Born in Binghamton, New York, Maria Dellos expressed a love for art since childhood.  As a left-handed artist, learning didn’t come easy; everything was self-learned with the exception of a loving grandmother and cousin who taught her to crochet. 

After moving to Tucson in the 80's, she immediately fell in love with the Southwest.  Rubber-stamping was new and exciting at that time. So like all stampaholics - Maria had soon collected thousands of stamps, ink pads and all of the accessories.

Maria has been the main inspiration behind the development of many dynamic techniques that showcase the home decor applications for Stewart Superior inks and other products.  She loves to share her talents and is very patient with her presentations to the artists and crafters that attend her classes and demos. To reach Maria Dellos, please email her at: mariadellos@stewartsuperior.com

Click on Maria’s picture to go to her website: mariasartcreations.com.
You’ll find more incredible art plus hard to find craft products for creating gourd art and for general crafting.

In the year 2001, Maria discovered gourds.
For many years, gourd artists have used leather dyes as their coloring medium. The problem is that the color fades in spite of any protective finishes applied. This meant hours of hard work and creative artistry would be lost over time.

Click on the picture for tips from Maria on making this faux metal book box.

Maria discovered that Memories Premium Dye Inks from Stewart Superior did not fade and she fell in love with the quality, affordability and dynamic results.  Maria found that Memories was rich in color, fade proof, archival safe and permanent on the gourds.  The result was a new long lasting, superior process for creating gourd art.

Sales of Memories Premium Dyes are incredible as the word continues to spread within the gourd artist community.  Maria’s gourds and gourd jewelry sell for hundreds of dollars in art galleries across the country.

Every piece of gourd art Maria designs is colored with Stewart Superior Inks.

 “I love the new metallic Palette Hybrid inks and the amazing new Stamp & Stick glue pad is to die for.” - Maria Dellos

I’ve made some incredible artistic creations using the new glue pad. I simply love it! The pendant I’m wearing in the picture is gourd jewelry colored with the Pallette metallic inks and the new Stamp & Stick glue pad.  These inks are perfect for multiple surfaces and the colors are gorgeous. Since I also use these inks for my paper art and scrapbook creations - I no longer need the many other ink pads that cluttered my workspace, Stewart Superior Inks are all I need and want.” - Maria Dellos

Not only did Maria discover that deep, rich color resulted from a an easy application of Memories Premium Dye ink, she also found that even after two years - the color is as fresh and vibrant as the day she applied it to the gourd. She will never go back to shoe polish and leather dye for her gourd art creations.

In addition to coloring the gourds Maria adds beads, wood burned designs, stamped images and even carves the gourds into magnificent works of art. She takes pride in knowing that the art she creates will maintain it’s beauty and appeal due to the fade resistant qualities of Memories Premium Dye inks. Maria also creates stunning jewelry and pendants from the scrap pieces of gourd that are carved out.

Click on the picture to learn more about gourd art and gourd crafting.