Shining A Spotlight

Tuesday, August 4, 2020

This month we spotlight Ceramics of all sorts.

“Spotlighting” as we call it is our way to explore materials we receive and provide for reuse at the studio.

Through the donations we receive we get broken mugs, chipped plates and cracked bowls from time to time. I have long seen value in reusing them for artistic explorations.

After the 1994 Los Angeles Earthquake I ended up with a fair amount of broken plates and the like. Even back then I thought there must be something else to use them for so I started making mosaic pots for indoor and outdoor plants. I even started collecting scrappy dish ware from thrift stores and garage sales. I was such a fun outlet for y creativity the value of reusing broken pottery has stayed with me. It has been a material on our Donation List.

Nowadays ceramics of all sorts has become one of the materials we explore each month. Follow CReATE on instagram to see curious looks at this material and its wide range of forms that are sometimes china, sometimes, ceramic and sometimes pottery. They may all come from similar beginnings. We’ll explore how they are made, what source of the earth they come from and whether or not they can be recycled. We’ll also see who is getting creative with them near and far.

I enjoy exploring the materials we reuse and I look forward to sharing my learnings with you.

Jemma W.
Founder & Owner
CReATE STUDIO

This tip gets kids creating at home.

Monday, July 27, 2020

Kids need to create. It’s part of how their brain works.

This tip gets your kids creating at home-fast. Save the various packagings for foods, packages that are delivered and the items you buy. Save T.P. rolls, pen caps and even printer paper that didn’t print right. Need more ideas for things from around the house? Our donation list is a great start.

Recyclables are awesome materials for your kids to reuse by creating with them. They help ideas come to life. They may be playing with all their favorite figures and decide they need a time machine. They can make one with some of the recycled supplies you’ve collected! They may need a room, a car, a bed. All kinds of things become possible when they have these raw materials on hand.

Using the tissue box or the paper towel role as they play amps up their thinking and creating to a new level. Creating with the random things around them is brain food for kids!

So save packaging bits and pieces as they come through your home. It’s a simple tip with amazing benefits for your kids brains!

It’s time for Big Magic

Monday, July 20, 2020

I need some magic in my days this summer. As the inevitable changes that come with COVID 19 ebb and flow, I need to regroup. Do you?
It’s time for Big Magic, Creative Living Beyond Fear by Elizabeth Gilbert to offer just what I need. I think it will be good for you too.

We’re all recalibrating, hopefully dreaming about how we want to go forward. What do we want to come away from this time having learned? I want to stay dialed into my creativity as I continually regroup.

I have read and recommended this book here before so I know how good it will be to re-read and re-recommend. It should be required high school reading!

Re-reading this book, I anticipate soothing words and inspiring stories like the one about “ideas”. I expect a little push to get my creativity on, also inspired by the story she tells about “ideas”.

Big Magic is just what I need to feel validated right now. I think it will inspire good things for you too. Don’t be surprised if you want more on the subject once you finish the book. Elizabeth also has a companion podcast called Magic Lessons which connects people who have creative blocks to artists, writers and other wise folks that help them get unstuck.

There’s even more! You can seen Elizabeth Gilbert’s talk on creativity for more food for thought on living a creative life.

I’ve got my audio copy of Big Magic all cued up. I hope feel inspired if not just ready for something new to think about over the coming summer days.

Jemma W.
Owner & Founder
CReATE STUDIO

Creating at home with fabric

Monday, July 13, 2020

In last week’s blog I introduced our Spotlight series on Fabric.
We had a chance to explore the tip of the ice berg on what fabric is made from and how.

This week I thought it would be fun to share a recent creating at home project I put on YouTube, making Homemade Hacky Sacks using socks. I categorize socks in the fabric family as part of the clothing we wear for comfort and protection. Socks are notorious getting lost or going missing in households everywhere, usually leaving a solo sock behind.

Thinking of ways things can be reused through our creating at home series is a passion for me. Turning socks into puppets are always fun but hacky sacks are something different. They create a whole different level of engagement with the creator for more physical fun. Using a few stray socks to make a hacky sack to play alone or with someone else gives those solo socks a unique sense of purpose and of course, reuse.

Fabrics aren’t always recyclable in their original states, (TerraCycle can help route the items that can), but they are reusable in many ways. I believe we do important work at CReATE, reusing things, inspiring other ways of reusing things and the mindset that everything has potential to be used again. It’s important to reuse, we are already taking so much from the planet then throwing it away. I want you to have fun exploring your creativity. When you do, it eases some of the pressure our planet carries.

We spotlight different materials each month to create space for awareness, curiosity, creativity and responsibility. I am so glad your here.

Let’s create!
Jemma W.
Owner/ Founder

Let’s explore the world of Fabric.

Wednesday, July 8, 2020

I am a curious person by nature so my propensity to wonder where things come from is natural. I find myself thinking, Let’s explore the world of…fill in the blank.
Developing the Spotlight program here at CReATE allows me to share my curiosity findings with you. Each month I explore where the Spotlight materials we use at the studio come from. Casting a little imaginary light creates space for more inspiration and awareness about the things around us every day.

