I Am Thankful Turkey

This has been my favorite art project. I, with a lot of help from our wonderful Cal State San Marcos and community college volunteers, cut out perfect hearts out for this project. The bodies are heart shaped and so are the feathers. The children had 5 hearts to write who and what they are thankful for and glue them behind the heart shaped body. They wrote people who they are thankful for like mom, dad, brother, sister, and some even wrote teachers. Can you say adorable?

Art>Video Games

It is rare when boys sit down to do arts and crafts. They usually want to play basketball in the gym or play Ninja Kiwi on the computer. Today, we finally got some of the 4th and 5th grade boys to do an art project with us. They did so good on their scarecrows. Of course they put blue hair and a mustache.

Tissue Paper Fall Tree

This was the perfect arts and crafts project to do on a chilly afternoon. We first traced our hands on a brown construction paper to form our branch. Then, we twisted little pieces of tissue paper to add to our branches. After, we all added different touches like a sun and clouds. They turned out beautiful.

Dia de Los Muertos

Today we celebrate Dia de Los Muertos with our very own altar made from our club members. This was a long project that was worked on throughout the month of October in the art shop. From their colorful sugar skulls and their tissue paper Marigold flowers, the 3rd and 4th graders really have impressed us with their creative skills. Take a look at the altar when you step into our club.

Owls flying our the Art Shop

Feather + Construction Paper = Whimsical Woodland Owl craft that the kids absolutely adored! Now these feathery critters are hanging from the Art Shop ceiling and are looking down at the kids and greet everyone that walks in the room!

Art Supply Donations... Keep 'em coming!

Someone graciously donated a box full of crayons, markers and pencils. Yippee! We can always more Art Supplies so these box was a huge blessing. Since all the supplies were mixed together our awesome members were more than willing to help sort them. Our kids are always eager to help and strive to take on an essential role in our Club.

 

 

If you'd like to donate some art supplies to the Boys & Girls Club of Vista, please call Naomi (760) 724-6606 x 22 and we can pick them up!



Self portraits in lovely tissue wreath frames

This multi-step project resulted in a beautiful display in our Art Shop! When our members see their self portraits on Club walls it gives them a sense of self pride and ownership of their Club!

 



Fall Fingerpainting!

Kids had a blast while getting messy while we painted these fun fall trees with our fingers!

 

 

Our Arts and Crafts activities take place Monday - Thursday from 4:00 - 5:30 pm.



Special Guest Artist Jill Wycoff teaches a class

The new school year has been an exciting whirlwind of new faces, new schedules and activities, so I haven't gotten a chance to update the blog in the past few weeks. Now that I've gotten settled into the new rhythm of things, I'd like to share with you last Friday's special event in the Art Shop!

We were visited by Artist Jill Wycoff and her husband Brae.They generously donated their time and canvasses to our club members so that they could enjoy an extra special afternoon of fun and creativity.

Jill taught the kids about painting with our feelings and imaginations as well as technique. No brushes were used during the class, instead the kids used their fingertips, nails and palms!

 

 

The kids were so proud of their paintings, thank you Jill & Brae for a making a difference!
Jill raises money through her artwork to rescue human trafficking victims. For more info, visit Art4HeartSake

Sewing Field Trip this Wednesday

This Wednesday we will be taking another field trip to Charity Wings Art Center in San Marcos. This time they have prepared a special hand sewing workshop for us - oh goody! The are still some spaces available so sign up now at the front desk! 

And the workshop will be followed by a picnic at lake where we can feed the ducks again!

Princess Etiquette Workshop with Miss Vista!

Yesterday we were graced with the presence of Miss Vista, Miss Teen Vista and the Vista Princess for a workshop on manners & character, in other words: how to behave like a princess! After learning about the five keys to becoming a princess through fun interactive skits, every girl earned her own paper crown and got to decorate it with adhesive rhinestones!

The lovely Miss Vista, with her new fans

 

 

What a special treat we had to be visited by royalty at the Boys & Girls Club of Vista!

 

Also this week in the Art Shop:

 

Painting rocks with Miss Kim. She collected these at the beach after work just for our kids - we have such dedicated staff!

 

 

And the club members got to craft, paint and decorate these cool rattles:

 

 





Camping Night!

Last Friday we had our very first Camping at the Club Night and it was a HUGE success - that is if you measure success in incredible memories that will last a lifetime. Our club members had an absolute blast camping in the baseball field of the Boys & Girls Club. Some highlights of the night were the scavenger hunt, face painting, zombie hide & seek, spooky stories & smores.

Our happy campers the next morning:

 

 

And this wouldn't be in the Arts & Crafts Blog without a little bit of art involved right? Check out Benjamin's wild face painting:

 

 

We had a magical night that shine in our members childhood memories forever. Stay tuned for our next overnight event!

