Seaside Sessions 2025 Recap: Saturday Salon and More!

After the excitement of Friday’s Studio Sessions, Orca sighting, and Open Studio, everyone greeted Saturday morning’s hot breakfast with gusto.
Seaside Sessions Saturdays are usually quite relaxed, with ample time for our Creative Explorers to complete their projects, take walks on the beach, soak up some sun, and participate in the Saturday Salon. This year’s Salon topics centered on how to create a website and how to enter art festivals to sell work. We were able to answer questions, give resources and feedback, and generally cheer everyone on about reaching the goal of getting their work “out there”. Resources we explored included: Squarespace for websites, Square Up (similar name, different company) for online selling portal, CAFE (Call For Entry), and Zapplication for directories of art shows and festivals. All are free to explore, with Squarespace offering a free 14-day trial before requiring payment of a yearly fee for your website.

“Behold! I proclaim: this is my stick.”

The afternoon was spent working on finishing touches of our canvases, the claiming of sticks for hanging (see Jill T. proudly declaring ownership of hers at right), deliberating and sometimes collaborating on final details, and excited exclamations of “I’m done!” were frequent occurrences. All of this was prepared our Creative Explorers for a somewhat mysterious final evening event.
And what an event it was! Our first ever Gallery Hangout was held in the game room on the lower level, where each completed Canvas of Curiosities was hung along the walls. We enjoyed dessert and a tasty Prosecco, toasting each other; the magical, artful experience we’d shared; friendships made; and to the wonders of the beauty surrounding us.
Below are some images of the finished pieces and the artists who created them.

With sadness, we realized that this was our final night together, but we looked forward to the possibilities of next year’s event: Seaside Sessions 2026! Each Creative Explorer enthusiastically agreed that she was interested in returning to our idyllic art haven by the sea, and we were ecstatic that everyone had so enjoyed our time together.

Our final wrap up post will be tomorrow, with some tantalizing hints of what may be in the works for next year, so stay tuned!

Seaside Sessions 2025 Recap: Friday Studio Session with Penny

Friday dawned bright and sunny, if a bit cool, and rather blustery.  We began the day with a lovely breakfast spread and another round of Your Creative Connection SWAG:  this year’s bag (a lovely little cross-body number in navy, sporting our kaleidoscope of butterflies. 

Coffee in hand, we turned our attention to our day’s Studio Session with yours truly.  We wiled away the morning exploring the myriad ways in which one can imitate Shibori* and what we have come to call the “scrunchy ombre” techniques.  Normally performed to create elaborately designed cloth, we worked exclusively on various weights/textures of rice paper – to delightful affect!  Essentially, after manipulating our paper substrate by folding it up or securing it to a cylindrical form and “scrunched up” tightly, we added color using Sharpie markers (any alcohol based marker will work) and sprayed our papers with alcohol.  After allowing them to dry, we flattened them to marvel at the color and texture realized through the use of these techniques. From there we moved on to liquid watercolors and various types and sizes of salt - the ooohs and ahhhs were plentiful and we explored that and additional ways to shift the path of the paints.

After taking a break for lunch (aka:  Day 2 of Salad-Palooza) wherein we added Couscous Salad, Scandinavian (lovingly referred to as Pea) Salad, and Pimento Cheese to our original line-up along with sliced turkey, lettuce, tomato, and assorted wraps and crackers.  As we were finishing up our lunch, there was a bit of hub-bub on the deck.  On first glance, it appeared that there was an early group of dolphins.  Other than the time of day, nothing about that would be of significant notice.  Closer observation revealed that it wasn’t dolphins at all!  We gathered on the deck to watch a lone Orca cavorting in the very calm sea:  rolling in the water and “standing” head first with its tail high in the air.  It was amazing.  In spite of it being somewhat far away (almost halfway to the horizon line), it was a wondrous thing to see.  I grew up along the NC coast and in all of my 56 years I have never seen one.  According to a news article we saw later, apparently it has been 5 years since one was last seen off the NC coast.

