From Verna: Meet My Husband

Jim & I met at a wedding when we were 17. I was a bridesmaid, he a groomsman. He was the handsomest thing I ever saw! I went home and told my sis I was going to marry him. I didn't know but he did the same thing to his family. Just before my 21 birthday I became his bride. 39 years, three kids and 5 grands later, I love him more than ever. I'll tell you about him. He's quirky, has a strange sense of humor, tells the same stories over and over. He is also the most compassionate and caring person I have ever met. He still brings me roses. He remembers every holiday. He should have been a history professor, but babies came along and life happened. So he tells anyone who will listen all about the middle ages, the Spanish-American War and which of our currency bills has a non-president pictured. (If you wanna know, he'll be glad to tell you!) He is also the most creative person I know, carrying wood and carving knives so he can carve on his lunch break at the steel foundry where he labors. I hope you will get to see some of his work, as I plan to put them on Etsy.com as soon as possible. I'll let Jim tell you about me. (But don't believe half of it!)

These Happy Golden Years

Welcome to Two Hearts Art! We are Jim and Verna Horvath, venturing into new territory as we near retirement. We are both artisans who love to dabble in a variety of art media. This is our first foray into the Blogsphere, encouraged by our very web-savvy daughter. We've decided to create this blog to provide both an outlet for our thoughts about retirement, our grandkids and our creativity, and to display some of our creations for sale at our Etsy store. But first, an introduction:

Jim loves rare and unique woods, carving (particularly miniatures, Asian-inspired designs, boxes and display vases), and creating replicas of anything that inspires him. He is skilled at pen-and-ink drawings and photography as well. Jim is fascinated by history, science, sci-fi, family genealogy and sleeper movies. His hero is Inspector Clouseau of Pink Panther fame, and he is currently learning to draw caricatures.

Verna loves Shabby Chic and Victorian Country decor. She is skilled with watercolor, oils, acrylics, and practically anything else that comes in colors, including fingerpaints and Play-Doh. She has created graphic art in a wide variety of formats, from book illustration to web pages to wall murals. She enjoys sewing curtains, clothes and doll clothes, and loves growing and arranging flowers; she has provided arrangements for several weddings. Other favorite pastimes include singing to the grandchildren, playing word games, and canning vegetables.

We have three grown children (two girls and a boy), one wonderful son-in-law, five beautiful grandchildren, one very spoiled Sheltie dog and three teenage chickens to keep us company. We live in a beautiful old farmhouse in rural Ohio, just on the edge of Amish country, and are currently experiencing the joys and trials of caring for two aging mothers. Our family is very dear to us, and our creative pursuits are a joy.

Between us, we have noticed an incredible variety of interests and (we are told) talents, and have found these to be marginally lucrative over the years. Recently our children suggested that we find an outlet for our creativity on the Web, and that is why we're here. We hope that you will join us as we head towards retirement and will share your thoughts along the way.

Welcome to our happy golden years!