Every artist was first an amateur. Ralph Waldo Emerson. October Newsletter. Presidents Message. Hello Everyone,

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1 October Newsletter 2014 Presidents Message Hello Everyone, President Wanda Shirey Vice President Lollie Yancey Co-Treasurers Lyn Brown Joyce Palm Secretary Joyce Pasche Newsletter Phyllis Sickles Every artist was first an amateur. Ralph Waldo Emerson It s time to find out how many of you plan to be in the Old Pueblo Gourd Club booth at the Wuertz Festival. In order to contact those interested and get the paper work out to those participating, I need to know who you are. Please send me an bsis1948@centurylink.net by October 25th. I d love to hear from you sooner rather than later so that we can have a successful festival. Barb Larkum has volunteered to chair the DVD committee at the Wuertz Festival If you would like to volunteer to help, please contact Barbara at The board is working on going over the new bylaws for OPGP. It is the plan of the board to have the new bylaws approved and in place by January 2015 FY. According to the present OPGP bylaws, there are two positions on the board that are up for reelection starting January The interim position of Treasurer has been filled by Lyn Brown who is doing a great job! She has volunteered to run for the position for the next two years. Thank you, Lyn. 2. As for the position of Vice President, this is a position that we are desperately in need of. Without a vice president, there will be no one to set up the demo programs for the next two years. Maybe you would consider sharing the position and responsibilities. I m hoping there are members who will volunteer to work hand in hand with the vice president to come up with the ideas and make the needed contacts. Any of you that feel you are a creative thinker and problem solver, we need you and your ideas. I already have a long list of possible contacts. Just think of some of these: we have Michaels, Hobby Lobby, bead stores, rock shops, all of 4th Ave., the Art Museum, and other clubs. Many of these stores and clubs are eager to share what they know with our gourd patch because they know their involvement with our club will lead directly to sales of their products or possible membership in their club. The officers shall be elected by a ballot vote at the December meeting of the OPGP. As of October 9, 2014 there are no nominees except for Treasurer. The only way the club can stay interesting and fun is if more members participate in all of the activities of the club. Wanda

2 Old Pueblo Gourd Patch Meeting, Sept Secretary Joyce Pasche President Wanda Shirey called the meeting to order at 6:08 pm. Welcome to new member, Edna Fehling. Please add her to your membership roster. Her address is The secretary s minutes and treasurer s reports were approved as written in the last newsletter. All were reminded to sign in on the attendance sheet. It was suggested that there be a separate table set up at the meetings to hold the attendance sheet & name tags, show & tell list, and any other sheets to volunteer or sign up for classes etc. Joyce Palm volunteered to set it up at the October meeting. Old business: The Corporation Annual Report and Certification is due annually by 10/22/2014. President Wanda Shirey completed the annual report and disclosure. The AZ Corp Commission fee for filing is $10 and will be reflected in the October treasurer s report. The Board is working on updating the by-laws to corporation standards. Phyllis asked Lynne East-Itkin to express to her husband, Steve, our gratitude for helping us with the incorporating process. It was brought to our attention that several telephone numbers are incorrect on the present membership roster. Treasurer, Lyn Brown said she would put the membership roster on the sign-in table and everyone is asked to review their information. Volunteers are needed to help with the booth at the Wuertz Festival. Contact Wanda Shirey to volunteer. bsis1948@centurylink.net New business: We have a good turnout for Show & Tell but would enjoy even more participation. To encourage that the Board recently authorized the expenditure of a $25 gift card to Michaels or Hobby Lobby per quarterly drawing of those participating in Show & Tell. One entry per meeting whether you show 1 or more gourds. October-December will be the first quarter to qualify. Participation in all 3 months is encouraged to maximize odds of winning but is not required. The Old Tote containing prizes for a drawing from participants after each Show & Tell will be retired. Karen Phillips volunteered to find a suitable solution to liquidating it s mysterious contents. The October meeting will begin at the usual time of 6:00. AZGS Festival chairman, Kathy Waldow & helpers will be telling us of their plans and answering questions. Following our regular meeting Bonnie Gibson will present this month s demo on Yerba gourds/tea. Vice President, Lollie Yancey is chairman of the nominating committee and asking for candidates for the open positions of Vice President and Treasurer for 2015/2016. The VP duties include being chairman of nominating committee, election ballots, scheduling demos, and being parliamentarian. The Treasurer will be responsible for collecting membership dues and maintaining an up to date membership roster; for maintaining the OPGP Ltd bank account and provide budget updates to the Executive Board on a monthly, quarterly, and end-of-year basis. There shall be a financial review of the Treasurer s records annually.

