Funky Leaves and This Week's Events

Good morning!  I forgot to ask how your Easter was....how was it?  We ended up not getting together with family, as a few members have been pretty sick.  But we turned our energy towards our overgrown, weedy yard!  It was a lovely day...nice and sunshiney....we cleared away a lot of weeds, old leaves, etc, and Lovin' man and I planted a teeny tiny herb/veggie garden on the sunny side of our house.  (we pretty much have ONE sunny spot in our yard! Ha!)  It felt so good to dig in the dirt and make some progress.  Still much to do though.

These are some silly little leaves that I doodled not too long ago...thought they might make you smile.  I'm currently obsessed with drawing tiny details and filling them in with markers.

Hey...if you are looking for something inspiring to do this week...here are a couple of local events happening.....

The Cedar Rapids Museum of Art is hosting its FINAL WEEK of the Wizards of Pop exhibit.  Get in there, people!  It's crazy cool!  I'm going to try to stop by one more time....it's fabulous, complex pop up art, and it's amazing as they show it from beginning stages to the final product.

And....for the fashionista in you....this Saturday evening is the Recycle in Style Fashion Show!  Goodwill of the Heartland and the Linn County Solid Waste Agency are hosting this 3rd annual event featuring fashions made from thrift store materials.  Super cool!  Super fun!  Seating is limited, so you'll need to RSVP at the link listed.   

Well, off for another day of painting!!!  Have a fabulous day!!!!  Too doo loo!!!

Please vote for us on the A-List!

Hi friends!  The A-List competition on KCRG is still going strong!  We sure would LOVE to have your vote!  We are competing for Best Gift Shop and Arts and Crafts.  Please vote by clicking HERE.  You can use your old login from last year, or your facebook/google/yahoo I.D.  It will accept one vote per email/I.D.  It's easy peasy! 

Do you love The Dreaming Bear? Please support us with your vote!  Thanks a million! 

Pictures from the Bunny Hop!

Howdy!!!!  I'm finally posting the pictures from Saturday's Bunny Hop!  Wow...it was so much fun!  Thanks to everyone who came out to see us!  There was food, fun and frolicking...and not necessarily in that order!  Ha!  Enjoy the pictures from our super fun day!

A mother/daughter bunny duo.....aren't they adorable??

Here at The Dreaming Bear, we believe in critter equality....so when this sweet group came by with their bunny friend, of course we would let them in to play!

Even a gorilla!!!

Everyone stayed busy in the studio making Easter crafts...Emily made this "Dori" bunny.....

Then she made a Lovin' Man bunny to keep her company.  :-)

Dawny did some wild face painting......

When she painted my face, I couldn't stop giggling.....it took forever because I couldn't sit still!

And here is Dawny....contemplating her next design....

My friend Sophie, working on a coloring page......

Treats galore in the studio.  Yum!

A few of the teeny tiny Easter bunnies that were made......

Twin bunnies!!!

Here is our own sweet Emma, striking a pose at the craft table.....
And there's Elsie's butt....what is she doing down there?

Don't you love her bunny ears too?  So cute!

And more of our bunny friends.....

And here's our Emily, workin' it at the craft table after Emma!  Check out the whiskers!

THANK YOU, THANK YOU for all of your support the past seven years!  We truly appreciate being able to do work that we love, and bring smiles to your faces!  Hope you all had a very "Hoppy" Easter!

Get to Know an Up and Coming Artist! Dani!

Dani and Elsie hanging out in the store



Hello there!  It's time to start a new segment on the Dreaming Bear blog, called "Get to Know an Upcoming Artist!"  This is where we feature a youngster (with mom and dad's permission) who we think is really cool and super creative!  Today I'd like to introduce you to Dani!!!

Dori and Dani hamming it up at her birthday party



Dani is what we call a "regular" in the art studio.  (smile)  We have the pleasure of playing around together and watching her creativity unleash itself into the world.  She is a really, really great kid.  She's kind, friendly, greets us with hugs, and she has this awesome winter coat that she lets us doodle on whenever she comes to visit!!! What more could we ask for, really?!

