Thank You Early American Life!

I just received some excellent news!  The following is an excerpt from a letter Early American Life magazine sent me yesterday:

Dear Paula Walton,

Congratulations! Because of your creative talents and dedication to historical accuracy, you have been chosen to join the distinguished group of craftspeople listed in the 2010 Directory of Traditional American Crafts in the category “toys and dolls.”

Now in our 41st year, Early American Life continues to promote traditional craftsmanship, providing our national readership with comprehensive information on early American crafts, their history, their function, and the importance of their preservation. In addition, we are committed to promoting individual craftspeople and their artistry. As a Directory artisan, you rank as one of the most talented of them all.

The Directory issue will begin distribution to subscribers on about June 3rd. (The newsstand date is June 22nd).

I am extremely honored to have been juried into the Directory once again.  Even though this will be the 22nd time I have been in the Directory, it’s still every bit as thrilling as the very first time.

The two examples of my work that I submitted for judging were one of my Izannah Walker reproduction dolls and a fully jointed teddy bear made of antique white mohair.  I don’t always submit items from the same categories every year, because I make many different things.  For 2010 I decided that Toys and Dolls was a very appropriate category,  since I started this year finishing my Izannah class and getting it shipped out to my first round of students.

So thank you Early American Life.  If you’d like to buy a copy of the 2010 Directory issue, look for it to be on sale June 22nd.