Dreaming of Paris-Part 1

This week, three years ago, I was in Paris. Corey is in Paris right now with her daughter and has been posting about it on her blog. Oh how I wish I was there with her.

For quite awhile now, I've been wanting to post about my Paris trip, but other things seemed to take precedence like Farm Chicks, vintage finds, projects I've been working on, etc. But, with this week being the three year anniversary of my trip, I thought I would share with you some stories and pictures of that wonderful time.

Let me back up a bit. In high school I took two years of French and another year in college. Since then, it has been my dream to go to France and see and experience all the wonderful things and places I learned about. As the years went by, I always knew in the back of my mind that I would make it there someday. Flash forward to the year I turned 40. I decided it was now or never and so I planned my trip. My hubby didn't really want to go and I didn't want to go alone, so I invited my Dad who had been there a few years before and I knew wouldn't turn me down. I had never taken a trip with my Dad before, (he and my Mom were divorced shortly after I was born and we became close after I graduated high school and moved to California for the summer-another story for another post) so I wasn't sure what to expect, but he's a pretty easy going guy and I knew we'd have a good time.

So plans were made, hotel was booked and we were off. My Dad was flying from California, me from Oregon with both of us getting connecting flights in Houston so we would arrive together. The week we spent in Paris was magical and completely amazing. Each night I would come back to the hotel we were staying and write down in a journal everything we did, saw, ate, so I wouldn't forget a thing. I thought I would do a series of posts where I share these journal entries with you, my lovely blog readers. I will put in some pictures to break up the writing a bit so you aren't completely bored. Here goes:

Day One in Paris

"Arrived at Charles De Gaulle Airport and was picked up by Eddie who took us to our hotel. Outside Paris, lots of industrial buildings, looks like any other big city. Came into the city of Paris where I was overwhelmed by the architecture of all the buildings. I kept saying 'I can't believe I'm in Paris!' It was surreal. We checked into our hotel, the Grand Hotel Leveque, which is an almost not noticeable building on a wonderful market street. Just like I imagined. Neat shops for produce, meats, flowers etc. Man making crepes, yum! Our room is tiny! Probably 10 x 12 with a tiny but updated bathroom on the 4th floor (actually the 5th floor-they don't count the bottom floor). Tiniest elevator in the world. So cute. Room has two twin beds pushed together.

After we check out the room we strolled on the Rue Cler and found our way to the Eiffel Tower by way of the Champs du Mars Parc. It was incredible. So huge with what seemed like a million people waiting in line to go up. I am in awe of with the number of tourists from all over the world here. We loved hearing all the different languages being spoken. After walking beneath the Tower, we hopped on a tour bus and took a 2+ hour tour of the city. Great decision as we got a good overview of where everything is. Riding down the Champs Elysee and seeing the Arch de Triomphe and seeing Notre Dame were the highlights.

After the bus tour we made our way back to the hotel for a nap and showers. Got lost on the way and was helped by two lovely French women. Very nice. After being refreshed, we decided to have a bite of dinner at Cafe Rousillon down the street from our hotel. Cute, but smoky and food just so/so. I had Chicken Provencal which resembled the chicken I had on the plane over.

We then walked down to the Seine were we boarded a riverboat which took us down the river for a tour of Paris past all the monuments. Decided to get off the boat at the Hotel De Ville to check out this department store an American couple told us about, but by then it was 9:30pm and closed. We tried to get a cab unsuccessfully back to the hotel which was a blessing, because we stumbled upon the Notre Dame. We went in briefly as they were having a service. It was very dark, but so cool.

Somehow trying to walk our way back to the hotel we accidentally found the lively Latin Quarter where we stopped at a cafe for Creme Brule' for me, glass of wine for Keith. Lots of young Parisians and tourists. Neat alley like streets with shops open late. After finally getting a cab which dropped us in the vicinity of the hotel, we finally made it back where we collapsed at about 11:30pm.

Tomorrow we will take in the Champs Elysee and a movie. Possibly the Marais neighborhood or Montmartre."

