Dec. 4, 2024

Katy Stulc tried multiple artistic hobbies before finally finding her niche.

Crocheting? No. Watercolor painting? No again. Stained glass art? Soldering, Stulc discovered, was not her thing.

For a time, she thought it was pottery and even purchased a kiln. But problems with her back meant bending over a pottery wheel was difficult.

But she still had that kiln. How else could she use it?

The answer: designing items as diverse as bowls, Christmas ornaments and yard art with a process known as fused glass. And since she can’t keep everything she creates — although sometimes she can’t resist making a finished piece her own — Stulc has started her own business, Katydid Creates, and will bring some of her work to the 605 Made Holiday Market on Saturday, Dec. 7, in the underground parking garage at downtown’s Cherapa Place.

She used the nickname her parents gave her as a child when naming her business. They were her inspirations in entering the world of art, said Stulc, who divides her time between Rapid City and with family in Sioux Falls.

The glass Stulc uses in her pieces is not as hard as that in stained glass pieces. Glass has different coefficients, and through trial and error she has found that a coefficient of 96 works best for her. She also familiarized herself with different techniques such as full fuse and contour fuse and can use enamel paint on the glass or include some kinds of metal.

While Stulc took a couple of classes and watched YouTube videos, she is largely self-taught. Facebook groups also have been helpful, she said. The fused glass community likes to help each other.

Stulc also learned that how she used her kiln for firing pottery differs markedly from fused glass. Cutting and grinding glass for a simple triangular Christmas tree takes about 30 minutes. For lawn stakes and other objects, she uses ground-up pieces of glass called frit that she lays into a mold. Depending on the program she runs, the pieces take 24 to 36 hours in the kiln.

Those steps, too, also can cause twinges in her back, but her full-time job has provided a benefit. Stulc works for the South Dakota Chiropractors Association, a group that knows exactly how to improve her back.

That’s helpful as she has prepared items for this year’s 605 Made Holiday Market.

“I’ve been working on a lot of Christmas trees and Christmas dishes and ornaments and a variety of other things,” Stulc said.

Some of her most popular items are yard stakes and other outdoor art. Because those are harder to display, Stulc will leave those at home until warmer weather.

Her favorite colors are blues and purples, but for the Christmas holiday, Stulc will invest in more glass in reds and greens. She also views the holiday in black and white.

“I have quite a bit of really cool swirly black and white,” she said. I call them goth Christmas trees.”

This is Stulc’s third year at the 605 Made Holiday Market, and it’s her only vendor show, although she does participate in several artist cooperatives in the Rapid City area.

Stulc has never lingered at the 605 Made markets to see reactions to her art; it’s not about her. She has found an outlet for her creative impulses, and she hopes others do too.

“Art does help people,” she said. “Even if you’re bad at it, people should do art. Even if you think you’re bad at it, just do it anyways. It’s relaxing and helps get your mind in the right frame.”

More than 40 makers will take part in this year’s 605 Made Holiday Market, which will take place in the lower-level parking ramp of the original Cherapa Place building, which is on the east side of the Big Sioux River between Sixth and Eighth streets. It will run from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Dec. 7. Admission is free.

The market is organized by Knotty Gnome Variety & Salvage, Sew Doggy Boutique and SiouxFalls.Business. It is sponsored by The First National Bank in Sioux Falls and Dakota Business Finance.

605 Made Holiday Market vendor guide