Review: Jamming with Artgrain

Big K has always been keen in art. Be it painting or drawing, she displayed an interest and talent ever since she was a toddler. We don't really have the luxury to go for regular art classes due to logistics and time but have been going to Artgrain for holiday workshops. We had been their paying customers since a year ago. Their array of workshops is really wide. Ranging from Food Art Design, Pixel Clay Structure, Fundamental drawing, pen drawing, Digital drawing to thematic drawing. There are so many workshops, it is sometimes very difficult to choose.

This round, we have been very honoured to be invited for their Frosty Christmas painting.

Teacher Wina started the lesson by showing Big K a series of Christmas / Winter scenes. 

They started strategizing various elements of winter. Big K brainstormed with Teacher Wina and came up with Snowman, Penguins, Santa, hut, snow, sleigh, Christmas tree, reindeer and bridge. She was asked which characters she wanted to incorporate into her painting.

With a step by step guidance, Big K was able to sketch out a Christmas scene. It wasn't all easy as her sense of proportion was still weak. The teacher had to start it off with the snowman for her and work from there. Can you spot Santa? 

A discussion on the colour scheme ensued. It was suggested to Big K to do a night scene with the Northern light illuminating the sky. I loved that idea and feel. Unfortunately, Big K opposed it vehemently, stating that it was scary looking. She insisted that her favourite colour purple was to be used for the sky. I was horrified! Purple? I held back my tongue as I didn't want to impede her creativity. Who is to say that an orange has to be orange in colour or an apple has to be red? 

Beginning with audacity is a very great part of the art of painting. -- Winston Churchill

As she started painting the skies purple and pink, I couldn't help thinking how is this going to work out nicely? The blending was nice, but a purple and pink sky? Later on, Teacher Wina suggested adding orange and yellows and that magically translated the skies into a sunset scene! I was awed.

 

She was then taught how to add details to the various elements. When the teacher told her to use short strokes for the leaves, Big K immediately linked it to Claude Monet! Say who? I wouldn't have known about him if not for the Heguru lessons I have attended with Small K. Monet is an impressionist who has a thirst for natural lighting, hence the use of shadows and dark tonal shades. Hmmm...shadows? this looks kindof Monet doesn't it?

The teachers at Artgrain have a degree/ diploma in Art and above are some of the pieces the teachers have painted. WOW! I am inspired and so was Big K! It is said that art can benefit a child tremendously. It builds up the function of the right brain. Fostering creativity will not only up your child's chances of being the next Picasso, but also help him to develop mentally, socially and emotionally. Neural connections and fine motor skills are enhanced. If children are engaged in art, they learn better in all disciplines.

It took Big K three days of hard work and she finally completed the massive piece of canvas painting! The Santa and reindeer surprisingly took shape nicely. During the draft stage, I was wondering what mutated character that was. To a large extent, many centres will help the child significantly in perfecting their drawing or painting. However, I found that over here, the teacher encourages them to do it themselves by showing them how it should be done on a separate piece of paper. So all those blending and details that you see in the final product is done primarily by Big K! I think this girl has my genes and I am mighty proud of her!

Thank you Teacher Wina for being so patient with this girl who was a tad grouchy as she had to wake up earlier than usual. Something she just has to come to terms. Thank you for boosting her self-confidence. Big K was so proud of her works that she stood along a walkway of a mall and "showed off" her painting to the passing crowd! She is normally not so daring but I guess the pride in an artist gave her a booster. 

Artgrain is a studio which provides quality art education for children, youths and adults. ALL AGES! Perhaps one day, just one day, I might go try them out an rekindle the love for the arts. They run regular classes for preschoolers as well as adults. You may check out the deets over here or follow them on Facebook for more inspiration!

Disclaimer: We were given a complimentary workshop for the purpose of this review. No additional monetary compensation was received. All opinions expressed are entirely my own and written to my experience in using the services.

