Category Archives: Uncategorized

Thomas Mclaren

Woodworking by Thomas
Meet Erie Guild of Craftsmen Member, Thomas Mclaren
Thomas Mclaren

Woodworking by Thomas has been making woodworking crafts for the last five years. What started out as a few Christmas gifts for family evolved into a small craft-making business.  Today, the primary crafts include antique yardstick boxes for teachers and quilters.

 

Woodworking by Thomas also makes wood domino gift boxes, wood toys for children, plus Christmas and Halloween decorations. Crafts include and candle holders, and unique coat racks for golfers, car enthusiasts and those looking for a special gift.

 

Every attempt is made to use as much reclaimed or recycled materials as possible thus avoiding cutting down new trees or using endangered, exotic woods. Stop by his booth to see the most unique and special gifts. Thomas sells at craft shows, doing several per year.  You can find him on Facebook as Woodworking by Thomas or click this link Woodworking by Thomas

OR If you’d like to see his beautiful work in person, you can visit him at the next Erie Guild of Craftsmen Fall Craft Show!

 

 

Jane Deyo

An award-winning beader, Jane began her beading career on a whim and it has become her passion. She has taken bead embroidery and jewelry making to new heights with her keen sense of color and innovative beading techniques. She is a master bead embroiderer.

Jane’s bead embroidery piece, “Old Mexico”, was Judge’s Pick in Jewelry Television’s Designer’s Challenge jewelry making contest in 2013.

She has been a four-time finalist in Fire Mountain Gems and Beads beading contests. Her work has been highlighted in Fire Mountain Gems and Beads Jewelry Maker’s Comprehensive Catalogs in 2008-2009 and 2012-2013, as well as their Jewelry Maker’s Catalog of Best Sellers 2009-2010. Jane’s work has also been showcased in Richard Stravitz Gallery in Virginia Beach.

In 2010, Fire Mountain Gems and Beads hailed Jane as one of the top 10 designers in the country. This unsolicited nomination is decided upon by a jury of peers and is an enormous honor in the beading world.

Each of Jane’s pieces is a one-of-kind work of art. She finds inspiration from nature, animals, flowers, Native American culture, and the beads themselves.

Jane has taught a wide variety of beading and jewelry making classes at The Bead Cottage and Virginia Beach Beads in Virginia Beach. Her favorite classes are bead embroidery, stringing, pearl knotting, kumihimo, bead weaving, and her more advanced classes – Basic and Beyond©, Gemstones, and Beading Ethics.

Mary Lou Bartlett

Meet Mary Lou Bartlett, a long-time crafter who has held several offices in the Erie Guild of Craftsmen. Mary Lou has been crafting for almost 30 years. She started out creating door wreaths and brooms. Later, she started doing ceramics, taking ribbons for several pieces at ceramic competitions.

In 2011, Mary Lou discovered her two true passions – sewing and jewelry making. She started making angel jewelry, as well as  sweatshirts, jackets, scarves, and hats. To this day she still loves to create jackets.

Mary Lou has been a member of the Erie Guild of Craftsmen for almost 25 years. She is inspired by her 3 children, 8 grandchildren, and 7 great grandchildren, and her water garden with fish and flowers.

Jennifer Phillips

joy-of-spinning
Jennifer’s inspiration – The Joy of Spinning by Marilyn Kluger

Meet Jennifer Phillips, certified Master Spinner and sheep lover! Jennifer became interested in spinning yarn when she read the book The Joy of Spinning by Marilyn Kluger. After reading the book, she knew she wanted to learn the craft some day.

A few years later, in 2007, her husband wanted to get her interested in the farm. This became the perfect opportunity for Jennifer to start spinning. She told her husband she wanted sheep, and he brought two old ewes home to her for Mother’s Day. She fell in love with her sheep. When one passed away, she sobbed as she hand-cut the wool off. Seeing how crushed she was, her husband told her he’d do anything to stop her from crying. Her request, of course, was more ewes.

Here are some of Jennifer's Dorset sheep
Here are some of Jennifer’s Dorset sheep

Eventually, she had so many different breeds that her husband told her to choose one. She chose Dorsets, because they are extremely low-maintenance. Shortly after birth, their babies are dry, clean, and nursing with no help whatsoever. Plus, Jennifer loves the smell of their wool.

