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Dan &
Tracy - Postcard from Canada
We met Sue
Heaser at the first Ravensdale Conference in 1996. Though our
paths had crossed a couple of times since, we'd never really
had the chance to get to know her, or her Guild, very well;
our home, just outside of Vancouver on the West Coast of Canada,
is a long way from the UK.
All that
changed last August, when Sue appeared in our e-mail In Box:
"We
hope you might consider teaching at our next conference..."
Hope? Might?
Travel across the Atlantic, see a new country, meet a entire
new bunch of polymer clay enthusiasts? What an opportunity!
All that, and a Royal Wedding to boot! After lots of e-mails,
planning, prep, and passport acquisition, we were set, a family
of three, off to "Jolly Old" to join in the fun of
PolyDays 2005!
Well, what
can we say? We flew to England, were soon surrounded by a bunch
of Brits, and to coin a phrase we learned while there, it was
"ab-so-LOOT-ly BRIL-liant!"
One student
said thanks for coming all the way to the UK to teach. No, thank
YOU! It was truly an honour to be invited, a great accomplishment
that we were able to include it in our lives, especially with
a young son as part of our "carry-on luggage." To
think that polymer clay was our ticket to England is amazing,
and says as much for this generous supportive community as it
does for the medium.
Thanks in
general to the British Polymer Clay Guild for a fabulous weekend
at PolyDays 2005. From the moment that Alison and Paul greeted
us at the airport we were made to feel so welcome by your group.
We both had great teaching experiences. Tracy enjoyed showing
how flat sheets of clay could "rise to the occasion,"
and never expected, in the middle of rural England, to enjoy
such a lovely "day at the beach." Dan, armed with
only a vegetable peeler, managed to survive his encounter with
a gaggle of gals over the course of his "standing room
only" weekend. Says Dan: "You are a lively and enthusiastic
group!" Lots of new techniques, from our minds to your
hands. We look forward to seeing what each of you do, in your
own work, in your own way. Send pictures!
Thanks also
for your part in making Dan's birthday so memorable, and so
special. Thanks to Philippa's darling little birthday cake in
1:12 scale, Dan says turning 35 felt more like turning 2.916666...!
Thanks to
Alison's Paul and their daughter Katy for taking such good care
of Griffin. He thanks you too. It was so comforting to know
that he was in such good hands during our teaching times, allowing
us to focus on our classes (and thanks to all of you for welcoming
him into the classroom when he came to visit, and giving him
your love and attention when he joined us for tea break!). By
the way, Griffin crawled for the first time in England.
Special
thanks to Alison for all her hard work. You are a force of nature!
Thanks for everything (and glad to hear you're on board for
PolyDays 2007!)
Thanks to
Sue and Edward, who showed us a bit of England in the days following
our weekend at Hartpury (including an extra special picnic on
Sue's boat... we've always wanted to sail off the Suffolk coast!).
We ended
our visit with a couple of frantic and fun-filled days in London.
A highlight was a visit to the V&A where we fulfilled a
dream to see their collection of Japanese inro vessels. It was
inspiring, and a fitting end to our journey. Given that the
trip started with you, because of you, thank you for that as
well.
Now, we're
home again, safe and sound, with British immigration stamps
in all three of our passports (yes, Griffin has his own). If
any of you ever find your way to Gabriola Island, make sure
you let us know so we can put the kettle on. Or maybe we'll
make our way back to your island again one day...
Much love
and gratitude from one third of the world away,
Dan, Tracy,
and Griffin
hoco@island.net
Dan, Sue, and Tracy enjoying some time post-PolyDays in Sue's
village
Natalia
García de Leániz - message from Spain
Dear Polyfriends,
Now that
Polydays finished, we came back to Spain and have had the time
to analyse all the things that we lived there. It took some
time, actually, for it was such an intense time that we needed
to clear our minds. With no doubt, the best that we can say
is a big THANK YOU to all the wonderful people we met at Hartpury.
And we want
to say thanks not just for the so valuable techniques and tips
that I learnt there but also, and mainly, for the lovely people
that shared these days with us. From the very first moment everyone
made us feel at home, I felt so welcomed, and so did Daniel,
even though he is not into Polymer Clay at all! Everybody was
so kind and friendly and we had so much fun that it is going
to be difficult to forget this weekend (and I hope we won't!).
For me,
it has been a real pleasure to meet the Polymer Clay Guild,
you make such a neat work for the development of the medium
and have created a great atmosphere.
I would like to thank especially Alison Gallant, who introduced
the Polymer Clay Guild to us at Harrow Bead Fair and helped
us in every moment from the beginning. And also for carrying
so professionally the organisation of Polydays (everything was
sharp and perfect!). So, again, Thanks Alison!
For sure,
we will come back to Polydays, but we hope to meet you before
in not a very long future.
Until then, you know that you have two friends in Spain for
whatever you may need (you can reach me at natalia@tatana.net)
Best wishes,
Natalia
García de Leániz
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