Experience Level: Beginner 

Try learning a new fiber art at Punch Needle Coasters on Sunday, July 26 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the The Studio. 

Students in this class will learn to design motifs, scale and transfer designs, and set up a tension hoop. Then, students will learn the basics of punch needle to form perfectly looped stitches, change colors, and finish pieces to create beautiful textiles that function as coasters. Enrollment includes a toolkit that students will be able to continue their work at home. 

$145/person. Register here. Registration will close July 19 or when capacity is reached. All sales are final. 

Learn more about the space where your course will take place here. If you will need disability-related accommodation to participate, please email Olivia at owarren@illinois.edu. 

By attending, you consent to your image being used in Allerton marketing, social media and publications. Please alert the photographer or videographer if you do not want your image taken. 

About the instructor 

Billie Theide is a former chair of the Crafts Program at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, where she is Professor Emerita. Theide is a metalsmith, jeweler and ceramicist. Her work is in public art collections around the world including the Smithsonian, Museum of Arts & Design in New York City, Nelson Atkins Museum of Art in Kansas City and the Racine Art Museum, among others. 

She is the recipient of a Visual Arts Fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts and five Artists Fellowship Grants from the Illinois Arts Council. Theide has been recognized for her excellence in teaching and is a Distinguished Member and Past-President of the Society of North American Goldsmiths.

Week 7: July 27-31

Ages: 5-7 (Acorns)

Biology, engineering, weather, chemistry…. Summer Day Camp: Science Center on July 27-31 from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. has a little bit of everything! Learning about the ways that science is all around us at Allerton will be a blast.

$200/person for the week*. The following add-ons are available at registration: Early Arrivers from 7-8 a.m. ($15), After Care from 3-5:30 p.m. ($35), and lunch for the week ($25).  Campers can also bring their own lunch.

*Registration fees include two snacks, camp T-shirt and all necessary materials. Campers will need to bring their own water bottle, sunscreen, bug spray and a change of clothes/shoes.

Find Camp FAQs here: https://allerton.illinois.edu/allerton-day-camp-faq/ 

Week 7: July 27-31

Ages: 8-11 (Adventurers)

Biology, engineering, weather, chemistry…. Summer Day Camp: Science Center on July 27-31 from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. has a little bit of everything! Learning about the ways that science is all around us at Allerton will be a blast.

$200/person for the week*. The following add-ons are available at registration: Early Arrivers from 7-8 a.m. ($15), After Care from 3-5:30 p.m. ($35), and lunch for the week ($25).  Campers can also bring their own lunch.

*Registration fees include two snacks, camp T-shirt and all necessary materials. Campers will need to bring their own water bottle, sunscreen, bug spray and a change of clothes/shoes.

Adventurers go to the Monticello Family Aquatic Center twice a week.  Rider intake forms and payment directly to Piattran are required for pool transportation.  Pool entrance is included in camp registration fees.

Find Camp FAQs here: https://allerton.illinois.edu/allerton-day-camp-faq/ 

Experience Level: Beginner 

Create tasty cordials to add to your favorite beverage at Black Walnut & Elderflower Cordials on Thursday, July 30 from 5:30 to 8 p.m. in Evergreen Lodge. 

Heidi Leuszler, the owner and head chef of Berries and Flour in Champaign, will introduce students to two plants — Elder (Sambucus Canadensis) and Black Walnut (Juglas Nigra). The class will discuss the natural, cultural, and culinary histories of the species, and then learn to prepare the ingredients into cordials to take home and mix with their preferred beverage to make a tasty, unique refreshment! 

$115/person. Register here. Registration will close July 23 or when capacity is reached. All sales are final.  

Learn more about the space where your course will take place here. If you will need disability-related accommodations to participate, please email owarren@illinois.edu. 

By attending, you consent to your image being used in Allerton marketing, social media and publications. Please alert the photographer or videographer if you do not want your image taken. 

About the instructor 

Heidi Leuszler grew up harvesting and foraging wherever she lived: mangos in Florida, morels and mustang grapes from the back acre in Missouri, wild strawberries and holly grapes in the Colorado mountains and chokecherries in North Dakota. Those passions remained as she added culinary skills in addition to becoming a professor of environmental science, ecology and botany at Parkland College. 

She started Berries and Flour in Champaign as the synergy of several passions: culinary, ecology, growing of plants, foraging and teaching people about the plentiful Midwest land. Berries and Flour teaches how to harvest, process and consume regional foods, collaborates with others to promote food accessibility and justice, and produces value-added products from its commercial kitchen. 

