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Tuesday, March 19, 2013

The Event of Events!


I'm so excited to share with you the wonderful guest speakers for the next event on April 20, 2013!

Lidy Baars of French GardenHouse

~I am thrilled to welcome one of my 
dearest friends to the panel of speakers~

As a little girl growing up in Europe, Lidy Baars developed a love for antiques with patina and charm at the home of her grandparents. Her passion for discovering the beauty of forgotten treasures led to a a career as an antique dealer, her fabulous "eye" for quality and her ability to uncover antique and vintage gems has earned Lidy a loyal following of clients who rely on her for their vintage decor and 
style. After years in the trade, in 2007 she opened FrenchGardenHouse, online, to showcase her expansive collection of elegant, one-of-a-kind items from the late 1800's through the early 20th century. Sprinkled in with all the antiques are a few French themed new lines, as well as artist designed jewelry and gifts.

A romantic at heart, Lidy seeks out special, quality "finds" to delight and entice her customers, as well as many one-of-a-kind or limited quantity art or decorative "fun" pieces she designs herself. She has an art degree, and has worn many different hats in her professional career, managing retail stores at the young age of 19, then going on to designing and creating luxury decor accessories, designing custom florals, and working as an interior designer.

Lidy's attention to detail, and her vision of how antiques mixed with contemporary pieces can transform a home into a cozy haven is what sets FrenchGardenHouse apart. FrenchGardenHouse.com, as well as Lidy's own home, has been featured in many national magazines. Lidy has written and photographed several published articles relating to antiques, as well as decorating, and hospitality.

Lidy lives near the ocean in California with her husband, John, and their labrador puppy Bentley. The mother of two daughters, now a grandmother of three most adorable grandchildren, she loves nothing more than when her home is filled to the brim with her family. When not working in her office, or traveling far and near to fleamarkets and antique fairs to gather new heartwarming finds, you can find her creating something with glitter and glue, out with her friends enjoying life, or curled up in a cozy chair near the fire reading a good mystery.

AmitiƩs

Lidy Baars
Proprietor

Un Objet de Beaute est une joie pour toujours.

*Lidy will be sharing from her heart about the ins and outs of running a business, finding inspiration and her personal success story. You will be blessed by her tremendous insight.

Jane Button of Design 2 Market success

I am so excited to tell you that Jane Button of Design 2 Market Success will be returning to Launch Your Creativity!

Jane Button has a passion for helping creative entrepreneurs turn their creative "BIG IDEA" into the business of their dreams. Calling herself a "born entrepreneur" Jane's first company started in her basement as a cottage industry and went to a National Brand name as a multi-million dollar corporation. When creative business owners began asking for her advice, Jane started her freelance design, consulting & coaching business. 

Jane loves the freedom and opportunity that comes with being an entrepreneur and is a champion for creative entrepreneurs in the apparel, sewn product, knitting, jewelry and craft industry. Over the years, she has worked with The Pleasant Company (now known as AMERICAN GIRL®) Disney ®, Brass Key, Nordstrom, various catalogs, specialty boutiques and department stores, and numerous creative entrepreneurs who have a burning desire to create their own                      business. She has been featured in Barbara Wright Sykes books Pricing Without Fear and Do You Sew for Profit? As well as self published her own books for entrepreneurs, a keynote speaker at the Sewing & Stitchery Expo and other events. Jane freely shares her information in her seminars, workshops and books to help other entrepreneurs learn to be successful.

Understanding the artist and creative process is a key to Jane's success with her students. Because Jane does not believe in the "starving artist" concept her goal is to show creative people how to profit from their passion and fantastic creative ability.


Tara Wilson of LuluMax


Tara will teach you "The Art of Negotiating".

The love of art has been a constant in the life of Tara Wilson. As a young girl she frequented the bead shops in Laguna Beach and often spent her allowance on something sparkly and shiny she found there. Her early jewelry pieces were simple strung necklaces and head-pin earrings. College introduced her to the world of 3 dimensional design, sculpture and painting. 

Tara could not quite figure out how to pay the bills creating crazy sculptures out of found objects so she earned her degree in business. Art took a back burner as she continued on to graduate school for business and finally law school. After 12 years as an attorney her creative side was badly neglected.

Tara was shopping for that perfect necklace for an outfit and just couldn't find the one that spoke to her. After deciding to make one, she popped into Garden of Beaden in Upland and was inspired by Irene Sanchez to make something more elaborate than she usually did. A love of jewelry was reborn and the hunt for cool beads and vintage jewelry was on! 

After taking an amazing soldering class with Robin Dudley Howes, the creative side was back with a vengeance. With the new techniques learned, Tara was able to combine her love of all things rhinestone and vintage with mixed media art jewelry. 

