Cruising on Full Power

This is going to be such an exciting year for Cruising on Full Power! We are welcoming back old cruisers while embracing new friends. Our group has grown dramatically, so expect double the laughter, double the parties, double the fun.

I am especially excited about the Artists Onboard Trunk Shows! Each year we gather before the cruise at the port location, and this year it’s Galveston, Texas for the first time. We’ve gotten some great rates at the Hotel Galvez (http://www.wyndham.com/hotels/GLSHG/main.wnt ) and will be hosting Evening of Wearable Art trunk show at the hotel Friday night before the cruise. We’ll have two Artist Onboard trunk shows during the cruise, too. I’ll be doing blogs on each artist during the coming months. Here’s a preview of the artists:

Arlene Freed

Debbi Cooper

Mike Kensinger

Eileen Reed

Rebecca Floeter

Jan Gaunce

Joan Anderson

Pam Bartl

Dennis Wolk Journey Bags

Jan Calligan

Suzanne Armstrong

Debbie Weisbord Smith

Eliza Baker-Folk

Jean Marie & Juanita Havet

Have you swam with dolphins yet? Been surrounded by iguanas? Snorkeled with sharks? Been mesmerized by Mayan ruins? How about laugh so hard your sides ache, surrounded by new and old friends? What in the world are you waiting for???

I am so excited to announce our 2013 cruise! We’ll be visiting the mystical Belize, Honduras and Cozumel on a brand new route for Princess that leaves from Galveston Texas. We chose the gorgeous Crown Princess, leaving from Galveston on January 12 through the 19th, 2013. 

The snorkeling here is unsurpassed, the beaches gorgeous, and the port tours unusual and fun. Each port has different Mayan ruins to explore, and it’s truly hard to choose which tour you’ll take on each stop. One thing for sure…you can always find someone in our group to go with!

Our group expands each year, welcoming each new person with joy, warmth and a great deal of laughter. We usually meet in the port city before the cruise, to get the party started right away.  This year we will be gathering at the Hotel Galvez, where we will be hosting an amazing Evening of Wearable Art trunk show at the hotel. We’ve gotten special rates for our group which you book directly through the hotel. http://www.wyndham.com/hotels/GLSHG/main.wnt

After you book the cruise through Cathy,  call the GALVEZ Direct Reservations Line at 409-765-7721, ask for in hotel reservations and either Jennifer or Carol. Tell them you are part of the Cruising on Full Power group to get our reduced group rate.

Our trademarked Artist Onboard program brings nationally known jewelers and fiber artists onboard for you to get to know on a personal level, and to see their work in person at the two trunk shows we do.

As always, we’re planning some great workshops and seminars that help make the cruise tax deductible.  Internet marketing, branding, ebay and etsy are a few of the things we’ll be covering.

And did someone mention parties? For 2012, we celebrated Mardi Gras, had a Royal Queen party, treated everyone to the Crown Grill, where we can dined on fine steaks and lobsters all night long! We had game parties, mystery parties…and while we still haven’t decided what we will be doing for 2013, you can be sure it will be joyous and fun. Welcome aboard parties, farewell parties, and lots of parties inbetween!

So what are you waiting for? For only 10% deposit, you can book the room of your choice, with final payment not due until October. Our travel coordinator, Cathy Cummings, is happy to set  up a payment plan for you….and any sales or reduction of rates that Princess typically  has during the year will be passed on to you! Email her now at ccummings@rvacations.com .

Come play with us! If you need a roommate, just email me at weichman@ptd.net and I’ll put you in touch with like minded people.

Helen

Two new artists joining us this January are David Vance Horste and Jan Calligan.

Jet Heart String

David Vance Horste

David Vance Horste, of DVHdesigns, is an internationally recognized

lapidary artist whose work has appeared in Lapidary Journal and Bead &

Button Magazine.  His work is collected worldwide and has been

exhibited at the Seattle Art Museum.  Having started cutting stones when

he was 10, he won national youth competitions by the time he was 14,

and has been a full time lapidary artist for the last 18 years.

His focus as a stone cutter is on one of a kind, centerpiece bead pendants

which he hand works out of unusual gemstone and semi-precious,

alternative and recycled materials.   David also has a focus on working

in gemstone quality jet.