Please keep in mind, this trip was pre-blog and my picture taking skills were and still aren't the greatest. I hope you enjoyed this little stroll down memory lane with me. I will be back soon with pictures of some of my latest finds and will being doing more Paris posts throughout the summer.

We are going camping at the beach for a few days this week. Nothing like a trip to Paris, but still fun family time. Have a great week!

Vintage Sale

Here is a copy of the flyer for our sale. You can click on it to read it better. Can anyone tell me how I can add a word document to my blog? I have tried to figure this out a couple times, but apparently I am not computer savvy enough. I ended up taking a lame picture of this adorable flyer that Mitzi made up. So sorry.

If you are in the area and would like to check out our sale, I would love to see you. There is going to be lots and lots of sales in the neighborhood so it isn't just us. Email me with any questions. Thanks!

I'm In

Finished up my move in at Stars & Spendid today and just couldn't wait to share the pictures with you. So, without further ado, here they are.

Before

(very bright yellow walls just wouldn't work for me)

During

(spent several hours papering walls with textured wallpaper and vintage sheet music-much better)

After

As you can see, I took lots of pictures. You can click to enlarge any of these photos. I can't believe I got everything in. I even have room for more smalls if you can believe it. I'm loving how it turned out. Hopefully, shoppers will too. This neutrals theme is quite a departure from my usual pastels. I can't believe I had so much of it. My front room at home looks a lot better, but still needs a little attention. I'm thinking after the garage sale this weekend my house will be in much better shape.

So, do you want to see my buddy, Mitzi's space? She is just two rows away from me and her booth couldn't be cuter (more cute?).

Love this rug!

I'm loving this cute display wall Mitzi's sweet hubby made for her. Anything with scallops is a must have in my book. Check out this adorable revolving rack. I was with Mitzi when she got it and if I would have known what a great display piece it would turn out to be, I would have tackled her for it.

A whole lot of cute going on here.

Well, that's it for me for now. I'm tired! I'll be posting info about the garage sale tomorrow for those locals who may be interested in coming. I'd love to see you there!

Today's the Day

I move into my new booth at Stars & Splendid. My car is packed and I'll be heading over to paper my walls, put down my vintage rug (finally a use for it), and unload a few things. The bigger items will be going over either tomorrow or Wednesday. Mitzi is going to be the great pal she is by hauling my stuff in her trailer.

In the meantime, I thought I would show you a few pictures of my Monticello space. Isabel and I were both over there together (by accident) last Friday. I spent a few hours moving stuff around, taking stuff out and adding some new, old things. Unfortunately, I forgot my camera, but being the sweetie that she is, Isabel took some pictures for me with hers.

I am excited to see how I do at my new space, but honestly, I am thrilled to get this junk/cool stuff out of my house. I'm sure my family feels the same way.

Lots coming up with this move in, our garage sale this weekend and a camping trip next week. It sure has been a busy June, fun busy though.

Hope you have a fun Monday!

Funky Junk Sisters and I'm Committed or Should Be

On Sunday, Isabel, Joy and I made the drive to Puyallup, WA (about 2 1/2 hours north of us), to attend the first ever Funky Junk Sisters Antique Show. We decided Sunday would be better as we thought it would be less busy and we'd be able to have more time to chat with the vendors there.

Funky Junk gals and Mom

Tiffany and Isabel

Me, Tiffany and Isabel

Laura, Timi, and Me

Jill and her sweet mom, Judy

It was fun to get to see and actually talk with the lovely Debi Kennedy of Retreat. She had an awesome booth at Farm Chicks and was so busy there, we never got the chance to chat. Unfortunately I didn't get a picture of her and her sweet hubby, Bob. Also on my "talked to and didn't get a picture" list is Debbie of Ormolulu. She was also at Farm Chicks the week before. I first met Debbie when we were neighbors at the Monticello Fall Premier show last year. She is so sweet and funny.

After leaving the show we headed to the town of Sumner, where we found Amy and Kris's store, Todays Country Store. So many wonderful things to look at, I forgot to take pictures inside.

