A bit of Calligraphy (handicrafts)

P1050967 Since this is my first year with our Charlotte Mason homeschool co-op, I am not teaching any classes by myself. My main role is assistant to the handicrafts teacher – which is pretty much my dream come true. Because I LOOOOOOOVE handicrafts! Calligraphy, watercolor, sewing, knitting, quilting, collage, you name it – making useful and beautiful things by hand is what I was made to do! And it brings me such pleasure!!!

“I am, I can, I ought, I will” was the motto of the students in Charlotte Mason’s school. And this is the cover of my commonplace book (which is a lined Moleskine Cahier book). I plan to do another calligraphy of the motto with some fancy flourishes in a frame to display in our schooling room.

Our CM co-op incorporates a monochrome (all one color – i.e. pencil or pen, not with multiple colors of paint) reproduction of the subject of picture study (more like a visual narration than trying to reproduce the artist’s work), so we both needed an unruled notebook to hold the sketches. P1050964

 

Below, you can see all of Adele’s co-op school supplies: Adele’s leather-bound moleskine watercolor notebook, her picture study sketch notebook (I used an unruled Moleskine Cahier notebook), and a cute little (lined) polka dot notebook that I found for $1 on clearance! I just love that Adele is using high-quality art supplies. I think it helps Adele to treat her schoolwork with a lot of respect. And, these notebooks will be used for more than just one year; in some cases, they will be a lifelong treasure. =)

 

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When Mom tries to squeeze in a bit of sewing, the kids run amok!

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P.S. FYI this is not a sponsored post. Moleskine has never heard of me! I don’t like “name-dropping” brand names but I also know that it’s nice to know what other people use if they think it is a quality product.

 

Happy Birthday, Grandma!

I think it’s safe to say that kid pictures are Grandma’s love language! We love you!

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This one looks like Pippi LongstockingIMG_1962I crossed Everett’s legs to inhibit his tendency to push into extension. We do this in the stroller too. It looks funny, but it helps his hips and it helps him sit up better.

 

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We had a playdate at a park with a little water feature. Did you know that my kids LOOOOVE water?

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In August, we went to the Mary Cassatt exhibit at the National Gallery of Art. WOW! And we brought some prints home to do some Mary Cassatt picture study.

This one was my fav.

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This is a Monet – it’s Adele’s favorite. I had never seen this painting before, but when we got home Adele promptly showed it to me in one of our books.

 

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This is a Rembrandt – Girl with a Green Watering Can – a long-time fav of ours. We bought prints of this one for picture study at home.

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