Fauxology: Studying the Visual Magic of Faux Finishing and Interior Design (brought to you by Garay Artisans)

Hello, Everyone! As you can see, I’ve started playing with the look and feel of the blog. I chose this format since I love the picture along the top line — it reminds me to take the time to sit still and be aware of all the magic that surrounds us, whether it be visual, personal or professional. I have to tell you that I am grateful at how blessed I’ve been — I have an amazing family and I found the personal and professional loves-of-my-life. It makes me feel like passing along the feeling of goodness to everyone I meet.

A little while ago, I was approached to open a paint & faux store in my area here in Clermont (west of Orlando), FL. That idea fell through but it planted a seed in my mind — I really started liking the idea of having a showroom and a studio classroom. My brother and sister started championing the idea and looking at spaces, dreaming of a Garay Artisans location. Although we do consults in our client’s homes, we are frequently asked if we have a showroom where our complete portfolio of finishes for different surfaces can be seen. In the meantime, I kept being approached by DIYers for tips or just some color guidance. We started thinking that we could use our expertise to help homeowners tackle DIY projects successfully — who better to guide them than someone who does this passionately everyday?  As the universe frequently works, we found a perfect place immediately: location, neighbors and available space. So, I’m attaching a pic of our upcoming studio location, currently under construction. (Really, the picture would have had the three of us doing cartwheels on the cleared land, but it was raining that day!)

The studio/showroom is set to open in January 2008 but we will be holding classes off-site, specifically tailored for DIYers, up until then. The class descriptions and schedule will be updated later this week on our website. In the meantime, please feel free to give us comments on the blog or send feedback via the website.  The Message Forum link is currently Under Construction but we are working on it diligently! Thanks for reading this far…”talk” to you soon!

I cannot believe it! I’ve actually put down my artist brushes and decided to further explore technology.  [My husband, who is a computer genius, just sorta sighs and shakes his head while smiling. I can’t help it…I’m still a girl who loves to write handwritten notes on beautiful stationery and hear my loved one’s voices on the phone rather than get an e-mail but I do love my iPod and TiVo so I’m not all that old-fashioned, I guess.] After immersing myself in this blog business, I’ve come to feel as if the Kansas house and I have landed with a bang and I’m about to open the door to the gorgeous technicolor world of Oz. The thought of writing a blog was inspired by the ability to discuss and share beautiful images and inspirations, give a behind-the-scenes look into what we do and just post little silly or serious bits of conversational wontons. Well, I/m off to learn more about blogging and see if I can start adding some new backgrounds, fonts, images…