New Beginnings (. . . as trite a it sounds)

So, it’s been a while—like nine months—but who’s counting? 

Me, I am counting. 

I am terrible with remembering dates.  l know the year I was born, the year I got married and the birth year for each of my three children—for any other date, my eyes roll back in my head as I either add or subtract from hear of those significant years.   But my shortcomings or perceived failures—they’re locked in.  Nope—never forget those.

Anyhoo, while there are many things I will never (did I just type that—adding the italicized emphasis, too???) go back a “do over” (a curly perm, my middle school years and being a shop owner come to mind), I am pretty sure I will keep trying to revive this blog.

To start with, it has served as a sort of journal for me over the years.  (Reference the first paragraph where I expose my short term memory challenges.)  I have come back to this blog time and time again to refresh my memory about rather remarkable events in my life; it has also served as a handy recipe receptacle, too.  Just the other day, I used the handy-dandy search option to find the recipe for our family favorite Pumpkin Cookies.

I also find that I am actually motivated to do things—to tackle projects, to try recipes and to, basically, explore and delve into other shenanigans as opportunities arise—just so I can share them here.  Basically, it’s a public journal.

So, here I am, blogging again.

A quick update . . . we have had made some serious changes in our lives since March—not the least of which was to sell our beautiful, historic home and move to the panhandle of Florida, but more on that later.

One thing that hasn’t changed is that I still write two weekly columns for Clarksville, Tennessee newspaper, The Leaf Chronicle.   One of those columns is a lot like a blog entry—I just write about things going on with my family, home improvement  and decorating projects. I find that, occasionally, I want to include more information and photos than the printed paper can allow or subscribers care to read/see.  So, I’ve decided to stat using my blog to (1) supplement my column and (2) share some of my experiences as I, once again, attempt make a house into our home.

And, since I just hit “send” for my most recent column submission; and, since in that column I direct readers to my blog for more details on my most recent project, I thought I better get to it.

And there you have it.  If you are new to my blog, I welcome you.  If you’re a tried and true friend or fan, welcome back!  I hope to hear from you often.  Thanks for joining me here.

Fondly,

PS—I’ll update my photo banner later—first, I have to remember how to do it!

PSS—if you’re here to read about my newly painted front door, stand by—it’ll magically appear here this evening!

changes are afoot

there are few things that get me as jazzed about being a shopkeeper as doing a BIG switch-a-roo at the shop.  we have new things rolling into the shop, so my creative juices have been flowing.   it takes  a while to build-up to making such a big change, but once i decide the major pivot points—so to speak—we start the shuffling.  we move the small pieces off of the display furniture, reposition the furniture and start putting it all together again. 

we work the new merchandise into the displays and show new ways to use and display the items we have had for a while.  what better way to show folks that we offer home décor that they will use year ‘round?  i mean, when you decorate for the various seasons you choose to celebrate, you don’t move all of your existing furniture and accessories out of the house—you make additions (along with a few subtractions).

I hope, if you live nearby, you will come in for a “look-see” yourself, but here are a few pictures to show you a few of our changes.

 

I will be posting some detail shots of the inventory and displays later this week, but as I said—I hope you plan to come for a visit soon.

thanks for your indulgence,

my traveling office

Our car.

We have been on the road a lot this year.  (I wrote this post on Friday, the 15th of February.)

Every other weekend in 2013 we have have been somewhere other than Clarksville, TN.

Most travel has been to the exotic locales afforded us by our daughter’s gymnastics competition schedule . . .

like Bloomington, IL

 

and Memphis, TN

 

but we have also interspersed a few pleasure trips in, as well.

Ft Walton Beach to visit our friends . . .

Manassas, VA to visit my sister and brother-in-law for their Mardi Gras celebration . . .

 

One thing I’ve discovered is how much I enjoy working on my blog posts while my husband confidently navigates our way to and from our destinations.

This laptop has a great battery and on my way to Ft. Walton beach, I was able to formulate the better part of three blogs!  I was on fire.

Today, as we travel to St. Charles, MO, I have worked on two.

Needless to say, travel time has been a huge factor in my ability to return to blog land in such a fierce manner.  

I normally don’t get away from the shop this much, but my husband’s new job has him traveling quite a bit, so I’ve made the commitment to spend time with him while he is home. 

Then there is the fact that I have off loaded a few  things that have been weighing me down at the shop; at the same time, recommitting myself to spending more time being creative.  Being creative just makes me happier and more chatty—I have more to share.

I hope you’re enjoying/relating to them as much as I am enjoying writing them!

Thanks for your indulgence,

Keeping Children Warm by the Fire

One of my recent project for winter sprucing-up around the house was this garland:

 

I have been collecting pictures of children all wrapped-up in their winter wear ever since Auntie Bliss introduced me to the two snow babies on the sled in the middle.  I have several in frames around the house, but I decided to use photocopies of them to make this festive garland for my dining room mantel.

Here’s what I did:

First, I gathered five of my burlap triangle (yes—I’ve got them pre-cut, ready and waiting, ‘cause you just never know when the urge will strike), then I cut slightly larger triangles out of my light blue card stock.

