Noticing lots of graphic tees with art and creativity messages on them. It’s so nice to see these two forms of expression get some every day exposure and validity for all. After all, we are ALL creative. It’s great to see these images and words that parents can buy for their creative and artsy kids. It may seem a small thing but it’s a subtle nod in support from the parent seeing a key piece of who their kids really are. That’s a good thing.
This rubber stamp is the best! Thanks to www.rubberstamps.net for making such a precise stamp of our logo!
The stamp allows us to share our mark, sticker-free again and again by stamping the old fashioned way with just ink.
We offered an impromptu half day sewing camp for a group of friends this week. It was so fun for me and I’m happy to see the kids liked it too.
We might just have to do it again in early August.
Stay tuned!
I loved Lexi’s poolside lounge chairs so much and they were so easy to make! Inspired, here’s Creating st home idea 16 for at home summer fun using resources wisely (as they say in Girl Scouts)
Make furniture from snack and cereal boxes!
All you need is:
A clean food box
A pair of scissors
1 roll or tape or glue
A ruler
A pencil
Here’s the example idea:
Happy Fathers Day to all the Dads out there from CReATE STUDIO! You Rock!
I had heard the term Wabi-Sabi long ago and thought, I totally get that. I understand it to be a Japanese perspective essentially focusing on seeing beauty in the flaws of things like cracks, chips or worn spots. Each of those marks has a story to tell or a memory to spark. A tea cup that is worn and cracked might convey an unfolding story of how many hundreds of cups of tea that cup held. How many quiet moments in thought and perspective or how many conversations had been had. I’ve even heard that some artists in Japan fill pieces with cracks with gold to accentuate the beauty of the flaw and it’s story. At home, I have a cracked coffee mug that is part of a set I love and chipped bowl that belonged to my Grandmother. When I see the chip I think of her and cooking time we spent together. I still miss my grandma. She shared so much of her story, her life with me. There is Wabi-Sabi in that.
I see the studio in a Wabi-Sabi way too, with our painted tables, paint dripped floors, even finger printed windows and walls. I reflect on how much creating has happened there. How many memories of proud smiles beaming, of thoughtful faces thinking as they create, of moments shared by families in creative time. It is a core human need to connect with one another. Somehow, a Wabi-Sabi mindset weaves into that connection while helping me see the beauty in what is. It keeps me present and appreciative of the past all at once.
Do any of your things have a Wabi-Sabi story to tell?
Looking forward to a messy morning with curious little ones at 10am at CReATE. Come play!
This quote by Maryann F. Kohl speaks to my core about the necessity of art not just for kids, but for all.
Going through oodles of dried out markers we collected from our CReATE ON YOUR CAMPUS connections. We’ll send them on to @crayola where they will become fuel through their Color Cycle program. That’s resourceful!
If I told you CReATE STUDIO had a distant connection to an Italian city would you believe it? Let’s go back in time the days of World War ll when a small group of people took matters into their own hands to provide the children of their town with enriching early childhood education with a curious, hands-on foundation.
Legend has it, they gathered everyday things (something we know a lot about) to use as mediums for learning and discovery. Whatever was around anyone’s house was what was incorporated I am told. The town of Reggio Emilia today still adopts original principals for learning through experience and connection in a curriculum also used around the world and known as Reggio Emilia. We even have a Reggio inspired preschool in our own backyard, Oak Park Neighborhood School. Reggio’s kind of child centered learning makes sense to me because I see it everyday as children of all ages create through their own curious processes in our open-ended studio. I am not of a mind to teach but I do find the Reggio spirit flitting about our studio without our even realizing it. It seems that natural materials are often used in Reggio inspiration today but in our case, cardboard pieces, tin cans and twist ties do a similar job of connecting kids to their own big ideas and explorations as well as in working collaboratively with friends.
Are you curious to know the Reggio mindset? I like An Everyday Story’s explanation and find our studio spirit echoed therein.
See what I see in kids, what your kids see. The next time you head out on a walk, notice what your kids are drawn to and see if you can keep a thread of that interest intact for a few minutes or the whole afternoon through conversation or creation. Was it about color, speed or texture? With your own curiosity you are on your way to noting the world through your kids eyes.