The Purple Cottage

Welcome to the Purple Cottage!

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Thank you so much for visiting. At The Purple Cottage you can play out your creative dreams, sharing and learning with others in the process. There are no rules and no boundaries. While with us, you’re encourged to let down your guard, let go of your expectations of yourself and just enjoy the process of creative fun. Throughout the year, we’ll offer a variety of creative retreats led by inspirational, nurturing artists and mothers.

2011 Mermaids and Mamas Artful Adventure Wrap Up Coming Soon!

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Spray Paint Art by Sarah, 7 years old

We had such a great time at the 2011 Mermaids and Mama's Artful Adventure! Thanks to all the wonderful Mermaid Mamas who brought their sweet mermaid girls on our adventure. I'm still editing all the photos, but I'll have them to share soon. Here's a couple sneak peeks of the spray paint art we created to whet your appetite!

Spray Paint Art by Olivia, 7 years old

Mermaids and Mamas Artful Adventure 2011--May 14-15

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Join us for Mermaids and Mamas Artful Adventure 2011! Designed for mothers and daughters to experience together, this overnight retreat gives you the opportunity to embrace creative fun as a girls only bonding opportunity while enhancing self-esteem and confidence in young girls.

Picture a place where you and your daughter(s) can get away from it all for some joyful creative play: a girls art camp slumber party! In addition to creating kid-and-teen friendly art projects like handmade journals to record our dreams, mermaid fairies to share our secrets with, fairy wands to cast magical spells, and jewels fit for the merriest of mermaids, we’ll add in time for outdoor fun like guided nature talks, fairy walks, team play and campfires with s’mores. We’ll unleash our creative souls while enjoying a supportive atmosphere conducive to sharing, dreaming, and playing…together. In our hectic day-to-day lives, sometimes it’s difficult for moms and daughters to get away from it all and just enjoy being girls! This retreat gives you the opportunity to do just that.

We’ll take care of all the details so you’re able to simply enjoy the fun creating life-long memories. We’ll start Saturday morning at 9am and wrap up Sunday morning at 11am. Registration is $75 per person and includes all meals and snacks, lodging and supplies and a few extra surprises. Lodging is bunk-house style, so all you’ll need to bring is your favorite pillow, sheet and blanket. Registration is limited to 22 so be sure to register now to reserve your spot.* Registration deadline has been extended to May 6.

Leading the retreat is Kelly Warren, artist and mom to twin girls who love to create art. Kelly has more than 16 years experience developing and facilitating experiential education programs and learning through creative play and is now combining that experience with her passion to encourage confidence and creativity in young girls through the wonderful world of art and craft. Joining her on this expedition of creative discovery are her two trusty assistants, 2nd graders Sarah and Olivia, who have personally helped develop each and every project to ensure Mermaid and Mama fun. We hope you’ll join us! Questions? Drop us an email! Scroll down or click here for a wrap up of Mermaids and Mamas 2010!

Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once we grow up. ~Pablo Picasso

*May 14-15, 2011, is designed for elementary school-aged girls and their Mamas. If you are interested in a middle school or high school age retreat, please contact me!

Mermaids and Mamas 2010 a Great Success!

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The first Mermaids and Mamas Artful Adventure (May, 2010) was a great success! We had such a fabulous time and have fabulous pictures to show for it! Here are a few to give you a little peek into our weekend: my Mermaid Livvie enjoying a little hula hoop action, the perfectly wonderful mermaid wand Mermaid Mama Wyanne made, and part of our group...the last of the gang that stayed until the bitter end and helped me clean up! Scroll down to the bottom of this post for a full slideshow from the event.

I was so pleased with how everything came together! My two little Mermaid Assistants were the perfect hostesses, showing everyone around as they checked in and helping them get settled in, and my husband was the perfect helper, taking care of all the meals for us. We started out with our love letter envelopes (a project I brought from my college kid leadership retreats) and then created our journals. From there it was on to some painting! We created painted initials, magic mermaid wands and painted rocks, all embellished with a variety of embellishments, everything from buttons to stickers to little wooden letters to paper and silk flowers. Lots of glue gun action! We also created pendants and bracelets, hair clips, a treasure box to keep them all in, and fairies to watch over all us. Mixed in between the projects we had hula hoop contests and bubble blowing parades, some parachute fun, and a dress up dance party Saturday night with a few challenging games of musical chairs. Some of those girls are fierce competitors!

All in all, it was simply wonderful. The Mamas gave me great feedback and the Mermaids (and the Mamas!) all had a ball. Girls enjoying being girls…both the big girls and the little girls. We played, we talked, we bonded, and we played some more (we didn’t sleep very much). It was magical. And it was the first of many more to come! If you like to be notified of future dates for all various age groups, email me here. I hope to present three-four Mermaids and Mamas sessions throughout the year.

About the Purple Cottage

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What is the Purple Cottage? The Purple Cottage is a dream, a dream long in the dreaming. It's a place where creative souls come together and share their creativity, whether it’s teaching skills, sharing hopes, living dreams or simply abandoning themselves to the bliss of creating their art...with no rules and no expectations other than to have fun. For now, the home of the Purple Cottage is Florida State College at Jacksonville's Outdoor Center, but hopefully one day, it will have a permanent home, possibly even here.

