One of my New Year's resolutions is to leave the phantom subscriber in peace. However, I do want to thank her for bulking up my subscription numbers, which in turn allowed me to charge higher ad rates.

Joy
98-005K

...and all the ships at sea!

This time, due to a limited number of grab bags available, we are letting our newsletter subscribers know first. We will not post a notice on the web site until February 1st (if we have any left by then). Hurry up and order yours via e-mail and get your New Year bargain.

the big show!

Tuesday we met with my segment producer, Holly Hughes, a true pro, dedicated crafter (why else would she be producing for Carol), great cook (she and The Hun hit it off) and all around nice person. Holly is one of five producers, their job being to search out and produce new and interesting craft ideas for the show.

It is also the segment producer's job to make the "talent" feel really comfortable with the process and have them appear as if they actually have done this kind of thing before. Holly played mother hen and took me under her wing with lots of cooing and kind words. She had me layout my project, the Wild Women Pins, and we walked through the process a number of times. The trick is to fit a complete project into two five-minute segments. We were invited to lunch with the crew and then watched the taping of several shows to get an idea of timing and pace.

On Wednesday I was shown to my very own dressing room. Holly had asked that I bring down three different outfits for her to look at. I was then taken into makeup and then on to the set and introduced to the stage manager and other crew members. We did several rehearsals of the segment where they established lighting, camera angles and did a sound check. The prop man did a montage of my finished pieces for the end shot. I felt like Meryl Streep but a touch of nervousness began to creep in for the first time. The Hun, who was playing stage husband, told me to suck it up! (He also reminded me that I had taught the project so many times I could do it in my sleep.)

Carol and Roberta

Carol is a consummate pro. Knowing just how to elicit the information necessary to make a project understandable, and to be quiet when a crafter is doing well on their own. We taped the segment in just two takes and finished in time to drive home for Thanksgiving. (My sister-in-law insisted on doing it all, saying I had enough on my plate. The Hun did carve the turkey.)

We do not have a definite air date for the show but are told sometime in February or March of this year. We will give you all a "heads up" via a special e-mail bulletin as soon as we get a date.

Spiral Design I
77-004F

road trips

My class on the polymer clay Spirit Guide Vessels for Malana, last October in Tucson, was such a success, with so many people closed out, that we are going to run it again - take that Ms. Wrong - BIFF *#%!&@ BAMM WHAMO!(see the last newsletter for an understanding of what happened.)

Lilly also wanted me to teach a beading class, so we have adapted a version of my beaded Plaque, which won the annual award at the Bay Area Bead Arts Guild here in Northern California. The original plaque was one of those things that gets the subscript - DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME - ONLY FOR PROFESSIONALS. Really, I have just modified it so that we can virtually complete it in a single class day. The original plaque is on display at Elegant Embellishment for all to see.

Contact Lilly or Malana at (520) 318-1365 for details and costs. This is especially important for the plaque class as there will be no kit provided (thus no material fee). Each participant is to provide their own materials. Lilly has a materials list and will be available to help select a color palette and will stock all of the materials necessary. The polymer clay faces will be supplied as part of the class fee.

The Plaque class will run on Saturday, February 3rd, and the vessel class on Sunday, the 4th.

Haida Dolphin
33-003G

kerchunk is onomatopoeic!

Kerchunk has the most comprehensive stamping links anywhere. You can also order your craft and other books there, through Amazon.com, and the twins get a tiny little commission which helps keep the zine going. You can find this great zine at: www.Kerchunk.com

Oh yeah, Onomatopoeia means a word which sounds like the thing it designates, like hum or buzz. So much for freshman English (and showing off!)

Large Guinea Hen Feather
14-026H

the last last word

After the last bit of shaking my fist at the Gods and the besmirchers of artisan rights, I received several letters and e-mails questioning whether a mechanical reproduction of a finished arts and crafts piece, which included one or more of my images, for use in an advertisement, brochure or on a web site, would be a violation of copyright.

The answer is a resounding no! Since the reproduction was not for the purposes of copying any of my images per se, but to show for sale or display a finished piece which included one of my images, this is acceptable under the law. In every case the actual piece of art was separately and individually hand stamped.

A special thank you to every one who took the time and trouble to clarify the situation, rather than assume it would be OK.

Now maybe we can finally put this thing to sleep. Boy, times have sure changed - reading Goodnight Moon used to put my son to sleep even better than even drugs or threats.

Obi Knot II
163-002H

powder powder everywhere

We are now offering 27 colors of 18pt. ultra-fine detail embossing powders, an increase of seven new colors. Say good- bye forever to the problems of achieving fine detail when using embossing powders. And not only are we offering a wide range of solid colors and custom mixes, the big increase came in the metallics. You have got to see these gorgeous metals, such as German Silver, Polished Brass and Sterling Silver. No one else is offering such an array of colors.

