Cruise Recap #1


This photo pretty much says it all, doesn't it? This is the first moment I met Tim on the ship. (I was dying!) He was such a good sport to take this silly shot with me. Of course, I got a serious shot too, but this was just how I was feeling. The first night of the cruise we attended a Meet & Greet party where we all got to meet Tim and Mario, plus Jim West from ScrapMap and the members of both Tim's and Jim's teams. This was also the perfect time to trade ATC swaps with other cruisers. I got so many cool things! I'll be sharing more this week.




And then there's Mario who was there at the door when we came in, trading his swaps, which were little popsicle sticks with "Tim Holtz Cruise" printed on one side and "Pallet 2011" on the other. He (& Tim) seemed to like my Starbucks pocket watches I made for them. Mario was so enjoyable to chat with. Always so accessible and easy to talk to. We bumped into him several times on the ship.




This is the first thing we would see when we'd enter the classroom each day. A large screen with a hint of the project we were about to do. This was our first class so it was an easy warm-up project: an altered travel coffee mug. Tim had two large screens, one at each end of the room, and there is his laptop in the lower right of the photo where he would run his slide-show from. Everything was very organized during class. It was quite clear that a lot of time and effort went into this whole event.




At one point during the class, Tim ducked under the overhead screen and I noticed the cool pocket on the butt of his jeans and just had to snap a quick photo.




Here are two views of my altered coffee cup.  


The "Crafting in the Caribbean" stamp was a custom woodblock stamp for each of us. Loved this!




Tim on the mic. He was charming and funny and a very casual teacher. I never felt rushed on the projects and was pleased with the organization of the class. His team of gals (Rachelle, Joy and Monica) were awesome, always making sure we had everything we needed and helped us out if we had questions. It was clear they were working hard to make sure we were all happy. And indeed we were!




Day 2's project was this gatefold mini album which I absolutely love. The covers were custom printed with a large image of Tim's compass stamp so that when you closed the two covers, the image met up perfectly in the center. In this photo above, you're looking at the back side of the album. The covers and side spines were all from Wendy Vecchi's Art Parts. The pages are from the Kraft Resist paper pack and each one was a side-loading pocket page. We tissue-taped the tops and bottoms, then spread Distress Stain colors over the entire page. (see next few photos)




Here's how the front came together. It opens out from the center and stays closed by using a stretchy elastic band on the right panel and stretching it over the curio knob on the left side. A tassle and key dangle from the elastic too for a fun embellishment.




I'll be posting more photos of the inside pages this week, but for now I thought I'd share just a few. (click on the photo for a larger view) This is the view you get when you open this awesome book. We worked on these pages on our own in the Art Studio after hours. It was so much fun to use all the goodies Tim gave away to create these embellished pages.




Speaking of give-aways, these were just SOME of the goodies on Day 2 alone. I went home with a full extra suitcase of give-aways!




People traveled from all over the world to come on this creative cruise. Naomi and Kyoko came over from Japan! It was great meeting them and all the other crafters on board. Everyone was so friendly and kind. And we all love Tim of course.




When we weren't in class, we were having fun on the ship or on our excursions. This particular night was extremely fun, as you can see. It all started off in the piano bar with lots of sing-alongs and drinks...




...then proceeded to "The Crypt" for dancing at a super high-energy pace. (Who's that crazy lady in pink with her arms in the air you ask? That would be me.)




Being the proper married lady that I am, I opted to dance with this sweet fella named Paul who was 83 years old. That man never sat one out. He was gettin' it!







After a day and a half's break for excursions, we headed back to the classroom a short workshop in the evening to make a pocket watch. Loved this! Tim handed out full packs of Graphic 45 papers and a kit of Idea-Ology stuff along with some small words so we could create anything we wanted in our watch. It was fun to check out everyone's creations the next day, because of course we all were wearing them proudly.


