Hi, my name is Debra Conrad and everyone calls me "THAT Painter Lady".
I am the author of Yuma Mesa Homesteaders 1948 and 1952. This has been an adventure and a labor of love. The Yuma Mesa Homemakers Club formed a book committee about 6 years ago so all the Homesteader Families could have a fromat to leave a legacy for their families.
This group has been through three authors and counless frustrations...And then we found each other. Many flukes and a good amount of fate brought us together and this book is the result.
I am not what anyone would categorize as a writer. I am also not a historian. I am however someone who loves her hometown of Yuma Arizona, and I want to see all of its history preserved. This book is a tiny bit of Yuma history, that I hope will give the reader a hint of the fortitude and passion the Yuma Mesa Homesteaders must have had in those early days.
Born and raised in Yuma Arizona, I traveled with my parents every summer on buying trips for their antique business. In retrospect, I think my Dad was trying to learn everything about anything, and meet anyone who might help him learn it. My Dad had an unending curiosity about all things old, mechanical, and usually loud.
In the process of all the trips crisscrossing the western half of North America, I caught a bug. It is the history but, or maybe it's the genealogy bug. It's the best kind of bug, because there isn't a cure, and no one would want to be cured anyway.
Faux Finishes and Faux Painting Tutorials
www.fauxfinishhowto.com
Sponges, brushes, rags, buckets of paint and step ladders are my “wardrobe” accessories. There are times when I have some rather strange colored highlights in my hair, and my hair stylist isn’t at fault. I’d rather wear comfortable casual clothes than corporate suits any day. So that’s what I do…
I left the corporate rat race about 15 years ago and dove headlong into the custom faux finishes world. As an art student I knew that I would use my creativity as a personal expression of love and friendship. I never dreamed that I could use this gift to bring beauty and color into living and working spaces.
My passion now is to turn boring white walls into walls full of color and realistic architecture like faux exposed brick wall paintings. I call it the “oooohhh” effect! When someone walks into a room that was void of interest in the morning and now there is a new window with a view of Italy or maybe the room now resembles a faux exposed brick wall painting andcourtyard filled with potted plants.... “oooohhh” is usually the first word I hear.
I often paint alone, plugged into my mp3 player while the hours (and daylight) disappear. Teaching while painting gives me a fun break to the “alone” time. I teach while I am working in a client’s home, so students are acting much like an apprentice. Sometimes we get to laughing and giggling so much that the clients want to sit in the room with us, just to join in the fun.
I have two grown sons. They learned from an early age, that Mom liked to decorate...anything. They did get a tiny bit of ribbing when they wore the T-shirts I painted. I had a glue gun and a sewing machine. That was a dangerous combination.
I have two Yorkies as my at home kids now. Suzie and Ted. It’s amazing what those two little mischief makers can do with painting supplies. I have had to clean up many turquoise tails and fuchsia noses.
It's a mystery to me... how doI get started on these projects and the huge learning curve they entail? I hope you enjoy my work... Drop me a line anytime and we can talk murals, faux finishes or Southwest USA history. Test
