Heights' HITS Theater Fundraiser is All American

Located in the Heights for over 35 years, HITS Theater is a leading nonprofit performing arts education organization for young people. In addition to wonderful, family friendly, and affordable performances, HITS provides production and technique training through after-school and weekend performance based-classes. Each year, HITS serves approximately 900 students, grades 1 through 12, at their Heights theatre home. The theater also demonstrates a strong civic commitment, developing theatre education classes during and after school. This allows our local public schools to deliver and augment their current performing arts curriculum. Currently outreach programs are in place in the Heights at Harvard Elementary and, new this year, Hogg Middle School.

HITS is a 501(c)(3) organization. Individual support is their primary avenue for funding their mission to "inspire youth through the power of theatre." In addition to the support of patrons, they have one amazing fundraiser: The annual American Girl Fashion Show. The American Girl Fashion Show attracts a diverse, family oriented audience, and features an interactive and stylish showcase of historical and contemporary fashions by the ever popular American Girl. Attendees also get a seated meal, raffle prizes, take-home treasures, and more.

Photo: HITS Theater 

HITS is currently seeking approximately 125 girls, ages 6-13, to model in this show. They  will be holding model calls this weekend, August 29^th and August 30^th. 

Photo: Culture Map

HITS Theatre is holding a model search for its upcoming American Girl Fashion Show®. Girls ages six to thirteen are invited to audition to be in the fashion show, which features American Girl® historical and contemporary fashions as well as the Girl of the Year doll, Grace. Model searches will be held on Saturday, August 29 from 1:00 p.m. to 4 p.m. at Memorial City Mall (303 Memorial City Way) and Sunday, August 30 from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at Barnes & Noble – River Oaks (2030 West Gray). 

HITS Theatre is looking for approximately 125 girls to model historical, contemporary and Bitty Baby fashions in the fashion show. Auditions are held on a first-come, first-served basis. Girls who pre-register are seen first. Pre-registrations are accepted through August 24, but walk-ins are also welcome. The audition is free, but there will be a model fee of $45 for girls selected to participate in the fashion show. Model s will be selected based on their resemblance to the American Girl® dolls and whether they fit in the size 10 and 6x clothes provided by American Girl®. To download a model application and learn more about the fashion show, visit www.hitsfashionshow.com.

The 21st annual American Girl Fashion Show® will be held on:

Saturday, November 14, 2015 at 10:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. 

Sunday, November 15, 2015 at 1:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. 

The show takes place at the Junior League of Houston. Adults and children are invited to attend as the American Girl® dolls come to life. The show features a showcase of historical and contemporary fashions , with an array of outfits, from sleepwear to fancy dress. A limited number of advance general admission tickets will go on sale August 29 and 30. Information on purchase of advance tickets will be available at the model search events. Tickets sales open up online for all shows and all seats on September 21. All proceeds from the American Girl Fashion Show® benefit HITS Theatre, a 501(c)(3) performing arts education organization for Houston area youth.

Sponsor tables are now available online and are the only way to reserve a runway table at the fashion show. Call 713-904-3777 or visit www.hitsfashionshow.com/sponsor to purchase a sponsor table.

Photo: HITS Theater

This is a unique and fun way to support art and theater in our community. If you're not interested in participating by attending, but want to assist HITS with their mission, you can always make a donation HERE. If you're not interested in donating cash, you can still support HITS via amazon.com, Kroger, and other rewards programs. Learn about how to do that HERE. 

Sneak Peek: The Big Blue Whale

The Pink Polka Dot/Olive Anne has vacated the spot on 237 W. 19th Street. Opening in it's place comes The Big Blue Whale, a more comprehensive toy shop with items for more ages (and more genders) than it's predecessor. 

Owner Vanessa Woodhouse is a Native Houstonian and Heights resident who hopes the shop will become a destination for "curious kids and the people who love them." The Big Blue Whale will carry brands familiar to many with kids in their lives, like Crocodile Creek, Playmobil, Skip Hop, Hape (sustainable bamboo and wood toys from Germany), and Schleich (realistic animal and nature figures). There will also be lots of books, arts and crafts, games, and vintage style toys.

