painting with bubbles (and stencils)

We dropped YaYa off at the airport and then had to head down to Southlands. The sun was shining when we left but the skies quickly turned dark. We sat at the window and watched my car get struck with hail which was quite the bummer.

Poor Yaya had to sit at the airport for about 6 extra hours waiting for her flight to leave because of weather delays. We were hoping they would just cancel that stupid flight so she could come hang out with us but it finally took off and she made it home safely.

When the hail passed we hopped back in the car and headed back to our neck of the woods. I hosted my first summer paint session. It was a very small group which was nice and less intimidating for me. My little ladies rocked the plates they made. They used both bubbles and stencils and I can’t wait to see how these plates turn out after they are fired.

Annabelle and her emojis

Poor Gwyneth got a wicked headache as we were wrapping things up. It was nothing a smoothie and a good night sleep couldn’t fix!

Pretty impressive unicorn from Miss Gwyneth!

painting | may farms

I was asked to do a painting event for a farm about an hour away from our house. It was a great opportunity but I’m not the best in those situations. Believe it or not, I’m quite shy and I get caught up in all the planning. For about two months I stressed about this event but B swooped in and saved the day. He joined me for the evening which made it so much easier to carry all my supplies, help the painters, and of course, he just calmed me.

It ended up being a smashing success (smashing probably not the best word to use for pottery…). They asked us to return in just a few months for another painting event and I gladly agreed…well, as long as B will help me again!

painting | mom’s night out

We made it home from Breck a day later than planned, but just in time to get back into the swing of things. It was my turn to host mom’s night out for the girls’ school. I had planned to do a game night at our house, but that was already done this year. The organizer asked if I might be interested in hosting at Color Me Mine. I jumped at the opportunity. It’s always fun to have painters in to my studio and it meant I didn’t have to clean my house for the event. Win win!!

I met lots of new moms and everyone had a blast painting. I can’t wait to return their finished pieces to them.

girl scouts | small business badge

Annabelle’s troop asked me to host an event for the girls to earn their Small Business Ownership badge. I came up with a plan and asked Gwyneth’s troop to join as well.

My background is finance so the lesson was probably a little too heavily financially focused. I think a few little eyes started to glaze over during the discussion. All in all I think it went well though and I have to admit I was very proud of the questions that Annabelle asked. She asked about competition and pricing and knocked my socks off. I was a proud mom indeed.

The excitement returned to the meeting when they all got to paint. They each painted a mug and did a great job.

painting | crystals

Our Wednesday art adventures continue! I must admit I’m having as much fun as the girls. The ideas are flowing right now and I have several weeks of projects for us already planned. I can’t wait to share them all. Check back with me in a few months…it may be a very different story…

This week we painted bisque “peeps”. The only thing I may enjoy more than these little guys are actual Peeps. They remind me so much of Easter as a kid. Even as an adult my mom still spoils us with peeps. I think you either love them or hate them – I’m definitely in the love them camp!

We tried out a new technique painting with underglaze crystalites. Oh my goodness, the underglaze is messy, messy, messy! We had it everywhere but managed to get a little on our bunnies too.

The crystals in the glaze “explode” in the kiln when they are fired and create amazing patterns. It’s hard to envision what they will look like when they are fired, but you just have to trust the process a bit. That can be a challenge for kids. Honestly, it’s a challenge for adults too.

Love the mess of it all!

I can’t wait to see how all these bunnies turn out!

The absolute best part of these artsy days is the time we spend together. It has evolved into so much more than a few hours of painting together. On Wednesdays they hop in the car and the first thing they ask is “what are we painting today?”. There is so much excitement for our afternoon together. They are eager to learn and be creative. There is a lot of patience and kindness and love at our little painting table… and let me tell ya, that ain’t a small thing around there.

As promised, Bunnies post kiln firing.

They turned out so much better than I expected. We love, love, love them!

painting | bubbles and stencils

It’s spring break so I offered the girls a reprieve from our weekly painting session. They were not having it. They wanted to paint and they even asked to invite a friend along.

This week we painted with bubbles. I wasn’t very confident with this technique. These girls were super patient as we worked out the best mix of paint, water, and soap. They loved blowing the bubbles and created super cool backgrounds for their “Under the Sea” stencils. I’m loving the little plates that they created.

Completed masterpieces. They did so great!

Painting | Sponges

Gwyneth has been asking for art classes and I have been unsuccessful in finding anything promising for her. I searched and searched and then came up with a plan to give her some creative options at my studio.

I think she would enjoy venturing out and learning about other mediums of art. I don’t want to limit her to just painting pottery. This is a good start for us right now though.

While B is working Wednesday evenings, we head to the studio and I will do my best to teach her something new and hopefully have a little fun along the way.

Here we go:

Annabelle had her choice for the evening. She could paint with us or hang with B at the Kitchen. She chose painting but wasn’t quite on board for learning new techniques yet. She painted a mug and did a great job. She quickly decided she wanted to get in on learning the new techniques though too. I think I’m winning them over.

Tonight we worked on painting with sponges. It’s by far the easiest technique and was a good jumping off point for us. Gwyneth did a great job of experimenting with color layering and was thrilled to make Shamrocks for St. Patty’s day. She made a sample for the studio and then a few shamrocks for gifts for her friends.

Our first class was a hit and now this girl has my mind spinning with all the possibilities for our sessions together.