In the Beginning.....

I wasn't one of those girls who grew up dreaming of her wedding day or how many kids she was going to have. I was the only girl in a family of boys, so building and defending forts, playing cowboys and indians, catching frogs, and striking out on spur of the moment adventures in the true spirit of independence, seemed far superior to tea parties and pretty dresses. Now, after nearly fifteen years in the art business building a name for myself as one of the nation's premiere gourd artists, I suddenly find myself thoroughly captivated by the art of the handbag. Of course, the idea behind them is far from girly, but it has everything to do with being the center of attention, and how much more girly can you get than that? So here's the deal...you buy a painting, hang it on the wall, and go to dinner.....but what if you could take your art to dinner with you? And what if you did it, knowing there wasn't another woman in the room who could even begin to compete with her mass produced designer bag? And then I thought....what if I could chart the progress of this adventure and what I have learned about myself in the past fifteen years as an artist, and as a woman, in the process? People think I am "lucky" I am to do what I love, and I am, but they say it like I've run off to join the circus, like I don't have bills to pay, or responsibilities to take care of, or that there haven't been sacrifices along the way. Being an artist is probably one of the hardest jobs in the world outside of being a parent, and being a handbag designer with absolutely no idea of what she's doing, could turn out to be the challenge of a lifetime. Or the biggest egg I have ever laid. So without further ado....let the adventure begin....