Art Scouts, Ohio Camp 2016

This weekend, I was a very lucky girl. Not only did I have the chance to spend time with my very favorite art teacherin' friends, Ginger, Laura and Jennifer,  but I also had the opportunity to work alongside them and share our passion: making the teaching of art good ole messy fun! We were super fortunate that so many art teachers decided to join us on this journey for the first ever...

That's right, Art Scouts! On the beautiful campus of Bowling Green State University in Ohio, we met and grew to love some of the nicest, brightest and just plain hilarious art teachers in the world. And I really do mean the whole world as we had friends traveling as far away as Seoul, South Korea, Canada and all corners of the U.S. to grace us with their awesome presence. 

Now we'd warned our Scouts ahead of time that earning those badges wasn't going to be easy (and, yes, in case you are wondering, they did receive super cute badges!). But each and every one of them rose to the challenge...although I do believe Jennifer made mention that "there is no crying in Art Scouts!" once or thrice. 

Speaking of Jennifer, she and I spent two days together sharing just about as much fiber arts and printmaking practices that we could. In preparation, we decked out the tables with all of the goodies our artist friends were to use in their art makerin'. Our fabulous sponsors, listed below, provided some of the supplies our Scouts used to create.

Because we'll be hosting another Scouts in less than a month in beautiful downtown Franklin, Tennessee, you won't find too many spoilers as to what skills the Scouts mastered. Sorry, friends! Badges were earned with blood (like, literally, right Lee Darter?!), sweat (woven sweat bands are on their horizon, y'all) and tears. Oh, wait! Jen said no crying in Art Scouts! Scratch that last one.

What I will say is that we were elbows deep in good ole messy art making fun. As it should be at a professional development, say we Scouts. While working with Jennifer, our Scouts had the opportunity to meet one of the most kind-hearted and loving art teachers. When Jen speaks about her students, you can hear the love she has for them. She reminded us all what precious gifts they are and how fortunate we are to create with them each and every day. She has a true gift of bringing out the most colorful and creative works of art in her students. Her secrets, tips and tricks were shared with the Scouts.  

We were so fortunate to work with some of our favorite brands and companies. This allowed us to share the supplies that we use with our students in our own art rooms. 

During our two day session, our Scouts hung with Jen and I before flipping to hang out with Ginger and Laura for their clay and painting badges. We all had so much to share with our Scouts that it was crunch time the whole time. 

Case in point: the "Working Lunch" written on our schedule. We left that "optional" but all of our Scouts were game to keep on Scoutin'! Don't worry, none of them earned the Starving Artist badge as we were feed very well with catered Mediterranean and gourmet lunches. Oh, and cookies. Warm, fresh outta the oven cookies, y'all. 

The amount of projects our Scouts accomplished will easily carry them through the middle of their school year, at the very least. Because our Scouts teach such a wide age range of students, adaptations were provided to either enhance or scale back lessons.  

Y'all know fibers is my jam, I could talk about that for days!

Just next door, the Scouts were hanging with Ginger and Laura earning their clay and painting badges. We knew they were having a blast because of the wild eruptions of laughter coming from their room. Ginger is our resident Zen mama with her calm, cool and reflective approach to teaching and creating art. On the flip side, Laura is a wild card who keeps us on our toes and rolling in laughs. A good mix, just as troop leaders should be!

Their tables were set with their clay and painting tools of mass creation.

Not only do our scouts have a wide age range but we all come from different situations: cart or classroom; no budget or big budget (wait, WHO HAS THAT?!). Working with clay can be tricky in certain situations but Ginger made sure to provide ceramic clay alternatives.

If you follow her blog, then you know she also creates beautiful murals with her students. The goPro videos of her students working on those murals are truly amazing! Our Scouts had the opportunity to paint a mural that was later used as our Photo Booth backdrop under her guidance.

Laura Lohmann is the Painted Paper Queen! Long before I knew her personally, I'd followed her blog and tried to emulate her painted paper techniques. But, I gotta tell ya, there is NOTHING like learning from the master. She shared her tips and tricks with our Scouts and the projects they created were out of this world. 

