Future Craft Collective Mission:




The future craft collective is about inspiring children to get crafty, to create beauty, while simultaneously teaching them ways of minimizing our impact on this earth.  It's about understanding ways of recycling, reducing, reusing, and at the same time, making some really cool stuff.  
Throughout the craft sessions, kids will discover ways to create a world in which the belief in handmade looms larger than the messages of the marketing machine.  In this era of relentless advertising and planned obsolescence, the time has come to infuse our children with our own messages of creative living and sustainability.  This message too can save a kid from a lifetime of seeking contentment through consumption.
The future craft collective wants kids to understand the thrill of making it themselves.  We want them to look at the used goods all around them not as trash, or as items to be tossed in the recycling bin, but rather as raw materials in their crafty creative pursuits, thereby allowing them to experience the innovative feeling of instilling new life into old objects.  
From the idea, to the completion of a project, to showing it off in public, we can teach children to recognize the value and pride and indeed the thrill in saying "Thanks, I made it myself."  And the even greater thrill of utilizing old-fashioned ideals of resourcefulness and ingenuity and of finding the hidden life in abandoned materials.
in addition to making some really cool things we'll cover:
-why is there so much?  understanding that less is more.
-what are retailers doing to the value of handmade?
-the pride of making it yourself.
-the joys of creating personal style.
-the value in knowing the ability to create is within his/her realm.
-tapping into a kids' inherent desire to create.
-recognizing the marketing machine of a consumer culture.
-spreading the love and celebrating the thrill of handmade.

Each session stands alone with a lesson in sustainability and a hands-on project, which will lead to a greater understanding of the thrill of consciously crafting.  A follow-up discussion of each project will lead to greater understanding of the thrill of handmade, the need to minimize the impact and the necessity of creating rather than consuming.

Sunday, May 25, 2008

Mama classes were a huge hit.



The mama classes were totally fun. The first night we made appreciation banners out of reclaimed burlap and Kathie's incredible scrap bucket that has a combination of cut-offs, old sheets and linens and some fantastic totally thrift store vintage curtains (my personal favorite). Everyone walked away with a finished banner and the ability to add a little gratitude to their family life. It really does work like magic to have gratitudes be constantly on the forefront of everyone's brain.

Day two was the birthday class and mamas could choose between the wish flags, birthday crown or anticipation calendar. We'll have more photos later especially of the anticipation calendar which gives your child and you a chance to reflect on the year past and look to the year future all the while counting down the days until the actual big day. Thanks to Kathie for her incredible wisdom in creating that work of art. Again, photos forthcoming.

Right now I just have a photo of the crown I made which will for sure be featured on all of our heads for all our future birthdays to come. It's reversible which makes it all the more fun and you can see I got to use that vintage curtain I mentioned earlier. More embellishment will surely be forthcoming in the way of old buttons and maybe even some handwork. In fact, Kathie's brilliant idea was that perhaps a bit of handwork could be added at each birthday thereby marking the occasion with great thought and intention. I think that would suit us perfectly.

It was also brought to mind about the excitement of keeping everything in a special box that was brought out a week or so before the big day. Everything could be unfolded and displayed giving the occasion the honor and anticipation it deserves - beyond just cake and presents.

We'll definitely be doing mama classes again, so stay tuned for further details.
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