SIT & SIP FUNDRAISER - SMILES & SPARKLES

Ladies Night Out at Michigan Made in Harvey, Michigan, was a delightful evening.  Women coming together to have fun and sip wine, a great combination.  Tonight's Ladies Night Out was a fundraiser to send a local cancer survivor to the Walk for Cancer in New York City in the fall.

My new friend Cindy of "Fancy That Vintage" invited me to join her for an evening of painting with a local artist, while enjoying the wine and wearing a Kentucky Derby hat.  I've wanted to paint on canvas for some time, and I already had one of her upcycled vintage hats.

I didn't know till I got there that I already knew the cancer survivor, Tina.  It was great to see her again.

We were fortunate to have Elizabeth Yelland, artist, as our instructor.

 Tina and Liz (Elizabeth)

At first, the ladies were reluctant to try on the beautiful hats, though Cindy and I were wearing ours.

Here I am, modeling one of the many lovely hats, first with a smile and then with a sparkle.

Cindy, of "Fancy That Vintage"

  "Its a Derby party," Cindy said. "Pick out a hat to wear and have fun with it."  One by one, the ladies tried on the hats.  First the pink one, then the yellow one, and it wasn't long and each lady found a hat she liked.  It seemed as though there was a change in their expressions, beyond the smile when they saw themselves in the mirror.  It appeared, to me at least, that once they saw themselves in a hat, their eyes had a sparkle. Cindy explained that she witnesses this all the time.  She noted that people start out by just looking at the hats, then they start sharing their memories of their grandmothers, aunts, or mothers.  It isn't long, she recalled, that ladies start trying them on, and next the smiling and sparkling begins.   

Here are some "sparklers" from tonight's Ladies Night Out.

We each had a blank canvas, two paint brushes, a palette of paint and water.  Very few of the two dozen ladies had painted before, so we started out intently listening to our artist, hoping for step by step guidance on how to make a masterpiece.  It wasn't long and we discovered the artist in ourselves, and learned how awesome it was to create a one of kind original.

It was a wonderfully, fun evening.  An abundance of creativity in one space!  I look forward to painting again soon, perhaps we could paint while sipping tea!  Best wishes to Tina, and thank you Cindy and Elizabeth, and Michigan Made!