Variscite and Sterling Silver

Jet was extremely popular in the 19th century and much of his work is

about reviving the Victorian tradition of mourning jewelry to help

the bereaved.  He is one of the only stonecutters in North America

to be working in this ancient material, turning it into lightweight

and beautiful jewelry with both a multi-layered story and a purpose. 

Having become an expert in jet over the years, he is now

beginning to be sought out to lecture on the history of this unique,

under-appreciated organic gemstone.

David offers a fascinating selection of custom cut focal pendants

and a variety of neck chains so that one can have a different gemstone

pendant for every look, occasion, and spiritual need.  He is also busy

in the studio working on a series of lightweight brooches and bola

ties.  His work brings the fascinating beauty of the earth to the

forefront of natural, organic, and upcycled fashion.

Jan Calligan

Jan Calligan lives and works in Aberdeen, Scotland, although her

fascination with gems has taken her around the world.  The first steps

she took along her current jewelry path were in the 1990′s with some

simple silver fabrication classes.  While she is quite knowledgeable

about colored gemstones, she has made her primary focus the exotic

world of extremely diverse and uniquely cut semi-precious gemstone

beads.   Amongst others, she has collected the work of DVHdesigns

for over 10 years.

Red Bowlerite Jet and Pearl

Also, since 2007 she has made an annual pilgrimage to the Gem and

 Mineral shows of Tucson to find the best, the brightest, and the most

unusual in the world of gemstone beads to add to her artistic beading

palette.  Jan is pleased to offer a diverse selection of her unique designs

with her custom strung, beaded necklaces, many of which showcase

one of a kind centerpiece beads from DVHdesigns.   With Jan’s work

you will find pearls in shapes, colors and forms you never knew existed

and colored stones and semi-precious gemstone beaded necklaces

made from treasures of the earth that you could never have imagined!

Together, David and Jan team up to showcase their special work, full

Tanzanian Sunstone Pearl

of the discovery and the magic that can only be revealed by the

transformation of the rocks and treasures of the earth.   They love to

share stories and information about the unique attributes of the

often rare and diverse, yet affordable gemstones brought to you

in ways that you may have never seen before!

Welcome to our Cruising on Full Power blog! Here we can tell you all about our upcoming cruise, the workshops, the ship, the tours, and the incredible experience we have put together. On the cruise we will have an artist trunk show, an art to wear fashion show, and workshops on fashion makeover, meditation and healing, digital photography and how to successfully sell on ebay. There will be round table discussions on myriad topics, from blogging to acupuncture, tarot cards to marketing techniques.

Eileen Reed

Here on our blog I thought I’d start by introducing you to some of the artists onboard, and who better to begin with but our own Eileen Reed, fiber artist and workshop presenter? Eileen has been part of our cruises since the beginning, and adds so much to the group atmosphere.  My hope for this cruise is that we can all come away with a smidgen of Eileen’s confidence, joy and magic.

About the cruise, Eileen said “ this cruise for me is a celebration of the artist in all of us. When the group is together you can feel the energy and excitement  that brings us all together. I am so grateful I found this wonderful group!”

I had the joy of celebrating Eileen’s birthday with her at a special Tea House with a lot of her family and friends.  At the party, she told us all a story that brought to light the confidence I hope she teaches us on the cruise. “I had to stop at the local mall, “ Eileen said. “As I got out of the car, I decided to blind touch up my lipstick with liner and gloss before my appointment. As I walked through the mall, I noticed how many people were staring at me, and I thought…..wow! My hair must look great today! This idea was reaffirmed by the many smiles and glances I got as I walked.  As I passed by one store, there was a mirror in the window and saw to my surprise I had outlined my lips in black eyeliner instead of lip liner. So much for my great hair day!” she laughed.

I love that story! How many of us would have assumed people were staring at us because we looked great? Wouldn’t that be an uplifting way to think? Learning that confidence is an important part of the cruise, as we feel the magic of being accepted and appreciated by a wonderful group of people.