Isabel, Joy and Terri

Again, wish I had taken more pictures, but you can see Isabel's great one's here. On the way home we stopped at a couple Goodwill's and we all found some treasures there as well.

Here is my loot from the weekend.

Not a lot, but I love what I got!

On another note, I have some exciting news. Monday I went with my friend, Mitzi to the Stars Mall where she is opening her second booth and I signed a contract for a new space in the Stars and Splendid Mall. I'm super excited, a little nervous, but mosting excited. Even though I have a few shows coming up this summer, I just decided that I needed to reclaim my house. I brought so much stuff back from Farm Chicks and have no where to store it. I thought about renting a storage unit, but that would be like throwing money away for me, so when Mitzi told me that there was a lot of movement going on over at Stars, I thought I would check it out.

One of the reasons I'm excited about this new booth is that it will be completely different from my space at Monticello. My Monticello space will remain cute and girly with lots of pastels and roses. My Stars space will be lots of neutrals, (whites, creams, browns, blacks, metals, etc). I have a lot of organizing, retagging, swapping of stuff to do, but I'm really looking forward to it. Oh yeah, I almost forgot. I move into my new booth on Monday. Yikes!

On top of all this, we are having a "vintage sale garage sale" coming up on the 26th and 27th. Me, Isabel, Mitzi and our friend Karen, all of us dealers are cleaning out our homes, mall spaces and garages and getting rid of the old. The sale will be held in Mitzi's front yard. I'll post the address soon if you are in the area and would like to come. We'd love to see you!

That's it for me now. I'll be back soon with pictures of my new space.

What I sold, What I bought, or Farm Chicks Part 3

I promise this will be my last Farm Chicks post. I know so many people have been posting about it, you may be getting a little tired of hearing about it.

As I mentioned in my previous two posts, it was an amazing show. The energy was so wonderful. Everyone so happy to be there. Such a party atmosphere. Something I had never experienced at any other show (with the exception of last year's FC show). The clapping and hollering at the beginning and then at the end of the show was so sweet. Made me feel like I was part of something really special.

Compared to last year's show, I did a little better sales wise. I wasn't sure what to expect with the recession and everything, but people were definitely buying. The big things I sold were the minty green dresser, the end tables that my hubby had made out of the old vanity, the two other end tables I took, the pink vanity which you can see in the last post and a vintage iron crib/settee. I was pretty pleased with that but of course would have loved to sell more bigger items as you never want feel like you are taking home almost as much as you brought. Smaller items I sold included all 8 shopping carts I brought (7 with liners), all my crinolines (the last two sold in the last minutes of the show), (here is Kim from Mimi Charmante wearing a crinoline she bought from me. She was so adorable!) three of my blingy belt buckles (more on that later), lots and lots of bling that I had displayed on a wire dress form (thanks Mitzi), some lamps, linens, cowboy boots, old frames and lots of other little odds and ends. Overall, I was thrilled! I still have three more shows this summer so it's okay that I came home with some stuff.

As I mentioned before, I didn't have much time to shop, but I did pick up a few treasures. From my sweet neighbors at Cedar House Soaps, I bought this adorable little baby slip with crinoline, a lovely vintage slip and another vintage crinoline. Now being proudly worn by Manni. I also bought some yummy smelling soap from them too. This adorable couple were my neighbors last year too and they couldn't have been sweeter. I wish I had got a picture of them. Next year for sure. The cute little blue doll case came from a sale across the street from the fair grounds. I love how the paper inside matches the outside. In case you didn't know, I'm a matchy, matchy kind of gal.

I got this cute ring from Vicky and Beth at Gossamer Designs.I also found this adorable bracelet made from a vintage watch band and a rhinestone brooch. It's so me! Another thing I found was an adorable chippy pink toilet paper holder, but unfortunately I haven't been able to find it to take a picture of it. It's around here somewhere.

