The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

Wednesday, June 23, 1999 THE OAKVILLE BEAVER BS 4 QENTRE 130 NAVY ST. 813-2021 A rts & E n te rta in m e n t f a t line 905-815-2022 wwŵ oakviUeiarf̂ xom| ,1 ul\ 9-10-11. 1999 OakviUe Beaver E ntertainm ent Editor: Carol Baldwin 845*3824 (Extension 254) Fax: 337-5567 1New set of wheels Crack Pot Studio has expanded to include five pottery wheels plus a paint-your-own section By Carol Baldwin ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR P1; 'Y o u ca n b o o k th e s tu d io fo r th re e h o u rs , w ith a m in im u m o f 1 0 p eo p le . W e ta k e y o u th ro u g h a d e m o n s tra tio n ... You b rin g in y o u r o w n fo o d , w in e , b a k e d g o o d s, te a , coffee, a n y th in g y o u ch o o se. " lanning a party? There's a |great place on Robinson Street where the staff will set up beforehand and clean up afterwards, and all your guests will take home a hand-painted, ceramic item. The place is Crack Pot Studio, and the take-home item, selected from a shelf of bisque ware (clay that has been poured into a mould and hard­ ened, and is ready to be painted, fired, and glazed), is painted by the guests themselves. "You can book the studio for three hours, with a minimum of 10 people. We take you through a demonstra­ tion... You bring in your own food, wine, baked goods, tea, coffee, any­ thing you choose," says Vicki Bastable, a staff member at Crack Pot, noting that private parties can be for anything from a church fundraiser to a business meeting with a social component at the end. "Everybody has to come back to pick up the fin­ ished pieces," adds Wilma Spence, co-owner of the pottery stu­ dio. "Bisque pieces take from three to four days before you get them back. And the clay pieces take closer to two weeks, because they have to air dry completely. Then they are fired once. Then they are glazed. Then they're fired a second time." Crack Pot, which was originally opened at the comer of Navy and Robinson Streets by Angela Lynch more than three years ago, has gone through many changes since then, including ownership changes. And it's about to go through another one, or so Bastable hopes, as she waits to buy half of the pottery-making business from Katharina Bindra, who recently moved to New Jersey. And Spence, who has been involved with Crack Pot since year- one, was more than willing to buy into the business when Lynch decided to move to Bali. Along with all these ownership moves, Crack Pot itself has moved to a bright, spacious studio located at 295 Robinson. Since then the business has expanded to include a paint-your-own section to accommodate those cre­ ative adult parties and half-day work­ shops. Then five pottery wheels were added to offer a full complement of pottery services. "We found, with our adult classes especially, that we could take them so far with the hand-building, but they wanted to go further and we couldn't offer them any more," says Spence. "And what is a pottery studio without wheels?" Birthday parties for kids aged five and over, however, continue to fea­ ture the old-fashioned hand-building technique. A great opportunity for kids to be creative, get their hands dirty - with clay that is - and take a memento home that will serve as a constant reminder of the good time they had. "The birthday parties are about an hour-and-a-half doing the project and an hour to open gifts and have food," says Spence, explaining that the par­ ents are responsible for supplying the food. "Birthday parties where they are just painting on bisque are a little bit shorter. It doesn't take quite as long to paint something as it does to make it and then paint it." Then there's that in-between age - teenagers. "Once the teens come, we can't get rid of them. We had the same group all last year," says Spence. "But especially now, with the wheels, I think it's something they'd really enjoy." All ages can learn more about pottery through Crack Pot's eight-week class­ es. Or adults can concentrate on a specific aspect of ceramic creations during one of the half-day work­ shops that are offered periodi­ cally. Kids can even trade in those been-there-done-that summer day camps for a half-day of printmaking at Green Gables, followed by a half­ day of pottery at Crack Pot. The camp sessions for kids aged 6 and up begin July 5th and continue each week until Sept. 3rd. Cost is $95 per week for half-day sessions or $195 for full-days. GST is included in those prices as well as all materials and a snack in the morning and in the afternoon. Children must bring their own lunches. By the end of any eight-week ses­ sions, students, regardless of age, will have taken home at least half a dozen finished pieces. (Eight-week sessions for adults are $172, which includes all the materials.) And would-be potters don't have to be able to draw in order to paint something on their pottery pieces. There are stencils, stamps and even old-fashioned carbon paper that be used to transfer images onto clay cre­ ations. "Stamps are quite popular, espe­ cially with the young children. You paint the stamp and then you press it onto the surface of the piece to get the image," she explains. 