Kay Watanabe
Kay Watanabe teaches Monoprint, Stamp Carving, Block Printing and Beginners Fabric Design Techniques as one of the most beloved facilitators at Hands On Brisbane.
Kay is a Brisbane-based printmaker who was born, and grew up, in Tokyo. She has lived in the UK, the US and Sydney before finally arriving in Brisbane in late 2010.
Kay loves printmaking as it has both an artistic quality (she makes artworks) and a crafty nature. When producing a print, Kay first creates a plate using different techniques, like carving, etching and polishing and then prints the image onto a piece of paper, using an etching press and other tools to produce the artwork. Kay also gets to indulge her love of working with a range of paper types, although she also enjoys printing on fabrics.
Kay not only teaches workshops through Hands On Brisbane but also attends workshops to learn new techniques she can apply to her current work.
Mabina Alaka
Mabina Alaka teaches Origami, Kirigami and Paper Flowers with Hands On Brisbane.
Mabina is an accessory artist who was born in Kobe, Japan. She later lived in Canada, the United Kingdom and now calls Brisbane her home.
Mabina’s artistic talent and passion comes from her Japanese heritage, and was influenced by her grandmother who was very much the avant garde of her time in Japan.
Her unique skill in fashion accessories reflects the heritage, purity and beauty of her birth place, Japan.
From her studio in South Brisbane, Mabina uses the finest materials such as vintage Kimono fabrics, Japanese cotton fabrics, pure leather, Japanese Yuzen papers and many other materials from all over the world to bring her collection to life.
Mabina shares her passion for using basic materials and turning them into something beautiful in the Hands On Brisbane workshops she facilitates.
Cynthia Manietta
Cynthia Manietta facilitates Ceramics workshops for Hands On Brisbane.
“I have been a practicing artist for approximately thirteen years and work from my home-based studio in Ipswich, where I also teach classes and now sell ceramic supplies. My focus as a ceramic artist is to unite ceramics and multimedia. I use Photoshop and Illustrator to design unique on-glaze decals. While some of my work is slip cast, I also hand build, throw on the potter’s wheel and sculpt. I particularly enjoy adding coloured ceramic stains to my slips. Researching glazes and glaze development is an unending process as I endeavour to perfect every aspect of the creative process.”
Cynthia has an extensive education in arts and ceramics and is an enthusiastic ceramics teacher.
Chiaki and Chie of HOSO Wrapping
Chiaki Harada
Chiaki was born in a small town in Tokyo, Japan, which has hundreds of stationery shops and gift shops. Chiaki dreamed of becoming an ANIME (Japanese cartoon) creator, but her career path changed and focused on her love of all things craft. Chiaki is a certified gift-wrapping Instructor, with over 6 years experience and teaches a range of craft classes for both adults and kids at shops, libraries, TAFE and various other venues.
Chiaki loves to spend her time with 6 year old son, Takuto, drawing and creating craft at home.
Chie Miyasaka
Chie grew up in Japan, her family were tailors and so from a young age Chie has always loved clothes, paper, ribbon, yarn and wool. With a love of all things creative and crafty Chie is a certified gift-wrapping Instructor with over 6 years experience. She has extensive experience in teaching gift-wrapping, Japanese Origami and Furoshiki fabric wrapping to adults and children at libraries, TAFE and shops.
Chie has also completed a certificate of commercial cookery. She loves cooking, baking and of course eating!
Simmone Spring
Simmone Spring is the Hands On Brisbane Coordinator and can be found at every Hands On Brisbane event making sure workshops run smoothly, joining in the crafting and helping people out. She also facilitates many of the Hands On Brisbane workshops including Screen Printing, Terrariums and Shrinky Dinks.
Simmone loves learning new crafts and applying techniques to her own work which revolves around Anatomy with her label Your Organ Grinder. Simmone is educated in science and the arts but had been a crafter her entire life, learning crochet at 8 years old and making terrible handmade presents for her friends. She still makes many of her friends birthday gifts but they are of far better quality these days.
In her spare time Simmone reads, picks flowers, and talks to birds.