When I was growing up, sketching and coloring were my favorite pastimes, other than reading. Sure, I played outdoors and did things like ride my bike, skate, jump rope, and other activities requiring physical exertion, but art was my favorite. I sketched people and animals, and colored them. I drew my own paper dolls, cut them out (tabs and all), and designed clothes that I drew, colored, and cut out. I made my own dollhouses using cardboard boxes, fabric scraps, and “windows” cut out from the Sears catalog showcasing curtains. If I read an illustrated book, I drew the pictures I saw in the book. Anything associated with being artsy or crafty was my go-to.
Every year I asked Santa for an art set, but for some reason he never brought me one. I wanted an easel, painting supplies, art paper, colored pastels, the works. I guess Santa didn’t want my mom to have the mess to clean up.
My love for sketching never waned. I expanded my love for art into macramé, cross-stitching, and sewing. I made clothes, Raggedy Ann dolls, purses, and more. Creating was and still is a priority.
So, when my granddaughters’ maternal grandmother and I took them to an art studio in their town with multiple activities for kids, I was enthralled. Yes, you had to pay for it. No, there wasn’t an art teacher, just free play time with a very energetic manager/owner who gave suggestions, provided materials, and moved constantly among the adults and children in the not very large space.
First, the girls picked out their own aprons to wear. Then they painted pictures seated in front of an art easel. I have the photos of them standing beside their finished work, but my subscription to this site won’t allow me to post more than one picture.
On one table, the girls could use the three primary colors–red, yellow, and blue if you’ve forgotten elementary school art–to mix colors in small wells in a tray. They learned that mixing blue and yellow produces green, mixing yellow and red produces orange, and mixing red and blue produces purple by using a large dropper to pull up the colored water before depositing into one of the wells. On one table sat plastic dinosaurs, and we used Play-Doh to make dinosaur footprints, “bury” the dinosaurs, and used tools to cut out shapes. Another activity was coloring a fish and gluing colorful bits of paper on it. Back to the easels we went, but this time the girls used the chalkboards on the backside to draw or write.
Watching them entertained for almost two hours with the various activities made me wish we had something like that in our town. A place for rainy days, a place for birthday parties, a place for…fun!
Yes, we can do those things at home. But there’s something special about doing things like that in a designated place with other children. Plus, no clean-up! No paint spills, no Play-Doh stuck to something, no bits of paper to sweep off the floor.
Sports reign supreme in my community, but not every child–as a matter of fact, not most children–have an inclination to sports. Some are drawn to music, dance, reading, writing, or art. As parents and grandparents, we can recognize their natural interests and abilities, but sometimes we drop the proverbial ball when we don’t encourage them to explore all options. If we push them into one activity and exclude the rest, the six-year-old boy who already demonstrates athletic ability may never discover he has a creative side. The six-year-old girl who is forced to take dance lessons may never discover she has a talent for golf or for making jewelry.
Visiting this art studio made the wheels in my mind start spinning. A music center for kids to try different instruments and take private lessons. An art studio similar to the one we visited. Maybe combine the two. Music on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Art on Wednesdays and Fridays. Saturday mornings and afternoons for parties.
Hours?10:00 to 1:00 and 3:00 to 5:00. Cost? I don’t know. That would depend on the overhead and cost of the space. I’m just sharing my idea. A financial expert would have to weigh in on the practical details.
But the next time you’re in Collierville and looking for something for the kids to do, go online and look for Color Me Collierville. It might be just the activity the children will love.
Life As I know it 