Experience Level: Beginner

Learn how to bring new life to an old lamp at Fix It! Basic Lamp Re-Wiring on Wednesday, March 11 from 5 to 8 p.m. in The Studio.

Instructor Lou Ann Koebel will lead students through changing out the plug, adding a switch and/or replacing wiring in lamps. This hands-on course will cover basic electrical wiring.

$55/person*. Registration will close March 8 or when capacity is reached. All sales are final.

* Students should bring:— A lamp to work on— Wire cutter & stripper (example here)— Black electrical tape and small retractable measuring tape (optional)

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

Lou Ann Koebel has worn many hats over the past several years: a woodworker, an AV technician and lover of restoring or repurposing antiques. Living in an older home has also helped Lou Ann to learn how to repair various items around the house, search YouTube for “fix it” videos and collect tools to cover a wide variety of tasks.

Her Fix-It courses are meant as an entry to help students explore how to proceed safely with basic tools and build a home DYI toolbox, creatively repurpose a picture frame or fix/alter a lamp.

About The Farms

The Farms: An Allerton Folk School, offers classes, workshops, and gatherings focusing on art, health & wellness, history, nature & outdoor education, or science. All experiences value hands-on, experiential teaching and learning, and are facilitated by and for the members of the community.

Experience Level: Beginner (ages 12+)

Learn about soft pastels and ways to use them through basic mark-making techniques at Introduction to Pastel Painting on Sunday, March 15th from 1 to 4 p.m. in the Mansion Library.

Serious artists ages 10 and older can sign up for this course, where award-winning artist Mandy Roeing will help students learn about pastels and paint to create a simple still life to take home. More than just a one-time painting project, this class is intended to give you basic pastel painting skills and knowledge that you can build on to continue creating.

$85/person (Ages 12+. Ages 12-15 need to be accompanied by a registered adult). Register by March 11th. All sales are final.

If you will need disability-related accommodations to participate, please email Olivia Bunting 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

Award-winning artist Mandy Roeing resides in Downs with her husband and their two daughters. Inspired by the beauty and tranquility of nature, Roeing creates color-filled landscapes and beachscapes that go beyond representation to capture the emotion of a place.

All of Roeing’s paintings are done in soft pastels, a beautiful and versatile medium that she is passionate about sharing with others through both her work and classes. She is an instructor at the McLean County Arts Center and the Peninsula School of Art and holds regular classes in painting and drawing at her own studio and gallery space in downtown Bloomington.

Mandy earned her BFA in Studio Art from the University of North Carolina in 2004. She is the Vice President of the Illinois Prairie Pastel Society and an active member of the Peoria Art Guild. Her work has been published in The Pastel Journal magazine and the IAPS Globe and is in numberous private collections throughout the country and abroad.

Experience Level: Beginner

Learn about the art of stained glass at Intro to Stained Glass: Mice on Wednesday, March 18 from 5 to 8 p.m. in The Studio.

Instructor Kari Keller will teach students how to cut, shape and assemble a stained-glass mouse to take home. Grinding, fitting and soldering will be covered.

$100/person*. Register here. Registration close March 11 or when capacity is reached. All sales are final.

*Students should wear closed-toe shoes. Safety glasses and gloves will be provided.

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

Kari Keller has been a Champaign/Urbana resident since 2008, originally hailing from the tiny community of St. Anne. Illinois. She has had a passion for art since she could hold a crayon and loves to experiment with many different styles, rarely sticking to one theme for long.

Keller has dabbled in cartoons, acrylic pouring, zentangles, patterns, logo design, pottery painting and other art forms. Her influences include Alphonse Mucha, HR Geiger and the art of Northwest coastal Native Americans. She also has a thriving side business as a face painter.

Kari is happiest when immersed in a new project and can’t imagine life without art!

About The Farms

The Farms: An Allerton Folk School, offers classes, workshops, and gatherings focusing on art, outdoor education, science, storytelling, and wellness. All experiences value hands-on, experiential teaching and learning, and are facilitated by and for the members of the community.

Experience Level: Intermediate to Advanced (need to know how to knit and purl)

Learn a unique knitting technique at Advanced Knitting Skills: Knitting Lace on Monday, March 23 from 6 to 8 p.m. in The Studio.

This course is an introduction to the advanced knitting technique of knitting lace, which instructor Charlie Rainbow Wolf says is easy once you learn the basics. Participants must be proficient in casting on, knitting, purling and casting off.

$65/person*. Register here. Registration will close March 16 or when capacity is reached. All sales are final.

