What the Art Teachers Wore//Back to Art Teacherin' Contest!

 Dorie Mishael! Isn't Dorie just the cutest thing?! I totally wanna join her on that fun -n- funky carpet and create some art. Check out that super cute skirt she made AND that rug for her art room that she's both sewing and needle felting. What a fab-o Back-to-Art-Teacherin' ensemble!

Welcome to the What the Art Teacher Wore/Back to Art Teacherin' Contest! These incredible educators got all dressed up to teach the best subject ever, ART! If you would take a moment to vote for your favorites, that would be much appreciated. If you are viewing this from your laptop, the poll is to your right. If you are on your phone, click on "view web version" way at the bottom of the page. These contestants stand a chance to win a free subscription to SchoolArts Magazine as well as an opportunity to see their beautiful faces there! Thanks all y'all who sent me snaps and for those of you taking the time to read about these hard working art teacherin' peeps. 

 Amanda Holloway and her mama! I seriously think that I just about died of cuteness overload when I saw this sweet mama/daughter art teacherin' duo. They made their dresses outta just about the cutest fabric I think I've seen. Both teach elementary art in Jacksonville, Florida to some seriously lucky young artists!

 Jennifer Love Gironda! If you don't read Jennifer's blog, you really should. She's truly inspirational to me because she's creating art ALL THE STINKIN' TIME! Truly! I believe she creates a painting a day all while whipping up super cute crayon necklaces like this one. I need one of these, stat.

Cheryl Burchett! Cheryl is a serious art teacherin' force to be reckoned with. She recently switched to teach at a new school and then raised over $2000 for the art program. And she stitched up this art teacherin' dress which I seriously love. You can follow Cheryl's awesomeness on her blog here! 

 SuzAnne! SuzAnne wore this super awesome get up on the first day to go over rules. Her school's theme is S.A.I.L. which stands for "students active in learning". To incorporate that theme as well has Monay she created that Capt. Mona you see on the left. What a clever and fun way to welcome her students back!

 Amanda Koonlaba! Amanda is a seriously sweet art teacher in Tupelo, Mississsippi. She welcomed back her students wearing a flower crown inspired by everyone's fave unibrow artist, Frida Kahlo. I'm sure her students were thrilled by her floral headpiece awesomeness!

 Karen Williams! Karen has amazing taste, I mean, check out that super cute palette fabric she used for her dress! Karen has recently started stitching again and is excited to begin creating more art teacherin' outfits (it's additive, Karen!). I love how she accented this dress with different colors at both he waist and the hem. She looks so colorful and cute.

 David Meade! Oh my goodness, this photo just cracks me up! Elementary art teacher David wore this glorious tie-dye number to greet the kids on their first day back to school. David crocheted his beret and wears his tie-dye coat daily to teach art! Imagine how thrilled the kids were to have this fun -n- funkiness open the door for them. I can't decide if the mustache, the beret or those pants are my fave. So much colorful goodness!

Cynthia Gaub! This pop-art themed dress worn by the lovely Cynthia Gaub is so fun! In fact, sewers, you can find this fab-o fabric at fabric.com! AND, non-sewers, have no fear, this dress can be found at ModCloth. Thank you, Cynthia, you look delish!

 Marcia Beckett! Y'all might recognize Marcia from her awesome art teacherin' blog, Art is Basic. What Marcia doesn't know about this back to art teacherin' t-shirt of hers it that I have the very same one in black from Forever21. If y'all haven't picked up their artist-inspired duds, you might wanna. You could look as cute as Marcia!

 Katie Romantic! Okay, this girl, lemme tell ya, she's killin' it. Katie made this entire zentangle dress using Tulip brand fabric paint. Now, while you digest that, I'll have you know that she also embellished those shoes and that hair bow. Not to mention, this is one of a handful of incredible outfit snaps that Katie sent me! You know I dig her style!

