Afternoon teas at Balhousie Luncarty care home in Perthshire have taken on an extra twist – with residents making the cups for their cuppas!
Residents have been trying their hand at pottery making, thanks to a partnership which brings artists into care homes.
The Perthshire home has been working with Luminate’s Arts in Care and artist Flo Dwyer to create their own tea sets from clay – which they are using for afternoon teas.
“We had a terrific four session with Flo, who was fantastic with our residents and really encouraged them with their art,” said Carla McCorquodale, Activities Coordinator at Balhousie Luncarty.
The sessions saw residents make and paint their own mugs and sugar bowls using the pinch pot method, where thumbs are pushed to the centre of a ball of clay and ‘walls’ are created by pinching and turning the pot. More residents joined in to make their own coasters and imprint patterns on them. The last session was a tea party using the newly created pottery – with the addition of some lovely cakes.
“I feel the project was a great success and the six ladies who took part – Morag Milne, Mary Cairns, Pat Malcolm, Pat Foley, Irene McMillan and Margaret Morton – got so much from the sessions,” said Carla.
Arts in Care, developed in collaboration with Creative Scotland, the Care Inspectorate and the Baring Foundation, launched in 2019 to develop the skills of professional artists who want to work in older people’s social care, and to support care homes to host creative activities.
