Anita Mabante Leach

Info on Anita coming soon!

Until then, see her writings at Latino Perspectives Magazine.com

Phoenix Fridas: Rising from the flames for the sake of art and craft.

Carmen de Novais

Carmen's web site: CarmenCreations.com

Carmen de Novais was born and raised in Recife, Brazil. She has studied piano since age 5, and received her Bachelor’s degree from Oberlin College in Ohio. She has worked in the Brazilian Amazon documenting the situation of Native peoples and the Amazon Rain Forest. She has traveled extensively throughout South America, collecting exotic instruments and investigating the many idioms of folk music. In Arizona, she formed the Brazilian band Zúm Zúm Zúm and her instruments of choice are the guitar, charango, accordion and the vibraphone. Carmen’s philosophy is based on the need to express and explore our indigenous roots through music, theater, ritual and art, in order to foster multicultural understanding and appreciation, while passing on valuable oral and cultural traditions to future generations.

On her art: Carmen de Novais, founder and jewelry designer, started beading as a little girl in northeastern Brazil. Learning from her grandmother how to perforate and string seeds in the backyard, she delighted in making colorful, simple necklaces to wear and give to friends as gifts. Throughout her life, she has explored this traditional artform, constantly challenging herself to think of new ways and colors.

For Carmen, beading is a form of meditation, and the jewelry a source of empowerment. These designs are imbued with the positive thoughts and deep feelings of traditional harmony. In away, each piece is a prayer for peace, love, harmony, health, beauty, wisdom and wealth both on a personal and global way.





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Phoenix Fridas: Rising from the flames for the sake of art and craft.

Keri Plezia

Keri's web site: Art-A-Facts.com

It's not hard to spot one of Keri Plezia's designs — her unique and creative Stained Glass windows have been popping up all around the resort town of Wickenburg, Arizona for years.

Keri was born in Chicago, raised in north Phoenix and currently resides in Wickenburg. She holds a degree in Graphic Arts but stumbled into Stained Glass design 15 years ago and has built her business around Stained Glass and related products. Her longest running client and biggest supporter, Zia CD and Record Exchange, has been selling Keri's products for more than 16 years and showcases the Art•a•facts line in each of its 8 stores.

Keri draws her inspiration from the beautiful high desert colors and textures surrounding her but is not afraid to incorporate several styles of design when creating a custom window. Keri doesn't limit herself to just creating windows — she also enjoys the challenge of repairing and reconstructing antique windows and lamps.

Keri was recently featured on HGTV's Crafter's Coast to Coast! Click here to read all about it!





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Phoenix Fridas: Rising from the flames for the sake of art and craft.

Tracy Dove

Tracy's web site: TracyDove.com

I live in the magical, desert city of Phoenix, Arizona.

My sun, moon and mercury are all in the sign of Aries with Taurus rising.

I grew up under the influence of the 60's and 70's.

I've always been creatively driven, a free thinker, independent, earthy, hippie, bohemian type of girl.

I have been drawing and coloring from a very early age. It evolved into a beautiful art journey for me.

Currently, I paint with acrylics mostly on canvas. My art is definately an expression of my heart, mind and spirit. Pretty much everything I feel or think or love will get painted on something somewhere. My canvasses are covered with a diverse array of subjects ranging from whimsical houses, painted hippie busses and festival scenes to mermaids, fanciful animals, meditating women and messages of the heart and soul.

I am married for over 25 years now. We have a grown daughter who is amazing. I have a dog named Chloe and 7 cats. We are living happily ever after.





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Phoenix Fridas: Rising from the flames for the sake of art and craft.

Kathy Cano Murillo

" I hearby swear to use this sacred glue gun only for good, not evil..."

Kathy's links:
CraftyChica.com
Kathy's personal blog
Kathy's published books
Kathy's art for sale

I'm a native Phoenician and an admitted binge crafter. When I'm not sewing or varninshing in my living room-turned-art studio, I run an online art business with my artist/musician hubby Patrick, I author crafty lifestyle books, do crafty demos on local and national crafting shows and I write a nationally syndicated arts and crafts column for Gannett Wire Service and The Arizona Republic. Next to Phoenix, I love New York City! I have two kids and three chihuahuas.








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Phoenix Fridas: Rising from the flames for the sake of art and craft.

Leticia de la Vara

Leticia's web site: Chale Clothing

Leticia. That's me.
Hardworking office stiff by day, be-dazzler by night. I love being a part of Phx Fridas.
Mostly because the other women in the collective are so talented it's hard not to be inspired when you hang with 'em. Especially for me since I haven't really found an art niche and love to put my sticky little fingers on any arts or crafts project. Although I do always end up going back to rhinestoning things or "be-dazzling up" accessories. From the moment I was 2 and glued one of my mom's rings to a shoe box I have had a constant and comfortable love affair with gluing shining things to inanimate objects. I like walking past one of completed be-jeweled creations and look at how the light catches it from different angles. It always makes me think of fish gills slowly moving in and out and with each breath adding a different hint of color and dimension to the fish.

But back to me! I am a Phx native and have a toddler aged daughter who loves to watch Laurence Welk on friday nights and hit the park on saturdays in her hog (or little red trike, whatever). Our favorite mother daughter past time is to jump up and down to Presidents of the United State of America CDs and growl like dinosaurs.

Art background:Right now I am working on designing some kids tees with a Latino Urban vibe and hope to shop it out to different shops here and across the country. I've decided this time to take the logical approach and beyond just creating I am also taking a small business class to make sure I know what I'm getting myself into on the off-chance that I start raking in the dollas. I was a punk singer for about 5 yrs and still miss doing that. Now my music is pretty much done at home for my personal benefit but I hope to get back behind the mic some day. Maybe re-invent myself as a Mariachi singer with punk influences. who knows. Last holiday season I did a art project with my mom and realized how fun and how creative it can be to work with your mom. It was a blast and I think made us even closer. She had hoped to study art but then marriage and kids came and that got pushed to the backburner so this project was real special to the both of us and I was surprised at how much skill my mom still had considering how much time (30 plus years!) she had spent away from the paints.

Personal background: I also run a Phx based online support group for Latina single mothers. We gab, meet up for play dates, and vent. It rocks. Currently I am also planning a volunteer-based trip to Salvador Brazil and am fundraising for that. If you're interested in finding out more about that send me an e-mail at ChicanaMama@hotmail.com

If someone were to ask me at this very minute (3/11/05 10:35am to be exact) what would I want I would say: A Vespa, a date, and a magic wand that cleans my house and yard so I can spend quality time with my kid and with my crafting table.
When people first meet me: I come off as weird or distant and stumble on words like I just swallowed a Spanish-English grammar lesson and am burping it up in bits and pieces (talk in English with a Spanish sentence structure and vice versa). But once I'm comfortable around you I end up talking a lot and am the type of person who will bring up random conversation items to try and see what kind of person you are.

So that's me in a coffee-infused nutshell.





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Phoenix Fridas: Rising from the flames for the sake of art and craft.