Lin B • September 2023
Shadow Box 3D Effect
Lin started her crafting adventures by buying an electronic cutting machine to cut stencils for painting. Having joined an online Facebook group owned by a graphic artist who makes beautiful designs that you can cut and layer the card stock in a shadow box to get a 3D effect.
Lin also makes things using sublimation ink and a heat press to put a design on a wooden sign, t-shirt, tea towel, or just about any medium, so that it looks like it was printed on the product. One of the critical features of heat sublimation is that it doesn’t fade or wear away with time. Besides working on her Etsy store, she can also be found at additional local area craft shows. Please visit Lin's listing on the ARTS Page.
Beth L • October 2023
Jewelry Making
Beth’s and her husband’s consulting business had taken them to all parts of the world, and it was on one of those trips that Beth’s passion for jewelry making got started. Eight years later, she is the proud owner of her Etsy shop Dragon Point Jewelry with her passion to create unique pieces and custom projects for clients.
Her travels have allowed her to source unique materials like gemstones, sea glass, and hand-made beads and buttons from all over the world. She has collected pounamu (jade) in New Zealand, sea glass on the shores of Ireland and Puerto Rico, and has purchased hand-made lampwork beads in Mauritius from the artist’s tiny shop. She is currently experimenting with polymer clay to imitate stained glass, but also loves metal work, bead weaving, and stone carving. Please visit Beth’s listing on the JEWELRY Page.
Gina S • November 2023
Jewelry Making
In 2008, Gina had a girlfriends reunion with the ladies she had worked with in Las Vegas. Their group interest turned into finding a local bead shop. The beads were beautiful and Gina felt an immediate love for creating jewelry. During a two year period, she rented a large room next to a beauty shop and opened a jewelry business while building her website. Gina continues to update her website showcasing her lovely necklaces, earrings, bracelets, bookmarks, purse clips and key ring creations. Please visit Gina’s listing on the JEWELRY Page.
Dawn C • December 2023
Custom Embroidery
Dawn started sewing at the age of ten, with her first sewing customer when she was twelve. Her dreams of being a fashion designer were cut short at age nineteen when family issues needed her home as a caregiver. Even with an early career retirement, she continued to become a self-styled fashion designer making over 500 wedding gowns, wedding party dresses, and theater costumes. Years after buying a small embroidery machine to embellish gowns and costumes, her next venture started with a ten-needle commercial embroidery machine. New directions now included making towels, shower curtains, bags, jackets, and many other items with embroidered designs.
Dawn started a non-profit organization called Angels Above Baby Gowns, which makes burial gown packages for infant loss. Having grown to be the largest group of this kind, their burial packages include a gown, hat, booties, bracelet for mother and baby with an angel charm on them, angel ornament, memory cards, and a small embroidered pillow. The embroidery machine embellishes each gown and other items making it more personal for the family. Please visit Dawn’s listing on the GIFTS Page.
Elizabeth C • January 2024
Epoxy Resin Paintings
Elizabeth acquired her love of art at six years old, receiving a plastic camera. As she matured, so did her cameras and equipment. She had her own dark room and processed her own film while taking photography classes in college.
As digital photography began to take over, she transferred into painting. While in Texas, as a member of a very large art group, she sold many pieces, won ribbons at juried art shows, and even taught a very beginner class in acrylic painting and alcohol ink.
Her business name “Art the World” is how she feels about art, giving some of her art away in connection with the worldwide Art Abandonment program, posting a photo and location of the artwork on their Facebook page. The group's vision is based on giving away pieces left randomly for people to find, which someone can keep, give away, or just leave it for someone else.
She has broadened her skills to include epoxy resin creating “functional art” and resin paintings. This medium comes with some difficulty and higher cost but the results are worth it. Please visit Elizabeth’s listing on the ARTS Page.