3 Show and Tell What a wonderful selection of eye candy and shared information on how-it-was-done. Phyllis Sickles shared a couple of pieces. The first was a large drum resting on a Cholla base. The interesting design was accomplished by heating Tyvek with a heat gun to melt it so it could be adhered to the gourd. (Google Tyvek or check out linda-matthews.com/tyvek-and-its-many-uses/ for more information.) Phyllis second gourd is a commissioned piece we were lucky to be able to see before being shipped. He is a magnificent warrior, indeed. The faux leather was achieved laying acrylic colors with a sponge, faux beading with acrylic fabric paints in a squeeze bottle and lots of patience and control. Bonnie Gibson shared with us how she used lacquer sanding sealer so imperfections (mold markings) wouldn t bleed through your color of choice and affect the results. Mold grows on the inside and comes through to the outside and will discolor the meat all the way through. The lacquer can go under water base or oil base products. All sealers will affect the color of the meat somewhat, bringing out the yellowish tint. Bonnie's second piece was to show that thin gourds can be carved and made to show depth in carving. This gourd is only about 1/16 thick but look at the depth she achieved in the leaves and bird. It can be done very carefully. Sue Ziegler enjoys coiling with Danish cord and completed 3 gourds. Note the little owl made of a shard. She added stability by weighing the inside bottoms with crushed seashells and white glue. Good idea. Laura Moreno s gourd featured filigree, alcohol inks, and a lovely stone. She was dissatisfied with the mold marking which showed through the transparent ink and discolored her filigree. She learned many ways of handling these imperfections from fellow gourders willing to share their experience with sealers and opaque paints. Laura s had a problem with the lid staying in place on her second gourd. The problem was due to the shell being thin. Chose a thicker gourd by thumping it for sound like a ripe melon and looking for stretch marks.and still getting surprised sometimes. If you want a gourd with pristine surface Bonnie suggested getting a green gourd, cutting off the top, submerging in water for a couple of weeks. It s necessary to change the water regularly to cut down on the stink. Lynne East-Itkin used very fine wire as she wove it on the top of her small gourd resting on a small branch. So delicate and airy. It, too, took a lot of patience. Midge Hardy expressed her appreciation for the support of the group as she spread her wings trying new techniques on her projects. Her latest gourd featured solder & stone inlay, paint textured by adding corn starch, and a lid topped with a bear she carved out of basswood. Refreshments Thanks to Sharon Mederos and Karen Hop for bringing goodies to the September meeting. Carolyn Liljegren and Denise Lown have volunteered for the October meeting. Thank you all very much. Barb Lewis

4 Midge Hardy Laura Moreno Bonnie Gibson Phyllis Sickles Bonnie Gibson Lynne East-Itkin Beautiful Gourds Phyllis Sickles Laura Moreno Sue Ziegler

5 NOVEMBER 24, 2014 DINNER Hi everyone!! Just a reminder to all our members, please sign up for the dinner on November 24 th. You can do this either by signing up at the meeting, calling me at home at or ing me at roadrunnermsw@aol.com. This year we will be exchanging a gourd you have completed that has an Autumn/Thanksgiving type design, and please remember that this completed gourd will be a gift to a fellow Patch member. It makes no difference your level of artistry, but that you will have a gift to share at this special time of year. EVERY MEMBER who attends the dinner needs to make sure they make and bring a gift made from a gourd (s) for the gift exchange and that the dinner will start at 5:30 PM. Here, again, is the breakdown for what to bring: Beal Happe = main dish; Hardy Mahoney = salad; Mederos - Points = vegetable; Pruett Ziegler = dessert Thanks much, Jan Cunningham Treasurer s Report FYI: December is "Pay your 2015 Dues Month" Lyn Brown Treasurer Sept. Bank Balance $ Debit Wuertz Booth Fee Deposits 50/ Membership Oct. Bank Balance $ September Demo Round Table Problem Solving A staybowlizer is a handy tool to hold your gourd while working on it. Available at Amazon (access Amazon through Gourd Art Enthusiasts, please) for $19-$25. A DIY version put a piece of rubber shelf liner in a bowl of suitable depth and width.cost probably nothing extra if you already have in the house. Karen s beautiful finished gourd was knocked to the floor and has 2 cracks. Drill a small hole at the end of the crack so it doesn t continue. Suggestions were to cut a channel, fill with wood putty or Apoxie sculpt, sand area to smooth, repaint that area. Apply a gap filling super glue, hold it a few minutes to set or apply clamps. Sand and repaint area.

6 Round Table Problem Solving Continued Several years ago Abby Rankin had used a purple leather dye which proved to be vagrant. It was completely gone leaving just the gold trim design. After many suggestions of reapplying transparent inks she was told it was lovely the way it was. She was delighted because it has sentimental value to her. Bright green ink has also disappeared in areas after some time on a gourd for Lollie Yancey. Perhaps it had not been sealed after it was finished, Applying Murphy s Oil & water to the gourd surface will encourage even color absorption. To preserve your work spray with an acrylic or lacquer based sealer that protects against harmful UV light rays. Jan Cunningham was having problems with her wood burning cord. If you have a source for repair/ replacement please contact Jan roadrunnermsw@aol.com If you go to Dover Publishing, you can sign up for weekly free samples of their books. Many of the samples are from coloring books of designs and nature. It is well worth getting. Last week they had Halloween designs and Day of the Dead samples. Barb found the name of the hand cleaning utensil that was shown at the meeting. It is called a Craft Scrubbie by Ranger Inkssentials. You can get them for $3.75. We checked at the Ina Michaels and they no longer carry it. When I typed in Craft Scrubbie, it also listed Joann Fabric. You might try their store. The price is around $4.00 and in my opinion well worth it. October Demo We are having visitors from the Arizona Gourd Society to get us all up to date on the 2015 Gourd Competition at the Wuertz Festival. Bring all of your questions and concerns to be answered. After their presentation, Bonnie Gibson is giving a demo on Yerba Mate. Yerba is a South American tea that they drink all day long and Mate is the gourd that they put the tea in. It should be a very enjoyable and interesting as are all of Bonnie s presentations. For Sale, Buy, Trade or Give Away I thought I would try something new in the newsletter. Do you have good items around the house that you no longer use but are too nice to throw away? Send your list of items to be posted in the next newsletter to Phyllis Sickles at 5maps@comcast.net Free One wooden lazy susan for working with gourds great for viewing, horizontal striping and works well with Erich s marking tool. See Phyllis Sickles 5maps@comcast.net For Sale Nice cleaned Welburn gourds at an inexpensive price. Also a large variety of beautiful feathers. See Barb Larkum capturedcactus@msn.com