Waterbury’s River of Light Parade has moved!

Dear Friends of Waterbury’s annual Light Parade! We have moved! Please find us at our new home, https://www.ariveroflightinwaterbury.org/ where you’ll find up-to-date parade information and more.

If you would like to contact Gowri directly to discuss hosting a parade in your local school or town, please contact her directly, on info@gowrisavoor.com or visit http://www.ariveroflight.org

Thanks!

 

2016 Parade Photos!

Enjoy 🙂

It’s Parade Day!

We have been working well into the night putting the finishing touches on our lanterns… and we are finally there!

There may be a chance of snow showers, so wrap up warm, grab your lanterns and we’ll see you on the streets!

Still need to make a lantern for this year’s parade?

Make this adorable flowerpot to carry in Saturday’s parade!

Flowerpot Lantern!

Here’s how to make this easy lantern at home:

1. Things you’ll need to make your flower-pot lantern: an empty 2L soda bottle, several smaller plastic soda bottles (optional), colored tissue paper, a few small coffee filter papers or plain white copy paper, Elmer’s Glue – diluted with a little water and mixed thoroughly, a paintbrush, scissors, hole punch, blade (adult supervision required!), sharpie marker, a few pipe cleaners, length of string, one or more battery-operated LED lights (available for purchase before the parade)

2. Draw a line around the top of the label using the sharpie, and cut all the way around to remove the upper portion. Making a slit with the blade will make the first incision a little easier… Cut the bottoms away from the smaller soda bottles and recycle the rest. These will form the flowers that will grow from your flowerpot

3. Cut flower petals, leaves and other fantastical flora out of your colored tissue. Do the same with the coffee filter paper

4. Paint the inside of your soda bottle with the diluted glue using the paintbrush. When you have covered the surface, carefully place your tissue-paper petals onto the glue, smoothing down with the brush. Continue until you have covered the inside and bottom, then leave to dry

5. You can glue the coffee-filter paper petals and leaves onto your flowers too…

6. Decorate the flowers using the scraps of tissue paper – they can be delicate, so take care when gluing them down

7. When everything is dry, you are ready to assemble your lantern. Create two holes on either side of the top of your flowerpot using the hole punch, then insert a pipe cleaner through the holes and tighten. Your bagged LED light will suspend from here. Next, tie the string onto the pipe cleaners to create a handle. Finally, glue or tape pipe cleaners to the back of your flowers. We have used a glue-gun, for extra security.

8. Your lantern is nearly ready! Glue or tape the pipe cleaners to the inside surface of your flowerpot and illuminate!

Fantastical flora in time for Saturday’s parade… see you on the streets!

Images from the community workshop….

Last weekend, over 50 community members from all over central Vermont attended our two community lantern-making workshops at Thatcher Brook Primary School in Waterbury. It was a beautiful, fun and convivial atmosphere – here are a few photos from the day…

Participants made vellum lanterns this year – a change from the last 6 years…

some pressed autumnal flowers and leaves into contact paper…

Jane and Aida show off their gorgeous lanterns…

Mariah and Louisa work on their colorful creations…

Victoria and Sandy painted with liquid watercolor

Lovely lanterns in time for the parade…

Lantern Fever takes over Thatcher Brook Primary School

For the past few weeks, TBPS students from Pre-K to 4th grade have been working with excitement to complete their lanterns for this year’s River of Light in Waterbury. Pre-K to 2nd grade students have been working with MK Monley, art teacher at Thatcher Brook. 3rd and 4th graders worked with Gowri Savoor to make individual flower-pot lanterns which will be overflowing with wild vegetation and fantastical flora, come parade day.

The youngest lantern-makers pressed autumnal leaves and petals into their adorable lanterns

1st and 2nd grade students experiment with vellum

Community members assist with lantern workshops

Flowerpots begin to take shape

A very tame looking house-plant

Papering the flowerpots

Students work together to complete their amazing creations

Art-Community-Light. Some images from the 2016 Artists’ Lantern-Making Workshop

A few days ago, over 20 artists, educators and creative-makers spent two days with artists Angelo Arnold and Gowri Savoor, to create large-scale lanterns to spearhead this year’s River of Light in Waterbury. Some incredible structures came out of the weekend including: a bird of paradise, a giant acorn, several toadstools that will form a fairy ring, a saguaro cactus and a coffee plant. Look out for them at the parade on Dec 3rd!