 Lauren Luna! Lauren sent me so many super cute photos that it was hard to chose! Isn't she totes adorbs? I'm lovin' this t-shirt of hers. Y'all have go to check out her art teacherin' blog here and her personal art making blog here! Love her energy!

 Amy Neiwirth! When super cute art teacher Amy Neiwirth sent me her photo (love that dress, gurl!) she failed to mention that she's also an incredible creator of cuteness. You guys have gotta check out her website, you won't believe the adorable jewelry this art teacherin' rock star creates!

Ashley Gonzalez! Doncha just love Ashley's apron? So did her student! She dressed just like her on one of their first days back to school, complete with a Starry Night apron! I love Ashley's hand painted apron, don't y'all?

Natalie Friedl! Can I just go all pun-tastic on y'all? I mean, let's face it, Natalie is looking sharp. Her dress is on point. She's not in the slightest bit sketchy in this super cute ensemble. I love this dress so much I have one myself. That's right, Natalie and I are twinkies! 

 Carrie Mann! Okay, y'all. I think Carrie should when in the special Awesomely Electric Ensemble category. Did you see, her skirt LIGHTS UP! She created it to read to her students The Very Lonely Firefly. You know they'll remember that experience for years to come.

 Jamia Weir! Sometimes, when I see people have a genius idea, I shake my fist at the heavens and say, "Argh! Why didn't I think of that?!" This here TWISTER GAME APRON was one of those times. That's right, Jamia created her back to art teacherin' apron from a vinyl Twister mat! How smart is that, y'all?!

 Joan Wheeler! Joan has caught the needle felting bug! I am so loving her Forever21 dress that she needle felted the palette onto, aren't you? Not only that but she created her jewelry using paint from a watercolor tray. How smart! I love her happy, colorful look.

 Kim Schulster! Kim doesn't know this but I have some serious fabric envy. If you look closely, there are lovely Frida's around the bottom of her dress! She looks absolutely fabulous. She and Amanda need to teach a Frida Kahlo unit together, doncha think?! Adorbs, Kim!

 Nicki Leatherwood! Art teacher Nicki from Austin, Texas chose her fabric based on her students love for Dr. Who. I'm sure they loved her skirt! She stitched it herself from the book Love at First Stitch by Tilly Walnes, a book I'd love to get my kitten mittens on. It looks like she did a fabulous job!

Teresa Euken! I have been going bananas over Teresa's top every since she sent me this photo. I love that fabric, a JoAnn's score, as well as that blouse pattern. She looks fabulous! I'm sure her students got a kick out of her back to art teacherin' top!

Lisa Hirkaler! Lisa is a high school art teacher who wore this dress back to school to introduce her students to Monet! You know, I bet not too many high school teachers go too wild -n- crazy with their outfits so I'm sure Lisa's students were thrilled to see how she'd coordinated her lesson with her flowery frock. Way to go, Lisa!

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What the Art Teacher Wore #147

 A Purple-ish Monday: So, thanks to our fab-o kindergarten teachers, we're still dressing in colors! Monday was purple day and, as it turns out, I must not like purple because there is next to nuthin of it in my closet. Which is really saying something because my closet, as you mightah guessed, is jam-packed with clothes. So this lil purplish ensemble was as close as I could get! dress: vintage, Buffalo Exchange; headscarf: vintage, thrifted; shoes: my new favorite! Minnetonka

I hope all y'all are having a wondrous three day weekend! Just so you know, when I become Princess Cassie, Ruler of the Universe and BEYOND, I will make three day weekends the law. No longer will poor ole Monday be that dreaded day of the week. In fact, I'll have it's name changed to Mon-YAY! and change Tuesday to "Tuesday, You Suck!" It's a working name. Don't judge. 

In other news, since this is a What the Art Teacher Wore post, lemme tell you what happened to me on Monday. As I was putting my students on the bus, one fourth grade girl stopped, looked me up and down and said:

"Mrs. Stephens, I have art tomorrow. Can you try and wear something more crazy?" 

