A Self-Taught, Dedicated Artist

As a self-taught artist, Pipka has learned to be disciplined in her work. Once she has an idea for a new Santa figurine, she spends many hours researching that Santa’s heritage, such as what the children of that country would see Santa wearing or carrying in his sack.

Local Christmas customs are also incorporated into the design of each Santa. Her Angels and Madonnas are carefully researched. Pipka imagines each design in her head before she even sits down to paint!

Follow the design process (shown below) for 2010's Lighthouse Santa (Santa of the Sea).

A Santa for Door County

Door County boasts more shoreline than any county in the United States so, naturally, it also has more lighthouses. Pictured at the right are just three of our ten beautiful and unique lighthouses.

When considering a new Santa to represent Door County, Pipka decided that Santa, who needs to navigate the shorelines around the world, should pay homage to the solitary lighthouse keepers who keep watch 365 days a year to guide sailors (and Santa) safely around the perils of the rocky shoals!

Follow Pipka's steps below as she creates 2010's Lighthouse Santa (Santa of the Sea).

Step 1: Painting the Main Design

Painting the main design is the first step toward a finished figurine. Pipka also paints separate views of each Santa--from the back and sides, and especially each tiny gift in his sack or in his pockets. She wants sculptor Gaylord Ho to see exactly what she envisions.

The 2010 Lighthouse Santa’s bag is a sturdy leather sack to keep all gifts dry against the elements, and it contains a hefty mug to hold hot soup. Behind Santa stands more lighthouses with waves cascading over the rocky shorelines!

Step 2: Clay Model Based on Pipka's Art

Once Gaylord receives Pipka’s original art, he sculpts a clay model in the exact size required for the figurine and in great detail. Since Gaylord’s studio is far away in Taiwan, he takes photos of every angle of the clay model, even from the top, and e-mails them to Pipka. Printed out, each photo is nearly 11x17 inches so every facet can be inspected.

Step 3: Casting the Sculpture and Painting the Figurine

Once Pipka approves the clay sculpture, Gaylord goes to the next step: A cast is made from the clay sculpture and, after fine sanding is done to make everything perfect, Gaylord paints the first figurine.

Step 4: Creating the Individual Pieces

Pipka carefully looks over the painted figurine and sometimes makes changes: perhaps a different color on the lighthouse or Santa's wool cap. Once approved, the process of making the figurines starts, with a marble resin compound poured into the molds. When the compound sets, the mold is removed and another fine sanding is done on each piece. Many molds are made from the same clay figure; the process itself can dull the mold’s edges so that the figurines could lose the beautiful details for which Pipka’s Collectibles are known!

Each figurine is hand-painted by an artist skilled in his particular area, whether it’s creating realistic textures or using a single-bristle brush to detail the faces of the miniature figurines.

Each piece has its name printed on the bottom and is hand-numbered consecutively. Once the run has been produced for a particular figurine, the molds are broken and the piece is retired! Each figurine comes in its own designer box with a legend of the piece’s background and special history.