The shop will open for business next Tuesday, July 15th. Until then, a quick peek:

The Big Blue Whale

237 W 19th

281.685.3044

Facebook/bigbluewhaletoys

All Signs Point "True North"

My interaction with True North started with this email from Heights Kids Group early Saturday morning:

Bungalow Rooftop in the median on Heights Blvd 

Does anyone know anything about this? Someone put a rooftop (and part of a house/garage?) in the median on Heights between 4th and 5th. Looked like workmen were arriving with tools to remove just now. (hope not) Looked like a statement to the death of the bungalow. Spot on IMO. Go see quickly if you are interested.

A quick update shortly after noted that they were not removing it, but had actually added a steeple to it. Someone wondered if it had to do with the fire at Heights Presbyterian... Then someone announced: it is an art installation. The rooftop at 4th St has had everyone talking, with multiple pictures posted to The Heights Life Facebook page and in my Twitter and Instagram feeds.

So, what's the real deal on the project? It's called “True North” and has been a long time dream of Gus Kopriva, owner of Redbud Gallery on 11^th and an icon in the local art scene; a name recognized both nationally and internationally.  Kopriva has long dreamed of producing large scale public art exhibitions in Houston. He hatched a plan "to expand the placement of public art pieces to numerous locations throughout the city and particularly along the esplanade of Heights Boulevard." The esplanade, which is a Scenic Right of Way from White Oak Bayou to 20^th Street, has long enjoyed the tender, loving care of the Heights Association with native trees, flower gardens, irrigation systems, drinking fountains, the much-loved jogging trail, plus memorials, benches, gazebos, and public "Thank Yous" to the likes of long time residents, business owners, and volunteers like Carl and Melvalene Cohen. With much effort and cooperation, this project got approval from the City’s Parks Department and Public Works as a major location for a public art exhibit. And now we all get to benefit.

What is True North about? The idea is for a sculpture project that "is a representation of local works of contemporary art along the esplanade for the enjoyment of our community and visitors.  Exhibits—produced by highly recognized Texas artists—will foster the understanding and advancement of art." Sounds good.

The first True North sculpture installation will be in place for roughly nine months.  There will be ten total sculptures from eight artists, including a 2-piece project from Lee Littlefield, who passed away last year and to whom the show is dedicated. 

Here is the line up, in no particular order:

Carter Ernst- The only piece by a woman artist, "Pointing North" is actually not installed yet.  Weather caused some delays, but sometime on the weekend of April 4 you can expect to see a large fiberglass dog on 600 block of Heights. Her piece is inspired by Ernst's own dog and, as Gus Kopriva noted in our chat, is perfect for the Heights, a very dog-centric neighborhood.

Dan Havel- Pictured above, the church that launched so much speculation is "Wildlife Sanctuary." Back in the 1990s, an old church was torn down/converted in to a funeral home on 18th at Columbia. Havel is re-introducing a piece of Heights history back to the neighborhood, but he is also making this architectural remnant functional with a purpose. If you get close, you'll see small doors that hold bird seed for the many feathered friends that live in and travel through the Heights. Another elemtnet of note: the steeple was once hit by lighting, which twisted it.

Paul Kittelson- Lawn Chairs (my apology to the artist. I failed to get the official name of this really awesome piece). Kittleson is known for large scale, whimsical art like giant popcorn pieces and lighting strike. He also does a lot of public works. A sculpture prof at UofH, his piece is simply "about furniture that is utilized a lot in the Heights." A piece of wall art with the fabric used for the chairs will be available at the Heights Association auction next weekend.

Lee Littlefield- His "Cypress Flowers" should look familiar to anyone in Houston. He took cypress and pine wood and used those materials to create brightly colored trees which are installed all over town.

Patrick Medrano- "From the Hood to The Heights" --- Medrano has taken the common architectural element of the shotgun house, suited it for dogs, and gave the dogs' house oars for a canine escape from some kind of imminent flood or hurricane. Once again, we love our dogs in the Heights.