Diana H • February 2024
Watercolor & Acrylic Paintings and Sea Glass
Diana is a Bulgarian designer and watercolor artist making waves in Florida. Her artistic journey has been shaped by her deep love for traveling and the influence of her upbringing on the coast of the Black Sea. Diana's artistic prowess is a fusion of her diverse experiences, blending over fifteen years of expertise in graphic and web design with her passion for painting, and an unwavering love for sea glass. The convergence of these elements led her to the inspiration of Creative Sea Glass Journey, a unique venture that transforms forgotten sea glass pieces into intricately handcrafted gifts.
Her Creative Sea Glass Journey is more than just an artistic endeavor, the magic lies in the way Diana breathes new life into discarded sea glass, turning what was once forgotten into cherished mementos. Her story reminds us that beauty can emerge from unexpected places, and with a touch of creativity, we can turn forgotten fragments into enduring works of art that bring joy into our lives.
Diana just added a new Facebook page 'The Daughter of The Sea' featuring her little handcrafted sea glass pieces. She welcomes customized orders, where you may submit your own special wording to fit any occasion. Please visit Diana's listing on the ARTS Page.
Mervyn P • March 2024
Quilting
Mervyn has been a crafter since the first day she could hold a crayon in her hand. It's in the family, with her grandmother and mother both excellent seamstresses making play clothes to wedding gowns, for her as well. Her Aunt Irma was a magician with the handwork needle arts; so crochet, cross stitching, and embroidery were also on her plate from a very early age. She has taught crochet, knitting, cross stitching, and embroidery classes in her local Michael's store.
One early morning TV quilting show featured the Friendship Star pattern, which the designer said is a good one for beginners. She took copious notes, bought some fabric, and made a Friendship Star quilt. She was hooked! Mervyn was so smitten with the quilting bug, that she left Michael's to buy a quilt shop where she could delight in fabrics, patterns, classes and longarm quilting every day. She has been piecing and hand quilting for about twenty-five years.
Her longarm machine is not computerized, so all quilting is done freehand. She has several baby/toddler quilts, larger lap quilts, and other quilty things for sale each week. She also enjoys making bed quilts and welcomes custom orders. Please visit Mervyn's listing on the HOUSE Page.
Terri B • April 2024
Handbags, Purses, and Wallets
Terri was surrounded by talented grandmothers who taught her sewing, knitting, crocheting, and needlepoint. Later, she expanded to ceramics and excelled at painting.
While at her job at West Point, she was asked to make the largest yellow ribbon, which was placed at the front entrance of the hospital to show their support for the service members who were deployed during Desert Storm. After meeting her future husband through Army friends, she found a quilting shop and bought her first quilt sewing machine and an embroidery machine, starting another avenue of her artisan life making flags and tailored clothing. Then in their move to a Korean base, she taught quilting classes and took classes in Korean papercraft and calligraphy, and even got to travel to China, Australia, and Japan. After his Army retirement, they spent seven years in Abu Dhabi and continued touring around the world until landing in Florida. Living in all of those exotic places allowed her to pick up different fabrics, craft items, local art, and experience the world from a fabulous perspective of meeting all types of creative people.
Terri recently got into creating handbags, purses, and wallets, purchasing a heavy-duty machine to get the results she needed. She discusses with the customers all the quality details, new styles, vinyls, leathers, cottons, and patterns available. Each item is unique, and special orders are always welcome! Please visit Terri's listing on the APPAREL Page.
Betty W • May 2024
Decoupage
Decoupage is a technique of decorating an object with paper or fabric and gluing it onto painted elements ranging from boxes to furniture. More recently, hobbyists have been using recycled objects such as bottles or tin cans. Betty began doing decoupage two years ago using recycled wine bottles by adhering napkins to the surface. Then she began to collect interestingly shaped recycled bottles and many beautiful napkins. Now her decoupage is on clear glass plates, envelopes, Christmas ornaments, gift tags, lampshades, vases, or even canvas shoes. Finished products have been given to friends and neighbors just as a thank-you gift, or filled with goodies. For construction, you need chalk paint, a sponge pouncer, some Mod Podge, and a sealer such as clear enamel.