Pinch Me

holly cow. i can barely stand it. last year i was fortunate enough to be chosen to participate in a local art gallery's show entitled "Love, Lust and Desire". i submitted 1o pieces and 3 were chosen as well as some soldered pendants of my submissions that i had turned into necklaces. i can't even find the words to describe how honored i was. the opening night was magical.... this year i again submitted 1o pieces for the show and......they.are.taking.all.ten.pieces!!!!! i was also included in their blog for the show!!! you can read the post here. The women who work at McGowan Fine Art have been so warm, kind and super supportive. i have to keep pinching myself to make sure i'm not dreaming. 2011 is off to an amazing start.

here is a sneak peak at one of the pieces i will be showing:

in other news, we are in the middle of a huge snow storm. no school today for the kids. i am off to Nashville on Thursday for my CAbi business. will try and get some great photos to share when i get back! ox, mary ann

Happy New Year

happy new year! i am so excited for this year. i have so many plans, so many dreams and goals that i am working on... i wanted to show some of my new pieces. the one below is entitled "earth angel 2"

and this one is entitled "dreams"

both are available in my etsy shop here. i hope your 2011 is off to a fantastic start! ox, mary ann

sick

just a quick post to say i have been sick in bed for the last 48 hours.....with only 1 weekend left before christmas not the best timing. today i feel a little bit like my old self. hopefully later i can get a few things done. my husband has been a real trooper this weekend helping out around the house and taxing the kids around - not to mention taking care of me.

this original is entitled "shakifo". my youngest son went through a phase where he named everything that (?!) who knows why. in honor of how sweet he has been to me while i've been sick - i have named her shakifo for him.

hope you are all staying healthy and enjoying the holiday spirit! ox, mary ann

Starry, Starry Weekend

this weekend my hometown has a huge shopping event featuring local artists with lots of fun events for kids and adults. i have been very busy getting ready for it as my work is being featured in 3 shops! this is one of my new originals that will be available in prints and cards. i mentioned before that i have been working on a new series with houses and am loving how whimsical they are- but have to keep most of them under wraps for a little while longer. more on that soon! hope you enjoying the season. ox, mary ann

Busy, Busy, Busy

wow....can you believe its december 1st already? i have been trying to work non-stop to gear up for this busy time of year...but keep getting sidetracked following blog, after blog after blog. i am here to admit that i have become addicted to my new morning ritual. i wake up, get my coffee and log onto my home page, now cresendoh. i then find myself, hours later with a list a mile long of new ideas and tutorials i have printed out to try. the tutorials out there are amazing. last night (when i should have been doing computer work and new listings) i made an awesome anthropology inspired necklace that i found on a tutorial (i need to check my history pages before i post a picture of it - because i want to give credit but can't remember where i found it! more soon).

i wanted to post a sneak preview of some new sets i have been working on and will get up in the etsy shop soon. i am loving these houses and the bright colors - can you tell i am fighting winter weather?

oops - forgot to mention the new header!!! it took me hours to figure out how to do it. this is a picture of julie and me that we photoshopped together and then i played around with it to add the santa hats! we use this picture (with out the hats of course) with some of our marketing material. thought i'd share it with all of you! remember to take a minute each day to be still and be in the moment. this time of year we all get so caught up in all that we have to do and all that is going on that we don't enjoy being in the moment. so i challenge you to take time each day and be present.... ox, mary ann

Time

wow. where did the time go? so much has been going on and obviously not blogging. i am sorry that i have disappeared for 2 months. life has been so busy and things that i love have fallen by the wayside. i have been trying to do too much and none of it well. i started this blog because i desperately wanted to become a part of the community i was reading about and wanted to do something i didn't think i could do. write. i wanted to be a part of something that i wasn't part of, but desperately wanted in on. you know when you were a kid and all the cool kids were playing together and you watched from the sidelines and wanted so much to join in with them, but were too afraid of being laughed at and not included. of really putting yourself out there and no one cared? no one paid attention? i decided that this year, i would take a risk and would create a blog. i struggle with finding the right words to express my feelings, with saying what is truly in my heart, because i can't grasp the word to explain it. i finally decided to just begin. i have been reading blogs of women that have made the most amazing friendships. they understand each other. they accept each other. they inspire each other. they encourage each other. i want and need that so much as i navigate where i am and where i want to be as i embrace the life i have always wanted and didn't think i deserved or was entitled to because i wasn't good enough.

well, needless to say as life got crazy the first thing to go was the blog. it's something i'm not comfortable with and struggle with.

i have come to realize that i miss it. i miss the feeling that maybe someone out there might just read it and associate with it. i have renewed my vow to blog. even if no one reads, i know i am taking that step in putting myself out there and maybe, just maybe, someone can relate and maybe, just maybe, i'll create my own community, my own friends, and we can build each other up and inspire one another to be brave, and put ourselves out there just like the women i admire and aspire to be like.

thanks for listening.

ox, mary ann

First Show

hi. just got back from a family vacation in ohio visiting relatives. so much fun. enjoyed the rock'n roll hall of fame and went to see john mayer in concert. he was fantastic and made a remarkable "rock'n roll promise" to the cleveland fans for his last show in miami in september. can't wait to see what happens there! if you were at the concert you know what i'm talking about.....

big news. my first CAbi show is tomorrow night. i am really excited and nervous. i'll be sure to let you know how it goes....

i have so many ideas for art and jewelry that i feel like i am going to explode! the kids go back to school in 2 weeks, so i have made the decision to enjoy every second with them and will get back to my after they start school. time is going way to fast to not enjoy them every second i can. so stay tuned on the art front. hopefully i'll have some great photo's of work beginning of september.

on a proud mom note - my son who is going to be freshman is in the process of trying out for the jv soccer team. today he was asked to participate this saturday with the VARSITY team in a jamboree! how cool is that. he was 1 of 2 freshman invited. So proud and happy for him.

hope you are all enjoying these last few weeks of summer....

ox, mary ann