A TIME FOR TRANSITION

For some reason, the upcoming month of September usually brings with it a tremendous amount of transitions... days begin getting shorter, temperature start to change, fashion magazines are the size of tree trunks, and the need to update a wardrobe or a home has an increased sense of urgency. Colors get deeper, richer and intensify. Layers of warmth are added to spaces and wardrobes...

For me, the month of September not only brings these endearing transitions to mind, but sometimes significant life transitions as well... my father passed in September, who could forget 911 (I know I will NEVER forget), last year in September - just after a rave yearly review - I was told my position no longer exists... And fast forward to this September - (here comes the breaking news !!)I'll be starting a new job working in a totally different industry, environment, and location... all because of a blog post...

Earlier this year, my husband and I decided to go ahead and look into updating our kitchen counters. (You can read about our KITCHEN TRANSFORMATION and the FOLLOW-UP TO KITCHEN TRANSFORMATION by clicking these titles) I blogged about the process - before - during - and after - with plenty of photos, including even some of the work during the day of installation. I also included before & after shots, taken from the same POV (point of view) to show readers the changes. I even posted the transformation photos on houzz.com, HGTV.com and DIY Network, as well as wrote an article for Examiner about it.

Little did I know - what I had hoped my blog would accomplish all along happened - someone from the company was alerted to the postings. The commented on it, sent an email of thanks, and also took it a step further. A design consultant (Bruce Imhoff) called me to not only say thank you for the posts on their product (they really liked it!) but asked if I'd mind having it photographed for their publications - I was flattered!! Of course - that would be wonderful. But it got even better. So we could meet, he invited Jeff and I to come down to the showroom for an event they were hosting Saturday night in the Design District.

We went to the event and Bruce introduced me as "The Blogger" (my friend Becky laughed when I was telling her this because it sounded like I was a celebrity - lol). All was well and got even better later that week because I received another call from them asking if I wanted to come in for an interview. After not working since last November - hell to the yeah!

After a two hour meeting with the Showroom Manager and Bruce spending some time with me to explain some of the tasks I'd be learning - I had a few days to think it over, and call back with in answer.

The showroom is beautiful, and set in the heart of the Design District in MidTown Miami. There are many other to DIE for showrooms surrounding the space, and even Jeff could see a twinkle back in my eyes just from us walking around down there (after watching a fire truck go roaring by he said - "you think you're in New York - don't you?" I grinned. I can't help it - I'm a city girl at heart and I LIKE noise (sometimes - like right now - it's WAY too quiet around here).

Part of their intrigue with me is my passion and belief in their product. Many people think the company - Granite Transformations - is ONLY a slip cover for your counter. But it is so much more than that. They also carry beautiful Italian mosaic tiles - recycled glass and even 24kt. gold from their sister company TREND. They not only do backsplashes for kitchens, but they can resurface your bathroom - counters or shower - and even do cabinet resurfacing. The mosaic tiles can be designed to be used for pools, bars, clubs, stores, restaurants, elevators and even cover entire wall sections (like wall paper) or just create art panels with it.

The have a showroom up in West Palm - but it is an empty shell (hmmm... project!) and they are even looking into a location for Broward County - so they would have three showrooms for South Florida. So in-spite-of housing and the economy - they have found a niche, they are doing well, and are looking to creatively grow their business. They are also interested in new ways of marketing (social media marketing) and perhaps even revamping their event presentaion at the design show... And from a creative POV - these all sound like greats to me!

I said yes to the opportunity to LEARN something new, as well as surround myself with the industry of my passion: DESIGN. I start on Monday. I'm trying to set up a better planned schedule for blog posts (for example - September will be featuring a September Style Series as well as a three day Tribute to 911). I've been posting regularly, Monday - Friday; and I will continue to do my best to maintain that consistency. Any blogger suggestions or best practices you can suggest will be greatly appreciated.


Thank you so much for following along with me during these past months while learning my way around the blogsphere. I really do appreciate all the comments - and even suggestions you've made (like attending blog parties - suggested by DebbieDoos!) I'm getting kicked out of my comfort zone - but like Martha says -

"It's a good thing."