Foothills residents create artists village

November brings out the neighbors to Sharon Weinrich's Fortuna Palms Loops residence for her handmade crafts, but some say they just appreciate the winter greetings of her "garden lady" lawn ornament.

Weinrich, a winter visitor from Great Falls, Mont., spends half the year in Yuma. She found last year her block had a number of creative snowbirds, so they decided to create an "artists village" where residents could find a handmade, original, decorative or fine art work within a stone's throw of home, she said.

"We have six artists participating. I consider myself a hobbyist, the artists are down the street. But I'm a hunter and collector. I love to find fun things but not necessarily for myself."

Weinrich says she does a little bit of everything, especially clay ornaments (but not pottery), sewing and decorative sculpture. A favorite piece is her wind chimes she calls her "fun catcher."

Weinrich also has clay aroma disks that retains the fragrance of essential oils to freshen rooms and she hand paints clay suns or horseshoes as well as geckos to decorate walls. But she also does fabric crafts.

"Us older people can't avoid eating without spilling half our meal on our shirt so I do adult bibs that are long enough to be worn as an apron. It has a Velcro closure around the neck since we women never like to pull anything over our head because it messes up our hair."

She also makes layered cotton tea coasters with pouches for a sweetening spoon and a clay disk to hold disposed tea bags. And she has "sewing ties" with pockets for needles, thread, scissors and a built-in pin cushion. Meanwhile she keeps a closet full of chiffon, fake fur and polyesters for all the hats, shawls and scarves she plans to make.

Jan Bierne is a regular at Weinrich's who said she likes to browse whenever she has anything new.

"Today I bought some wine corks. Sharon's things are very artsy and her prices very reasonable. She has a lot of great gifts for Christmas and Linda is also on the Loop and she has very nice stuff, too."

That would be Linda Calahan who with her husband, Gary Pharness, run the Sweet Pea Studio. Calahan says her studio has everything for anyone looking to invest in art for the casual shopper to the high-end buyer from $3 to $1,000.

"People can get real snobbish about art. It's all about whatever gets you excited, whatever you like to look at. I like to look at a lot of colors. My husband is quite bold about his work."

She added, her only regret is that she hasn't done it all her life but "getting serious" only since 1996 after spending a career in literacy consulting and desk top publishing.

Mary-Ann Therault is a chinaware painter just down the block. Therault says china painting is more difficult than oil painting because the blank porcelain can be very slippery. Although she paints plates and vases, many of the pendants and other jewelry work she illustrates can be difficult because they are so small.

"People don't realize all the hours that has to go into it. I have to use a magnifying glass. It can be very tedious on the eyes. But the work is very rewarding."

Between now through April on Thursdays and Fridays from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., Weinrich invites people to "Shop the Loop." Additional studios open later in winter, offering quilts, woodwork, new and used items.

"I do it for the creativity. I doubt many of us make a profit. I'm happy to sell some things so I can buy more stuff and then I can make more things."

William Roller can be reached at wroller@yumasun.com or 539-6858.