Category Archives: On The Road

It’s Our Birthday

Happy Birthday, CReATE STUDIO!
March 2021 marks 12 years in business for the studio! Woo Hoo! Our last birthday went under the radar with Covid underway. This time last year I was scrubbing floors and painting walls as I moved out of the latest incarnation of the CReATE STUDIO space.

Having started the studio in my garage in March of 2009 I felt the studio could be anywhere at any time. I even had visions of wheels in our future so being mobile now is no surprise. The studio has taught me to be flexible, curious, and creative. Covid taught me that life can change at any time.

I am grateful to be operating the studio in this new mode. Wheels under my feel, materials in my hands, and creative reuse as my offering. Times change and CReATE is here to change with them.

If you have been creators with us over the years, I thank you deeply for being a part of it. If you are new to the studio I look forward to getting to know you as we get around town through our community events, enrichment classes, private classes, CReATE Date gatherings, and Birthday parties. Keep an eye on our Happenings page as our events grow with the re-opening of our community.

Warmly,
Jemma W.
Founder/ Owner
CReATE STUDIO



It’s The Little Things

I find it’s the little things that make a space feel good. Sure, the furniture is an anchor to a space but “God is in the details” as the saying goes. That is to say, the good is in the details.

Since deciding to transition CReATE to a mobile pop-up format I have been thinking of details and how I could bring them to a new outdoor version of the studio. It’s the little things that made the indoor studio space special. It’s the little things, the details that will do the same for our pop-up studio too. For practical reasons these details also need to be easy to include as each event is a set-up and tear-down process.

This is where I get to explore my creativity, in the little things. I love to marry the practical needs of something with fun. With CReATE the task is creating the feeling and spirit of the studio in various outdoor settings. As my daughter Maisy says, I am looking for casual magic.

Every time I bring CReATE to a home and pop-up the studio, I am excited to explore how this casual magic works now and how it can grow. We are out not just thinking outside the box here, we are physically of the box now too.

I’ve always known that boxes were created to be temporary.



Here’s to Art Journaling

Art Journaling with CMATO yesterday was so rewarding to be a part of. As a Family Art Day session on Zoom we had a wide range of ages participating from our own backyard here in the Conejo as well as back East and beyond.

Art journaling offered us all place to connect with one another and explore it’s concept. We talked about feelings and fears, doodles and Joy’s along with our hands on making. It bonded us. Here, I share a simple way to make a journal-ette from folded copy paper. I appear alone though thanks to zoom I am with many friends.

Talking candidly while making was cathartic. I think the process left us all feeling a little lighter.

We’re excited to offer a second Art Journaling session for the next Famliy Art Day in February.

Mark your calendars and save the date for Saturday, February 20th at 2pm pst. This is a free event to attend on zoom. If you weren’t able to join us this month we hope to see you in February. The sign-up link coming soon and will be posted on our Happenings Page. When you sigh up we’ll provide a list of recyclable materials and supplies to collect at home for our additional Art Journaling time together.

I am really looking forward to it.

Jemma W.
Owner/ Founder

On the Move

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.

Love Her

My Cup Is Always Full Thanks To Oprah

Last weekend I had the opportunity to attend Oprah Winfrey’s 2020 Vision Your Life In Focus tour presented by WW (Weight Watchers). It was such an inspiring day.
Oprah is someone I have long admired. I love “her way” as my friend Linda says. I derive a lot of inspiration from her Super Soul Sunday Podcast as well as the general work and advocation I see her doing. It all seems to lead to making the world a better place and that motivates me.
In making some of my business decisions I have have wondered, how does Oprah do it? She strikes me as a grounded person who doesn’t sway with every storm. That’s something I work on regularly.
We received a swag bag at the event and this stainless steel cup was inside.
I love the message, “My cup is always full”, the double meaning of it and the reminder to hydrate!
My cup is always full was the goal I felt was intended for all of us as participants in the 2020 event. It’s also where I want to keep my day to day focus. Oprah had workbooks for us to follow, mediations to do, dance moves to try and many inspiring stories to hear. We explored how our lives can be fuller. In a time where the talk out in the world seems to be saying my cup is empty I am grateful to have Oprah and this cup with a simple reminder that my cup is always full.

Art Heals

Creating art is part of the conversation

I am so excited to take CReATE STUDIO on a road trip to CMATO next Sunday November 10th.
The Museum’s NEW instillation series theme “Empathy, Beneath The Surface” thoughtfully considers the one year anniversary of The Wolsey Fires and Borderline Shooting through art. The conversations are sure to be ongoing and bring people together through works that center on thought, connection and healing. After all, art heals.
We’ll be bring a family fun component that invites kids and their families into the Empathy conversation through a hands-on project exploration- making rustic dolls. Using rustic materials and fabrics kids can dress their doll characters with inspiration from artist, Simphiwe Ndzube, one of the seven featured artists whose work with second-hand clothing is woven into his work.
As part of this family event we are asking for donations of gently used clothing in partnership with CMATO to donation to local organizations in support of those in need. We look forward t sharing this creative Sunday with you.

Clothing donations can be brought to CReATE Studio this week and next and marked CMATO to distinguish them from our other donations.

We’re On the Road Again.

We love to take creativity on the road and make connections as we go.

This coming weekend we head to Malibu and two community school campuses to be a part of their fall festivities with our creative reuse fun.

Join us for Halloween inspired crafting for little ones at Bluffs Park in Malibu on Friday, October 25th from 3-5:30pm. We’ll be making Pine Cone Pumpkins and more!

Connect with us Saturday, October 26th from 2-5pm at E.A.R.T.H.S Magnet School for their Halloween Carnival. We’ll be providing spooky crafting from small Amazon boxes. Cardboard boxes are a favorite reuse of ours.

On Sunday we would love to see you at Chaparral Elementary Schools Fall Festival in Calabasas where we’ll be creating festive treasures with Shredded Paper galore!

We love to be out in our community creating. The studio is open while we’re on the town.
We can’t wait to see you around!

Happy Holidays!

Meet us @shoppesatwlv from 3-6pm for ornament decorating using our favorite salt dough recipe and cookie cutter shapes for Happy Holidays fun!

Westlake Village City Celebration

This is one of yesterday’s creations during the Westlake Village City Celebration.
In addition to all the games, rides and activities, it was awesome to have kids and their families spend time at our booth creating their ideas and imaginings.
This character reminds me of the Iron Giant, one of our family favorites.

Reyes Adobe Days

Sometimes it’s the funnest to fill a bottle with all kinds of stuff and that’s all.We’ve been having a blast with diy creating and our projects zone at Reyes Adobe Days. Join us tomorrow for more fun tomorrow from 11am-4pm at Reyes Adobe Park in Agoura Hills.