Featured Artist: Marcia Pascuzzi

Marcia Pascuzzi of Daisy Made Designs is this week’s Cleveland Handmade featured artist.

What is your first memory of your craft? Did someone teach you, or did you learn on your own?
I swear I was born with a box of crayons (albeit not mine) and a pair of scissors in my hand… To this day my first grade photo is on a wall of the “most wanted by a Catholic nun” list in the Cincy area for stealing a classmate’s box of brand new crayons and God forgive me for even coveting them, until I got caught of course! From then on I swear I learned my lesson and knew I had to figure out how to create and sell my wares to buy my own supplies!

I was always creating something for my beloved dolls (clothing), my own custom paper dolls, doll house furniture and decor, small paintings, etc. I actually began selling things door to door like an Avon lady when I was in grade school. The shocker is I actually sold things, yea more crayon money!!!

I started taking any kind of art class I could at an early age and continued on through high school and some silversmithing classes at the University of Iowa. My goal of going to Kendall School of Art and Design was siderailed by life!

I spent the next 35 years trying out many avenues of design including painting in oils, acrylics, watercolors, sewing, mosaics, welding metal, silversmith, woodworking, clay, and currently jewelry making, primarily with stones and beads and a bit of wire wrapping thrown in!

What is it that draws you to your craft material?
I wish I could say that I was drawn to just one material as it might make my creative life and my finances easier to manage… But at this point I have the supplies and yearning for just about everything I have ever tried (see above)! I am happier in a good hardware store or a craft supply than just about anywhere else and could probably open my own store based on my stored items — but don’t tell my husband. I am the go-to person when friends need an unusual item for a school project. I am currently trying to stay focused on driftwood, recycled findings, natural stone beads and metals for making jewelry and driftwood crosses. I have been collecting small items for most of my life and love old costume jewelry, so I’m anxious to incorporate them in my designs and give them a new life. Because I have been wearing jewelry since I was old enough to ask, it seems like a good marriage of my passions.

How would you describe the style of your work? Does it reflect your personal style?
Wow I wish I could say this or that is my personal style, it would free my “widdle” brain to create with much more ease… But I just seem to be all over the map with what catches my eye at the time. So from that angle maybe it does reflect my style of being here, there, and everywhere, thought-wise and interest-wise! Hmmm… some would call that a scatterbrain so maybe that is my personal style, although it doesn’t sound very professional so I may have to work on that! I have always heard you should create with what you love and not what you think people will want, that if you design from your passions and interest then success will follow, so I do try and keep that in mind when I am tempted to produce for the masses!

What are your inspirations? How are they expressed in your work?
I prefer adding just a touch of glitz and shine to whatever I do! However, my inspiration has always been beautiful stones, things that shine and reflect what God has created for us, and anything that is old and wonderful! I spent my summers from the age of 10 on in New Mexico at my grandfather’s vast ranch, so I was greatly influenced by the beauty and romance of the west and their styles and colors. I bought my first pair of turquoise earrings when I was 9 or 10, and they were over an inch long so I was a stand-out in them. I also spent my days there always looking at the ground with the anticipation of finding a treasure or two, which I did — stones, arrowheads, old Indian pottery, etc. I would bring my rocks and treasures back in my duct-taped suitcase (before weight limits) and mail back my clothes (clothes can be replaced, but not buried treasures). Now I have to mail back my rocks!!! All that brought me to my interest in buying stone beads.

Do you have an all-time favorite creation? What about it makes it your favorite?
I wish I could say I have just one favorite, but right now my interests are leaning toward the lampwork beads that I found by a guy named James out of the Appalachian mountains and also my new driftwood crosses with beach findings combined with stone beads. Every time I venture to the beach I become more intriqued with the shape of the wood and the bits and pieces of worn treasures in the sand. I do also really love the look of lampwork beads, all the colors and swirls seem magical to me! Now if I could find a way to incorporate my vintage rhinestones into my designs I think I would have that favorite piece!

When did you realize that this was more than a hobby?
My dream has always been to make money with my wares. Since it seemed to work as a kid, how hard could it be as an adult? I sold my woodworking through several stores in the 1980s but had to give it up when my son was born — he was not the cooperative type! Jewelry is a tough business to get established in since there are many, many talented people (Cleveland Handmade is loaded), and it is difficult to not get discouraged by the very gifted and more highly educated than I. I was downsized 2 1/2 years ago and couldn’t find another job so decided 9 months ago to make the decision and invest in trying to make a go of it! My daughter was getting married, which meant maybe I could convince her to take all of her bedroom “must keep” items and free up a room to call my own for creating.

Describe your workspace.
Which brings me to my favorite workspace! I did convince my daughter to take at least enough to make a room, the closet is still top to bottom full of her boxes (she also is an art major by degree and a collector by gene pool)! As you can see I have the most wonderful 2 ton solid oak old librarian’s desk that I love as my centerpiece and work station. I collected the white drop desk from a garage sale and redid it. I painted the walls a fun, cheerful kiwi green and recycled all the gerbera daisy decor from daughters wedding festivities. I cherish all my time spent in this room and just wish I had more… it even makes the dreaded paperwork more fun! My desk faces framed artwork that my son painted for me, which further inspires me to continue in my pursuits! My husband continues to point out that there is only one chair in there — mine — and that keeps others from hanging out in there… Hmmm… could this be intentional?

What is your favorite task related to your work? Your least favorite?
This is easy, least favorite keeping track of paperwork, supply spending (how depressing), and cleaning up my workspace!
Favorite also easy, touching the stones and purchasing them, staring at them and hopefully turning them into something that I love and hope others will also!

What is your favorite tool? Why?
My favorite tools are time, energy, and imagination! Both seem in short supply most days, something about menopause I suspect!

Do you have artistic talents in other areas?
I would say I am talented in the area of sewing most anything, a million costumes through the years for my kids and things my kids volunteered me for. I even made my own wedding dress! How 70s is that? My daughter wanted me to make hers, but I knew that could send me over the mother-of-the-bride edge! I like to think I can create in most mediums, but the truth is there is so much to learn in most areas in order to be an expert that I would say I only dabble!

Tell us something about you that we might be surprised to hear.
This was absolutely the hardest question, not wanting to shock the community and tarnish the reputation I am building but I finally came up with one…

My lifelong dream was to marry a cowboy, live on a ranch out west, have babies and dabble in the arts in my very own adobe studio behind my ranch house that would always be flooded with sunlight! So how the heck did I end up in Cloudy Cleveland, with an engineer from Iowa and not an adobe brick in sight??? But I did get the babies and I do dabble in the arts and still have time to get the studio in the west. No chance my husband will end up a cowboy though! For now I settle for trips to the west, taking in all the sights, sounds, culture, people, shops, galleries, and bead shops I can find  while basking in the sunlight hunting for rocks under clear blue skies!

Where can we find your work?
Currently I only have my etsy site at http://daisymadedesigns.etsy.com. I hope that writing this article will encourage me to get a blog and to put something on my thread… All this computer stuff takes eats up my creating time, and I’d rather be creating! Blog Flog-Twit Tweet — what is it all about???