Category: Study Group/Work Shops

Garden Club of Oak Park & River Forest > Study Group/Work Shops
Ivy Topiary Workshop

Ivy Topiary Workshop

Although it was a cold, gray April day outside, in the Cheney greenhouse 20 or so garden clubbers were warm and cheery learning to make topiaries under the direction of Karen Thomson of Tomson Topiaries.   Karen had brought everything we needed to turn wire forms into garden sculpture in basically three easy steps:  First we squeezed dry some wet moss and packed it into and around the edges of the form.   Secondly we held the moss in place with a peace of fishing line tied to the form and continuously wrapped around the form.  The fishing line was barely visible after the ivy was placed on the form.   Third, we made small holes in the moss using a pointed plant dibbler to make room for the roots of the ivy and flowers going into the form.  We anchored the plants in the holes with a little patch of moss and U-shaped metal pins. That was it; easy peasy.  Eventually as the plants grow, they will need to be pinched back to keep the shape of the form.   Weekly the topiary will need to be soaked with a hose or placed into a tub of water to keep it moist.

The finished products were as varied as their makers:

IMG_0240

Gail, Jennifer, etc_0242Mary Ellen and Delia_0241

 

 

 

Elaine_0244Carol Gallagher_0239

Expressing Ourselves in Printmaking

Expressing Ourselves in Printmaking

Prior to our most recent study group, several of the Garden Club members had a delicious lunch at Eastgate Café at 102 Harrison Street. Then we crossed the street to our class at Expressions Graphics.Expressions (3)
At our workshop, Janet Schill and Carol Friedle introduced to monotype printmaking. First Janet discussed the artful history of printmaking, and taught us a bit about using watercolors. Then we outlined and painted our own designs with water color pencils and paints onto mylar translucent plates pretreated with a release agent. We used a combinations of freehand drawing, tracing and interpreting photographs to create our prints.

Creating painted plates
Creating painted plates

Then Janet and Carol taught us how to use their fascinating print machine to turn our painted designs into printed works of art. The final results were more impressionistic and abstract than the originals. We enjoyed the process and are all eager to explore more of this creative art.

Sue, Lisa, Linda and Elaine with their printed creations.
Sue, Lisa, Linda and Elaine with their printed creations.

Expressions Graphics is a not-for-profit organization located at 29 Harrison Street, Oak Park. They have a full lineup of classes available for adults and for children interested in various aspects of printmaking. Visit the website to learn more about Expressions Graphics and printmaking: http://expressionsgraphics.org.

Printmaking Workshop

Printmaking Workshop

 

Watercolor Monotype by Janet Schill
Watercolor Monotype by Janet Schill
Watercolor Monotype by Janet Schill
Watercolor Monotype by Janet Schill
Watercolor Monotype by Janet Schill
Watercolor Monotype by Janet Schill

Spring Study Group — April 15, Wednesday, 12:30 pm.

 

Have fun practicing the fine art of printmaking!

Janet Schill and Carol Friedle of Expressions Graphics will introduce us to monotype printmaking. We will briefly discuss the artful history of printmaking, and learn a bit about color theory and watercolors. Then we will outline and paint our own designs with water color pencils and paints. The staff will use their fascinating print machine to turn our painted designs into printed works of art. Don’t worry if you don’t think you’re an artist! You can create an abstract design, or copy a (non-copyrighted) image you find online or in a book.

Expressions Graphics is a not-for-profit organization located at 29 Harrison Street, Oak Park. Visit the website to learn more about Expressions Graphics and printmaking: http://expressionsgraphics.org.

Cost: $15 payable at class to Expressions Graphics by check or cash. Additional prints will be $4. Advance registration is requested for preparation of materials. Wear old clothes or a smock.

You are invited to meet your fellow classmates for a delicious lunch and socializing just before the class, down the block at Eastgate Café, 102 Harrison Street, 11:30 am. Bring your ideas and share them with your friends before class!

Any questions, please contact studygroup@gcoprf.org.  You will receive an email reminder 2-3 days before the class.

 

 

 

Garden Club Ladies get creative!

Garden Club Ladies get creative!

Since mid-March weather prevented us from eagerly digging in our gardens, eleven members of the Garden Club enjoyed a creative and fun-filled afternoon painting our own silk scarves. Karen Snow, an experienced silk artist and teacher, introduced us to the fine art of silk painting at our March study group in a member’s home. You can see some of Karen’s work at her website: http://www.silkforallseasons.com/
Karen first showed us the silk cocoon and explained the process of making cloth from its fine fibers. We each handled the cocoons and the raw unwoven “silk cap” to feel the texture of unprocessed silk. Next we saw and felt various weights and types of woven silk cloth. After learning about the simple process of using bamboo brushes to paint with heat-set dyes, we were ready to try it ourselves.

Karen Snow of Silk for All Seasons introduces the Garden Club to silk painting.
Karen Snow of Silk for All Seasons introduces the Garden Club to silk painting.

Karen assured us that we couldn’t really make a “mistake.” As we brushed on the dyes, the colors would blend and bleed into each other in a pleasing way, and would lighten as they dried. We also could use salt on the wet scarves, which would absorb and then release the dyes into delightful sprinkles of muted color.

photo by Lisa C
Marilyn and Sheri paint silk scarves.

We were all eager to experience this process, so as a “warm-up” project we quickly painted small silk sachet bags, which Karen later filled with fragrant lavender flowers. It was rewarding to watch the dyes spread and merge on the silk bags. Most of us used just 2 or 3 colors in random patterns as our first experiment, and the results were lovely.
This successful first project gave us confidence to experiment with bolder patterns and more colors on our larger scarves. Painting the top layer of the folded scarves created a duplicate image on the bottom layer as the dye settled through the cloth. Thus the ends of the scarf appear matched when worn.

The creative and eager ladies painted flowers, paisleys, stripes, geometrics as well as some rather indescribable shapes in bright colors onto the wet cloth. And just a few minutes later, magically, the scarves all became lustrous, sheer and beautiful when dried and smoothed with a hot iron. Even our “mistakes” were transformed into unique and attractive points of interest.

The process was so rewarding that almost everyone painted a second scarf, and one of our more artistic members, Bobbie, created a third. We were all so enchanted with our works of art that some of the ladies who originally planned to give theirs away as gifts, decided to keep them instead!

photo by Lisa C
Sue, Gayle, Elaine, Carol, Shirley and Bobbie show off their new scarves.