With a nod to her two Chihuahuas, Lulu and Max, the brand Lulu Max was born! Tara now works in jewelry full time and is teaching several classes. Tara has been published in Belle Armoire Jewelry and her jewelry is carried in several boutiques around the country.


Her web site is  lulumax.com and her Etsy store is www.etsy.com/shop/lulumaxjewelry


Beth Livesay of Couture Over Coffee

Beth Livesay is quite the accomplished editor and author for her young age which speaks to the fact she is an amazing writer with tremendous vision. She is currently Senior Editor at Nails Magazine. Her career started as Managing Editor at Stampington & Company, where she oversaw Somerset Home, Altered Couture and Haute Handbags. In her five years there she  launched two titles: Jewelry Affaire and apron·ology. Her work as an editor has been acknowledged by the Los Angeles Times and The Storque (the official blog of Etsy).

Before being an editor, Beth dreamed of a career as a writer. She graduated from Pitzer College with a dual degree in English and Creative Writing, achieving honors in both fields. In 2006 she published her first collection of poetry. Her freelance writing began to appear in FEBZ Magazine, Canyon News and as a frequent contributor to Brides Television.com. 

More recently, she has contributed writing to several web and print publications including Where Women Create, Where Women Cook and the Huffington Post. She is a regular columnist for Romantic Homes magazine, where she oversees the Site Seeing and Ta Da features. She also serves as a writer and Assistant Editor for Made Woman Magazine (www.madewomanmag.com), empowering fellow young professionals. 

Her position as a writer and editor has given her the extraordinary opportunity to interview Rachel Ashwell, Emmy winners Jeff Stimmel and Melanie Mills, Nikki Lund, Ronnie Rothstein (owner of Kleinfeld Bridal) and a Real Housewife of Orange County. 

In order to write often and write well, Beth started her blog, Couture Over Coffee, in 2009. There, you can be read about her own interests, including wine tasting, traveling, literature and her obsession with fashion. The immense support from family, friends and people she meets while doing her job are what keep her going and keep her writing. A Southern California native, Beth resides in beautiful Laguna Hills with her two cats, two roommates and more pairs of shoes than she would care to admit. You can find her on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest and even in real life. To learn more, visit: www.coutureovercoffee.blogspot.com.

Christine Rose Elle, Stylist


Christine Rose Elle is a writer, stylist and well-being expert. After twenty years of enduring an ongoing stress related illness, she walked away from a successful career as a designer and wardrobe stylist to pursue a dream. She sold her three bedroom home and five closets of Betsey Johnson clothing to live la dolce vita in Rome, Italy. Her quest for radiant well-being and personal growth has continued ever since she downsized to two suitcases.



She now lives in Los Angeles with her beloved husband and two dogs where is writes daily from her clutter-free pink office, and is happy to say her illness has been dormant since she made the pursuit of serenity her number one priority.

She is a self-proclaimed glamour girl, but her idea of glamour is not what you wear on the outside, but how sparkly you feel on the inside. She is currently working on her first book The Sparkling Self: A Glamour Girls’ Guide to Well-being. She shows a step-by-step process for her readers to recognize their true talents and share them with others in a way that is meaningful.

She writes about well-being and how to live a radiant lifestyle for her website ChristineRoseElle.com and is a featured blogger on Skirt.com. In addition, her how-to articles have been published in several magazines.


It is her life’s purpose to listen deeply to the world, continue to grow, and to be inspired by others.

Her motto: “Everything you need for inner sparkle is already within.”

She loves polka dots and peep toed shoes, and has been known to sigh wistfully when in the presence of anything by Kate Spade or Valentino.

Career Highlights
Education:
-School of the Art Institute of Chicago
Fashion design, art history.
-Accademia Italiana
Costume design, Italian language.
Career:
·      Designed a line of clothing for several small Chicago boutiques, and participated in runaway fashion shows.
·      Worked for designer Betsey Johnson
·      Windows and mannequin styling for Nordstrom.
·      Wardrobe styling for commercials, print, film.
·      Photo stylist.
·      Wardrobe consultant for individual clientele.
·      Instructor of different themed workshops.
·      Fashion designer.
·      Jewelry designer.
·      Window designer.
·      Artist.
·      Illustrator.
·      Writer.
·      Wellbeing expert.
Don't miss the opportunity to unleash your inner glamour girl and define your own personal style with Christine's contagious bubbly outlook on life!


