One of the perks of being a traveling instructor is the wonderful stores I get to visit, that I might have otherwise never seen in person.  Such was the case last weekend, when I traveled to Savage, Maryland to teach several workshops and a a full-day Copic certification class at The Queen's Ink.

Located in historic Savage Mill, the space it occupies is inspiring in and of itself.  Now fill that space with color, decorate the walls with inspiring art and fill it to the brim with abundant tools of the craft — and you've got a store that is hard to beat.  See for yourself!

Add to that the owner, Patti, who is a true artist (just ask her for a Stampbord demonstration – pure genius!) and dear Janet, both of whom took such care of me that I honestly felt spoiled.

And did I mention that one of my students brought handmade chocolates to class?  How cool are these?  Make sure and check out www.deloachechocolate.com.

These ladies inked and glimmered and colored my days and I felt honored to be a part of the environment of The Queen's Ink, if only for a weekend.

But I did take a small piece of the kingdom home with me.  I bought some stamps from the store's own 'Her Majesty' line; as well as a B Line Stamp that looked like Alice in Wonderland to me.  How much fun is a stamp that says, 'Off with their heads!' ?

And I've put these to work immediately for a project I am putting together as a make n' take for the Art & Soul retreat, April 30th – May 4th, in Hampton, VA.  I'll be there on Friday and Saturday of the event, demonstrating and doing make n takes with Collage (on site store).

Here is a peek.  We'll be painting the roses red…

But for now, I've got three sugared up children running around the house – so I'm off to chase them around a bit.  Happy Easter!