get your inspired.  

Calligraphy, like most things that are worth doing, is not easy at first.

WEBSITES TO ENJOY
 http://www.youtube.com/user/reggieezell?feature=watch http://www.sdfconline.com/html/akim_cursive.html http://www.calligraphersguild.org/ http://www.rachelyallop.co.uk/lettering.html www.2012calligraphyconference.com/contemporary-scripts https://www.usps.com/send/international-addressing-tips.htm


I enjoy sharing new websites that I have come across in our blog.  If you come across something that you think would interest the whole group, please email them to Ginny, Amber, or Renee, and we will get them on the blog for the next quarter.  
American Frame – Just a reminder that if you order from American Frame, please mention MCG, and they will give us a small stipend.

July 6 – Pat West – Sharon Zeugin
August 3 – Maureen Trubac – Metals and Annual Picnic – We will be having a handmade book exchange and will be giving something away in a raffle.
September 7 – Maureen Trubac– Barbara Mann 
October 5 & 6 – Barbara Mann Workshop
November 2 – Angie West – Versals and Thomas Ingmire
December 7 – Annual Christmas Get Together at the home of Angie West
Cut the schedule of dates in the newsletter out, and put it on your fridge for future reference.

ANNUAL MEMBERSHIP Annual dues of $15 are due in July. Our annual dues have not changed in many years and are put to good use for supplies for our make it/take it meetings, annual raffle in August, and, at the end of the year, we give to local charities. Please remember to send your dues to the MCG post office box as soon as possible.

OFFICERS
Ginny VanderHey, President 574/262-1345 gvanderhey@hotmail.com
Sharon Esmont, Vice President 574/272-5481 Sesmont@aol.com
Maureen Trubac, Treasurer 574/272–0733 maureentrubac@hotmail.com
Amber Schindler, Secretary 574/360-9128 ambermschindler@gmail.com
Jo McPherson, Study Group Chairperson, jobakestwo@centurylink.net
Renee Tuveson – Blog Coordinator, rtuveson@hotmail.com

 If ever you would like to add to the newsletter/blog, please contact one of the officers, and we will get that information to Renee Tuveson. Something you have done or have seen would be welcomed into our information.

April 2013 Scribnote

COMMENTS FROM OUR CHAIRPERSON 

We have many talented people in the Michiana Calligraphy Guild, and some of them do other things besides calligraphy. The St. Joseph Valley Watercolor Society had an exhibit at the Jewish Federation Building in South Bend for the month of January, and I was fortunate enough to be able to get to see it. Congratulations to Barbara Walsh, Marty Mitchell, and Barbara Rogan for the pieces that they entered into the exhibit.

“The secret to so many artists living so long is that every painting is a new adventure. So you see, they’re always looking ahead to something new and exciting. The secret is not to look back.” Norman Rockwell

January’s meeting brought 8 people together on a cold January Saturday to do some show-and-tell.

One of the subjects Anne Binder brought up to us at the Christmas meeting was the invitation from Moontree in Plymouth, Indiana to exhibit in 2014. The idea is for us to begin to think of a project which could be a broadside, books, etc. Throughout the next year or so, we would work on that project, with the critiques and help of other guild members, and would be ready for the exhibit. Read more about Moontree at www.moontreestudios.com.

"The art of art, the glory of expression and the sunshine of the light of letters, is simplicity." Walt Whitman

Again in February, we braved the snow and cold to be together with our fellow calligraphers for our monthly meeting. The roads weren’t great, but upon arriving at the meeting, we found that very few regular members were missing from the table. It was a wonderful sight to see and to know that we all enjoy our get-togethers so much, that we do so in any kind of weather. Jo McPherson brought samples of Sherri Kiesel’s work and also did a demo on how Sherri showed us how to do miniature watercolors. Sherri was in South Bend twice several years ago and we have always loved her work. This year we are highlighting what instructor has inspired us so that our year will be full of wonderful demonstrations and sample work. Thanks, Jo!

