Saturday 25 January 2014

Second Week - Handmade Journals 21.1.14


All together on film for the first time!

Welcome back!

We have another jam-packed blog for you this time, as we really put our volunteers through their paces on Tuesday! First off we had a little look at the volunteers' previous voluntary experience, and then we made a definition of what it means to be a volunteer. 





 







Once we were all singing from the same hymn sheet, Margaret Stewart, who manages the Creative Communities programme, came in to talk to the group about the aims of the CC project, how they as volunteers will be able to be involved, and also how their contribution improves the CC programme. Margaret in particular highlighted how community members who attend Creative Communities pop-up events can get more quality, 1-to-1 time and support when there are extra volunteers there to support the artist. 










Later on we re-enlisted the help of Hatti and Laura from the last course. They came in to lead a session on journal making, a skill which they learned on the last course. We're really glad we inspired Hatti and Laura to continue to volunteer in the creative sector, and it's a solid aim for this round of Cultivate that we help the participants identify their 'next steps' at the end of the course - volunteer opportunities which match their skills and interests.









Well done to Hatti and Laura - you did a great job!


Next week we'll be looking at our skills and qualities, and will hopefully have not one but two special guest speakers, as well as (of course!) a great new practical activity to try out. 

Look forward to seeing you all then - and Cultivate guys, remember to comment below!

TC 
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Sunday 19 January 2014

**New Course!** First Week 14.1.14


  Hello again!

Welcome back to the Team Cultivate blog, it's great to see you! We are back for another round of creative volunteering, and this round of the programme looks set to be fantastic, as the first week went off with a bang! We've got a full house this time, and lots of new delivery techniques, and the vibes are vibing on all the right frequencies ;) 

(I think I might have just made that metaphor up?)

For those of you who are new or need a refresher, click here to read a bit more about the idea behind Cultivate. For those who are less new, there's been a few changes to Cultivate this time round. The most important change is that we've had to say a sad goodbye to Fergus, who has been offered a full-time job elsewhere, so will no longer be able to take part. Fergus - you will be sadly missed, but we wish you all the best in your new job. Feel free to pop in on a Tuesday if you're ever in the area! 

Fergus's departure has meant a promotion for me, so I'll now be helping to deliver the course, as well as providing admin support. I'm very excited about this and hope I can help to give our new crop of participants the same fantastic experience I've had with Cultivate.No pressure!

Week 1 was a very chilled out week. We got stuck straight in doing a 'teabag art' activity, which gave everyone the chance to get to know each other and have a chat. We made tiny collages inside empty tea bags, with the theme of 'about me,' and then shared our teabags with the rest of the group as a way of breaking the ice. 









After sticking all the collage pieces together, they are inserted inside the tea bag,

A few drops of wax are sprinkled over,

 And then they're ironed.


I have no doubt that this year's team are as infinitely creative and talented as the last lot! The photos below are of the finished results, and trust me, they look EVEN BETTER in real life!
















Getting down to more serious business, during the afternoon part of the session the new team got a visit from Monica, the lead artist on the current Creative Communities project in Seaton. Our volunteers will once again have the opportunity to help support the Creative Communities programme, so Monica came to talk about her part of the project and how the volunteers can help.



 Monica's theme is Spreading the LOVE in Seaton, so she'll be focussing on positive messages and acts of kindness.






These little packets of good vibes will be pegged to a popular bus stop for people to take on their journeys with them, and they'll be replaced as the project goes on. I think this is a superamazing, wonderful, fantastically awesome thing to do!



Finally, we got a little feedback from the participants on why they'd signed up for the course, and the varied responses reflect the many, many reasons why people volunteer. From building on existing skills to learning new ones, from making friends to giving back to the community, there are many benefits to volunteering.



Psssst! By the way, if any of this batch of Cultivate trainees are reading this - you've just ticked a box towards your SQA Qualification ;) See! Easy!

In the spirit of positive messages, have a lovely week, and don't forget to come back in 7 days to find out all about how week 2 went!

Team Cultivate
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