Meet Mary Beth Bartlett

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Mary Beth Bartlett a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Mary Beth, thanks so much for taking the time to share your insights and lessons with us today. We’re particularly interested in hearing about how you became such a resilient person. Where do you get your resilience from?

My resilience comes from parts of my life that I had no choice to keep moving forward.
At 50 my life turned upside down. After 24 years of marriage I got divorced. My Ex’s true self came out. This pushed me to move to another city by myself.
At 52 one of my longest and dearest friends suddenly died.
This made me realize ‘Tomorrow is not promised’.
I pulled out a map because I did not like the city I was living in at the time.
Booked a flight to Santa Fe, NM. I fell in love. A year later I moved with my cat to a city which I knew no one to pursue my dream of opening a boutique.
I was done waiting to fulfill my dream and share my talents with the world.
The next adventure was the pandemic.
I opened my shop in the middle of the pandemic. After five years I am still open. I work a second job to help pay the bills, but it’s worth it. At 61 I work 7 days a week.
Life gives you resilience. Good or bad.

Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?

I am a jewelry artist. Creating anything makes my heart happy. I create one of a kind pieces that make a statement. Each piece is designed to make the wearer feel beautiful.
When you walk into my boutique you get a glimpse of who I am. Half my shop is everything I create; jewelry, leather funky bags, pen & ink art. The other half is Italian imported food. All small batch supporting families in Italy.
I also support local friend artists in Santa Fe. I sell their artwork in my shop.

The Italian food is part of my heritage. My Great Grandparents had import shops when they came to the USA from Sicily. I was a chef/restaurant owner for ten years with my ex.
After we sold the restaurant I went back to school to become a Holistic Nutritionist. I love helping people with their diet. Hence, why I sell the Mediterranean diet.

I offer a 12 day food detox. The detox is $49.99 and it’s yours to use for years.

Helping others whether that is a young artist or someone with health issues is the reason for having my own shop.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

Having a work ethic and never giving up on yourself. Get a college degree or go to trade school. Knowledge is power.
Talk to everyone- you will always learn something new. Try new things. Expanding your horizons outside your comfort zone.
Travel alone. Go out to eat alone. Never stop learning a new skill.
I wish I had done some of things earlier in life, but age is just a number, so start whenever.

Before we go, any advice you can share with people who are feeling overwhelmed?

I step back. I exercise more, check my diet. Meditate. Breathe.

Contact Info:

• Website: Blackandsilver.gallery
• Instagram: Mbbartlettsgallery
• Facebook: Black & Silver Gallery; The Artisan’s Bottega