Five Hills Art Guild holds Tie Dye at the Gap

By DAVID J. HARDIN
Cove Leader-Press 

On Saturday morning, the Five Hills Art Guild its first workshop of the summer at Ogletree Gap Park, “Tie Dye at the Gap.”
About 15 participated in the workshop, also held in conjunction with the Copperas Cove Parks and Recreation Department.
Five Hills Art Guild Treasurer and Lampasas ISD creative arts teacher Linda Lapierre gave step-by-step instructions as the participants created their own special designs. 
Each participant brought their own white T-shirt to dye, and all other materials were provided, to include dyes, rubber bands and strings gloves. 
I love tie dyeing and I absolutely love the idea of sharing my passion for the arts with the public. I am hoping to do this class again and make it a regular thing throughout the year,” said Lapierre, who was recently named Lampasas ISD’s Elementary Teacher of the Year.
Each participant made various types of tie-dye T-shirts such as spiral, knotting, scrunched, accordion fold, circles, hearts, and the V.
Heidi Phipps is a fourth grader who attends Hettie Halstead Elementary School in Copperas Cove. 
“It was cool, and a lot of fun. There were so many colors, and I used blue green, yellow, all colors but brown,” she said. 
Riley Claborne happened to be visiting a friend in the area on Saturday. 
“I have always wondered how they make tie dye shirts, and so it was very interesting,” Riley said. “My design was freewheeled and I used every color. I live in Austin, but grew up in Gatesville, and was visiting a friend here, and said let’s go.”
Erika Lazar brought her two daughters, Esther and Hettie, to the class. 
“We like getting the girls involved with the arts, and this is a wonderful way to get started. When we found out that the class was being taught by Linda Lapierre, we said we have got to go.” 
A free bonus on Saturday was The Roaming Yogi, Kim Cramer, who was on hand to offer a free class during the event. She teaches classes through the city’s Parks & Rec department. 
“I think that the biggest challenge for first-timers is to get people to understand that yoga is accessible,” Cramer said. “Some people have misunderstandings about what yoga really is. The kind of yoga that I teach is not a workout per se, it is slow controlled mindful movements, using the breath to help the body, and using the body to relax, stimulating the body’s nerve systems, these are things that are more in line with traditional yoga.”
Cramer teaches an all-level yoga class at the Copperas Cove Civic Center on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 7-8 a.m., and Tuesday and Thursday from 6-7 p.m. Drop-in class rates are $11, or five classes for $50. There is also a discount for city employees, teacher, military, with five classes for $40.
The art guild’s next class, this one a weaving class, is set for Monday, June 19, at 6 p.m. at the Copperas Cove Public Library.