Another Great Time Was Had By All (pt. 4)

As our time together was winding down, our final day was dedicated to our newest tradition (est. 2023) The Saturday Salon. During this deep dive into the business side of art, Michelle and Penny answer any and all questions on myriad subjects related to the aspects of art beyond its initial creation: marketing, sourcing materials, pricing, website creation, online sales, in person sales, and more…. Questions are addressed in a round-table manner, allowing everyone to benefit from the experiences of their fellow Creative Explorers as well as their Hosts. Another way in which we are able to be in community with one another and expand our circles.

V. Coleman shares with fellow Creative Explorers

After a final lunch (another beloved tradition: Leftover-palooza), thoughts turned to finishing up our various projects and a final round of creative “what-ifs.” Women, many of whom had only just met three days ago, chatted and worked alongside one another as old friends while music provided a background to laughter and conversation.

A quiet moment

As the night wound down and projects wrapped up, our thoughts turned to the next days departure…

…and on Sunday morning, we said farewell. Bags were packed with snacks for travel and final mementos of our time together. We sent our Creative Explorers homeward with new techniques to make their own, new friendships to treasure, and new memories to savor.

Seaside Sessions Class of 2024

Until next time….

…and just like they say in the movies: That’s a wrap! We cherish the opportunity to be surrounded by such incredible women for 4 days each March. While we revel in the memories of every year, we constantly have an eye toward “what’s next?” If you are wondering the same thing, stay tuned!

Now that we have had a chance to look back at 2024, we are full-steam-ahead toward 2025 - and it will be here before we know it. Stick around for some behind-the-scenes looks at what we have in store for Seaside Sessions 2025. We’ll be back soon with that and a few more surprise announcements. Remember: space is limited at our haven by the sea, only 7 spots remain. You can snag yours by visiting the Our Events tab (above) & registering today!

Join us for mixed media magic, memory making, and treasure seeking in Surf City, NC - March 19-23, 2025!

Seaside Sessions 2024: Another Great Time Had by All! (pt. 3)

On our second full day of Studio Sessions, we discovered even more techniques to add to our toolbox as we further explored the wonders of gelatin printing (this was the Year of the Gel Print, after all!) with Michelle. Everyone was amazed about being able to use black Magnum Sharpie markers to create patterns directly on the plate, letting it dry, then adding a layer of paint. There were amazed exclamations, and shocked, excited faces when the resulting prints were pulled. Everyone was eager to try her hand at it, and also combined marker with stencils and stamping on the gel plate with beautiful results.

Gel printing can cause you to lose track of time—many minutes (or hours!) can go by as you create gorgeous, textured, patterned papers which are uniquely yours (just one more! just one more!). We pulled ourselves away to enjoy a hearty lunch, then went right back to it. During the afternoon session, we turned our attention to what we’d use our papers to create: large wooden letters mounted on or inside frames. And as always, the results were spectacular: each initial reflected its artist’s preferred color palette and her design sensibilities. It was great to see how they came together, and how the seemingly disparate prints could be used in a cohesive and colorful final product.

Michelle’s and Penny’s sample gel printed and collaged initials hung below the YCC initials created for our first Seaside Sessions retreat in 2020.

Evening open studio time saw us still pulling prints, deciding how they’d be used on the wooden initials, painting frames, completing flag books, and working on book covers. The creative exchange (a favorite Seaside Sessions tradition) resulted in gifts of photographic greeting card sets, haiku photo prints, fabrics, quilted mug mats, custom designed bookmarks, buttons, fabric dyes, and markers—a veritable bounty of artful goodies!
One more full day remained, and we looked forward to what wonders it would bring….

Seaside Sessions 2024: Another Great Time Was Had by All! (pt. 2)

On our 1st full day, we rose shortly after the sun to enjoy coffee and breakfast together before spending the day with Penny and the wonders of gel plate mono-printing toward the goal of creating Flag Books. In addition to the desired beautiful weather, it would appear that the dolphins got the memo, too - treating us to a show as they too enjoyed breakfast & frolicking to begin the day.

After a glorious morning and afternoon of creating with wild abandon, our Creative Explorers then assembled their various prints and tags into a colorful and kinetic Flag Book - a veritable (Mini) Encyclopedia of Gel Printing Techniques. Revelatory exclamations ensued. Our good times continued through the evening with a delicious dinner and Open Studio time into the night. Music and laughter filled our lovely (albeit temporary) home by the sea….

A Circle of Happy Makers and Their Creations

Join us again tomorrow for a look back at Day 3 and our 2nd full day of Studio Session fun with Michelle as our self proclaimed “Year of the Gel Plate” continues!

Seaside Sessions 2024: Another Great Time Was Had by All! (pt. 1)

It’s hard to believe that 8 months have passed since we welcomed our Creative Explorers to Seaside Sessions last March! As we’ve done in years past, in this series of blog posts we’ll share many of our favorite moments from our time together, featuring that special magic which occurs when creative women come together in an idyllic setting. We marveled at the display of amazing creativity, bonding moments, great bursts of joyful laughter, and the many lasting connections made. That’s the beauty of Your Creative Connection events—each year is different, but the results are the same; renewal, relaxation, and the revelation of self that comes from sharing something you love.

As usual, Penny and I planned to arrive at our favorite oceanfront house in Surf City, NC a few days ahead of our Creative Explorers to get everything ready for their arrival. We packed our vehicles, and amazingly, had room to spare (had we forgotten anything? Impossible! We have lists!),

Having learned the hard way from 2023, we did NOT spend 17 hours in the kitchen on the first day there (Penny’s genius idea of assembling and freezing the ingredients for Crock Pot meals reduced our on site food prep time immeasurably). To prepare for our guests’ arrival, we made beds, unpacked art supplies, moved furniture, assembled gifts and goodies, all while appreciating the ocean’s beauty. We were pleased to learn that the weather forecast for the week was sunny with mild temperatures—just what we’d ordered!

That view!

Wednesday: Check-In
Again this year, our Creative Explorers hailed from South Carolina, Minnesota, California, Virginia, and other parts of North Carolina; while some were alumnae, others were new to the Seaside Sessions experience. Everyone was eager to discover what the next 5 days would bring. Upon their arrival, the once-quiet house rang with exclamations of delight and many excited voices….and we were underway! After finding their rooms with doors festooned with personalized bookmarks created by Penny, and the 2024 gift of a Your Creative Connection tote bag, everyone assembled for the Welcome Arty Party, with our traditional menu of pizza and crudité.

Our first creative activity involved making peace flags using acrylic paint, stencils, stamps, and markers. After viewing the samples Penny and I had made, everyone set to work, and creative ideas flowed like the tides. It’s endlessly amazing to see the results of projects like this; where everyone is given the same materials, and no two finished projects are ever alike! Yes, more Your Creative Connection magic!

The creative magic and merriment continued into evening Open Studio time, after which, we hung the completed peace flags across the top of the windows, framing that spectacular view we all love so much. We wished everyone a good night’s rest, took one last look out at the gorgeous, moonlit sea, and dreamed of the full day of creativity to come….