Getting Crafty in Wellesley and Brockton, MA

For the past six months I've been busy promoting my book TAPE IT & MAKE IT. The experience has left me little time to write on my blog and I hope to get back on track this month. But before I switch gears, I wanted to share some photos of my recent visits to the towns of Wellesley and Brockton in Massachusetts.


The photo on the left was taken at the Wellesley Bookstore on March 27, and the little boy holding two perfectly crafted duct tape flowers is Esra. He, his sister Sasha, and his crafty dad were certainly the highlight of my visit--and that's saying a lot since over 40 kids (and their parents) came to craft with me. Allison and Kerri of the Wellesley Bookstore were incredibly generous with their time. And the two back to back sessions were successful! Thank you, ladies.




 

On March 29 I had the pleasure of visiting the Wellesley Free Library. Not only was the program full, there was a substantial number of boys. I usually do get a fair amount of boys at my events, but these guys were serious wallet makers. I soon discovered that there was a duct tape wallet trade in the local middle school. How awesome is that?? Thanks to the children's librarian Clara for inviting me. I had a wonderful time.


Cell phone holder and wallet by Livvy.


"Let's not call them purses, okay?" Raul and Brett with their pencil cases (below, left).
 

 


On March 30th I made my way to Brockton, MA and visited the Brockton Public Library. Thanks to Lucia and Tammy for inviting me.There were a few older kids that truly exhibited fine craftsmanship.






 

 A young lady named Claire decorated her wallet with the word "odd." I gave her a quizzical look. She shrugged her shoulders and said, "Well, I'm odd." I smiled and replied, "Odd people are so much more interesting. I was odd when I was a kid, and I'm still odd. I make stuff out of duct tape!"
 


I also experienced a first: one of the participants made something for ME! A young man named Sam made me this pretty bracelet:



After presenting me with the bracelet, Sam asked me to sign a piece of scrap paper. Huh?

He gave a sheepish grin. "What if you get famous? I can sell it and make a lot of money!"

So this is what I wrote:
Dear Sam,
This is weird. :)
From,
Richela

I hope to be really famous one day so Sam can hit pay dirt.















I'm taking it easy this month, with one event on  April 20th at AI Friedman in Port Chester, NY. I'm going to kick back and maybe take naps or something to fill the void.  But come May, be on the look out for me. I have a lot of events lined up and can't wait to meet another Raul, Brett, Livvy, Claire, Sam, or Esra. See you later. xxoxR