Craft Gossip

The largest independent craft review site since 2007

Going to school in a circus

by

We recently reviewed Ovo, currently touring Australia.

Have you ever wondered how the kids who travel with their artist mum and dad get their studies done? After all, just being part of a big circus entourage doesn’t mean you get to miss out on your schooling :).

OVO has a school on site (and so do most Cirque Du Soleil touring companies).

A LITTLE ABOUT THE SCHOOL ON SITE AT OVO

  • There are currently 3 students at the OVO School (ages are 6, 7 and 15), two are Russian, one is French.
  • The OVO school follows the Quebec school system – it follows the school program, not the school year.
  • Only children of artists within OVO can attend the school.
  • During Brisbane, the children at the school will finish the school year- they will then have 2-3 weeks off and then will start the new school year in Sydney.
  • Children must start school when they are 6 years of age.
  • School runs Tuesday-Saturdays (Sun-Mondays off) and runs from 9:30am-3:30pm/4pm. lunch is usually at around 12:15pm-1pm (45 minutes). They also have morning and afternoon recess/break.

Classes are in French or English.

Wow! Which kid wouldn’t want to be part of a school within a circus?

Read These Next

Have you read?

Knit a Great Button Down Shirt

Just about anything you can make in fabric you can make in knitting, but there are some styles that you just don’t see that often translated into knitting. 

For example, a button down collared shirt. This is a classic design, of course, and it looks great in a knit version, but it’s just not something you see much of. 

Noma Ndlovu’s Guglethu shirt is the pattern to try if you want to knit your own button down shirt. This one is inspired by cashmere tops (though the sample was made out of yak yarn, not cashmere, and uses two strands of lace weight yarn held together) and includes lots of high-fashion details like double-knit cuffs, collar and shoulder seams. 

It has a patch pocket on the front and 10 buttons including the button band and the cuffs. 

The designer says you can also use a DK weight yarn held singly if you’d rather, and that the shirt looks good in a variety of yarns. There is another version on Ravelry that uses Berroco Remix Light, which is a mix of nylon, cotton, acrylic, silk and cellulose fibers. It has a more relaxed look but it still really pretty. 

The pattern has 12 sizes, with a full bust measurement ranging from 32.35 to 72.25 inches, or 82 to 183.5 cm. The designer suggests 2 to 6 inches, or 5 to 15 cm, of positive ease when you pick your size. I could totally see knitting one that’s even bigger to wear more like a jacket, because I do that a lot with button down shirts I already own.

I love all the details on this shirt, which isn’t necessarily difficult to knit, but might introduce you to some things you’ve never knit before (like those cuffs with the plackets, or a shirt collar like this). 

To learn more about this shirt and grab a copy of the pattern for yourself, head to Ravelry. 

[Photo: Noma Ndlovu]

Add Some Texture to Your Summer Knitting

Book Review – Knit a Dozen Plus Slippers