'T here's a selection of stencils, as well, that can be used." "You'll always pass the art class Photo by Peter C. McCusker Crack Pot Studio instructor Cathleen Nicholson helps Lesley Bresolin throw a pot on one of the five new pottery wheels at the studio on Robinson Street. Crack Pot offers classes and workshops for would-be potters of all ages. here," quips Bastable. Bisque ware, Spence adds, has an additional benefit in that pencil marks will burn off it in the kiln. "So, it's a popular technique for a lot of people. They can map out their design first, using the pencil, knowing that it doesn't matter what they put on there, because it will bum off." The carbon paper, which Spence says many young people don't even recognize, can be used to duplicate specific images such as favourite car­ toon characters or wallpaper designs. "If you're doing something for your kitchen, you could repeat your wallpaper pattern on your dishes," says Bastable. "Same thing for a child's room. We have trinket boxes and piggy banks here. So if you want­ ed to pick out a child's motif, it could be repeated on a piece for their bed­ room." And, if you're getting married or have just had a baby, Crack Pot has an unusual keepsake for the bride and groom or the new parents. The former can take a platter to their wedding reception and have all the guests sign it before taking it back to the studio and having it painted, glazed and fired. The latter can have their baby's foot painted then have the footprint stamped onto a bisque plate, along with the child's name and date of birth. 'They can decorate it with colour. Then we glaze it and fire it," says Spence, adding that older kids use hand prints which they press onto mugs or popcorn bowls as gifts for mom or dad. Some kids even get to visit the pottery studio during school hours, if their teachers happen to choose it as a field trip destination. "It's usually about two hours. Kids work with an instructor, usually on a project related to whatever unit they happen to be working on in school at that time," says Spence, adding that one class, for example, created tiles on the evo­ lution of butterflies. "It's reinforcing the things that they've learned in school, but they're able to have some art mixed in with it." Those who are interested in the tactile art of pottery can check out the Crack Pot booth at the Waterfront Festival in the Art Market in Corona­ tion Park. The booth will include demonstra­ tions, hands-on activities, and pottery for sale by potters who have created their stoneware at the Robinson stu­ dio. Take a trip through tim e Experience the vibrant culture that existed on the shores of Lake Ontario in the late 1800s at Heritage Hamlet in Lakeside Park this week­ end. Heritage Hamlet lies at the foot of Navy Street in downtown Oakville, a historical setting that was once the end of the Underground Railroad, which provided freedom in Canada for American slaves. During the Waterfront Festival, that historic spot will offer cider and baked goods along with some old- fashioned dulcimer music. And visi­ tors will also have the opportunity to learn forgotten trades such as broom making, wood carving, and candle making. Young and old alike can enjoy horse-and-buggy rides through Ye Olde Oakville or watch history spring to life in an original live the­ atrical production titled Rebel Tall. Rebel Tall is directed by Michael Brown, a recipient of many awards for his historical plays. This particular play follows Oakville founder William Chisholm as he rallies loyal townsfolk to do battle against William Lyon Macken­ zie and the rebellion of 1837. There will be a special guest appearance by Betty Kading, Oakville's award-winning town crier. For more information, call the Oakville Waterfront Festival office at 847-7975. A L L S P R I N G M E R C H A N D I S E 5 0 ' o f f A L L S U M M E R M E R C H A N D I S E 3 0 ° o f f S I D E W A L K S A L E June 23, 24, 25, 26, 27 ■ • i r n i W mm m m % \ On Stave...LiVi j i f i l p ...... _ I I I The Premier Charity Golf C lassic Rattlesnake Point Golf Club Thursday, June 24 Proceeds to go to The Oakville Centre cor the Performing Arts. Call Merritt Goddard at (905) 842-3253 "Limited foursomes and singles still available " ngs Sinatra Taught Me rday, July 10 at 2:00 p.m. Sonc Saturd For anyone who is a fan of "Old Blue Eyes " this show is not to be missed! Starring Tommy Ambrose singing classics such as "New York, New York", "Strangers in the Night" and many more! Presented in association with d l W 0 1 2 5 0 . 'jfm members save 20 F A S H I O N S R e y n o l d s a t L a k e s h o r e R d . E . D o w n t o w n O a k v i l l e • 8 4 4 - 2 5 1 0 Hours: Thurs. & Fri. til 9 pm, Sat. 9:30-6 pm, Sun 12-4 pm Visit the box office, 130 Navy Street (at Lakeshore), Monday to Friday, noon to 5 p.m.; Saturday 2 to 5 p.m.; or two hours before show time. For more information on upcoming shows explore our website ot i Jesse Cook Saturday, August 7 at 8:00 p.m. Don't miss this virtuoso guitarist whose "fusion flamenco" style wows audiences from coast to coast! Presented in association with A b bo %** The Oakville Beaver "S is S e ts r a n H i