Chloe from Hatastic has agreed to let me film her in her workshop at the end of her garden in a few weeks, can't wait!

Winter Warmer

Bringing communities together through creativity.

My father would aboslutely love a room like this.  Kazuya Morita Architecture Studio in Japan created this house completely lined with with pine shelves to display the owners’ extensive collection of books.  The client had a huge collection of Islamic history books, the deisgn had not only be suitable for living but also provide enough storage for his books and to exhibit certain pieces. 

Daniel Julien and Mélanie Turcotte, Montreal designer, have created a line of 'self made' crafty accessories!  Scarfs made from sweatshirt sleeves and moustache bow ties!

Interesting Blogs

Hand Made Life

Craftivism

New Mums

Further to my day with Jodie, filming New Mum, New Crafter; I have been thinking about different activities to support new mums that are not the traditional playgroup, singing, yoga, baby signing etc.  Crafting gives new mums confidence to be creative in all aspects of their life, can help if they chose to return to work, gives them new skills, new ways to socialise and plan activities with their children.  Some new mums find the change to staying at home with their child extremely difficult, crafting activities could provide a less daunting way of meeting new people, and can help develop conversations about a variety of relevant issues.  There is a lot of new information to take in, and you need to understand everything to ensure the system works for you.  I don't mean getting involved the age-old local craft fair, but actually helping on projects that ensure they have an input into decisions that are made about their area. 

By providing new mums opportunities to work collaboratively with other mums in their area with professional artist as a facilitator they can access creative processes for enjoyment, for learning and as a tool for personal and skills development.

Project outline for Tuesday

How can traditional practices and culture be maintained with the use of crafting in contemporary society?

Key research themes

Craft skills

New materials

Community and interaction

What's important to me?

Learning and understanding different crafting skills from designer makers and enthusiasts.  

Researching into new materials or materials that can be used in unusual innovative ways to help crafting be seen in a different light.  

Encourage groups of friends, families and communities to get more involved in activities together, to encourage storytelling and the diffusion of knowledge and skills across generations.    
Using craft as a way of empowering communities to become more engaged in decisions about their local environment.

My research

Completed:

I have carried out an extensive survey

Interviews

To carry out:

I will be using video ethnography to help gain insight into how to develop my artefacts

My artfeact's 

Kits and instructions that combine:

Fun

Games

Crafting

New skills

Re-using

Communication

Working together

New materials

Recycling

 

Jodie: New Mum, New crafter

In January, Creative Review asked readers to nominate their top five logos of all time.

Porbably quite predictably when you ask designers about barnds they like, Apple came out pretty near the top! The others in the top 10 were all very simple, how a logo should be in my mind. 

Just found out we need to be ready to speak about our projects on Tuesday at uni and show our journals etc, glad I have kept this up to date, will just have to show it on the screen and write up a brief outline of my project over the weekend, key points to talk about. 

Telescopic Views

I really loved the old telescopic scenes in the Museum of London, I found the below on the V&a website, great idea!

Objects, furniture and people from other times or countries are exotic. They carry a flavour of the strange and mysterious. Scenes painted by artists carry some of that individual's imagination to the viewer.

Postcards are an accessible way of catching this exciting mixture, and of using it to create a fantasy of one's own. One way of doing this is to make a peep box. 

Materials

• Selection of postcards to use whole, or to cut images from
• Shoe box
• Tracing paper or coloured tissue paper
• Scissors
• Sellotape
• Glue

Instructions

1. Remove the lid and cut a peephole to look through at one end of the box. Cut one or two small windows out of each side (about three cm square), not directly opposite each other.

2. Cut three windows out of the lid, one very near one end.

3. Place a postcard at the end of the box opposite the peephole.

4. Cut shapes out of other cards to add at the sides. When cutting, include a margin at one side, to fold at right angles and glue to the peep box side.

5. Cut out figures to add interest. Fix an extra strip of card onto the back, with a base tab that folds at right angles to stick to the bottom of the box.

6. When everything is in place, place the lid on top, with the end window farthest away from the peephole. Adjust the lighting by covering the lid and side windows with a book or hand to find the right level. Block windows that you are not using with black sugar paper. Then cover the rest with tracing paper, which will diffuse the light. To create different atmospheres, use coloured tissue paper over the windows.

To create a feeling of distance, insert a spyglass, normally used for security on front doors, into the peephole.

Last night Rachel and I met up, no one else from the group was there.  But we had some great discussions, really feel like we progressed our own personal ideas and we have decided to give feedback on each others projects even though we are in different tutor group. 

Also noticed a poster for preparing for your show and have signed up to some workshops. 

Today I have had a response from Hazel at Craft Central, she is going to ask the designer makers there whether they would like to be involved in my project, fingers crossed!