WHAT Women Create - Fall 2022

INSPIRATION FOR YOUR IMAGINATION

Fall 2022 Display Until December 15, 2022 $16.99 US $17.99 CDN

CREATED BY JO PACKHAM

“It’s not what you look at that matters, it’s what you see.”

– Henry David Thoreau NADIA REIN

CREATOR + EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Jo Packham

DESIGN & EDITORIAL

Managing Editor Jennifer Blot Designer Wendy Dunning COPY EDITOR

Toni Fitzgerald CURATORS

Sally Jane Linville BloomTV Carrie Schmitt

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Madavor Media, LLC 35 Braintree Hill Office Park, Suite 101 Braintree, MA 02184 Madavor.com

From a woman’s soul, through a woman’s eyes, by a woman’s hands.®

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What Women Create® is a registered trademark of Where Women Create, Inc. and may not be used without permission. No part of this publication may be reproduced without written permission from the publisher or Where Women Create Inc. The information contained in this magazine is provided AS IS. Neither Where Women Create, Inc. nor Maldavor Media, LLC, nor the publisher, make any representation or warranty with respect to this magazine or the contents thereof and do hereby disclaim all express and implied warranties to the fullest extent permitted by law. Where Women Create, Inc. and the publisher do not endorse any individuals, companies, products, services, or views featured or advertised in this magazine. ©2022 Where Women Create, Inc. all rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced without written permission from the copyright owner.

CONTENTS

66 FEATURES 28 Esther Franchuk 46 Rebecca Hutchinson 66 The City Girl Farm

When Feathers Come Together: A Global Chicken Collection

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Belén and Maru Pearce

Amalanafelt

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Sibylle Eschenlohr

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India Flint

90

Chiyoko Myose

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Marjolein Dallinga

Bloomfelt

102 Nadia Rein 108 Stephanie Organes Pretty Please

124 Lori Sikkema 144 Alex Sulikowski

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Alex a Mano

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124 138

IN EVERY ISSUE 6 From My Kitchen Table The art of recipes

DEPARTMENTS 10 BloomTV

Holly Capelle, Big Family Living

138 Pet Tales

Bear and Ari

ON THE COVER

Rebecca Hutchinson

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W

hat I have learned over the years is that chefs are artists, creating the most delicious and curated dishes imaginable. And many artists are also chefs who have mastered unique and delicious curated dishes. But creatives take the art of eating to the final step of designing a table that includes the finishing and aesthetic touches — from what the dishes are served in to the complete and entire presentation of the setting of the table.

Small copper pots and pans become individual serving dishes. Multicolored glass plates are artfully set upon copper chargers, which in turn are placed on printed watercolor paper placemats that are designed and painted for the evening by the artist herself.

Creatives look at a recipe and see the big picture, the possibilities that go beyond the meal itself.

Here are two all-time favorites from my own kitchen table, perfect for summertime — or year-round.

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Fire-Roasted Cornbread Pudding YIELD: 6 SERVINGS PREP TIME: 10 MINUTES TOTAL TIME: 30 MINUTES

½ cup butter, melted 1 box Jiffy Corn Muffin Mix 1 can creamed corn 1 can fire-roasted corn, undrained ½ cup milk 1 egg ½ cup sour cream ¼ cup raw honey with comb

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1. Heat oven to 350 F. 2. In a large bowl, stir together butter,

muffin mix, creamed and fire-roasted corn (reserve ¼ cup fire-roasted corn for topping), milk and egg.

3. Pour into 6 well-greased copper ramekins. Top with fire-roasted corn. Bake for 25–30 minutes, or until center springs back when touched lightly.

4. Cool slightly. Top with sour cream and honey with comb.

RECIPES COURTESY BROOKE LARK

Baked in a ramekin, so everyone gets their own, these simple pies are scented with almond and topped with so much sparkling sugar, the kid in you will be happy for weeks. Simple to make, and so comforting, these teeny pies are the perfect way to end your dinner.

Little Blueberry Spice Pies YIELD: 8 SERVINGS PREP TIME: 30 MINUTES TOTAL TIME: 90 MINUTES

Nonstick baking spray 4 large prepared pie crusts, divided into quarters 5–6 cups blueberries 3 Tbsp flour ½ cup butter Juice and zest, 1 lemon ½ tsp pure almond extract 1 Tbsp pumpkin pie spice ½ tsp cardamom 1 egg, well beaten ¾ cup sparkling sugar

1. Heat oven to 375 F. 2. Spray 8 ramekins with nonstick

baking spray. Press pie crusts into the bottom of ramekins.

3. In large bowl, toss together blueberries, flour, butter, lemon juice and zest, almond extract, pumpkin pie spice and cardamom. Spoon blueberries into ramekins, overfilling each as much as possible.

4. Place a round of pie crust on top, pinch off edges. With sharp knife, cut slits into the top of

each pie. Brush with egg, sprinkle with sparkling sugar.

5. Transfer to baking sheet. Bake for 45–50 minutes. If tops start to become too golden brown while baking, cover gently with foil.

6. Remove and allow to cool slightly before serving.

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Holly Capelle Photography by Holly Capelle and Alice Christine Walker

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P H OTO G R A P H Y B Y A L I C E C H R I S T I N E WA L K E R

Holly Capelle, from Portland, Oregon, is the proud mama of six kids and married to her high school sweetheart. She’s worked in broadcast radio advertising for over two decades while raising her family at the same time. She and her husband, Kevin, have poured their hearts into turning their first house into a home, one DIY project at a time.

Holly has created a lifestyle for her family centered around their garden. Her creativity and use of thrifted and repurposed materials have allowed her to create a custom home and unique outdoor living spaces that reflect who they are.

Holly has recently begun sharing her journey — the projects they are working on, her food art and other creations she makes — on social media. Her urban homestead lifestyle has caught the interest of over 93K followers and growing. Her enthusiasm for gardening and creating, and her encouragement for others to dig in, are both infectious and inspiring.

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Scan to watch Holly's episode on BloomTV

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colorful blooms and listening to the waterfall

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When I was a little and dreaming about what my house and gardens girl, I remember skipping through the brick paths in my grandma’s garden. We’d pick raspberries that she would later turn into the best freezer jam ever in her little beautiful kitchen. Food was her love language. She taught us to cook, bake, grow and create with passion. She lived beautifully yet change to thriftily. She was always put together yet willing to get her hands dirty. She was special. So many times, I’d roam the brick paths through the stately front-yard rose garden my grandparents created together, smelling the

would be like someday when I grew up.

Many years later, I walked down those bricks to marry the man of my dreams in that very rose garden. The big white house I had grown up visiting was the chosen spot for the most important day of my life. It was a magical place that holds so many meanings and memories for me.

After my grandparents passed, my husband and I gathered as many of the bricks from the old garden that we could — creating a new path in our garden so they could forever be a part of the space they taught me to love so much.

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“Don’t ask yourself what the world needs. Ask yourself what makes you come alive and then go do that. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.”

— HOWARD THURMAN

When my husband

and I bought our first home in 2001, it was not exactly the house of my dreams.

It was a boring ranch-style house with a good-size yard. It was within our means, near schools and in a good area. Perfect for a young family. So we spent the last two decades slowly turning the house and yard into the place we dreamed of raising our family.

What started out as two raised beds in an empty backyard, over the years has turned into over 16 raised beds, multiple gardens, outdoor living spaces and a chicken coop for our flock of five … with new projects my husband and I do together always in the works. We grow all our plants from seed, caring for them from beginning to end. Our garden is an important part of our love story.

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Working from home

full-time in radio advertising afforded me the luxury of raising our kids at the same time. I say luxury, but there were plenty of tearful showers while raising six kids and juggling a corporate career. It was not easy. Having a large family also puts a strain on a budget. So, finding ways to save money by upcycling and repurposing things into new creations became a way of life for me. I buy as much as I can secondhand, and we DIY as much as possible. The garden gives me the opportunity to feed my family organic fruits and veggies, both fresh and preserved in various ways. I have collections of dried homegrown herbs, dried edible flowers and cupboards of dehydrated and canned garden foods.

The spirit of creativity has been alive in me for as long as I can remember. I’ve always found joy in making things. I love vibing through a project without a real plan in place.

Just ideas and imagination. I think imperfection is perfect, and whimsical is magical.

One of my favorite things to create is experiences. With so many babies at home, things like going to the movies or out to dinner were just not in the budget. But I never wanted my family to miss out. So, I created experiences for them as often as I could. Family movie night included pretend money to spend at mom’s snack shop, where you could buy popcorn and movie treats.

Backyard camping would include tents, outdoor grilling, a campfire, hot chocolate and nighttime adventures. Playing restaurant with a fancy table setting and a homemade menu would make them smile. The Fourth of July was always fun with mom and dad’s backyard carnival, complete with homemade games made out of recycled materials, homemade tickets and prizes to be won.

Birthdays around here are a good time.

We’ve had indoor picnics, tea parties, ice cream shops, garden parties, arts parties and an under-the-sea party, for which I created all the invitations, decorations, games and food myself. All of it homemade. I even turned my living room into a Halloween costume shop once! We didn’t have money that year to buy everyone new costumes, so I pulled out anything and everything I could find that could be costume related, and I opened my shop up for business. The kids had the best time coming up with costumes to wear. No one even asked about new ones that year.

Finding ways to incorporate nature in almost everything I do has been so fulfilling. I use what we grow in the kitchen for homemade beauty care, craft projects and even as seasonal décor. Much like my grandma, food is also my love language, and I’m passionate about creating garden-to-table dishes. Edible flowers have been a game changer in my kitchen. I use them, along with our homegrown herbs, veggies, fruit and farm-fresh eggs, to create garden-inspired dishes in my little beautiful kitchen. Just like my grandma did.

