The entrance to 4Cats Arts Studio Summerside.

This is a quick shout out to 4Cats Arts Studio in Edmonton’s Summerside area. Run by Michelle, this is one of the few locations that is still independent of head office. Although it probably caters mostly to camps for children and kids events, workshops can be booked for adults, too. They offer painting (acrylic or splatter), pouring, and clay parties (and sometimes clay wheel classes) for the older lot.

My bachelorette clay party!

Since I’ve never been much of a bar goer, for my bachelorette, my bridesmaids planned an afternoon at 4Cats Arts Studio where we were to create sloth mugs/planters molded out of clay. Eight of us attended at a cost of $25 per person. The large group table was laid out with settings for each of us. Once we’d all taken our seats, Michelle led us through the process from start to finish while her assistant handed out extra supplies.

Stations laid out with supplies for our project.

Ready to mold my block of clay.

The project was one that anyone could do. We didn’t have to master the use of a clay wheel. All we needed was clay, templates, a rolling pin, water, a brush, a pointed tool, our hands, and some paint.

Tips:

1. Roll out the clay by putting your body weight on the middle of the rolling pin and not by using the handles. It’s a lot easier. Make sure the clay stays about half a centimeter thick, and don’t manipulate it with your hands too much, otherwise it’ll dry out and crack.
2. To join pieces, use the scratch and slip method. Take the pointed tool and scratch X marks on both of the pieces at the points where they need to come together. Apply a little bit of water to each side and they should stick. Use your fingers to gently meld the pieces by “erasing” the joints. For hard to reach spots, take a bit of water and a brush to close up the crevices.
3. If you want an interesting texture, roll the clay out over the canvas and use the canvas side as the outer part of the cup. You can keep a more rustic feel by leaving the clay unpainted, so it stays rough and textured as opposed to smooth and glossy when it’s coated with paint.
4. The grey colour of the clay will actually turn to an off-white colour after it’s burned in the kiln. If you like the white, you don’t have to paint it to cover it up.

I opted to keep texture from the canvas on the outside of my cup.

I left everything unpainted except the nose and the eyes.

While we had selected the sloth pattern for our workshop, Michelle was nice enough to show us a number of other possibilities. Most of my friends still stuck with the sloth (every single one looked unique), but a couple of them ventured out and made a bunny or a dog instead. Because of the nature of clay and the fact that our cups still had to be fired in the kiln, we weren’t able to take our creations home right away; I’m definitely looking forward to seeing all of the finished products when they’re ready though.

My friend Michelle was so quick and hers was so perfect!

Ashley made a bunny since it’s her favourite animal.

Lisa made a dog like her puppy Melvin. Alexis’ sloth was super cute, too.

Lilla made an adorable girl sloth.

Kirsta decided to give her sloth a tan coat.

Amanda’s made her sloth a bit bigger.

Ultimately, it was a really relaxing activity for about two hours. Admittedly, each person was kind of in their own world at times, yet the ambiance is perfect to gather a larger group for a catch up while crafting. We were warned that the clay could get messy. But, with the provided aprons, we all managed to keep our clothes clean. Our hands were the only things that got a bit dirty (don’t wear your jewelry while manipulating the clay); however, a quick rinse with water was enough to remove any residue.

Gathering inspiration from the others and just concentrating on our pieces.

Fully invested in our own pieces.

I’m not sure if 4Cats Arts Studio is still pre-scheduling many adult workshops into their calendar. Nevertheless, if you’re interested in setting something up for an event or just a fun meetup for your friends and family, it’s an excellent and creative option. Michelle is a wonderful host who provides great instruction and keeps things spirited throughout.