Jaine Toth
On relocating from Wisconsin by way of Minnesota, Becky Sheffler found she misses the fall colors, but the snow and slush? Not at all! Becky, who lives and breathes art, joined the Paper Crafting Club. She especially enjoyed the card-making classes presented by Rosemary Thibault and Wanda Harper where she learned and then expanded on the beautiful ideas and creative techniques they taught. Becky said the card sessions “got my creative juices flowing. I loved to take what I’d learned and then come up with ways to tweak it, make it slightly different—the play with colors and inks, for example. But I especially liked going because of the people.”
It makes her so happy when she realizes how much people appreciate getting her handmade cards. One sister-in-law regularly reminds Becky when a birthday or anniversary approaches, lest Becky somehow might forget to make her a special card. What really moved both her and Wanda Harper, was when Becky’s son took one of the autumn-themed cards Becky learned in one of Wanda’s classes and had it framed. He brings it out to display each year during the fall season. That act shows that he loved and appreciated the card without having to say so.
Becky enjoys drawing with colored pencils and also watercolor painting. She then turns these projects into greeting cards with the techniques learned at the Paper Crafting Club.
Becky enjoys when the club gets together to work as a group on a charitable project. A knitter, she also makes stocking hats that she donates to Angela’s Closet in Eloy.
Loving all things artistic, Becky began woodworking. She’s made cutting boards and turned bowls. Next she will challenge herself to make end tables. She also does pottery and stained glass. Becky also makes artisan soaps and says that soap-making is a longer process than most people realize. The time comes not from assembling and mixing the materials, but the approximately six-week curing process. Just as with crafting cards, doing the soaps is exciting as one chooses color combinations and decides how much to swirl them. The end product is always a surprise and each soap ends up one of a kind.
Becky told me, “I attribute my artistic pleasures to my mother who’d postpone housework when she was in the midst of knitting, crocheting, painting, or doing ceramics. Art took precedence over chores. It’s the same way for me now.” Sounds like me and I bet like a lot of you who are reading this!
Becky is looking forward to starting on her Christmas cards. Each year, she’d make the number she thought she’d need and inevitably find herself short when there was someone else to give one to. This year she plans to make plenty of extras, and if there are some left over, that will be a few less she needs to make next year.