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04 Nov

The History of Paint

 

Today we are truly blessed to be able to purchase a variety of different types of paints and colours however, this was not always the case. Paint is one of mankind’s earliest inventions. It began with cave paintings dating back as far as 40 000 years but some believe that paint may have been created way before that. Humans have made use of hematite, charcoal, yellow and red ochre and even manganese oxide as painting mediums. There were 6 basic colours used by early painters these being green, yellow, blue, black, red and white.

Early paintings discovered within the tribal grounds of Europe, Australia, Africa and Indonesia depict images of hunters and early farmers/herders as well as images of families, community gatherings and other important moments regarding life at the dawn of humanity. Painting has been used to capture the lives of humans, to document our progress and experiences and still to this day holds value in the way we express ourselves today.

As paint evolved humans began using dried plants, minerals ground roots, berries and even blood to pigment their paint and bring new life to the colours they were using in their art. Iron oxide was a leap into longevity and durability as well as adding vibrancy to art. Artists had to resort to mixing their pigments with anything from saliva, egg and even animal fats to ensure they achieved optimal results. The Romans and Greeks created “oils paints” by combining pigments with plant oils, revolutionizing paint for millennia to come. For application, earlier painters used hollow bones (resembling the earliest methods of airbrushing), their fingers and brushes made of animal hair

We still use a lot of the original methods today, however, we have been blessed with people who have made accessibility to a variety of painting mediums as easy as 1-2-3.

https://statesman.co.za/search-results?q=paint

28 Oct

The history of paper

Paper has been used for thousands of years, there are stories of the Chinese using it as far back as 105AD and the Egyptian’s have been using it since around 2500BC. The Chinese used plant fibres and the bark of mulberry trees to produce sheets of paper, it is said that the Chinese successfully governed their people as a result of paper. The Egyptians used parchments (dried animal skins) and papyrus (a plant used for its fibres) as a means of documenting their history and controlling production, accounting documentation and for storytelling.

In the 11th Century, paper production was brought to Europe and by the 13th Century, the Spanish had refined the production of paper using waterwheels. By the 19th Century, wood-based papers had come into full production and were the most widely used.

With the production of paper, printing books became easier and the ability to share knowledge, produce technical designs, document history and finances became increasingly popular with scholars, businessmen and writers.

Today we use paper to write down our thoughts, print presentations, create art and spread the news. The use of paper may have begun as a form of knowledge transfer only used by the educated but today we use paper in all aspects of our lives.

https://statesman.co.za/paper

25 Oct

The history of pens

 

Pens were used in ancient Egypt (around 3000BC) by scribes who invented pens made of reed, they were invented to replace styluses and the writing on clay. In the 7thCentury quills (pens made using the flight feathers of birds) made their way into use by the writers of the middle ages. Modern day pens came about in the 18th Century and cooper tip pens have been found in the remnants of Pompeii.

In 1822 John Mitchel began the mass production of metal tip pens, with improvements made to the original steel tips and dipping pens over time. The pen evolved from pens being dipped into ink wells to pens that had ink reservoirs which no longer needed to be dipped which made writing quicker and easier. Even though the pen had evolved over the years, pens with reservoirs only became popular in the 19th Century when the fountain pen was invented. Over the years many inventors changed the designs of the pen and soon there were a variety of pens available to users across the globe by writers and inventors alike.

Pens can be found in all shapes, forms and colours. Everything from rollerball pens, felt tip pens and even ceramic tips are used today. The ink is no longer limited to just ink, they use gels and liquids in our pens today.

We use pens for writing, signing documents, taking notes in class and at the office, to doodle, to create and to make our mark.

https://statesman.co.za/search-results?q=pens

12 Oct

Task lists – a survival tool

Ode to the ever-needed task lists we use to navigate our days. These lists carry our sanity, our structure and our must do’s for the day, week and month. Without them, we find ourselves frantically scrambling to get things done and without our list, we tend to do things that are not even in our thought patterns because we forgot to work our way from the top of that list to the bottom.

Task lists (or To-Do lists) are possibly a woman’s lifesaver, especially with the demands of today. As mothers, we get up earlier each day. We do this because we want to achieve all we need for ourselves, our families and within our jobs. Daily tasks can easily spin out of control if we do not have a starting point and a way to make ourselves stop at the end of the day.

By checking off the tasks, no matter how big or small, we feel a sense of control, we feel as though we achieved what lay ahead of us for the day and when we see more checks than clear boxes we know that we have used our time wisely. Task lists are a friend and ally in maintaining balance in our daily lives. 

10 Oct

Keeping a Diary

There are two kinds of diaries in this world, the one that organizes your life and the other that organizes your thoughts. Each one holds a different weight in our hand and each one is important to how we get through each day. Some may value the diary of organization; others may see more clearly because of the diary of thoughts. Both carry important dates, times, events, each will explain it in a different way, but both are important to someone.

In the current times, a lot of diaries are kept on a device of some sort, sent to the cloud where it may never be lost, and it makes sense that this is the way the world has gone. No one wants to lose their documented time.  However, there are some of us that still like the feel of a book, some bound in leather, others have hardboard covers and some are even soft, there are pages to write on, a pen to use and texture to the diaries we fill. Very little compares to flipping through the pages while trying to find something important and getting caught in a moment remembering the days gone by.

Keeping a diary, no matter its purpose is a truly personal thing and those who have felt its call will always remember the way a brand new diary smells, how crisp the pages were on that very first day and when we get a chance to open the cover again, we get to look back on our own documented history.

08 Oct

The importance of keeping a tidy work-space.