Then I printed off copies of my favorite snow kids, using a parchment-look card stock, and started cropping them to fit on the pennant triangles.

I then applied a thin smear of Mod Podge® (which you can find in The Creative Corner at Hodgepodge!) using a stiff, short bristled paintbrush.

Having dumped a little blue, glass glitter into a bowl, I began “scooping” the glitter onto the photo.

While the glitter dried, I used the Mod Podge® to apply the burlap to the card stock.

Then I attached the glitter-fied photos, as well as a little piece of brown trim, to kind of finish the look.

I measured a length of jute across my mantel, allowing for a little “drape,” then I attached the pennants to the jute using masking tape.

Another quick look at this crazy easy project.  Those happy faces just make me smile!

If you have any questions, please leave me a message here or drop me an email.

As ever, thanks for your indulgence!

Winter Vignettes or “How I beat the post-Christmas decorating blues.”

It is a well-documented fact that many of us dread the post-Christmas “blah” that is our home décor.  For many folks, it is the dread of the process of preparing our Christmas decorations for another 11 months of storage—that is part of my issue.  The larger dread, however, is due to the seemingly stark appearance of my house once I’ve stowed all of the greenery, lights and ornaments.

I guess that’s why my post-holiday decorations have begun multiplying and taking on a life force of their own.  I have started using many of the items I would normally display or store in our china hutch and making them a focal point.

I have also started collecting pictures with winter scenes—anything with snow will do.  This includes my every growing collection of vintage photos of children dressed in their snowsuits or finest winter coats.  (Credit for this idea goes solely to Auntie Bliss!)

My winter Santos fairy takes center stage on our living room mantel.

This year I’ve added a frosty bird’s nest or two, some pinecone candles and faux bare braches with hints of frost, as well.  as I’ve mentioned before, my velvet pumpkins are always on display, as evidenced here on the mantel . . .

. . . and here on a side table . . .

I am not a big fan of using hearts in my decorating.  {I blame this on the fact that I had started setting-up our first household  when country-style decorating was at the height of popularity, thus explaining my aversion to ducks and geese, as well.} I will, however, make the exception for vintage hearts and any hearts embellished with real glass glitter!

As I mentioned in my post yesterday, I am making a concerted effort to carve out a little time in my schedule to nurture my creativity.  I’m finally acknowledging creativity takes many forms (more on that later), but the form I am referring to at the moment is that which requires the use of scissors, glue, ephemera and other bits and bots; thus, the decorative bottles seen in this vignette.

I used these great bottles, which formerly contained a very nice bourbon, and decorated them with pages of a very old music book, vintage Valentines and ribbon.  My dining room table has been a wreck for two weeks as I disassembled Christmas, sorted through end-of-year papers and periodically applied Mod Podge  and tied ribbon to these bottles.

For my final winter offering, I will leave you with this . . .

I hope you are enjoying your winter décor as much as I am enjoying mine.  I’d love to hear about the ways you beat the doldrums, so please share.

Again and always, I thank you for your indulgence.

december resolutions

This time of year, things are so crazy busy, I rarely have time to just sit and think.  I am running from the house, to the shop, to errands and to my daughter’s activities.  To most people, it is “the holiday season,” but to small business owners, it’s “the fourth quarter;” make it or break it time, especially for retailers.  So, I feel like I’ve got to constantly be doing something—something for the shop, decorating around the house or chasing to the grocery store . . . something.  Although—I am not sure why I am using the limiting language of “this time of year.” 

The “lack of time” has increasingly become a singular theme of my life.  This does not make me happy.  I need to do something about that—if only I could find the time . . . 

One thing I really miss doing is visiting my favorite blogs and writing my own.  I don’t have allow myself the time to visit blogs let alone write my blog.

I miss it—the great stories I read, the ideas I glean and the inspiration I find.  I miss sharing my own thoughts, ideas and plans.  Plus, in a strange way, blogging holds me accountable.  If I say I’m going to do something—write it in my blog—I feel like I have to follow through; even though no one is paying attention, I feel like I’ve made a promise and I need to keep it.

So, right now, a month earlier than most resolutions are announced, I promise to myself, if no one else, to write down my ideas, plans, et al.  Not only that, but I will follow through with my intentions.  I’ll do it here, as I once did, on my blog—my public journal.  If you’re a reader, I’d love to hear from you, but I definitely understand if I don’t. 

I’ll be doing it for me, but perhaps you are feeling the same as I and will find, in me, a kindred spirit.  Perhaps you will be encouraged by me the same way I am encouraged by my favorite bloggers; maybe my efforts to carve-out some time for the things I enjoy will inspire you to do the same.  Whatever your reason for checking-in here, please let me know if you have any ideas for my attempts to make these changes in my life.  I am always up for new ways of doing things.  I can learn to suck eggs a new way.

Here are a few of the blogs I plan to catch-up on . . .

 

 

                                              

(the above pic is a link to the blog:  Chateau Relaxo)

Thanks for your indulgence!