weekend wonder

We have wandered from lush green countryside to cozy home comfort, from re-arranging accomodations for visiting friends to a sweet 7yr old woodland fairy party [seen below]. Lego creations hide in every corner and new/old books rest on every surface after a date afternoon at the Lifeline Bookfest...Just the ways to amble through a cold and rainy long weekend!

EASTER HOLIDAY WORKSHOPS ARE HERE!

I am a bit behind in posting this weekend due to the bustle of classes and marketing preparation ...here are the dates for the Holiday Workshops! I will be updating the website, venues + hopefully you'll see flyers in a school near you through this week!

It is with great excitement that we release the dates for the WEAVE+WONDER Easter Holiday art+craft+books workshops!

These holiday workshops have been extremely popular and we have so enjoyed meeting and working with your children.
At WEAVE+WONDER, our goal is to nurture and inspire creativity in each child through the work of Great Artists, outstanding literature and innovative art projects!
We offer two wonderful venues who fully support our creative endeavours and enjoy hosting you for coffee+cake or to browse for that perfect book while your children are creating!

Over the two weeks of Queensland state school holidays, we are offering 6 workshops.
In the first week, the classes offered at Riverbend Books + Teahouse and the Gallery Cafe, Carindale are the same two classes.

Mon 2nd April: Gallery Cafe - Egg painting+clay - all about Easter!
Wed 4th April: Gallery Cafe - nest weaving + more clay - partner class with Mon 2nd.

Tues 3rd April: Riverbend Books+Teahouse - Egg painting+clay - all about Easter!
Thurs 5th April: Riverbend Books+Teahouse - nest weaving + more clay - partner class with Tues 3rd.

Thurs 12th April: Riverbend Books + Teahouse - Circles in Nature theme - acrylic on canvas!
Fri 13th April: Riverbend Books + Teahouse - Circles in Nature theme - paint+stitching mixed media work!


For more creative inspiration + class preparation, please take a look at our website www.weaveandwonder.blogspot.com or like us on Facebook to follow our journey!

We'd love to have you join us for these classes and bring a friend!
They always book fast, please email melissa@guyatt.net for bookings.

weekend wanderings

I love this 'underneath' space at Riverbend books + Teahouse - just perfect for a children's art studio - light + airy, plenty of room to spread out and make a bit of mess + noise!

We had a wonderful beginning to our underwater inspiration series 1 on Saturday morning! The children were a delight and with a smaller group, there was much group banter, discovering things in common, lots of sharing stories and chatter! Working with our now-familiar log-pedistal as a platform for sculptural masterpieces, the children formed magical underwater gardens using their favourate sea creatures hidden in textured finger coral!

We had a visual feast of natural sea treasures, energised with fluro accents - just perfect to conjour a vibrant coral playground!

We read 'the hidden forest' by Jeanie Baker - a wonderful catalyst for conversation about scary, slimy and sensational underwater creatures!

And can you believe, I was so engaged with the children and their amazing creations that I completely forgot to take some pics of their work - will need to request some shots from parents I think! I just know you would love the amazing octopus + turtle + creatures hidden in a giant shell that they came up with - the result of imagining big + taking the time to create what they see with their mind's eye! An excellent first morning all round!

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!

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!

always outstanding CLAY!

There must be something about the ENDLESS possibilities of cool, wet, soft clay...
being pondorously rolled between the fingers, imagination blooming...
that makes this workshop so enjoyable.
When I took a rough slab of wood and some beautiful white clay myself,
in the days preceeding these classes
and pondered, rolled, cut and formed...
I could have sat for hours!
I just love how each child's work so beautifully reflects their own response to SPRING!
Such variations!

In both the airy indoor/outdoor space at Riverbend and the light filled atrium at Carindale, the children were engrossed and incredibly imaginative creating detailed and skillful Spring wonderlands!
I do so love a good clay workshop!!

SCHOOL HOLIDAY W'SHOP B: Fungi Forest!

'And it was whilst they were in the middle of their picnic that they saw a very perculiar thing. Frannie noticed it first.
Not far off was a clear piece of soft grass. As Frannie looked at it she noticed bumps appearing on it. She stared in surprise. The bumps grew. the earth rose up and broke in about six places.
Look! said Frannie, in a low voice, pointing to the piece of grass. 'What's happening over there?'
All three of them watched in silence. And then they saw what it was. Six big toadstools were growing quickly up from the ground, pushing their way through, and rising up steadily!
'I've never seen that happen before!'said Joe, in astonishment. Shh! said Beth. Don't make a noise, I can hear footsteps.'....they hid just in time...'Elves' whispered Joe. The elves went to the toadstools and sat down on them. They were holding a meeting!....'
from The Enchanted Wood' Enid Blyton.

With imagination heightened and fantasy whispering, children's hands at work with clay can create a masterpiece!
In this workshop we will design and sculpt a fantasy forest filled with mushrooms + moss + mysterious places! The children will learn about 3D MODELLING + COMPOSITION and we will practice forming technique as we create our spaces, all atop a rustic cut log...
The images below are some from a recent trip to the wilds of Tasmania where my children had a magical, half-frozen time exploring a real live 'enchanted forest'!