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What a pleasure it is to

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grab a beautiful bowl, walk down to the garden, pick just what I need, then come inside the house and make something beautiful and delicious for people I love, in a space I feel comfortable in. It’s a grateful way to live. Garden quiche is a family favorite. Herb biscuits are a staple in our house. My garden compound butter is almost too pretty to eat, and my easy-to-create chocolate bars decorated with pressed flowers and dehydrated fruits are always a crowd-pleaser. I’m so thankful for all that my garden provides. What I create is born out of my love of nature, love of family and a desire to make life feel special using my imagination while spending as little money as possible doing it.

I am deeply connected to the earth, dedicated to my garden craft and always learning as I go.

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Holly's Herb & Cheddar Biscuits 3 cups all-purpose flour 1 Tbsp baking powder 1 Tbsp sugar 1 tsp salt (use your herb-infused salt!)

1 tsp fresh thyme 1 tsp fresh rosemary ½ tsp garlic powder ¾ tsp cream of tartar 1 cup finely grated cheddar cheese ¾ cup butter, cut into cubes 1 cup whole milk 1. Pre-heat oven to 450 F. 2. In a large bowl, combine flour, baking powder, sugar, salt,

herbs, garlic powder, cream of tartar and cheese. Using a pastry cutter, cut in the cubed butter until mixture is coarse crumbs. Make a well, pour in milk. Use a fork to mix.

3. Turn dough onto lightly floured surface and knead by folding and pressing about six times. Pat dough until ½ inch thick and cut with a 3-inch cutter. Place circles onto ungreased parchment-lined baking sheet and bake 10–12 minutes.

4. Brush immediately with melted butter and place fresh flowers and herbs on top, then repeat, brushing melted butter to help garnishes stick. Serve warm. Enjoy!!!

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P H OTO G R A P H Y B Y A L I C E C H R I S T I N E WA L K E R

P H OTO G R A P H Y B Y A L I C E C H R I S T I N E WA L K E R

P H OTO G R A P H Y B Y A L I C E C H R I S T I N E WA L K E R

Garden Compound Butter Fresh herbs and/or edible flowers (violas, calendula, rose petals, pansies and chive blossoms work well) 2 sticks butter, partially softened Parchment paper Cling wrap Medium-size bowl and mixing spoon 1. Wash and dry fresh herbs and edible

flowers.

2. Chop into small pieces, setting aside some whole flowers and herbs.

3. Mix chopped flowers/herbs and 2 sticks softened butter in medium-size mixing bowl using a spoon.

NOTE: At this point, you can serve in a bowl or put into molds (candy molds work great) for individual pats of butter. Or continue to next steps.

4. Pile butter mixture onto parchment pa-

per and roll into log. Add whole flowers/ herbs to top and sides. Transfer butter onto the edge of a piece of cling wrap, putting decorated top facing down. Add flowers/herbs to bottom side.

5. Roll butter log, wrapping tightly. Twist ends to seal and store in refrigerator. Allow 1 to 2 hours to set, then slice as needed.

Store in fridge for up to 3 months.

VARIATIONS:

For roasting chicken or turkey: Mix in sage, rosemary, oregano, lemon thyme and orange zest.

Spicy butter: Add dried crushed cayenne and peppercorns.

Sweet butter: Mix in edible flowers, chopped berries and 2 Tbsp honey.

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Ham & Cheese Garden Quiche Pastry for single crust — homemade or pre-made (unbaked), plus extra pastry for fancy edges 4 eggs, plus 1 egg white 1 ½ cups half and half or light cream ¼ cup chopped garden greens (kale, chard, spinach and chives work well) ¼ tsp salt ⅛ tsp pepper Dash nutmeg ¾ cup diced ham 1 ½ cups finely shredded cheddar cheese 1 Tbsp flour 1. Preheat oven to 450 F. 2. Prepare pastry and set in pie dish. Line with two

sheets of foil, place dish on baking sheet and bake for 8 minutes.

3. Remove foil and bake additional 4 minutes. Remove from oven and lower temp to 325 F. 4. In medium-size bowl, mix eggs, half and half, greens, ham, salt, pepper and nutmeg. Set aside.

5. In smaller bowl, combine cheese and flour. Toss to evenly coat, then add to egg mixture and mix well.

6. Pour mixture into baked pie shell and carefully top with fresh edible flowers, herbs and greens. Get creative and use extra pastry to make fancy crust (use cookie cutters for pretty shapes!).

7. Brush crust with egg whites, cover edges with foil and bake 45–50 minutes.

“I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”

— MAYA ANGELOU

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Botanical Candy Bars MAKES 6 MINI CANDY BARS

Melt 1¼ cups of white baking chips in microwave at 30-second intervals or in a double boiler.

Then, try one of the following combinations.

NOTE: If mixture starts to clump when using extract, add 1 Tbsp vegetable oil to thin for pouring into the molds.

Lemon Balm Bars — Add 1 Tbsp dried ground lemon balm and top with dehydrated oranges and pressed violas.

Strawberry Mint Bars — Mix in 1 Tbsp dried ground mint, a few drops of pink gel food coloring (until desired color is reached), and 1 tsp mint extract. Top with pressed violas, dehydrated strawberries and gold sprinkles.

Orange Bars — Use orange gel food coloring and 1 tsp orange extract, then top with dehydrated mandarin or blood oranges and pressed mums.

Lavender Blueberry Bars — Add purple gel food coloring and 1 tsp dried lavender.

Top with dehydrated blueberries, pepitas and silver sparkles.

The flavors and toppings are unlimited, so get creative! Enjoy!

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“To plant a garden is to believe in tomorrow.”

— AUDREY HEPBURN

Holly www.BloomTVNetwork.com INSTAGRAM: BigFamilyLiving FACEBOOK: HollysBigFamilyLiving YOUTUBE: BigFamilyLiving

BloomTV www.BloomTVNetwork.com INSTAGRAM: BloomTV.Network FACEBOOK: BloomTVNetwork

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THROUGH THE LENS

Alice Christine Walker is an award-winning photographer, visual artist and storyteller based in Portland, Oregon. Since living abroad in her teens, Alice has paired

P H OTO G R A P H Y B Y A L I C E C H R I S T I N E WA L K E R

photography and travel as a way to bridge cultural divides and explore the universal human spirit. She specializes in portraiture and event photography, thriving on helping creatives document their work and their practice. In her own artistic practice, she is known for her compelling street photography and can regularly be found behind a 1950s Rolleiflex. She is a classically skilled darkroom photographer, and in her free time, she is a repair technician for the surviving chemical photo booths.

Alice Christine www.AliceChristineWalker.com

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Esther Franchuk Photography by Paul Hartwig

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Esther Franchuk is a fine artist from Ukraine. She now lives in Berlin, Germany, with her

fiancé and members of her family that had to leave the country due to war. In her recent series, Esther paints the beauty and prophetic calling of her own homeland. Now like never before, she wants to make the destiny of Ukraine known to the world. She believes art is a great tool to make a difference.

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I

grew up in a little coastal town in south Ukraine right at the Black Sea. Nature gave me an inspiring environment for my imagination to go wild and be way ahead of me. I started to paint when I was 4 years old, and my early drawings were already full of narrative and storytelling. Every time I picked up my crayons as a child, I would try to depict multiple characters all at once and unfold a bigger story.

The first time I really felt that I wanted to become a painter was in my early teen years. I got the opportunity to showcase one of my paintings at the art charity auction in my hometown. I remember the awe and excitement of being able to present my work and my dreams to the public. I didn’t have many skills back then, but it was one of those moments that changes you forever. It was the day I knew deep down in my heart that I wanted my story to be known to others, and I wanted to make a difference in this world with what I do and what I paint.

At the age of 15, I decided to take the next step and attended Grekov Odessa Art School — the oldest and one of the most renowned schools of art in the country. There, I was professionally trained in classical drawing and oil painting. After graduation, I moved to Western Ukraine and studied at the Transcarpathian Art Institute for two more years, learning about authentic Ukrainian art and folk crafts.

I was also given the opportunity to go abroad to be part of various art programs in the United States, Europe and Asia. One of the most life-changing experiences was taking the mastery program at Milan Art Institute in Arizona.

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rt was always taking me places.

I left my home country a multitude of times to get closer to my dream. My path unfolded one step at a time, right when I was ready to take it. It also brought, of course, a lot of challenges, such as painting in an improvised workspace — many times with limited art supplies — and constantly adjusting to the new surroundings, culture and language. It took a lot of perseverance, faith and courage.

Another dream I had since I was very little was to travel and see the world. Adventure became a big part of my journey. During my trips to different countries, I felt driven to create artwork that would speak to everyone and empower many. Art, in any form, has always been such a unique tool that makes a difference in this world. It doesn’t have language or cultural barriers, and it speaks directly to the human heart. It’s a unique way to express the worlds within and outside of us, capture the moments in their very essence and make them tell stories.

I see the world as a beautiful tapestry of multiple nations in the frames, every single one a masterpiece itself and part of a greater picture altogether.

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T

hat’s why now like never before, I feel an urge in my heart to make not just my own story but the story of my nation known to the world. When I started this series of paintings called “Wings & Visions,” depicting women with wings, in the fall of 2021, I was reflecting on my own roots and what it truly means to be Ukrainian.

There is a typical baroque poetry of the 17th-century allegory representing homelands as women. Our deep-rooted history, traditions, all the beauty and purpose of each of us as individuals but also together as a nation, are powerful. A lot of what we have as our national identity has been overlooked and abandoned, our land violated and our treasures looted during the course of history, through communism and corruption, artificial famine and so on.

Growing up in Ukraine in post-Soviet times was difficult in many ways, but it has always been my home. And as I travelled and grew within myself, I noticed my country growing and unfolding its wings with more strength and beauty. To witness a new reality of distraction is heartbreaking, but as an artist, I choose not to comply with what I

see. I believe artists are the poets and prophets of every generation. We are catalysts of change, advocates for truth and beauty. And each of our creative voices speaks volumes.

It’s about our future and what awaits us after the war is over. These days, I see an enormous amount of art by Ukrainian and foreign artists that depicts war, pain, death, suffering and hopelessness. I see tears, blood and anger and … I get it.

That’s the reality of our nation right now, and we would never be able to erase it from our memory.