*Students should bring:— 1 skein of Lion Brand Wool-Ease worsted weight (No. 4) yarn or its equivalent. This is an 80% acrylic, 20% wool yarn that is machine washable and available from Lion Brand and Michael’s, as well as many yarn shops. Avoid yarns that are too soft like Caron Simply Soft, Snuggly Wuggly or Facets, as they will not hold the pattern as well.— 1 pair of US size 8 (5mm) single point, straight knitting needles.— 1 blunt end needle for weaving the ends of the finished piece.— A notebook and pencil to take notes.

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

Charlie Rainbow Wolf describes herself as an “old hippie” who has studied the “weird ways of the world for nearly 50 years.” She is happiest with her hands in the mud, either making pottery in an ‘artbox’ or tending things in her ‘yarden’ (yard + garden).

Astrology, tarot and herbs are Charlie’s greatest interests, but she has also dabbled in metaphysical topics in the last five decades — because life always has something new to offer.

She is a contributing author for Llewellyn Worldwide, is a ghostwriter for renowned psychic celebrities, and makes a wicked batch of fudge! Charlie lives in central Illinois with her very patient husband and special needs Great Danes.

About The Farms

The Farms: An Allerton Folk School, offers classes, workshops, and gatherings focusing on art, outdoor education, science, storytelling, and wellness. All experiences value hands-on, experiential teaching and learning, and are facilitated by and for the members of the community.

Experience Level: Beginner (Ages 14+)

Lean the beautiful and traditional art of Ukrainian egg decorating at a Pysanky Workshop on Saturday, March 28 from 1 to 4 p.m. in the Greenhouse Auditorium.

Instructor Johanna James-Heinz will share the history of Pysanky before walking students through the use of wax and dyes to create an egg they will take home.

$45/person (Ages 14+) Registration will close March 13 or when capacity is reached. All sales are final.

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

Johanna James-Heinz is a landscape architect who enjoys dabbling in all kinds of arts and crafts. She started decorating eggs in 2012 and enjoys creating traditional Pysanky eggs as well as using the method to create more non-traditional designs.

Johanna has taught classes in Pysanky at Allerton, various libraries and at churches.

About The Farms

The Farms: An Allerton Folk School, offers classes, workshops, and gatherings focusing on art, outdoor education, science, storytelling, and wellness. All experiences value hands-on, experiential teaching and learning, and are facilitated by and for the members of the community.

Experience Level: Beginner

Learn how to decorate cookies for Spring at Spring Cookie Decorating on Sunday, March 29 from 2 to 5 p.m. in the Mansion Dining Room.

Learn to decorate spring-themed cookies with royal icing, crusting butter cream and rolled buttercream! Instructor Jennifer Holhubner will demonstrate and explain wet-on-wet technique, outlining and flooding and make flowers. Each participant will receive directions to decorate five cookies.

$75/person*. Register here by March 23. All sales are final.

*Students should bring a take-home container.

If you will need disability-related accommodations to participate, please email Olivia Bunting 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

Champaign-Urbana native Jennifer Holhubner taught herself how to decorate cakes when she was 16 years old and took up cookie decorating in 2019.

“Although they intimidated me, I forged on and got better with each order. I still have room to grow as we all do in whatever task we take on,” she said. “But I love to share the aspects of baking and decorating. I can actually now say, I am cookier!”

Jennifer also teaches decorating classes at Parkland College.

Experience Level: Beginner

Create a functional and unique piece of spring décor at Basket Weaving: Touch of Spring on Friday, April 3 from 12 to 4 p.m. in the Greenhouse Auditorium.

Instructor Bonnie Rideout will lead students as they start by inserting and securing spokes into a wood, slotted base. Students will then learn about twining, shaping and how to add a matchstick border. The baskets will be celery green and natural colors with pretty pip berries adorning the front.

$65/person. Registration will close March 20 or when capacity is reached. All sales are final.

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

Bonnie Rideout wove her first basket in 1994 and quickly caught the “basket bug.” She created a business — Bonnie’s Baskets in Decatur — in 2006 to teach others to weave. She is also a traveling instructor and has taught weaving in 18 states.

Find out more about Bonnie on her website, Facebook, Instagram and Etsy pages.

About The Farms

The Farms: An Allerton Folk School, offers classes, workshops, and gatherings focusing on art, health & wellness, history, nature & outdoor education, or science. All experiences value hands-on, experiential teaching and learning, and are facilitated by and for the members of the community.