But catching her in a rare moment of seriousness is like snapping a photo of Loch Ness, a near impossibility! 

Now, just like any good camp, there were shenanigans aplenty! My Instagram, Twitter and Facebook feed were flooded with some of the funniest and most colorful characters I've seen. 

 Our Scouts truly are the best art teacherin' folks!

I mean, who else would take time out of their summer (or school year, some of them still have WEEKS to go!) to attend a professional development? The dedicated, awesome and fabulous teachers you see here.

 Okay, just a coupla spoilers from social media land...

I truly miss all of our Scouts already! It was like going away to camp.

At the end of our last day, we snapped a ton of photos, shared a lot of hugs and stories. 

We gave away door prizes that were generously donated to our Scouts.

Said our Art Scout Oath, lead by Troop Leader Lohmann.

And maybe shed a couple of good bye tears. So, yes, in the end, there was crying in Art Scouts...but they were happy tears. 

Special thanks to ALL OF OUR SCOUTS for making our weekend such a wonderful one! We loved having each and every one of you and can't wait to see you again!

BIG THANKS TO OUR SPONSORS! Here is a list of who provided some of our supplies that helped make our creating possible. We'd also like to give a virtual high five to Artome for providing everyone with a frame and snacks; the Art of Ed for fabulous swag, door prizes and snacks as well as Square One Art. We have been so fortunate for the Scouts to have such support. 

And, of course, last but definitely not least, we would like to thank BOWLING GREEN STATE UNIVERSITY and (from left to right) Barb, Jordan, Beth, Sara and Tina for being so very fabulous! They made us feel warm and welcome, catered to our every need (as well as our Scouts) and were just the hostesses with the mostesses. We appreciate your hospitality and dedication to the field of art education!

And that's a wrap on Art Scouts at the Ohio Camp, 2016. We are so excited for our Tennessee Camp coming up soon! To keep up with all Art Scouts happenings, follow Scouts on Facebook and Instagram. Until then, happy creating!

Art Teacherin' 101: Episode 6

In last week's episode of Art Teacherin' 101, I shared with y'all what art supplies I order each year. I briefly mentioned glue bottles and my distaste for them (in fact, I do believe my words where "glue bottles were created by the devil meant to be stabbed to death by small children"). I commented that I long ago stopped using glue bottles which received a handful of questions as to how my students use glue instead. So, in this episode, I thought I'd share my solution with you!

For what we call glue cups, I use little resealable cups available at the grocery store. After a couple of weeks, the glue near the top begins to dry which can easily be pealed away and the container once again looks like new (not to mention, it's ultra satisfying pealing away that dried glue, I have kids ask to do it!). For brushes, we use those plastic bristle junk brushes that you can purchase by the millions. As for the container, I just happened to get lucky with these but really any plate, tray, whatever would work. Cover the glue at the end of the day, soak those brushes at night and never have to fiddle with those pesky bottles again! PRAISE BE.

Of course, that doesn't mean that this won't happen in your art room. But it will prevent these bad boys...

From becoming a weapon of mass glue bottle distraction. ETHEL, DON'T DO IT! RUN, ELMER, RUUUUUUN!

And hopefully this solution will mean that you and your students can return to using glue for the true reason it was intended...

Love to hear your solutions for getting out of that sticky mess that glue can be!

What the Art Teacher Wore #164

Memorial Monday: This has become my fave Memorial Day ensemble...especially with the addition of my few fave shoe obsessions: Converse. As I get older, my feet start doing more dictating as to what kind of footwear they'll tolerate. I have been loving colorful Cons of late. A predict a new shoe obsession coming on. dress: Anthro, couple years ago; belt: Pin Up Girl Clothing; crinoline: Amazon; shoes: DSW

Ahhh. There is nothing quite like the first full week of summer. I'd like to say I've spent it relaxing and soaking up the free time but to be honest, this is shaping up to be one of my busiest months yet! I might have shared with you before that I'm working with Quarry books on one of their Lab series of books. Mine will feature 52 clay projects crafted from non-kiln fired clays. My deadline is at the end of this month so y'all better believe I'm busting my backside to get everything complete. I've been using my Time Timer MOD that Time Timer sent me (more below) and it has been WONDERFUL at helping me be more accountable with my time (I'm the worst at time management, guys. THE.WORST.) I'll definitely keep you posted on when the book is complete and released (turns out, those kind of things take months). 