Most successful people will tell you that one of the key reasons they are so highly productive is because they keep their workspace clean and organized. Agreed, with children it is more challenging, and a vast majority of the teen population has yet to completely master the art of organized. This does not mean that we as parents should not lead our children by working along side them as opposed to trying to force the state of tidy and organized.

Cleaning up after a day of work and play is quite overwhelming, especially for a restless child, most of the time parents will send them off to play and will then take the time to clean up and get it sorted out without a fuss. We are seasoned in the art of organization and our parents started teaching us this skill from a young age. Parents should be offering the same to today’s children.

Children need to discover the joy of helping maintain their workspace when we explain why the paintbrushes should be washed after they have been used and then next time, we don’t have to wait because the cleaning up was done last time. Also, it is a time to teach, you can count the brushes together, learn colours and shapes together. There is a multitude of knowledge in your mind that you are going to share with your child(ren). This is a time of talking and a time for your child(ren) to explain to you how they see the world.

30 Sep

Teach your child using stationery stock lists and online shopping

As far out there as this concept seems, look at how you can use something as simple as a stationery stock list, upcycling list and online shopping list to teach your children. 

Think about it, a stationery cupboard or arts and crafts cupboards are like any other learning tool. You have your paints, papers, boards, pens and pencils, your reusable items (like toilet rolls, toothpaste boxes, old tubs, paintbrushes and boxes) and this can all become a stock list. This stock list teaches your child quantities, colours, shapes, measurements, uses and self-management of items. It also teaches your children to be aware of what they have on hand and how to use these items responsibly. By involving them in the stock control and the replacement thereof, you are tackling a large number of items on your “learning” list. Spelling and writing, because they need to know how to write those things down, numbers, cost of items (money) and budgeting. They are learning to identify the shapes, sizes and colours and they are beginning to understand the list of most used / least used items in their collection of supplies. 

By involving children in the stocking of their supply cupboard you are giving them responsibility for how they are using these items, how not to waste, how to work within their budgets and needs, as well as enabling them to manage the cost of their creative tools. By including upcycled items to their list, you are teaching them to be aware of what can be reused and you are also teaching them to be mindful of their environmental impact. 

Everyday tasks like managing their stationery easily become lasting practices. Not only that, you are giving your child the ability to take part in the management of themselves and the world around them. 

Empowering Children Through Everyday Life!

29 Sep

Unlock your inner child

There is nothing more joyous than play, we see children doing it every day and we as adults cannot fathom let alone remember the last time we truly played with such gusto. The older we get, the less we remember how to play, to laugh until our stomachs hurt, to jump and run with excitement. Honestly, it’s sad, because we believe we have no time to play. 

When last did you actually enjoy playing dolls with your daughter or build a fort with your son without feeling like it was this massive chore on top of being exhausted from work, duties, expectations and demands? This is not an attack, it is an honest question? We parents get so distracted by daily expectations that we forget we had children for more than one reason. We may be bound to them through love and duty, and this is good, but children are sent to us so we can learn how to play, laugh and explore life with them. 

Children bring us so much joy, they remind us how to play in the dirt, how to throw flour around the kitchen while we are baking, they will paint our faces and throw glitter in the air if given the chance. Children have this natural ability to turn even the most mundane of tasks into fun. If we allow them and ourselves to just be children, even if it’s just for a short while, you will soon find more time for play and life will suddenly become joyful and fun again.

28 Sep

Social development through arts and crafts

Children love to do art projects and it’s a fantastic way to get a group of children or even parents and children together to create, laugh, talk, share and build something together. Their ability to work independently on a specific part of the project or as a collective to produce a final product gives them courage, a sense of achievement and makes them feel more comfortable in group activities. 

Children who are still learning to navigate their place in social circles are often left out of group activities because they are shy, uncertain or have not mastered a specific skill. This in itself can cause a child to feel frustrated, self-conscious and they tend to distance themselves from specific tasks or encounters as a result. 

This changes when they are accepted and given the opportunity to do something they are familiar with inside the project and to watch and learn from their peers, siblings and parents. Even the simplest tasks, whether it is choosing the colours, the glitter, the shapes or even the concept builds confidence, opens dialogue and creates a fun environment for mastering new skills. Children grow through encouragement and a feeling of belonging. We are social creatures after all.

27 Sep

Understand your child through creative expression

Most of the time we spend with our children is spent trying our very best to understand them, to take care of them and to find ways to bring them joy. In this we are predominantly driven by “social expectations”, we focus on all the “must do’s” and we forget what is really important. What’s important is making your child feel loved, heard and understood. Most parents have no idea how to achieve this within their own family structure, and it is no fault of their own. What we think we have to do and what our natural instincts tell us are usually in conflict with each other. 

There is a solution to this though, allow your child to take the lead on creative endeavours. Allow them to pick the topic, the medium to be used, right up to end result, if I may. Children love to sing songs, write stories, draw/paint pictures, mould characters from playdough and be in charge a little. By allowing them to take the lead, they then give you access to their world. For example, your little one loves trees, so follow his (or her) concept, provide various options for them to choose from. Whether it be to paint a tree and add textures using real leaves, textiles or household items. The choices are all theirs. 

During this time of child-led creativity, your child will begin to communicate with you about what they are feeling, what they see and understand what they want to learn and what they are struggling with. By creating an open arena for them expose their inner being, you will start to understand their innermost person, you will discover what interests them, you will see what brings them joy and because they are “in charge” you will see their confidence grow not only with regards to expression but with other aspects of their lives. 

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