Steve Murphy- "Things You CAn't Get From Books" Kopriva isn't sure what that means! LOL! In any case, this abstract sculpture is found in a small stand of trees, giving it more of a presence.

Dean Ruck-  "Hourglass"- This sculpture on 18th, is 14' tall with 150 5" mirrors. Dean is well known for his previous works with Dan Havel, most notably the Inversion house in Montrose. 

Ed Wilson- "Folded Plane" Wilson created a giant stainless steel paper airplane.

A year of planning and a Mayor’s Initiative Grant through Houston Arts Alliance, along with private donations, has made this project possible. There has been effort from many notable locals working with Kopriva. A Heights icon herself, artist Chris Silkwood is a long time community activist and was also leadership for this bunch of loveliness. 

It's only been three days and I already love everything about this art installation. I asked Kopriva if there would more sculptures or other projects after these are gone in November? He can't say right now but I think he hopes so. He sees Houston really bursting in to the national art spotlight right now and believes that there ample room for projects like this around our lovely city. We "have a lot of Boulevards," he noted. He wants to see the neighborhood's reaction and take community in to consideration. I think this is a thoughtful way of operating. I feel pretty sure, based on the excitement I've seen so far, that our community will welcome projects like this many times over. 

Like all art, our interpretations will be subjective. I imagine the piece open to most interpretations will probably be "Wildlife Sanctuary." Kopriva shared a story with me about being stopped by a pastor during the installation of the piece. "Is this a church?" he asked. He was concerned about a sinking church and what that might be symbolic of. "Oh no," Kopriva told him. "It is arising. It's being re-born." The pastor was lucky to have someone to work on his perspective with him that day, allowing him to leave in a more positive place than he arrived. Not everyone will be able to interact with the curator of this project or the artists who created it, but certainly many discussions will be had about all of it and what it might mean.

Some might muse about the meaning of True North and how it applies to each sculpture. The name  is the most literal part of the project: it is a reference to Heights Boulevard, which does, indeed, run true north.

Saturday Supplemental: Sustainable Living Fest, March 16

The brain child of Kwrix Creative, with many Heights connections including One Green Street, the The Sustainable Living Fest is bringing on eco-friendly everything at Market Square Park on March 16.

This amazing event actually began as a small health and sustainability expo in conjunction with Earth Week in West Houston.  "The response from the green community was resounding," said Jennifer Masters of Kwirx Creative, the design firm whose efforts have helped start and maintain this ode to the ecosystem. The great response meant the Fest would see another year.  No one involved could have guessed how quickly it would become something else entirely.  As Houston’s own knowledge and fervor for local and sustainable living grew, so did the Fest. With music, art, food, fashion, shopping, this near-zero waste event (NZW) is the only eco-festival of its kind in Texas!

"More than anything," Jennifer says," the Sustainable Living Fest is about this great city. It’s about showcasing the best and the brightest Houston has to offer. It’s about fantastic local talent and the best local eats- about children playing with earth, interactive demonstrations and progressive trends in local businesses. It’s about connecting community. It’s about time to take Houston sustainability from a tradition to trend and back again."

Now held at Market Square Park, the March 16 event should prove to be the best yet!

Pretty cool! Read more: 

Free festival transforms downtown neighborhood park into Houtopia

Can You Serve Some "Breakfast for the Brain"?

If you're fitness oriented, here is a wonderful opportunity to pass on that passion to the next generation!

Ms. Sipps, the PE Teacher at Travis Elementary, is starting a morning fitness program for 4th and 5th graders.  It is called "Breakfast for the Brain."  She is cleaning out a storage area at the school to make a fitness room where the kids can exercise in the mornings before school (it will also be available to faculty at other times).  A lot of kids are already at school during that time, doing nothing but sitting around.  And many of them are the ones who most need some physical exercise.  It sounds like a great and much needed program.