Jenny Doh of Crescendoh

Jenny Doh is Founder of www.crescendoh.com — like a magazine but daily like a newspaper, featuring fresh and creative content from artists within all genres, coupled with their stories that highlight the power of art in our lives. Jenny serves regularly as keynote speaker across the nation to deliver messages related to creative passion, leadership, communication, and compassion. Prior to CRESCENDOh, Jenny worked for six years as Editor-in-Chief and Director of Publishing for Somerset StudioBelle Armoire, and its many sister publications.

Jenny is an author and packager of books. To date, she has created the following books:
·       Creative Lettering (2013)
·       Journal It! (2012)
·       We Make Dolls (2012)
·       Hand in Hand (2012)
·       Creative Pilgrimage
·       Signature Styles
·       Art Saves
·       Where Women Create: Book of Inspiration (co-author)

Discover all of her current and future books here on Amazon:

For her leadership in publishing, Jenny was recognized by Folio magazine as one of the top 40 leaders within the publishing industry www.foliomag.com/2009/2009-folio-40.

In 1995, Jenny received her Masters in Social Welfare from UCLA and then worked for seven years as a social worker in child protective services in Orange County, California. Jenny received her undergraduate degree in political science from UC Irvine and has served as President of UC Irvine’s Alumni Association.

Jenny and her husband raise their two children, Monica and Andrew, in Santa Ana, California. She loves to knit and crochet, stay fit, practice archery, and play the cello.
To learn more, visit www.crescendoh.com

Debi Ward Kennedy


Debi Ward Kennedy
Writer . Stylist . Designer

Debi Ward Kennedy 50, is a writer, stylist, and designer whose work has appeared in FOLK Magazine, Somerset Life, Vintage Indie, design*sponge, Country Business, and many other retail and lifestyle publications. Deb contributed a regular decorating column to FOLK Magazine for every issue of its inaugural year.
While she has been a writer since early in her life, Deb began her design career in Anaheim, California when she discovered retail visual merchandising at the age of 13 on Main Street USA in Disneyland. Over 35+ years in the retail industry, she has worked as a retail stylist and store designer for many corporate and independent merchant clients, including Washington state wine industry luminaries Chateau Ste. Michelle, Hogue, and Columbia Wineries. Her design talents have also been utilized by major gift shows where Deb has presented seminars and created exhibitor displays, and the Gift and Home Channel, for whom she produced an educational video series.

Having earned a solid reputation for creating high-impact theatrical displays in the vintage industry, Deb has participated as a vendor in the Farm Chicks, Remnants of the Past, and BarnHouse shows. Her former business, Retreat, and the Retreat Vintage Market shows she hosted in Washington State, have been featured in lifestyle magazines.

Now located in Southern California, Deb has redefined her professional and personal focus in 2012. She is sharing her experience in creating affordable seasonal decorative effects on her new blog, HOMEWARDfound, as well as through freelance contributions to Creating Vintage Charm Magazine, FOLK Magazine, and other publications.


Debi Beard of House Vintage


Her smile is contagious, her quick wit is hysterical, I am thrilled to welcome 
Debi Beard to the LYC Panel!

House Vintage is my antique and vintage interiors shop located in Solana Beach, Ca.
When I opened my doors 16 years ago I had an abundance of hope and creativity, my budget however was almost non existent. Many years of hard work, faith and resourcefulness have brought some amazing blessings to my business. My shop has been featured in several national magazines and on television, including Coastal Living Magazine and Extreme Makeover Home Edition. With all this wonderful success there have been many challenges as well and I have almost gone out of business on several occasions. It is by the grace of God that my doors are open today.

I have learned so many things though the years about running a retail store and creating art by hand.
I felt I was bursting with ideas that I wanted to share with as many people as possible. My dream was to share my experiences by hosting my own online design show, but there was one small problem, I was extremely shy, and I had no Idea how to use a computer beyond sending a basic email.
I forced myself to take on-camera acting classes and spent every spare moment at Apple learning how to edit video. 

In 2011 I started a weekly DIY show on YouTube.
The old saying, 'still waters run deep' was very true for me, I discovered a side to my personality that was banging down the door to get out!
I had no idea what I wanted my show to be like when I first set out, I just knew that if I didn't try I would be a miserable girl.

I am a firm believer in repurposing and using what we already have to create beautiful surroundings, I married my love of junk, art and design with my off-beat personality and Debi's Design Diary was born.
Pushing myself past my comfort zone has been one of the best things I have ever done. I hope to encourage anyone out there with a secret dream to do the same. My hearts desire is that my videos will inspire you, teach you something new, and entertain you in the creative process!

This year, creative workshops have been added to my shop, We have just installed a beautiful class room where you can come learn in person. We have a full schedule of classes this fall including paint techniques and vintage holiday crafting. 

For more information, you can find me at,

Reserve your place at LYC today! Registration is open "HERE"