The Crafty Hogan, Mesa, AZ Videos

How can it be a year already? How have we not completely torn apart still not having you home? March 3rd, 2023 was the last time any family members had seen or heard from my brother and a Missing Person's report filed on the night of March 5th. It feels like we have been going non-stop, seeking answers, searching, raising the money to be able to keep going, and time just flew by. Yet, the last couple of months, I think we had reached a point of fragility. I have felt like any little thing could break me and I could see it across my entire family. We have conducted more searches than I can count at this point, from the Black Mesa turn-off on Highway 160 to many parts of Kayenta, Kane Valley, onto Dennehotso, Baby Rocks, all along Navajo Service Rte 59 onto Chilchinbeto, covering practically the entirety of Chilchinbeto. And we kept going, onto Quartertown, Rough Rock, Many Farms, Round Rock, Rockpoint, and countless rural roads connecting each of these places. Sometimes I close my eyes and see all the washes, sand dunes, ridges, windmills, wells, every trash dumping site, infinite trees, sagebrush, tumbleweeds, in the blistering cold and the blistering sun, climbing rocks, uphill, downhill. The many times we've gone from sun up to sun down, sliding on muddy dirt roads, through the hunger pains, through the blistered feet, the back pains, the rolled ankles, the sunburn, the cuts, bruises, fevers, illnesses, the heart ache, the anger, frustration, and your heart stopping every time you think you found something. Nothing can ever truely describe the emotional breakdown after ending a search and still not having answers. We have done many things to try to raise awareness, of the drug dealers, the houses they occupy, we had done an awareness walk and interrupted a ground-breaking ceremony where Chapter officials gathered, we've had a story printed in The Navajo Times to bring light to our brother's story and social issues in the little community of Chilchinbeto. We've t

Yesterday, one year ago, February 9th, 2023, was the last time I saw my brother Dustin, before my mom reported him missing on March 5th, 2023. My mom and I spent time at the Homestead he never wished to leave in Chilchinbeto, AZ. About Feb 5th to February 9th, we spent time trying to help him build a shed out of wood material that my aunt had been kind enough to let us utilize, I believe the month before. It was so cold. Dustin is an addict, there were many times, he was just incapable of doing things, and as frustrating as that was, Mom and I spent time in Chilchinbeto, doing our best to bring together a shelter for him. He was passed out in the tent I had brought for him previously, but at times was coherent enough to joke around with his nephews. My Yaazh and aunt let us use a wood stove they were not using anymore. Mom, my Yaazh, and I loaded it up, and Mom and I unloaded it, dragged it to where it needed to be. It was no easy feat. I remember yelling at my brother, "Get up and help us!" It was no use, he was most likely coming off of days being high. We love him, through all the ugliness, the hurt, but also through the laughter. He was always so grateful, always hugged my mom and told her "Thank you mom, I love you". I often drove up from Tempe, to help my mom help my siblings, and as much as I was angered by their addictions, most times I bit my tongue, and helped. That's how my mom raised me, that's what she passed down to me, and I love my family, I love my brother. We were best friends as kids, and that's what motivated me to keep helping, but my mother's love for her son kept me going too. I kept thinking, someday, someday, they'll return to us, healthy, loving, open, and happy in sobriety. I never stopped loving my brother, to this exact moment, I think of him everyday. Like my mother, he was so unselfish. It may seem like he wasn't, with addiction, one see's a person with nothing but faults, and he did things that he shouldn't have. But my brother lov

I don't wish to bring anyone's emotions down, just sharing some of the harder emotional times in life. I feel like if I don't let it out, it will do more damage, so I have to free some of that weight off my chest. My brother has been missing since March of this year, 2023. His disappearance has been weighing heavily on my family and I and everyday, I think about him. I wish so much that I could be back home searching for him every waking hour so that I can bring him home to our mom. Ahé'héé Nitsaago to my sisters, who have been by my side through all this and Ahé'héé to those that are putting in orders. You all are helping me get back to a point where I can get back out there to find my brother.

This has been a long time coming. I had planned to share this at the beginning of the year and I put it off, then when I decided I was finally done editing, adding, and cutting, my younger brother went missing. I put it off again as I consumed myself in searching for my younger brother along with my family members. I had a hard time with the idea that I could celebrate something for myself when I had a missing loved one who has now been missing for almost eight months. Despite that, I feel like it's time, now more than ever, to share story. I gained the motivation this month, this time of renewal that Ghaaji represents and the reflection during the time of the eclipse made me realize that I just need to get it out there and it will only be a healthy action for me to take. In many ways, my story is not unique. Our lives as Indigenous peoples, as Diné peoples, going through the experiences of addiction, domestic violence, and historical traumas, the way we work through that, and as we define indigeneity and strive to continue, that is something we all share together. Yet, my perspective and experiencing all of those things through my own spectacles are unique. Join me as I share my story, navigating life as a Diné Asdzáán, a mother, as a partner, as a Navajo woman who has experienced addiction, trauma, and mental health issues. And upon doing so, I am also sharing the systemic oppression present at these intersections, sharing my personal story of resisting settler colonialism's ongoing attempts to erase and dominate my Indigenous life and body. And because of it, my life moves forward, story moves forward. We learn from stories, stories are powerful, and if my story can help you reflect on your own stories in order to keep your own lives moving forward, then I will have done what I intended.

