paint cut paste

a couple weeks ago my mom (N calls her “gwee”) was visiting us on the left coast, and while my husband and i took a little date weekend away, gwee treated N to a new world of crafting for her — weaving potholders.

it was really cute – my mom sent an amazon box to us about a week before her visit and asked us not to open it, since it was to be a surprise for me and my husband. N was thrilled about the prospect of what she might make out of what was in that mystery box. once we were out of the house, i was told that N could not wait to get started.

inside was a potholder design kit with metal loom. gwee showed N how to go over and under (we’ve done some weaving before, but not yet on a loom) and she caught on and worked diligently on the potholders.

gwee reported that N loved coming up with the color order and combinations for the weavings. one of the potholders she designed was in ROY G BIV order, of course. my little rainbow lover. N was suuuper proud to show us her potholders when we returned home, and she was even more psyched when we used them a couple of days later, saying “they work!”

in my practice as an art therapist, one area of emphasis is on supporting expectant and new mommas. one of the best pieces of my training in art as ritual during this rite of passage was not only my graduate studies or my own pregnancy/momming experience, but also the pregnancies of my dearest art therapist friends with whom i graduated. as you’ve seen before on my blog, to mark this time as sacred, we hold mother’s blessing ceremonies for one another.

me with kindred spirits from my art therapy program -- momma-to-be in the center. sept 2009.

i’ve shared a bit about one of the art rituals from my own blessing ceremony these friends held for me, and i’ll blog more about it another time…  but today i wanted to share a beautiful and artful blessing idea from one of my dearest friend’s blessing in autumn of 2009, where a group of women gathered (her closest friends and family) to celebrate the new life on the way.

an art table is as essential as the food table at these gatherings - food for the soul!

one of my fellow art therapist friends led the group in a guided visualization about what they wished for the expectant family. she asked us all to notice the images that came to us — the setting, colors, lines, shapes, textures. each person in attendance was then given a piece of watercolor paper, a pallette of watercolor paints, and a selection of brushes. while beautiful music played, each person found a spot in the room where they could work on their piece.

everyone was assured that no artistic expertise or experience was necessary. each of us was asked to just paint the colors and impressions we had, regardless of whether it is abstract or the image of something. we also were asked not to become attached to the image, as it would be torn up to create a larger piece later. (this was very freeing for most of those who might not have been as comfortable making art.)

big-sister-to-be (age 2 here) even got in on the action, as her image is a key piece in the energy of the final product.

after the art was completed, we sat in a circle with the mom-to-be in the middle, and we each told her what we wished for her. the dad-to-be had created a piece on his own, in advance, which we showed to the expectant mom at the blessing. it was so fascinating that their pieces had such resonance!

mom's art on left; dad's art on right

the next day, the five of us you see pictured up there gathered around a kitchen table for tea, coffee, and paper weaving.

we tore the watercolor pages into strips that were one inch wide, along the longer side of the watercolor paper. we prefer tearing the pages along a ruler to cutting them — this way you get that lovely raw edge.

we chose strips from each of the paintings that were most appealing to the mom-to-be, making sure each person’s art was represented in the final piece.

the five of us wove the strips together, trying different configurations out, and eventually arriving at the final piece.

two months after this blessing ceremony, my friend welcomed her second child, a beautiful boy, into her family (who is now almost two!) this awesome piece of art, holding all of the love and supportive energy of his family, is hanging above his bed.

…i believe you can get me through the nii-iiight… you guessed it! we created a dreamcatcher, and surprise: it’s WAY easier than i thought it would be! i wrote a guest post about our dreamweaving experience on allstate’s good hands community, so be sure to click over to check it out.

the weaving always looked kinda complex to me, but it so isn’t.

to clarify, it isn’t simple enough for my 4 year old to do herself, but she certainly assisted in choosing the branch from the yard to use for the loop…

and in choosing the colors and materials that held the energy she wanted in her bedroom.

check out our guest post on the good hands community to see a how-to and to find out why a dreamcatcher can be an empowering art idea for children.

sweet dreams!

spring is one of my favorite seasons! it brings such colorful flowers and such beautiful art! in thinking about daylight savings time coming before the spring equinox this year (this sunday!), it seems like we’re all so READY for spring to arrive!

so i thought i’d publish a little round-up of some of our favorite art activities we’ve done in springs gone by…

nesting orbs – help pimp the nests of our little birdie friends

make some fancy flowerpots

create a personalized springy tote bag (great mom’s day or teacher’s gift idea!)

upcycle with paper roll flowers

get your paws into some cherry blossom prints

tiz the season to weave some beautiful strawberry basket bins

create some blooming paper!

and we’re up for sooo much more springy art this year! stay tuned!

does your little one gather thousands of leaves and twigs every time s/he’s outside? mine does! from nature walks to playgrounds to the preschool sandbox, N is constantly in search of treasures. when i saw the framework for this idea on moment to moment, i thought it would make a sweet storage space for seasonal findings.

i like how on moment to moment, the kids made beaded strands and various things to add to their fairy loom (which we’ll likely do later,) but mostly i wanted to make one where we could store natural objects… a fairy loom for all seasons! first, we needed a sturdy stick in the shape of the letter Y. last week we went on a nature walk with gwee, and hunted for said stick with no luck. we did find plenty of leaves and things, so N saved the things she gathered in anticipation of making a fairy loom.

over the weekend on a hike with her daddy, N found the perfect Y shaped stick for her loom. it was a bit bigger than i’d imagined it being (i was envisioning a 1-2 foot stick) but it turned out to be perfect.