Eileen is a cosmetologist and fiber designer, and with Eliza Baker-Folk will be doing fashion makeovers and a workshop on what to wear according to body types and coloring. Eileen’s career and reputation have skyrocketed since her handpainted and dyed silk clothing was featured in the magazine, BELLES ARMOIRE in the March/April 2005 issue.  Her work manages to take fiber art to entirely new heights as she listens to her muses and creates one of a kind masterpieces using various silks, silk/linen blends and felting techniques.  Although Reed’s work is now being considered highly collectible, she continues to design for comfort, versatility and beauty.  Eileen will be brining a great collection of her handdyed and painted kimono jackets and art to wear outfits to the cruise trunk shows.

Eileen lives outside of Philadelphia with her childhood sweetheart and husband of over 45 years, Elmer. She has three grown children, an unusual Devon cat and a beloved Brussells Griffon named Hogan.

Let me introduce you to a wonderful group of people I have come to know and love….I’m really excited about our Cruising on Full Power group cruises!

And of course, the food!!

Party Time!

 The ‘power’ in the cruise name comes from the incredible group of people who cruise with us, and while you may come aboard not knowing anyone, through our networking, parties, seminars and workshops you are quickly an essential part of the group…..and once you sail with us, you’ll be the first to sign on for next year, guaranteed!!

We’ll have seminars on how to successfully sell and buy on ebay, too, with powersellers and ebay education specialists,fashion workshops, marketing seminars, meditation workshops, and the best Artist Onboard Trunk shows ever with nationally known jewelers and fiber artists! The marketing workshops make the cruise tax deductible, too .

Eileen Reed and Eliza Baker-Folk What to Wear workshop

Something is happening every day….whether it’s an informal gathering to share stories or seminars and workshops, a coffee/tea party or drinks at the jazz bar, taking over the Karoke or celebrating the full moon….learning to scuba dive or just relaxing on the beach….being inspired and healed by Ruth Winfield’s meditation workshops or learning how to use your digital camera with former CNN photography crew chief Patrick Kellogg…learning what to wear that flatters you in Eileen Reed and Eliza Baker-Folk’s workshop….did I mention parties?  Deep sea fishing? Mayan Ruins? The best snorkeling in the world? Making new friends, laughing so hard your sides ache, and getting the best service in the world? Free 24 hour room service? Free gourmet food every single day? Ah….peel me a grape….

A new party we added last year was the Art to Wear Fashion show, where members of the group worked with the artists to show how their pieces looked on. With running commentary by Joe Zimmerman, Mike Kensinger and Patrick Kellogg, we laughed until we cried into our frozen Margaritas!

 

 

 

 

Moira Rowan showing Mike Kensinger's Ruana

 Just email me at chriswe@ptd.net and I’ll send you a flyer on the cruise.

Next January we gather again for our winter cruise to the Western Caribbean, January 15 to 22 on the Crown Princess. This time we’re going to Roartan, Cozumel, Princess Cays, and Grand Cayman for Mayan ruins, amazing port tours and the best snorkeling ever.  Come cruise with your favorite fiber artists and jewelers, and become part of this incredible group.

Chris wearing Conjuring by Rebecca Floeter

Handpainted SIlk by Debbi CooperMichael Kensinger

FROM REBECCA:

