SnapdragonOriginals

Snapdragons are my favorite flowers—bright, bold, and feisty—qualities I aspire to evoke with my original creations. I try to incorporate a little artistry and color in every part of my store, from the hand-scripted calligraphy on my banner to the lime-green tissue paper and contrasting ribbons I use to wrap each purchase. I use recycled fabric and repurposed decorative elements as much as possible.

My shop is eclectic: it has a little bit of everything I love in it. My goal is to craft items that I would desperately want to own if I found them in a store: embroidered and beaded Frida Kahlo dolls, Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) skeletons, sirena ornaments, Virgins of Guadalupe, vibrant knitted creations. My work is strongly influenced by my passion for folk art—Mexican, Haitian, Native American, etc.—and, obviously, I am very drawn to the evocative paintings (and photographs) of Frida Kahlo.

Art Dolls: The process for making each doll is intensive. I cut the shape out of Ultrasuede, bead and embroider the face and hair (the nose is the hardest feature for some reason), sew on a recycled-fabric skirt or shawl for my Fridas or create a cowrie-shell bra for my mermaids, and then begin stringing seed beads, row by row, to fill in the design. I mainly use a technique known as couching: each strand of beads is attached vertically to the fabric and then every bead or every-other bead on the strand is affixed using a horizontal stitch. For the mermaids, I sew on the tail beads one at a time. With the small Fridas, I choose bold color combinations for each doll; pick out complimentary flowers, jewelry, and charms; and individualize the work by adding beaded accents or sequins to the clothing. I hand-sew the front and back of each doll together with embroidery thread, stuff the shape, and end by adding the hanging loop. The large Fridas are even more labor-intensive and often incorporate Milagros, charms, pins, earrings, shells, silk leaves and flowers, and distinctive beads. They come with clear acrylic stands which I wrap in colorful embroidery thread.

Knitting: I tend to buy yarn based on the beauty and uniqueness of the individual skein, which usually means I do not get enough of a single yarn to make a large project. That challenges me to put together fun, funky, multi-textured, multi-colored scarves and gloves. As someone who hates itchy wool, I try to use soft, silky, or smooth yarns (though texture is subjective), and vary my selections.

I never considered myself visually artistic when I was young because I couldn't draw or paint, but I always loved embroidery and needle crafts. After creating all the decorations for my wedding (re-engaging old skills and learning new ones), I embraced my "artistic" side. I started making funky holiday ornaments using beads and Ultrasuede, and then I decided to make more sophisticated and intricate creations. Selling my work on Etsy allows me to endlessly indulge my desire to create beautiful objects using a wide variety of materials without adding to my already voluminous folk art collection or bankrupting myself buying gorgeous yarn.

My ornaments and art dolls have been featured in the Brown Alumnae Monthly's Gift Guide. One of my large Frida Kahlo dolls, “Frida with Monkeys” (sold) was exhibited in the Everson Museum in Syracuse, New York. I dream of having my work in a gallery and getting a commission to create a huge, intricate Frida Kahlo doll one day!

I recently opened a supplies store with my sister under the name TwoSistersSupplies. Please check it out: www.twosisterssupplies.etsy.com