joyfulpainter's Profile

Bio

Jane of all trades.

That’s how I’ve always thought of myself as far as crafts go. I grew up with a mother who was an accomplished crafter herself. She inherited her love of embroidery, crocheting, knitting and sewing from her mother. I consider myself so fortunate to have learned all of these at an early age myself.

Then I became a Mom – to five daughters! While I was growing up, I was always looking for ways to express myself. Once I became a mother myself, I expanded my interests – partly out of necessity and the need to keep my daughters entertained – but more so to provide them with “special” gifts. I'd work late into the wee hours of the morning making dolls and stuffed animals, painting cans for crayon holders, making playhouses out of cardboard boxes, sewing costumes, special occasion dresses, quilting bed covers and so much more. And I loved each new craft I undertook.

As my girls grew, I continued to find new avenues to express myself. My next “love affair” to hit me was flowers. First I learned how to make them out of ribbon then out of paper. I was so taken with flowers that, although shy and somewhat unsure of myself, I enrolled at the local community college and took all the courses they offered in the florist field. I needn’t have worried about how I'd do being back in a school environment. I did so well that I won Student of the Year in the Florist Class.

Once my girls had grown, I began working outside the home in a 9 - 5 job with my own florist business on the side. I worked with artificial and fresh flowers but my true passion was definitely working with fresh flowers. I made everything from complete wedding packages to funeral casket arrangements. Unfortunately, I started losing dexterity and manual mobility and was ultimately diagnosed with fybromyalgia and arthritis both of which caused me to give up most of my crafts.

These two illnesses forced me to retire early. Suddenly my days grew quite long and I was saddened to find I could no longer do the crafts that had always kept my hands – and mind – busy. I was feeling totally lost until it occurred to me to once again check out local colleges and adult schools to see if there was anything that might interest me that I could attempt to do despite the illnesses. Lo! and behold! I stumbled upon Tole Painting. What a Godsend this has turned out to be. Once again, I could embrace a new craft and luckily for me, I found I had a God given talent for it.

I've been painting now for about 6 or 7 years and I am so very happy to be able to create and share my art. I've been quite content to give my projects away or sell some by word of mouth. Content that is, until my eldest daughter – an accomplished artist in her own right – suggested I sign up on Etsy. So here I find myself trying to navigate this site and this new avenue all the while feeling so blessed in being an artisan. From my Grandmother to my Mom to myself, I take pride in being able to take part in having the gift of art passed from one generation to the next. Not surprisingly, two of my daughters are practicing artists and the other 3, though not pursuing them actively, also have artistic talents.

I never know from one day to the next if the fybromyalgia or the arthritis will flare up preventing me from crafting on any particular day. But I definitely take full advantage of any and all good days God grants me.

So, that's about it…the story of Me…Irma…aka "joyfulpainter."

One last note of information…did I mention I am totally deaf and have been most of my adult life? I may not be able to hear but believe me I love to talk about as much as I love to craft. So feel free to convo to say hi, request a special piece, share crafting ideas or comment on any of the pieces you see here.

After checking out my storefront, which is still in it’s infancy, pop on over to my talented daughter’s Etsy storefront at redgemstudio.etsy.com.

Thank you. I hope you find something here you love and that my joy of painting can bring a little joy into your home.

Female, Born on September 2

Favorite Materials

Roses, Flowers, Fruit, Wood, Silver, Papier Mache, canvass, Acrylic paints