Yarn Bomb?

Clients and instructors visiting from AbilityFirst.

Terry is very happy to be knitting on the loom.

Karen G. and her mother create pieces for the installation.

Michelle Miller/Fickle Knitter discusses knitting with Cindy H.

Pei-Lin and her mother enjoy the fiber arts together.

Objects from the 'wrapping' station.

Rene and her mother work together on the knitting loom.

Pieces of bright colored weaving along with the many tubes that will be installed.

Our videographer Stephanie Serna interviewing student Frank L's mother. 

The students of Hope University are preparing for a bomb...a yarn bomb that is!  We received a grant from the VSA to create a 'yarn bomb' and present this concept along with knitting, weaving and other fiber related arts to other facilities and the community.  We have done knitting and fiber arts workshops at several other facilities including Social Vocational Services in Norwalk, AbilityFirst in Long Beach and Fairview State Hospital in Costa Mesa, California.
On March 14th, we hosted a 'knit-in' here at Hope to bring together parents, volunteers and clients from some of the other facilities we visited to get together and have some fiber art fun!  We had a weaving station, a knitting station, a stitching station and a wrapping station.  The weavers worked collectively on our rigid heddle looms, the knitters used both needles and the knitting looms, the stitch-ers sewed and embroidered while the wrappers, wrapped various objects with yarn. We were also assited by the knitting celebrity, Michelle Miller, the 'Fickle Knitter' who helped us knit a piece for the installation.  Thank you Michelle!
 As you can see the 'knit-in' was a success!
Our installation will be at the Westfield Mainplace Mall in Santa Ana, California on the 19th of April, ready for the VSA celebration at the mall on Saturday the 20th, where several of our Hope U students will be performing along with other persons with disabilities from around Orange County and beyond.  We will also have demonstrations and a 'mini class' of weaving so anyone can create a piece for the yarn bomb.  We hope to see you there!

Etsy Preview

Little owl with a belt

Little owl with spectacles.

Soon to be available on our etsy page is this adorable brown owl sporting a green belt.  He is ready to sit on a desk top, shelf or table showing off his new accessory.  Our owl is sure to bring a smile to anyone who passes by.  This little fellow makes a wonderful eye glass holder, how wise he looks in spectacles.  We hope you visit our etsy shop and peruse our selection of our handmade items.  Don't forget that all proceeds go directly to the program.  

Santa's Elves Can Knit!

Ben was excited to see his hand knitted gift was his favorite color, red!

Darren's hand knitted hat fits him perfectly.

Kim just could not get over how soft her hand knitted scarf was.

Gary looks like a little elf in his hand knitted hat.

Jason will be warm  while waiting for the bus in his hand crocheted scarf.

Joe loves his new hand knitted hat almost as much as he loves baseball.

You can see by Crystal's smile how excited she is about her new hand knitted hat.

Rene and Gary show off their new hand knits.

Darren was pleased to pose for a photo in his new hand knitted scarf. 

This Holiday season a local knitting group became Santa's knitting elves as they adopted us for their seasonal charity.  They hand knitted scarves and hats for the students of Hope University to receive as presents.  The knitting group is based in Long Beach California and is called the Long Beach Stitch and Beach and can be found on yahoo groups.  One of the instructors at Hope U is a member and her knitters were so taken by her stories of the clients that they wanted to contribute.  We here at Hope are so grateful to this wonderful group of ladies for giving of their time to create knitted gifts for the students.  Each gift was hand delivered by Santa and as many of us know, there is nothing quite so nice as a hand knitted gift.  Thank you Long Beach Stitch and Beach for your big hearts and warm knits! 

Etsy Sales!

Felted bead hair clip sold order on Etsy.

Felted bead hair clip, another sold order on Etsy!

A pair of green wrist warmers we sold on Etsy.

A lucky shopper bought this tool holder from our Etsy shop.

Felted bead hair clip that we sold from our Etsy shop.

A set of felted easy grip soaps sold to a group called Reece's Rainbow, a special needs adoption group.

Sales at our Etsy shop have been brisk.  It is very exciting to see people from around the United States taking an interest in our Hope Handmade items.  We have had several sales of felted bead hair clips, wrist warmers, felted soaps and even a colorful pencil/art supply holder.  The students at Hope are so happy to know that others from around the country are using our products.  This is a wonderful opportunity for the students to feel appreciated and valued for their abilities and to contribute to their program though Etsy.  So, if you have not stopped by our Etsy shop for a look, now just might be the right time!

More Etsy Items

Hand knitted tool holder, shown with paint brushes.

Hand knitted pencil/tool holders, in cupcake shapes.

A variety of hand felted soaps.

As you may have read in our last post we will soon be opening an Etsy shop.  We are in the process of photographing items as well as measuring and choosing product.  The students in the Etsy class have had a 'hand' in modeling, making, measuring and choosing the items to photograph so far.  This gives the clients a good opportunity to see just how much work goes into marketing and display.  This week we show you two new items, felted soaps and knitted pencil/tool holders.  The soaps are natural soaps that have been wrapped in sheep's wool and hand felted by the Hope U students in a fiber arts class.  The pencil/tool holders are also made by Hope U. students in a knitting class and then sewn into 'cupcake' shapes to hold pencils, pens, small scissors, paintbrushes, pins or any other small tool you may need held. 

