Francesca Lucia: What’s The Latest?
Watercolor Notecards, Wells, Maine
This was the third time that I taught the watercolor notecards this season, and it was the absolutely best class. We progressed through all of the beginning watercolor stages nicely. We discovered that no matter our learning style or left/right brain, we can all be marvelous artists!
Let’s Tangle Art, Wells, Maine
Just the two of us! These classes when only one or two sign up tend to be some of my favorites to teach. As the years go by, and my teaching improves, small groups really shine. The work that this student produced is probably some of the best that I have seen. Is it because of the one on one teaching? One can only guess. Here is to unique individual art!
Watercolor Notecards, Lehoux Art, Wells, Maine
Four of us spent a morning painting watercolor cards at Lehoux Art in Wells, Maine. We started with learning how the water moved, then we learned how the paint moved, and then we combined the two with our final painting. Each person picked up the techniques quickly and we finished holding up our favorite art pieces. Well done, ladies!
Let’s Cross Stitch! Wells, Maine
It was a family affair! There was a mom with two daughters and one of the daughters had two daughters! Go Figure! My favorite was the discussions between the ladies! They were very smart, educated and had meaningful careers and lives. A goal of one is to finish cross stitching grandma’s tablecloth. I would love to see it when it is finished! Go get it done!
Let’s Make Watercolor Cards! Wells, Maine
The students were serious about making this watercolor work. It can seem intimidating, but with lots of practice it can become easier. We started out with zero knowledge and now we have 5 completed beautiful cards. I asked the class to choose their favorite card for our final photo. What a great night of learning with these ladies!
Sharing our Stories While Needle Felting, Wells, Maine
When there is only one student, together we have time to really get to know each other. How nice is that? Here is a one on one class in 3D needle felting. We created a hanging heart in a heart. Life is good!
When We Knit a Hat!
What a fabulous group! We have a two part process to knitting a hat! We first learn to cast on, then knit, and then we knit until we get 8 inches of completed knitting. We are using a two needle approach and will sew the pieces together when we are finished. Everyone caught on from folks of 97 and 5/6ths to younger. You can see their process and finished work here! Even the teacher finished her multicolored hat! Well done everyone!
Just the Two of Us, Wells, Maine
Who would have thought that only one student arrived for Mandala Rock Painting? We enjoyed getting to know each other and he definitely got his money’s worth with a one on one class! We shared stories and life events, all the while learning how to paint Mandala rocks. I appreciate him, and all of the students, taking a risk to learn something new!
Needle Felting, 2 D, Wells High School, Maine
Love, Love, Love what we did last night! Four folks wanting to learn something new to enrich their lives. We had a wonderful time getting to know each other and learn how to needle felt. They were all quick learners and picked up the ancient craft easily. What a fine time. Thank you everyone!
Ladies Who Bead, Wells, Maine
This past summer I had two lovely women who wanted to learn how to bead Native American rosettes. They take a slow and precise work. Also, our eyesight starts seeing beads, so a magnifying glass and lots of light helps. As you see the photos below, the step by step of concentric circles make gorgeous rosette medallions.
Let’s Needle Felt 2D! Lehoux Arts, Wells, Maine
How often can you lament after meeting two new women about the closing of JoAnn’s, where to find good fabric and what will Michael’s carry? Us crafters are always searching for the right materials. We want to support local! What to do and where to find what you need? Well, we had everything that we needed the Lehoux Art Studio yesterday. Two wonderful women gathered with me to create a needle felted flower square. There are so many things that you can do with a bit of strong felt, a needle, a pad and beautiful colored wool. Look at the photos to see our process. I will update as people complete their projects.
Let’s Paint Mandala Rocks! Lehoux Arts, Wells, Maine
What do you do when it is hot outside? You paint Mandala rocks at the cool Lehoux Art Studio! We had a lovely group of women who shared stories while painting. It is so fun meeting new people and opening oneself up to new possibilities. As we spanned ages and experiences, we all had art in common. Here are some pictures from our class.
