Art is You in Petaluma, Part 1

The winner of last week’s Encaustic Painting Techniques giveaway is lifeimitatesdoodles. Please email Ricë at ricefz at gmail.com to claim your copy!

Tonia and I don’t get to see each other very often, and when we do, it’s usually far away from home for both of us: Bead&Button in Milwaukee, Art is You in Petaluma. And that’s where we met up most recently: in Petaluma, California, for five days of hanging out with fabulously creative people, eating, laughing, taking photos, and making art at Art is You, the peripatetic (California, Connecticut, Tennessee, Australia) art retreat organized and hosted by Sallianne McClelland and Ellen Legare.

My husband, The Ever-Gorgeous Earl, is the official Art is You photographer, and he took a ton of photographs–literally, I think: I think his cameras weighed a ton more on the flight home than they did on the flight there. Because I think art retreats are so important to the creative spirit for so many different reasons, I’m going to share some of those photos this week, giving you a peek at what it’s like to be surrounded by people who love the things you love and know the value of taking time to nuture the creative spirit.

We’ve also got some video from the live Voodoo Lounge, and here’s one of my favorites, with Liesel Lund talking about–and sharing–her art current journal: