spotlight artist: jen sorensen

It was first at Craft Lake City in Salt Lake back in the summer that I first saw Jen Sorensen's work and was BLOWN. AWAY. In fact, I ran into Margie's girls, Brooke and Megan while I was there and we all talked about how amazing Jen's stuff was while we were all there.


She's a letterpress artist, a book binder and a printmaker. Her work is so haunting and delicate and subtle.




I feel so lucky that she agreed to be part of Spark. Mostly so that I could go and see what she does and see more of her beautiful work.


And I get to share that with you. :)

Keynote: Cassandra Christensen Barney

We're so excited to have Cassandra Barney as our keynote speaker!!!!!!!! (If i add more exclamation points it means I'm super extra excited!!!!!!)

Cassandra is an amazing artist and such a creative woman. Truthfully, Rhonna confided early on to us that she had a massive blog crush on Cass and her BLOG.


And....it gets better -- she's going to be doing some tiny tin paintings especially for Spark and will be offering them for sale in our General Store. Isn't it BEAUTIFUL and SPARKY!!



Let me show you what I mean....hold onto yourselves though cause she's gonna blow you away with her delicacy and her sensitivity with her subjects and her medium.

Happy Birthday Jefra!!

Thanks for encouraging us see beauty in unexpected places!!

and your friendship! Happy Happy Birthday Jefra!

spotlight artist: emily may sparks

When I first saw Emily Sparks's lovely crocheted work it was at the fabulous Bijou Market (btw - Bijou falls over the same Saturday as Spark and it's breaking our hearts cause we love it so - if you're not coming to Spark please go to Bijou, you won't be sorry) We all oggled over her stuff and her clever clean designs.

isn't she so cute??---->


And then I got to be friends with Emily (and shoot her beautiful family) and as I got to know her better the more amazing she was to me. I want to be cool just like she is.

She'll be demonstrating her mad crochet abilities at our Spark Show and Tell.





Here's what she has to say --

born in and raised mostly in utah. married to super sweet guy who supports me in all of my endeavors. graduated with BFA in studio arts from BYU. mom of 1...a beautiful girl who is 1 going on 16. designs crocheted accessories and sells them in boutiques and online at emilymaysparks.etsy.com. aspires to sell more of her 2d art and to be a yoga instructor.


i have had a need to be busy creating. in high school i made intricate beaded dolls, in college i spent most of my time painting and printing. after graduation i really became passionate about crocheting and sewing. i began selling my crocheted goods last year i love having my own business. i absolutely LOVE the handmade movement and being a part of it. i hope i will be able to pass on this passion for things handmade.

spotlight artist: Maren Ogden Ingles

Amazing photographer, graphic designer, stationer, (and you should have seen her wedding!) Maren Ogden Ingles has a way with paper. She's owner and operator of Elizabeth & Homer, a beautiful little letterpress stationary company in Lehi, her work can be found in fine stationers all over the country and internationally. And now she can be found on etsy too!


Here's what she says about herself...


(picture here by the amazing fabulous Utah photographer, Rebekah Westover. oh man, don't even go there....i love her stuff so much)

My great-grandmother, Elizabeth Smith, had an adage for everything. Long before Forrest Gump, she would always say, "Pretty is as pretty does." Along with her beloved husband, Homer, my great-grandparents were as "pretty" as they get. Throughout their lives and work, they embodied integrity, commitment, service, and enduring love. I was privileged to know them well and to learn from their example, which is the inspiration behind Elizabeth and Homer. The company was officially launched on October 8, 2004—what would have been Elizabeth and Homer Smith's 91st wedding anniversary. Elizabeth and Homer is also the fruition of a dream that began when I was about 7 years old. Somewhere amid my entrepreneurial endeavors (which began with decorating classroom doors at my elementary school for "a dollar a door") and countless art and craft projects, I found that creating beautiful things is what I was always meant to do. Aftermore than a decade working in the publishing, paper crafting, and wedding industries, I now devote my full attention to creating unique products that are as special as your life's most treasured moments.

(the real elizabeth and homer - Maren, you look lots like her!)



You can read even more about her at her interview over on Lucky Guppy's blog. just a little tasty tidbit, Maren was married this past summer and our artist Melissa Blackburn made her phenomenal dress

HAPPY BIRTHDAY RHONNA!!!

We LO-HUH-HUVE you!!

spotlight artist: amy redden

Today i'm introducing Amy Redden of Vintage Fern. With her sewing she creates a style that is eclectic and crafty and homespun and fun. I can't wait for you guys to meet her.



Here's what Amy says about herself -

"I am a stay at home Mom to three beautiful girls and I am married to my best friend that supports me in everything! I have always had the desire to create! I went to school for interior design. I worked as a cake decorator for 9 years decorating cakes, cookies, and wedding cakes. For a few years I owned a wedding decorating business. When I was able to stay home with our three girls I wanted to keep myself busy so I started sewing and creating things to sell, and it has grown bigger than I ever thought it would! I love to thrift shop, collect mountains of fabric, cook, and be with my family.


I enjoy creating useful things using my talents! I love to use repurposed and vintage supplies in my work, but I don't limit myself, so there is always a mix of old and new.

I love what I do and I am so happy to be able to share it with others!"


Here's some of her work --

vintage fabrics make pretty flowers...

We had such a blast at the Spark Soiree!! Thanks so much for everyone who showed up! It was so great getting a chance to meet you before the big event.

It was also fun to have lot of you there through the U-Stream video.

Now time for a sneak peek...

One of the things I am so excited about for Spark is Kelly McCaleb's workshop! Here is a peek Kelly captured of her class just to make your mouth water... ;)

She has such a creative eye for beautiful fabrics and actually collects vintage fabric. Well, guess what? She is letting you, Spark students, dive into her vintage fabric collection to dress up & beautify a simple tee shirt. It's definitely a hot trend right now & Kelly takes it above and beyond with her hand picked, vintage fabrics & fabulous techniques. wahoo. Can't wait!

Bring your favorite tee. Here's what Kelly says about that:

ok, for the class all they will need to bring is a t-shirt- but they will want to try and find a v-neck or scoopneck tissue-y weight one for the best look. most of us have these in our closets, if not they are five bucks at walmart, and there is always a plethora of them on the old navy clearance rack. any color would be fine- but white is a good no-fail. here's a link you could share to the exact shirt i embellished and it looks amazing- it was even less than that price in the store:scoop neck t

oh ya, if someone doesn't want to buy/bring a shirt the design can easily be made into a statement necklace- it would work great too.

announcement: We are almost full for Spark & registration closes Monday, October 26th @ 10 am mountain standard time.

Are any of you on our message forum? Go here to register and get to know other Sparkettes:

http://sparktheevent.ning.com/

*CAPTURE* (my class...)

Hi everyone! It's Jefra.

I can't tell you how excited I am for the Capture photography class I'll be teaching at Spark!! It's gonna help you see in an entirely new way and grab what you DO see.

Here are some of my pictures....and me.
me

and my stuff




The class will be focused on taking awesome pictures that are totally you, no matter WHAT camera you're shooting with - be it a cell phone camera (the 'toy camera' of today in my opinion) or a little point and shoot or a fancy schmancy pro-level DSLR.

What you need to know---

First off, bring a camera to class. It doesn't have to be anything fancy, in fact it can be your iPhone, just something to *capture* with.

Secondly I wanted to introduce and annouce our amazing class helpers...

the fantastic, dynamic and extraordinary Nichole Van

and...

the beautiful, dramatic and gorgeously artistic Wynona Robison


Here are a few photographs from each of them...

first, here's Nichole - and an example of some of her work --

I think you'll find her work beautiful, dramatic and visionary. I love her!!


We shot Rhonna, Heidi and Janet for the launch of House of 3 this past winter.




Like I said, the beautiful Wynona --
I love her work. I always find it fresh, dramatic (in a totally unique way), sensitive and inspiring. Somehow it's simple and complex both at the same time.







I can't wait to meet you all and to share some amazing ideas and concepts with you as well as learn a few pointers from Wynona and Nichole.

HUGS
j