Watercolour class what we've been up to.....

This year I was excited to start a new 10 week watercolour class at Havering Adult College. So far we're half way through and I thought I'd share what we've been up to.

We started off with a simple landscape image.....

 Then we looked at a tonal study, this was taken from a trip to New Zealand. I love derelict buildings and this was a great example. Painted in Payne's Grey, my new favourite colour to use.

We then took a limited palette to complete a tree. The great thing with watercolour painting is the different effects you can use. I love wet on wet backgrounds where the colours blend beautifully. Then using a dry brush for images and layering different colours.

We had some fun experimenting with wax resists the salt technique. 

And more fun with masking fluid and the alcohol technique.....

After half term we're going to look at an architectural detail using a photo I took of St.Paul's. Sometimes the hardest thing with art is knowing when to stop. I started this painting with loose wet on wet colours blending into one another and I loved the effect but then I kept going, adding more and more detail.

So I went back and started again with a loose sketchy style which I love.

If you like the look of what we're up to and want to come and have a go the next course is on 19th April. Click here for more details.
If it looks a bit complicated, not to worry as I break down every image step by step and demonstrate all the techniques so anyone can attempt it from complete beginners to those wanting to brush up their skills.

Watercolour class.....

Last year I was lucky enough to teach some art classes for Havering Adult College which I am absolutely loving. I have a Tuesday morning watercolour class at the Bower Park Centre and we started off experimenting with Brusho. 

I loved playing with all the colours and here some of the results. If you've never experimented with Brusho it is great fun as you literally watch the colours explode on your paper, however because of this you can't really control them and you never know what you're going to end up with. This can either be exciting if you go with the flow or a little frustrating if you had an idea in your head of how you wanted it to go.

We also did a simple seascape image, this was taken at Holywell Bay in Cornwall where we had an amazing holiday in the summer. It definitely brings back happy memories when I see this.....

We also attempted a country landscape image....

And to finish the course, just in time for Christmas we painted a festive little robin. The other students finished theirs with backgrounds and the snowy log he was stood on which completed the picture so when I get the chance I shall take inspiration from the students and try to finish him maybe in time for next Christmas!

When teaching art it's amazing to see the creativity in the classroom and the fact that everybody's work looks completely different as they add their own styles and interpretations. I was really proud of what they achieved especially as most had not picked up a paintbrush since they were a child. I'll try to get some pictures of their amazing work to share.

Autumn sensory bowl......

I saw a sensory bowl on the Imagination Tree, which is an amazing site for children's activities, and thought it was a brilliant idea to put the endless amount of leaves, sticks and conkers that my girls collect every day.

I added food colouring to salt, perhaps not the best idea as we all ended up with orange hands : )
Then I got the girls to add all of their found items from our latest nature walk. The bit they enjoyed the most was writing and drawing on the leaves and conkers. The Montessori side of early years teaching is to do letters and numbers which we did but they loved drawing monster faces on the conkers the most. Perhaps not the most educational but definitely the funniest! I had a white sharpie in my art drawer which was perfect for the conkers. It's very addictive and fun for both little fingers and big!

Eloise with her proud work of art.....
 

They loved it and it still sits in pride of place on our table. 

Come and learn feltmaking.....

Here's the full details for my feltmaking course for Havering Adult College...

I'm really looking forward to it!

Experimenting with felt.....

Unfortunately my felt making class has been postponed until November. So bad news for the people that wanted to start now but good news for anyone still wanting to sign up and have a go. 

So the new start date is now November 5th, yes bonfire night so we may even get a sparkly show outside the window as we felt! It's a 6 week course every Thursday evening at the Bower Park centre at Havering Adult College from 7-9pm. To book call 01708 434 955 or email enquiries-adultcollege@havering.gov.uk, quoting felt making or course code BE43204. 
 I've been playing around manipulating the felt and I have to admit this is my favourite thing to do with felt. As it's an old craft that's re-emerging there are some amazing new and exciting things you can do with the felt.So here's what I've made:

Weaving with strips of pre-felt:

Creating spikes:

Using circle resists: (love this Scandinavian colours)

Making a sushi roll: (I also kept some of these for beads to use as a necklace)

Using a moon resist and strings:

Creating craters with double resists:

Creating more craters with marbles and glass beads: (boy was this one heavy to felt and took a little more elbow grease but it was worth it!)

If you like the look of these and fancy giving it a go then come along to the class and i'll show you how. If you have something specific in mind you wish to create I can also show you how to do it.

A little burst of printing inspiration....

I was lucky enough to have a child free day on Saturday so I took full advantage and made a much needed and well overdue visit to an exhibition. 

After a quick search I decided to check out the East London Printmakers exhibition at Embassy Tea Gallery on Union Street and I was so glad I did. Being just off the beaten track it was lovely and quiet, the sun even shone which makes all the difference in London! 

The exhibition is amazing and it was lovely to see so many printmakers exhibiting together. It's running until the 27th September so you still have time to check it out.

Here's a few of my favourites..... I'm attracted to the lino prints and screen prints as I love the style they produce but there were very clever things such as mono-prints on leather and ethereal etchings.

Some clever printing onto a plaster slate and bowl.....

Mixed media with etching and stitch.....

I loved this collection of drypoint prints made from people's broken phones complete with very funny personal stories.....

Giving printing a magical and whimsical edge. 

For the full catalogue of the exhibition click here.

I then headed over to the Tate modern after stopping off at Intaglio print shop to treat myself to some more lino and a much desired soft rubber roller (can not wait to start using it after admiring it for so long : )

Loving the construction work on the side of the Tate modern and cant wait for its completion. The scaffolding is a work of art on its own!

I made a bee line for the war posters in the Tate as I love their style, passion and how easily they portray movement, these were my favourites.....
 

Then with some weary legs homeward bound I went, inspired to get working on some new prints! Hope they provide a little inspiration your way too.

Kirsten

Phew what a busy summer.....and a little felting

So after what feels like a grueling 7 weeks of the summer holidays Eloise has finally gone back to play school and Bethany is due to start tomorrow, eek! We've had lots of fun and laughter including a holiday to Cornwall and loads of amazing day trips and it's now back to the old routine. However I'm secretly loving being able to have a little bit of time back for myself to get creating again. 

I've been busy making some felt samples ready for my new class which starts next week at the Havering Adult College. I've started with a few basic techniques and I'm going to be working on some fun ones this week, such as spikes which I'm really looking forward to.

There's still places free so if you fancy coming along and getting creative in a fun and relaxed environment then call 01708 434 955 or email enquiries-adultcollege@havering.gov.uk to book a space. It's really reasonable at £62 for the 6 week course (only £32 for concessions) so a bargain at just over £10 per session, If you're over 60 then its only £47 for the whole 6 weeks. Click here for full details.

I'll be starting the course super easy with the basics of felting and building up so at the end of this introductory 6 week course you'll be able to make bags, scarves, laptop cases, flowers etc. You can make beautiful, quirky or modern items for around your home or perfect items for gifts. Whatever your heart desires and whatever your style then I can show you how to make it.