Posted in Explore and Discover on March 7, 2024 at 6:00 am
March is a wonderful time to learn a new skill or fall back in love with an old favorite. To inspire your crafting muse, visit your library to see an art show! You can see and hear two Irish music groups at our libraries to help fuel your creativity. Take a workshop or check out something from our Library of Things or... […]
Tags: adults, art, community, crafting, creativebug, creativity, Flipster, hobbies, kids, parents, reading, teens, tweens
Posted in Explore and Discover on December 29, 2021 at 6:00 am
“You can't use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have,” Maya Angelou said in an interview. From my experience, this is absolutely true. This means that including creative goals in your New Year’s resolutions could lead to a more productive and inspirational 2022. Our libraries offer plenty of ways to help with creative goals, incl […]
Tags: adults, art, art show, books, crafts, creative, creativebug, creativity, creators, digital library, hobbies and crafts reference center, kids, Library of Things, LinkedIn Learning, local, resources, Spokane Creators
Posted in Explore and Discover on June 2, 2021 at 6:00 am
By Abra Cole Have you found art out in the wild? If you’ve spied some art while out on a walk in your neighborhood, at a bus stop, or on a chair in a café, then you have probably found the kind of art I’m talking about. If not, keep your eyes open for the […]
Tags: adults, art, art abandonment, botjoy, craftivism, creativity, found art, guerilla art, kids, kindness rocks, little art gallery, painted rocks, random acts of art, sharing, social, teens, warmth drops
Posted in Parents and Teachers on January 28, 2021 at 6:00 am
BY MELISSA RHOADES Children are naturally creative and tend to display expansive imaginations. It’s even a stereotype that our imaginations blossom when we’re young and get socialized out of us as we grow into adulthood. Pablo Picasso is famously quoted as saying: “Every child is an artist. The problem is staying an artist when you […]
Tags: books, childcare, creativity, early learning, grandparents, imagination, kids, parents, picture books, reading, teachers
Posted in Explore and Discover on April 2, 2019 at 6:00 am
By Melissa Rhoades Did you know you can borrow a sewing machine from the Library District? Our Library of Things offers two Elna eXplore 320 sewing machines to check out for up to seven days at a time. One is available for pick up at the Spokane Valley Library and the other can be picked […]
Tags: adults, arts, books, clothes, crafts, creativity, economical, Elna, environmental, fabric, hobbies, Hobbies & Crafts Reference Center, hoopla, how-to, kids, Library of Things, overdrive, quilting, resources, sewing, sewing guides, sewing machine, sewing notions, teens, textile arts, textiles
Posted in Explore and Discover, kids, Parents and Teachers on January 24, 2019 at 10:00 am
By Gwendolyn Haley The library is a great place to visit in the winter! No really, it’s true! Every week, we have Play & Learn Storytimes for families with children ages 0–5. For older kids, we have regularly scheduled LEGO Clubs, STEM programs, and other activities. And even when we don’t have a formal program […]
Tags: activities, blocks, building blocks, creativity, imagination, Imagination Playground, indoor play, kids, learning, LEGO, library, parents, play, play games, puzzles, scavenger hunt, STEM, storytime
Posted in Parents and Teachers on October 9, 2018 at 6:00 am
By Rachel Edmondson There are lots of wonderful books about first-day school jitters. But reading to our kids about school doesn’t need to end once school is in full swing. There are all sorts of challenges that kids face while at school. Fortunately, there are also a wealth of books that cover situations such as […]
Tags: accidents, art, back to school, booklists, books, bravery, bullying, courage, creativity, embarassed, embarassment, family, fiction, fitting in, friends, kids, kindness, parenting, parents, playing, reading, teachers, teasing, young learners
Posted in Explore and Discover on August 2, 2016 at 6:00 am
by Erin Dodge Local artist Loretta West teaches the meditative art form of Zentangle at the Library District during August as part of our 2016 Summer Programs. In a previous post, Loretta graciously answered my questions about Zentangle and where she finds inspiration. Today, she shares a booklist filled with books that have touched her soul and […]
Posted in Explore and Discover, For You on November 6, 2014 at 6:00 am
By Cara Strickland It happens to all of us: the blank screen, the empty studio, the silent singing voice. Occasionally, we’re all visited by block of one kind or another. What’s a creative person to do? Although some blocks just take time to lift and lessen, there are a few things I’ve found to help […]
Tags: art, creative block, creativity, writer's block, writing