Angelo helps the staff of Green Mountain Coffee Roasters

The coffee plant in production

Galen starts work on some fantastical flora

Beth and the bird of paradise

Gowri and MK share a laugh

Tina’s Christmas cactus takes shape

Ready to paper…

Todd builds an elemental…

Angelo and MK problem solving

Peg and Jyles are creating a bunch of elegant morning glories

Pat Fowler works on her toadstool

Toadstool no2 from Leslie Berger

Lauren joins the fairy ring…

Kiara’s cactus continues to grow…

from small acorns…. Jen Campbell, art teacher at Rumney

MK gives a quick papering demo

Gowri demonstrates the papering stage

The coffee plant is nearly complete!

Jenny and Eric finish papering their toadstool

 

Only 2 weeks left to register for this year’s Large-Scale Lantern-Making Workshop

This year’s intensive large-scale lantern-making workshop takes place in just 2 weeks time! This is an amazing opportunity to build your own lantern to spearhead this year’s River of Light in Waterbury lantern parade.
Instruction by experienced lantern-builders, Gowri Savoor and Angelo Arnold takes place over 2 days, and covers structure, cladding, materials, construction and carrying methods.  Suggested donation is $25 per person to cover materials–tuition over 2 days is completely free of charge.
Don’t miss this fantastic opportunity – suitable for artists, educators and enthusiastic makers. Workshop is not suitable for children.

Date: Saturday November 5th and Sunday November 6th 2016
Place: Thatcher Brook Primary School, Waterbury VT
Time: 10am-4pm on each day, which will include an hour break for lunch.

Contact Gowri Savoor on info@gowrisavoor.com or call 802 778 0334 to register!

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A Great Big Thank You to this year’s sponsors!

A heartfelt thank you to this year’s sponsors and supporters:

Sponsors:
The Green Mountain Coffee Cafe & Visitors Center
Revitalizing Waterbury
Waterbury Duxbury School District
The Alchemist
Waterbury Rotary Club

Supporters:
Axel’s Frame Shop and Gallery
Billings Mobil
Darby, Kolter, & Nordle, LLP
Northfield Savings Bank
Old Stagecoach Inn
Simon Operations
Sunflower Salon
Thatcher Brook Primary School PTO
Waterbury Recreation Department

Thanks to the generosity of our local restaurateurs you’ll be able to  support the River of Light Lantern Parade while enjoying our spectacular local fare. Every Tuesday in November, participating restaurants will donate 10% of their proceeds to Waterbury’s River of Light Lantern Parade.  Make a date with your family and friends! Here are the participating restaurants:

November 1st:        Arvads & The Blue Stone
November 8th:    KC Bagels & Stowe Street Cafe
November 15th:    Prohibition Pig
November 22nd:    Cork & The Reservoir Restaurant and Taproom
November 29th:    Blackback Pub & Hen of the Wood
Hope to see you there!

2016 Workshop Program

Please find below our community workshop program for 2016!

1. Community Lantern Workshop: Waterbury
Date: Saturday November 12th 2016
Place: Thatcher Brook Primary School, Waterbury VT
Time:
Session 1: 10am – 12pm

Session 2: 1pm – 3pm

– Workshops are free to attend
– All tools and materials will be provided
– Children under the age of 8 must be accompanied by an adult
– There will be a limit of 25 participants for each session
– Donations will be welcome
– Contact Gowri Savoor on info@gowrisavoor.com or call 802 778 0334
Please indicate your required time slot, number of participants, email address and phone number

2. Artists’ Lantern Making Workshop – November 5th and 6th 2016
This 2-day intensive workshop will give artists, art teachers and other creative types an opportunity to experience working with larger-scale lantern structures to spearhead a lantern parade.
It is a wonderful opportunity to create a larger-scale build if you are hosting a lantern parade within your school or community. Previous experience of making is advised. This workshop is for adults only. Hosted by Gowri Savoor and Angelo Arnold.

Date: Saturday November 5th and Sunday November 6th 2016
Place: Thatcher Brook Primary School, Waterbury VT
Time: 10am-4pm on each day, which will include an hour break for lunch.

– Participants must attend both days
– Battery operated LED lights will be available for purchase at cost price
– Limit of 20 participants
– This workshop is not suitable for children
– Suggested min. donation $25 per person, to cover material use
Contact Gowri Savoor on info@gowrisavoor.com or call 802 778 0334 for further information and to book a place.

Russ, Beth and Melanie work on their dragonfly during the 2015 artist-lantern workshop

 

River of Light in Waterbury 2016!

Hello and welcome to this year’s River of Light in Waterbury lantern parade! We are delighted to announce that this year’s parade will be taking place on Saturday December 3rd 2016! Workshop info. coming soon! In the meantime, please enjoy our poster – this year’s theme is ‘Everything Botanical: Wild Vegetation and Fantastical Flora!” We look forward to seeing your beautiful creations!