Oh my goodness! I have been so crazy busy it’s not even funny. First, we moved. Then, three days later, I went to Africa (which was AMAZING!). Then I came home and unpacked. Then I painted until my arms fell off. Literally. Right onto the ground. Don’t even ask how I’m typing this right now . . .
Fortunately, I have been taking pictures. I’m just sorry it’s taken me so long to post them.
It’s been a slow January, but that’s par for the course round these parts. Here are some doodles.
This last one started out as a princess, but I think she ended up as something else . . .
Did you know that Melissa means honeybee? Well it does, and that’s what I’ve felt like lately–a busy little bee. First, I was working on developing my new custom glitter tattoos. (More coming on those soon, as well as a fun glitter tattoo party giveaway!)
Then, I had about a million jobs all in a row, and no time to post about them. For many of them, I didn’t even get photos. That’s how slammed I’ve been, people. I don’t even have time to charge my camera battery.
Fortunately, the lovely Denise Cold of Painted Party had a camera with her at a recent job and let me snap some photos. These are from a large corporate event in Park City, Utah. It was a lovely breezy mountain day, and I had a blast painting so many fun people (including a spunky grandmother and her granddaughters).
In addition to some other jobs last week, I also worked the Davis County Fair. You can find some great photos of the fair from Michael Bateman Photography on his website. My pathetic iPod photos can’t compare, but I’ll post them anyway for all you rabid fans. 🙂 I did a lot of henna as well, which was a nice change of pace.
On a whim last week, I ended up painting my sister-in-laws belly. It was so fun, and I loved being able to take plenty of time to work out all the details. I’m happy with how it turned out, but I wish we had a better camera/lighting for the photos. 
So last weekend I had the opportunity to paint at another HUGE birthday party. This time, the birthday girl was turning six, and she was surrounded by a lot of love. The party was Tangled themed, but the face painting was a free for all. Tigers were popular, with zebras and puppies close behind. There were also a lot of fun boy faces.
Once again, hubby came along to do balloons. He’s mastered swords, shields, puppies and flowers–he even invented a balloon “gun” which was popular with the boys. One of the coolest moments of the evening was when the guests released lanterns–just like in the movie.
I have to admit, when I got a call a couple of weeks ago for a 2-year-old’s birthday party with 20-30 kids expected, I was a little wary. I mean, who throws that kind of party for a 2 year old? I was a slightly worried that this was going to be a lot of spoiled little kids in party clothes that were used to getting their way. I couldn’t have been more wrong.
What this party was really about was sharing one family’s joy with an entire community. There were dozens of people, tons of great homemade food, lively music, and just a lot of love in the room. I truly felt honored to be invited to celebrate with these kind, generous people. I can only hope I made them happy. Best of all, I got to bring my hubby along to do some balloon twisting. All in all, it was a truly enjoyable night.
My charity event with Megan Rees of Princess Parties and Events was a wonderful evening. Rapunzel and Flynn Rider were there to welcome everyone. We learned how to dance like a princess (or prince), met the real life Pascal, played fun games and made awesome crafts. To top it all off, there was a dessert bar that would make anyone a little lightheaded.
Best of all, we were able to offer a little financial help to a family in need. While it’s not possible for me to do every charity event that I’m offered, I was truly proud to be a part of this one. Thank you to everyone that made it possible.
Last weekend I had the chance to get my girly-girl groove on by painting at a Barbie-themed birthday party. I had a great time getting to know some very fashionable young ladies. Once the birthday girl chose a rainbow design for her face paint, just about everyone else followed suit. Here are some photos of the fun.
I’ve been toying with the idea of a mask themed around the four elements–fire, air, water and earth–for a long time. This is my first serious attempt. I thought it turned out pretty cool, and it would be a great mask for a Mother Nature type costume.
Click on the image below to view the step by step.
The Painted Otter 