 

Also this week in the Art Shop:

 

The Vista Skate Coalition collaborated with the BGCV to paint a chair for the Art Beat on Main Street's Chairs for Charity Event. I'm sure this beautiful hand-painted chair will be auctioned off for big bucks to support a great cause.

 



 

 

 

 





Stick puppets put on a show!

This week in the Art Shop we made these cute puppets out of popsicle sticks:

 

 

And then our creativity led us to the performing arts and we put on a puppet show!

 

 

You can make your very own stick puppet at our free hands-on arts and crafts table at the Farmer's Market on August 21st from 4:00pm - 8:00pm.

Check out this picture from our last event at the Farmer's Market:

 

 

We hope to see there!

 

 

Grass Heads at the Farmers Market!

This upcoming Wednesday, July 24th, our second art exhibit will take place at Vista's Main Street Farmers Market. Not only do spectators get to see our member's AMAZING artwork, but they can also sit down at our craft table and make a grass head with us!

 

Mr. Grassy, soaking up the sun in the Art Shop window...

 

We made several of these last week at the Club and it was a BIG hit. So come and join us this Wednesday from 4:00 - 8:00 and take one of these guys home with you for free!

 

To find out more about the Main Street Farmer's Market, click HERE

 

Drawing & Perspective Lessons using Mark Kissler's Draw Squad method

Every week I teach a drawing lesson using Mark Kissler's Draw Squad Book. This book is a step-by-step guide for teaching kids how to draw in 3-D. Growing up, I remember watching Mark's show, The Secret City, on KPBS where I learned a lot of drawing skills and fun doodles that I still enjoy drawing today.

 

 

This book is not only full of over one hundred drawing lessons but it also has ton's of fun ideas to keep kids motivated. Each kid that comes to my class gets his own file folder to keep his or her drawings inside that way we can look back and see how the drawings have progressed over time. In addition, members get a sticker for each drawing lesson.

 

James already has five stickers on his folder! Behind is one of my favorite Draw Squad drawing lessons, "Hairy Scary in the Mountain". In this lesson we used the techniques of shading, overlapping and foreshortening.

 

 

Also this week in the Art Shop:

 

We are painting a chair for the Art Beat on Main's Street's Chairs for Charity event!

 

These chairs will be auctioned off on August 3rd at Vista's Smokin BBQ Cook-off to benefit local charities. To find out more, check out the Art Beat's blog by clicking HERE



 







Kids say "Thank You" to the Chamber of Commerce Charity Golf Tournament Participants

The kids say "thank you" to the Chamber of Commerce for choosing the Boys & Girls Club of Vista as the beneficiary of this year's Charity Golf Tournament and its participants. Our members made thank you cards with a personal message inside each one.

 

 

The Golf Tournament will take place this Monday, at the Shadowridge Country Club. It's not too late to join! To find out more click HERE

 

 

Also this week in the Art Shop:

 

 

We made our own Bubble Wands!

 

 

By reshaping wire and wrapping it with string, we soon transformed the Art Shop into a soapy room of bubbly fun!







Author of the Horn King Series, Brae Wyckoff, visits the Club!

This week we were honored by the visit of Brae Wyckoff, author of The Orb of Truth - the first book of the Horn King Series. Brae, a Boys and Girls Club of Encinitas alumni, shared his inspiring story with the club members and reminded them that they can do anything and be anyone they set out to be as long that they follow their dreams and persevere.

 

Brae, with an entourage of new fans

 

At the end of Brae's visit, I was lucky enough to receive a signed copy of The Orb of Truth - voted #1 Epic Fantasy. I just read the prologue and I'm already hooked!

 

To find out more about author Brae Wyckoff and The Horn King Series, click HERE

 

Also, this week in the Art Shop:

 

We made our own KALEIDOSCOPES!!! And yes, they actually worked!

First, the kids decorated the outside of the cardboard tubes with markers. Next we placed mirrors on the inside, added a smaller tube with some beads inside, some clear discs, etc... and PRESTO a working kaleidoscope was fabricated! The end result was very rewarding.

 



 

FREE Face Painting at Tonight's FREE Movie in the Park

The Boys and Girls Club will be offering free beautiful and sparkly neon face painting at tonight's free movie at Brengle Terrace Park!

 

To find out more about the City of Vista's free outdoor summer movie series click HERE

 

 

 

Also, this week in the Art Shop:

 

Water Color Rainbow Fish!!!

I printed a simple fish design that the kids would first trace with crayon - the wax from the crayon keeps the water from running out of the lines. Next we turned up the radio and painted the morning to sounds of creativity.

 



 



Feild Trip at Charity Wings!

Last week we were warmly welcomed by Charity Wings for artistic workshop in which the Club members got to create their own "About Me" booklets embellished with paint, stickers, glitter and their own photo on the cover. It was an arts and crafts dream come true.