Something else me and some of my favorite art teacherin' buddies have been working on is Art Scouts! If you follow me here, then you've been seeing our daily #countdowntocamp. We are so exited to spend next weekend with our favorite type of folks: art teachers! If you are attending, we look forward to seeing y'all real soon. 

Hope your week has been a wonderful one. Chat with you real soon!

If you follow me or my fellow Troop Leaders Laura Lohmann, Ginger Pacer and Jennifer Alvarado, then you know we are super stoked about Art Scouts. Not only do we have so many fun lessons to share with our fellow art teacherin' types but we also have huge bags of swag from our awesome sponsors. We are so looking forward to helping our scouts earn their art teacherin' badges in Bowling Green, Ohio this weekend! If you are interested, you can find out more here. 

 Bicyclin' Tuesday: So I'm reading a book (well, restarting reading a book, ahem) called Better than Before. It's a great book about cultivating good habits. I used to be very active and since the holidays, I fell of that wagon hard. So, I'm running each day, doing a little biking and waking each night when the temp cools. I'm so in love with this Schwinn I recently got. It's so fun to cruise around on...yes, in a dress. AND yes, with biking shorts underneath (you're welcome for the visual). dress: vintage; belt and crinoline: Amazon; shoes: Zappos

Big THANK YOU to all of you that joined in on #wecanmakeitmay! It was so much fun to see everyone's post on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook! The last photo challenge was a Big Toothy Grin. There was plenty of that at the end of this month! 

Feelin' Peachy Wednesday: The thing I love about summer is that I can wear my fave vintage dresses. During the school year, I often dress according to my lessons...but in the summer, I wear what suits me. I love this peachy color paired with the color of those shoes. dress and head scarf: vintage, thrifted; belt: Amazon; necklace: gift from a friend; Alice in Wonderland pin: Disneyland!; shoes: DSW

After sharing my love of the Time Timer in my Art Teacherin' 101 episode, they were kind enough to send me a Time Timer MOD. I am SO IN LOVE with this little guy! With looming deadlines, it's really helped me stay accountable and keep track of each moment I spend. I have been setting it for an hour and working solid without stopping for anything: no snacks, drinks, social media or bathroom breaks. That might sound drastic but with a person who suffers from adult ADHD as much as I do, it has really helped! It helped me meet several very big goals this week and that has me so excited. Thank you, TimeTimer! 

 Just Me and Asha Thursday: I didn't leave the house a'tall Thursday and Friday. That was my way of forcing myself to workworkworkworkworkwork (sorry, I had to). This means I spend a good majority of my time talking to the plants and Asha, the cat. Who spends most of her time, when she's not sleeping, begging me for food. I always cave. That's the power of the fur. dress: vintage; cherry pin: estate sale

 The hubs and I have been vegetarian for, like, ever. The problem is that we often fall into the trap of eating the same old same old which is mostly my fault. When I come home from school, I'm usually tired and hungry. Which means I binge on nuts and chips. When it comes time to eat, I'm still tired but no longer all that hungry. All that to say, there's been many a cereal and salad nights. With summer here, I'm trying to cultivate the habit of new recipes. We juice each morning but I'm trying to expand our drink horizons. This week, I tried radish, ginger, cucumber, kale and grapes. It was delish! We also tested a recipe from my Native Foods cookbook called Russian Velvet which was lentils, carrots, beets and onions pureed. It was a winner as well! I'm looking forward to trying out more recipes. 

Freaky Weather Friday: Storms rolled in this week, dropping the temps and bringing the rain. Left me grabbing my sweater and rain shoes (uh, my Crocs. Don't judge). Thankfully it wasn't as bad as some of the rainstorms I've been hearing about. Poor Paris and Texas, y'all! dress and sweater: vintage

Art Teacherin' 101: Episode 5

No, this isn't me doing my Mariah Carey impersonation but if it was, y'all better believe Mimi would be all...