Diana's Demonstration

Our March 2nd meeting highlighted Reggie Ezell with Diana Stamper demonstrating Romans with serifs. We spent 6 months working on Romans with Reggie in 2000, so we have many different varieties from which to choose. I am sure that I speak for many in that the year we spent with Reggie was a big influence on our calligraphy today. Thanks, Diana, for bringing back so many good memories and for your demo. Next, we did a writing “experiment.” In February, we had the homework of writing a word, one word that was meaningful to you. You could write it in any ink or tool of your choosing. A piece of Stonehenge paper was passed out to everyone at the meeting, and we all got to put our practice of writing a word to good use. Everyone wrote their word on the paper and passed it to the right, and that person wrote their word on the paper, and so on. There were thirteen people at the meeting, so we had thirteen words on the paper in all colors, hands, and styles and a piece of each other’s work to take home and enjoy. We decided that we would do this again sometime by writing just our first name or writing numbers on the page, since this was so much fun the first time around. Thanks to all who participated!

Writing "Experiment"

Those that know me well know that I am an outgoing person. I have no problem speaking with anyone whether in an elevator, on the street, or places like Hobby Lobby. I went there recently and, as I strolled through the aisles, I came upon a woman looking at calligraphy books. I stopped and asked her if she was a calligrapher, and she said that she was just beginning. We chatted about different tools she could use and, of course, I gave her our blog address and the times that our guild meets every month, inviting her to join us. If Diana Stamper had not told me about the Michiana Calligraphy Guild, I don’t know who would have stopped to tell me that there was such a group. Continue to spread the word and invite new people who may be interested in our art form. Our guild has grown in the last few years, and it is exciting to see the upswing in membership.

"A sincere artist is not one who makes a faithful attempt to put on to canvas what is in front of him, but one who tries to create something which is, in itself, a living thing." William Dobell

FUTURE WORKSHOPS
Rosie Kelly will be here on April 20 and 21, 2013, to teach a two-day workshop topic, Playing with Design Possibilities. This is a change in the original date. Rosie always brings us fresh, new ideas, and we are always happy to have her with us. Cost will be $100 per person or $115 if you are not a member of the MCG. The workshop will take place at the Whispering Pines Community Room in South Bend. At this time, the workshop is filled, but we can put someone on the waiting list if they are interested. Instructions to Whispering Pines will be sent with the reminder before the workshop.

Barbara Mann will be coming to South Bend to teach a two-day workshop called Paintbox Flowers on October 5 and 6, 2013. Barbara is a member of our guild living in Michigan and gave a workshop several years ago. We are thrilled that she will be joining us again. More information will be forthcoming in the next few months.

"Our greatest glory lies not in never falling but in rising every time we fall." Confucius

Recent workshop in Kalamazoo – Laurie Doctor – Deepening Surfaces Five members of the MCG (Anna Schlemma, Rose Kopec, Meg Jung, Marianne Burke and Ginny Vander Hey) spent three days in Kalamazoo with the Pendragons and instructor Laurie Doctor from Kentucky. We learned to mix acrylics into neutral tones using only three colors of which I would never have thought would make a terra cotta or a gray. We wrote with a shell or a small pen to enhance our papers and, in general, loved every minute of it. We always started and ended our day with a bit of yoga to free our minds of the outside world and to begin to “come to the circle.” Laurie was a wonderful instructor, and we hope to put her teachings to good use in the near future. I was playing around one day with design from Laurie’s workshop and had it on the counter for my husband to see. He didn’t really like it because he couldn’t read it! Now, some of the letters were Peter Thornton’s Romans, so I don’t have a clue as to what he couldn’t read. Then that old adage came to mind…"beauty is in the eye of the beholder." If it is going to hang in our house, I guess he will have to be able to read it. OY! Plan B.

