Through The Keyhole

Block Printing & Hand Carving With The Child

I went to a free block printing class with Tanner this afternoon at Artist and Craftsman.  We had such fun and it was so easy.  We used a water soluble block printing ink.  Perfect for learning with.  Any mess is easy to wash up.  Good thing since Tanner smeared it on his nose first thing.

Tanner made all of the "A" prints.  The one above was his first and I think my favorite.  The one above and below are made with a simple foam sheet that he etched into with a pencil.

While he worked away easily and diligently, I pondered and pondered.  Finally settled on a simple little turtle at Tanner's suggestion.

Tanner has plans for printing a series of "A's" and a Christmas card design.  I'm plannng designs to use in my journals.

Don't want to carve your own?  Check out Pam Garrison's fabulous stamp designs.  Or search "hand carved stamp" in Etsy.  I'm particularly fond of this one and this one.  Finally, be sure to check out Geninne's new book.  It's soooo good!  You'll be crazy inspired after spending a bit of time perusing it.

A Film By Tanner

Tanner learned stop animation at summer camp.  I was so impressed I had to share.  This is a film he made with an older friend and the assistance of a camp counselor. 

Woohoo!

I'm back, it was great and I have the pictures to prove it.  Unfortunately, my laptop decided to throw a tanrum and not work, right after I downloaded all of the photos. The photo below is from last year. 

There was very little sleep (at least for the grown ups), perfect weather, giant tree swings, beach exploring, lots of laughter and exploring, a few minor accidents, and art journaling. The classes were once again great fun for all, including a couple of grown ups. I'll post photos when my computer is fixed.

I signed up for Kelly Rae's e-course "Flying Lessons." I'm looking forward to what she has to share. So far it's looking fabulous. She's directed us to a video by Brene Brown that I've read about before but hadn't taken the time to listen to until now. I can't recommend it enough, especially for parents. Since I was sequestered with 50 children for three days, I've negotiated several hours of alone time today. In addition to a yoga class, I'll be stopping by Elliott Bay Books in it's new digs to pick up one of Brene Brown's books. The video was that inspirational! Take the time to give it a listen.

The UP Experience from Brené Brown on Vimeo.

50 kids in the rain

The rain is pouring this morning. Normally I don't mind the rain. I enjoy it even, when I'm curled up in my favorite chair with a steaming cup of tea and a good book. Today however, I'm off to chaperone 50, 6 and 7 year olds at 3 days of camp. Did I mention it's raining? And that large groups of confined children make me nervous? I see damp and mud in my future. Maybe I should pack more socks. And ear plugs.

There will be art making though. I'm teaching 2 visual journaling classes. Wish me well.

Returning Yet Again

I'm back after an unplanned absence again. Since my return from Artfest I've been avoiding the computer. Part of it is, I'm spending more time making art. I haven't even been staying up on my email. I've also not been visiting other blogs. Besides not having the time, I don't want to be influenced by what others are doing.

The only thing I regret is not coming here. I actually like blogging but I feel like it's the journal I'd keep when I was young. If I skipped a day of writing, it was always harder to go back to it. Pretty soon I'd find months had gone by and there was no hope of getting caught up on all that had happened. Then I'd just not do it unable to face the failure. I've realized that I still do that with my blog. My expectations of myself are ridiculous. I'm going to once again, try to let them go. So here I am, starting fresh.

A few weeks ago I accompanied Tanner's class on the annual camp trip. That's him above on the mondo tree swing. It was the biggest, highest tree swing I've ever seen. There'a a high platform to get on it. It swings out high into the trees, over the cabins. Tanner said it made his legs all wobbly. Fortunately I didn't see him on it the first time he went or my legs might have been wobbly.

Our cabin was the main lodge right at the beach. The location was phenomenal. There was no hope for a decent nights sleep though. There were bonfires, s'mores, playing on the beach, a water balloon catching contest, tug-o-war, the mondo tree swing, fun classes, and relaxing. More relaxing than I'd imagined. And after dark, there was adult time around the bonfire, someone playing guitar and lots of grown-up treats.

I was a reluctant attendee but in the end was grateful I'd gone. It was a special three days with Tanner.

I taught art journaling classes. I'd limited my class to four students each day but for some reason I made 25 extra journals. It was a good thing I did. The kids enjoyed the free access to fun art supplies so much that I kept the materials out during free time and more children stopped by to make their own journal. In the end, I gave out more than 30 journals. Look what those amazing artists did. Some of them couldn't believe they were allowed to do whatever they wanted.

I'll be doing this again next year. I have to thank my friends for contributing supplies. Penelope (who needs to get a blog or at least a flickr account), Lelainia of Tattered Edge, Jonna of Just Jonna, and Dawn of Mother Rubber, all provided supplies for the kids to use. I really appreciate your generosity ladies! The kids loved the materials you sent. Aargh! Typepad won't let me link to their blogs.

I'm headed out for an extended camping trip on the Oregon coast tomorrow morning. I won't leave you without posts for the entire time though. Check back. I hope you have a fabulous first week of summer!