Imagine Play Inspire

Imagine Play Inspire Contact information, map and directions, contact form, opening hours, services, ratings, photos, videos and announcements from Imagine Play Inspire, Oakura.

Creative Play & Process Art Specialist helping children and adults strengthen their confidence, creativity & wellbeing

kids art classes & adult creativity workshops
🙋🏽‍♀ 20+ years of experience

07/05/2026

Who hasn't heard the "I don't know what to draaaaw..." before?

(If there is someone out there, please do tell me 😁)

Save this one for two ways of planting seeds of inspiration for your child (vs. telling them what to do).

Why not simply tell them what to draw?

For one, it takes away a beautiful opportunity for the child to think for themself. And secondly, they may get used to looking for external ideas instead of trusting their own.

Interestingly something I notice a lot in children who have recently started school...

Anyway, I hope this helps to gently open doors for your tamariki without fully walking them through. ❤️

Save this one so you can come back to it.

A little update on our current  art play opportunities, for both kids and adults, probably well overdue... 🙈And a wee re...
06/05/2026

A little update on our current art play opportunities, for both kids and adults, probably well overdue... 🙈

And a wee reminder: Imagine Play Inspire exists to nurture the innate creativity we're all born with but unfortunately seem to forget about in the process of growing up. Our classes and workshops are all about helping you and your kids trust your/their own instincts, find and express your/their voice and experience joy in the creative process.

There are currently four main pillars that make up our creative offerings... but because variety and novelty are creativity's best friends, unique pop-ups are a thing, too 😁 Best way to stay informed on what's happening is by joining the mailing list via link in bio (psst that's also the spot for booking a class). 🔗

1) After-school Art Classes in New Plymouth and Ōkato
.. nurturing creative confidence, self-regulation, self-expression, and a lasting love of making.

In our after-school classes, children are being given materials, time, curiosity, and the freedom to create their own way while receiving gentle encouragement and guidance as and when needed.

2) 1:1 and 1:2 Sessions in Ōakura

Some children prefer quieter spaces. When they can move at their own pace, follow a specific interest, or just not have to think about what everyone else is doing. These classes are for tamariki who thrive in smaller settings, those with specific creative goals, or families who simply want something more personal.

3) Adult Creative Wellbeing Workshops

For adults who want to make something with their hands, without pressure, without judgement, and without needing to be "good at art". We explore process art, play, and creativity as a form of self-care, connection, and slowing down. Expect small groups, a welcoming environment and expert facilitation.

4) Community Collaborations

I love working with organisations and community groups who want to bring more play, creativity, and connection into what they do. Past collaborations have included creative activations with Sport Taranaki and Centre City, New Plymouth. If you're planning something and you think creativity needs to be part of it, let's chat.

05/05/2026

You used to be creative... Making things just for fun...

But somehow life got busy, and oh so serious. You can't remember the last time you painted, cut, glued, messed around with materials... Experimented. Maybe you think art is just for people who "are good at it"...

If this sounds familiar, consider this an invitation to an afternoon set aside for you. 4 hours of bringing back that special childhood feeling of being playful, messy, and creating without judgement. No art skills or experience required.

Join us in June and experience what it feels like to slow down, be present and let go of the mental load for a few hours.

Leave feeling calmer, grounded, and reconnected to the joy of making things just for fun.

Take home your own mixed-media piece as a beautiful reminder that you are creative. �

If you've been looking for an opportunity to reconnect with the simple joy of play, exploration and making things, you've come to the right place.

Spots are limited to keep the group size small, all details can be found in our bio. Questions welcome anytime, just send me a message.

Let's play!

Franzi �

04/05/2026

Thanks mum for introducing me to creativity with all kinds of craft projects, including letting me use your office correcting fluid for glue (spoiler alert: it didn't work 😅)...

Mother's Day is a week away and we've got a little something special coming up, including this giveaway! ❤️

For those of you who'd love a morning of making alongside your child, in a beautiful, cosy environment, I'm giving away one spot to our parent-child workshop on May 17 at .

It's a morning of open-ended art making on canvas, side by side. No experience needed. No pressure to make anything "good." Just time to follow your curiosity and creatively explore together. 🎨

Expect a couple of prompts and arty games to get those creative juices flowing, and plenty of time to slow down, paint and just be. Food and drink available for purchase.

To enter:

Follow

Like this post.

Tag someone you'd love to come along to this!

Giveaway closes May 10, and I'll draw a winner that evening. Winner will be announced in stories and contacted via DM, so make sure your messages are open!

(And if gifting this to someone else feels like something you'd like to do, that's a beautiful idea too.)