Work of Marianne Burke

April 6, 2013 meeting…we will be making paste papers until approximately 4:30 pm at Christ the King Church. There will be Arches Text Wove paper for sale for $3.25 per sheet. There will be a sheet to indicate how many sheets you are buying and how much you will need to pay. Please pay Maureen Trubac before the beginning of the session, at lunch, or at the end of the day so as not to disturb her creativity! Also, please bring your own paints, tools to make marks, paper towels, newspaper to dry the sheets on top of, water containers, brushes, etc. Sharon Esmont will bring the plastic for the tables and floor. If you wish to make cards or do something else that day, please do so. Variety is the spice of life! Lauren Matacio will be doing a demo on Lisa Englebrect, and we will have a short business meeting between 11 am and our lunch time. The doors for the church will be open by 9 am for those who want to come earlier than our appointed hour. Don’t forget to bring your own lunch and a drink.

"Coming together is a beginning. Keeping together is progress. Working together is success." Henry Ford 

WEBSITES TO ENJOY
http://www.youtube.com/user/reggieezell?feature=watch
http://www.sdfconline.com/html/akim_cursive.html
http://www.calligraphersguild.org/
http://www.rachelyallop.co.uk/lettering.html

I enjoy sharing new websites that I have come across in our blog. If you come across something that you think would interest the whole group, please email them to Ginny, Amber, or Renee, and we will get them on the blog for the next quarter.

American Frame – Just a reminder that if you order from American Frame, please mention MCG, and they will give us a small stipend.

UPCOMING GUILD EVENTS
At our Christmas meeting, we discussed what instructors we would like to have for 2014 and what we want to review during our meetings every month. We made a list of our past instructors, and some of our members took a month and an instructor to talk about and possibly demo on that day. The instructors that have been chosen have impacted the art of that particular member and remain one to whom she goes back for inspiration.

“Your work is to discover your work and then, with all your heart, to give yourself to it.” Buddha

April 6 – Lauren Matacio – Lisa Englebrecht – We will also spend the rest of the day making paste papers at Christ the King Church, our usual meeting place, until about 4:30.
May 4 – Sharon Esmont – Simple Binding – We will be binding our recipes that we did last year.  Please note that our May 4th meeting only will be held at the Francis Branch Library at 52655 N. Ironwood Road in "The Pasture" room.
June 1 – Ginny VanderHey – Brush lettering – Reggie & Marijo Carney and Louise Grunewald
July 6 – Pat – Sharon Zeugin August 3 – Maureen Trubac – Metals and Annual Picnic
September 7 – Maureen Trubac– Barbara Mann 

October 5 & 6 – Barbara Mann Workshop 

November 2 – Angie West – Versals and Thomas Ingmire 

December 7 – Annual Christmas Get-Together at the home of Angie West

Cut the schedule of dates in the newsletter out, and put it on your fridge for future reference. 

ANNUAL MEMBERSHIP
Annual dues of $15 are due in July. Our annual dues have not changed in many years and are put to good use for supplies for our make it/take it meetings, annual raffle in August, and, at the end of the year, we give to local charities. Please remember to send your dues to the MCG post office box as soon as possible.

OFFICERS

Ginny VanderHey, President 574/262-1345 gvanderhey@hotmail.com 

Sharon Esmont, Vice President 574/272-5481 Sesmont@aol.com 

Maureen Trubac, Treasurer 574/272–0733 maureentrubac@hotmail.com 

Amber Schindler, Secretary 574/360-9128 ambermschindler@gmail.com 

Jo McPherson, Study Group Chairperson, jobakestwo@centurylink.net 

Amber Schindler & Renee Tuveson – Blog Coordinators

If ever you would like to add to the newsletter/blog, please contact one of the officers, and we will get that information to Amber and Renee. Something you have done or have seen would be welcomed into our information.

 "There's no retirement for an artist, it's your way of living so there's no end to it." Henry Moore