Dani and Emily, same party

 We hosted her birthday party recently in the art studio...Emily was in charge...I mostly darted in and out, teasing Dani and stealing birthday cake.  Hee hee.  Here are some things she delivered to us as a thank you.

Even a card for Elsie.....which she loved, by the way!

Okay, now check out some of her fab creations....and she was nice enough to answer a few questions for us too!!!

Artwork by Dani, made into a sticker!

DB:  What do you like most about being creative?

Dani:  You can draw whatever you want!

Dani's Christmas tree masterpiece

DB:  What's your favorite medium to work with?  (paint, pencil, marker, etc)

Dani:  All of them!!!

DB:  What is your favorite piece that you've created at The Dreaming Bear?

Dani:  The tree I made over Christmas break.

DB:  What are your all time favorite colors?  Name 3.
Dani:  Pink, light blue, and inchworm green.

A painted puppy.

Dani's decoupage project



DB:  Finish this sentence:  The world would be a better place if......
Dani:  we would plant more trees and help the world survive by picking up garbage.

Well said, Dani!!!  Thanks for being you.  We think you are great!  Local folks, if your child loves the Dreaming Bear studio and would like to be featured here as an up and coming artist, drop me a line, and we'll chat!  Thanks!  Have a great day everyone!  And don't forget....tomorrow is the BUNNY HOP!!!

Stop on by and say howdy!!!



Cindy's Fun House

Hello there!  Is this week flying by or what?  Today, I'm sharing some pics from my friend and good customer, Cindy's house.  I visited her early this year, to plan some projects with her, and I snapped some pics to show you a few things I've done for her, and mostly, to show you what a kick a$$ color scheme she has in her house!  And I apologize in advance for my terrible photography skills (plus it was a very gray day in the wintertime)....but anyway.....

She has a fabulous "beachy" vibe going on, inspired by her love for the Bahamas....shades of greens, aquas, pinks and a pop of yellow here and there.....it's such a happy space.  Isn't that clock amazing?  It's not staying there...we're going to hang it with some surprise art around it.  Cindy got that clock in the Bahamas....made of driftwood...so cool.  And it's HUGE.  It will make a great statement piece for that wall!  And those couches....sigh.

And these gorgeous chairs are nestled in a sweet nook in the dining room.  I polka dotted the legs on the chairs before the upholsterer worked his magic with that fabric!!!

This greets you in the entryway.....more chair legs for me to work on....and that sweet round table was really fun to do.....I love harlequin prints!



And look at those dining room chairs!!!  I didn't paint these....someone else had the....um...pleasure....but aren't they just stunning? 

I painted some knobs for her laundry room.....cute, no?

I painted knobs for her craft room too, but I forgot to photograph those.  And the biggest project of all....she asked me to paint the bar stools for her kitchen!  This was a lot of work, (7 chairs total, I believe) but the end result was worth it!  Cindy tells me that even the men who visit her home love everything going on in here!

What a splendid space to drink your morning cup of joe! 

And below is an old chandelier that I prettied up for her downstairs bathroom.  I fell in love with it, and told her I wanted to steal it....and sweet gal that she is, she found one at a sale for me...and it's the one now hanging in my dining room.  BIG SMILES.  I'm a dork about it too.....not a week passes by that I don't look at my painted chandelier, think of her, and smile.

And finally, her WONDERFUL sun porch off of the kitchen!  I want to move into this room, overlooking the pond.  It's amazing!  My contributions to this room are the painted tea cart and the coffee table.  Thank you, thank you Cindy for sharing this beautiful space, and for keeping me so busy!  I'm looking forward to sharing a few more art pieces with you guys that I'm working on for Cindy...my poor customers...they have to wait so long for me to finish things. 

Cheers!  Hope it's sunshiney where you are today!