Still aglow after our beautiful encounter with nature, we reentered the work area afresh and spent our afternoon making cool things together.  Throughout the afternoon, we played around with different ways to use used tea bags to add texture, contain found objects, and obscure details in previous layers of mixed media painting and collage. *thankfully, the grackles hadn’t made off with the ones I had drying on the deck – lol!*  I also gave everyone a small “fish can” that had been painted with a hammered finish spray paint.  I provided an example of a nifty way to highlight a collection of their brightly colored papers as a component of their Canvas of Curiosities or as a small, stand-alone piece of art.

Ideas were beginning to gel and compositions take shape; the time had come for everyone to embark of the journey of completion for their canvas wall hangings.  After a delicious dinner of Beyond Beef meatless chili and gluten free Cheddar Biscuits, our Creative Explorers took full advantage of an evening of Open Studio time.  While they worked, they received a surprise invitation:  to join us on the following evening for a Special Event in the downstairs living room – our very first Gallery Hang-Out!  As music wafted through the evening air, our intrepid creators worked into the evening.  Thankfully, we had a delicious pick-me-up for the evenings labors:  Michelle’s [in]Famous Fudgy Brownies (gluten free, natch) accompanied by decadent homemade chocolate ice cream.

Needless to say, it was a rather full day!  Soon enough, all were ready to turn in so as to be bright eyed and bushy tailed on Saturday morning.  We still had Saturday Salon to look forward to, as well as seeing everyone’s finished pieces the following evening.

Join us again tomorrow as we continue our loving look back at a magical time!

* (しぼり/絞り, from the verb root shiboru – "to wring, squeeze or press"[1]: 7 ) is a Japanese manual tie-dyeing technique, which produces a number of different patterns on fabric.  (from Wikipedia, a wealth of information on the form can be found under this title:  Shibori.

Seaside Sessions 2025 Recap: Thursday Studio Session with Michelle

After a lovely night’s rest, lulled by the sounds of the sea, and an appetizing continental breakfast spread, our Creative Explorers assembled for the second Creative Exchange. Martha H.’s lovely necklaces with wrapped stones, shells, and spirals were a wonderful surprise which each of us wore that day. We also received our Thursday Seaside Sessions 2025 Swag gift: a 20 oz. metal cup with the butterfly kaleidoscope Your Creative Connection logo. Choruses of oohs and aahhs were heard as the boxes were opened and the cups were revealed. Michelle’s Creative Exchange gift was next: uniquely painted oval papier mache boxes filled with beads. Some swapping of both boxes and beads ensued, after which everyone seemed pleased with her choices.

Demo wet strength tissue papers with liquid watercolors (top) and acrylic paint drying on the windy deck (hence the jars of medium holding them down).

Michelle pulling a wet strength tissue print done with acrylic paint and recycled materials as Wendy D. looks on.

Next up, there was a “SHARP ATTACK!” a new, fun way for us to receive a brand new marker by spinning the tiger Sharpie box wheel. These “attacks” happened randomly throughout our time together, and their unpredictability added to the hilarity.

“The Canvas of Curiosities” theme offered a myriad of opportunities for the exploration of techniques and substrates both new and familiar. Forging right into the “new”, Michelle presented the wonder that is wet strength tissue paper. Heavier than regular tissue, with both shiny and matte surfaces, it can be completely saturated with watercolors, acrylics, or inks without tearing. Once dry, it can be cut, torn, stamped, drawn upon, crinkled, and smoothed again and again to create a variety of textures, which elicited looks of amazement from those who hadn’t worked with it before. Oh, you could almost hear the creative wheels beginning to turn….
Wet strength tissue can also be used on gel plates, and its inherently wrinkly texture can be exaggerated as it dries on the plate to wonderful effect.
Next, Michelle brought out an art supply from elementary school days: Play Doh. Yes, that aroma is exactly the same (as are the bright yellow plastic containers), but using it as a way to transfer texture to a gel plate or as a stamp was new, as is the fact that it can be used over and over again—an extremely economical tool in your mixed media supply stash!
As the creative wheels continued to turn, everyone set to work until it was time for lunch.

Although it has become a Seaside Sessions tradition, we somehow never get photos of “Salad Palooza” which began at Thursday’s lunch. We dined on three bean, tuna, and chicken salads, accompanied by various crackers, breads, and wraps while gazing at the dazzlingly sunny panoramic view of the ocean right outside the dining room windows (with occasional visits from grackles on the deck who were quite curious about our drying papers and Penny’s teabags).