***

Prize: one ticket to the Imagine Play Inspire parent-child workshop at Volcanoview, May 17. Open to NZ residents only. This giveaway is not affiliated with, administered by, or endorsed by Meta/Instagram. Prize cannot be redeemed in cash.

Enjoyed experimenting a little as part of the term prep for our after-school Art Labs starting next week... 🌞In this pro...
01/05/2026

Enjoyed experimenting a little as part of the term prep for our after-school Art Labs starting next week... 🌞

In this project, our young creatives will be playing with warm and cool colours to create contrasts, unusual painting tools for mark-making, and (optional) stencils to create a negative space, making it all pop even more.

While it looks like this is aimed at creating a specific finished product, there is a lot of freedom in this creative process.... a lot of opportunities for decision making, risk taking and creative exploration. Can't wait!!

And that was April!Learned, played, created, and played some more.Some highlights: met a bird woman, got dragged off a f...
30/04/2026

And that was April!

Learned, played, created, and played some more.

Some highlights: met a bird woman, got dragged off a ferris wheel by a mythical creature and watched a full moon go down into the ocean. ❤️

Thank you, April.

Your friendly reminder that, yes, we do offer birthday parties. 🙃Check our highlights for some more snaps and impression...
29/04/2026

Your friendly reminder that, yes, we do offer birthday parties. 🙃

Check our highlights for some more snaps and impressions, and just reach out for more details on the logistics. ❤️

29/04/2026

"Let's make something!" ❤️

28/04/2026

Trying not to ramble on too much while talking about my two most favourite things when it comes to creativity...

Improvisation and Process Art! ❤️

I often find sooooo many crossovers between these two... hmm disciplines let's say, and today I'm sharing one of them.

When we try to create we tend to think we need more skills, better tools, the "perfect" environment, the right time, a feeling of being inspired and so on...

Unfortunately, waiting for these external things to be in place, often means we don't create in the first place.

But guess what?

None of the above are necessary to create, to be creative. You are creative already, and so am I.

It sounds so simple but I still have many moments of getting stuck in this loop of thoughts telling me "I need a, b, and c to make x, y and z happen". More time. More confidence. Better skills.

I don't want to disregard the value of resources. They can help. An inviting environment can help. A moment of quiet can help. But that doesn't mean that we can't create outside of that. Or that not having access to those means it's not worth creating anything.

Ramble over, thoughts welcome 😁

I so cannot wait to bring this special workshop back in just over a few weeks, together with our friends over at Volcano...
27/04/2026

I so cannot wait to bring this special workshop back in just over a few weeks, together with our friends over at Volcanoview Taranaki.

Imagine this... A morning just for you and your young creative. Games and prompts to invite play, creative exploration and connection. Plenty of time to paint... slowly, mindfully, together.

Last time was so much fun and I honestly can. not. wait to see what unique and quirky creations our pairings will bring to life this time!

If you're keen to join us, grab one of the remaining spots via link in bio. ❤️

27/04/2026

Some days are easier (or harder) than others but here are some things I'm working on, beliefs I'm trying to strengthen for myself in and outside of the creative process...

1) "I am enough" or "I am creative" = I have an, and can express my, unique point of view. I can make something from nothing. I have what it takes to solve any problem that comes my way.

It's so easy for us to fall into the "I'm just not creative" or "I need x, y and z to be successful" belief trap.

Why is it a trap?

It keeps us stuck. And it let's us forget that we have agency and that we are capable. We all can create.

Why do I need a reminder of this myself?

Phew, that's probably more a subject for a book than a shortish social post caption haha.. Hm, let's see.. Upbringing, societal values, personality traits, to name a few. Life!

What I know is, many of us don't consider themselves creative, and for that I blame systems that have valued outcomes over exploration, right answers over original thinking, and somehow taught us that creativity belongs to the “talented few” instead of all of us.

2) "Process over product" / "Leave me alone perfectionism!"
= yup, I like things polished, perfect, flawless. I have high standards for myself and others. I know... 🫣 A bit far from what I teach... trust that I'm working on it.

Happy to say that over the past few years I've made some progress in this area (baby steps). It's not that I've lowered my standards but I've, slowly, accepted that sometimes things go wrong, or simply don't turn out exactly as I'd imagined. And I've learned that that can be a great thing! And that things (and I) will be okay if I make a mistake.

Still very much work in progress and I feel lucky to spend so much of my time in environments where our tamariki model their bold, creative risk taking.

Eeek, I ran out of space... Number three continued in comments! Love to hear from which one resonates with you, too 👇

Address

Oakura
4314

Telephone

+64278370498

Website

https://imagineplayinspire.co.nz/, https://coff.ee/imagineplayinspire

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