Thursday 31 January 2013

Utterly lovely hearty-bunting... a make-along with me (er Marion!)

Its deep dark January now.  

As we speak my two babes are screaming in joy at being allowed to play a round of 'Jump on the Sofa as hard as you can' in the sitting room...  deep joy (don't get involved, don't get involved, don't get involved Mum!)

Now then, I don't know about you but I believe it's really important to give children the space (occasionally) to get bored.  Poor old ds has been home ALL week with a weird viruses-temperaturey thing that sweeping through our village...9 children off in his class since Tuesday.  Not to have a ripe old moan or anything but coupled with being snowed in ALL of last week and the week before that it being half-term - let them have bored...I'm all out of ideas!

Queue Marion, my gorgeous childminder and fellow artist, she is a plethora of all things creative and saved the day.  I had some plastic and she did the rest.  Here's what she did:

Hearty Bunting with Ribbons

List of items you need:

Sticky back plastic, a sheet of.  (Book covering is good)
A heart shape to cut around, hand-sized is good.
Tissue paper shapes
Scissors
A hole- puncher
Ribbons

1.
Cut the sticky back plastic to the same height of the heart shape.



Place the shiney side of the plastic on to the table then peel the backing off.  Place the colours tissues shapes on to the sticky back (not too close together, lots of spaces)















Fold your plastic over on itself, securing the tissues and sticking the plastic back onto itself.  Place your cut-out heart shape underneath and cut around it.   




























Then cut each heart shape out leaving you with this..

At the top of the heart place the hole-puncher and push down to make the holes that the ribbon will go through...your'e doing great!















After you made all the hearts (do about 6) trread the ribbon through the holes and create the banner. 

















Beautiful!  Well done everyone, Marion especially for saving the day!  Beautiful bunting.  Hope you like the cloudy shed too!  Much love, Sam x  











Saturday 19 January 2013

Help...snowed in with the children?! Make newspaper bowls & decorate away!

Thank you whole heartedly to the wonderful team at Access Art for this absolute Gem from Lisa Smith.

For my Artypops after-school art class last week I will still at a bit of a loss as to what to do with the babes considering we had done a drawing session the week before.   It was really good giggle as I got the children to draw in pencil masking taped to the end of 50cm garden canes, they loved it naturally.

This week I wanted to do something makey-decoratey as they LOVE to take things home and I had had some new beady-jewellery things delivered this week too.

What to decorate?  Well, thanks to the wonderful treasure chest full of art ideas and inspiration for both children and adults I came across these.

Newspaper Bowls.

Newspaper, large sheets are good.
Garden bamboo cane or a 
Lashings of glue
Tissue paper
Gems & Beads


1.
Take something to roll the newspaper around, I used a garden bamboo cane.  Having laid the newspaper flat out, roll up with the bamboo cane inside LOOSELY as you need it to slip out at the end.  Lay the newspaper out flatly and squish down.  You may need to double it over so its proper thick, I had to.  Tape with making tape in the middle and at the ends.  peasey.

2.  
Next..roll up the newspaper so its tight as can be..am going to borrow a picture or two here from Access Art..


Tightly coil up the newspaper until it looks a bit like this:


3.  When you have your flat coil of newspaper, begin to push the bottom of the bowl out.  Do so gently and feel free to reinforce with masking tape, I did.





4.
& then...decorate away!  Lashings of glue and paste over with tissue paper.  Add more glue to 'varnish' it all and then stick on a piece of paper and pop on the radiator or in the airing cupboard overnight.  Perfecto!


Monday 7 January 2013

Knee deep in mud and taking conference calls... who says that men can't multi-task and live the dream! Dates to encourage, enthuse and enjoy!!


Am back at my drawing board, well actually my kitchen table and the house is as  q u i e t  as can be... its most unnerving compared to the shrieking of the babes which our little house has endured over the past 2.5 weeks, I miss the noise and them already!

After drop-off school this morning, DH and I yomped over the fields to get some fresh air, we often do as it's a wonderful way to clear our heads and shift our rears at the same time.

This morning DH  took an important conference call for work knee deep in mud - it struck me how far we have arrived into our dream of countryside living already - AND we don't even have our family dog yet!

It's been a superb holiday and feeling a bit down this am, I took in the BEAUTIFUL view and remembered just how much I am itching to do some landscape painting.   Some proper in 'get there-make-a-mess' landscape painting with lashings of paint onto canvas...  bliss.

I shall spend the dark winter months, planning, researching my favourite landscape painters work (Albert Irving, Alfred Wallis to name but two) and gathering my materials ready to start work in the spring.

It's important to have something to look forward to - what's yours? I'd love to know.

News too:

Also in today's posting is my 'Artypops one-day Children's Art Workshop' flyer, I really enjoyed making it!   Being held on Thursday 21st February.  It's going to be a blast, more details following soon.

Two spaces only left on my 'Everyone Can Draw' adults art workshop coming soon on Saturday 26th January here in my home village of Overton.  £55 including all materials, refreshments and lunch too.  10am -3.30pm.  Absolutely no skills are necessary for ANY of my workshops, come and do...don't think!

Much love

Sam x








Wednesday 2 January 2013

'EVERYONE CAN DRAW!' Come draw with me on Saturday 26th January

I am SO looking forward to my

'EVERYONE CAN DRAW' art workshop on Saturday 26th January in beautiful Overton. £55 including a scrummy lunch, all art materials and a megalot of fun..absolutely NO skills are necessary. 

I absolutely LOVE  doing these workshops, watching people blossom over the course of the day.  We begin with coffee and on and into drawing... any drawing or 'free-drawing' as I like to call it.  Supported, encouraged and sometimes even hand-held with me we begin to mark-make on the paper, delicious stuff.




The longer you haven't drawn for, the better!  

To book, call me on 01256 773552 or email me at samantha@artypops.com

Much love

Sam x 


Happy New Year Everyone!

May this be your most creative year yet!

Much love

Sam x