Carrying Life with My Feet Toward Dawn (LED Lamp) Mother's aren't perfect, yet Shimá perfectly suited me So many times I've seen her bringing in buckets of life Water created movement in our home For bathing, for dishes, for cooking, cleaning, for thirst, For mom's cornstalks that grew on the northside of our hooghan On morning's when she was still tired from yesteryears, She brought in buckets of life To keep her feet moving forward as she was taught to But I think that her movement at dawn was inherent I watched her backbone carry the heaviness, I watched her arms flex at her tiredness, I watched her body work together to keep life forward I watched her eyes, they never flinched from the weight Shimá was quiet, and "I love you"s or affection were hard for her, yet she carried me, my brothers, my sister, many times, my father She carried life https://thecraftyhogan.com/shop/ols/products/carrying-life-lamp

"Storymaking a Future" Original watercolor portrait will be available on my website soon, I will update you all when to expect it. I'll also be making prints and cards celebrating motherhood. Motherhood is home, motherhood is pain and happiness and strength wrapped into one soul. Motherhood is future. The sound you hear is an excerpt from my autobiography, which I hope to make available in a zine format soon, taking a lot longer than I wished it would, but at least I've finally have the artwork coming together. Hope you love it! This portrait is meant to be the first in a series I'm planning, about Diné motherhood. I am so extremely happy, even for a moment, to have been able to finish this. I started it about 3 months ago, but life happens, tragedies happen, and I've been doing whatever best I'm capable of, to find my little brother, who is still missing. I finished this up last night and am proud to have gone this far with watercoloring and set goals to fine tune my technique. More coming soon (hopefully soon).

Tree of Life Watercolor Portrait Audio is words from a poem I wrote, titled "Am I Worthy?" This painting is meant to kick off a project I have been working on for quite some time. I will drop another video soon explaining all parts to that project, which has been hard for me as I try my best not to be stopped by my own hesitations and fear of sharing my writing. The poem is representative of my own struggles of self-worth, especially because of the darkness and chaos I had to work my way out of. And this painting, the Tree of Life is a complete contrast of the out of balance part of my life and because of my journey to reclaim and learn traditional Diné (Navajo) teachings, I have been able to emerge out of that darkness and chaos and onto the path of Sa'ah Naaghái Bik'eh Hózhóón. One of the best ways for me to share all that is through art, through writing, and by doing that, it is constant healing for me. The painting is available on my website, www.thecraftyhogan.com.

Spoiler: Free Repairs🎉!!! This video shows some of the many processes I have to go through to get these Jewelry Holders put together. It shows the individual notches for earring hooks, the holes for post earrings, sometimes the cutting out of the actual pieces can be tedious work, and using a router to cut the notches for the silhouettes to make them fit like puzzle pieces. And the application of the brackets to reinforce the frame requires so many screws. What the video doesn't show is the glueing, the wait times, the addition of the hooks (hard on the fingertips), the staining and varnishing, and importantly, that this is all done with two or all of my children in my care. There is so much stopping to attend the needs of my children and I work outside so the desert sun can be too much for my little ones. And at times, I have multiple orders to complete. I've developed a good system but it still has it's challenges. This is the reason I have to indicate that it takes a one to two week turnaround for these specific items to ship, I work and care for my children simultaneously. That is what you are supporting when you purchase my art, my products. It doesn't make me any less of a person but it definitely makes you that much more awesome for supporting the continuity of my work. Up to this point, I can honestly say I have been through trials and many errors with these Jewelry Holders. And I've learned from those many mistakes. And if any of my products did not hold together well, (the ones within the recent year should be great) I will repair them for FREE. Just DM me or email me about your order (a picture helps a lot) and ship it to me. I will repair them and ship them back. Hit me up for your free repair😊

Moon phases for your wall, moon phases for your baby! Check these beautiful pieces to add to your home. Go see my website! Link in my bio.

For all my Ahwééh (Coffee) and Ch'il Ahwééh (Tea) Lovers. In an attempt to decorate my own little Coffee Bar, I decided to create my own signs and these are the fruits of my labor. And now available for you all!❤❤☕☕🍵🍵❤❤

"Mommy" "Mommy" "MOMMY" All my busy parents out there, how much can you relate to this? Everything I do, my children are right there getting in the mix. And as frustrating as it can get sometimes, it's one of the things I value and cherish so much! I wanted to record a simple up close video of me painting to share with you all and my baby kept coming up wanting my attention. The next evening when I was so focused on painting I didn't realize he had painted on one of my other pieces😱 I was upset at first, but I realized he just wanted to be a part of what I was doing so I let him have his own painting session and now I have a new piece of artwork to display on my wall❤ What I do today as a mom closely resembles the pieces of motherhood that raised me, the pieces I will carry with me forever. And I've been brainstorming a Motherhood Series that I would love to get started as soon as I finish my current projects. Stay tuned as I hope to let my social followers see it every step of the way. Have an awesome day and all you amazing parents out there who don't feel like it right now, just know you are doing great! Much love!

Winner announcement!!! Yay!!! @squishys_originaldesign You are the winner. So happy for you. More luck to the rest of you on the next giveaway which I will post details about this coming Sunday (07/17/2022).

Handmade Wooden Baby Mobile
Hey all! I've been away for awhile, I know, but I am here to finally show my latest creation. I've had so much going on with family so that had been my focus for a few weeks. I'm not ready to sell this lovely adorable piece just yet, but if there's enough interest, I will be making more at a later time. This baby mobile features beautiful itty bitty precious hummingbirds and sheep. They are hung by hemp twine string and made of cedarwood veneers.I hand designed all these items and not to boast too much but they came out amazing! Hope you love it!

New "Little Bitty Pretty One(s)" Project
Been working on these "Little Bitty Pretty One(s)" today. Been trying to get to this project and finally got a bulk of the work done, now just gotta put it together. It's funny because after my last project, one of my followers reached and asked if I could create this kind of piece and it was actually already in the planning stage, so can't wait to let you all see the end result! 😊