But it is something I would never paint myself, and this is why: I believe art is a weapon. Art is powerful. Art is prophetic. Art is a manifestation and creation of a different reality. Creativity is the very essence of who God is and how He moves within us and through us.

“As you move toward a dream, the dream moves toward you.”

— Julia Cameron

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any times in my life, I would paint what I wished was there for me when it wasn’t. I was painting horses when I never really had an opportunity to ride them. I was painting scenes of traveling and foreign lands when there was no money or visas to go places. I was painting romance and true love when I felt the most lonely.

Every time I did it, it came from strength and faith. And many times, things I painted or spoke about in these situations were through tears, knowing they would come to life. We create reality with the words we speak and everything we do. I would not paint war because I don’t want war to last.

My canvas is my battlefield. Every time we change our direction, affected by what’s happening around us, we will lose our ground. The more we merge with the darkness and adjust to it, the harder it will become to fight against it and overcome it. One of my favorite quotes from the Bible says, “Light shines in the darkness and darkness could not overcome it.” With my art, I choose to speak of the destiny of Ukraine and every situation I’m fighting in my own personal life. Don’t give in to the darkness. Bring a different vision. Paint, sing and dance about hope and the future.

Because that’s the reality we all want to be part of.

Being a professional artist is a dream come true. It’s a fascinating thing to approach a canvas every day and create something new. Something that didn’t exist before. And to do it for a living. I believe: When you take a risk to dream, you will always be met by God. Looking back through all the ups and downs of this 12-year journey, I can confidently say that everything is possible — especially if you put all your heart into it and move forward in faith.

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“So you must keep trying. You must keep calling out in those dark woods for your own Big Magic. You must search tirelessly and faithfully, hoping against hope to someday experience that divine collision of creative communion — either for the first time, or one more time.

Because when it all comes together, it’s amazing. When it all comes together, the only thing you can do is bow down in gratitude, as if you have been granted an audience with the divine.

Because you have.”

— Elizabeth Gilbert

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MY PROCESS

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y process usually starts with a prompting in my heart and in my whole being that something new is about to come. Of course, many times I just push through without a so-called inspiration, and that’s what’s called practice, perseverance and skill.

But what I’m trying to say is: That one painting that just stands out from the rest and speaks volumes is usually the one you don’t force. When you just know something greater is about to break through the ordinary, you make room for it. Yet this magic would never happen without daily dedication and hard work.

Inspiration is showing up when you are showing up. But some days, it just shows up differently, and that’s what makes a particular painting special.

But, of course, every time it starts with some kind of vision in my head. I begin all of my paintings with searching for an idea in a simple graphic sketch. For me, the journey from the head to the hand requires a lot of supportive material so that’s when I will go on Pinterest or another image search site to collect the ideas for a specific reference. This is a stage of gathering, where I’m trying to match the positions of the figure, face expressions and other elements with the picture I have in my head.

A graphic sketch on paper helps me to immediately grasp a vision from imagination, while the supportive reference imagery provides me with more information for the anatomy, structure and lighting needed for a representational piece of art.

A sketchbook also is a great way to work on details and see which elements, patterns and textures fit best for a piece. After the collecting stage is finished, I begin building each idea on a computer as a final digital source. I use Pixelmator or Photoshop to layer multiple images together for a better composition; and sometimes for a background, I also use imagery from my previous abstracts or parts of my color searches from the sketchbook to create a likeness of a final painting and a solution for the overall color story and stylistic approach.

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“Take a small step in the direction of a dream and watch the synchronous doors flying open.”

— Julia Cameron

I

’m a visionary, so having a detailed reference is half the battle and key to success. When I’m happy with a final source and composition, I move to a pencil prep drawing on a canvas. After the drawing comes the part of the process that is the most fun to me. It includes playing with multiple mixed-media materials, such as water-soluble graphite, inks, acrylic pens and so on. I love this stage the most because it’s full of movement and expressive energy. Sometimes I will put on music and dance in my studio to get into the right mood and loosen up more, so my mark making will be wild and free.

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fter the marks comes killing the white of the canvas with acrylic washes and blocking some big local areas of a painting with a base color.

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or some pieces, I also at times use spray paint, collage and gold leaf.

My latest series with Ukrainian women has real 24k gold leaf, which makes light reflect beautifully on the surface and creates a rich textural contrast.

As I’m working in mixed media, I paint halfway with acrylic and add oils later for richness of color and a three-dimensional effect that’s only possible with oil paint. That’s where the painting really comes to life with an atmospheric perspective and the enhancement of all of the layers and shades of color underneath.

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“Inspiration exists, but it has to find you working.”

— Picasso

Esther www.EstherFranchuk.com INSTAGRAM: Esther_Franchuk

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THROUGH THE LENS

Paul Hartwig is a videographer and pho-

tographer from Berlin, Germany. He is passionate about making great emotional digital art. He specializes in video making and has done work for many clients, especially in Germany.

Videos for him are the best way to transport emotions. They make the viewer emerge in a different sphere, escaping their daily life for even just a few seconds. He believes that with today’s possibilities, you can reach more people than any other time in history.

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P H OTO G R A P H Y B Y KU R T K E L L E R

REBECCA HUTCHINSON

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WomenCreate.com P H OTO G R A P H Y B Y R E B E C C A H U TC H I N S O N

REBECCA HUTCHINSON is an award-winning sculptor from Rochester, Massachusetts, whose work appears in prominent national and international venues. She was one of 12 recipients of the 2015 “Women to Watch” award from the National Museum of Women in the Arts in Washington, D.C. A dedicated educator of over 20 years, Rebecca gives workshops internationally, both online and in person. She currently serves as full professor at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, teaching undergraduate and graduate ceramics.

I’VE BEEN A SCULPTOR FOR 30 YEARS. As an undergraduate

student at Berea College, I found my voice in throwing at the potter’s wheel, one piece after the next, and setting them carefully on the ware board in front of me. The space between the bowls or cups or other specific forms began to speak to me about relationships — human relationships within space and particularly within society.

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I went on to graduate school for an MFA in ceramics at the University of Georgia and found ceramic scale and working site-specifically. There, I also apprenticed for two years with a papermaker, and those skills and concepts have found a way into my current practice.

Two years later, I launched a professional career, first in North Carolina working for the North Carolina Arts Council and then two years at the Archie Bray Foundation, a worldrenowned ceramics residency program in Montana.

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P H OTO G R A P H Y B Y D E A N D AV I S

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WHILE A RESIDENT ARTIST at the Archie Bray Foundation, I found that my materials began to expand. I saw how my background in ceramics and in papermaking could conceptually and materially blend. This new work in paperclay was reinforced by working on multiple solo shows while in Montana, at the Paris Gibson Square Museum of Art and

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at the Missoula Art Museum, and several pieces for exhibitions at the National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts (NCECA) conference.

My professional life since then has been a blend of installations and exhibitions at museums, and site-specific projects, including significant international biennials.

“The really modern artist, i.e. the conscious artist, has a two-fold purpose: in the first place, [one] must create the purely visual work of art; in the second place, [one] should make the public susceptible to the beauty of such purely visual art. As soon as artists in the various branches of plastic art will have realized that they must speak a universal language, they will no longer cling to their individuality with such anxiety.”

— THEO VAN DOESBURG (NEOPLASTICISM)

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A LIFELONG STUDY OF NATURE

influences what I do. As a maker, I have a particular affinity for the builders in nature: nesting birds, insects and animals that use the materials around them in their sustainable constructions. I think about how their efforts are interdependent with the environment, not just in terms of their available materials but also in terms of how they are working with space and how their engineering strategies determine their survival. I feel an affinity with these dynamics of making — with an equilibrium of potential and limitation.

As a mixed-media sculptor, I select materials that are informed by my research and engineering needs. I collect domestic cast-offs at thrift stores — tablecloths, linens, 100% natural fiber used garments. The research prior to museum projects also includes upcycling manufactured industrial cast-offs, the “found” remnants of human history and activity.

The use of multiples is present in every installation I build, a nod to my conceptual awakening as a production potter at Berea College as well as a maturing researcher of growth systems.

In nature, there is often the accumulation of repeated parts — pine needles in a nest, segmented leaves on a plant, cells of a beehive. The expression of growth is well articulated in repeated elements such as grids, layers or intuitive patterns.

Currently, I’m working on a solo show at the Everson Museum of Art in Syracuse, New York. The show is an installation of 10 to 12 inverted vessel forms built very much like a wasp builds its paper nest. They will be site-installed.

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CREATIVE PROCESS

FOR ME, IT ALWAYS STARTS WITH AN O B S E R VAT I O N O F T H E N AT U R A L WORLD that illuminates metaphorically a con-

nection to social systems. While my work at first glance may seem to be about the natural world, it is ultimately about us as human beings. How relationships navigate with each other and navigate within place. While there are so many examples within the natural world and the social human world of ability, I am ultimately interested as a sculptor in articulating function conceptually.

I then draw. That can be small-scale drawing in a journal or putting large 8-foot sheets of paper on the wall and drawing very openly with oriental brushes dipped into ink. I draw without expectation. Then I go back and revisit the drawings and hold myself accountable to something that I notice that has a connection to the research. I take notes right on the drawing about the specificity that I see. While preparing to build sculpturally, I choose a drawing that has strength.

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THE CONSTRUCTION PROCESS is about having the

appropriate materials on hand. I collect what I need using clay as a foundational material. My knowledge in papermaking guides me in selecting the appropriate cast-offs to pulp in my Hollander beater anywhere from two to seven hours.

It’s the combination of these materials that affords me an earthen-like quality while achieving strength and monumentality and avoiding weight. I engineer pieces uniquely from one museum project to the next. I may weave a structure; I may use simple woodworking skills in constructing structure from willow harvested near my property; I may use traditional hand-building techniques or a combination of traditional and unconventional methods of making.

Engineering is solved first, and then I follow through with a constructed invention or a borrowed traditional construction method by using the combination of these two materials.

