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Monthly Featured Members 2025 - 2026

Jan R • January 2025

Something for the Home

Jan is a designer, creator, and producer of all types of crafts from textile products. Her interests began as a little girl, learning from observation and teachings of her mother. In high school she took Home Economics classes which included some sewing experience, using machines and learning hand stitches. During this time she also began making some of her own clothes, back when patterns could be purchased for fifty cents!

Jan’s formal training and experience related to her hobbies include seminars, classes at the local fabric stores, as well as taking a class to learn the lost art of tatting, which is a process of knotting special thread to form items that have a lace appearance. Her current creations start with ideas from many sources including fabric stores, online, books, magazines and yes, looking at items made by other crafters while attending craft shows.

To keep inspired and continue to make products, she often reflects upon the influence of her mother and grandmother, as well as constant encouragement from her husband of fifty years, including the many folks that have purchased her items.

There are different types of textile materials she uses including fabric, thread, wool yarn, crochet cotton, as well as the standard tools of the trade. She hand-quilts all of her quilted items. For many years now, both the sewing and embroidery machines have been tools utilized for machine sewn items, and have served her well. There are many diversified products that she sells, like quilts, hot pads, tatted doilies, oven mitts, bowl cozies, aprons, embroidered towels, and place mats. She welcomes special requests from any customers. Please visit Jan's listing on the HOUSE 2 Page.

Barbara P • February 2025

Fused Glass Jewelry

Barbara loves all kinds of crafting. She has tried embroidery, cross stitch, quilting, scrapbooking, a tiny bit of knitting, and more. At eight years old, her aunt bought her an embroidery kit, which she still has to this day, and yes, it’s finished! She was doing a lot of cross stitch throughout high school and college. Since cross stitch takes a really long time to complete, she launched into the world of making jewelry with its different mediums including working with leather, wire, chain, stretch cord, ribbon, paper, resin, polymer clay, and shrinky dinks.  

When she moved here from Wisconsin two years ago, she briefly stayed in Stone Creek with her parents, and got involved in the jewelry and stained glass crafts groups. This is where she and a friend discussed doing fused glass. After some internet searches and watching videos, Barbara found out that there is a kiln which is made to be used in the microwave oven for fusing glass. After gathering a few resources, her new obsession of designing fused glass jewelry began. Enjoying the creative part, she found there was still a lot to learn about the science of glass. With free glass supplies from her former stained glass class, she experiments with new colors and styles of glass. Some of them work and some don’t, even cracking into pieces. Each piece is a beautiful surprise because you never truly know what it will look like until the firing process is complete — making the process exciting and products unique. Please visit Barbara's listing on the  JEWELRY Page.

Med J • March 2025

Jewelry and Diamond Painting

Med, originally from the Philippines, moved to the United States in her early twenties. A few years later, she met and married her husband, raising their family in central New Jersey. Her lengthy career was in insurance as a branch underwriting manager, then retirement led them to Florida nine years ago.

Med has always had a passion for jewelry making, especially creating designs with south sea pearls and semi-precious stones. Her daughter inherited this same quest for all things craft-related, so together over the years, they created whimsical, nature-inspired jewelry. 

It first started with some simple drawings they drew up on Shrinky Dinks film, which required coloring on clear plastic, polystyrene sheets. When heated, the shapes became thicker, while their dimensions reduced down to a third in size. After a few years, her daughter was able to digitize their drawings and just print them out onto transfer paper.

Med's current obsession was inspired by her daughter's gift of a diamond painting kit, which is similar to a paint-by number set. The kit includes canvas, diamond applicator pen, wax and tray. Diamond painting can be time consuming, but besides making a diamond painting frame, you can also make coasters, keychains, refrigerator magnets, holiday ornaments, sun catchers, placemats, etc. 

Lay the canvas print side up, a chart design is labeled with numbers which correspond to a diamond color symbol so you will know where to place each diamond accordingly. Start by peeling a small area of plastic off of the canvas. It's best to work on small sections at a time, to keep the canvas covered, and prevent unnecessary dust and debris from sticking to it. Pour a small amount of diamonds into the tray and gently shake it back and forth until the diamonds settle right-side up. With the pink square wax, dip the tip of the applicator to fill it with wax. This helps pick up the diamond, as they will easily stick to the tip of the applicator. Once chosen, carefully press the diamond to the correct symbol on the canvas. Always remember to add a little bit more wax if the pen seems like it doesn't pick up the diamond anymore. Repeat the process until you are done. Please visit Med's listing on the JEWELRY Page.

Sue B • April 2025

Acrylic & Encaustic Painting to Collage Art

Susan has degrees in graphic design and early childhood education, and her artistic journey has evolved from acrylic painting to collage art. More recently, it includes the fascinating world of encaustic painting — an ancient technique using pigmented melted wax.

Susan's career began in graphic design, where she worked extensively in the semiconductor industry as a marketing communications manager, shaping corporate identities, developing advertising campaigns, trade show graphics, and sales materials, and even producing an extensive 400-page product catalog. Her expertise in visual communication, branding, and exhibit design helped establish a strong corporate presence in an ever-evolving industry.

After twenty years in graphic design, Susan transitioned to early childhood education, where she combined her artistic talent with teaching. As an art studio teacher, she introduced young children, infants through age five, to various artistic mediums, encouraging creativity and exploration. Inspired by the works of Eric Carle, Ezra Jack Keats, and Aaron Becker, Susan designed classroom murals, preschool lobbies, and children’s room décor, fostering an environment rich in imagination and expression.