Me, stunned: "What's wrong with this?!" with a flourish of my hand going from my purple-bowed head down to my hot pink moccasin-ed toes. 

"Eh. It's just kind of, you know, bor-ing."

Y'all. My critics are not foolin' around. You better believe I did it up right on Tuesday. 

Speaking of doing it up right, my email inbox has been BURSTING with photos of the World's Best Dressed Art Teachers! The What the Art Teacher Wore/Back to Art Teacherin' Contest goes live on the blog this coming Tuesday. That means if you wanna see your sweet face here (and possibly in School Arts Magazine!), email me some snaps at cassieart75@gmail.com. Be sure to check back here on Tuesday and cast your vote for the best dressed! 

 Just a couple of sweet snaps of my first grade friends for y'all this week. I can't wait to share their masterpieces with you! All of my students are currently "in the jungle" and learning about the work of Henri Rousseau. If you follow me here, you've seen quite a few of  their pieces. I'll share the complete lessons here in the next couple of weeks so stay tuned! 

 Lovin' the focus on this sweet boy's face! Now that my firsties have finished their works, they are creating a jungle mural to place their artwork in. My plan is to have that up by open house. Cross those fingers for me, would ya?

 Bust Out the Brown Tuesday: I seriously think I just grabbed anything brown and threw it on that morning. I had that vintage skirt in my etsy shop for a hot minute before I decided I loved it too much to sell off. sweater, belt and blouse: vintage, thrifted; skirt: vintage, Buffalo Exchange; shoes: Minnetonka; sweater clip: etsy

 A Colorful Way to Wear Black Wednesday: I didn't wanna wear head to toe black cuz, ya know, I already did the "alternative" thang in high school so I'm over it. Isn't funny how what we called "alternative" has gone threw so many name changes? There was goth then emo and now, what do they call those all-black-wearin' kids? Hipsters? Goth-Hipsters? Gothsters? Yes! That's it! dress: Modcloth; polymer necklace: Charleston; shoes: Swedish Has-beens, Anthro; Rainbow Brite belt: Buffalo Exchange

 White Day is Not a Good Day in the Art Room: Yeah, so who guessed that wearing this all white number was gonna end badly? I didn't even realize it did until I got home, took it off and noticed I had green paint splotches on the butt of my dress. I'm guessing I sat in something fun-n-funky. Good times. dress: Anthro

 Fave Color Friday: C'mon. I'm the art teacher! I can't pick one FAVE color, I love 'em all! And, let's be real, they all look SO GOOD TOGETHER, right?! You don't have to answer that. top and skirt: thrifted; bow tie and suspenders: gift from my bro; belt and crinoline: Amazon; shoes: Minnetonka

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What the Art Teacher Wore #144 and a Contest!

 Motivational Monday: Welp, we're back! My small kindergarten thru eighth grade school district is made up of eight schools. To kick off the school year, we always gather for a pep talk by our superintendent (whom I've decided is the best in all the land. Y'all won't find a more kind-hearted or humble person) and his posse. This year, they brought in speaker and singer Keni Thomas, a Task Force Ranger who was apart of what we know as Black Hawk Down. Y'all. I can't even. This man's story was incredible. Never have I attended a professional development that was more inspiring. If you can talk your admins into hosting this amazing individual, I strongly recommend it! dress: made by me! go here; scarf: vintage, thrifted; pencil shavings bag: made by Fossil, found on ebay; shoes: Swedish Hasbeens, Anthro; color wheel watch: made by Swatch, go here

Well, it's official. School's back in session, y'all! After a week of gettin' all kinds of pro-developmentishness, I finally get my kitten mittens on the kids come Monday. And I'm so excited! I've got big fat plans for those wee artists and I can't wait to get started. By the way, if you'd like to know what I do on my first days of art (and see my "old" art room, I've since redecorated!) go here! But first, I've got news for you!