Adobe is both a concept and a material (air-dried, non-fired fibrous clay). It is used by the animal kingdom but has also been an architectural material since the beginning of time. Adobe, used by the swallow, takes a combination of earthen materials and fibrous materials from the region along with saliva from the bird and packs those materials together in constructing the form.

A 2:3 fiber-to-clay ratio offers the highest engineering strength.

Whether it’s invention or borrowed tradition, repetitive motion and repetitive use of parts are used to build large-scale forms. Multiple largescale forms are brought to the museum to set up within the architectural reality of the space, paying very close attention to special dynamics between the parts and the viewer as they pass through the spatial installation experience.

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MORE ON THE CURRENT EVERSON MUSEUM OF ART PROCESS

IN THIS CURRENT BODY OF WORK, the walls of the inverted ves-

sels are made by taking paper pages from landfill-bound books, dipping them into a slurry of paperclay, folding it so it has more thickness, and basically building it like a coil pot, moving upward from the base and providing shape by sloping outward or inward, letting it grow in volume and sensually in relationship to the human body. An 8-foot piece weighs approximately 18 to 20 pounds, so very lightweight and very thin.

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CREATIVELY, I will choose to keep the rough surface texture of the folded pages — or I can stucco to make a smooth surface by brushing on layers of paperclay.

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WHILE WORKING ON THE LARGE-SCALE FORMS, I have a con-

tinual relationship with my own body. I am mindful of this relationship when pieces are dry, complete and installed within the museum setting. Ultimately, I am interested in a harmonious experience between the multiple pieces and the visiting viewer as they navigate through the installation.

Rebecca www.RebeccaHutchinson.com INSTAGRAM: RebeccaHutchinsonStudio

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THROUGH THE LENS

LORI PEDRICK is an award-winning art director, photographer and designer with over 25 years of experience in publishing. She has managed the visuals of magazines with a wide variety of topics, including home, food/ entertaining, contemporary art + design, travel, weddings and both long- and shortform narrative. She is the former art director for Yankee magazine as well as Philadelphia and Boston magazine’s ancillary publication division. She is the current art director for Art New England magazine as well as the Edible Manhattan Group.

Lori www.LoriPedrick.com INSTAGRAM: LoriPedrick

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ALYSSA VAN GUILDER, CASSANDRA SEARS, JESSICA SPARZAK, LIZZIE SNOW, DEANNE FITZPATRICK

MAKER MOMENTS

| WOMENCREATE.COM

SALLY JANE LINVILLE | THE CITY GIRL FARM

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I love that I get to work alongside the process. We often see that these practices bear creative women every day in our studio. meaning in their connection to cultural roots and

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With each person who joins the team comes new gifts and a renewed sense of possibility for what we can accomplish together. “When Feathers Come Together: A Global Chicken Collection” is an expansion of the collaborative spirit we experience as a studio on a global scale.

In this age of growing virtual communities, we continually find inspiration as we discover other artists and designers online, and we are particularly drawn to those practicing the craft of fiber art with devotion. Fiber art techniques are often achieved by hand and over time. They can be methodical and repeating, and yet they allow for the celebration of mystery and the spontaneity of

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the heritage of environments, both natural and human made.

With great hopes of meaningful connections to come, we reached out to women whom we admire from around the world and invited them to join us in creating this inspiring collection. The concept of a “progressive collaboration” was one in which these artists would make feathers to reflect their own artistry and perspective, and then pass them along to our studio artisans to sculpt onto our classic chicken forms. Once complete, the chickens were intended to be displayed side by side, highlighting their unique expressions and unifying them as a joyful, spirited flock.

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When we received our first “yes,”

the dream of actually working with these remarkable women from across the globe became real. Through emails, sketches and video chats, we shared with the artists the quality and amount of textiles needed to upholster a chicken. We prompted each of the six participating artists to design one big and one little chicken in a way that reflected their sense of home, using materials and processes that bring them joy.

As with every piece of art, the feathers fashioned onto these chickens tell a story. Many stories, actually — the origin of their materials, the processes by which they were created, the women who created them, the women who then stitched them into place, and the incredible team that brought this collection all together.

I’d like to share my deepest gratitude with everyone involved and with the collectors who adopted these chickens into their homes, allowing the stories to continue.

Thank you, also, to Jo and this incredible WOMEN CREATE community for your ongoing support and encouragement of our work. We hope that you find joy and inspiration as you engage with the stories of our collaborating artists in the following pages.

Aren’t they amazing?

For me, this collection is truly a dream come true.

— Sally Jane Linville

The City Girl Farm www.TheCityGirlFarm.com INSTAGRAM: TheCityGirlFarm

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MARU Eugenia Pearce and Belén Pearce

Amalanafelt

Belén and Maru Pearce are sisters who live in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Passionate about crafts, they created Amalanafelt and work with the noble fiber of sheep’s wool, which allows them to develop their creativity, thus creating new original pieces.

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O

ur main inspiration for most of our new projects is nature! We explored many activities related to art, and we discovered felt in a very special way. Belén was interested in felt and bought a book about it to learn this new type of work. Not knowing about Belén’s newfound interest, I (Maru) signed up for a class to learn about felt at the same time she bought the book — we were both attracted to the same thing without knowing it! We took that as a sign, which led us to work together and create the Amalanafelt workshop in 2009.

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Starting out, we mainly relied on trial and error, but after much research and enthusiasm, we managed to put together a basic course. …

Then, we were lucky enough to be recognized by “felters” from the other side of the world who began to arrive in Argentina!

One of the most challenging obstacles we had to face during this project was that, even though Argentina does produce high-quality merino wool with very fine microns (the type of wool required to make “felt”), it is extremely difficult to obtain, since all of it is exported outside of the country.

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We managed to obtain merino wool of an adequate micronage to be able to carry out our work, but this didn’t come without its downside: None of the wool left in the country was dyed, which meant we had to dye the wool ourselves. Even though this took additional effort, through the process of dyeing the wool, we have created our own color palette, giving the products our own personal touch.

One of the techniques that we are most passionate about is Nuno felt. In our early days, they taught us that it was only made with natural silk, and this meant other obstacles that we would have to overcome. Argentina does not produce silk. …That is what motivated us to start experimenting with other qualities and types of fabrics!

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Lu

IMPORTANT:

PROCESS FOR CREATING

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e were going to use a special process for the exhibition of these wonderful hens. We finally decided on the Nuno and pleated felt. The “marriage” of wool and silk is perfect! By gathering the silk, irregular and undulating textures are achieved that stand out on the surface of the felt, giving it a dynamic movement. In contrast, we use pleated felt by tying the felt cloth onto a rigid surface that we then press with great force to produce straight folds and firm edges. The colors are achieved by dyeing the piece with the ties; in this case, we use the natural color of merino wool and black. Wavy lines versus straight lines, these two techniques form another lovely marriage!

LITTLE PETER

Maru and Belén INSTAGRAM: AmalanaFelt FACEBOOK: AmalanaFelt

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Sibye Eschenlohr Sibylle Eschenlohr, lives in Reutlingen, Germany,

and is an agricultural engineer, felt maker, sheep lover and maker of wearable art, vegetarian rugs, and fluffy wool products.

Sibylle stands for a very special kind of creativity.

She makes felt fur. The 50-year-old sells these fake fur products made from virgin wool mainly at markets in the region. In her workshop in a disused industrial building, there are piles of pads for stove benches and seat cushions, vests hanging next to jackets. Blackgrey, wool-white and brown-patched: They all look shaggy. And at the same time, deceptively real. But what is real?

Eschenlohr uses only wool from old sheep breeds for her vegetarian skins — from the Pomeranian land sheep or the mountain sheep from Pfullingen, for example. She makes a point of buying from breeders she knows personally. In doing so, she canvasses breeders all over Germany. It so happens, for example, that the wool from animals that spend the summer in Northern Germany travels south after shearing. And after processing, it hangs in Eschenlohr’s workshop next to that of Alb herds. Chemicals and leather are left out of the production of home accessories and clothing.

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Art and culture

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can keep doors open and connect people from the whole world, when even the doors of diplomacy have slammed shut.

As an agricultural engineer, I have come into contact with many different animals. Sheep and chickens have always impressed me in their own way, and I feel that they belong in any small-scale farming and rural structure.

It was my pleasure to be able to participate in such a high-quality project as the “chicken stool,” and to combine these two animal species in free inspiration. Connecting artists of the world is an important factor in these times.

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The de gn of e fea ers

was a fascinating process whose workload was overlaid with great joy. My working material has always been raw wool. Primal and organic with real properties. You can touch the feathers, smell them, look at the color, and feel the fat between your fingers.

Feathers are iridescent and firm in shape.

Through a combination of all these qualities, nature in an object is not imitated but becomes unique creation itself.

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The bi est chaenge

in this project was to limit the materials and focus more on contrasts, through light and dark or fluffy and flat elements. In times where sustainable thinking and reduced resource consumption is changing life and our thinking, it was my wish to consider these elements in the design process.

Ike

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With every new project, thoughts sort themselves anew. What surrounds us flows into it. Each felting process is a journey. From the selection of raw wool, to the binding of these, to the actual finish. So, every finished felt tells a special story and fills me with satisfaction and pride. A finished object always imparts hope through this spirit to make the world more loving and peaceful.

Little Tina Sibylle

www.VonEschenlohr.com INSTAGRAM: Sibylle_Eschenlohr

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India Flint

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India Flint is a multimedia artist, writer

and educator based in South Australia, working in ecologically sustainable contact print processes using plants and found objects. Flint’s artistic process includes methods such as walking, drawing, assemblage and stitching, which come together to create rich, layered works that reflect and record the beauty of the artist’s surroundings in Peramangk country and travels.

Flint offers workshops in botanical alchemy, ecologically sustainable textile practices, aleatory poetry and rebel stitching, which can be found at The School of Nomad Arts.

