Photo courtesy of Jane in Ottawa on the Apt613 flickr group
Politicians are by no means the craftiest people in Ottawa; the city abounds with knitters, bakers and I’m sure a few candlestick makers as well. By that metric, Lauren Potosky and Rachel Thera, the organizers of Les Ateliers, are in the running for the craftiest people in Ottawa. The duo organize low-cost workshops on a wide range of skills: handmade lotions, chocolates and truffles, silk screening, sprouting and canning, writing/poetry, animation shorts/pixellation, urban gardening, vegan nutrition…. the list goes on. Each workshop takes place on the last weekend of the month and features a local expert sharing their hard-earned knowledge. The cost is never more than $10, and often provide an opportunity to find new uses for old stuff.
This Sunday marks one and a half years since Les Ateliers set up shop, and the group is celebrating with a old-school birthday party this Sunday, August 29 from 4 to 8pm at the Montgomery Legion Hall (330 Kent). On the agenda are sweet treats, party games, music and crafts. Best of all, admission is free. According to Rachel, the whole shindig will be a tribute to the birthday parties of yore.
“For our one and a half year birthday party, we wanted to come up with a creative way to celebrate all of the amazing people - facilitators, volunteers, participants- that have made Les Ateliers such a success. Lauren and I came up with the idea of doing up the party almost as a tribute to the child’s classic birthday party - something we both miss. There’ll be party games, such as pin the tail on the donkey, musical chairs, hot potato, balloon stomp, giant jenga, and bingo (with a few handmade door prizes, too). We’ll have birthday-appropriate treats like cupcakes and lemonade, fresh popped popcorn from an old-timey popcorn machine, and if all things go according to plan, a saltwater taffy pull to boot.”
