::Vintage Market::

Remember I told you about my wee group of painting mavens?

We're all trying to make a go at flipping furniture and vintage goods, so we're working together brainstorming ideas and sharing techniques and tips.

One of the gals owns a shop in a small lake village nearby, so a few of us schlepped our wares up there and set up a vintage market in her parking lot.

(visit her facebook page here)

Tons of fun.

Here's some pics I snapped of some of our set-ups...

Aimee of Restyled Vintage Designs did the turquoise table and frame set up on the right, and the other items are Sara's of  Revived. 

Look at this crackle!  Aimee is a new retailer for American Paint Company....she also sells out of a shop called Yesterday Once More in Shipshewana IN.

Sara and her hubby Eric brought lots of cool stuff....they turn over items faster than anyone I know!

And here's some yummy-ness from Kari's Cottage in the Woods Creations.  Love her painted yardsticks and signs!  That buffet is done in Annie Sloan's Cream....total bliss.

This was my set up....only brought a few small tables from The Serendipity House and tons of my handmade soap.

When things were slow, I brought along an assortment of paints and waxes, brushes and boards for us to try out new products and techniques.  I didn't get a pic of that because, well, I was playing with paint and waxes....

We've all had a great time getting to know each, sharing ideas and dreams.

I'm excited to see where our little group goes, and we're hoping to add more artists to the flock

I can't wait for the REAL Serendipity House to get itself built so I can host pop-up shows where my painting mavens can showcase their talent :)

Sharing at Claudia's A Favorite Thing party because new friends and vintage markets are definitely a couple of my favorite things!

::Girlie Girl Birthday Party::

PSSSST...I'm no longer blogging here!

You can now find me at

www.acottagegirl.com

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My Grandbaby Robyn Rose just rounded her first year, and we partied on Sunday to commemorate the occasion.

Pinterest helped. Duh.

Robyn's mommy, my daughter Kristen, worked for a couple months crafting all manner of decor during Robyn's naptimes.  

Mighty proud of her...not just for her decorating/crafting abilities, but for being such a terrific mama to my grandbaby.   See her below with her big sis Maddie, who hosted the shindig at her place.

I only pitched in by bringing the serving pieces, fake flowers (I own a plethora, as I don't get along with real flowers as yet), and styling the cake table.

Kristen made all the cupcakes and cakepops.  Robyn's cake was two hearts stacked.

Love the wee candy cups and cupcake wrappers she used!

(dollar store candlesticks, plates and bowl made into a cupcake stand...

used at Kristen's wedding shower too)

Everything looked so sweet and springy and festive...

Especially the Queen of the Festivities....

Here she is just hangin' out with her bink.  

And wondering why all these people with cameras are surrounding her....

Wait a sec...what is that?

Now that looks interesting.....

Are you kidding me?  I get to eat this?

All by myself even?

You mean I get to *SMASH* this?  

Now THIS is what I call a party.

It was (ahem) a smashing success, and all Kristen's hard work paid off.....I told her she was setting a dangerous precedent, but in these days of Pinterest, all bets are off, yo.

I'm just in awe how my wee grandgirl went from this...

to this in just a year's time...

And although I don't celebrate her with a party and all the party trimmings everyday, 

I DO celebrate her presence in my life every single morning.  

Can't wait til they live next door so I can get my Robyn Rose fix everyday! 

So how'd my daughter do?  She's got some skillz, eh? And BTW,  how cute is Robyn?  *wink*

I'm bringin' this party to these parties:
Primp your Stuff
Transformation Thursday
Inspiration Gallery
Fabulously Creative Friday Linky
Catch as Catch Can
Grace at Home
Simply Create
Frugal Friday
Be Inspired
Treasure Hunt Thursdays
Party Funk @ Funky Junk Interiors

Easy Gift Wrap...Burlap wine sleeve.

My friend Clara has been at it again. 

You know, my amazing friend who throws parties that rival Martha herself, as well as decorates, organizes, cooks and gardens better than any blogger out there?