Valentine's Week Homeschooling

So the hubs wasn't in town during Vday. Big deal. I wasn't gonna dwell in my misery whilst he was having a great breakfast on the 54th storey of some hotel in Osaka overlooking some Ferris Wheel. Valentine's Day wasn't quite over for us. I was determined to make it more memorable for the babe of my life. So the below were what we did over the last week base on the Valentine theme.

Our DIY Shichida Material. Blowing activity.

See how focus how Lil K is?

The result -- Paint Resist Art! Was very satisfied with the outcome and Lil K not only gotto get her hands messy with the paint, we were also doing our literacy education!

The lil one was bugging me for more painting the next day. Yes literally bugging and pulling my legs, not allowing me to enjoy my breakfast! So I quickly grabbed what I've cut out with my Cameo the night before and hey presto! Stencilling!

PS: Ops, you've heard me...i've gotten myself a new toy! The Silhouette Cameo. Have yet to totally explore and have no time for scrapbooking though i've been meaning to do one since I got married. But hey, I'm pretty sure this machine will serve me well in our homeschooling exploration.

Tissue paper art. Lil K had to crush pieces of coloured tissue, spread glue on the hearts and paste the little tissue bits. She enjoyed every moment of it and I was very encouraged.

Thereafter, I left her to her own devices and she was happily applying glue on the newspapers! Turns out that this was more fun than the rest! haha

Being a rather right-brained person, I really enjoy creating stuff for my child and allow her to learn through play. Afterall, below the age of 6 is when the right brain thrives. In fact, they peak by the age of 3! Gulp! am running out of time. ok no pressure no pressure. Am actually feeling awfully guilty for not doing enough with Lil K. There are just times when I beg her to simply play with her lego or her puzzles, but she'll end up feeling restless and bugging me for more! That actually render me more breathless. But am feeling like a whale these days and sleeping late to prep materials isn't best for me. Seeing her enjoy the stuff I've prepared for her and getting compliments over FB (ok i'm narcissistic, so what?) really encourages me. However, am very anxious that I've around 3 months to get my homeschooling materials organised. At least half a year's worth? That is amidst other stuff of course. And trust me, I'm not exactly the most organised person around. Ha ambitious/ Kiasu much?

Learning through play

Growing up in the little island Singapore is one mean feat. Children from as young as 0 years old are subjected to the obstacles posed by the education system. When i first heard of pregnant mommies signing up to be on the waiting list of famous pre schools like Nanyang Kindergarten or St James, I was speechless! In fact, if you are reading this and your kid is already a year old, you can jolly well forget about enrolling in the aforementioned schools because the chances are darn slim! Having said that, all these have made me anxious and being an educator myself, I have to ensure that my child gets into a decent school with good culture. that does not necessarily translate to a school located along Bukit Timah Road. =)

New Year resolution no. 1 was to ensure that I was on top of things for lil bunnikins and one of which was to get ourselves enrolled! So yup, that has been done. We are now on the waitlist. Now I can only hope and pray that she gets accepted for I'm certainly not keen in searching and mulling through the process again. Meanwhile, to groom her into the first female prime minister of Singapore, I've embarked and panned out our learning journey. I'm a big advocator of learning through play. Maria Montessori said that by the age of 3, the child has already laid down his personality as being human. In other words, his brain is 70% developed. In my own words: OMG! There's not enough time now that bunnikins is close to 2!!! Red Alert! Ok, chill. We should never translate our fears and stress to the child. My aim to to enable bb k to grow and learn in a stree-free environment. Well, at least before she hits upper Primary when I'm so sorry, due to the impending PSLE, you'll have to be drilled by your mommy dearest unless MOE decides to scrape PSLE altogether which in my opinion isn't that great an idea. I've never quite revealed to friends, for fear that they may think i'm an overtly kiasu mother, that BB k has been in a playgroup since 9months of age. My main motive is for her to interact with other children and to socialise instead of facing her grandparents the whole time and watching some Mandarin variety show and listening to old songs! No grudges against them for their influence in Mandarin is essential too. But, the move was necessary as I needed more exposure towards English coz I'm the only one conversing in English and that certainly isn't enough! Being in that particular playgroup also enhances my chances of getting into the kindergarten which is a stone's throw away from my home, so that kills two birds with one stone. As much as I hate the early morning traffic to our destination, I guess this is the choice I've made and I'd better zip it. 