I know, it’s March! But think about it. Spring Break in 3 weeks…then in 12 weeks the kids are out of school for the summer! Yipes! And here I just did my February Cruise! If you know me at all, then you know, like Rust, I never stop working. I like working. But the body, mind, spirit needs down time I’ve been told, and when I do take the time…I do find myself thinking, “heck, that was great…I’d like to do more of that.” And so began the summer scheme between my friend Helen and myself. We decided for just this year we’d do a cruise in the summer too so we could take our families. And we swore, we pinky swore, we double dare you or else swore, NO WORKSHOPS. Fun only. But as time wore on and we saw WHO WAS ON THE SHIP WITH US, our mer-minds started circling. I proposed a peepsy workshop on how to launch a very successful business by starting on eBay. I started that way. 9 years ago eBay saved my financial life! When I had a dramatic life change and moved to Southern Illinois from Hollywood I found myself incomeless! I sold off my Hollywood Premiere clothes so I could pay my bills in Southern Illinois…a story best read in my book (plug, plug, it’s going up on my site tonight!) And as I’ve said on many a radio show and interview, “eBay became my soul retrieval, and the integration of all my personas. Where else could a failed stand-up comic, a film producer, a publicist and a closet introvert find her perfect job?” That’s right! eBay. My listings turned into blogs before there were blogs around. I used my site to reach out and connect with other women. I had made a huge life change and went from the glitz of Hollywood to the desolation of Southern Illinois. I went from being a newlywed desiring no children to being the new mom of 3 adopted children. So eBay did become my salvation. And being a true daughter of 2 psychotherapists, I assumed I was supposed to work out my problems in a therapeutic way. And heck, there was eBay. When you first start listing on eBay you have to admit that massive blank page is daunting. I mean after the bust, hips and length of the piece I was listing there was a blank spot the size of the universe. Like too much quiet when two people are in a room not talking, that eBay listing page freaked me out when it was so naked. So I filled it up. And since we hadn’t made any friends yet in Southern Illinois, I used my listings as a place where I discussed my day. I never thought anyone was reading it. That wasn’t the point. I was just getting the opportunity to work out my new life without putting my head in the oven. And that, in a nutshell is how I got my start almost 10 years ago selling on eBay.

eBay has taken me into new territory and into the lives of women who have touched my life enormously. I wrote my first book in 2007 about my journey called THE ADVENTURES OF THE MERMAID QUEEN: From Hollywood to eBay. That book was optioned to become a feature film this year and that was totally unexpected for me. I now design clothing for women “our” size and that has become a major enterprise and total delight for me. eBay became my divining rod in finding myself. I share this story because I realized that who I am is also what I create. In my 10 year journey I have identified crucial things like my niche and my brand. With my promotional and producing background I found I knew how to create new markets for myself. But better yet, always better for me — I connected with other women to help them do the same thing. And that in a long, protracted story is what I realized we’d do on our SUMMER VACATION CRUISE.

So if you’re pondering joining us on the Alaska Cruise this summer. Don’t ponder. POUNCE! If you are an artist, eBay seller or want to be one, we will teach you how to use this as a springboard to a much bigger vehicle for creating abundance. We also realized by doing this you will get a certificate that is tax deductible so the cruise becomes a write off. But more importantly, you’ll connect with the larger community of women and men like yourselves who support each other. So if you want to have the time of your life with great women, see some of the most amazing wilderness sites of our life, and learn how to create your own selling niche that is successful…go to the top of the page and click on Alaska for all the information! Email our cruise coordinator Linda Williams at ctllinda@aol.com .

Dancing Queens On Princess That’s the link to our YouTube debut from last year! As Joe Zimmerman paraphrased ” I think we should all sing like no one is listening and dance like no one is looking and just spin for the hell of it”  and boy, did we!!  Now we’re famous on YouTube, too. Better ask for our signatures before the paparazzi get here…… check it out !

As the snow comes down, and down, and down, I miss the cruise even more.  We put the final touches on our next February  cruise, too, to Aruba, Curacao and Princess Cays on Crown Princess  February 18, 2012.

This picture caught the magic that seemed to surround all of us! Happy colors, happy people; new cruisers to the group and those who had cruised with us before all melded into one.

Happiness in color

Outside my window todayOutside my window on the cruise!

 

Photography workshop

San Francisco Stories

Artist Trunk show

Barb Neal works it with Rebecca Floeter’s kimono

Jean Lehman Relaxes with a Margarita

Some of the group after Fashion show

Home again to snow and ice and dark of night……I want to be back on the ship!! I miss the friends, the laughter, the 24 hour room service…I keep reaching for the phone to order but all I get is a dial tone and not the sweet voice of the room service waiter. Heavy sigh. At least I have the Alaska cruise to look forward to in August! Are you coming?

Renewing old friendships Mike Kensinger Elizabeth Janson

This cruise was amazing….so much joy and laughter…I’m still there in spirit. A picture says it more eloquently than I ever could, so for the next few days I’ll post pictures from different members of the group.