Later, after trying out additional fibers, she discovered the Leicester breed. This rare breed is now endangered, so Jennifer decided to adopt and raise them to help preserve the breed. She also likes to cross-breed her Dorsets and Leicesters.

Jennifer also owns Leicester sheep, which are an endangered breed.
Jennifer also owns Leicester sheep, which are an endangered breed.

Jennifer currently owns 23 sheep – 15 adults, their seven babies, and one new baby she has recently adopted.

Jennifer is a Master Spinner – she cleared her quota for teaching in the summer of 2012, when she taught over 700 students! She did this by teaching at a camp in Pennsylvania, where students attended from all over the world.

You can connect with Jennifer on Facebook and Instagram, where she often posts photos of her cute lambs and beautiful hand-spun yarn! You can purchase her yarn at local craft shows (including the Guild Fall Show), and at Brown’s Primitive Scentiments in Titusville, PA.

Jennifer’s Instagram

[instagram-feed id=”4845508322″ imageres=thumb]

Kathy Alexander

Kathy Alexander, a longtime member of the Guild, has been knitting & crocheting since she was ten years old. She got curious after watching her mother knit, decided to try it, and hasn’t looked back since!

grandson-modeling
Kathy’s grandson, Matt, models her sweaters for Etsy photos! Here he is modeling a Cowichan sweater she knitted.

She first started selling her sweaters at work – after seeing the sweaters she had made for her grandkids, her coworkers started placing their own special orders. After that, she started selling her sweaters at craft shows. To reach even more customers, she opened up an Etsy shop back in 2009, in Etsy’s infancy!  She has sold sweaters to Universal Studios! Her advice for those considering selling on Etsy? “Give it a try – you never know how you’re going to do.”

Kathy's biggest seller is baby sweaters - especially this adorable pink, grey, and white sweater with a matching hat.
Kathy’s biggest seller is baby sweaters – especially this adorable pink, grey, and white sweater with a matching hat.

Although she previously sold online, she currently is selling at local shows.  Kathy’s favorite thing about shows is that she can reconnect with the friends she makes over the years. She does both summer and fall shows. Her biggest piece of advice for crafters doing shows across different seasons is to offer seasonal items, rather than the same products throughout the year. For example,

In the summer months, Kathy sells woven bags and rugs.
In the summer months, Kathy sells woven bags and rugs.

Kathy sells mostly sweaters during her fall shows, but makes tote bags, baby sweaters, and rugs for her summer shows.

If you’re interested in seeing more of Kathy’s work visit her booth at local craft shows and the Erie Guild of Craftsmen Fall Show !

Evelyn Mayer

Evelyn's Fabric Bulletin Boards
Evelyn’s Fabric Bulletin Boards

Evelyn Mayer, the current president of the Erie Guild of Craftsmen, has been crafting for all of her adult life. She creates a wide variety of crafts, including fabric bulletin boards, corded bracelets, Seek ‘n Find toys, and dish scrubbies to name a few!

The first craft Evelyn learned was sewing. At 15, she took Home Ec class in school where she learned sewing, her creative passion. Her very first sewing project was an apron. Nowadays she sews everything from dresses to stuffed dolls. Her least favorite thing to sew? Doll clothes!

Evelyn’s Dish Scrubbies

In addition to sewing, Evelyn also loves to knit and crochet. She makes time to work on her crafts every single day – it’s her “me time”. Every night, she works on her dish scrubbies, which are her top-selling item at craft shows (and I can personally attest that these are a great product!).

Her favorite thing about crafts is that they bring her closer to people. At shows, she gets to interact directly with her customer base. At home, she uses crafts to create a strong bond with her children and grandchildren. By teaching her kids how to sew and knit, she was able to connect with them on a creative level.

mc11000se-main
Evelyn’s Prized Possession: Her Janome 1100 Sewing & Embroidery Machine

Her happiest crafting memory was when she got a fancy new sewing machine – the Janome 1100 Sewing and Embroidery Machine. It is very special to her, because it is the last thing her husband bought her before he passed away.

I hope you enjoyed learning about Evelyn! You can find her work at the Erie Guild of Craftsmen Fall Show in October!