82-Lancast«r Farming, Saturday, June 28,1986
Holstein Cows Are Basis
BY SHARON SCHUSTER
Md. Correspondent
SMITHSBUEG, Md. - Marlin
and Eva Martin’s Jawood Farm is
much like other dairies in
Smithsburg, Md. Holsteins and a
few Jerseys loaf in the barn lot and
cool their heels in the pond. And,
hogs groan about the heat of the
noonday sun.
What sets Jawood apart from
other Washington County dairies is
evident inside the Martin home.
Cows are on the sofa, draped over
chairs, and hanging from the
ceiling. The inside menagerie is all
part of Eva Martin’s Country Craft
Designs.
“There just isn’t a whole lot of
farm oriented stuff,” said Martin.
Looking for items to place in her
own home, Martin said she became
frustrated and disappointed with
the misproportioned cartoon-like
designs that seemed to prevail in
the market. “I had in my mind
what I wanted,” said Martin. “I
put it on paper and tried to get it
proportioned properly. ”
What she came up with was a
realistic likeness of a Holstein cow
and calf which now adorns pillows,
tissue boxes, note pads, T-shirts,
and more. Since February, what
was once a hobby has developed
into a successful and growing
business. Her designs were
displayed at the Maryland State
Holstein Convention, hosted by
Washington County. “That day, I
sold completely out of the notes,”
said Martin. “I was amazed.”
The farm wife also drives a
school bus every day. “I really
don’t have time to do crafts when
I’m here on the farm,” she ex
plained. “I take something with
me wherever I go. You’d be sur
prised how much you can get
accomplished in 15 to 20 minutes.”
At present, Martin is trying to
build a mail order business for her
stenciled designs. The cow and calf
design appears in several kits that
she has assembled for others to
purchase and complete. The
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Eva Martin is surroum
popular slogan, “We Love
Holsteins,” depicted with a heart
and a cow, is another design found
on kit items.
A kit for a ruffled pillow sells for
$5.95. Available in blue or green,
the kit also includes a matching
print for the reverse side of the
pillow. For $6.95, a decorative hoop
with stenciled fabric also includes
thread. The hoop kit comes in blue
and white or green and white.
The small tissue box kit is
available in blue or apple green,
for $4.95. It also bears the Holstein
slogan. The cow and calf emblem
decorates the pack of 10 notecards
with envelopes. These bestsellers
are only $2.
Martin also offers quilt kits
which contain squares with
stenciled designs. The friendship
quilt bears a different design on
each of 24 squares with room in the
center for friends to embroider
their names.
The Quilt of Praise has a dif
ferent stencil on the 12 squares that
the kit contains. For those who
prefer to applique’, the Flower
Blossom quilt contains the pieces
necessary to create the flower
designs. Quilt kits do not contain
thread or extra materials for sash
work. Martin explained that this
allows for home crafters to use the
colors they prefer. The kits cost
$l5.
Martin also offers a kitchen hand
towel, anniversary plaque, and
counted cross stitch picture in a
frame. Soon to be available for
purchase in kits are a key holder,
bookends, and pencil holder. “I’ve
even got a clock in mind,” said
Martin.
In describing the process <of
creating an item, Martin said she
first thinks of a design.
“Sometimes I see a picture of a
cow I like,” explained Martin.
“I’m not a real artist,” she added.
After she has a design “in her
head,” she said she sits down with
pencil in hand and tries to put it on
paper. When she is satisfied with
c H/oifiS
led by examples of her Country Craft Design kits.
For Eva Martin's County Craft Designs
Fancy enough to dress up any clothesline, the heirloom quilt Eva created is displayed
in the yard of her Smithsburg, Md. home. Her son, Kevin, bought the quilt with money
that he earned from the sale of his 4-H hogs.
the proportions and overall look,
Martin said, “I put it onto material
to see if I’m satisfied with it.”
The next step is to have the
prototype made into a form for
duplication. ‘T send them away to
get them made into hot iron
transfers and then iron them onto
material.” When the pieces are
assembled into a kit, they are then
ready for sale.
As an example of time involved
from conception of a design to
preparation of a kit, Martin
referred to the cow in a frame
counted cross stitch project. “It
took about 5 hours until the design
worked out and I got it onto the
material,” she explained. “All that
takes time,” she said.
Martin explained that many
people have asked her to do special
projects-that include hogs or dif
ferent designs. “At this time, I’m
Eva Martin, seated in the shade of a tree at her farm,
displays some of the items that are offered for sale through
her new business.
just establishing kits. Eventually I
will get into custom orders,” she
said. “It takes a lot of time to work
out a pattern. I’ll be expanding into
crocheting and all types of
needlework,” she said. The biggest
obstacle to deal with in her new
business “is not having enough
time to get all those ideas out of my
brain,” she explained.
Martin said she is trying to meet
the needs of those who are looking
for a way to advertise their farms
at upcoming shows. She designed
an applique to be sewn onto the
back of a shirt which depicts a
Holstein cow and the farm name.
Probably her most cherished
work is a quilt that Martin
designed and completed for an
auction to benefit a 4-H memorial
fund. It depicts a serene pastoral
scene on a green and white
background. A picturesque farm
complete with flowers in the
window boxes was assembled from
many scraps of material. Cows
graze in the pasture, and a silo is
found next to the red barn. It is a
real work of art. The quilt was
auctioned and sold for enough
money to benefit two 4-H’ers that
“we thought exemplified 4-H
character,” Martin said.
But, what makes the quilt
particularly special to the whole
family is that the memorial fund
was in memory of the Martins’ son,
Craig, who was killed in an
automobile accident two years
ago. “Craig excelled in public
speaking and dairy judging,” said
Martin. They chose to donate the
money from the sale of the quilt to
the two deserving 4-H’ers in his
memory.
And, perhaps the most heart
warming part of the story, is that
Martin’s son, Kevin, bought the
quilt. “It is special because my
mother and my grandmother
made it," explained 16-year-old
Kevin. “He used his 4-H money to
buy it,” said his mother. She added
that he is saving the heirloom for a
special day, perhaps his wedding.
It is evident that the Martins are
close to their children, and en
cpurage them to be very active in
4-k. Daughter, Kaylena, was
recently crowned as the
Washington County Dairy Prin
cess, and she was also Farm Queen
three years ago. Their oldest son,
Kenlin, 21, just got married. Sad to
see him leave home, Martin said
the one consolation she has is that
she will have “a room of my own to
work in.”
Martin keeps a file of customers
and makes a practice of keeping in
touch with them. She said she
plans to develop a mailing list to
send a brochure showing which
kits are available twice a year.
Interested persons may contact
Eva Martin at the following ad
dress: Martin’s Country Craft
Designs, Rt. 2, Box 414,
Smithsburg, Maryland 21783
Telephone 301-824-2106.
“It’s really just a hobby,” said
Martin of her new business.
“Maybe someday I’ll quit driving
the bus and do this instead. ”