Thursday, October 28, 2010

Painted gourds @ WBCL

First question "what is a gourd?" The answer is a little pumpkin-like ball that we grow and dry to paint on. The concept that these balls had been grown and even had seed in them seemed to impress some of the students. One of the gourds cracked open and had to be patched with brown paper and glue. All in all everyone had fun painting and decorating them and showing them off. A few of the participants got the long necked gourds when the supply of round ones was depleted.

The Family Arts & Crafts group meets at the Wells Branch Community Library every Wednesday night at 6 pm taught by Dianne Koehler. The program lets us turn donated or recyclable materials and imagination into great projects.

You may also want to take a look at the new Art & crafts database the library recently subscribed to for the patrons. Check  the library website for details. 
Posted by Picasa

Saturday, October 23, 2010

Spook-tacular Pumpkin painting @ WBCL

The threat of rain did not deter the crowds who came to claim their pumpkins and make one of a kind creations to set out at home. Families painted together--most got covered in paint as they turned out all kinds of pumpkins. Some were works of art, others were "scarry" or not but within an hour most had their pumpkin ready with cobweb hair, spiders and a variety of self cut shapes to make them "exactly right." We even had glow-in-the-dark paint to add for final effects.


There were acts of heroism as tickets that would not be claimed because of sick children were passed on to others who were unable to get tickets. At the end of the day a mom generously gave her pumpkin to a little girl and her dad who came late so they could do one as there were no more to be had.


This was a totally volunteer staffed event headed by Dianne Koehler who teaches the arts and crafts classes weekly at the library. Thank so much to the wonderful people who turned out to help and to HEB for a cash donation and Heart of Texas Tolers for donating paint and some other materials.
Posted by Picasa

Thursday, October 21, 2010

Scarecrows come to life @ WBCL


It was messy and a bit complicated but the scarecrows that resulted were a real hit! I was given a sack of raffia and a baggie of home made hats by a friend and had corn husks left over from another project to use as the inspiration for these little scarecrows. I also scavenged enough tea dyed fabric for all the faces so they look a bit more aged.

We were able to create a whole field of them to scare off any crow==we never did make the crows though. This was a step by step project and the class was definately up to doing this--even some of the younger kids cut raffia, put the faces on their scarecrow, and dressed them in ponchos or skirts.We kept to using raffia ties on the arms and legs although some resorted to twist ties to secure the ends of the arms.

I am putting the step by step instructions on my website if you didn't make the class and want to make one or more for your fall decor. http://sites.google.com/site/woodenitbewonderful


The Family Arts & Crafts group meets at the Wells Branch Community Library every Wednesday night at 6 pm taught by Dianne Koehler. The program lets us turn donated or recyclable materials and imagination into great projects.

You may also want to take a look at the new Art & crafts database the library recently subscribed to for the patrons. check  the library website for details. 
Posted by Picasa

Tuesday, October 19, 2010

Using one stroke techniques for the holidays

The adult/teen drawing and painting group stretched a bit this month and learned how to create some fantastic holiday decor using the One Stroke painting method. The library has 4 video DVDs demonstrating this method and I have a number of pattern books in my collection. 
We started with the cornucopia with a few simple fruit to complete it. From "oh that looks hard" to "wow, that is really simple" didn't take long. The grapes were especially popular.


We then moved on to a fluffy evergreen wreath with berries. We discussed using it for window decor or Holiday or Christmas cards. As all the wreaths were pretty big so we added a snowman in the middle complete with hat and birds.


We moved off the thick paper and created a wooden door hanger as the last project of the day. By this point the class was a bit tired and ready to go home but not before signing up for the next month's project of a watercolor poinsettia.


The drawing and painting group meets at the Wells Branch Community Library the 3rd Sunday of each month and is taught by Dianne Koehler. The program lets us turn imagination into great projects.

You may also want to take a look at the new Art & crafts database the library recently subscribed to for the patrons. check  the library website for details. 
Posted by Picasa

Thursday, October 14, 2010

WBCL hosts Columbus ship building night

First we had a little discussion of who Columbus was and when he sailed his ships to discover America. Then the fun began. Using Styrofoam packing materials saved from various purchases shipped to the library over the last year, I cut the bases and captain's bridge at home to decrease the mess and chances of knife cuts at the class. I haven't cut myself yet but sharp blades and kids do not mix at the ages that attend these sessions. 
Everyone also received pre-printed sails to cut out and fix onto the craft stick masts. Most of the boats got a wrapping of brown paper to simulate wood. Some got cannons and other attachments including oars. The last step was to add the Spanish cross to the sails or some other detail. One of them transformed into a pirate ship at this point!
The most fun part of the whole project is that the ships will float and many may make it to the pond or the creeks for a tryout in the next week or so. Watch for them!

The Family Arts & Crafts group meets at the Wells Branch Community Library every Wednesday night at 6 pm taught by Dianne Koehler. The program lets us turn donated or recyclable materials and imagination into great projects.

You may also want to take a look at the new Art & crafts database the library recently subscribed to for the patrons. check  the library website for details. 

Tuesday, October 12, 2010

Getting ready for Pumpkin painting@wbcl

Taking a look at the Pumpkin Painting books and other websites always puts me in the mood. I found a few more pictures to love--Cheryl Horan's and ones by Rick Buziewicz and a few by Monica Konechne all on Ask.com and of course my favorite books and Better Housekeeping's website and on and on. Best of all, the DecoArt website has 40 great examples of painted pumpkins using the paint that has been donated to us. How cool is that!

I was able to find spiders, spider web, lots of great colors of paint, lots of yarns, fun foam for ears, eye patches and other add-ons and even a site for stencils although the kids have never needed them before. I am on the look-out for glow in the dark paint to finish the pumpkins with and make them even more fun. 
Of course some of them may need a hat or even a bat circling on a wire.

Only 12 more days until painting day.We'll be painting on October 23rd from 10 am until noon at the Wells Branch Community Library. This special event is partially sponsored by our local HEB and the Heart of Texas Tolers who graciously supply paint and other crafts items  for our programs.

Thursday, October 7, 2010

Drawing Animals brings out the artists @WBCL

All it took was a sheet of white paper, a pencil and a budding artist to create great drawing of a number of great animal drawings.We used a number of books right off the shelves to direct us and the concept of circles, eggs and triangles being at the heart of drawing. We started with the mouse in Scott Sutton's book  The group then moved on drawing dinosaurs and fish. 


The group did a great elephant and a cat with a long tail. We finished the night with a shark and a sea monster with scales. Most of the books I used check out to the participants to do extra drawing at home. This is a real bonus to using the books off the shelf to teach the class. k


The Family Arts & Crafts group meets at the Wells Branch Community Library every Wednesday night at 6 pm taught by Dianne Koehler. The program lets us turn donated materials and imagination into great projects.

You may also want to take a look at the new Art & crafts database the library recently subscribed to for the patrons. check  the library website for details. 

AD