Hundreds of Empty Bowls are up for grabs this Friday at “Empty Bowls.”
With handmade bowls being donated by students, teachers, studio members
and more, this annual event is sure to be a success again this year! I will be pulling
together a selection of my own bowls to donate towards the cause tomorrow.
So plan on stopping by Lillstreet Art Center this Friday night. Look through
hundreds of bowls, choose your favorites, buy them and fill them with soup!
It’s that easy… doing good for the hungry all around Chicago.

“EMPTY BOWLS” at Lillstreet Art Center
4401 North Ravenswood, at Montrose, Chicago, Illinois 60640
Friday, March 25, 2011, 5-9pm

Spring came a little early again this year to Chicago’s Navy Pier.
With a week of incredible floral displays and gardening tips & ideas at the
Chicago Flower & Garden Show. A week of seasonal fun to taunt those of us “suffering”
from Spring Fever. It was great to be surrounded by the scents & colors of Spring!

As well as some great gardens built & installed on the floor of Festival Hall. I especially
love that they install actual ponds & waterfalls, as well as wonderful Zen Gardens!

And one of my favorites… a incredibly whimsical & oversized croquet set
with a “floating” croquet mallet and huge levitating croquet balls made out of
white phaleanopolis orchids!

Plus it was fun to see one of my own creations at the entrance to greet visitors
as they enter the Garden Show. I designed this natural horse for a different event
with my side job I refer to as “the glitter gig.” Complete with river rock “socks”,
green moss patches and Spanish moss mane & tail. It was great to use her again
at the show. I like to refer to her as “Kate Moss.”

Around the country, PBS stations are airing a lot of quality programming…
And this Sunday is no exception! Coming soon to a PBS station near you…
The concert version of the 25th Anniversary of “Les Miserables.”
And as you know by now, this is my all-time favorite musical!

Filmed in London in December 2010, the concert was made to celebrate and
commemorate the 25th Anniversary of this wonderful musical. And if it’s
anything like the 10th Anniversary Concert… you’re going to love it. I have the
DVD of the 10th Anniversary & have watched it countless times at the studio!!!
While it’s not the entire theatrical performance or experience, it is an incredible
event that was celebrated at the 02 Arena in London and broadcast live in theaters
around the world. Or so they say… I never heard about it.

There is no set, and no choreography, but the actors will be in costume, and
in character, singing the most wonderful soundtrack ever. According to the reviews,
it sounds like a wonderful show. Possibly with the exception of choosing Nick Jonas
to play the role of “Marius”? At least we have musical legend, and former Miss Saigon,
Lea Salonga as “Fantine” to counter-balance one of the Jonah Brothers!

So check your local listings for a PBS station near you. You’ll love it.
In Chicago, the “Les Miz” concert will air this Sunday, March 6th at 6:00pm
and 10:00pm. Yes, that’s a 4-hour time-slot… which presumably means a lot
of fundraising breaks along the way!

Tonight was my perfect evening.
An incredible evening at my favorite restaurant in Chicago – Rose Angeli’s.
Followed by a performance of my all-time favorite musical – “Les Miserables.”

The night started with an incredible meal at Rose Angeli’s with my friend Nancy.
With plenty of time, we decided to start with an appetizer of spinach-artichoke dip…
but amped up with a ton of cheese and great portobello mushrooms in the mix!
The best spinach-artichoke dip EVER!!!

Followed by their “special of the week” pasta… pumpkin raviloi with a marsala wine
marscapone cheese cream sauce with roasted red bell peppers, chopped scallions,
toasted walnuts & dates!!! Incredible! Savory & sweet. It’s the chopped dates
that makes the whole thing come together!!! Love ’em.

Then for dessert, we of course had to go with my all-time favorite – hot caramel sauce…
with a side of brad pudding as the “vehicle” to get the caramel in my mouth! But…
and oh, but wait there’s more… our waitress, the amazing Catherine, also brought us
a complementary dessert of homemade chocolate & peanut butter ice cream, with cold
caramel sauce, bananas & fresh blackberries! C’mon now!!! I’m sure the people at the
tables around us thought we were complete pigs with huge entree dishes AND two huge
desserts for the two of us. But we only ordered one dessert, really… I swear!!!

Then we headed downtown for my favorite Broadway musical! Les Miserables.
Yes, I’m a dork. And I must admit that I’ve seen the stage show live “several” times.
I own three, okay, after tonight, four CD versions of the soundtrack… as well as the
DVD of the 10th Anniversary Concert event! Which I have watched endlessly at the studio!
I’m hooked. It’s the perfect musical – story, songs, emotion, talent, staging, everything!