Susan’s collage work is a unique blend of cut and torn paper, fabric, and mixed materials, carefully layered on a substrate and finished with either varnish or epoxy resin. Her subject matter is deeply inspired by nature and fantasy, capturing the landscapes and wildlife of New England and the Gulf Coast of Florida. Whether depicting ocean life, still life, or whimsical illustrations for children, her collages bring a sense of vibrancy and movement to every composition.

Continuing to push creative boundaries, Susan has delved into encaustic painting, a technique that involves melting pigmented wax and fusing it onto a wooden panel using a heat source such as a hot plate or heat gun. This process creates rich textures and depth, adding a unique, ethereal quality to her artwork.

Now based in Florida, Susan exhibits and sells her work, sharing her passion for mixed media and storytelling through art. Please visit Sue's listing on the CANVAS Page.

Janice P • May 2025

Providing Inspiration

Janice was raised in the Midwestern areas of Wisconsin, Indiana and Illinois, where she relished the distinctive change of seasons. Now, it’s the comforting warmth and abundant sunshine of Ocala. Having been trained as a certified consultant and teacher of Spiritual Response Therapy, for over twenty years, she has helped people in need of life coaching and healing. 

This journey has led her to focus her coaching, by designing structural tools in the form of a 210-page book and special deck of cards which can be used independently of each other as preferred by the user. Using her creative poetry and writings, she teamed up with Tricia Sybersma, an artist who blends horses and painting. Tricia was inspired to use eight horses to create this intuitive art. With a simple way to use non-toxic paint laid out on paper, then covered with a protective cover so that the horse doesn’t have contact with the paint, it’s finally sprinkled with compressed hay on top. The horse gently nibbles and nuzzles the surface to produce a stunning blend of colors and energy when the painting underneath is revealed.

This book entitled HeartFelt: Live from Your Heart, entails one of these beautiful paintings on one page, with a spiritually healing poem or powerful and inspirational affirmation on the other. The corresponding card deck features seventy-three cards with an index guide, and a similar layout of artwork and verse on the front and back. Some folks prefer the ease of the cards for carrying around or daily display. Sometimes another voice is needed to guide and heal, as these might be a gentle solution. Both the book and cards are thoughtful gifts, and might be used in quiet moments of daily meditation and reflection. 

Janice’s poetry is currently featured each month in the OTOW News, where you can review her style and depth of feeling, as she hopes to offer guidance and inspiration to all who read it. Please visit Janice's listing on the GIFTS 2 Page.

Linda O • September 2025

Needle Felting

Linda started her needle felting hobby three years ago after seeing someone post a picture of a dog they made. She fell in love, and knew with all her heart that she would study and learn as much as possible. Her dream has been to design wool miniatures for people who love the furkids. Linda’s first project was to create a mini version of their Tinker and Roxy. Having worked on these two for months, she learned so much by trial and error. She was absolutely thrilled with the results, and is now one hundred percent addicted to felting! 

The next project was a likeness of her “Babycakes”, their little girl for seventeen years, and this became a delightful tribute to her. By incorporating some of the dog’s fur that Linda saved, she included a tiny heart embedded inside of the crafted likeness, which holds some of the beautiful keepsake fur.

By then, Linda knew that she loved this felting process, and it became a creative venue that she could eventually do for others. Through reading books on needle felting animals, watching YouTube channels of people who love creating fiber arts, and following Facebook groups, Linda learned from many people who were willing to share their experience. Jumping in whole heartedly, she purchased a variety of supplies like wool roving, needles, wire for armatures, glass, plastic eyes and noses. Eventually she learned how to substitute her own style for eyes and noses. 

Linda and her husband moved here a little over five years ago, while her dad was here. She loves her job of more than twenty years, being able to work from home as a business development person for a steel company. Eventually, when she is completely retired, Linda plans to travel to statewide arts and craft fairs with her animal “Felties” in all shapes, sizes and variety of breeds.

Each creature Linda creates has a special place in her heart. She feels it’s fun and truly rewarding to see them come to life! Please visit Linda's listing on the ARTS Page.

Artistic Crafts & Gifts • October 2025

Community Celebration

This month we’re featuring our Halloween crafts party on October 28th. Residents are urged to come and be part of the festivities, since our main mission is to celebrate you, our wonderful community! Our crafters will be decked out in whatever fashion, prominent character, or costume which suits their creative mind. We would love to have you come in costumed style if you want, but it is not required. 

Upon entering the show, you’ll receive a trick-or-treat bag, and write your name and phone number on a ticket which gets placed in the large pumpkin. As you visit our outfitted crafters throughout the auditorium, you’ll find some tasty treats on each table, including their quality handcrafted and specially designed items for sale. 

At the end of the show, several names will be drawn for the beautiful baskets filled with our crafters’ items. Any winners will be called and their basket will be delivered, unless they are still there.

Since Halloween seems to usher in the festive season, we will be having more celebrations throughout the year as the Thanksgiving, December holidays, Valentines, and many more customer appreciation events keep your spirits up until May. 

Our crafters are extremely diversified with a wide variety of gifts, cards, apparel, jewelry, items for the home, including canvas, wood, and mixed media artwork. Many design products and place them for sale, but feel free to ask if they can design another with your favorite colors, or any personal specifications to fit your home, style or to make it the perfect gift for someone special. That’s the beauty of having such creative talent just around the corner, or showcased online and easily contacted. We hope you’ll join us every week, especially on October 28th, to enjoy the fun and enthusiasm of our show!

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