silver bella

I am still so overwhelmed at how amazing Silver Bella was, that I don't even know where to begin...

So I will jump in and start telling you about it ALL! It was better than I hoped it would be. So hard to explain how excited I get over all things crafty and artsy, but that is why Silver Bella is so fabulous...the women there 'get it'. It is so amazing - to be surrounded by all these creative women. Women that inspire, women that write books and blogs that I read religiously, projects from the pages of my favorite magazines. Silver Bella is like the ultimate happy place, and I was like a star-struck giddy school girl. Renee can tell you how many times I said "oh my god, there's ...". I was so excited the entire time, I am still recovering from my Silver Bella high.

Renee and I had to be at the airport at about 4am on Wednesday, but I was so excited I didn't even feel tired. After 2 short flights and a long stopover in Detroit, we arrived in Omaha. We dropped our bags at the Embassy Suites {in the historic Old Market district} and headed to the infamous Second Chance Antique Store...

We'd seen the photos from last years event and knew it was the place to go. This store is amazing - they have everything a Bella could want and more...

Here are some of the treasures I found at Second Chance {there would have been more, but suitcase space was limited and I knew I had to save room for vendor faire splurges...}

We spent some more time shopping and dining, and after spending a small fortune in cab fare to get to all the places on our 'must see' list, we rented a car the next day so we could go to anthropologie, Archivers, the SONIC Drive-In, and other favorites.

Thursday night was the official start of Silver Bella. While Renee and I were waiting to go into the ballroom, Carol Wingert came over and said she recognized me! How cool is that? {I took a class that she taught, last October in Edmonton, AB}. I have been a fan of hers for a while now and always read her blogs to see what she is creating, so that just made my night.

We sat with Carol and her friend Pam for the dinner and welcome from the Prima Bella herself, Teresa McFayden. There were gift bags at our table stuffed with goodies from some of the sponsors...

{love the glass glitter and the Italian glue from Andrea of One Hundred Wishes...}

and the Silver Bella yearbook...

The little black box held all the supplies we needed for our first workshop...

and great little fabric scissors that were a gift from Fiskars. After dinner we got started on the group workshop, making a little embroidered bird ornament. It has been a while since I have done any needlework, but I loved this little project {and I actually finished it}...

More Silver Bella to come...