mess
Community Paper Garden — Teaching Notes
During my April workshop at the Worcester Family Partnership, the children and their loved ones gathered together to plant a community art garden. I brought the garden plot, which was a large piece of kraft paper, as well as the materials to plant paper flowers. We used circle objects to trace and cut circle shapes,…
DIY Travel Journal
Last August, my mother-in-law and father-in-law took our entire family (including all of my husband’s siblings and their partners and children) on a grand Hawaiian adventure. During the days before we left, I made a travel journal to give to them as a thank-you for the spectacular gift. As we creep towards the summer season…
Mother’s Day Cards
Lately, I’ve been fascinated with lumpy, curvy, misshapen, colorful blobs. I plop them in my journal and then use an art pen to turn each one into a little independent design. It is relaxing. Almost meditative, actually, in an art therapy kind of way. Sometimes, while I’m painting and drawing, I post process photos on…
Watercolor People
These people have been filling up my journal pages. Most of them have resting faces. Maybe a bit frowny? They are not sad! Just pensive. Make watercolor blobs in your sketchbook. Use an art pen to create people. More blobs, more people, and repeat. This is fun!
On My Page — Journal Doodle
Doodling over watercolor blobs is always a good plan if I am feeling stressed or worried about something. The think-as-you-go, free style technique is simply a nice way to give my brain a break. My brain was calling for a creative escape, so I painted some blobs in my journal. The following morning, I doodled…
Sketchbook Hair
Sketchbook idea: Hairstyles first, faces second. This is fun for everyone: kids, adults, those in between. It also encourages the artist to appreciate and experiment with different kinds of hair. And, hey, if your kids have the urge to cut hair, maybe this will satisfy? 1. Draw hairstyles on various pieces of paper. Use magazines,…
A Summer Kids’ Craft: Nature Bundles
While we were away on our vacation, the children invented a Nature Bundles game where they found lots of different tiny bits of nature and packaged them up with gorgeous, natural wrapping. Each one was unique and interesting, and each had a story to go along with it. Some were spells, some remedies, and some…
watercolors and flowers
The older kids and I made these in early September in the midst of balmy breezes, deeply saturated garden hues, and a big round baby belly. Our baby boy was due in two weeks and it seemed as if my body couldn’t get any rounder. It was full of what we could only dream of….
Beginnings
The beginning of a little egg project I will feature later in the week. I have some super exciting Red Bird Crafts news to share. In the late summer and early fall, I’ll be offering creative writing and crafting workshops for adults and kids in my home studio. I am so incredibly excited about this…
Beginnings
The beginning of a little egg project I will feature later in the week. I have some super exciting Red Bird Crafts news to share. In the late summer and early fall, I’ll be offering creative writing and crafting workshops for adults and kids in my home studio. I am so incredibly excited about this…
left hand leaves
So, anyway, about left handed drawing (or drawing with your non-dominant hand). I find the process magical and super satisfying because it allows me to draw with intention, and it frees my mind enough so that I am drawing what I see rather than what I think I should be seeing. It ends up…
negative
Yesterday, the kids were given a set of dot markers. Woah boy! I had no idea they would love them as much as they do. My entire afternoon was filled with: dot, dot, dot, dot. They’ve been madly dotting as many pieces of scrap paper they can find. Mouse loves the pound, pound, pound feeling…
conversation Love Rocks!
Love rocks! Just in time for Valentine’s day. These conversation Love Rocks! have a heart on the front and a witty (or just plain sweet) message stamped on the back. Make your hearts skinny or bubbly or teeny tiny or really big – each rock ends up with its own little personality. I used both…