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While in the past I have supplied boutiques in Hollywood with unique garments and occasionally accepted commissions to ecoprint lengths of cloth, in recent years, I have withdrawn a little from this world, preferring to create entire exhibitions as installations and environments rather than focus on selling individual pieces. I have been very fortunate in that the School of Nomad Arts (launched in 2018) allows me that kind of freedom in my personal practice while still maintaining a creative connection with students from all over the globe.

My practice

conflates the visual and written poetics of place and memory, using ecologically sustainable contact print processes from plants and found objects together with walking, drawing, assemblage, mending, stitch and text as a means of mapping country, recoding and recording responses to landscape — working with cloth, paper, stone, windfall biological material, water, minerals, bones, the discarded artifacts and hard detritus of human inhabitation, the local weed burden. I am the originator of the eucalyptus ecoprint (discovered in the early 1990s), and my work has kindly been described as using “the earth as the printing plate and time as the press.”

These days, I negotiate a path between installation, printing, painting, drawing, writing and sculpture — immersing myself in and paying deep attention to wherever I happen to be, gathering thought and experience, imagery and marks, as well as harvesting materials for making. I try to step lightly on the land while being nourished by it and plant trees to compensate for the ecological impact of my wanderings. The work of each day, philosophically rooted in topophilia [the love of place], literally begins with a walk.

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So, when

Sally asked me to print some pieces of cloth to be used to clothe chickens, I was rather surprised and, I will confess, a little reluctant. I feel somewhat uncomfortable about accepting commissions because I have learned from experience that I am unlikely to be able to create the vision that the client carries in their heart. Sally was incredibly persuasive, though, and the chickens are really rather adorable, so I agreed.

I ecoprinted two lengths of wool cloth and packed them up along with a handful of eucalyptus-dyed scraps in case they needed some extra bits.

Little Heloise

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Abelard Astonishingly, two

extraordinary fowl have been conjured from my offering. I named them Heloise and Abelard after two historical figures who shared a remarkable love story … too long to tell here, dear reader — you will need to research that one for yourself.

India www.IndiaFlint.net The-School-Of-Nomad-Arts.teachable.com INSTAGRAM: Prophet_Of_Bloom

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“GIFT” (detail) | PHOTOGRAPHY BY DIMITRIS SKLIRIS

Chiyoko Myose

“GIFT” (detail) PHOTOGRAPHY BY DIMITRIS SKLIRIS PHOTOGRAPHY BY CHRISTY McGARITY

Chiyoko Myose is originally from Japan and now lives and works in Wichita, Kansas. Her works are primarily painting and installation art. For her installation art, she often uses fiber materials and found objects. Her solo exhibitions are typically large scale, including the ones at CityArts in Wichita, Kansas, Mid-America Arts Alliance in Kansas City, Missouri, and Oklahoma Contemporary in Oklahoma City. She was awarded several awards, including a Koch Cultural Trust Enabling Grant; a Wichita Arts Council Artist Grant; and was the KMUW NPR Artist Series artist for 2021.

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hether it is painting or installation art, what I have been trying to do is expressing from my heart. I have a constant theme around my artwork: my search for the meaning of home as a traveler and a sojourner, a temporary dweller. I have been consoled by and thankful for the belief that life is like a journey; we are all sojourners on the earth, but essentially, I belong to the place that I fully call home.

I often use fiber materials and techniques for my installations. The material of thread represents “relationship” in my art because in the Japanese language, the verbs that are related to the word “thread” often idiomatically represent different conditions of relationships with people. By using techniques like sewing, tying and braiding, I am expressing my different perspectives of the notion of relationship.

The collaboration with the City Girl Farm has been fun. Their Kansas-born chickens/sculptures/ furniture are so sophisticated, and they reminded me of the strong agricultural land and endeavors of the people here. At the same time, they are so adorable and make me smile.

I really like their global vision for the show When Feathers Come Together – A Global Chicken Collection and the diverse cultural backgrounds of participating artists. Because of these features, I decided to emphasize the cultural aspect in my work. I was always wanting to incorporate vintage kimono and obi fabrics into my work to represent my Japanese cultural background. I imported them from Japan — some of them are like 90 years old — to make feathers. The most challenging part was making decisions about whether I should keep the traditional rules of the kimono or not. I ended up keeping them, in many ways, to show respect for the traditions, such as the shape of the collar, which I think is a significant feature of the kimono. Then, I asked the City Girl Farm to add their own wool feathers to my chickens. This combination makes me think of the cultural hybridity which I face every day.

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LITTLE MINAKO In the past, I tended to count the things that I miss in this foreign land and fall into negative feelings.

However, these days, I have been learning to change

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EIKO my perspectives and appreciate that I have dual cultures in my life instead. This sense of appreciation has been creating a notion of “home” in my mind.

Chiyoko www.ChiyokoMyose.com

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MARJOLEIN DALLINGA BLOOMFELT MARJOLEIN DALLINGA was born in the Netherlands, where she studied fine arts. She moved to Montréal, Canada, in 1989, and pursued an art career, making art books and jewelry. She founded her company, Bloomfelt.com, where she works from her studio with felting, painting, sewing and dyeing rooms. Over the decades, she has won several awards for the costumes she made for WOW (World of WearableArt) in New Zealand.

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I HAVE TRIED TO WRITE

about the questions I ask myself about my specific form of art-making, about the chosen medium, about all those solitary hours I spend in the studio.

For more than 20 years, my creations were made mostly with wool. I made all kinds of things, really: toys, scarves, dresses and handbags, but also wall hangings, sculptures and fantastic costumes. If the medium is the message, as the Canadian Marshall McLuhan stated, then what does this material reveal?

But why this wool? Why the love for felt? Why the love for felt-making? The wool is light and feral. It comes in so many colours and characters and qualities that surprise but also give tranquility because it feels so strangely common. It is chaotic and wild and untamed, still so close to the animal who grows it generously several times a year.

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THEN THERE’S THE

craft of felting, the entangling of the fibers to a sturdy, solid sculptable material. Felted, that fluffy soft hair is caught in a material that looks like something close to animal hide, maybe even our own skin.

As wool, it is free and flowing; but as felt, it is imprisoned by its own hair.

A substance that gives us protection, warmth, insulation — but its density can also invite sensations of breathlessness, maybe even suffocation.

The feel of wool is inviting to touch. We felters can’t resist the allure of its possibilities: the laying out of the carefully combed or carded fibers, designs with intricate patterns and forms, fascinating color combinations, placing the wool filaments in all kinds of directions — sometimes mixed with silks or other fibers. This painting, this shingling — hair by hair — done with presence and attention is calming for the mind. The result is enchanting.

Everything changes when we start to felt — adding the soapy water, the rubbing and rolling, the endless massaging (ever wondered what is behind that need to caress our material for hours, maybe every day?). Gently, to start with, to give the wool time to come together, and then, working with more force, entangling it forever in a new form.

The final hardening and shaping are intense and sometimes almost violent, especially when the final work is voluminous and heavy in weight.

The intense physical labour can be very gratifying when making very large pieces — almost a “peak” experience. It can take months to prepare, and it can be physically painful to the body, but getting there is very satisfying.

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FLAMBEAU

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THE ALIVENESS OF THIS MEDIUM

makes it feel close to our skin. The fact that we make it almost solely with our hands with no tools or screens, and the experience of shaping the wool only with touch into a completely unique creation, is outstanding. Sometimes, it feels as if the making is more important than what is made.

Marjolein

LITTLE SEDNA

www.Bloomfelt.com INSTAGRAM: Bl00mfelt, Bloom.felt FACEBOOK: Bloomfelt PINTEREST: Bloomfelt

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NADIA REIN

Artist, designer, “wool magician” and teacher Nadia Rein lives with her husband and children in the UK and has been felting for more than eight years. Nadia values people and nature, and tells stories about traditions, friendship and love in her work.

She is passionate about felting, saying the process helps to calm the mind as it makes people live in the moment.

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THE PROCESS

Felting is deep within me, rooted in my childhood homeland of Kazakhstan.

The companionship of wool, plus fibre friends, offers endless opportunities, and so I thought it would be only appropriate to tell a story of evolution and possibilities through the “feathers” for the lovely chickens.

They are two sisters.

The older one, Catherine, is more traditional and showcases the luxury of two main materials: wool and silk. The wool is in its pure form, with fleece in the tail and extra-fine merino.

This lady is real class but also a bit of flirt. She combines the old and new, and east and west (silk and wool). The silk is naturally dyed using madder root, weld and onion skins.

The use of fleece takes us to more traditional felting; however, the eco-fur in her tail is a modern development, taking care of the world around us with greater commitment to species and environment.

The other sister pushes the experiment a bit further.

Little Marilyn is the second child of the family. She has her own mind. She loves family traditions but is also adventurous, stepping out of “natural” materials and adding diversity with viscose, hemp, bamboo and nepps, alongside silk fibres — mulberry, tussah — and fabrics margilan, ponge, chiffon.

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When I describe the process of felting, I actually love to compare it with a wedding. Two families meet, interact, then start first connections and merge into one, just like wool fibres engage with each other and slowly felt into a robust bond.

For me, preparation is everything, especially as I also have a job in the community and two active kids who demand my skills as driver, coach, cleaner, chef …

I love large-scale projects, but I have a rather restricted space in my felting room, so I’m always experimenting with different approaches.

As I am a very curious person, I use lots of tools, even a sanding machine, but my favourites are good soap and my own hands.

For me, the layering process is where the journey really starts. That initial laying down of those fine fibres on the table.

I like to play when layering as it helps to achieve effects such as stretchy, textured flat and thin felt, lacy spider web and more.

Water and soap are then sprinkled onto the layer, gently ensuring that water does not mess up the design. You do not need to soak but thoroughly wet all layers.

Then comes the actual felting. You can roll the project gently in different directions. The fibres open, connect with each other and merge into material.

The next stage is what’s known as “fulling.” This is where the project shrinks and takes the shape you designed.

I then take a further look at the details. For example, edges tend to go wavy and if they’re not in your design, you need to work on them.

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Catherine

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All that is left to do is to rinse, shape, dry and possibly embellish with embroidery and other elements, ready to put a smile on your face.