Who is the face behind the Purple Cottage? That would be me, Kelly Warren. I'm a big dreamer and have dreamt of a place like the Purple Cottage for as long as I can remember. I’m a jack-of-all-trades working mom of twin seven-year-old girls. By day, I’m the College-wide Coordinator of Student Life and Leadership Development at Florida State College at Jacksonville. By night, I'm wife to my hubby of 16 years and mom to the girls, two cats, two dogs, a random slew of fish and crustaceans and any other stray creature that happens along.

I'm the creative force behind Happy Shack Designs and have dabbled in all sorts of art my entire life, from needle arts to sewing to paper to photography to mixed media to jewelry and book arts. I have a bachelor's degree in Communications and a master’s degree in English and teach an occasional college English class while exercising my writing bones on my own blog and on a group blog called Studio Mothers. I live life to the fullest and feel it's crucial to be able to laugh at yourself, so that's me below. I had collapsed on the couch that afternoon battling a case of pneumonia, so my girls took the opportunity to style my hair for me. Rather cutting-edge, don’t you think? Kookiness is my stock and trade.

I believe that life is far too important to be taken too seriously. So come play with us at the Purple Cottage. And dream some really Big Dreams.

Location

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Tucked quietly into the forest of rural northeast Florida is an educational center so removed from tradition, you might forget that you’re actually learning. The current home of the Purple Cottage, Florida State College at Jacksonville’s Nassau Outdoor Education Center is located just 20 miles north of downtown Jacksonville but light-years away from the stress of the urban environment. Under a full canopy of native flora, you’ll have the opportunity to watch your cares fade away while you immerse yourself in your creative activities.

When you arrive, you’ll immediately realize that even though you are only 20 minutes away from one of the largest cities in the United States, you’re a long way from the noise, pressures, pace and stress of the city. We recommend that you fill your lungs with fresh air, fill your ears with the sounds of nature and open your mind to the creative abandonment that awaits you.

The Center includes bunk-house style lodging, a large classroom, a full dining room and kitchen, and a beautiful outdoor screened pavillion, all set in northeast Florida’s hardwood forest. Throughout the woods surrounding the center are a variety of low and high ropes challenges for leadership training participants, interspersed with quiet pathways through the woods perfect for contemplating your dreams.

Directions

The retreat center is located off I-95, about nine miles north of Jacksonville International Airport, at the A1A/Yulee/Fernandina Beach (exit 373). Turn east onto A1A and drive .6 miles to the Florida State College at Jacksonville Betty P. Cook Nassau Center sign on the right side of A1A. Turn right onto William Burgess Blvd. Travel 1.5 miles to the second Florida State College at Jacksonville entrance, the Outdoor Education Center.

The Center address is:

Florida State College Outdoor Education Center

76346 William Burgess Boulevard

Yulee, Florida 32097

Registration

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Mermaids and Mamas Artful Adventure 2011 is scheduled for 9am, Saturday, May 14, - 11am, Sunday, May 15.* Registration is $75 per person and includes bunk-house style lodging, meals, snacks, tons of mother and daughter art-making fun and a few extra surprises! Space is limited to 22 total participants, so register early to secure your spot! Registration may be paid by personal check or credit/debit card. Email me your payment preference, and we'll go from there. Registration deadline has been extended to May 6.

We can't wait to play with you! If you'd like to be put on our mailing list for notification of future retreats, email us here.

*May 14-15, 2011, is designed for elementary school-aged girls and their Mamas. If you are interested in a middle school or high school age retreat, please contact me!

Area Attractions

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The retreat center for The Purple Cottage is just twenty minutes from Amelia Island and Fernandina Beach, Florida. Downtown Fernandina Beach includes a charming historic district filled with gorgeous Victorian homes and a downtown shopping district, Centre Street, chock full of wonderful art galleries and shops. If you’d like to extend your stay in the area, just let us know and we’ll be happy to suggest some activities and accommodations for you based on your individual needs. Included here are links to get you started on your visit to Amelia. (Photo credit: Best of Amelia Island.com)

Amelia Island.com

Amelia Island Living eMagazine

Amelia Island Pottery

Amelia Island Things to Do

Amelia SanJon Gallery

Amelia Today Gallery Listing

Best of Amelia Island

Blue Door Artists Gallery (a personal favorite!)

Island Art Association

Waterwheel Gallery

Just south of the retreat center is Jacksonville, Florida, geographically the largest city in the United States. Jacksonville has everything from gorgeous beaches to riverfront activities on the St. Johns River to inland camping and forestry activities. It’s also home to a vibrant arts community. Below are just a few artsy links and general information links for Jacksonville. We're also happy to give you some tips from the natives! (Photo credit: espn.go.com)

Cultural Council of Greater Jacksonville

Cummer Museum

Downtown Jacksonville

Jacksonville Beaches

Jacksonville Museum of Contemporary Art

Reddi Arts

Riverside Arts Market

Visit Jacksonville