the long pause

[a screen shot of the new website photo gallery]

There is a wonderful reason for the long blog silence i promise...we are humming away in the background trying to get the new website up and running! It will have the ability to book in to classes online and also have a shop facility - so very exciting!
Balancing the brain-stretching of web design are the increasingly popular weave+wonder art parties and workshops - such fun to meet + work with wonderfully creative children + adults!

[super-fun private scarf printing class!]

[recent clay workshop for adults]

We are currently designing new + exciting christmas classes and hope to launch the website coinciding with the release of these classes so that we can test out the new booking process - it will be so much more streamline for customer and us!
Thanks for your patience and see you here...or there so very soon xx

days of clay

It was wonderful festive fun at the Gallery Cafe yesterday, with delightful, attentive children totally absorbed in their making!
We use air dry clay in our holiday workshops so children can take away their handmade creations and in a day or so, varnish and hang ready for christmas! The decorations and pinch pots (made and stamped with names of loved ones with left-over clay!) make wonderful gifts and we loved hearing the sweet stories behind each gift - gratitude and love abounds in these selfless handmade treasures!

And today, the wonderful Riverbend art space took on a rustic christmas theme, all ready to repeat our clay making with another two groups of enthusiastic makers! We read Wombat Divine, a christmas favourite of mine and were reminded that when we create something uniquely our own - we will truly 'steal the spotlight' - origionality is a great gift and reaps true reward!

clay: lesson sneek peek!

With a little light hearted wander through a sweet Australian christmas tale - a reminder that being 'uniquely yourself' will recieve the greatest acclaim in the end!

We then inspire the children with famous artwork using similar technique to what we will be exploring in the class - this work is an example of 'relief' artwork from Ancient Egypt. Our everyday coins are another good example of the 'sunken relief' which we will be experimenting with in our clay class to form unique decorations and tags...

And a wonderful contempory example of similar work to what our children will be producing is by local Brisbane ceramic artist, Kylie Johnson. of Paper Boat Press.

We are all packed and ready to begin a wonderful week full of creative fun with your children - can't wait to meet you!

multiples

There is something deeply satisfying for me on a rainy Saturday to see singles become multiples, become piles, become sets.

:: dividing, cutting, wraping, tying, sorting, packing...

:: my eye is drawn to the growing piles, satisfied...

:: and with eager hands volunteering to help, a production line of sorts is formed and kits are packed....

:: hands gathering twine + clay + varnish + notes...

:: rows of stamped card stretching on and on, yes, satisfying...

:: we are ready to begin the fun!

Mixed media Celebration collage

With our textural wooden substrate + your child's unique line drawing, representing 'their favourite celebration moment'. Artfully finished off with some beautiful collage work. This mixed media work will make a wonderful gift or welcome addition to your home gallery!
We will explore the work of great mixed media artists + discuss line drawing. And we will use literature to inspire your child's creation.
We will focus on drawing technique and how to transfer a finished drawing to another substrate.
I am looking forward to the entirely unique and expressive creations from your children!

My favourate way to Celebrate at this time of year, would be in an Eames rocking chair with some sensational books....watching my children at play!' I think this collage will remain here...a hint to my hubby for Christmas....! What's your favourate way to celebrate at this time of year?

Fabric+wire sculpture

Each year around this time, we add to our collection of angels!
'Light as a feather' and dancing in the breeze, these beautiful creatures hang in their 'hosts' around our home and add a touch of whimsy+wonder to our Christmas celebration!
We also greatly enjoy working with wire, bending, shaping, sculpting into creations of all shapes from houses, to bird cages, bird nests to stars..!
In this unique class, children will have the option to create either an angel or wire star garland for their home - each sculptural beauty a stunning addition to your Celebration!
I find that children love to see their designs come to life in 3D and with inspiration from great sculptural artists + stunning literature, their creations will be something to be proud of indeed!

Clay decorations

Clay is such a wonderful medium to create with!
And there is nothing more sophisticated than a white palette!
Add to this some beautiful designs, textural patterns, and letter stamps to create unique word-pictures and we have a class that is guaranteed to produce some beautiful decorations + gift tags for Christmas!
In our house, we use clay for just about any occasion and my children are continually coming up with new designs. In our unique classes, we will use wonderful literature + the work of great artists to inspire, and then tumble into some seriously fun creating!
We will learn techniques for working with, shaping + smoothing clay as well as printing + texturizing the medium.
DON'T MISS THIS CLASS - ITS SURE TO BE A WINNER IN THE LEAD UP TO YOUR CHRISTMAS CELEBRATION!

CHRISTMAS HOLIDAY ART CLASSES!

A little earlier this week we released the dates for the CHRISTMAS HOLIDAY ART CLASSES!
Please refer to the side bar for quick reference, however the classes will be as follows:

Monday 12th December - Clay Christmas decorations at the GALLERY CAFE
Tuesday 13th December - Clay Christmas decorations at RIVERBEND BOOKS + TEAHOUSE
Wednesday 14th December - Fabric + wire Christmas Garlands at GALLERY CAFE
Thursday 15th December - Fabric + wire Christmas Garlands at RIVERBEND BOOKS + TEAHOUSE
Tuesday 20th December - Mixed Media Celebration collage at RIVERBEND BOOKS + TEAHOUSE

The classes at the Gallery Cafe will be run from 9.30-10.30am.
Currently these classes are half full and we will run a second class from 11.00-12.00noon if we have enough bookings.

The classes at Riverbend Books + Teahouse will be run from 9.00-10.00am.
These classes are all but full ALREADY!! HOW WONDERFUL!
We will run a second class on these days from 11.00-12.00noon!

The classes cost $20 with a sibling discount of 15%
HURRY AND BOOK NOW - AS YOU CAN SEE, THESE FILL VERY FAST!

We will be posting here all throughout this week further details + inspiration for each class so do pop back in and be inspired!
Thank you for your EXCEPTIONAL support of our WEAVE+WONDER art classes, it is such a privilage to nurture creativity alongside your children!