Round-up of April Workshops at Oil and Cotton

Thanks to Scott Horn for a wonderful introduction to leather working, tooling and dying. Look for more leather workshops this summer and fall. Above, Scott shared examples of leather tooling made by his grandfather as well as his own work.

If you missed our popular Bicycle Basket Class, be sure to register for the New England Tote on May 19, 10-4pm. Master weaver Jan Schmidt will take you through the "ins and outs" of weaving your very own basket from start to finish.

This past Friday evening, Andrea Estrada taught students their "abc's" one stroke at a time. Andrea's next class, Pen and Ink Calligraphy, will delve into ink and metal pen nibs.

Paper Artist Brooke Herrin taught a class of lovely the ladies how to transform the mundane into something beautiful. Here, students are toning coffee filters with color before forming delicate paper roses.

Master seamstress, Casey Stallings unraveled the mystery of inserting an invisible zipper. Join our Fiber Arts Circle on Thursday evenings for more fiber related classes this spring and summer.

Paper Flowers and Calligraphy this Friday Evening

Join us this Friday, April 27 6:30-8:30 for an evening of flowers and flourishes. From the humblest of materials come the most beautiful bouquets. Instructor Brooke Herrin will teach you how to create life-like roses made of coffee filter paper and floral stems. The filter paper allows you to easily paint your flowers like real roses. You can use these paper beauties for so many purposes. Try them as wedding flowers (bouquet corsage, or boutonnieres), a Mother's Day present, to decorate a gift package, or to brighten your home. Click here to register today!

If flowers are not your cup of tea, perhaps fine flourishes, ink, and fancy pens are your calling. Learn the art of fine handwriting with instructor Andrea Estrada. In this workshop students will learn flourished Italic and layout for printing cards and stationary. Take-home practice materials will be provided and all materials included. ALL LEVELS WELCOME! Click here to register today!

Students that have taken Andrea's previous calligraphy classes receive $5 off of this class by entering the code: scribe. Intro to Calligraphy students may be interested in Andrea's next class, register for both and receive a $5 discount.

Summer Camp of the Week

 

Myaln's Installation Camp
5-Day Art Camp for ages 4-8
Mon-Fri, July 23-27, 1-4pm, $150 (on sale for $135)
Installation Opening Reception, Friday 6-8pm

Camp on sale for $135 this week!
Enter discount code INSTALL10 at checkout. Discount extended until April 25.

Instructors: Mylan Nguyen & Emily Riggert
Recently our family had the pleasure of experiencing one of Mylan's installations, a show at CentralTrak called Already Gone. Katy Rose, age 4, got caught up in the whimsy of the world Mylan had created. Mylan, who regularly teaches adult screenprinting at Oil and Cotton, is really excited about working with young artists, who have a natural inclination to create space - forts, tents, imaginary worlds. She will guide students to work in drawing, painting, printing and sculpture mediums to create an installation of 835 W 7th. This camp is not to be missed if you are age 4-8, and the opening of the installation on Friday night if you are all other ages!

April Workshops

We have several new classes such as leather tooling and tablet weaving, as well as old favorites (BICYCLE BASKETS). Spring is the perfect time of year to tap into your creative self and to learn something new. These workshops will make special gifts for Mother's Day or Father's Day, or just to freshen up your home for Spring. 

• Sewing Pillow Shams | Now April 19, Thursday, 6:30-9pm  
• Bicycle Basket | Saturday, April 21, 10am-4pm 
• Tablet Weaving | Thursdays, April 26-May 10, 6:30-8:30pm  
• Embroidered Color Wheel | Thursday, April 26, 6-9pm 
• Paper Roses | Friday, April 27, 6:30-8:30pm
• Intro to Calligraphy | Friday, April 27, 6:30-9pm
• Fused Glass Sushi Plates | Saturday, April 28, 11am-2pm
• Intro to Leatherworking | Sunday, April 29, 11am-2pm

Happy Monday

We hope everyone enjoyed the beautiful weather and explosion of art in Dallas this weekend. The Dallas Art Fair brought together art spaces from near and far. It also inspired an alternative response, the Fallas Dart Air at the Shamrock Art Studios. Above and below is the lovely work of Dallas artist Sunny Sliger. We are not sure how long the facade of the building on Peak and Elm with be draped in color, but drive by if you get get a chance. It is worth the visit!!!

Embroidered Monogram - Saturday, April 14, 10-1pm

Embroidered Monogram - Saturday, April 14, 10-1pm
Instructor: Stephanie Johnson

Join us for this introduction to the art of embroidery. Students will learn to embroider their MONOGRAM. Do you love label makers, carving your initials into the bark of trees, tagging freight trains? Well this is your chance to learn how to stitch your mark. Put your name on it and make your linens and things FANCY!!!

Topics include basic skills of choosing and preparing the fabric, using the hoop, and threading the needle, transfer techniques, anchoring stitches (to knot or plunge), to finishing the project for final display. Traditional embroidery stitches will be taught. With the skills learned, you will be able to continue making beautiful pieces of art or simply embellish items of your own. Visit our website to register online. Beginners welcome! Visit www.oilandcotton.com to register.

