Meet Janet Pitcher | Artist & Owner

We had the good fortune of connecting with Janet Pitcher and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Janet, can you tell us more about your background and the role it’s played in shaping who you are today?
I grew up in a very artistic family. At a young age I did not understand that we didn’t have a lot of money, because our home was filled with art. My grandmother was a ceramicist and my father a painter, sculptor, and lapidary artist, my mother a seamstress and quilter. At a young age I created clothing for troll dolls, then Barbies, and was creating clothing for myself by middle school. While in high school I was interested in fashion design as a career, I was also quite the salesperson, and very interested in marketing. Studying in college for a degree in business/marketing with a concentration in fashion merchandising and design led me to a career in retail management and buying. While my career path led me into sales, I continued to create. I sewed my own clothing, painted home decor, decorated cakes, and made gifts for friends and family. Continuing in my family tradition of making the things around me,

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
One day in a craft store, my oldest son suggested I buy some Polymer Clay and I found my medium! I had always been proficient in many different mediums, but Polymer Clay was a medium I found to express my artistic expression. I taught myself mostly at first, then learned the skills needed from many artists in our community. My early Polymer Clay work transformed greatly over the years. I worked on my own and with a close friend early learning how to create canes in Polymer Clay. When friends asked to purchase my designs I started working in craft shows selling my work. I traveled selling jewelry, beads and teaching to others for many years, with articles and tutorials published in several books and magazines as well as a few television craft show appearances. Over time, my designs changed and became more complex, and while I was always drawn to Polymer Canework, I always loved creating flowers. Memories of my grandmother creating flowers out of porcelain and my mother creating flowers out of frosting, led me to seek to create more lifelike flowers out of Polymer Clay. My desire to create designs unlike any others and incorporate my fabric background led me to blend metals, silks, and hand sculpted flowers into my Petal Pushers collection. My work as a costume designer in theater has also transformed how my Petal Pushers business is run. In order to create time for my theater work, I chose to sell my art primarily wholesale to stores and galleries across the country. Finding retail partners through trade shows and online marketplaces allowed me to create the art bringing it to a larger audience of museum stores, galleries and gift shops without having to travel, and giving me time to work in theater. With Covid-19 closing down theater for this time, my pivot has been to create Artisan Cloth Masks to coordinate with my jewelry designs. As someone who has always coordinated my clothing, jewelry and accessories, and the necessity of mask wearing, creating beautiful masks with matching jewelry was a perfect fit for me during this time. When a call went out for masks at our local medical facilities, I jumped right in. With loads of fabric inventory and ability to problem solve, I altered a few different mask patterns to create the most comfortable mask around. Hundreds of them were donated to health care workers and first responders, and when friends wanted to purchase them, I offered them for a donation to help me make more of them to donate. Over the months, I have tweaked my pattern and found beautiful fabrics to coordinate with my jewelry and even added a handcrafted Polymer Clay slider bead for a perfect fit. These masks are now offered in my partner stores helping them stay open right now, as well as on my website. My passion to help others stay safe, and keep my own business going also led me to a great partnership with my photographer friend Ken Jacques in launching our San Diego Artists wear a mask stop the spread campaign. Artist friends model my masks and jewelry to help spread the word, not the virus. Creating a mission and a reason to continue to create during this time has kept me going. I am busier than ever, and continuously finding something new to create! While creating masks to coordinate with my jewelry will be a limited prospect, I am looking forward to continuing to change and grow in my art and my business. Finding the synergy between my favorite artistic mediums of Polymer Clay and fabric have been the ray of light in this difficult time. I love seeing and hearing about how my artwork bring people joy, beauty, comfort and even safety and I will continue creating my Petal Pushers as long as possible!

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
As a 3rd generation Californian, I love showing people around my favorite places! I grew up in Santa Barbara and spent much of my adult life in San Diego, so of course the beaches are always a spot to visit. I love to take walks along the coast and enjoy lunch out with a view of the ocean. Kayaking on the bay with friends is also fun! Four years ago we moved from San Diego to the Temecula Valley for our retirement years and we love frequenting the wineries here. We would definitely spend a day at the wineries, sipping on our favorites and relaxing among the vinyards with delicious food and wine. A visit with me would also need to include a visit to live theater. My love of musical theater has also spawned a second career as a professional costume designer. Attending theater with friends and family from San Diego to Los Angeles is always a favorite activity. When I’m not creating in my studio, I’m usually in the theater. While Covid-19 has stalled that for now, my work in theater is a passion project come true.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Inspiration and support are the hallmarks of any successful artist. I have learned so much from many Polymer Clay artists over the years, and am ever grateful for the generosity of knowledge in our community. I am thankful for my parents who encouraged me to be the best I could be, and for my husband, Mark for supporting all of my artistic endeavors over the years. He can even be caught helping with production during busy times, painting metals and rolling out clay when needed!

Website: Www.janetspetalpushers.com
Instagram: @janetspetalpushers
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/janetspetalpushers
Youtube: https://youtu.be/vy3vf9o-Re0

Image Credits
Pam Davis Ken Jacques