Celestial Arts Craft Studio

      Celestial Arts had it's Grand opening in July of the year 2000. My daughter Morena, my niece, Ella,  and I (Maria) opened the Studio in Westmead, with a vision of painting our own items, and selling the pieces to the public. We went on to teach classes to friends and to children in the local area. The business grew gradually, Morena and Ella were helping out on alternate days, but eventually their families took precedence.

(Number in Address shown in sign in photo has since changed to 77d Bridge road.          

   Morena went on to have two children and start a  hairdressing business with  her husband,   http://www.theheadofficeatglenhaven.com/ 

and Ella  had a second child and is now also working with her husband in their own accountancy firm of “Cucinotta and Co. in  Parramatta”.                                                                                                     

            I have continued to grow and expand myself, with knowledge in the Decorative painting area, and with Patchwork and Quilting, among other crafts  I enjoy teaching, and seeing the look of achievement on a beginner’s face, when they finish their first painted item, or their first sewing item.  I tell everyone, “YOU CAN  DO IT” , You can do anything you set your mind to do, we all can, we just have to want to do it, and with a little encouragement anyone can learn.

        The studio is a bright well lit room, that people love to frequent. Whether it is for Decorative painting, taught at one end, of the room, or Patchwork,  at the other end, we often have two classes going on at the same time, and many of our students like to do more than one craft.

 There are now four other teachers, beside myself.

Leone Johnson has been teaching Patchwork and Quilting, every Thursday morning, since she started with me in 2000. Leone has been quilting for many years and she has albums full of the many, many, quilts she has hand sewn, machine sewn and quilted. She has made a quilt for every occasion as well as one to be used on her coffin, many for her family and friends as well as her three cats and dog.

       Susan Coulter teaches Patchwork and Quilting on a Saturday morning, Susan has been teaching at Celestial Arts since 2004. Susan loves to help make baby quilts, to donate to the Westmead children’s hospital, among many others.

      Annette Johnson ( no relation to Leone) teaches 2 classes of Folk Art and Decorative Painting on Thursday, at 12.00 noon and 7.30pm.  Annette is well known as an artist, and is  a much loved teacher,  has been with Celestial Arts since 2003, and is well known for her bears and roses paintings, she makes it real easy to learn. Annette also loves pen and wash, and has used that design on greeting and gift cards, her love of teaching has made her a popular teacher. When Annette first started to learn to paint, she was told that she would NEVER be able to paint, she has proved those teacher’s wrong, many times over. Annette is currently the editor of the Australian Decorative Painting magazine, now called Fine Art and Decorative painting magazine.

Nilly (Niloufar) Jordan is the latest teacher to start with Celestial Arts.  Nilly teaches the Drawing and Sketching classes. Nilly is a landscape and potrait painter, with qualifications in Fine Arts and Graphic Design. Nilly is interested in fostering the artistic skills of children and adults.

           All my teachers and I, LOVE to try our hand at other crafts.  In our Decorative Painting classes, both Annette and I  incorporate decoupage, glass, metal, and other surface painting, I love to dye fabrics for patchwork use, dye  silk scarves and paint on fabrics then use that fabric, to sew handbags, table runners etc.

I make and teach patchwork, as well as Decorative Painting.  Most of these items are on display, and this makes the shop, a visual experience, as well as a place to give people inspiration for their own projects.  My Teachers and I do commission work, either using our design or yours, or from photos, as shown in the gallery or on various pages in this site.

          A couple of times a year we all get together as a group and paint/decorate memory boxes, for donation to the Children’s Hospital at Westmead, for their memory box program, it is a wonderful cause for which almost all our students like to be a part of. Pictures of some of the boxes are below. If you are interested in the program, (If not in area and are still interested contact the co-ordinator through the link below) you are welcome to contact me for information, boxes are accepted at anytime during the year for donation.   More information is available at the Australian Memory Box program  website, link below.

      http://www.memoryboxes.net.au/                           

 Boxes can be

decorated in any style

 Pen and Wash style (left)

 (On right ) A box using the  Scrapbooking technique.

 These particular boxes (right and below) were decorated by a group of ladies in Grafton, NSW. The pictures were sent to me by Gwen, an Ex-student of Annette's.

 (Below) Even Patchwork can work when decorating boxes.

 A Pooh Bear patchwork fabric padded and quilted, then attached to lid.