Member Directory
Craftsmen’s Guild of Mississippi Members
Search our Member Directory by name or medium (Metal, Ceramics, Glass, Mixed Media, Wood, Fiber). Or, scroll down the page to browse our Members.
About Us
We are makers on a mission to preserve and promote, educate and encourage, the highest standard of excellence in regional crafts.
The work of our Members reflects a high degree of competence, professional standards, and artistry in their medium and category. Eligibility is determined by a jury review process which takes place twice each year.
Susan Rodrigue
Susan Rodrigue
Prairieville, LA
Clay
Functional Stoneware
Guild member since 2017
Susan creates pottery to add simple beauty to everyday function, adding joy to daily living using as many as sense as possible, especially visual and tactile. She hopes when you visit her booth at an art show, you also experience the smell and taste of fresh garlic and bread as she demonstrates use of garlic mincer plate. Her food-safe, functional stoneware pottery is oven, dishwasher, and microwave safe. Most pieces are wheel thrown then embellished with carving, distortion, or printing. Glazes are applied by dipping, painting, and trailing then fired in electric kilns.
Maxine Rogers
Maxine Rogers
Morton, MS
Metal
Jewelry
Guild member since 2014
As one half of Copper ‘n’ Rocks Studio, Maxine formed the studio with her lifelong friend as an outlet for two crafty Southern girls. It all started with a bag of glass beads from a flea market and craft store wire. People noticed her earrings and asked if she could make some for them. Now, years passed and many YouTube tutorials later, she has learned how to wire wrap, hammer, texture, torch, shape, etc. with various metals. She especially like to work with copper, producing earrings, necklaces, and cuffs mostly. Each of her creations are on of a kind, fueled by her creative energy and ability to fluidly work the copper into the organic and beautiful shapes she wants and embellishing the works with gemstones and glass or metal beads.
Thomas Root
Thomas Root
Madison, MS
Wood
Mixed Media
Guild member since 2008
As a self-retired CEO of two companies, Tom found himself with time on his hands. He started making trivets out of wine corks for neighbors and friends as a method of filling some of that time. Soon his creations were so much in demand that he branched out to making lamps, wine bottles, fish, flowers, and butterflies out of wine corks. Tom cuts the corks in half to provide a flat surface and hot glues them to 1⁄4 or 1⁄2 inch laminated boards. When the design is finished, a frame is custom cut to match the board. Each piece of art comes ready to hang with hook, brackets, and wall spacers made from a bed of hot glue sprinkled with cork dust.
Martha Scarborough
Martha Scarborough
Brandon, MS
Metal
Jewelry
Guild member since 2009
Martha like ancient methods of jewelry making. Chainmail, once used to make armor, combined with other methods of jewelry making, creates exquisite and highly original designs. Martha finds it soothing to link together rings and watch a pattern unfold. It is fascinating that a ring can be put together in many different ways to create a variety of shapes. Where others see decorative ironwork, sewer grates, and scroll work, Martha sees patterns to create jewelry.
Alvin Schilling
Alvin Schilling
Purvis, MS
Wood
Bowls
Guild member since 1996
Alvin began woodworking in his father’s shop as a child, making birdhouses, lamps, tables, etc. In 1992, he began turning bowls and in 1995, attended the John Campbell School on hollow vessel turning. Alvin is drawn to the beauty of the natural edge bowl, as it retains more of the natural characteristics of the tree. Alvin’s work with a large paper company allowed him to visit wood-turners and lather manufacturers all over North America. This has led to an excellent level of versatility and creativity in his bowls.
Michelle and Dayton Scoggins
Michelle and Dayton Scoggins
Heidelberg, MS
Wood
Sculpture
Guild member since 2003
Dayton’s subjects are usually wildlifes. He has given extensive demonstrations across the United States and abroad and has won dozens of awards. Some of these awards include placing third at the invitational English Open Competition, held at the Queen’s estate in Sandringham, and representing the United States in an international event in Japan in 2007. He has taken first place awards in competitions in several states.
Robert and Debra Shinn
Robert and Debra Shinn
Scooba, MS
Metal
Jewelry
Guild member since 2005
Robert and Debra Shinn collaborate on their handmade jewelry designs and productions. They take special delight in updating powerful images from the past for today’s world. They are proud to have been chosen by the Mississippi Band of Choctaws as the first silversmiths in over 200 years to make their traditional silver combs. Their work has been called fantastic, gorgeous, playful, and elegant, but never minimalistic.
Pam Sigman
Pam Sigman
Canton, MS
Fiber
Dolls
Guild member since 2010
Pam Sigman creates intricate porcelain dolls for customers from Mississippi to Australia. Each one is meticulously planned, hand-poured, and painted. Each doll takes 40 or more hours to complete, and Pam finds true joy in making each one of them. Through the years, she has expanded her repertoire to include Christmas ornament, small teacup fairies, life-size dolls, and even dolls that look like customers’ children. Individuals and retail stores throughout the world are purchasing Pam’s dolls. When she isn’t making dolls or spending time with her family, Pam enjoys riding and caring for Tennessee walking horses.
Sisters Creation Studio
Sisters Creation Studio
Denham Spring, LA
Beads
Beadwork
Guild member since 1998
Jason Smith
Jason Smith
Clinton, MS
Wood/Gourds
Musical Instruments, Banjos, etc.
Guild member since 2014
Jason Smith is a builder and player of banzas. ‘Banza” was the name given in the early French West Indies colonies to a 4-string guitar-like instrument made of a skin-covered half gourd to which is attached a long, flat neck which supports strings. The banza was also called a ‘banjer,’ a banjar,’ and a ‘bandalore,’ and many other terms in the English colonies and mainland. Jason began learning his craft of banza construction in 1993 after meeting Scott Didlake of Jackson, MS. He uses high quality gourds grown primarily in Mississippi, and salvaged Mississippi heart pine, as well as imported wood to build banzas of many different sizes, scale lengths, and string configurations. Banzas can be built with or without frets.
Steve Smith
Steve Smith
Cropwell, AL
Glass, Recycled Bottles
Jewelry, Mosaics
Guild member since 2016
Steve Smith has always been an artist, it just took him about 50 years to realize it! A friend moved, sold him her kiln, and he began experimenting with whatever he could find to melt. Whit Steve’s love of nature and hope to leave this world a better place for those come after us, re- configuring bottles otherwise bound for a landfill seemed a good path to follow. The reflective and sensual nature of the glass invites visual as well as tactile examination. He seeks to create works with balance, harmony, and reflectivity that allows for ever-changing imagery. His pieces are not transparent like stained glass- they look back at you, inviting deeper exploration.
Bryan Smyda
Bryan Smyda
Brandon, MS
Wood
Furniture
Guild member since 2002
Bryan has worked in many mediums, but he loves capturing the beauty of wood for fine furniture. His work ranges from custom kitchens, entertainment centers, beds, tables, mantles, to chairs. He loves to work with both domestic and exotic woods. The mix of traditional and contemporary designs produces a beautiful result.