I'm sitting here, sadly looking at my keys that I'll be turning in next week...

The Palette & Page gallery on Main Street in Elkton, MD is closing at the end of the month, March 29. I've had my leather work there since 2016 as a member artist, and spent the last couple of years working there on Wednesdays and some Saturdays. Yesterday was my last work day there. I spent it watching artists and authors pick up their work, and packing up my own. Many longtime customers came in for last chance purchases before it was all gone. There were promises to keep in touch, contact info exchanged, and hugs & tears all around,. 

The Palette started with four owners in 2009, and grew into a tremendous resource for not only the community, but the artists and authors whose work was represented there. It survived ups and downs, and even struggled through COVID-19 and came out shining on the other side. 

But all things change, and the remaining two owners wanted to retire and move on to pursue other things. The business was put up for sale, and new owners were found. But after seven months, the new owner found herself overwhelmed and had no choice but to try and find someone to take it over. A couple of people expressed interest, but alas, it was not meant to be.

As I look back, I cherish the time I was part of it...the new friends and fellow artists I met there, the First Friday events that brought so many excited people through the door, the workshops offered and attended there, (including my own) and of course, all the customers who bought my work and that of my fellow artists and authors. It was a great resource in so many ways, enduring almost 15 years when so many others closed their doors in that time.

It is heartbreaking to see it end. 

Main Street Elkton will never be the same.