WHO ARE WE?

Eddie and I are refugees from New York and Long Island. When we decided to retire we had no ties left to that area. Our children are grown and scattered & the weather was miserable to old folks like us (sic). So we decided to head for greener pastures... in this case, the southwest. We ended up in New Mexico (not really very green here in the high desert) after adventures in a few other places.

This is home. It was probably home for all the years we lived in New York, and we just hadn't realized it. Everything about the high desert...and the magnificant Sandia mountains, whispered welcome home when we first saw it all. It took us two days to find a place and get it. We moved in a week later. (Our furniture moved in a few days after that.)

Both of us had always loved southwest things. We had previously furnished our home with southwest decor and i've been wearing Native American jewelry since I was a teenager. So it seemed only natural to get involved with American Indian art. We are so lucky to have found a "second life and career" that we both love living and doing. Promoting the art of OUR HOSTS, the various Indian tribes, may not seem like much, but if it draws attention to these people, who need it and deserve it.....well, we'll continue doing it. I've always been available for a worthy cause...and Eddie is usually involved along with me. We both feel the same way.

American Indian handmade crafts are incredible. It takes anywhere from hours to weeks to complete each piece...and these artists deserve to be paid accordingly. Unfortunately, this is not usually the case. The jewelry that you buy in department stores & high end boutiques is usually made in the Phillipines or Indonesia...about as "Native American" as my Polish grandmother was. I won't get into the politics of this breach of yet another treaty our government made with the Natives over 15 years ago...because when I do, I always end up with someone mad at me.

95% of what we buy is either obtained directly from the artist who made it, or from a few trusted trading posts that employ Indian silversmiths to produce authentic Indian jewelry. In addition to representing several very well known artists, we are always looking for fresh talent to feature in our store. We are our own buyers...and we stand behind everything we sell.

Most of all...look at the work entailed in producing each wonderful piece of art.. Each piece is unique...formed by an artist's hands and heart.

So, please browse thru our store. We hope you'll discover something that you just cannot live without. Treat yourself to a terrific gift, and in the process help us to get some money back to these wonderful artists...they've worked so hard for it.

Peace, Joan

***A NOTE FROM JOAN:

The items we sell are all hand made by American Indian artists. The last time I looked at a map, Mexico was still part of North America, making their Indian tribes "Native Americans" as well as the United States of America's tribes. Artists from the various tribes in Mexico are also American Indians. I will identify Mexican tribal art in the same way I identify any of the items I sell. I have some fine pieces of Mexican jewelry to put into inventory.

AS HANDMADE ITEMS, ALL OF THE PIECES WE SELL MAY HAVE SMALL IMPERFECTIONS... REMEMBER...ARTISTS ARE HUMAN BEINGS... IF YOU ARE LOOKING FOR ABSOLUTE PERFECTION...PLEASE GO AND SHOP AT ANY OF THE HIGH END STORES IN YOUR TOWN WHERE YOU CAN GET MACHINE MADE REPLICA'S OF NATIVE AMERICAN JEWELRY...WHICH WILL BE PERFECT...BUT NOT AMERICAN INDIAN MADE.

THANKS...JOAN