Tea is key!

With the ideas for Craft Café set in place, the past couple of weeks has been all about phase two – marketing.

I set about designing a logo. First thoughts – what are the main thing I want people to think about when they look at the image? I want them to be able to imagine the atmosphere, warm and friendly with people sat around chatting, relaxing and making.

I soon realised a cup of tea was the key.

I wanted the logo to show the sessions are about arts and crafts, and also to demonstrate some of the pieces we will be making. I took an image of someone warming their hands on a steaming mug of tea, cut out their hands and drew them a new body. I also added in some images of the rolled paper jewellery and drinks coasters we will be making in the session. Now I love computers as much as the next person, but sometimes you can’t beat a pen and some paper – so I made this image the old school way.

I also designed a poster using Indesign injecting a little colour into it by creating a border of painted eggs, like those we will be making in the session on March 29^th. It’s currently up around the Pitt Rivers Museum and I will be putting it out in a few local businesses as well.

Book tickets to paint eggs like those on the poster or to join in with any of the other craft activities here. 

Hello and Welcome!

Hello and welcome to the Craft Café blog! I’m Aisling, a HLF-funded Education and Outreach Trainee working across the Oxford University Museums and Collections and currently placed at the Pitt Rivers Museum. To conclude my year-long traineeship I’m required to devise and run a final project with a theme of my choice.

The Craft Café will run on the following Sundays 8, 22, 29 March and 12 April from 2pm until 4pm. So, what is it?

The idea for Craft Café developed when I recognized the potential to develop opportunities for adults to get together and get creative. I noticed that at Alice’s Day in Oxford, a day when the city is transformed into a wonderland of activities and events, there were very few creative activities I could join in with as an adult – and adults like getting crafty too! But it also works the other way round… at an evening event at the Ashmolean, when the crafts designed were primarily for grown ups, adults were sometimes a little reluctant to get stuck in unsure of if the activities were meant for them, with a couple actually asking if they were allowed to participate! Adults do want to get creative as ‘knit & natter’ and ‘stitch & bitch’ groups springing up across the UK testify – it’s just about spreading the crafting love!

By creating Craft Café I wanted to provide a space for adults to come, relax, have a chat and do crafts – without needing the excuse of having a child with them. It just so happens I’ve also got access to an amazing museum crammed full of over a quarter of a million inspiring objects! The sessions will be informal and suitable for all adults - no previous skills or knowledge needed. Each session will start with a short tour of some objects in the galleries, before heading to the Museums’ Annexe to relax, chat and make a craft to take home.

After an initial meeting with the Pitt Rivers team I managed to pin down some of the most important details.

I thought a lot about various activities we could do in two hours on a Sunday afternoon. Craft Café is about creating and exploring together, and so I wanted activities that would allow us to do this – something not too complex that will still produce a nice quality piece. I also had to think about practicalities. I was really excited to run a ‘cheat’s batik’ using glue instead of hot wax – but then I remembered we would have to wait for the glue to dry and we don’t have much time…

I finally opted for:

8 March – Make handmade posters and cards using simple printing techniques

22 March – Customise a canvas bag to become the envy of all eco-shoppers

29 March – Create beautiful painted wooden Easter eggs inspired by those in the Museum

12 April – Recycle paper to make stylish rolled paper jewellery and drinks coasters

This blog will trace the development of the project – from its initial stages, through the sessions themselves.

Tickets cost £3 and can be bought here. You can also keep up to date on our Twitter account and Facebook event.

We hope you can join us!