It's Me.

     I made this blog to share the things that I make and to promote my business, but I have to add something that is intertwined with my business and how it makes me feel as a person.  I have always loved to paint and create things, but before starting this business, for many years I sort of lost myself in motherhood and life and literally for 10 years did not pick up a paint brush.  You get so wound up in life sometimes that the hobbies you love take a back seat to the things you have to do, and sometimes circumstances arise that you don't expect and before you know it, your favorite past time is just that, a past time.  A little over a year ago I started to paint again.  I realized that I was one of the lucky few these days that could stay home with my children. I wanted to still contribute and also add something therapeutic to my day.  Before I knew it I was pretty slammed most of the time with orders and such and I decided to create and Etsy store.  This last year has been a whirlwind of wonderful experiences.  I have wonderful and supportive friends and family and I couldn't be happier.  My husband Shane and I have started working together to build more furniture and things. We love working together and it gives a whole new life to Reclaimed Goods.
     Now, last night as we do each year we got together with my best friends Mary and Barry and went for our traditional Valentine's Day dinner and this year we had decided on Square Market Cafe in Columbia (my favorite spot).  Much to my surprise when I arrived there was a bigger table set up for us and there sat Sandy and John.  I had been duped!  I thought it was gonna be our annual Valentine's dinner but instead it was a surprise birthday dinner with guests I hadn't expected.  I received wonderful cards AND....A gift certificate for a local tattoo shop woooohooooo.  Well, that may seem like an odd gift but I had been pondering the idea of having a tattoo that adequately described how I feel about my journey over the last year, and I had found something that told my story.  I feel like a bird let out of a cage.  I forgot how wonderful it feels to create and to be received so warmly by people who purchase my art and admire it. After my awesome dinner with friends, Shane and I headed to the tattoo shop to put my gift to good use.  Here is a photograph of the finished work. To some it may not seem very origional, but  for me, it's my story. 

~Your Dreams The Catch, The world The Cage~  The Avett Brothers