It’s hard to believe that it’s the 25th Anniversary of the show?! So they’ve re-imagined
and re-staged the musical to give it a new look. Still the same story, but this time it was
a lot darker & grittier. The voices were still incredible. And no revolving stage?!
Instead, the back cyc wall continued to change & move with projected images of
Victor Hugo’s original paintings! The imagery moved as the play evolved in a seamless
and creative way. Nicely done! I would tell you all to go see it, but sadly, tomorrow
is the last performance here in Chicago!

Once again, Eponine was my favorite. The actress had incredible voice and she got
to sing my favorite Les Miz song “On My Own.” And then dies a couple songs later…
SPOILER ALERT! As well as Jaevert’s big suicide scene… incredible staged with
possibly the longest “drop” ever!

So again, tonight was possibly a perfect night.
Great food with a great friend. And an incredible performance of “Les Miserables.”

As part of my “glitter gig” with the special events company, we had a very special
Valentine Masquerade Party last night. We had the chance to transform the client’s home
into a wonderfully lush, red velvet space with columns, flowers, antique silver and more!
Each room had a different design theme – and everybody loved their Valentine experience!
Plus, we had some left-over flowers… instead of leaving them there, I brought them home!

Luckily, I have plenty of vases to put them all in! So now I have even more flowers around
which really makes me anxious for Spring!!! Luckily, it’s warmer outside and “Blizzaster 2011”
seems to be melting quickly. I’m even hoping to get out on my bike tomorrow morning!

Tonight I had a wonderful dinner at my all-time favorite restaurant!
It was a long-overdue-belated-birthday-dinner with my birthday-sharing-friend Nancy.
Tonight’s pasta special was chicken & portobello mushroom filled ravioli with cilantro-cream
sauce, pico de gallo and crispy tortilla strips. INCREDIBLE!!!

Followed by my favorite bread pudding with some hot caramel sauce. The best ever!!!
Really, the bread pudding is just the vehicle to get the caramel into my mouth faster.
Tonight I even got a free “refill” of caramel sauce!!!

And oh, but wait there’s more… also my complimentary birthday dessert of pear lasagna
with even MORE caramel sauce and to-die-for pumpkin ice cream!!! Yummy.
With the best service ever – thank you Catherine for another wonderful meal.

Here’s the details…
Rose Angeli’s – 1341 West Wrightwood, Chicago, Illinois 60614

Another Holiday Home Show has come and gone. Day Two is now complete.
Another long day chatting it up with friends & pottery-lovers! Yesterday was a bit more
focused on the “big-on-a-mission-shoppers” who were there for some serious shopping.
Today’s traffic was a bit slower, and the customers were a bit more chatty.
More friends stopping by for a quick visit and some festive holiday cheer!

Thank you so much to all of you who stopped by this weekend, and shared some holiday
cheer with us. Everyone was so supportive & encouraging. I couldn’t continue to do this
with such supportive friends & customers. And special thanks to my parents and my friend
Nancy who worked so diligently all weekend! I couldn’t do it without them either!

Feels good to be done with another year’s Holiday Home Show!
And luckily, I still have some great inventory for the rest of the holiday season.
Next up on my holiday schedule, the Lillstreet Holiday Open House
on Friday, December 3rd from 6:00am-10:00pm.

Well, today was a great success! And so much fun!
The day started out with a rush of customers right at 10:00am! Some of my “regulars”
were there bright and early. And they all know the drill. They come in the front door
and head directly out the back door – to the “Tired Of Shlepping Sale.” Once they fill up
a box full of bargains, then they head back in to shop “the real stuff.” It was a day full of
friends, family and some of my favorite “groupie” customers! So much fun!!!

We sold a lot of pieces – but we still have a lot of great stuff for Day Two!
So tonight I need to do some replenishing, restocking & rearranging!
Getting ready for another fun day tomorrow!

You know how things pile up that you just need to get rid of? How at the end of the art fair
season there’s a pile of pieces you’re just plain tired of carrying around from show to show?
What to do with your class teaching demos? The last few pieces of a production line?
The flawed? The seconds? The ‘I’m just tired of them’ pieces?

Well, I save all of mine all year long and put them all in my “Tired Of Shlepping Sale.”
Because that’s what I am – tired of shlepping them, show to show, up & down stairs, etc.
Instead I’m making drastic markdowns & bargain reductions on a LOT of pieces…
just I never see them again and can make room for some new stuff!!!

Stop by “My Home For The Holidays” Home Show today & tomorrow for some
great holiday shopping – and some great deals on some “Tired Of Shlepping” bargains!!!
Saturday & Sunday from 10:00am-6:00pm. C’mon by…

10/10/10 at 10:10am…
We were huffing, puffing & sweating after pedaling to the top of Bean Blossom Hill.
Loving the challenge. Enjoying the colors. Fun playing with each other!
Where were you?