Ms. Sipps is looking for volunteer mentors and donations.  Mentors would join the group from 7:15-7:45 on Mondays, Wednesdays, and/or Thursdays to work out with a child and mentor him or her throughout the year (once a week is fine, preferably the same day each week).  Volunteers do not have to be a Travis parent to be a mentor, all you need is a desire to make a difference for some of these kids.  You would need to be cleared through HISD's Volunteers in Public Schools (VIPS) program if you aren't already, but that is apparently a simple process.

Travis Elementary, 3311 Beauchamp in Woodland Heights

Ms. Sipps is also looking for donations, specifically a stationary bicycle, an elliptical machine, and a Nintendo Wii system with Wii Fit or Wii Sport.  Monetary donations would be welcome as well; any donations are tax deductible.If you are interested in volunteering or donating, please contact Ms. Sipps at ssipps@houstonisd.org.  Also, feel free to forward this info rmation to anyone else that you think might be interested in volunteering or donating. This kind of program can really help set kids on a lifetime of fitness and good health!

Rewind: Proctor Park

Recently, the City Of Houston closed serval park clubhouses and public pools. None were "safe" and any was just as likely to get closed as the next. A group of parents from all over the Heights, as well as State Rep Jessica Farrar, all wrote letter on behalf of the wonderful Pam Foote and Proctor Park. This park is more than just a play place. It is central to life and community in the Proctor Plaza/ North Norhill neighborhood. It is also a favorite of families from all over the Heights and even outside the Heights. There is truly something special about it!

Whether our letters made an impact or not, we can't really know. What we do know is that Proctor will remain open and staffed. In celebration I am bringing back another early post from this blog, which talks about Proctor Park and it's role in the neighborhood.

Before the Proctor reboot, I do want to add that the only other Heights area parks to be effected are Love Pool, which is being closed, and Milroy Park, which will have reduced clubhouse hours. According to this Click2 Houston report, the Mayor based these decisions on usage. I am surprised, then, to see Cherryhurst in Montrose on the list. That is an amazing park that is all well attended when I get south of I10 with my own kiddos.

This little quote also baffles me:

All city-funded youth sports leagues are being eliminated, officials said. However, youth baseball will continue due to funding provided by the Houston Astros.

It's not like sports keep kids out of trouble or anything. Now we'll be spending money cleaning up mischief rather than letting kids do something productive with their summer. Makes perfect sense. Ugh. Well, I digress. Here's Proctor:

When we were house shopping several years ago, we did it with an eye toward raising a family. We found the perfect neighborhood for us- Proctor Plaza. There were so many things that appealed to us about the area. Knowing we would likely sacrifice green space for square footage, public areas were of particular interest. We were thrilled to find a roomy bungalow just 2 blocks from a public park. I knew that I wanted to be near a park, but I had no idea how central the park would become to my life as a stay-at-home mom of a toddler.

Proctor Park is nestled snugly in to the middle of the Proctor Plaza neighborhood, better known to many as North Norhill. The park is a full city block complete with community center and is a hub of activity for our little neighborhood, as well as a destination for families from all over the Heights. Gifted to the neighborhood in 1924, a sign near the path states the purpose: “so that the kids would have a place to play.” Simple enough!

Daily, from morning ‘til the sun goes down, families like mine are making the most of Proctor Park. However, neighbors say this wasn’t always the case. A large covered area, now a learning ground for new bikes and a canvas for sidewalk chalk artists, was once a basketball court. The local lore is the court attracted people from outside the neighborhood- people who didn’t care that this was a quiet subdivision beginning to blossom with young families. The players brought drinking, drugs and general bad behavior, usually leaving the trash of their habits behind. Fights broke out often and the police were often "invited" by neighbors. Parents never felt safe bringing their young children by. Prompted by concerned members of the Proctor Plaza Neighborhood Association (PPNA), the park took the hoops down and change came quickly. Seemingly overnight, it became the park we now know and love.

Spending a lot of time at the park and being active in my neighborhood association, I learned an interesting fact: parks in Houston get funding based on use. While this park has been highly used by families since the hoops were removed, there was no one really working on the park’s behalf. Enter Pam Foote, Proctor’s Recreation Supervisor since 2005.