Wrist Warmers to Warm Your Heart

Hope University's knitters have been busy knitting up product for our soon to open Esty shop.  Felted bags, scarves, our little owls and pin cushions/pen holders, pot & pan scrubbies, even head bands are all waiting to be photographed for the shop.  This week we were able to find the perfect hand model for our unique wrist warmers.  April Renick's hands really fit the bill.  She was so excited to be chosen and had great poise for our hand poses. 
We asked April to tell us a little bit about her new found hand modeling experience,
"It was fun, I enjoyed it.  My favorite part of doing the hand modeling was being able to try on all the colors of wrist warmers.  It was my first time being a hand model and I would definitely want to do it again."
Thank you April for lending us your lovely hands and we all think she will get her wish to hand model again for us here at Hope University. 
We share with you here some photos from the wrist warmer shoot, featuring April's hands. 

Hoot! A New Product at the Hope Boutique

A shy owlet.

Just a peek.

Pensive gray owlet

Owlet says 'hello'.

You may (or not) be familiar with the Hope University Boutique.  The students at Hope U make a wonderful line of gift items that they sell at the Christmas Show and at other venues.  We have beaded ornaments, 'refrigerator' magnets, felted purses, earrings, felted soaps, knitted wrist warmers, knitted hats, hand sewn felt play food, jewelry created from the students artwork, greeting cards, calendars, mugs and journals just to name some. 
The knitting class recently added a new product....'owlets'!  Each owlet is hand knitted by one of the students in the knitting class and then sent on to the sewing class to have the eyes and beak added, then the ears, seaming and stuffing is completed by a staff member.  Then you have a finished, hand knitted happy little owlet.  We have some great ideas for these little guys, and hope we can keep up with demand!  Also an idea has been 'hatched' to create a stop action film staring our very own little Hope owlets, so we are adding a 'stop action' camera set up to our wish list.  We hope you like our new additions, if you would like to purchase or reserve an owlet or to donate a stop action camera set up please go to our website to contact us.  Hoot-Hoot!

Beau Monde Float Fotos

Our last performance of Beau Monde Float was amazing and beautiful.  Here we have a few photos from that performance.  You see Karen as 'Eternity' meeting the Robot.  Her costume was created by the students and staff from paper sculpture, crochet, yarn and painted tubes.  Karen looks so serene as she holds the Earth in her arms and meets the Robot face to face.
We also have a wonderful photo of the stage with the Hand Bell Choir playing.  The students of Hope University practice twice a week to perfect their hand bell techniques.  It can be quite magical to hear them play.
'Everybody is a Parade' was punctuated by over sized paper sculptures, created by the students, like this one of a butterfly.  Richard, Mikki, Cathy and Tom sing the accompanying song as Frank, Rene and Karen bring in the parade.

One Night Only Beau Monde Float!

Beau Monde Float is back for one night only! If you missed this amazing performance last year you will not want to miss it this month. Have you ever wondered about 'beauty'? What does it mean? Who is beautiful? What is beautiful? How is it different for different people? How about people with different abilities? What does it look like? How does it sound?
Beau Monde Float, Thirteen Six Views of Sound Beauty may just answer some of these questions and possibly raise several more! This performance is a poignant and passionate celebration of the vitality of the human spirit and the beauty in us all.
Developed through a collaboration between Hope University and the artist group MLuM, Beau Monde Float, Thirteen Six views of Sound Beauty is a profoundly moving experience that takes audiences on a journey exploring the nature of Beauty.
About this original sound and performance art production, Director Marco Schindelmann says, "It doesn't have a narrative. It does not have to be understood, but should simply be experienced. In our culture, people frequently expect to be instructed by 'a greater will' as to what to think, what to buy, what to expect, how to live, etc. Beau Monde Float is about making connections that are personal and not based on outside expectations. Beau Monde Float hopes to present a world in which people create their own personal mythologies and entertainments. It is a dream parade, an aesthetic circus, mystical vaudeville or whatever else the spectator-auditor imagines it to be"
This piece is truly an experience and the Hope University students have created a dream world of beauty to be enjoyed by all. We hope you can attend this performance of Beau Monde Float as it is a celebration which shows us that beauty is and is not always in the eyes of the beholder.
Here we have Tina Gopinath painting set pieces, Lori Slikker knitting part of the stage set and a close up photo from the costume of Karen Leeb who portrays 'Eternity' in Beau Monde Float.
Beauty is Eternal.
Please see the 'Upcoming Events' section at the right of this page for location, times and ticket information.

Hope Handbags

Hope University creates items for sale at our boutique shows and performances. We have a wide array of items ranging from refrigerator magnets to original linoleum block prints. We also have a Cafe Press Shop where you can custom order or choose from items already on display, made from Hope U student artwork. Our most recent addition to the Hope University Boutique is the Hope Handbag! We are very excited about his new item. Each one is as unique as the creator, and the magic happens....in the washer!
Here is the information found on the tag added to each bag.
"The Hope Handbag, Wicked Fun Wool Felt Bags". 'Felted or "fulled" wool bags are created by knitting the bag with wool yarn on large needles, then shrinking the bag to the desired size. Due to the differences in wool, and the shrinking process, each bag is unique. The knit on this bag is very dense, sturdy and easy to care for. Just hand was in cool wash in cool water and then air dry.'

Here are what some of the students are saying about the new Hope Handbags:
"It has very pretty material on it." Darren P.
"I like the color and think it is very furry." Chris F.
"It is so beautiful." Rene S.
"It looks good." Delores F.
"The knitter did a good job." Margaret K.
"I like the blue color on the bottom." Richard G.
Here are some photos of two purses available now from the students at Hope U!