Art-al-Sol 2010

I was very lucky to manage another Art-al-Sol camp this summer. Art-al-Sol is a summer art camp run by MNPS, and is a week long, all day camp open to 8-13 year olds. This summer, we focused on a theme that was inspired by the Chihuly exhibitions at the Frist and Cheekwood. We were able to go to the Cheekwood exhibit (on a very, VERY hot day!) and the children loved it! Below is some of the projects that we were able to complete during the week. We worked on microwave kiln glass, glass coasters, Classroom Chihuly, Shrinky-Dinks with pastels (hint: wet the pastels first, then draw on the shrinky dinks), friendly plastic pins, silk painting, window cling mobiles and bead pictures (using the fusible beads that are available at Wal-mart).

One of the coolest things ever!!!!!!

In buying supplies for Art-al-Sol, I found a glass fusing kiln that goes into the microwave. I ordered it and tried it out with my campers. It is AMAZING!!!!!! You design a glass piece, place it on kiln paper, and place it in the kiln. The whole kiln goes in the microwave for just a few minutes. The only drawback is that you have to wait for 30 minutes before you can take the glass out of the kiln and see it. I know...patience is a virtue, one that I usually have, but this time, it was very hard to wait. I found this kiln in an art supply catalogue, but I also found it at Hobby Lobby. It's a little pricey at about $119 at H.B., but with a 40% off coupon, it makes it more affordable. I have fired my kiln over 60 times, and it is still working great!