Pam came to our little park after 15 years at the Mecca of Houston Parks, Memorial Park. Under Ms Pam’s watch, a Park Advisory Council, or PAC, called Friends of Proctor Park was formed. Every park in the city can have one, but Pam is certain Proctor’s is the best. The PAC does fundraising and also hosts events that get the park exposure. In the two years since the PAC was formed, the park has hosted annual events like an easter egg hunt and a fall festival. The park also hosts the neighborhood wide Heights Kids’ Group every Monday, PPNA monthly meetings and other special events. The flurry of activity is generating results- a fresh coat of paint on the playscape and new swing seats are just the beginning of what Pam and the PAC have in store!

In addition to being a fabulous playground, the park offer programs like a free after school program and free t-ball and soccer. For more information on any of these activities, call Pam @ 713.862.6907. [Edit: As stated above, these programs are no longer avaiable due to budget cuts]

Part of what makes this park so appealing to the families from all over The Heights is the air conditioned club house and working bathrooms. As any mom will tell you, access to a restroom can make or break a day at the park! The clubhouse has a small kitchen and can be rented out for events- stipulations include 30 days notice, fee of $90/3 hours use of facilities, plus the cost to hire security. Pam has even charmed a bargain out of one officer, who offers a discounted security rate for regulars at the park. Non-profits can use the facility during the week free of charge.

If you’ve never been by Proctor Park, it’s time for a visit. Play tennis, throw a ball to your dog or just relax in the grass. This is one of the most alive yet peaceful places where you’ll find The Heights at play!

A Coven in the Heights: 2nd Annual Witches Luncheon at Stella Sola

The Friday before Halloween, I attended the 2nd Annual Witches Luncheon. This great event is put on by the Houston Heights Women's Club and is a great New Orleans tradition brought to the Heights by member Trudy Nelson. I was so happy to be able to attend again this year. The Heights Women's Club is a great organization (of which I need to join but just keep forgetting to send my money. Sigh) with a great mix of women from the Heights, as well as women who no longer live in the Heights but have personal or family history here.

Like last year, the luncheon was held upstairs at Stella Sola. If you've never seen the event rooms upstairs, they are a nice blank canvas- clean, spacious, lots of windows. Last year, Stella Sola was a new restaurant at the time of the luncheon. In fact, if I remember correctly they weren't even open for business. What a difference a year makes. Not only has the restaurant received national recognition and it's Chef du Cuisine, Justin Bayse, nominated for a James Beard Award, but Chef/Owner Brian Caswell was a contestant on The Next Iron Chef, narrowly missing the Final 4 (and making H-town very proud).

Fun, festive table settings.

Heights Women's Club member Joanne Starbuck made these gorgeous programs for the tables. Is there any shortage of creative people in the Heights? You can find out more about Joanne's hand stamped cards and gift ideas on her webpage.

Area women mixed and mingled. I ran in to a couple of people I met last year and also saw some folks I know from around the neighborhood. It was a great mix of people!

One of the things I love about the crowd at this event is that everyone really went all out. There were all manner of witches. Last year, I wasn't sure, so I wore a black dress and brought a little hat. This year, I spent a couple hours hand stitching tulle and black feathers on to a hat but it still paled in comparison to some of the great outfits people put together.

A couple of my favorite details:

I searched and searched for striped tights. On Thursday. Next year I'll know to order them on line ahead of time!

There were several Halloween themed door prizes, plus awards for Best Costume and Best Hat. Also, next year's Good Witch and Bad Witch (also known as Co-Chairs of the event) were named.

This year's Co-Chairs: Good Witch Shea Hill and Bad Witch Amydell Beardshall.

Again, I had such a great time at this event. It's open to non-members, but once you go, you'll want to join. The organization has so much history in the Heights. Founded in 1900, it is one of the oldest social clubs in Houston. The history of the Club is very much entwined with the history of Houston and the Heights. If you're interested in finding out more, you can check out the Club's webpage or their Facebook page. If you would like to attend an event, there is no need to wait until the next meeting of the Coven. There is a wonderful Holiday Tea coming up, as well as a hayride and more throughout the year. Calendar and contact information are listed on the website.