Little Marilyn

Nadia www.NadiaReinDesign.com INSTAGRAM: NadiaReinDesign FACEBOOK: NadiaReinDesign

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Photography by Patricia Burmicky

Stephanie Organes

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Stephanie Organes is a graphic and fabric designer who lives in Mexico City with her husband and two small kids. She learned to sew in the search for a more profound sense of personal growth and in a pursuit of a creative outlet.

She became a quilter after her first daughter was born. She found in quilting a deep passion for fabric design, a way to express herself by telling stories with her collections and to contribute by sharing beautiful artwork and bringing joy through her designs. She believes that everyday objects should be beautiful and give us a sense of accomplishment every time we see them, even more if we create them ourselves.

I was born

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in Guadalajara, Mexico, and am the youngest of four siblings. Since I was a little kid, I have loved drawing. I could spend hours at my little desk with my Crayolas. To this day, the smell of crayons transports me back in time to my childhood memories.

One of the biggest influences in my life has been my mother. She’s an artist and a very creative person. If she wasn’t painting, she was doing stained glass or sewing costumes for us. She always encouraged and supported me to cultivate my creativity and develop my love for design.

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When I graduated from high school, I took a year off to study abroad in Florence, Italy, to learn Italian and art history. That year was a turning point in my life, as I met a new world and reaffirmed that design and art were what I wanted to pursue. I went back home to study graphic design.

In the middle of my career, I studied abroad for a year at Central Saint Martins University of the Arts London, where I studied advertising and graphic design. Upon my return to Guadalajara, I got my degree. I moved to Mexico City and started my work life in the world of advertising and packaging design agencies. It was a learning stage full of achievements and challenges.

In 2011, I married my high school sweetheart after being together for 14 years. And five years later, I became a mom. It was my dream come true.

Becoming a mom was life changing, as it certainly is for everyone.

I saw myself becoming a mom as they told me in fairy tales. Nonetheless, I had a very complicated pregnancy with a serious condition called HELLP syndrome, so it was a bittersweet experience. This has been one of my toughest challenges: to let expectations go, heal my body, and stop idealizing how it could have been different. But there was a new little person who had arrived to fill my heart and who depended on me.

She was my true love and my biggest blessing.

While my daughter was growing up, I was having baby blues. It was very important for me to find myself again and pursue a career. I wanted to be a mom, but I also wanted to keep creating, designing and living a life creatively.

One day, I decided to learn sewing. I wanted to have a feeling of achievement and learn a new skill. Since then, my life changed: A new world of possibility opened for me. This is something I’m very grateful to my baby for because I became a mom and also found my passion for quilting.

That’s when my quilting journey began, and I created my brand, called Pretty Please. I began designing and sewing quilted bags. My line consisted mainly of bags and pouches for organizing baby items such as clothes, diapers and bottles.

My bags were very successful because apart from being useful and pretty, they were handmade, and people loved that. They were quilted with love and were unique to the mom who received them. They loved the fact that they were quilted accessories, something not very common here in Mexico. Moreover, I was also expecting my second baby.

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In 2020,

when my second baby was six months old, I flew to Austin to QuiltCon. This trip was magical. I went home full of inspiration and with new ideas for my business. But as soon as I came back, within days COVID hit.

The pandemic has so many blessings. I learned so much about myself, how resilient I am, and how important it is to take care of our health. The pandemic brought me light and allowed me to find my passion for fabric design.

When I discovered surface pattern design, I realized that I could design fabric. I wanted to differentiate myself, so I decided to design my own fabric collections.

With my kids home 24/7, I dedicated myself to sewing and drawing every night. I took an online course on creating fabric collections at Central Saint Martins. I learned how to work on collections and try different painting techniques. It got my creative juices flowing and allowed me to experiment with different mediums. I tried to learn everything so I could design my own collections for my bags.

The world became my oyster, and with that came long nights of not sleeping, home schooling by day and working by night. I had so many plans and ideas to make and not enough hours. That’s when the universe had different plans for me.

One day, I woke up with a lot of pain in my leg, and by the end of the day, I just couldn’t walk. But being the worst month of the pandemic, when there was not a lot of information on how COVID was transmitted, it felt really scary to go to the hospital. A few days later, I finally decided to go. But what started as a leg pain turned out to be a major thrombosis. Long story short, I spent seven days in the hospital, went through three surgeries, and finally made it out of there! Not fully recovered but enough to be thankful to live and be home and surrounded in the distance (because of COVID) by so many friends and family.

My kids stayed with my in-laws for a month so I could recover. I think of this chapter of my life as a blessing, a change of heart and a wake-up call. I

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felt like a bus had hit me, but I had also never felt more alive and happier, looking to experience all the things this world has to give. This was an experience with so many lessons. So, I embraced it. I was thankful for it. I wanted to create even more: to draw, to sew, to create so many beautiful things.

This is how my journey in fabric design started, a second chance to live that fueled me with energy.

It helped me overcome my fears to pursue what I love doing and show up for myself. This reminds me every day to live to the fullest and keep creating!

My husband is my No. 1 supporter. He always asks me why I love what I do so much. I love designing fabrics to create positive emotions and bring joy with my patterns. Designing gives me a sense of fulfillment. I love creating and sharing beautiful artwork. I want to empower and motivate my kids and other moms and women to find space for themselves as artists and to seek time for their creativity and fill their lives with color. There’s no fuller life than a life lived creatively.

In my journey, I found so many wonderful teachers that inspired me to design my own collections.

I took an incredible course with Elizabeth Silver.

She’s super savvy and business-driven, and gave me the tools to overcome the imposter syndrome and start believing in myself. Then I met Bonnie Christine, who showed me all the skills of creating a collection and helped me trust that there’s room for me in the industry. And Stacie Bloomfield, who is the most authentic and generous mentor that I know. She showed me all the ways to leverage my art. And I can name many other quilters and designers that inspire me every day.

“SLOW GROWTH IS GOOD GROWTH.”

— STACIE BLOOMFIELD

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MY CREATIVE PROCESS

When designing a collection, my creative process focuses on a theme that I brainstorm. I pull together different concepts, ideas, words and sentiments around it. I focus first on my hero prints and then work around the secondary and blender prints.

I gather as much inspiration as I can. I like to sketch loose ideas of how I want my patterns to look. Then, I hand-draw the motifs on my sketchbook. I love to sketch different perspectives and tons of motifs.

From there, I take pictures of my sketches to have as reference. I retrace them on Procreate and add color. That’s when the fun begins. After digitalizing my motifs, I work in Illustrator and Photoshop to create my duplicates.

I work in different sessions. I gather ideas and brainstorm in one session and from there dedicate a week to sketching, then designing and doing the patterns.

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I like

to print samples of my patterns. It’s amazing to see your patterns portrayed in fabric. This helps me visualize the collection as a whole, so I can start designing my quilts and bags.

From there, I adjust colors, sizes and add even more patterns to the collection if I need them. I rough sketch my bag or quilt in Illustrator to picture how my fabrics will look on the product.

I don’t necessarily follow trends. I love choosing by instinct and, more organically, thinking on the theme I want to communicate. I use different scales and variations. I have saturated and maximalist prints, while others are more toned down to balance the collection. I like incorporating some textures and small elements. I love using a similar color palette throughout my collections. My designs are bold and colorful with pops of pinks and oranges. I have a very saturated color palette that blends together very well.

My collections are meant to spark joy and beauty with their rich and sophisticated colors and detailed illustrations. I love everything pink. My work is inspired by my culture: Mexico is a very colorful country, rich in traditions and diversity.

Nature is my biggest source of inspiration, and I have a deep love for florals.

And my style is sweet, whimsical and feminine.

Another source of inspiration comes from traveling. I can find inspiration from the rugs at the hotel to simple things that can spark an idea. I love visiting the history and art museums and the botanic gardens. And, of course, the local quilt shops are a must!

“EVERYTHING IS OKAY, EVERYTHING WILL BE OKAY.”

— MAURICIO VASCONCELOS ALLENDE

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all quilting techniques, although I do pieced quilting most of the time.

I am starting to incorporate English paper piecing into my work.

My favorite part of making a quilt is choosing the fabric. It’s the fun part where you choose as little or as many colors and patterns as you like.

That’s what I love about creating my fabric: I start with a collection, and at the end, if I need blenders, I can always incorporate more designs. I love mixing and matching between one and another.

I still have a long way to go to learn all the quilting rules, but I just know that I enjoy the process of piecing the fabric, doing the patchwork and playing with it.

I want my fabrics to be special to quilters who sew with them. For me, quilting has become a very meditative process, and I would like them to experience the same.

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Designing fabric and quilting gives me time for quiet reflection and keeps my creativity flowing. It makes me feel connected and energized. It allows me to become a better version of myself. It gives me purpose and fulfillment. I just love what I do.

“PROGRESS, NOT PERFECTION, IS WHAT WE SHOULD BE ASKING OF OURSELVES.”

— JULIA CAMERON

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WHAT’S NEXT?

I’m excited to announce that I just signed a licensing contract to design my fabric collections with Andover Fabrics, an American fabric company based in New York City. I love their fabrics and am thrilled to start working with them; it’s such a dream to be one of their designers.

I am a member of the Mexico Modern Quilt Guild, and together, we’re trying to grow the community of quilters in Mexico.

I want to promote the modern quilting movement in my country and to inspire and invite younger generations to start sewing and fall in love with the craft.

When I looked for Mexican fabric designers, I realized that there are just a couple of designers

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working in the industry. There are many quilters but not people designing quilting fabric in Mexico. So, this idea motivated me. I want to keep designing quilting fabric and show people in Mexico what modern quilting is all about.

I truly believe there’s NO limit on what we can dream of.

Stephanie www.StephanieOrganes.com INSTAGRAM: PrettyPlease.mx FACEBOOK: PrettyPlease.mx

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THROUGH THE LENS Patricia Burmicky is a Venezuelan/ Slovenian photographer based in New York City. She specializes in portrait and event photography and is a graduate of the International Center of Photography (ICP) in New York.