Five lovely ladies wearing Eileen Reed's art wear and Eliza Baker-Folk's jewelry Eileen Reed, Elizabeth Janson, Eliza Baker-Folk, Ruth Winfield, Becky Balcom

Chris Cooper and new friend

The fashion show was a new addition this year, on the first full night at sea. Fiber artists joined with jewelers and chose non artist members of the group to show their work, while Joe Zimmerman kept up a running commentary that was both informative and hilarious.

Chris Reilly's modeling debut! Wearing Rebecca Floeter

A new career for Christopher? Wearing Mike Kensinger

Dinner

Great dinner companions

What happened to the blogging every day?  Well, if your cruise is a great cruise like this one you lose track of time.  So stay with me on this while I do a little creative reframing.  

It’s Sunday night and our first night out.  I’ve just reconnected with Barb, Marty, Debbi and a lot of women from my first cruise.  I also got to meet Chris for the first time.  I ended up in a wine bar lounge that served amazing wines and each wine came with an unending array of tapas and sushi.  A very good start!  Dinner was divine and at that point, anything I didn’t have to cook or clean up was going to be an excellent dinner!  We all met for drinks after dinner and the rain and teen angst I left behind in San Francisco were a foggy memory. 

Monday we arrived at a private island on Princess Cays and my new friend and eBay buyer Chris had rented a cabana for the day.  She told me to invite my friends and so I did.  Unfortunately I didn’t read the blurb on the cabanas…so their 4 person limit was news to me!  All 7 of us arrived at the Island and we cooed and did our best beach-minx imitations and we were told that the gourmet lunch being served in our air conditioned cabana would be for 4 people—the limit—but that we could share it.  Okay it wasn’t the pig out we thought we’d have, but we were Chris’s guests and darn happy to have our cabana boys, drinks and a sparking turquoise beach.  We had two cabana boys—a sexy man from Mexico with aquamarine eyes named Tomas and a tall skulking Ukraine man whose name we didn’t get.  When we went to sit down for lunch they had set the table for 7 and brought us a never ending supply of the larges prawns we’d ever seen, gazpacho soup, mussels, barbequed ribs, jerk chicken, rolls…mai tais…you get the picture.  We were treated to a feast and we sunned and talked all day long.  We reluctantly left our dreamy cabana and our 2 waiters behind and got back on the boat.  

If you read my eBay site, then you’ll know that I mentioned numerous times that I own only one pair of wearable shoes.  I must say that my commitment to get past my shoe phobia was put into play before the cruise even began.  At our hotel on Saturday night I took off my shoes before going to bed.  We all packed our suitcases—13 in all—and got them ready to be picked up at the crack of dawn by the hotel staff.  When I woke up the next morning my onlyiest pair of shoes were gone.  I have to say it was high pre-cruise drama!  We looked in every suitcase and did not find them.  After totally bottoming out I walked 4 blocks to a shoe store to buy another pair.  It was Sunday and the shoe store was closed so I walked another 4 blocks and bought a pair of flip flops at the Publix Grocery store.  And yes, I also walked barefooted to Ace hardware to buy a fan because I had to carry on my time tested white noise maker too. 

Back to the cruise.  Each day has been better than the one before it.  Since I don’t get out much at home it’s almost a high to meet so many great women, wonderful artists and new people.  Dinner is a daily chance to catch up and plan what to do on the next island.  

We had our first Artist Trunk Show on Tuesday and the art to wear clothing was amazing!  The jewelry blew my mind, the handwoven and hand dyed silks were astonishing .

For me too, the real thrill was seeing my clothing on real women.  I got some great ideas on new colors shapes and styles and I’ll be working on those when I get home. 

Tomorrow I hit Grand Turk to buy gifts for my family and of course my roommate Linda is the bargain hunting queen of the cruise.  I have to say my fear of an unknown roommate was a lot of anxiety that came to naught as well.  I’m having a great time with Linda and can’t wait to come back next year! 

We’re having our 2nd formal night tonight and just as I imagined, I haven’t worn most of my clothes so those will be hitting eBay when I get back. 

Helen and I will definitely have some adventures before we get back, so stay tuned!  Rebecca

from Helen: I’ll post pictures when we get home! I hear there has been more snow in the Northeast….it’s 80 degrees and beautiful here today on St Thomas!