At home, I try to do my part by providing her as much opportunities to learn as possible.  

“The environment must be rich in motives which lend interest to activity and invite the child to conduct his own experiences.”

 Afterall, they are like a sponge! Of course there were days when I felt really lethargic and lazy, I would just leave her to do more free play. That seems to happen pretty often. GUILTY MUCH! Not that easy to strike a balance between work and baby. Anywayz, below are some of the stuff which did:

Mirror Play. Discovering herself. Of late, she has been enjoying this activity particularly during lunch time!

Paint work. This time on a paper plate snake. She absolutely loves texture and getting her hand messy.

Things don't come cheap these days and seeing the absurd prices of toys, I decided to make my own to train her gross/ fine motor skills. It kept her entertained for minutes! But cleanup is a nightmare!

Bunnikin's latest favourite activity- FISHING!

Dot dot dot dot dot....this activity is particularly good for their fine motor skills. Bb k gets easily frustrated however when she's unable to stick the dots. I've a fiesty lil one here who doesn't seem to have the patience. hmm wonder where did she inherit that from? But I can only sit back and watch her frustrations coz that's the whole idea. She need

“Never help a child with a task at which he feels he can succeed.”

With that, I appeal to you to cast a vote for bunnikins on http://www.facebook.com/pages/Thinkers-Box/262872183484?v=app_471354186257500&app_data=entry_id%3D18672431%26gaReferrerOverride%3Dhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.facebook.com%252Fl.php%253Fu%253Dhttp%25253A%25252F%25252Fa.pgtb.me%25252F7p1cDp%25253Fapp_data%25253Dentry_id%2525253D18672431%2526h%253DzAQFitW6b%2526s%253D1 

Thank you!

Spring Cleaning Jamboree

The wkend has been a horrendously busy one. Was preoccupied with getting the Cervarix jab and collecting my cheongsam which I wore during my wedding 2yrs ago. Sent it for alteration. Been reluctant to try ever since I took it back. It's apparent -- I'm in denial.

Speaking of Cervarix, am utterly pissed with my Gynae who didn't do a good job at educating me. As age catches up, I thought I should do a little "servicing", thus did a full body checkup over December. It's found that I do not have chicken pox immunity (despite having vaccinated twice!), and no Hep B immunity. As such, the gynae (Y from TMC) suggested that I take both vaccines again, together with the cervical cancer vaccine. Naturally, as a layman, I abide her suggestion only to learn from my family doctor that what she had given me was a Hep B and A jab called Twinrix, which was totally unnecessary since the test did not cover Hep A! Apart from that, Cervarix didn't seem to be the popular vaccine used by many. I was told by the gynae that it suited me best. Probably suited her pocket. Call me cynical, but I'm very skeptical over such specialists now. My family doctor wasn't a wee bit pleased as well. Now that the first jab has been taken, I'd need to continue with the same brand for three times. Yup, both Hep B and Cervarix has to be taken three times. The best has yet to come. According to my family doc, the reason for the negative result on chicken pox immunity could be that I'm not even responsive towards the vaccine! NO ONE TOLD ME THAT! N I spent hundreds for two jabs! Imagine the shock I was in! Mouth agape and i was rambling incessantly to sweetie that the gynae wasn't responsible enough to tell me that I could be unresponsive, even for Hep B! Of the two visits, I learnt nothing much from her. Each time she'd say "so dearie, what can i do for u today?".....how would I know what can u do for me? Shouldn't YOU be telling me? especially after being told of the situation?? Simply put, SHE SUX! if it weren't for sweetie, I wouldn't have gone to her. Sweetie golfed with her once u see and we thought we could get a good deal! Well, WRONG! Feel so cannibalised now.