In 2011, she founded PhotoUno Photography School in Manhattan, where she teaches photography enthusiasts and coaches them on their way to becoming professional photographers.

She has been commissioned by worldrenowned organizations such as the New York City Ballet and Emory University, and fashion brands like Max Mara, L Brands and Kenneth Cole.

In 2020, Patricia started “The Woman I Will Become” project, which seeks to inspire girls and young women through a series of portraits of inspirational women. In January 2022, she launched the inaugural “The Woman I Will Become” contest in her native Venezuela to shine a light on those women who continue to struggle and, at the same time, help launch the careers of up-andcoming female photographers.

In March 2022, for International Women’s Month, she curated and exhibited her work, along with the results of the contest, at the Blue Gallery in New York City and Centro Cultural Chacao in Caracas, Venezuela.

Patricia www.PatriciaBurmicky.com www.PhotoUno.com www.TheWomanIWillBecome.com INSTAGRAM: PatriciaBurmicky

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Lori Sikkema

Photography by Michael Poehlman

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INTRODUCTION

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LORI SIKKEMA resides in the

countryside halfway between Traverse City, Michigan, and the Lake Michigan shoreline. She is a self-taught artist who began creating at an early age. She became an avid quilter in 2004, but it wasn’t until she combined her love of fabric with the freedom and creativity of art quilting that she discovered her true passion for fabric collage. “That’s fabric?!” is a question she hears quite often when viewers are seeing her work for the first time.

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THE JOURNEY Like many artists, I began creating at an early age. As a young child, a box of crayons, some blank sheets of paper and a pencil with an eraser could keep me happy for hours.

Actually, that’s still true today.

I grew up in a large family. I am the youngest of nine, with four brothers and four sisters. I never went to college, and I didn’t have any formal education in art. But what I did have were parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles, and brothers and sisters who were creative and curious. My world was enriched with crafters, quilters, woodworkers, doll makers, poets and musicians.

Whether it was out of necessity (which was quite often the case at our house) or the sheer joy of making, someone was always creating something.

Not only were my parents creative, but they were also hardworking. I grew up knowing the importance of both getting a good job and doing a good job. After graduating from high school, I spent the next 40-plus years working at good jobs that required very little creativity. During that time, I continued my crafting hobbies. My interests varied, but one thing remained a constant: I was always happiest when I was using my imagination as well as my hands.

Eventually, quilt-making became my favorite hobby and purchasing fabric became my second. I poured my heart into each quilt and enjoyed every minute of it. Until one day when everything changed.

On this particular fine day in 2014, my husband, David, and I were headed to a quilt show, which was being held in a beautiful garden setting. We followed the path into the garden, and there, strung between cherry-picker ladders and hung on potting-shed walls, were the most beautiful, non-traditional quilts I had ever seen. This show was full of “art quilts,” something I had never heard of before. I knew right then I wanted to learn everything I could about them!

Like many forms of art, there are a variety of styles and techniques for making art quilts. They can be made with fabric, paint, embroidery stitches, beading or found objects. There really is no limit. The method I use is both simple and challenging. I use only fabric and thread.

The moment I created my first art quilt, I was absolutely hooked. Over time, I learned which techniques I enjoyed and which ones I didn’t. To my surprise, I discovered that quilting the finished piece was my least favorite part. So, in 2017, I made the decision to eliminate the quilting portion of the process and use only functional stitches to keep all the fabric pieces secure.

It was at this same time that I began wrapping my artwork over stretched canvas. Technically, by definition, I was no longer creating art “quilts.”

After being a quiltmaker for so long, I wasn’t quite sure where I would fit in anymore, but the changes were worth it. I loved the way the artwork hung on the wall; and they were quicker to finish, which meant I could begin my next one that much sooner.

“IT’S NOT JUST ABOUT CREATIVITY, IT IS ABOUT THE PERSON YOU’RE BECOMING WHILE YOU’RE CREATING.” — CHARLES PEACOCK

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ITH EACH PIECE I CREATED, I GAINED MORE CONFIDENCE IN MY WORK. But there were days when insecurities would weave their way inside my head. Having no formal education in art, I felt like an imposter. I still lacked the confidence to consider myself a “real” artist.

There were also days when I would question the purpose of all the artwork that was filling up my studio. Knowing this, my niece suggested I listen to a podcast in which Rachel Hollis, author of Girl, Wash Your Face, stated the following: “When you’re creating something from your heart, you do it because you can’t not do it. You create as a gift to yourself and to the higher power who blessed you with those abilities.”

Those words made such a difference to me. It felt as though a weight had been lifted, and from that moment on, I no longer questioned my art’s purpose. I would continue to create with a happy and grateful heart.

As I continued to spend time in my studio, I would find myself talking out loud, explaining (to no one) the steps to creating a fabric collage.

I would catch myself discussing fabric choices or scale and values. Sometimes, my husband would overhear me and ask who I was talking to.

Over time, I came to realize that not only did I want to share my work, but I really wanted to share the process, too.

So, in April of 2019, I held my first workshop. It took many hours of preparation for my husband and me to formulate a class outline and list the necessary steps to make it happen. We chose a

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venue with high ceilings and lots of windows for good natural lighting. It was our living room. Not only was it convenient, but it was also affordable!

The workshop turned out to be loads of fun and was a big success. As I stood on the loft to take a quick photo of the classroom below, I was reminded of something I had written back in 2015: “I would like to be in a big room full of people creating their art. A room full of messy, heavenly stuff. A room full of inspiration, with quiet moments and crazy moments. A room full of accomplishments and works in progress. I’m pretty sure that room would have lots of windows and very high ceilings.”

Was this a premonition? I don’t know. At the time, it just seemed like a lovely dream. But on this day, it was a dream come true.

Two months later, I found myself inside the gallery of the Crooked Tree Arts Center in Traverse City. I had set out that morning to wander through the garden across the street. Unfortunately (or fortunately), the garden was closed that day. I crossed the cobblestone street to wander through the art gallery instead. That’s where I met Kristi Wodek.

We chatted about art exhibits and quilt shows. I told her about my journey to making art quilts and fabric collage. I shared photos of my artwork, and I even had the courage to share my interest in teaching.

Call it luck, or serendipity, or the universe working its magic, but it turned out that Kristi was the education and outreach director for the Crooked Tree Arts Center. And before I knew it, we were scheduling my next fabric collage workshop!

Since I began creating fabric art, I have had the opportunity to teach multiple workshops. I’ve had articles published in magazines, and my art quilts have been juried and exhibited in international quilt shows. I’ve had the pleasure of showing my fabric collage art in group exhibits, both locally and regionally. And last year, I had the extreme honor of my first solo art exhibit. My dreams for the future include teaching more workshops and retreats, taking on commissioned work and inspiring other women to be courageous and believe in themselves.

TRIUMPHS AND CHALLENGES

Some of my biggest triumphs were actually small things, but they all had a common thread: They required courage. For example, showing my artwork to anyone who wasn’t a close relative. Hitting the “send” button in hopes of being accepted into an exhibit. Raising my hand to ask a question in a room full of artists. Sending an email off to a publisher. And my biggest challenge, which became my biggest triumph: finally believing that I didn’t need an art degree to be an artist.

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THE PROCESS Before I begin playing in the fabrics, I spend quite a bit of time creating my pattern. Using a photograph as my guide, I work to capture all the details clearly and to the proper scale.

This step is imperative for a successful outcome. (I learned this early on the hard way.)

Once the pattern is complete, it will resemble a paint-by-numbers.

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HE NEXT STEP IS CHOOSING FABRICS FOR MY PALETTE. I use batiks and commercial cottons with unexpected prints and patterns. If there is text on it, that’s even better! Fabrics are chosen for both their color and value.

The subtle changes in values are what create dimension and bring the artwork to life.

But it’s the use of unexpected prints that adds the extra elements of surprise and whimsy.

(Like using a print with little flowers on it to create the ears of a well-loved hunting dog.)

Searching through my fabric stash and finding those magical pieces is my favorite part of the process.

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REATING THE COLLAGE IS NOW A MATTER OF TRACING THE PATTERN TO MAKE TEMPLATES, THEN USING THE TEMPLATES ON INDIVIDUAL PIECES OF FABRIC TO CUT OUT SHAPES. Some shapes are cut in a more freestyle manner, without the use of a template. The fabric shapes, like brushstrokes, are layered onto the collage.

Fabric glue is used to temporarily hold everything together.

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“EVERYTHING YOU WANT IS ON THE OTHER SIDE OF FEAR.” — JACK CANFIELD

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NCE THE DESIGN IS COMPLETE, I USE A TECHNIQUE CALLED RAW EDGE APPLIQUÉ TO STITCH THE FABRIC PIECES SECURELY. The final step is to wrap the artwork over stretched canvas.

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Lori INSTAGRAM: LoriSikkema FACEBOOK: Lori Sikkema-Artist EMAIL: Loreen61@gmail.com

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THROUGH THE LENS

MICHAEL POEHLMAN is a photographer living in

Northern Michigan, specializing in portraits and editorial work. Michael began his career in New York City working as an intern for (and later hired by) Aperture, where he worked with some of the photography greats, and then later at Artists Space, and, ultimately, Getty Images as an editor and art director before leaping into life as a full-time assignment photographer. He continued for a number of years in New York before spending three years in São Paulo, Brazil.

He came back to his roots in Traverse City, Michigan, around 2011 to start a family and open a portrait studio. Michael’s work extends far beyond portraits, and he can be seen doing commercial lifestyle photography for banks and businesses or doing fine art commissions using water and lake concepts or traveling far away to do street or architecture photography and even occasional weddings.

Michael www.MichaelPoehlman.com INSTAGRAM: Michael_Poehlman_Photography FACEBOOK: MichaelPoehlmanPhotography

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PET TALES

Bear and Ari I

am your old pal Rupert, but everyone likes to call me Bear!

I was named after the Rupert Bear story books — I hope you see the uncanny resemblance. I suppose you could say I am a studio assistant, really a glorified model for my artist sister, Ari, who lives with me in Hampshire, England, and is always paying me with lots of biscuits.

