Gifts from the Heart

Zonta presented Virginia Wrage Memorial Grants totaling $7,000 to six deserving women at the December Business Meeting.  The fund is for mature women who are at a crossroad following life-altering event(s) and need assistance.
Heather Marie Arens, a single mother, while working full time, entered the nursing program at College of the Canyons (COC); neck injuries on the job required a change to a physician’s assistant.  Fractured vertebrae from a fall required another change, to a psychology major and council abuse survivors - domestic violence, child and sexual abuse.  She hopes to obtain a master’s degree in Clinical Psychology at California State University, Northridge.  Funds will purchase books, supplies, tuition and help defray living expenses.

We are pleased to offer a selection of original paintings and hand-embellished limited edition giclée canvases by artist Richard Johnson.

While at Home: As the temperature starts to drop there are important safety tips to get you through the cold season.  Year after year, homes are destroyed and lives are lost because certain safety precautions aren’t taken.  
Keeping heaters too close to flammable materials or leaving a fireplace unattended overnight may have disastrous consequences. 

Who knew that ever-changing would be everlasting.
What did I get myself into when I agreed to be part of an ARTree team to produce a one hundred-foot by sixteen-foot mural on a wall?  The team was newly formed and had never worked together.  My task was simply to design the first of future murals.  Thus given is the mural’s name, “Ever-changing.”

Happy New Year everyone!  Hopefully you enjoyed the holidays as much as we did at FASTFRAME.  With many family members at the house, some from out of town and haven’t been seen for a while, all of those digital cameras were flashing and clicking up a storm.  Well now that all the excitement of the holidays has past, now is the time to preserve all of those wonderful memories. 

Dear Friends and Customers,
As another year folds close it is time to look forward into 2012 and greet the New Year.  We at Ma Maison want to take this opportunity to thank all of your loyal customers and the City of Santa Clarita for continuing to support our little boutique and we wish everyone and their families’ prosperity and health for 2012.  Our community gives us the opportunity to still do what we love and we truly appreciate it!

Continued from last month’s article, the Internet is popular for shoppers.  Here are some tips that can make your experience safe and enjoyable.  Make sure that a reseller is reputable.  Call them and ask for assistance in buying something.  Are they knowledgeable or not?  Email them and ensure that you get a response.  Obtain a physical address.  Be wary of emails where a credit card was not used to open an account. 

The time has come the walrus said to speak of many things, of shoes and ships and ceiling wax and cabbages and kings.  This month of December we will all be talking about Christmas shopping and purchasing gifts for our family, friends and even relatives.  How do we decide what to buy for all the loved ones we plan to give a gift to?  Do we look for something that is unique and very creative?  When I buy Christmas gifts I want to give something that will be a surprise. 

Since my divorce many years ago, I have been on a number of dates.  Yes it’s a large number.  So now you wonder why, after all this time I have not found her?  Well I thought I had a few times, but something would always come up.  Let’s see a show of hands for anyone who has ever dated someone, only to find out they had some red flags.  Now for some of you who may not know this term, this has nothing to do with bug spray. 

We had a very special delivery on Friday, November 11 at 11:11 a.m.

This holiday we each have the opportunity to  give to our loved ones and give back to our society at the same time.  Sort of like “pay it forward”.
When we purchase something made locally or a service provided by local people, the amount we pay goes back into our local economy (rather than the economy of another country).  

Some of the best insight comes when it is least expected.  I gained a new perspective after a quick dinner conversation with my grandparents, a.k.a Nana and Papa.  My Papa started to tell me a small, but significantly insightful story about his childhood.  He asked me if I knew what an icebox was.  Although I did know the answer, I never knew the deeper stories that I would soon learn. 

We have some great new limited editions and original paintings by beloved artist G. Harvey available from B & R Gallery.
The new releases, Music of Manhattan and Cowhands of the West, showcase G. Harvey’s sought-after turn-of-the-century street scenes and famous Western artwork.
G. Harvey travels to many places for inspiration, and New York City is one of his favorite locales.  Turn-of-the-century New York and its crowds of people, street cars, and carriages come together to create “The Music of Manhattan.”  In a city teeming with all the sights and sounds of commerce, this Harvey city scene defines the rhythm of The Big Apple.

In sunny Santa Clarita it is hard to think about Christmas time being a cold season, but low and behold we will have some chilly weather; whether or not it is before Christmas remains to be seen.

Okay!  You have finally decided that it is time to custom frame that painting or photograph which you have been holding on to.  You have never had a picture custom framed before and you are anxious about where to go and how much to spend.  So, here are some guidelines to help you in your search for the right framer.
No two framers are the same.  They may have a similar selection of mats and moldings and their basic design approach may be similar but, the interpretation of the art, the knowledge of framing techniques and quality of workmanship will all be different. 

Right now it may seem like you have plenty of Christmas and Hanukkah shopping days left, but before you know it you’ll be racing from store to store along with a thousand other last minute shoppers trying to find that perfect gift for those friends and relatives who are particularly hard to shop for.  Well, why not make your life a lot easier by giving the person who has everything a one-of-a-kind custom framed treasure?