Do y'all recall last week when I mentioned a lil What the Art Teacher Wore/Back to Schoolin' Contest? Well, the deal just got real, kids! Not only will you appear here but School Arts Magazine has also decided to run a feature of your art teacherin' self! Not only that, but the winner will get a free subscription to the magazine! How fun is that?! Here's how you can enter (please read carefully, I don't want you to miss a single step!):

*  Email me a photo of what you wore your first(ish) day of school! The more art-teachery, the better! If you want to qualify to be featured in School Arts, the photo must be high resolution (so, um, not your phone). Send it on to me at cassieart75@gmail.com

* Share your look on Instagram! Don't forget to use the hashtags #schoolartsmagazine and #whattheartteacherwore and to tag me @cassiestephenz! This way we can all see what awesomeness you be wearing! 

* All photos will be shared here! In a special edition What the Art Teacher Wore (which will prolly appear after Labor Day to get all y'all late-startin' teachers a chance to enter), your good-looking face will appear here. We'll have a lil vote to see who will be featured in 

School Arts magazine and win that subscription! 

And that's it! Easy peasy, lemon squeezy. I know several of you have already shown your look on insta and I thank you! Can't wait to see what all y'all be wearing! 

School Pride Tuesday: We were to wear our school t-shirts on this day but, ya know, I don't do the t-shirt thang. So I went with our school colors of yellow and blue (with a lil red thrown in). We spent our day catching up with teacher friends and meeting new ones. I do hope all y'all teacher friends of mine love your schools as much as I love mine. scarf: vintage, thrifted; blouse: from Buffalo Exchange, vintage; skirt: another score from Buffalo, originally from Anthro; bakelite: gifts; belt: Pin Up Girl Clothing; shoes: Crocs

 Since we tend to go to Disneyland frequently, I decided to start commemorating our trips by picking up a Disney pin each visit (any excuse to spend money and start a new collection, ya'll). I've got almost a dozen now and I'm trying to think of the best way to display them all. In the meantime, I've been wearing 'em too! This is one of my faves. I grew up with a fuzzy screen, "hey, move that antenna to the left! No, right!" kind of telly so this pin brings back memories. 

 Meet Your Teacher Night! Wednesday: So our district does a lil evening gathering a couple days before school starts. This allows the kids to meet their teach, see their rooms and get the lay of the land. It's a fun night to welcome 'em all back! dress: palette dress, made by me; shoes: Shoe Carnival

 Right before Meet-Your-Teacher night, I ran to the post office. I was chatting it up with the mailman who asked, "What is it you do?" When I told him I was a teacher, he asked, "What do you teach?" I just looked at him with my best dead-eyes face and said, "Really?" After doing a double take, he was like, "oooooh, right. Art." 

 First Day of School Eve Thursday: I decided to go all Mary Blair-esque on this day. vintage dress: a lucky find on etsy; Mary Blair-inspired necklaces: made by me, DIY here; belt: Anthro; Mary Blair-inspired bag: made by me, details here

Of course that means I gotta wear my It's a Small World pin, right?! 

First Day of School! Friday: Our first day was a half day so no kids came to art. However, we did gather them all in the gym during their shortened specials time to introduce ourselves and the staff (our SRO, the principals, custodians, you get the idea) as well as cover some basic school procedures. Of course, I decided to get right to the paint, ahem, with a goofball Steve Martin-inspired crayon-thru-head headband. On third grade girl's comment: You are the weirdest thing I have ever seen. Why thank you! dress: made by me, details here; shoes: gift, Anthro

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What the Art Teacher Wore #143

Summer-day: You know, my fave thing about summer vacay is when you get to the point where you forget what day it is. That's when you know you've hit toootal relaxation AND, sadly, that the end is nigh. Just one more week of freedom before we return! dress: vintage score from Buffalo Exchange; crinoline: Amazon; shoes: old, BG's; belt: Pin Up Girl Clothing; Enid Collins Box Purse: ebay

Hi, friends! I realized the other day that I've only shared with y'all maybe one (or two) What the Art Teacher Wore blog posts this summer! One part cuz during the summer, I'm off my routine which means my blogging schedule (as if there ever was one) gets all kinds of jacked up. The other part cuz, well, when I'm not wearing the same stinkin' outfit for days in a row, I'm in stretchy pants (I just can't bring myself to admit that I'm in the yoga pants camp so "stretchy pants" they shall be) and a hole-y t-shirt. It's a glamorous life I lead, lemme tell ya.