Sorry, she nudged me to say her full name: Arianna Taliadoros. Gosh, you’d think this was about her!

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Ari

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INSTAGRAM: ArtDesignByAri

I am an Old English Sheepdog, so we are used to being around paint — but I do not like the noise of a sewing machine! Ari loves textures in her art and will sometimes sew into some of her paper pieces.

I hide downstairs while she does so; far too much commotion for my liking.

We love a visitor to come to the studio. Our favourite is Emily, Ari’s friend who she collaboratively paints with — and has a pet friend called Bear, too! I am proper chatty, so it’s usually me doing the entertaining around here. Anyway, I must pop off, it’s time for my afternoon scone and a quick nap before more content making!

A

s I was saying, most work I get involved with is content creation, you know, reels, TikToks, Insta posts (look us up at @artdesignbyari), that kind of thing. It’s a lot of work: We must brush my fur, which I hate, and then Ari sets up the studio so it’s ready for me to sit by her and pose for the photos. Ari does all her own marketing and social media; that’s why I like to help by giving her a paw every now and then.

She paints lots of flowers and ocean scenes — I reckon she must get inspired by our dog walks.

I’m too busy to notice; far too many smells to pay attention to! Her studio is messy, so I’m always ushered around the wet art. That’s okay for me because I love to sleep in my studio bed. While Ari paints those pretty florals, I relax into a deep slumber with the smell of the lavender candle — that’s the best vibe in the studio.

While she cracks on with work, I like to peer out the window, keep check of all the neighbours.

It’s a home studio, so super warm and comfy. We live in a sweet little town a stone's throw from the beach!

Occasionally, I get to jump in the car and head to Romsey, which is about 30 minutes away, and drop off artwork at Forest & Cove, a gallery Ari displays her work at. They are super dog friendly; I even bump into some of my dog pals there, too!

For more PET TALES

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Alex Sulikowski

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ALEX SULIKOWSKI is a passionately creative jewelry designer and metalsmith residing in Charlotte, North Carolina. Her love for nature, gardening and hand tools inspires her to channel organic shapes and textures into her jewelry. A sense of joy breathes life into each piece she creates, invoking a light-hearted and approachable playfulness in all who wear her pieces. An educator by profession and a student by default, her curiosity motivates her in all realms of her creative process.

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If I had to write a recipe for my life story, it would go something like this: Looking for a colorful, ever-changing, cultural-friendly dish? You’ve come to the right place!

In a mixing bowl, add some Croatian, Polish and Argentinean cultures. Sprinkle in a sense of adventure, a zest for life, restless hands, a pinch of humor and an insatiable thirst for learning.

Be sure to cook at a warm sunny temperature.

My life has been a melting pot of cultures and continents, war and love, dreams and opportunities. I embrace new beginnings and find myself enthralled by the way the universe drops pleasant surprises into my life with each new day. Born in the United States and raised in Argentina, I carry a unique blend of sentiments within me — an almost dreamy attitude that everything is possible if I set my mind to it and a resilience that sings an ode to the journey my immigrant grandparents used to fuel their own dreams. It is their visions that push me to honor who I can become and what I can create in this beautiful gift of life. Their power of hope and fortitude of creativity have become my greatest inheritance.

Sharing the middle spot with my twin amongst four siblings, I was immersed in a strong community of love, passion and imagination. I was blessed to have parents who taught me the power of courage and reminded me that adversity was no match for a brave heart. I inherited the eye for design and aesthetics from my mom, who, as an architect, beautified the world around her. My dad, an inquisitive engineer, inspired my love for tools and my curiosity for how things are made.

I wish I could say I had a lightbulb go off when I was younger that told me quite clearly that I was meant to be an artist. But, as life would have it, I explored various callings before following my heart’s longing for a life devoted completely to creativity. When I immigrated to the United States two decades ago, I began my career as an educator. Eventually, I transitioned to counseling, then I became an administrative assistant.

In each role, I found myself gravitating towards the world of art and design.

Enamored by the excitement of colors and textures, I found myself re-purposing furniture, sewing home accessories, or taking local arts & crafts classes on weekends. My soul was like a restless hummingbird: flittering around, always looking to transform something with my bare hands.

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t wasn’t until a serendipitous trip to visit my family in Argentina that the lightbulb finally went off. My childhood best friend and I reminisced about the tiny jewelry kiosk her family owned when we were younger. There, we spent countless hours of our youth dreaming and pretending it was our little boutique filled with the most beautiful jewelry. I rediscovered the dreams that lay dormant within me. I knew I wanted to become an artist, but I needed to silence my selfdoubt and take the leap of faith.

“There is only one thing that makes a dream impossible to achieve: the fear of failure.”

— PAU LO CO E L H O

I took this spark of realization home with me and poured myself into learning the art of jewelry making. Once paralyzed by the “how” and the “when” of it all, I learned to holistically surrender to my artistic dreams. I moved forward and created a vision board to remind me of all that I could become if I allowed my visions to guide me. A year later, I accidentally discovered a vacant small storefront and decided it was time!

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While still working my full-time job, I opened Terra Nostra Jewelry, a jewelry boutique in the quaint town of Arlington, Massachusetts. I continued to advance my beading and wire wrapping techniques in order to sell my own pieces. I treasured the path of artistic explorations and rewarding results even as I was challenged with holding my job and owning a store.

In 2017, I married my wonderful husband, quit my job, closed my boutique and relocated to my present home in Charlotte, North Carolina. Here, I finally took the plunge into a full-time career as an artist, shifting my focus from beading to the alchemy of metalsmithing.

Three years ago, I founded Alex a Mano (Spanish for “Alex by hand”). Much like a winding river, I discovered my passion for metalsmithing and the flow that would take me to where I am today.

“The key to success is to start before you are ready.”

— MARIE FORLEO

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MY PROCESS: Where the Magic Happens My process of creating starts the minute I step into my studio. Surrounded by plants, old tools and motivational phrases on my walls, it is a place of learning, development and exploration, but mostly it is a place of joy. It’s where the magic happens.

I learn better when I push my limits and leave my comfort zone. When I first started learning to manipulate metal, I created a series of challenges that I called “marathons.” I would dedicate one to two weeks to creating as many products in one category as I could (namely earrings, rings, necklaces and bracelets). They were all hand-fabricated, applying techniques I’ve learned on my own. This set of exercises set the foundation for the way I create today.

I start by gaining inspiration from elements around me. I never know what will spark my imagination.

Sometimes, it starts with a little twig I pick up from my daily walks, other times by choosing a stone from my little collection.

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I find it helpful when I sketch my ideas first on my sketchbook, giving me a chance to think about repetition and how to incorporate common elements into different pieces.

Once I know what I’d like to create, I gather the materials and start fabricating my pieces. If I need to create some samples beforehand, I experiment on paper or copper before moving on to more expensive materials. This way of planning has also helped me to create step-by-step processes for my production pieces, where I can follow “a recipe” to recreate the same piece of jewelry. But not all of my pieces require a recipe. My one-of-a-kind creations are born from a more playful exploration of materials and an unknown sense of the final destination.

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ne of my earliest collections was the Square Pods Collection. It focuses on the delicate balance and rhythm created by combining playful concave and convex shapes, and mixing copper and sterling silver to create movement and depth.

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ach piece starts with a flat sheet of metal that I form into the shape I want. For instance, I form the little copper square pods in a dapping block supported over a leather sandbag.

Next, I solder the components, pierce the design with my jeweler’s saw and create ear wires that match the design of the earrings. Finally, I sand and refine each piece, apply a patina and give it a final polish before before it is introduced to the world.

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Never. Stop. Learning.

A craft is a calling, a way of being, a commitment to yourself, the world and to a process of becoming and excelling. We breathe it, embrace it, and work hard every single day to honor that calling. Every once in a while, we have an off day or a week of trials and errors. But it’s all part of the learning process and part of that commitment.

My initial play-like approach to jewelry making has allowed me to create collections and a cohesive body of work that are emblematic of nature’s free spirit. I believe that every piece of jewelry has a soul: a personal journey of growth and exploration, the integration of my story with the lives and stories of the people who wear it. While my jewelry aims to elevate the look of a casual outfit, my biggest satisfaction is bringing joy and confidence to the lives of others through each piece that leaves my hands. I will never tire of the challenge that each creation poses. Every challenge is a new opportunity for my artistic journey and personal development. I am always ready with my eyes wide open and an alert and playful heart.

“If you are not willing to learn, no one can help you. If you are determined to learn, no one can stop you.”

— ZIG ZIGLAR

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The mantra that fuels my daily practice is “never stop learning” — especially in my field of jewelry making, where there are hundreds of ways to do one thing with the same results, and there is no right or wrong way. I find immense value in learning from many teachers and artists. If you are a beginner, soak up the knowledge around you and give it a try. Ask for help when you are stuck; read books or research your questions online — someone in the world has been there before!

I am so grateful for the gift of hope I inherited; without it, I would not be here today. If you find yourself gravitating toward a dream that seems out of reach, allow the wings of hope to carry you to your wildest imaginings of abundance. You will find that it has always been yours to own.

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A customer once told me: “What is for you will come to you.” I don’t know where the saying originally came from, but it stuck with me and my personal journey. It cannot be any more revealing and true as I look back and wonder how I got here … and it keeps coming back to me every day I face adversity, fear or doubt.

O

n my studio wall, there are 20 little squares displayed on a magnetic board. They are part of an online metalsmith challenge I participated in this past February. It consisted of creating sample squares, each following a theme as inspiration. I learned a lot, not only about pushing my own limits but also about problem-solving and new techniques. But mainly, I discovered that when you allow yourself some time to “play,” you give your creativity wings. (To my surprise, I also won the contest!)

Alex AlexAMano.com INSTAGRAM: AlexAManoArtisan FACEBOOK: AlexAManoArtisan

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“The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mystery.”

NADIA REIN

—ALBERT EINSTEIN

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