(see This Post, This Post, and This Post to refresh your memory)

(look at her all barefoot and cute)

Tonight I felt like I'd stepped into a Country Living spread as we enjoyed a festive evening celebrating Clara and her Hubby Herb's 40th anniversary surrounded by the beauty of her late summer gardens, good friends and good food and drink.  

I'll do up a post with pictures from that tomorrow, 

but I wanted to show you real quick how I wrapped up their gift.

Easy Peasy Burlap wine sleeve.  

Just cut a long strip of fabric 29.5" x 6.5", sew up both long sides, turn right side out and voila.  Pop the bottle in there, turn down the top and add something to tie around the neck.

I happened to have a crocheted flower from the scrapbook store that I hotglued to the fold down collar. 

 I braided some jute twine, and added a wee wooden letter from Hobby Blobby that I quickly stained before threading it onto the twine.

I thought it turned out kinda cute, if I don't say so myself.  :)

You could easily use linen or cotton...leave the edges unfinished and use a grosgrain or satin ribbon instead of jute twine.  And how cute would a vintage brooch look pinned to the collar?  Or a small bloom tucked into the tie.  Or add some blingy beads to the hanging-downy threads. Lots of room for creativity and a great opportunity to use up stuff from your cra(p)ft room stores.  Not that I did that or anything. 

And do you notice that gOrGeOuS hutch in the background? 

 I'm pretty stoked to show that to you soon too.

(edited to add I linked this up to creative little daisy's impromptu linky for quick crafts)

What I'm working on. All. The. Time.

PSSSST...I'm no longer blogging here!

You can now find me at

www.acottagegirl.com

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So let me just say right up front that I'm a spaz when it comes to decorating projects. 

 I can't do just one project, or just one room at a time.  

I can't just do all the painting, all the sewing, all the organizing from start to finish. 

 That's just not how I roll.  

(living room got a new coat of paint, therefore furniture must be moved around. Ya know.)

So here is just a smidgen of the plethora of projects in the works.  

Please pray for my family as they don't have a place to sit and can't find anything, including their mom/wife.  

My poor dog thinks we're moving and hides on my bed dawn til dusk.

School Room/Office.  Actually almost ready for the big reveal!

 Sewed up a new shade...still needs some finishing touches though....

Organizing homeschool books on the shelves...

Gotta make labels for these...

Cra(p)ft Room.  Not even close, but at least I'm getting started on the furniture.  Finally.

Picked out and purchased wall paint and fabric too.

Dresser started as this as of this morning....

covered with citrusstrip crap and plastic so it won't dry out before I scrape the 3 layers of paint off..

See that there antique hutch back yonder?  I did the drunk person technique on it today.

(Love those old details! It'll look marvey with my crafting/sewing stuff tucked inside.)

Master Bedroom.  Getting a complete makeover.  Again not quite ready for a reveal, but I'll show ya a few things I've been working on....The walls still need painted, and a couple more things painted/sewn.

 $5 desk-about-to-be-turned-vanity...

Painted the nightstand next to it as well.  Need to sew up the stool cover as well as the closet drapes...

(how attractive)

This desk got a new paint job and I need to put these on...

Front Hall.  Repainted, including trim.  It was a mess, and I wanted it to match the office/schoolroom. The paint is an old Ralph Lauren color called Canvas Natural.  LOVE it.  Perfect warm neutral.

Other randomness.  Anyone else throw yards of fabric around the house looking for that perfect spot?

(used some of this in my master bedroom for awhile, but it will now reside in the family room)

These beauties got repainted heirloom white.  I'll show 'em to ya when I reveal the upstairs rec room.

(such an attractive chapel chair.  Eegads.)

Played around with vignettes in my spare time.  Remember the mirror?

It looked like this before:

 and now it sits on my antique walnut dresser in my living/reading room.

Everyday I start popping around from painting to organizing to decorating to sewing.  Keeps it interesting.  My daughter is moving into a smaller place, so lots of stuff I'd given her came back, and I got inspired again.  Plus I'm still cleaning out, paring down, weighing my likes and loves.  :)  

I think the school room will be done this week, and I'll do a full post on it.  We start school in a couple weeks, so it needs to be ready to go.