Materials Included
• 6" embroidery hoop
• white cotton fabric
• floss of varying colors
• crewel needles
• transfer paper
• sample pattern

Stephanie has developed a series of classes for Oil and Cotton that will be taught monthly. Students interested in gaining a deeper understanding of needlepoint should consider registering for Stephanie's other workshops:

Embroidered Color Wheel Sampler - Thursday, April 26, 6-9pm
Embroidered Clutch (2 day class) - Saturdays, May 5 and 19, 10-2pm

Learn to Sew at Oil and Cotton this Thursday...

Thursday, April 12, 6:30-9pm, $65
Instructor: Casey Stallings
Master sewing basics and leave class with a finished pillow cover. Students will learn to measure, press and properly cut fabric, insert an invisible zipper and how to sew tidy finished seams. This workshop is designed to teach a number of valuable sewing skills with an emphasis on professional-looking results. Oil and Cotton has three sewing machines available for use. You are encouraged to bring your own machine as this is a wonderful opportunity to have an expert guide you through using your own machine. Casey is full of sewing knowledge, tips, and tricks. REGISTER TODAY!

Supplies provided include:
100% cotton fabric
Zipper
Thread
16" x16" pillow Insert

Tyler Davis District in the News

“The vision I have for this area is one of a colorful and diverse place where people can live, shop and explore, all within a few blocks,” said Dallas City Councilwoman Delia Jasso, who serves District 1. “The popularity of the Bishop Arts District is spilling into other areas within Oak Cliff, such as the Tyler Davis area, and Jefferson Boulevard as well. Look forward to seeing more great things coming from this area.”

Kayli Cusick and Shannon Driscoll, owners of Oil and Cotton, embody the essence of the district, say friends and colleagues. They work there. They live there. And they spend their free time working to improve the neighborhood in the hope that someday, Tyler Davis will be as well known as Kessler Park and Bishop Arts.

Read the complete article here. A HUGE thank you to our friend Mark Agnew for sharing the story of our community!

Happy Easter from Oil and Cotton

Oil and Cotton has sweet Easter basket gifts for sale TODAY! Fill your baskets with art supplies and one of a kind gifts. Above is a Rainbow Easter Egg card and limited edition print all in one made by our screen printing teacher Jessica Trevizo. The shop will be open until 9pm tonight and closed over the weekend. Happy Spring!!!

Dan Boehl and Ryan Call Reading - FRIDAY!

Word of Mouth Series with The Writers Garret

Friday, April 6 2012, 7 PM - FREE!

Oil and Cotton will host The Writer's Garret to present readings from Dan Boehl and Ryan Call.

DAN BOEHL is a founding editor of Birds, LLC, an independent poetry publisher, which put out his book Kings of the F**king Sea. His chapbook Les Miseres et les Mal-Heurs de la Guerre is available from Greying Ghost, and he has self-published a middle grade novel, Naomi and the Horse-Flavored T-Shirt, on the Amazon Kindle. He writes copy for the University of Texas at Austin.

RYAN CALL is the author of The Weather Stations (Caketrain). His stories appear in Mid-American Review, New York Tyrant, Conjunctions, Annalemma, and elsewhere. The recipient of a 2011 Whiting Writers' Award, he teaches English and coaches cross country at a high school in Houston.

Mylan Nguyen at the Public Trust Gallery

If you missed the opening reception this weekend, be sure to visit the Public Trust Gallery to see Mylan Nguyen’s first solo show. Mylan is a talented young artist that teaches our popular DIY Silk Screen Printing and will be teaching our Installation Art Camp and Manga Art Camps this summer.

Les Grandes Personnes Ne Comprennent (The Big People Do Not Understand) invites visitors to revisit childhood forts and secret hideaways. The center of Mylan's site specific installation is a dreamy "playhouse" full of her sweet drawings that are sometimes tinged with a subtle dark humor. In addition to her drawings, she has included sculptures, ephemera and found objects such as an old record player and an early video game system. The exhibition pays homage to Antoine de Saint-Exupéry’s, Le Petit Prince and whimsically explores the themes of love, loneliness, friendship, and death.

Songwriting and Music Summer Camp at Oil and Cotton

Back by popular demand, SONGWRITING AND MUSIC CAMP! We will write lyrics, form bands, then write, rehearse, record & perform a single. Bands will develop a visual identity as well, through merchandise - band t-shirt, CD cover & band photo. This camp is a unique opportunity to get a crash course in pop song writing - working with a country & western singer (Floramay), an indy rocker (David) and our in-house classical composition and piano teacher (Kayli). Registration for summer camps has started and folks are signing up. Visit our website to register today.

4-Day Music Camp for ages 7-teens
Instructors: Floramay Holliday, David Karsten Daniels & Kayli Cusick
Mon-Thurs, June 4-7, 9am-12pm
Price: $150
Musical experience (lessons or similar) recommended.
Passion and commitment to hard work, necessary.