This month we focus on Fabric. Of all the genres we look at throughout the year, Fabric is the one that spans such an array of manifestations. From ribbon, to shirting, to coats to shoes to carseat covers, fabric has us covered.

As for where fabric comes from, the old category breakdown of Animal, Vegetable or Mineral seems to fit as the root sources. I found a short YouTube video from Don’t Memorise that provides a good overview on Fabric.

Stay tuned throughout the month at I explore the Fabric and it’s realm through our creative ways to reuse.

Jemma W.
Owner

Painting rocks with our activities means extra summer fun

Monday, June 29, 2020

This summer make painting rocks top notch on your activity list, but that’s not all. Let painting rocks lead to continued family fun.
Explore our list of activities for added learning, playing, exploring, connecting and discovering this summer. Let them continue throughout the summer to truly enjoy the simple gifts they have to offer.

Learn about the history of painting- who painted first? Hint- they used rocks.
Learn about how rocks are formed by the earth and what rocky varieties there are.
Paint rocks to create games like tic-tac-toe or hop scotch that can be played throughout the summer.
Turn your painted rocks into a garden sculpture for the whole neighborhood to enjoy.
Hide your painted rocks around the neighborhood for other people to find. Use a sharpie to mark the back of your rocks with the city you live in such as @westlakevillagerocks
Try painting rock pets that each family member can care for over the summer. Talk about those processes over dinner.

The great thing about painting rocks is how it’s fun for any age. All these activities are thoughtfully made with toddlers to seniors in mind.
I hope they create feel good summer memories for your family.

-Jemma
Founder/Owner

Art in a box

Monday, June 22, 2020

Our Eco Craft Kits are just the thing for ongoing summer fun.

As they open each packed box, they tap into their natural curiosity to explore it’s contents. Inspiration strikes and avid creating ensues like magic.

They are are perfect for play dates with neighbors (pictured here). They are a great go-to for down time at home or for your next road trip too!

Hand packed with tons of our favorite recycled and crafty materials lasting way beyond a one time use.

We’ve even include a little note just for kids. They’re invited to find additional recycled materials around them, expanding their creativity into ongoing play.

We think these kits are a must for the lazy vibe of summer days.
Order yours today!

What’s the word

Monday, June 15, 2020

Black lives matter.

I saw this sign as I made my donation pick-up rounds last week. You may wonder why I am sharing it here, on an art studio’s blog. After all, it’s a personal point of view?
I see it as a piece of art, speaking plainly, about the times we’re in. Isn’t that what art does? Communicates the times.

This sign gives us an opportunity to process, to think, ultimately to talk with others about the issues of today. Talk with our families, our friends. Where do we stand in relation to it. Are we for it or against? Why? Talking about it is good. It’s honest. This is what art does. It sparks us.

We may all believe different things but the truth is underneath it all we are all connected to one another through the invisible thread of humanity.

In this sign, art is imitating life. I hope we can talk about that.

We come to you

Tuesday, June 9, 2020

We think it’s great.

Mobile making with CReATE is our new approach to art into our community.

Yesterday I provided a small social distance gathering for one of our CReATE Families and a few neighborhood kids who’d spent the last few months together.

It was so good to start creating again, watching kids explore materials that inspired them, then creating to their hearts content. They were busy and engaged throughout my time with them which felt like we had never stopped creating together.

When our time together done I was talking to the host parent. He wondered if I needed to bring all the things that I did? “it’s my goal to provide you a studio experience at home”., he replied, “oh, you have done that”. What may seem like a simple response from him felt like a huge compliment for my efforts to bring families and the community at large the studio we’ve always known studio four walls.

Anywhere four wheels can go we’ll be there to provide a creative experience. Whether it be outside, in the shade, under the stars or even indoors I am excited about where we can be. Fresh air is a favorite of mine and a huge part of my mobile inspiration, a little like art in nature.

On the Move

Monday, June 1, 2020

At Least in spirit.

Our wheels aren’t rolling just yet but we’ve got forward creative momentum. “Those who move forward with a happy spirit will find that things always work out”-Unknown.

We are excited to partner with the City of Malibu and our friends at Little Fox Yoga to bring artful yoga fun to little ones later this month. We’re continuing our Eco Art Zoom workshops through the end of June and posting weekly creating at home projects on YouTube too. We’re also hosting our annual Camp CReATE summer camp weeks, in July in partnership with the City of Agoura Hills.

Before long we hope to get back to celebrating birthdays, hosting Family Fun experiences at Libraries and Museums and eventually school campus activities.

We’ll all get back to many of the good things we love over time. For now though we at CReATE plan to roll with the flow in spirit at first and then, with all wheels on the ground. Check out out happenings page for up to date events and experiences we’ll be traveling to.

Learn more about our mobile story here.