No, I'm here today in this episode of Art Teacherin' 101 to share with you my school supply order. It's that time of year when we got some money that needs to be spent but the task can be rather daunting. You can find a complete blog post of my supply order here. Today, I'm going to walk you through my messy art supply cabinets to show you some of my fave supplies and just why I love them so. So, let's go shopping!

I do love to shop...just not for 400 children from an art supply catalog that is as big as a Bible. My initial reaction to getting funds for supplies was all...

But the girth of the catalog and the choices it provided was beyond overwhelming. In the video, I'll walk you though my favorite items to purchase so you won't end up resorting to this...

As far as where to order from, it's really up to you. Your school may have scored a deal with one of the supplies therefore making it more economical for you to shop with them. But don't limit yourself to one supplier. Give a couple a shot to see who ships quickly and has great customer service. Also, ask before you buy. Send out that school-wide email for glue, markers, crayons and pencils. Classroom teachers often have a new set from each child every year. This could save you a ton and mean more money for the fun stuff. 

Happy shopping!

Me and Mimi are off to spend quality time at For-never21. Chao!

In the Art Room: Route 66 Diner Signs

I'm one of those horribly annoying people that get a whole bunch of ideas at eleventh hour. Prior to said eleventh hour, I tend to suffer from severe Idea Constipation. How do you know if you suffer from Idea Constipation? Warning signs may include: slack-jaw staring at walls for extended periods of time; the watching of exactly three dozen cat videos on YouTube; the sudden urge to clean an entire kitchen just to avoid real work (this is only in the most extreme of cases as everyone knows that cleaning a kitchen is STUPID.) I am a victim of Idea Constipation. Only at the very last minute do I have exactly One Million Ideas and little to no time to bring them to fruition. I like to call this the And-And's (mostly because Idea Diarrhea sounds disgusting) and I suffered a severe bout of both just prior to our thematic school-wide art show.

You see, once I settled on the idea of having a kid-created 1950's diner, I got the idea to have them create diner signs. Of course, this was just mere weeks before the big day and we were in the thick of finishing projects (I seriously had one fourth grade class inform me, "We CANNOT start any new projects, Mrs. Stephens! We have so many to finish!" They are so bossy, y'all). So, like, we had no time atall (please read that last word with a British accent as that's the only way it is meant to be read). Then I got this IDEA...

Due to reasons too boring and annoying to share, our end-of-the-school-year statewide standardized testing was cancelled just days before it was to be given. This meant that our third and fourth grade teachers, who had planned to test all week, now had to scramble to come up with lessons for their students. Well, that's when I stepped in. I volunteered to make them a video of this project for them to show and teach in their classrooms. This benefited me because the kids created these fab-o signs and the teachers because it gave them something fun and educational to do with their students. SPECIAL SHOUT OUT to my awesome colleagues who took on the challenge of being the crazy art teacher for a day. I seriously work with the best people. 

And just look at the results! These classroom teachers are giving me a run for the money. I provided them with the supplies and just a day later, they delivered the kids' masterpieces to me. 

Of course, we then had to use puffy paint to neon-ize our signs. That final step we did in my art room...because I like to watch the usage of puffy paint like a hawk. Kids love the puff...almost too much. 

In the video, I had the chance to chat with the kids about the history of diners and it's influence on artists and their work. We chatted about Edward Hooper.

 George Segal and his diner sculpture.

 Local and contemporary artist Diane Davich Craig and her paintings of, among other things, diner signs. 

 Not too far from our school is the world famous Loveless Cafe (those of you that visit Nashville, don't be fooled into thinking that Loveless is in Nashville. It's actually quite far from it and usually has a line that snakes around the building). Many of my students have been there and recognized the sign. The video worked well to introduce the concept of diners to them, artist influence and get them excited about the art show AND making their own sign!

The kids and their teachers were very proud of their work. A couple of the teachers even made their own signs along with the kids.

 I kinda wanna make one too. 

And I really love how the parent volunteers paired the student's diner signs with the diner ads they created (another eleventh hour idea). 

In other news, in order to prevent another bout of Idea Constipation, I've already started plotting and planning the theme for next year's art show!