Started the spring cleaning jamboree on Saturday night. First stop -- Study room's shelves. Cleared away a whole lot of papers and reorganized a bit. The whole episode lasted till 4am! Was happy to find new owners for some books. It's an overwhelming loss yet strangely liberating. Looking to recharge and start things afresh however, the will is strong but the mind is weak.

To welcome in the festivity, I put on a few more artsy fartsy touches to the humble abode i call home. Sweetie helped a fair bit and I must say, the end result is extremely satisfactory. This Dandelion picture's placed right in front of the main door such that, you'd be refreshed the moment you step into my home. It's really quite rejuvenating to see the petals "fly".

Apart from the flowers, this self-made "enter" mat will definitely en-amour many. Inspired by the cushions I made a month ago. Am madly pleased with my deft fingers!Just so you remember -- The cushions I made!

Chinese New Year seem to be a chore for many...seems like it's the only time in the year that we seriously give our homes a good spruce. Despite being a rather neat and tidy person, I still find myself busy with chores. There's endless things to do and I'm just not in the mood......Been feeling extremely lethargic of late. Perhaps it's the weather? Perhaps it's me? I'd like to think of it as the "side-effects" of being vaccinated. Afterall, my body is now battling with unknown bacteria. I should rest!!

My Alter Ego

The heavens had turned gold with the rays of the morning sun. Golden fingers of sunlight smite through my window. In the cold morning air, I shivered like a drenched cat in the rain. It's times like these when you wish you can forever curl up into a ball under those cosy sheets. The past few mornings have been great. Opening my eyes and cuddling up to my love one. Each time the morning dawned frosty and bright. Didn't need to switch on the fan at times. Wish such weather conditions can continue to prevail in tropical Singapore.

The past few days had been good. Long wkend! :) I can certainly get used to this, but sadly, as the year comes to a closure, so does my leisure. Well, I'll try to absorb the festive mood rather than to wallow in sorrow. In fact, I'm tryin to steel myself for more action in the coming year. This hols had been pretty productive so far. Had fruitful undertakings over the weekend.

Always had a penchant for the Arts. Regretted heeding mum's advice not to be enrolled in the Art Elective Program when I was younger. Not everyone was given such recognition n chance. Unfortunately, she denied my opportunity. I used to satisfy my thirst for art by painting the sunset or trying my hands at knitting, (which failed terribly due to my lack of patience) during my school hols. This time, my alter ego surfaced int he form of cushions. Probably inspired by my Mac, I've paid much attention to its keypad, thus the recent flow of creativity.


My living room suddenly took on a more artsy look with my new handmade cushions! I pride myself for them! Now, the sofa's my absolute favourite spot for chillaxing! Can't wait for the coming wkend (it's only the beginning of hte wk and I'm thinking of wkends...tsk tsk) when I'll be lying on my coach and the caressing breeze would cast a spell on me, rendering me helpless and bringing me to myy Sunday siesta.
Adore the little blackboard to the max! Cute much? (Condemn me for the usage of the word "much"...seems like the latest slang for most teens. Such grammatical error should not be condoned!) Sweetie is heartened (or at least I'd like to think he is) by my efforts in decorating his little coffee corner.

Speaking of talent and the Arts, Kseniya Simonova is someone not to be missed. She is a Ukrainian artist who had just won Ukraine's version of "America's Got Talent". With a mix of dramatic music and a light box and loads of imagination, she placed her sand painting skills to good use. oh, by the way, she's not only talented, she's a Chio BABE!

Amazing Sand Drawing @ Yahoo! Video



The clement, glorious day is now setting into a nest of purple clouds. Wish it didn't had to end......