This week kept me on my toes tho as I had to venture out and teach teachers! Our local art museums The Frist and Cheekwood Botanical Gardens offered a wonderful three day professional development and I taught a lil bit of fiber arts on the first day...

Teaching art teachers is so stinkin' fun because they come up with the very best of ideas. We focused on needle-felting and ways to both tie that in to the current art exhibits as well as bring the craft back to our art rooms. I shared some of my student projects involving needle-felting as well as some that I'm planning to try out with my students this year. Being the most creative teachers I know, these dudes came up with great ideas as well as the most beautiful of needle-felted creations! 

SIDE NOTE: I'll be leading another fiber arts workshop at The Frist on Saturday, September 26th. This one is open to everyone, not just art educators. We'll be focusing on needle-felting, embroidery and more...the last I checked, there were only 6 spots left so if you are interested, go here and I'll see you there! 

I loved everyone's different take on the craft of needle-felting and the inspiration they got from the both the Italian Style show as well as the Wiener Werstratte. This artist was inspired by an incredible fur coat designed by Karl Lagerfeld. I love how she layered and needle-felted through the felt. 

Two artists created landscapes and I just love them both. The impressionist style of the one on the left is so subtle. Needle-felting really seems to be perfect for that kind of look. Although the one on the right is very graphic, which I love. My work in needle-felting is usually very flat and graphic as well so I can totes relate to the style and look of that one. 

Ah, summertime happy place. 

The artist on the left created a Japanese family crest. I had no idea that you could needle-felt synthetic yarns until she gave it a go with her boarder. I love the roses in the foreground of the one on the right. 

And this artist drew her inspo from the graphic designs of the postcards and fabrics we saw. I love the colors and joy in this piece, makes me so happy!

 Fave Purse Tuesday: So you mightah noticed in these here photos that I'm carting around a box-purse. I've always loved Enid Collins box purses but this summer, after scoring a couple at the flea market, I've become obsessed. I was so thrilled to get this one which is currently my fave. I've now got a lil (growing) collection that is gonna require me to install a shelf to showcase 'em all! sweater: thrifted; dress: vintage; shoes: Jeffrey Campbell; brooch and earrings: estate sales

 Rainy Day Wednesday: We've been having these rando outbursts of rain then INSANELY humid (we call it "muggy" where I'm from) weather. I mean, it literally feels like you are walking into someone's mouth the moment you step outside. No bueno. So it requires footwear like these Crocs that can take a lil rain and a lil shine. sweater and blouse: thrifted; skirt: Anthro found at Buffalo Exchange; belt: Pin Up Girl Clothing; brooches: estate sale

So-Cal Thursday: I finished off my Artsy Sew Along skirt right before we took a lil vacay to Southern California! If you are sewing along, don't you worry. I'll get the vid clippies up soon once we return from the land of eternal sunshines. shirt: thrifted; skirt: made by me!

 

Evenings at Disneyland: I'd love to share with y'all photos from our Cali-adventures but I dare say this blog post is photo-heavy enough! However, if you follow me here, you can keep up with the craziness even more (hurray! -ish!). When in Cali, we venture into California Adventure every evening to see The Mad T Party band as they are Uh-Maze-Ing. Here I am chillin' on the streets of Muppet-ville waiting for the next show to start. top: Old Navy? Target? I can't remember; skirt: Pin Up Girl Clothing; belt: Amazon. Fur realz. Just type in "big a$$ belt" and you'll find this; shoes: TJ Maxx

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