Michelle’s sample with Tyvek beads and gel printed Play Doh stamped circles on wet strength tissue adhered to canvas.

After lunch, the second part of the Studio Session featured stamp making with adhesive foam shapes on acrylic rectangles, as well as another art supply used in a new way: safe wash etching ink on gel plates. This ink is thicker and more viscous than acrylic paint, which means that a little goes a long way. Once a thin, even coat has been rolled onto the plate, textures, stamped images, drawings, and magazine transfers can be pulled, with highly detailed results, as you can see below. (thanks to Jill T. for the use of her large, intact scallop shell found on her beach walk that morning which forms the wings of the Play Doh stamped ‘shell butterfly’)
Tyvek beads rounded out the Studio Session, with Michelle demonstrating how to fashion them from purloined (!) USPS mailing envelopes painted on both sides, cut into triangles, rolled onto dowels, end glued, then melted with a heat gun to produce organic-looking textures.

Our Creative Explorers, ideas flowing like the tides, then set to work experimenting, discovering, exclaiming, and enjoying that magical feeling of creating with like-minded souls. The tantalizing glimmers of what was to come danced around the table as they worked following a delicious dinner of chicken shawarma and hearts of palm noodles, with Seaside Sessions-famous “floof” for dessert. After a spectacular sunset, another “SHARP ATTACK” or two, good nights were bid, everyone going to rest up for another day of Studio Sessions to come with Penny on Friday.

Tune in tomorrow to read Penny’s account of Friday’s happenings, including the not-to-be-missed arrival of the aforementioned “special guest”.


Seaside Sessions 2025 Recap: Opening Night Arty Party

Welcome to Seaside Sessions 2025! Each day this week, we will look back at the magic that was our latest offering of Seaside Sessions. While technically our 5th ‘anniversary’ we lost a couple of years to COVID but we’re not letting that slow us down one little bit!

It’s hard to believe that it was 2 weeks ago that we said “Good-bye” to the class of 2025.  We packed a ton of fun into our annual gathering by the sea.  Thanks for joining us for our traditional re-cap!

…after some rocky weather to start the week, we were gifted clear skies and moderate temperatures once our Creative Explorers arrived (and an AMAZING surprise visitor during our stay). 

We welcomed our latest crew on a sunny Wednesday afternoon.  Guests drifted in during our standard Check-In time (3-5) and enjoyed some time to get settled, take to the beach, and/or enjoy some fizzy water on the deck overlooking the ocean.

After a brief Orientation and quick Meet & Greet, we shared an overview and explanation of this years theme:  The Canvas of Curiosities.  We illuminated many of the different techniques we would be sharing over the course of our time together and showed them in use by way of the sample projects that we had on display.  Following our Welcome and introductions, we enjoyed a Bohemian Feast (a bountiful buffet of nibbly bits) and officially commenced the creative component of Seaside Sessions.

As in each year since our very first retreat, every one of our guests opted to participate in our Creative Exchange.  It is a lovely addition to our event, and this year was no exception.  As in years past, we drew numbers to determine the days of participation for everyone.  This year we had a request by one of our Creative Explorers to go first.  It was quickly agreed that Seaside Sessions uber alum, Jill T., could lead the festivities this year.  It is nice to note that Jill has attended EVERY Seaside Sessions retreat since our very 1st in 2020.  Everyone was thrilled to receive her Artists’ HANDbooks – customized covers for their SS25 notebooks. *My apologies, in advance, for the lack of photos to accompany each of the subsequent Creative Exchange gifts that were shared. We will show them all in all of their glory at the end of our look back.*

We then spent the remainder of the evening exploring the creative rabbit hole that is the making of Mandalas.  My offering in the Creative Exchange was a set of micron pens in five different line widths.  We put those to use over the next few hours as we learned ways to make the form our own.

Before turning in to rest up for our 1st full day on Thursday, we agreed to undertake a collaborative art work of a Seaside Sessions 2025 Group Mandala. Everyone would complete one circle and the finished piece would be displayed on our final night….

That is yet another facet of this gem that will be revealed in time! Join us again tomorrow (Tuesday, April 8th) when Michelle will take the helm and share all of the fun that was had in her Studio Session on Thursday.