The kids indulging in the table full of creativity-inducing goodies.

 

The Charity Wings team and Boys & Girls Club delegates posing for a group photo with their finished booklets and duct-tape wallets - an extra surprise craft that Elena, Charity Wings founder, threw in at the end of the workshop.

 

Find out more about how awesome Charity Wings is by clicking HERE

 

 

Our field trip was finished by a lovely picnic at Discovery Lake just down the road from the Art Center. We ran, played fed the ducks and we were even greeted by a mommy duck and her babies! It was all in all a good day.

 

 

Join us on Saturday July 20th for the City of Vista's FREE Movie in the Park Event! The movie "Brave" will be showing at dusk and patrons can arrive as early as 6:30 to picnic, play, and get their faces painted for FREE by the Boys & Girls Club. Find our table next to the concession stands!





 



Vista Skate Park Coalition visits the Club!

Build-a-Skate Workshop

 

Lyssa & Jack Flaherty of the Vista Skatepark Coalition get the kid's creative juices flowing here at club with their second installment of their build-a-skate workshop. During the first session the kids got to paint the underside of the skateboards and during last week's second phase of the workshop they got to get crafty with grip tape designs.

 

Lyssa & Jack Flaherty pictured here with our happy summer campers.

Jack and Lyssa were awarded the 2013 Have a Heart for Kids Award by the Boys & Girls Club of Vista for their outstanding dedication to serving the community and their ongoing volunteer work and donations to the Club.

 

Every workshop includes skateboarding practice and one-on-one lessons in the Club's gym! 

 Stay tuned for their next build-a-skate workshop coming up this month!

 

Learn more about the Vista Skate Park Coalition by clicking here

 

Miss Teen Vista, a Boys & Girls Club of Vista Alumni, lending her crown to one of our members.

Miss Teen Vista, Maggie Saffarian, visits the Club as a volunteer with the Vista Skate Park Coalition. Maggie is a Boys & Girls Club of Vista Alumni and success story! She is an honor student and is spending her year as Teen Queen of Vista volunteering at countless events throughout the community.

 

Also last week...

 

We made Hawaiian leis out of paper flowers

 

and we decorated our own felt banners!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Summer Blast!

Welcome to Boys & Girls Club of Vista's Art Blog!

There have been so many fun things going on here lately in the Art department that we just had to share this with everyone. My first blog post is a recap of what's been going on in the Art Shop during the last couple of weeks since summer camp started on June 10th. Also, I'd like to tell you about some of our upcoming events like our 2nd Summer Art Exhibit that will take place at the Vista Farmers Market on July 24th!

 

 

Here are just some of the highlights since we kicked off the summer!

 

We made our very own sculpting "clay" out of salt, flour and water. Members practiced exercising teamwork and sharing while we took turns adding ingredients to the mixing bowl and kneading the dough. We also played a "getting to know each other" game since there were a lot of new faces this summer. The first person to be able to memorize everyone's name AND their favorite hobby won a prize from the treasure box!

 

After each group finished their creations we baked them in the oven for a few hours and the next day we painted them!

 

Aren't they FABOULOUS???

Tie-Dye Friday was also a big hit and our next tie-dye day will be Friday, July 19th. Kids must sign up in advance for this project as spaces are limited and may either purchase a white Boys & Girls Club shirt for $5 or bring something white from home. This colorful project really sets the mood for summer fun

 

Here is Isaiah, quite proud of the results of his tie-dying efforts!

 

 

Yesterday, when I told the kids they could decorate the entryway to the club with sidewalk chalk, they went absolutely nuts with excitement! Now the entryways to the club are full of color and creativity.

 

One of our members, Dubois, who is exceptionally talented drew up this caricature of himself:

 

I am proud to announce that last week we held our first "Love Your Planet" Art Exhibit and Live Art Demo at the Vista Farmer's Market. Six of our featured artists attended the event and we able to meet and greet with passers-by who stopped to admire their artwork. Our members also created live painting on cardboard discs that were mounted onto a spinning easel! The event was so much fun, we will be doing it again next month on Wednesday, July 24th at the Vista Farmers Market located on Main Street next to the Avo Playhouse. Live art demo will run from 4:00pm to 6:00pm and the exhibit displays will be up until 8:00pm. We hope to see you there!

 

Our club members set the mood for market-goers in search of an afternoon of family fun while they painted under the sun at the Farmers Market entrance!



 

 

 

Sign up now for the upcoming art class field trip on Wednesday July 3rd, from 9:15am to 2:45pm.

Join us for a fun-filled day of Art and Nature. We will start the day by participating in a watercolor painting class at Charity Wings Art Center in San Marcos. Next, we head next door to the beautiful Discovery Lake for a picnic and delightful afternoon of play in the great outdoors.

Only 7 spaces available so sign up soon!

 Cost: $15