Susan Weimer
GreenHill shop artist, Susan Weimer, is the creative mind behind Itty Bitty Animals Rehabilitation Center - an eclectic collection of hand-sewn, stuffed animals. When the animals are in their cut-out pattern form, they are waiting for “rehabilitation.” The artist bonds with each animal as it is being created. The animals take on lives of their own, and their stories are generated as they are “rehabilitated.” Weimer gives each animal a distinctly different name. When an animal is finished, it is not “For Sale” – it is up for “Adoption.” Itty Bitty Animals is an “animal rehab” center for unwanted and unlikely animals, and GreenHill has been an “Adoption” location for over two years. Meet one of our available creatures:
WELLINGTON was discovered on a subway in downtown Manhattan. He was running away from country life and was headed for Wall Street because he wanted to become a "bull." He is good with numbers and wants to become a stock broker. He has had all his shots and is housebroken. He has not been neutered because of his aspirations for "bullhood." Wellington is a great conversationalist and would make a good companion for a person interested in a financial career. Are you the right person for Wellington?
Susan Weimer shared her story of becoming an artist with us:
How long you have been making art, and what mediums do you choose?
When I retired from teaching school, I wanted to get into a hobby. I started with paper craft but soon realized that the market was flooded with cards, signs, banners, posters, etc. One day, while I was in the Public Library I found a Better Homes and Gardens Christmas crafts book. I found a picture of a small reindeer which I thought was extremely cute and decided to make one. Without detailed instructions, I was able to get a reasonable finished product – a reindeer. There were only 4 pieces, so it wasn’t all that complicated. But the placement of the head piece was giving me problems until I found out exactly where to place the starting stitch.
When did you start creating your animals and how did you decide to start making them to sell?
I signed up for a church Christmas craft fair and sold $400 worth of reindeer! So, then I started making other animals. I found a bird pattern on the Internet for $5. I made a lot of them to use for the Piedmont Bird club Christmas Dinner. They were just party favors that the participants could take home. But soon I found that members wanted to buy them. The reindeer experience and bird project gave me the idea of starting a small craft business – Itty Bitty Animals.
I went to every small craft fair I could go to and found that I was successful in selling the reindeer and birds. I started making other animals: sheep, pigs, cows, goats, horses.
Customers enjoyed the stories, and they became a selling point. I can’t tell how many goats named “Marbles” that I sold. Somehow people related to the fact that the goat had lost all his marbles and now has them back! The goat has little round pieces of felt sewn on his body, and they are all different colors.
The materials I use are mostly felt material. The squares and rectangles are relatively inexpensive and easy to work with. Sometimes I use blue jean material. I have also used hand-made felt which I get from Gerald O’Donnell. He has won several awards for his felting work.
My main tools are needles and thread. The animals are completely hand-sewn. I do not even own a sewing machine.
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