Yesterday, those of us on the North Light Craft and Memory Makers book team got together for a day of creative brainstorming and also got to try our hands at what was a new activity for most of us--encaustic painting!

It was a lot of fun for everyone and I think most of us were surprised by how many techniques can be applied to this art medium. If you've been curious to try encaustic painting yourself, check out the work of Patricia Seggebruch, who will be publishing Encaustic Workshop (due out early next spring). A great source for materials that I found is FineArtStore.com. And finally, if you are still hungry for more inspiration, check out the wide scope of work from the IEA (International Encaustic Artists) website. So, have I got you thinking about hot wax?

A forecast including a mix of snow and icy rain sounds like the perfect excuse to stay inside this weekend where it's nice and warm—warm blankets to wear while catching up on magazines, warm mochas to sip while catching up on email and nice warm wax to paint with and indulge creative urges.

A couple of months ago, I was fortunate enough to spend an entire week with Patricia Seggebruch (our jobs here at North Light are tough that way) when she was here for her step-by-step photo shoot, for her upcoming book, Encaustic Workshop. I was so totally inspired by the magic she made with layers of wax paint that the first day of the shoot I ordered up my own bunch of "getting started" supplies (my Christmas gift to myself). While I have dived right in and had some fun playing with the paints already, I haven't had a good free weekend available for a while, so I'm really looking forward to returning to it this weekend. 

I'm sure many of you are experiencing this same arctic blast, so what are your creative plans for the weekend?