Hourglass Gift Gallery, Melrose Massachusetts

The name describes it best.. A measure of time… After working in the Commercial Insurance field for 23 years, I felt a need for change. My passion for jewelry design drew me to the Arts. A retail Art & Gift Gallery seemed to be the best way to show my work and earn a living. Well that was 1999. Currently my Hourglass Art and Gift Gallery represents over 50 Fine Artists and Craftspeople. Most of the work is local, however my roots are in Upstate New York, so you will see some work from New York and Canada.

I love what Hourglass has become. Handmade in America should not be taken lightly, which is 95% of the work chosen for my Gallery. We carry some Fair Trade and hand-made items in Canada. People who walk through the door feel the energy instantly. Hourglass has a great blend of pottery, blown glass, jewelry, and pewter along with a line of French and Italian bath products, clothing and accessories.

I love to feature many of our Artists in the “Featured Artists" series. This allows a larger body of work to be displayed at one time. After 10 years, the evolution of our Artist's work is amazing. Though most of our artists are established, for some, Hourglass has been their first outlet. Some of our artists have gone on to solo shows and continue to expand their artistic careers.

I am an active member of the Melrose Chamber of Commerce "Melrose Merchants" committee and the Melrose Arts & Cultural Associations "Melrose Windows" committee.

Hourglass donates time to the Melrose Chamber of Commerce Merchants group to bring community events to Melrose, such as Melrose Gives, Melrose Celebrates and recently the IPAD raffle, and the Melrose Arts "Arts Window Walk" a cultural art walk that takes place in the Fall. In addition, when we are able, we donate to Art related, Melrose events, the MAAV Mothers Day Race and the Annual Spelling bee. In 2011 we have partnered with Townswear and through this company, we are able to donate to "Donate Life Melrose" through the sales of our t-shirts.

Be happy, Lorrie DiCesare

To see more of my jewelry designs, visit www.lomaarts.com