You don’t want to miss it!

Seaside Sessions 2025: A Look Behind the Scenes, (pt.2)

As we put the finishing touches on our preparations for next spring, we wanted to give you a chance to see what we have going on in regard to all the fun to be had. This week’s “sneak peeks” include more from our sample pieces for The Canvas of Curiosities, and some examples of what we think of as our signature offering; the magic that happens when creative souls gather.

To jumpstart your creativity, or to expand beyond your comfort zone, have you ever thought about new uses for old favorite supplies or techniques? We’ve been discovering some cool ways to do that: working with a brand new (to us) type of paper in familiar and sometimes surprising ways; substituting one medium for another in an age-old technique and getting great results; featuring a technique previously used in jewelry-making on canvas: using kindergarten-era art supplies in astounding and very successful ways—all of these experiences and more await you in our haven by the sea, March 19—23!

We cherish the fact that Your Creative Connection does not curate “follow the teacher” events. Our Creative Explorers do not come away from their time with us with work looking exactly like the samples we present. Rather, each woman creates, according to her own vision, interests, and desires, which means that even though we all begin with the same materials and instructions, the resulting work is always unique to its creator. This magical phenomenon happens every time we gather, from our first Seaside Sessions event in 2020 (that idyllic time just before the world shut down due to the pandemic):

Unique concertina 2020 books, created using all of the same materials.

to the beautiful book boxes created during Seaside Sessions 2023:

to our fabulous flag books and peace flags last March:

Flag book fabulousness on display!

Just a few of the peace flags created in March 2024.

Have we gotten your creative wheels turning? Have we enticed you to join us in March? Or, do you need more information before you decide? If you’re ready now, please head over to our Seaside Sessions 2025 page to begin the journey.
If you’d like more information or have a question, leave us a comment on this post, or better yet, join us for our first ever Facebook LIVE question and answer event on Monday, January 13th. Full details on that event to come soon, so watch this space!

Until next time,

Michelle

Seaside Sessions 2025: A Look Behind the Scenes (pt. 1)

As we put the finishing touches on our preparations for next spring, we wanted to give you a chance to see what we have going on in regard to all the fun to be had. So, this week and next, we are offering some “sneak peeks” as well as some additional information about the concept for our next gathering.

As previously reported, Seaside Sessions 2024 was The Year of the Monoprint - everything from our opening night Arty Party through two full days of Creative Sessions was all about gel printing. Next year, we are ushering in The Canvas of Curiosities. I can almost hear the head scratching and a chorus of “…but what does it mean!?”

Domenico Remps, Cabinet of Curiosities (c. 1690) from an excellent article on the subject at Sotheby’s Institute of Art (https://www.sothebysinstitute.com/news-and-events/news/cabinets-of-curiosities-and-the-origin-of-collecting)

In much the same way cabinets of curiosity (also known as wunderkammern or “wonder-rooms”) were used throughout 16th century Europe, we will gear our time together toward the creation of an entirely-unique-to-you canvas wall hanging that will incorporate a host of mixed media techniques shared throughout the course of the retreat. Think of it as a way to visually compile everything that you learn and/or encounter during your creative explorations by the sea!

Just as cabinets of curiosity were products of an era of exploration and discovery, our works will encapsulate the combined offerings of our Creative Sessions in a visual feast of mixed media methodology. In addition to serving as a virtual catalog of techniques, they will also allow us to include natural elements from our ocean front surroundings to more fully document your experience: seashells, feathers, sea glass, smooth stones, and more.

We will work with paper, fabric, fibers, inks, paints, and more as we create in view of the sea. Above are a few glimpses of the preparations under way for Seaside Sessions 2025. Want to see more? Mark your calendar and plan now to join us on January 13th for our 1st ever Facebook LIVE presentation. We’ll have The Big Reveal and answer your questions! (Time to be announced after our poll closes). If you’ve been curious about Seaside Sessions and the offerings of Your Creative Connection, this is your chance!

Has this Sneak Peek piqued your interest? There are still a few open seats for our magical, mixed-media gathering! Join us by registering today. Meet us back here for another look behind the curtain next week with Michelle.

Until then, stay creative!
~ Penny & Michelle

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….