We were instructed in our first class to spend the next couple of days collecting some souvenirs on our travels to St. Thomas and St. Maarten. Tim wouldn't tell us exactly what these would be for, but we had an idea.



Our final project was a two-parter. It was this Printer's Configurations Tray and this is Tim's display you see above. It was beyond cool, especially with that old pirate ship. Be sure to click on it so you can take in all the details.




This is my drawer in progress. I will be adding more embellishments and then photos once I get time.




Some of the cool details on this tray project was this flip-up interactive photo area. Using Tim's binder clip, we added fun colorful pages that can hold additional photos and/or journaling.




Another cool idea for this printer's tray is to add a piece of cork to one of the spaces and then you can poke things into it like these fun little party picks, my button from St. Thomas and one of Tim's word sticks.




Tim taught us how to create the grunge block letters you see above, and he gave us a ton of stuff to help fill up our trays. Lots of Idea-Ology and then some findings from the islands too.




I collected tiny shells and filled up one of Tim's little vials with them. This great turtle was a purchase from the outdoor marketplace in St. Maarten. Tim gave us all the fish netting and the pretty sand dollars.




So many faces that I can now put with names I've seen on the All Things Tim Group and also from StudioL3. Here is the sweet Linda Ledbetter who is Miss StudioL3 herself, hosting those great Grungy Monday challenges on her blog each week. It was great to meet her in person. And, lucky her, she was the winner of a FREE cruise for two!




Here we are trying to catch up a little on our printer's trays on the top floor of the ship in this nice quiet room we found. The view was fantastic up there!





Here is where my day began every morning: the coffee house. I would sometimes see Mario here bright and early getting fueled up for the day. I asked him what his favorite drink was from Starbucks and he said, "Four shots over ice." Whoa!




I have so many more photos and stories to share, but this post has already taken half of my day today, so stay tuned for more. I'll be back in a couple of days. Thanks for stopping by.



Comments

  1. WOO HOO you party animal! Taking pictures of Tim Holtz's butt and dancing the night away, sounds like a great adventure!!!

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  2. Hi there,
    I stumbled across your blog after seeing your photo with Tim on FB.
    I am beyond jealous, the cruise must've been just a dream come true. Look forward to seeing and hearing more
    Debbi, in Scotland
    xx

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  3. It was so nice to meet you and chat you up as we waited in line to get into our class! Beautiful Blog site by the way and loved, loved for recap of all the events that took place. Hope to see you on another creative journey!

    Anita Houston
    Midland, TX
    aandrhouston@yahoo.com

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  4. Came here from FB - wow what a fabulous time I sooo wish I was there - saddo that I am this is my dream holiday! Love all your projects how wonderful to be taught by the man himself and see all his team in action x

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  5. Oh on facebook, I will have to check it out. See ya soon

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  6. What a great share! Linda is such a sweetheart and I am so glad that she won a cruise for two! With all she does for us, so happy! Have a great week!

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  7. WOW...looks like you are having an amazing time and to meet THE Tim Holtz must have been such a thrill. Thanks for sharing your experience with us:)

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  8. Thanks for sharing all the pics and special moments so we can all live vicariously thru you ;)

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  9. Gee I think I might need to make a drive to the coast for coffee sometime soon so I can see it all in person! Wish I could have been there to meet TH....but, alas, his protege from Melbourne will have to do! Glad it was wonderful for you!

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  10. I love hearing about your F*U*N!!!!!!

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  11. looks like a fabulous time and great projects! OMG Linda won the free cruise? shes a good friend of mine.
    Lynn

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  12. Your photos of the cruise are wonderful - you showed the entire adventure. Thank you for sharing them with the rest of us who are drooling! Looks like you had a wonderful adventure!

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  13. Annette,
    I love seeing your photos - I tend to live vicariously! But the one of you and Tim with that silly face is precious! It made me grin from ear to ear and I just needed that perfect start to my day! Your trip looks over-the-top wonderful - I'm so happy for you!
    Thanks for sharing!
    Hugs!

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