Now off to pay my own membership dues...

Clay Date Mayhem

The Heights really can be a small town neighborhood. We have approximately 45,000 residents, which is more than twice the size of my hometown. Then there are all people who commute in and out for work or other business. That's a lot of people. Not to mention we live in the 4th largest city in the country. Because of this, I am still regularly surprised when a small web of connections crosses and I end up meeting people I kind of feel like I should have known already.

Recently, I had an amazingly good time at a little off-beat location called McCheek's Academy. Ms McCheek is a ceramics artist, real name Carole Smith. She and her husband are both creative types. They live in a pair of corrugated metal warehouses which are cut and sliced in to a couple small rental units, their primary residence and art spaces- a kiln for her, plus a studio for her own creative process and also the many classes she has started offering. Her husband does screen printing and has an area dedicated to keeping shops like Hello-Lucky in tshirts as well. All of this work and creativity is surrounded by a wonderful green garden where you could relax with a drink and forget the hustle of the world around you.

Carole and her husband have lived in the Heights for about 5 years. Like many of us, they saw the neighborhood as a place where the arts are appreciated and people are supportive of one another. This helped make career change a little easier for her. Carole had gone to arts college in London and had a lamp shop there where her pieces were bought and sold around the worl, but fate had it's way with her and, when she fell in love with an American, she landed in Houston. Like many an artist before her, Carole ended up in restaurant management to pay the bills while she kept the creative fires going with her Mc Cheek's Mayhem Etsy store, as well as custom orders. For Carole, Mayhem is all the pieces she creates and I am sure her new schedule is adding to the chaos. After 7 years, though, it was time to get back to where her heart is full time. She wanted to teach but a shortage of available art teacher positions in HISD helped her realize she might as well go out on her own. Welcome Mc Cheek's Academy to the mayhem.

McCheek's Academy is the perfect way for us to all create a little Mayhem of our own. Every Thursday night from 7- 10 PM, Carole hosts up to 10 friends for Clay and Cabernet. The perfect adult play date... or should I say 'clay date.' My friend Mairi came along, both of us having a mantra of "I love to drink and make stuff." I packed a fun bottle of wine and cruised on down West 9th to get my clay on. This is where it got tricky! I didn't realize at first that the "house" was a warehouse. It took a couple of u-turns to realize what I was looking for was this blue metal building surrounded by greenery. Once I was sure it was the place, the small sign on the fence welcomed Mairi and me to Clay & Cabernet.

619 W 9th (at Waverly).

Might be easier to find if you know it's across from the metal fence with the doll heads on it. Know the one I mean?

Carole and I connected via Teresa at Hello-Lucky. Small world. Even smaller world when I walked in the door to find another mom I have never met in person before but with whom I have emailed, who also happens to live in my teeny neighborhood, Proctor Plaza. THe next guest was Serena from Antidote. This also makes sense since Carole's husband screenprints Serena's uber cute Yeti Sunshine tshirts. There was one other person, Dran, and I didn't have a connection to her but this was obviously not her 1st creative endeavor as she made some beautiful tiles I show you further down.

Classes are currently held in a partially completed apartment which will eventually become a rental until for Carole. When that happens, she is preparing a nice space in the mail part of the house for class. For now, though, this is perfect. Just the right size and I didn't feel like I had to be so self conscious about the messes I sometimes make when I am trying to be creative.

We signed the guest book, making sure to put our emails so Carole can notify us when our items are ready. There was a cork screw and some wine glasses waiting there for me. Fab. The main table was set with a work area for each person and in the middle were cups and bowls and boxes of tools to cut, stamp, emboss and roll the slab of clay Carole had prepared for you.

