Melisande Hoffmann is a native of the area. She has an extensive background working in the hotel and airline industries. She enjoyed four active years living and working at Grand Canyon National Park. Meeting  and helping incoming tourists , as a reservationist, was a delight.  She had a great time working the front desks of the El Tovar Hotel and the Bright Angel Lodge, located right on the rim of  the Grand Canyon. She also enjoyed flying below the rim of the canyon in helicopters with her pilot friends.
Now back home, she is enjoying being close with her immediate family and friends. In the hot summer, she loves to go with her friends and simply float down the Delaware River on a tube. She frequently hikes the canal path looking for blue herons along the way. She's a nature enthusiast.

She fell in love with the beautiful and functional handmade pieces of pottery at Heart of the Home . She  admires the maker of Exotic Sands and finds it very relaxing to watch. She loves to draw with the water brush on the Buddha Boards and finds it calming. The Corinthian Wind Chimes also are a favorite. Nothing is sweeter than being in a hammock listening to those soothing chimes.  

Heart of the Home is the perfect fit for Melisande. She enjoys her team of co-workers and even better the advice of her employer, the savvy Phyllis Castells. ​

A brief anecdote to introduce Tracy Arrington: the first time jewelry manager Ivy saw her work, she wasn’t fast enough.  In the hustle and bustle of wonderful craft shows, we tell ourselves “I’ll be right back”, and then regret it later.  So it was with Tracy’s beautiful work - we saw it, we loved it, but we didn’t jump quite fast enough, and we missed out on the chance to welcome her into our store’s collection in 2015.  But sometimes, despite how the old saying goes, the second time is the charm, and we were delighted to discover earlier this year, as we prowled the halls of the American Craft Council show, that Tracy could be ours!  (Regarding chances: we didn’t dare wait for the third!)

Tracy’s work walks a tricky balance: it’s mature and sophisticated in its style, restrained in its color palette, and yet still wonderfully, obviously handmade.  It’s versatile, too - we had a ton of fun selecting items we knew would look just as smashing out for drinks as it would at the office, or for a day out with the girls.  Black, white, and gold go with everything, and Tracy uses the contrasting textures of pearls, rough black diamonds, oxidized silver, shimmering moonstones, and more to keep three simple colors interesting and unusual.   We think they'll be a much-loved addition to your wear-anywhere favorites - no second thoughts necessary!

See more of Tracy's beautiful collection, and read about the artist, at her artist profile.

A question we often hear in the store is "How do you find all these wonderful things?" I usually answer by saying "I spend my life looking!" This summer we have new work coming from two fine women artists that we found in quite different ways. ​

 Sometimes we will see an artist at shows several times and love their work but not order it for one reason or another and then see it once more and Now is the right time. So it was with  Pascale  Judet. This lovely, petite French woman was born and raised in France and came to the US to study philosophy at UC Berkeley. She made her way into art in the 1970's and is now at home with her family on Vashon Island in Washington State. For us she has fashioned truly enticing miniature scenes set in clocks that stand on a table. You have to look closely but your attention will be rewarded.

Judy Rand is a longtime friend and artist in our store(she makes those mirrors with the cats and dogs looking at themselves) and this year she introduced us to her good friend Rebecca Grace Jones. They say people tend to hang out with people like themselves and it certainly seems to be true in this case. Both of them are from small-town West Virginia and both have a kindness and sensitivity that resonates with us. Have a look when you come in this summer and let us know what you think. Aren't American artists just the greatest?

​~Phyllis Castells