ANWS
“We don’t teach crafts.
We teach a new way of seeing.”
Every session belongs to the same program — and each one starts with a question, not with instructions.
We come to you — anywhere on Okinawa Island, Japan.
ANWS · how a session runs
The shape is the same every time. Only the materials change.
What is waste? Why do things become waste? Because we have more than we need — or because what we bought did not last. We start with the choice, not with the glue.
Everything goes on the table — newspapers, offcuts of wood, bottles and caps — and we look at it properly before anyone picks up a tool.
“Can this be used again? What else could it become?”
Hands-on time. Caps, newspaper or magazine paper become something useful or beautiful — to keep, or to give to someone. There is no right or wrong here.
Each child shows the group what they made. What did you make? What did you reuse? And — the question that matters most — why did you choose that idea?
A photo for the group to keep, and a few minutes on what everyone wants to look at differently next time.
Steps 1 and 2 are our first two questions, asked out loud in the room: why is waste created? and can this be used again?
The third one cannot be answered with scissors and glue, so it goes home instead.
Underneath all five steps there is only one question: “What can I create with this?”
ANWS · Creative · no experience needed
We bring the materials. The children bring the ideas.
Come as often as you like: the shape of the session stays the same, the materials change.
Creative 1
“Can this be used again?”
Paper → beads → jewelry
Children cut old newspaper into narrow strips, roll them into colorful beads, and design their own bracelet, necklace or keychain to take home.
Creative 2
“What else could this become?”
Bottles & caps → melted color → wearable art
Discarded PET bottles and caps are melted into sheets of color, then cut and shaped by the children into accessories that are entirely their own.
Safety
Heat steps — such as ironing plastic — are always handled by our instructor, never by children. Children may use scissors with an adult nearby. Creative 2 needs a power outlet at the venue.
Which one will you try first?
ANWS · Discovery · signature program
See.Think.Create.
Bring your own materials. Discover new possibilities.
The next step for a group that has already done Creative 1 or 2.
We don’t bring the materials to this one. You do.
A week before we meet, everyone is asked to find three things at home that were on their way to the bin — and that might still have something left in them. A jar. A ribbon. Bottle caps. One odd button. A T-shirt nobody fits into any more.
Nobody decides in advance what any of it will become, us included. On the day everything goes on the table and we look at what everyone brought. What is this? What could it be? Who has something that would go with it?
Then we make it, deciding as we go. Children and grown-ups think out loud together, and the answer is different every time.
Two and a half to three hours — not forty-five minutes. That is deliberate: this is a workshop for thinking, and observation and reflection are given as much of the clock as making.
Every other workshop begins when we arrive. This one begins the moment someone stands in front of the bin at home — and hesitates.
The second of our three questions — can this be used again? — gets answered in a kitchen, days before we meet.
That hesitation is not a step toward the workshop. It is the workshop.
Timing and cost depend on the group and on what everyone brings — please ask when you write to us.
What it actually is
A creativity and observation program that helps people discover new possibilities in everyday materials — and in the way they think.
This is not an upcycling workshop. The goal is not to teach anyone what to make. It is to help them discover the possibilities already hidden in the things they own.
Beyond the workshop
The bracelet is the small part.
Through the session children work out, without being told:
Simple ideas — but they are the first steps toward habits that can last a lifetime.
Two of our three questions are answered in the room. The third one cannot be, and we leave it that way.
“Can I choose something that will last longer?”
An invitation
Let’s create, learn, and grow together.
Whether you are a family, a preschool, a school, a library or a community group — we would love to bring A New Way of Seeing Workshop to your children.
We come to you, anywhere on Okinawa Island, and we bring everything with us. You bring the children.
That’s all. Everything else comes with us.
| 2 children | $25 each |
| 3–5 children | $20 each |
| 6–8 children | $18 each |
All materials included. No travel fee. Payment by PayPal. The Discovery Workshop is priced separately — please ask.
Say hello
We’ll take it from there.
A few short questions — your preferred dates, how many children and their ages, and where you’d like to hold it. About three minutes.
Open the booking formWould rather just write to us? Instagram and email work too.
Can I come to your place?
The full 12-page A New Way of Seeing Workshop catalog as a PDF — useful if you need to share it with a school or a committee.
WAF
