A Prim Krafters Journal ~ A Primitive Plugboard

When first starting in the business so many years ago, people asked why primitives? They would come into your booths at shows and laugh at your work, say horrible things about your primitive looking dolls and make fun of the items you thought were your best work.

Well I never thought years later primitives would catch on well they did and did they ever catch on. Now primitives are all over but there are different grades of primitives. Extreme primitives, moderate primitives and mild primitives. I do I would say between extreme and moderate. I bake my dolls. I hook a lot of my items for added features. I use only vintage materials and good home-spun materials. I feel if you want the feel of old primitive things you must use the old feeling materials. Now that primitives are a way of life, so to speak, I have branch out. Now I come up with new techniques. Only I know some secrets I use. Hey a girl got to do what a girl got to do to keep some things hidden, right? So when you see an original from Johanna from my primitive home, you won't see it anywhere else, because patterns are a no-no here. I may use a basic pattern but when I am done with it, it is completely changed. Primitives may be used with any type of furniture. You can put a primitive doll on a chair just about anywhere and she or he will fit. Now don't forget just don't put that doll alone put something else with it to have a grouping of something to keep within the spirit of early American and that is grouping things together. No wall left undone, so to speak. Yup you got it primitives and more primitives.

My name is Joanne Fajack and I am a wife, mother and a grandmother. I am a retired schoolteacher from teaching adult education in the local schools. Started my business as a hobby and it turned out to be a full time job. Took more classes in web design and computer science and got my certification in computer science and graphic design and now have the web site http://www.myprimitivehome.com . I had a sales rep. Which took my wares to the wholesale shows but this became too much for me to handle. The orders were just overwhelming and I just couldn't keep up with the orders. So I rented a small space in a local shop and that’s how it all started. Now I do only 1 huge juried show a year which I work all year around for and that really keeps me busy with the web site and other sites on line which carry my items. Many of the local shops also carry my dolls and hand-hooked one of a kind rugs, which I design and dye my own wool

Pictures submitted by JoAnne Fajack