Quick...am on the run but l@@k it's the Easter Art Workshop flyer!! Yay x

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!

New Saturday Morning 'Artypops' Art Classes in Kingsclere, Hampshire...

Hello all.
It's looking mighty likely that we are going to be running some Saturday Morning Art Classes in the very beautiful village of Kingsclere.  1hr 30 minutes of making, doing, drawing, glueing, and model-making.  Ages from 6 - 11 years.  Prices and actual dates to be confirmed but...likely to begin early February and lasting until Easter holidays...yay!

Register your interest for your little darlings at info@samanthabarnes.co.uk or call me on 01256 773 552.

Marvellous stuff!

Uber lovely Paper Snowflakes and Stars...

In preparation for my children's art-classes am doing all sorts of research for good art activities that last about an hour, keep little fingers and minds busy and hey presto...make something gorgeous to take home.  Suitable for all ages between 6-11, not too expensive and plentiful in materials.

Am struggling.

Last weeks class if proving hard to beat...we had a ball, making these Christmas Hearts & Stars.  So..onward.  This week am thinking Paper Snowflakes...I LOVED making these when I was little.  The best ones I have found are here by Vintage Junky.  They are beautiful, so beautiful in fact that am going to have to show her picture of them in situ...swoon.

See beautiful.  Now all I need is a super sharp pair of scissors, a beautifully painted wall, some original cornicing like hers and we are away.

Back to the drawing table.

Scroll down for next possibility....

I loved these stars too.   Please forgive me friendly blogger, I can't refind you anywhere to link this to you but please rest assured, I love them.  These are distinct possibility for my class.  Very doable, although am probably going to have to cut a gazillion stars out myself first me thinks.  Great to paint and decorate, lovely with ribbon.

Onward with my quest.

Will bring you results soon...I promise.

Much love

Sam x

The one where I bore even myself..(ahem) but then I pull it back beautifully...

I keep changing my mind as there are quite frankly a gazillion things that we can spend our delicious 1hr 15minutes doing at this week's Artypops art class.    

My thinking is (of course) all about drawing and I am spending hours surfing the net, digging out old lesson plans and dreaming up new activities, each highlighting different and wonderful things for the children to learn.

I went to town today to get said classes'  art supplies and darling son a winter coat.   He has one by one lost them all, grown out of them or ripped them to shreds in a growing up boy/incredible hulk type thing... so this year at the ripe old age of 8, he deserves a new one from an actual shop!  One that I can bleat on about keeping clean and not lost...blah blah blah...whoops am actually boring myself here too...a thousand apologies.

Ah yes, sketchbooks and little folios.

It's a no-brainer that as an Artist I do that thing that makes me all excited and creative when viewing a couple of shelves of art stuff or when in a stationers.

Am sure it was from when I was younger, my aunt ran a stationers for a little bit so when we went to see her we a: got to be in the shop when it was closed (big wow it was) and b: got to choose two things from the stationary bit to keep us quiet   as a treat upon seeing her.

Its that smell of clean paper - ok am sounding freaky now so am going to wrap it up (lovely pun) suffice to say that today I bought a gazillion sketchpads for the babes to work in...each and everyone a beauty.

No really , it's actually very exciting.

Sam x