Three Speckled Hens

First of all, I would like to apologize for being away from my blog for almost two months. If you read my previous post, you know that I started merchandising a fabulous store called "Serendipity". It's a wonderful mix of antiques, vintage, home and garden, along with  local art. The store is housed in a huge, 3000 square foot building that has beautiful stained concrete floors, large windows, and high rafters that are prefect for hanging antique baby buggies, rusty bed springs, and all kinds of re-purposed lighting fixtures. If I was a busy woman before the store, I'm a crazy busy woman now! In the middle of April, we were involved, as a store, in our first vintage trade show "Three Speckled Hens." We had a blast, met so many new people, and learned a lot about the vintage trade show business. The three "hens" that put this show together do such a great job and make everyone feel so welcome. We were so happy to be a part of it, and look forward to doing it again in the fall. It was nice to get our feet wet with this show, because we were just invited to be a part of the" Remnants of the Past" show. Remnants is a huge vintage show. Not huge in size, but huge in popularity and it is held here on the Central Coast. I will be introducing my new line of sari silk lampshades and pillows at that time. The store will be well represented in our booth with a great mixture of plants, vintage, and re-purposed art. So much to do, the show is only a month away.

Simply Serendipity

Click on picture for larger view.

Life has so many twists and turns, some good, some not so good. Well, I am very happy to say that I've had a really great turn of events opportunity recently. Just for a little background on my history first. I was a visual merchandiser for twenty years, back before I had kids. After my first was born, I still kept up with a few stores, and also did some staging and interior design. Four years later, sweet little Annie arrived and I just didn't have it in me to work out of the house anymore. That was when I started to dabble with mixed media, and as time went on, I became more involved in that creative adventure. Over the last eight or so years, I have grown as an artist, and I've had some great opportunities to show and sell my art. Along the way, I have been so blessed to meet some really great people. I recently was given the opportunity to help merchandise my favorite store, that just so happens to sell my art! I never really thought about going back into merchandising, but here I am. I have to say that I'm one happy woman.  How great is it to merchandise your own product! It is really the best of both worlds. I just want to thank Karrie and the Girls at Serendipity for welcoming me and making me feel so at home.  The above pictures are of a new section that we totally changed yesterday. It is ready for Spring and you might just notice that it features my artwork and fabric flowers. The store recently filmed a thirty minute infomercial, and I was one of three featured artists. I haven't seen it yet, so I can't comment on it, but it was  really a fun day filming it. So, the short of this story is to trust God and His timing. Keep moving forward with your gift and in your dreams, because all of your life experiences will eventually come together and God will use you in a way that you never thought possible. You will be so blessed that you will not be able to contain your joy, and it will then spread to those around you. Sorry for such a long post. Thanks to those of you that read it, be blessed.  PS:  I will share more merchandising pictures from other parts of the store at another time. This post was so pretty in it's pink and green, I didn't want to mess it up.

Fantasy Fabric Flowers

Make sure you click on picture to see all the detail.

 I have been having so much fun with fabric. I call these little cream puffs of fabric "fantasy flowers". When you look at all the different textures and colors you can't help but wonder, who's garden they were picked from. Right now I'm making and stockpiling. I'll be showcasing the whole collection of fantasy flowers on everything from lampshades to handbags, pillows, and hair clips. That's going to take a lot of flowers. My favorite store "Serendipity" located in the Village of Arroyo Grande will be selling them. I so love that store!  I'm so proud to be associated with such a cool group of women and such a creative  retail space. In my next post I'll be sharing more about this store and my involvement with it. It's kind of a dream come true.

Pewter Candlestick Makeover

What do you get when you cross store bought candlesticks with a bag of trims? You get a whole bunch of wonderful! Last Friday I came across these plain, but beautiful pewter candlesticks. They looked so sad and lonely setting there on the shelf. As I came closer, they seemed to be saying "take us home and make us pretty".  I stayed up late last night stringing the last seed beads and sewing on the last bit of trim. This morning I was happy to find them all dressed up and ready to be delivered to my favorite store. I love it when a project comes together. God is Good! All the Time!

Crimson Valentine Event

Yummy Pink Food

Entryway with my new mixed media canvas.

One of my favorite props.

Love pillows and 12x12 artwork

Dinning room to the right of the entry.

This was my favorite table.

I used an old window as a shelf.

These are the pictures from our first ever "Crimson Valentine Event".  Holly, Melissa, and yours truly (with help from my wonderful hubby), put together our second home show.  Last December, we held "A Crimson Holiday". We are finding these events to be more fun and profitable than the art shows we have been doing. The thing with this, is that you have to do art shows to build a following.  We really want to thank all of you who stopped by.  The "make and take" table was always busy, sorry no pictures of that.  The cake pops were a big hit. I have to tell you there is a learning curve to making these.  We had a bowl, full of 'friends and family' rejects. My son and husband never once complained on their appearance as they popped them into their mouths! We are talking about having a "Mom's Fun Day" type show the Saturday of Mother's Day weekend. Let me know what you think about that. Thanks again for your attendance. Without you, we would have been standing around all day eating cake pops! 

Wool Sweater Makeover

Handbag made from wool sweater.

Cute as a sweater, but oh so much better as a bag.

I spent a lot of time sewing embroidery floss in all the grooves. 

I love the bright colors with the cream wool.

I whip stitched in a canvas lining to give it more body. 

I cut open one sleeve and used it for the bottom.The other one was used for the handles.

I love me some sari silk flowers.

My favorite source for sari silk. http://store.darngoodyarn.com/

Every now and then you finish a project that leaves a big fat smile on your face. Well this is one of those times for me. I found this great wool sweater last December at the thrift store my brother and his family own. Ya you heard me, I have a thrift store in my family. Lucky me, I just wish we lived in the same town so we could hangout and work with them more often. Every time we go for a visit, we take them a bunch of our stuff, and I always find a few treasures that I can't live without. Well this sweater was my favorite find from the last visit. Any second hand wool sweater is a joy to behold to most mixed media or quilt artists. But this one was better than most because of it's unique bell shape. As soon as I got it out of the dryer, I knew it was destined to be a handbag. I simply cut the sleeves off and turned the body of the sweater into the bag. I hand stitched embroidery floss in all of the grooves of the wool. This was the longest part of the project.  I used one sleeve for the bottom and the other for the two handles. Next I whip stitched in a canvas lining. The cherry on top of the cake came when I sewed on the handmade sari silk flowers. I make and sell them as pins, but this is one of those times when more is better, so I put every last one I had around the top of the bag. I hope you enjoy it as much as I have.  What is your favorite thrift store find?