“Necessity is the mother of invention.”
It was around 400 BC that Plato said necessity is the mother of invention, but that maxim could easily apply to the early days of FMH Collectibles. Self taught artist and owner Frances McFarland began painting ornaments because she wanted to give Christmas presents to her family and friends at a time when her funds were very limited. What was unlimited was her creativity and passion for art, and that boundless artistic ability took shape in the form of beautiful handpainted glass ornaments. There seemed to be no end to Frances’ resourcefulness.
Frances McFarland Horne still credits her family with planting the seeds for this thriving ornaments business. Her mother suggested she create custom ornaments for family members one Christmas, just after Frances had finished grad school and money was too tight for Christmas shopping. From then on, Frances painted ornaments and tailored them to each family member. A few years later, her brother started pushing her to go into business after she gave him an ornament representing his fraternity, and her father extolled the advantages of e-commerce.
Frances finally followed her family’s advice in 2009. She applied for licensing from several Greek-letter organizations and began building her website, and a family tradition became an online business. FMH Collectibles was “invented” out of the need to create personal ornaments as gifts. Although much of her made-to-order work is for fraternities and sororities, the handpainted glass ornaments can be personalized for wedding favors, birthday gifts, graduation gifts and class reunions.
Custom ornaments are available at the FMH Collectibles website for anywhere from $15.00 to $30.00. Discounts are available for larger orders, and a wholesale program is available for retailers. Visit the site to order your ornament, and become a fan of her page on Facebook to receive updates.
Article and images used with permission from FMHcollectibles.com.
