SIOUX CENTER—“I could try that.”
Four little words sparked an idea that cemented a new hobby kind of business for Susan Kallemeyn, 58, of Sioux Center.
Her work repairing, repainting and making new exterior concrete home decor — specializing in 2-foot-tall statues of the kissing Dutch boy and girl — started in November 2020 after hearing a request over a local radio program for someone to help spruce up their Dutch boy and girl statues.
“I hemmed and I hawed, but the idea of helping that person kept coming back to my mind. It intrigued me so I contacted the person saying I’ve never done that kind of painting before, but I do painting and I think I could try that.”
Susan Kallemeyn’s favorite part for all the projects is coming up with the colors, especially for the Dutch boy and girl sets.
Kallemeyn does interior painting and wood finishing through her business, MAD Painters, which is short for Mother and Daughter Painters. With her daughter no longer part of the business and she’s getting “older in life,” Kallemeyn has reduced her business hours but still has an interest in painting.
She also previously worked for Valley Varnishing & Paint in Chandler, MN, the town adjacent to her home in Edgerton, MN, before moving to Sioux Center in 2011.
“Painting, refinishing — it just got into my blood. I just really enjoy it,” she said. “People sometimes joke that I paint my rooms so often my rooms are getting smaller. I realize there comes a point where you can’t or shouldn’t paint your house so much, so I guess you could say I needed a painting outlet.”
Susan Kallemeyn of Sioux Center repairs, repaints and makes new exterior concrete home decor. This turtle is an example of a project she repainted.
The Rubber Mold Man on YouTube gave her the knowledge necessary to begin repairing and repainting concrete statues, but also provided Kallemeyn with knowledge of how to make new concrete projects as well.
She found turtle and pumpkin molds but around Christmas last year made a post inquiring if anyone had molds for the Dutch boy and girl statues. Word-of-mouth brought her back to her southwest Minnesota roots to purchase a set.
Since January she’s sold 40 sets so far — 10 unpainted sets recently went to the Holland American Bakery in Sussex, NJ, which has family ties locally.
Kallemeyn also had a few sets at Fields of Fun this fall, but mainly sells through word-of-mouth and her personal Facebook page.
Susan Kallemeyn of Sioux Center repairs, repaints and makes new exterior concrete home decor. This pumpkin she makes from scratch.
Each new concrete project takes about three months to make, starting with each project needing to set in the mold for 24 hours. Once the mold is removed, Kallemeyn does some filing to smooth any rough edges near the seams before they’re set in a spare room of her condo to cure for two months. Only then can her concrete art go through a paint and seal process.
“I like to keep busy and I don’t just like watching TV, I like to paint while I watch so that waiting period can be hard,” she said.
Her favorite part for all the projects is coming up with the colors, especially for the Dutch boy and girl sets.
Susan Kallemeyn’s favorite part for all the projects is coming up with the colors, especially for the Dutch boy and girl sets.
“No two people are the same and making the sets different gives them personality so I like painting the sets differently,” Kallemeyn said.
School colors, online research and just knowing details of the future owners helps Kallemeyn come up with a color palette. One example is a set of scarecrow kids she made for the fall season. Another is adding Mardi Gras beads around the neck of the girl statue for her daughter’s set as her daughter lives in New Orleans.
She’s added suspenders to the boy and flowers, stripes or both to the girl statue’s skirt as well.
“To have the eyes open or closed is a big question, too — some customers are very sure you don’t kiss with your eyes open,” Kallemeyn said with a laugh. “Eyes closed is easier to paint.”
Each one has been its own fun experience to make.
“The process is a challenge and I’ve had a couple that didn’t turn out like I expected,” Kallemeyn said, “but it’s fun and relaxing; that’s why I do it and what keeps me interested.”