The idea of a relaxing summer afternoon exploring one’s artistic pursuits and socialising over afternoon tea is enough to entice anyone and I was no exception to this rule. Knowing that it was for a charitable cause that will help stop a life-crippling disease was simply the cherry on top of an already sweet proposal and that is how I found myself attending Crafternoon for a Cause.

Crafternoon for a Cause is a unique brainchild of the Rotary of Elizabeth Quay (REQ) and is a perfect amalgamation of art meets socialisation meets altruism. It brings together small groups of people for a fun session learning a new art or craft over afternoon tea, with proceedings from sales contributing towards Rotary International’s End Polio Campaign. This iteration of the Crafternoon series kicked off on a warm Sunday afternoon in January 2023 and was focussed on learning watercolor painting techniques to create our own whale masterpieces.

Despite a minor hiccup with a last minute venue change, the afternoon kicked off as planned in an Alfresco style makeshift studio at REQ member Mel Pilkington’s (aka art Coach for the day) courtyard at home. I walked into a colourful setup complete with workstations laid out with material for the afternoon including watercolour paints, palettes and brushes. Adding to the decor, were an assortment of delicious looking treats, cakes and cookies complimented by a selection of different teas to choose from (and complete with a tea hostess!). I chose a delightfully light homemade cake and a pomegranate green tea for myself which was served in a gorgeous Vintage style China teacup giving me ‘Alice in Wonderland’ tea party vibes!

The atmosphere was palpable with excitement from all gathered around as the coach started us off with our practice splotches. She explained how mixing different amounts of water with the paints can create different intensity and richness in the colours. We practised diluting a single paint to create a colour gradient and proceeded to ‘wet’ on ‘dry’ and ‘wet’ on ‘wet’ techniques. While I have meddled in water-colours in my younger years, it was the first time I was exposed to the proper technique and science behind it. I was particularly impressed by the technique of using water on the paper first and watching the color diffuse in a beautiful pattern as the brush hit the water.

Once we got a hang of the technique to mix the colours, it was time to trace the whales onto our canvas. We had a variety of whale pictures to choose from and the coach taught us how to transfer the whale outlines on-to the canvas using teaching paper. Everyone chose pictures that resonated best with them and while the process of tracing was initially challenging, we managed to transfer the outlines without too much trouble! What followed was the fun bit where each of us got to exercise our creativity to add our own personality to the task and use the watercolour techniques to create our whales.

It was fascinating to see how each person interpreted the work and there were a range of beautiful whales shaping up in front of our eyes -some green, some blue, some purple , a few blended colourful ones and even one with a flower hat! I had an idea of a simple blue whale against a sunset backdrop in my head and before long I saw him come alive in front of me (Mr McWhaleface). As a final touch, we were taught to add details and lines with markers to finish the paintings.

The whole afternoon was a fun-filled experience that not only helped everyone unwind and unleash their inner creative genius but was also a valuable mindfulness exercise for those who chose to see it that way. The afternoon wrapped up with each of us posing for a proud snap with our creations and the event raised $455 to support the ‘End Polio’ campaign, with $51 retained by RotaryEQ for club use as per the policy to retain 10% of all event proceeds (after expenses). I am excited to hear there was more in the Crafternoon for a Cause series to come this year and I am already looking forward to the next one! (Jelly art anyone?)