Fresh Pasta with Friends
Last night we had a wonderful time sharing cooking tips and enjoying the process of making fresh pasta. I shared my Italian heritage and stories from my family’s property across the street from Saint Ambrose Church in Saint Louis, Missouri. The land now has the Imo Piazza, but you can still see the stain glass window that Papa bought for the church with our family name on it. You can also eat at a couple of my cousins restaurants there as well.
The final product for dinner was fettuccine carbonara! I forgot to take photos of the grand table because by the time we were finished, we were all heartily eating. Pasta, salad, bread, green beans, tea and blueberry pie was the menu! Thank you all for the gift of friendship and family! Mangia!
Let’s Cross Stitch! Wells, Maine
Well, it’s the last class of the Fall season here in Wells, Maine. We had a really good class and created beautiful hearts with one color. The next steps would be stitching with two or more colors and outlining an object with one black thread. There were many examples and plenty of time to create! I am attaching some picture examples of some other simple patterns. Also, I am so thankful for everyone that came to my classes. I would not be teaching if it weren’t for students interested in learning!
Let’s Knit a Hat! Wells, Maine
We all hit it off right away! We ended up calling our knitting class a therapy session. I think that is the secret to knitting. You escape into a series of counting stitches, trying a new stitch, thinking about how many more inches to go, and before you know it, you get lost in the project. This departure into the realm of knitting makes one forget about the day to day tasks like the dinners that need to be cooked, the clothes that need to get washed and dried, and the bills that need to get paid. All that lies ahead are the stitches, the rows, the length and the width. How nice is that as your hands create and click away to new warmth for your head that came from a ball of yarn? Very!
Let’s Make Greeting Cards! Wells, Maine
We had an exceptional time making greeting cards in the simplest format. This format was the basis, and any kind of expansion, could be added. Many embellishments were tried and were successful. To me, that is when crafts become art. There were 5 artists and they completed the following cards: Photo, Kirigami heart - flat and folded, Pounded leaves, and multiple watercolor cards. The watercolor cards were blown paint, half of a flower with edging, outlining a leaf with a wet insert and balloons with shading. We started simple and ended more complicated. What a fun night that will add more creative and personal mail. Look out USPS!
Needle Felting Class! Wells, Maine
Our second Needle Felting Class was smaller by one, but was mightier by two. There was a repeat customer who did advanced work with a larger picture with three iris flowers. The first timer was full of enthusiasm as she emailed me before and after the class. I was so happy that she found a fiber activity and class that she really wanted to learn. I truly enjoy these people and all of my students. What a wonderful week with two classes, Monday and Tuesday, and many more to go! Welcome to Wells-Ogunquit Adult Education classes Fall, 2024.
Mandala Rock Painting! Wells, Maine
A wonderful full class of women, young and old, got creative and artistic with Mandala Rock Painting. There were lots of discussions on how to do this, what is okay, and in the end art isn’t always a craft. This art is an expression of a human interpretation or an application through a visual process for beauty or emotional power. These women went beyond the craft experience and into the artistic experience. How can you tell? Take the directions, choose colors, designs and put your own skills on your work! How much fun can you have doing this? Lots and we all had fun Monday night!
Needle Felting Wells! Maine
This Monday was the first class of 2024! What a wonderful night of talking fibers and doing it, too! There was a small, but powerful group of women who jumped in on a very creative level. We had photos to work from, but what each person decided to add to their designs made each one their own. Crafting produces the same product. Art is creating your own interpretation of an idea. I truly enjoyed our first class of the Fall season with these three exceptional students.
Rock Painting with Fabulous Friends
Yesterday we gathered on a rainy day to craft. It was so much fun for me to host my friends in a Mandala Rock Painting day. Everything was ready except for the good food and energy that the ladies brought with them. We spent sometime getting to know each other more, sharing stories, eating and painting. A simple yet perfect day. We sure wish everyone could have been here with us!