A large 2oz. jar is only $6.00 and, as of February 15th, we will be offering a 1oz. jar, for those who wanted a smaller size to help stretch the craft budget, for $3.80 (sorry but halving the size doesn't cut the packaging costs by half.) There will be a special new price for those who "want it all." Keep checking my web site. For a limited time we are offering a hand-embossed swatch book for $3.00 so you can see the actual colors.

And there is a rumor that we will soon be offering matching bead mixes which coordinate with the custom mixes. But this is only a rumor. Let us know if you like this idea.

Chop
180-007C

bits and pieces

• If you ever get an e-mail signed VR or RR this is to let you know that the signature is to help you separate the Real Roberta from the Virtual Roberta. Since The Hun answers many of the numerous e-mails addressed to Roberta, many want to know to whom they are actually speaking.

• For those of you Hun Groupies out there, we now have available a way you can show your affection and allegiance (as of now the Hun Groupie club has only a few members). Just send us a stamped, self addressed envelope, and we will send you, free of charge, some temporary tattoos with a big red heart and a banner saying "I'm a hunie". Wear it proudly.

• My good friend Cheryl will sometime soon be leaving the world of high tech. She is the database administrator for a Fortune 500 company, and is beginning to explore the world of arts and crafts for something to do in her retirement. She is learning about lots of different things and writes:

  "One of the local adult education schools offered a stamping class; $22 for three sessions plus $25 for materials. I attended the first class and this is what I learned:

  1. How to take a stamp of a teddy bear face and stamp it onto a teddy bear shaped piece of paper.
  2. How to take stamps of a present, a piece of cake, a party hat and the words "Happy Birthday" and stamp them onto an envelope and a card. Guess what I made? That's right, a birthday card!
  3. How to use a rolling stamp thingy to decorate a paper bag.
  4. How to stamp a piece of folded paper with leaf stamps to make a cover for Post-It(TM) notes.

     The materials were paper and we used the teacher's rubber stamps. What a bummer...How long would it take you to stamp four pieces of paper (well five if you count the envelope). I finished in about five minutes and sat there for the next hour and a half or so...Most of the other students were delighted with the class, so I guess I am toooooo fussy."

Split
57-004G

bistro hun

I have gotten numerous queries (keep them coming) as to what are my favorite cook books, what pans and knives do I use, and where are the best places to buy kitchen equipment and specialty foods.

Starting with my favorite Cook Books - I must say that I am strongly biased towards books that contain the brain as well as the heart and soul of the author, and not just another pretty face. The latter I read in the book store and possibly get an idea or two that I try in the kitchen, but not worth the price. My top ATG (all time great) cook books out of some 300 or so that I own, are:

• "Mastering the Art of French Cooking", Julia Childs, Louisette Bertholle, Simone Beck - no one teaches the basics and some more advanced aspects of French cooking better than this 1961 classic. And I keep going back to it again and again for a refresher course and inspiration. Everything I am as a cook started with this book.

• "The Pie and Pastry Bible" (1998), Rose Levy Baranbaum - a life-time of understanding and exploration from one of the master bakers. Great organization and presentation of recipes. Terrific info on ingredients, methods and techniques. No where else will you find such a thing as different recopies for different flavors of ice cream based on the acidity or other characteristics of ingredients. Why ice cream in a pie and pastry book - what else do you put on pie? Her ultimate pie crust is to die for! And Rose's 1988 "The Cake Bible", an IACP winner, is my favorite cake cook book.

• "Chez Panisse Cooking" (1988), Paul Bertolli with Alice Waters, you will not find a better intro. into Italian and Mediterranean cooking, both simple and complex, and with as much information about why and how to do something as actual recipes. Contrast this to "The Cafe Cookbook" by Rose Gray and Ruth Rogers (Rob got it for free as a give-a-way on some promotion). It's like comparing Sophia Loren to a 19 year old, airhead, super model - pretty but essentially empty.

BTW - I never buy books retail anymore. I buy great used or discounted copies and save from 30% to 60%, including the shipping, over the Internet. Try www.half.com, isbn.nu, bestbookbuys.com, bamm.com, bookfinder.com or alibris.com. Most of these are shopping engines which will search many book sites and list the best prices. Amazon.com or barnsandnoble.com is never higher than fifth or sixth.

So, next newsletter I will cover some of the rest of the questions. Love ya' - keep the e-mails coming.

Petroglyph Embellished Alphabet
Sheet 236

rubber sheets

That's all for now!
Roberta