N and i chose some variegated ribbon to thread the loom. you could use any ribbon, yarn, twine, or string you like. i wound the ribbon around the forked part of the stick. in hindsight, i should have created a loop around each side of the branch on each pass to make the weaving tighter. eh, next time.

weaving ribbon in a figure 8 pattern

we wove the found objects into it… leaves, feathers, pine needles with tiny pinecones on them, lavender, flowers, etc. N said “over, under, over, under…” as she wove.

when it was finished, N was so enthralled with it. she asked with wonder, “do you think a fairy would land on this?” (i think she’s hoping for tinkerbell to visit her, like in the new tink movie that just came out.)

we brought it into the house and put it in the corner of our den, kind of near the seasonal altar (though not in this photo.) it seems like a good place to store some of the little beautiful treats that N brings inside for us, and perhaps we’ll string some beads and shells to add to it, as well. i’m excited for the leaves to turn reds and oranges and yellows so we can add them to the loom — the color change happens later (and less vibrantly than i’m used to) in the bay area.

the loom can be cleaned out and redesigned with each season. i also think smaller (and bigger!) ones would be pretty hung from trees, hung on porches, or placed around the yard…  oooo…

there are sooo many glorious things about strawberry season. the sun, the ladybugs, the sweet juice running down your chin, the amazing dessert recipes, the reason to make your own whipped cream… we’re going strawberry picking this upcoming weekend, which is an annual tradition of mine since my childhood (and N’s!)

left: me in the 70s; right: N in may 2009

when a friend brought some fresh organic strawberries to me yesterday that she got from a farmer’s produce stand near the beach, i was excited for a pre-picking sneak peek. the berries were delicious, but almost as good were the charming little green baskets they have come in for decades! last year i added a few to N’s play kitchen, for her fake produce, but this year i decided that instead of recycling them, i’d upcycle them!

i have bins and bins of yarn and ribbon… so i figured i’d give N her first weaving lesson using the baskets and various yarn, ribbon, fabric materials i have laying around already.

first, i just tied the end of a piece of yarn to the inside bottom corner of a basket, and began to weave while N’s big blue eyes observed and recorded my motions.

then she wanted to try it with the other basket… so i tied her choice of yarn to her basket and she began to attempt the weave.

“this isn’t easy!” she said after just a few over-under-over-unders.

so i learned that this is not the best first weaving activity to try with a 3 year old (there are other easier weavings we can do, for sure!) but i wanted to post this anyway for those of you with school-aged children who want to upcycle your strawberry baskets. N asked me to finish up the baskets myself while she happily built beside me with other items from our recycling bin.

i thought the results were rather cute! and so did N!

N calls this one "the sunset basket"

these baskets would make great gift baskets for father’s day, graduation, birthdays, or any other occasion. they’re also nice storage for small toys and such.

this strawberry picking season, remember that it’s important to pick and eat organic strawberries! happy weaving and happy summer!

last year when i saw this post on one of my favorite blogs – 5 orange potatoes – i was smitten. isn’t lavender just the most heavenly scent ever? and these lavender wands are so easy, earthy, and elegant.

when i first saw the idea toward the end of last summer, all i had in my yard was very dry lavender, and i tried it out with that. it wasn’t all that attractive or easy then, so i vowed to wait until it bloomed again this spring.

let’s be real – this isn’t a young kid task. toddlers can help you pick the lavender, but it takes a kid of a few more years to do the weaving. (even momma thought it was a tricky small motor skills task!) as per the instructions, i gathered an odd number of stems of fresh lavender (anywhere between 9 and 15 – i did lucky #13 for mine!) that were at least 12″ long (or as long as you can get them.)

then i plucked off all of the leaves, rubber-banded the lavender just under its blooms.

next i followed 5 orange potatoes’ well-written/illustrated instructions and held the bundle upside down (blooms at the bottom.) i then folded each stem downward, one by one, to encase the lavender flowers. after i did that, my wand looked like this.

then i chose a 1/4″-1/2″ satin ribbon, and cut it to about 2 yards in length. i tucked the end of it in at the top of the wand (where the stems start to fold down) and began to weave it around and around through the stems – over and under. it makes a checker-boarded pattern as you go around because you have an odd number of stems.

don’t forget to pull it tight as you go. once the flowering part is covered and you feel like you’ve had enough weaving, wrap the ribbon tightly around the stems, then tie a knot at the bottom. i left a long tail of pretty ribbon dangling from it, too. then i trimmed the stems to an equal length.

these are the ones i made last year with the dried lavender stems, along with the new magenta one i just made. can’t wait to keep making more!

these make for a pretty and natural wand or sword for your little one to play with (and subsequently fall asleep due to the calming properties of the lavender,) or they make nice gifts for drawer sachets or pretty additions to a seasonal altar. i sent the fresh one to a friend for her birthday.