Experience Level: Beginner 

Get a first-hand look at how honey bees manage hive activity at Beehive Observation on Sundays, April 12 & 26, May 10 & 24, June 7 & 21, July 5 & 19, Aug. 2, 16 & 30 and Sept. 13 & 27 in The Studio and outside at the beehives.  

Instructor Maggie Wachter will provide an overview of seasonal influences, followed by a peek inside the hives to observe honey bees at work. Traditional and Flow Hives will also be discussed. Each two-hour session may be attended as a standalone or combined with any or all other classes. 

$200/person* for the entire series or $30/class at the links below. Registration will close April 9 for the entire series or three days before each subsequent class. All sales are final. 

*Students should wear loose-fitting long sleeves and pants, close-toed shoes and bring a protective bee veil and unscented rubber gloves.  

— April 12 
— April 26 
— May 10 
— May 24 
— June 7 
— June 21 
— July 5 
— July 19 
— Aug. 2 
— Aug. 16 
— Sept. 13 
— Sept. 27 

Learn more about the space where your course will take place here. If you will need disability-related accommodations to participate, please email Olivia at owarren@illinois.edu. 

By attending, you consent to your image being used in Allerton marketing, social media and publications. Please alert the photographer or videographer if you do not want your image taken. 

About the instructor 

When Maggie Wachter began her social work degree at the University of Illinois in 2008, she had no idea that she would become a beekeeper. As for honey, she kept a single jar in the back of her kitchen cabinet for recipes. Today she is a master beekeeper who never eats sugar. 

Maggie received her first hive as a gift in 2008. By 2010, she was enrolled in the Master Beekeeper course at the University of Florida. From there, things happened quickly to turn her life around. In 2012, she started teaching beekeeping for Parkland Community Education and today she is a beekeeping teacher, honey judge, mead maker and master beekeeper. 

She has also participated in honeybee research at the University of Illinois and the USDA.

Week 8: Aug 3-7

Ages: 5-7 (Acorns)

Like to eat food? Us too! Part culinary adventure and part agriculture exploration, Summer Day Camp: Farm to Table on August 3-7 from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. will have campers learning and eating their way through our food system.

$200/person for the week*. The following add-ons are available at registration: Early Arrivers from 7-8 a.m. ($15), After Care from 3-5:30 p.m. ($35), and lunch for the week ($25).  Campers can also bring their own lunch.

*Registration fees include two snacks, camp T-shirt and all necessary materials. Campers will need to bring their own water bottle, sunscreen, bug spray and a change of clothes/shoes.

Find Camp FAQs here: https://allerton.illinois.edu/allerton-day-camp-faq/ 

Week 8: Aug 3-7

Ages: 8-11 (Adventurers)

Like to eat food? Us too! Part culinary adventure and part agriculture exploration, Summer Day Camp: Farm to Table on August 3-7 from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. will have campers learning and eating their way through our food system.

$200/person for the week*. The following add-ons are available at registration: Early Arrivers from 7-8 a.m. ($15), After Care from 3-5:30 p.m. ($35), and lunch for the week ($25).  Campers can also bring their own lunch.

*Registration fees include two snacks, camp T-shirt and all necessary materials. Campers will need to bring their own water bottle, sunscreen, bug spray and a change of clothes/shoes.

Adventurers go to the Monticello Family Aquatic Center twice a week.  Rider intake forms and payment directly to Piattran are required for pool transportation.  Pool entrance is included in camp registration fees.

Find Camp FAQs here: https://allerton.illinois.edu/allerton-day-camp-faq/ 

Experience Level: Beginner

Join the barn quilt movement by creating your own painted quilt block to use on the inside or outside of your home at Barn Quilt Painting on Saturday, August 15 from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. in The Studio.

Students will begin with one of three options on a pre-primed board with their choice of design already drafted (choose between three star and sunburst designs at registration). Students will tape and paint at their own pace, choosing from a wide variety of colors.

Instructor Jane Cade will share a history of barn quilts, techniques, tips, and discuss how to properly seal your finished piece after the paint has dried for 48 hours. Leave with a 20×20″ wooden ‘quilt block’ to keep for yourself or share your talents and give someone a handmade gift.

$90/person. Registration closes August 7 or when capacity is reached. All sales are final.

Learn more about the space where your course will take place here. If you will need disability-related accommodations to participate, please email Olivia at owarren@illinois.edu.

By attending, you consent to your image being used in Allerton marketing, social media and publications. Please alert the photographer or videographer if you do not want your image taken.

About the instructor

Jane Cade is a retired teacher from Clinton Junior High School. She has been painting barn quilts for eight years and sells her work online and at craft festivals. She teaches classes at Parkland Community College and will be teaching classes at her workshop beginning next year.