Wine and tools

Also on display were some projects Carole and others had made, set out to give you ideas of how the paints would look after being glazed and also to get your creative juices flowing. I need help in that area. I am a very practical person in that I don't like to make things purely for decorations. I like them to have use. I must have picked up ever item on this table 3 times... Finally, I figured out that while I may not like decorative items, I know someone who does. My mom. I decided to make her a little gift for her garden.

Before we settled in with out own clay, Carole gave a brief lesson on some of the techniques we can use to create our pieces. The most important one was the process by which you adhere pieces to eachother, important if you wanted to make some kind of box or planter. Otherwise, she did quick demos of decorative techniques like embossing or rolling leaves in to the clay to make a more organic design. This leave rolling was going to be perfect for my mom's little garden sign! Carole had a few leaves on the table but said we could feel free to go in to the garden and find anything else we wanted. I decided it would be nice to have a look and headed through the metal door in to the big, lush garden.

Carole demonstrates some clay work techniques and gives up helpful tips for our projects

Carole's garden has everything from your run of the mill bushes to herbs and flowers, all available for your use.

Just pick what you want.

One the crowd had kind of mingled around, looked at some samples, asked questions, it was time to get down to work. Carole had pre-prepared large slabs of clay for us to work with. Each piece could easily make 2 larger projects, so no one should fear not getting their $35 worth. However, if you're not comfortable with working with clay in a raw form, she also has plates and cups that you can paint, which she will glaze and fire for you. Still, I was thrilled by starting from just-past-scratch with my clay.

Serena bringing her slab to the table. Carole provides aprons but I would still recommend dressing casual and comfortable since it's hands on. The clay can get a little messy and so can the paint.

After grabbing my own piece of clay, I used a template to cut a square and decided I would use flowers to make my decorative impression. I loved it! I was even more excited when I found letter stamps which can be used to make text on the clay. I added "Paula's Garden" and then.... Well, there wasn't a lot more to do. Luckily there were more creative in attendance. Serena said she was going to make some tiles (with herbs) and then some gift tags. GIFT TAGS! BRILLIANT! I had a huge piece of clay left and was thrilled by this idea. I am one of those people whose presents are usually not nearly as nice inside as they are wrapped on the outside. I loved the practical, useful and unbelievably cute idea of making little tags for presents or other occasions.

The flowers I rolled in to the clay for my mom's garden plaque.

The greenery rolling was a favorite technique of the crowd on this night.

Mairi rolled a giant fig leaf in to her clay and then cut it out to make a large base.

She had many little cut outs that she adhered to this base to make a bright, fun piece of art.

Thanks to Serena's idea, I was able to make maximum use of my clay slab, cutting out circle and other shapes, some embossed with stamps, others with leaves and flowers. I used small letter stamps to have some say Thank You, Joy, Love and Baby.

My tags were decorated in several ways.

I embossed words on them and pierced a small hole in each one to thread a ribbon through.

Fellow Proctor Plaza mom Kim used small circles and made several dozen designs from her slab. She is going to glue magnets on the back and use them as gifts through the Holidays this year. Another brilliantly practical idea!

Carole has cutters of all shapes and sizes.

Your imagination is the only limit on what you can create!

As I mentioned, Dran made some beautiful tiles in striking red. I can only imagine how brilliant they're going to be when they are glazed. Here is a hand drawn tile with pictures taken from a book about Kimonos and Obis. I can't believe I don't have a picture of her other tile, either. It was a beautiful free hand zinnia design taken from one of the obis in the book. I am just awed by people who have that kind of talent.

Attending Clay & Cabernet was a great adventure. I am already trying to get a group of friends to go with me in the next couple weeks. I want to make holiday gifts tags and maybe some small ornaments as teachers' gifts. And who knows what someone else with come up with that set the lightbulb off in my head for projects beyond those. If you're looking for a fun night out that's more than just sitting there with wine in your hand, have some wine and creativity at the same time. Every Thursday, 7 PM, you can have your own Clay Date!

My mom's garden plaque (Merry Christmas if you're reading this, Mom) and some of the tags I made for baby gifts and thank yous. It takes about 2 weeks for them to be double glazed and fired. I can't wait to see my finished products!