Thursday, March 12, 2015

New Faerie House greeting cards and website updates!

Hi Everyone,
  Very exciting news: I now have 18 new Faerie house greeting cards available on my website! Also, the website itself has had some upgrades and a bit of spring cleaning. Please come over and check it out! And when you do, you'll see my logo as this little button pop up on your browser tab and in your bookmarks if you keep them:
   I am most proud and pleased to finally have a slide-show GALLERY page now on my website. This feature will allow me to create numerous slideshows to better show my work and share it with you in the future. The first slide-show is now up and running and features 24 of my most favorite Faerie houses. If you don't see your favorite house there, don't worry, I'll be making more of these gallery shows as soon as time permits.

And next in my news to share, here are some notes about the new greeting card collections that are now being offered on my website. 

The first collection I'd like to share with you is one I am calling the "Sweetwater" collection. Here they are :
  This collection was added at the request of some long-time fans who said they wanted to see a group of Faerie houses that were associated with water. Here we have just that! 6 new images all with the water element playing an important role in the composition of each card's photograph. 

The second group features a celebration of color and whimsy with a focus on flowers used in a special selection of Faerie House creations. I call this new group "Bountiful Blossoms" Here they are:


A  gorgeous collection full of color and fun for flower-lovers and gardeners. From a tiny Faerie tree-house swinging in the Tiger Lily blossoms to a magnificent palace dripping with pure white Hydrangea blossoms, this group is sure to please Faerie house lovers who are hungry for a splash of color! (Please note: this collection will be in stock by the official start of spring, March 21st)


And the final new collection for this release is called "Dreamy Greens" Here they are:



Can we ever get enough of green? All these images feature lovely, lush locations of mossy beds which are hidden deep in the forest plus an additional image of an enchanting meadow at twilight with hundreds of fireflies glittering in the background.

   A word about greeting cards in general. I've been wanting to write a piece about the gift of Time that greeting cards represent. As things speed up in modern life, I've learned that the small gift of a hand-written card is actually a gift that gives twice. Let me elaborate:

    A while ago I received a beautiful writing instrument from a dear friend.
    Holding this marvel of German engineering in my hand made me realize that writing by hand is indeed becoming a lost art. I decided to carve out a little bit of time and celebrate this new gift by sending out some cards to old friends with whom I wanted to re-connect, so I set up a special little corner on a table by a window, brewed a big mug of coffee and settled in to re-new old ties.
When I began the exercise I thought I was reaching OUT to my friends, and to be sure once the cards were tucked safely into their envelopes the transmissions would indeed be traveling outward to reach my friends all across the globe. But before that could happen, I had to reach INSIDE my own being to conjure the thoughts and feelings that I wanted to convey. 
    As it turns out, this simple act of reflection took me outside of time. (yes, inside becomes outside on occasion!) As I thought of each friend and the adventures we had shared in life, my heart was filled with warm memories and gratitude for such rich delights. So in this practice I discovered what many people already know; that taking time for a sincere activity that comes from the heart where we focus on another is actually MAKING time for something real and precious precious for both people involved - the one who writes the sentiments and also the one who gets the pleasure of reading those words, penned by hand from someone who cares for them. 
   I often ask why I'm still making greeting cards when they are so underused in this digital age of tweets and instant communication. This experience was a good reminder for me of what a simple yet special gift these cards can be for both the writer and the reader.




Thanks for reading this latest blog entry and I hope the lengthening days (for northern residents) will bring the welcomed arrival of Spring to your corner of the planet. For those of us living in the north-east region of North America it can't come soon enough!!  

Bright Blessings to you all! 

2 comments:

Marita said...

Felicitaciones por tan hermoso trabajo!
Tus creaciones son inspiradas seguramente por las Hadas!
Gracias, Gracias, Gracias! por todo tu amor y dedicación en este arte tan fino, delicado y mágico.
Marita

Sally J Smith, Environmental Artist said...

Gracias, Marita, Gracias!

Welcome to the enchanted world of Environmental art and Faerie Houses sculptures created by Sally J Smith. Here you will find photos of the artist's unique art-forms and hear some of the stories from behind the scenes as she shares with you her creative process.