Launched in 2005, WellesleyWeston Magazine is a quarterly publication tailored to Wellesley and Weston residents and edited to enrich the experience of living in two of Massachusetts' most desirable communities.
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Gifted and Clever Hands pieces and get direct feedback from cus- tomers on what they like and what they don't. "It's really rare for someone to make a snarky remark," says Schunior about shop- pers who may not realize the store's staff are also the craftspeople. "Most of the time they're excited to be meeting the artist and learning more about the work. " The narrow tri-level store features a wide array of wearable and functional art from infant knitwear to wall art, stained glass, and quilts, including such custom-ordered designs as a wood replica of your home, just right for the mantle, and name collages for a child's bedroom wall. Schunior's bowls and mugs reflect her interest in African art and animal imagery on petroglyphs, wood carvings, and fabrics of Native American and African cul- tures. She sometimes adds beads brought back from Ghana. Schunior is one of several Clever Hand potters collaborating for the second year with Wellesley High Visual Arts teacher Amie Ciluffo Larson. The potters are guest instruc- tors in the latter's advanced ceramics classes. Ruth Treitman met fellow Wellesley resi- dent Linda Lutfy Clayton when they both taught mathematics at Dana Hall School. Their friendship grew when Treitman men- tioned her interest in jewelry-making. Now retired from teaching, they have parallel sec- ond careers. Lutfy Clayton, a silversmith since 2002, says, "In our store, customers give you ideas. One asked for a bracelet like my earrings." 137 "I always wished I were an artist," says Treitman, who took her first jewelry class 20 years ago when she was close to age 60. Using techniques that originated in Mesopotamia, Treitman cre- ates chains of loops or box weaves in silver or gold. Sometimes she adds recycled glass beads brought back from Africa, where she once lived. Her most recent work involves a new material, Precious Metal Clay, with which she make imprints of leaves in pure silver. All profits from her sales go to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, in honor of her granddaughter, Jo. fall 2012 | WellesleyWeston Magazine