Friends of Library features ‘Words Like Honey’ artist
PHOTOS PROVIDED
Dalton Friends of the Library featured winter artist Samantha Grim Masters with her husband, Jake, wearing shirts that Masters designed for sale. Masters will have a public reception at the library Jan. 7.
Masters is the owner of Words Like Honey. Her hand-lettered items include signs, mugs, T-shirts and more.
Need to know
What: Friends of the Library public reception for artist Samantha Masters
When: 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. Jan. 7
Where: Dalton Branch Library, 127 S Church St., Dalton
Cost: Free
By MELODY SNURE
Special to the DGKN
In the era of Samantha Masters’ grandparents (Janice and the late Gene Grim of Dalton), young people used bars of soap to draw or write on windowpanes at Halloween. Putting her youthful spin on it, Masters used paint to create lettering and other artwork on old windows and chalkboards she purchased from thrift stores. The unconventional practice enhanced her evolving career as a designer and artist.
Friends of the Dalton Library will start the second year of their local artist series with their first featured millennial: 2013 Dalton High School graduate Samantha Grim Masters. By day, Masters is brand coordinator at Jarrett Logistics Systems in Orrville. After business hours, the owner/designer of Words Like Honey creates handmade décor that she sells online.
A public reception to launch her January through March display will be at the library Tuesday, Jan. 7 from 6:30-7:30 p.m. Light refreshments will be served and attendees will have the opportunity to talk with Masters and see some of her creations.
Masters, the daughter of Gib Grim of Dalton and Lori Brechtelsbauer of Akron, has always had a passion for art, as well as for health and fitness. She said she tried to take every course taught by long-time Dalton High art educator Robin Evans-DelCiappo as she explored ideas for a career that could combine her interests.
Masters enrolled at the University of Akron, but transferred after two years to The Ohio State University where a new business program was about to launch. The program combined a nutrition emphasis with a focus on the health and wellness industry. Masters graduated from OSU in 2017 with a Bachelor of Science degree in business and nutrition.
While actively seeking full-time employment she launched a faith-based lifestyle blog featuring healthy recipes, fitness tips and style advice. She named her blog Words Like Honey. After she started working for Jarrett in August 2017 the blog fell away and she began spending her spare time dabbling in art.
Masters found she loved creating hand-lettered signs so she read workbooks to learn how to hone that skill. She patrolled second-hand and antique stores in search of cheap old chalkboards, windows and mirrors – items that inspired her – to practice sign making. Eventually she found herself lettering signs in the garage at night for sale at craft shows.
Selling hand-lettered items online was a natural progression that expanded her artistic reach. While her local sales often result from mentions on Facebook and by word of mouth, her WordsLikeHoneyShop on Etsy has had buyers from as far away as Florida, California and Alabama.
Masters’ products include solid and canvas signs with inspirational messages and family names by special order, lettered mugs, T-shirts, tea towels, greeting cards and, in season, hand-lettered glass ornaments. The most popular item during her busy Christmas season was personalized dog bone-shaped ornaments.
She designs hand-lettered event invitations and created the invitations for her wedding to Jacob (Jake) Masters. She also offers digital design services for apparel, décor, logos, business cards and marketing materials.
In her Dalton Library exhibit Masters will feature a mix of watercolor art and hand-lettered stock items along with examples of items that can be customized for special orders. A portion of the proceeds from Masters’ sales from the library exhibit will go to Friends of the Dalton Library to fund special library projects.
For the “how-to” aspect of the Friends of the Dalton Library artist series, Samantha Masters will lead a workshop at the Dalton Library the evening of Tuesday, March 10. She will teach participants the “modern calligraphy” she uses for her signs, invitations and other personalized items. Details about the workshop and registration fee will be available at the library soon.
