Studio 1 Craft Centre CIC

We held another Men's group session this morning, last week some of the group had talked about their interest in photography but hadn't picked up their cameras in so long. So today we dusted them off and took some shots. I trusted my phones weather app that we had a dry hour to get out and about and experiment...I was VERY wrong and got us soaked! Sorry lads! But sure all part of the craic 😬, the warm cuppa sorted us out when we got back.

We headed to the Canal Basin and tried shooting random areas from unusual angles just to see what effects we could get and create some abstract art. Taking the need for perfection out of the way and just shooting with no intended purpose.

The rain cut our trip short so back in Room 4 we then experimented with close up images of oil in water and food colouring poured into water using digital cameras and phones. (if any of you want to share your images in the comments please do!)

I gave the boys a task for next week to document "a day in the life of" making the mundane every day tasks look exciting and interesting. (Yeah I know you didn't sign up for homework😂) Shoot your morning coffee from a different angle, capture the pour of the milk, the swirl of the spoon. Walking somewhere, take a pic of your feet, what textures are on the ground and colours in the leaves are all around you that you haven't noticed until you have looked at the image? Can't wait to see all the stories and how we can develop the ideas!

Our men's group is part of our CRAFT project supported by PEACEPLUS ChangeMaker Fund a programme supported by Special EU Programmes Body - SEUPB

With more and more people working remotely, communicating over email and messages. Or living alone, being recently retired or having health issues means the social glue that once provided social connection can fade away. Joining a men's group is a powerful tonic to social isolation. It can provide new connections, and can go a long way to lowering our stress levels just having a few hours to yourself away from responsibility. If you fancy joining us, just drop a message to the page or email us on [email protected]

🌿 Willow Weaving Workshop 🌿

Discover the timeless craft of willow weaving and create something beautiful with your own hands!

Join us for an introductory workshop where you’ll learn the basics of traditional willow weaving using beautiful Somerset willow facilitated by Sheila Byrne. With friendly guidance throughout, you’ll create your very own woven bowl — practical, unique, and ready to take home. 🧺✨

📅Saturday 17th October
🕑10am - 1pm
📍Strabane Library
💰Cost: £15

Perfect for beginners, this is a lovely opportunity to slow down, get creative, learn a new skill and enjoy the satisfaction of making something from scratch.

🌱 No previous experience needed — just come along and have a go!

🔗Book: https://pulse.ly/ocvykcjv6b

We will be taking our pottery on the road to Witch's Brew Coffee House in Dromore for a Halloween themed night of creativity. Join us in the perfect spooky location on Tuesday the 20th of October for pottery painting and delicious sweet treats and coffee. £35 per person, DM Witch's Brew Coffee House to book your seat/table

Today was the start of our first partner workshop in our CRAFT project.
OUR TIME TO SHINE
Participants from New Horizons Partnership The Koram Centre and Hillside Trust worked together to shape strips of fabric to make a tree of life, using textile hardener to shape the pieces. Next week we’ll add colour and embellishments to symbolise things that mean the most to the group to make personalised box frames for each person.

This project is supported by PEACEPLUS a Special EU Programmes Body - SEUPB programme

We welcomed our ladies back to The Painted Pig today to continue our weekly woman’s group. Plus a few new faces too which is brilliant, we want a group where no one feels daunted to come along even if they haven’t been there from day 1. The ladies have already created such a relaxed fun vibe in the group.

We tried intuitive scribble art this morning, the scribble allows us to be creative without any outcome in mind. We let go of our creative inhibitions. The lines we create can be senseless and random. But are they really? We found so many hidden images within the ladies work from rabbits to lizards, fish to sunsets.

This technique helps to relieve anxiety and tap into one’s creativity.
The scribble drawing elicits creative self-expression through its spontaneity and helps to decrease the anxiety of drawing due to its non-structured nature. It also decreases our anxiety and stress by reducing cortisol levels. The scribble allows anxious emotions to flow through the body and onto the paper. The scribble drawing can also be a very insightful therapeutic technique. Everyone needs a starting point to create, the journey beyond that starting point is then up to you.

Catherine will be taking the lead next week, introducing the group to creative writing techniques, looking forward to hearing about the process, she gave us a little sample today of her work. If you’ve signed up but haven’t made it yet, please do come along, you’re missing out on all the craic!

This is part of our CRAFT project made possible by funding supported by PEACEPLUS, a programme managed by the Special EU Programmes Body (SEUPB).

📢 Strabane businesses - Join us at the 𝗧𝗼𝘄𝗻 𝗼𝗳 𝗖𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗕𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗘𝗻𝗴𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗘𝘃𝗲𝗻𝘁 to learn more about the bid and share your ideas on how local businesses can benefit, contribute and get involved.

📅 Wednesday 7 October 2026
🕥 10.30am
📍 NWRC Strabane Campus

The winning town will receive £3 million to deliver a year-long cultural programme, with two runners-up receiving £250,000 each.

To register, email:
📧 [email protected]

Can't attend? You can still have your say by completing the business survey:
🔗https://pulse.ly/bhwoajkpg2

𝘓𝘦𝘵'𝘴 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬 𝘵𝘰𝘨𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘰 𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘱 𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘦 𝘚𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘣𝘢𝘯𝘦'𝘴 𝘣𝘪𝘥 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘸𝘤𝘢𝘴𝘦 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘵𝘰𝘸𝘯 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘰𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳.💙

Looking forward to seeing you all tomorrow morning, I'll have the kettle on!