One of my most favorite purchases has to be the Farm Chicks Cookbook. I even got Teri and Serena to sign it. What a great keepsake. The stories are so sweet and the recipes and photos look amazing. I can't wait to try some of them. If you don't have this one yet, what are you waiting for? Go out and get one right now. You can order one on Amazon.com right here.

On the way home we made a little stop in the town of The Dalles and found a charming little antique shop called "Rerun." There I found these cuties. A great vintage display rack, pair of lovely chintz drapery panels, some vintage style sun glasses, a cute rhinestone bracelet and a silver buckle. Speaking of silver buckles, as I mentioned before, I sold a few of my blingy buckles at the show. This was something I never showed on my blog before, but had mentioned that I had a few "surprises" that I made for the show. Here's a picture so you can get an idea of what I'm talking about. I loved how these turned out. The second one from the top is the one I made for myself. Joy made some of these too and we both decided that we didn't care if we sold them as they are so pretty to have and look at. I am excited to make more and am now on the look out for some pretty jewels to replenish my supply.

Something else I made for the show were these cute wallpaper clip boards.
I had so much fun making them. That same day I also embellished five vintage jewelry boxes with the left over wallpaper scraps.I had been collecting these boxes for awhile with every intention of making them prettier. I had a little something different in mind, but I'm loving how they turned out. I didn't sell any of them at Farm Chicks, so if you are interested in them, I will be bringing them along with me to the Barn House Flea Market on July 18th.

Well, that's it for now. Today Joy, Isabel and I are road tripping it up to Puyallup to attend the "Funky Junk Sisters." It will be fun to be a shopper and we're looking forward to chatting up some of the people we weren't able to at Farm Chicks. I'll tell you all about it on my next post.

Farm Chicks Part 2

First off, I apologize for taking so long to get this post out. I have been having a hard time recovering from the show. I guess all that lack of sleep and overload of caffiene is finally catching up with me. As Joy and I were talking about yesterday, it feels like Farm Chicks was such a blur. It went so fast. I had so much fun, but felt like I missed so much as I was so very busy the whole time. That's a very good thing, but I wish I had had more time to get around to meeting more people. We met so many amazing people who came by our booth, but wish we had more time to chat with them all. Anyway, here's the re-cap.

Friday morning we left the house at 5:00am. I picked up my friend Kate who was nice enough to keep me company on the long drive to Spokane. We drove over to Isabel's house where she was rounding up the kids for the trip and off we went. Things were going smoothly until we got to Kennewick, WA where we stopped for a potty break. When it was time to head out again, Isabel's husband's truck (the one pulling the trailer) wouldn't start. Long story, short we ended up hanging out in the parking lot at McDonald's for several hours, eventually got the truck fixed and were finally on our way again.

Fortunately, I had gotten in touch with Serena (Farm Chicks) and she had made arrangements with the show security to lets us in to set up late. We arrived at about 7:30pm (we were supposed to be done and out of there by 6pm), and were greeted by several friends including Joe and Jermonne, Cindy and Barry, Jeff and Julie, Joy and Dave and Kate's sister, Sue who all rallied around us and helped us unload and set up. It was an amazing show of friendship and something that I truly love about this business. How we are all there to help each other in times of need. And boy, did we ever need the help! Thank you all of you for this wonderful display of kindness!

We were at the fairgrounds until about 10:30 pm setting up and were able to come in a little early in the morning to put on the finishing touches. Here are the results of our efforts. You can click on any of these pictures to get a more detailed view.

Pics of my booth Saturday and Sunday.

Isabel's booth next to mine. She has some more beautiful pictures here.

We were so crazy busy on Saturday I didn't get to take as many pictures as I wanted, but here are a few of the many amazing booths there.

Kris and Amy from Today's Country Store.

Joe and Sue's booth


Cindy's booth

Lisa Souer's booth. I have been of fan of hers for years! She finds the most amazing stuff and couldn't be any sweeter.

The fabulous Barn House boys booth. A word I used a lot this weekend sums it up, "Awesome!"

Beth and Vicky's awesome cowgirl glam booth.

And finally, Joy's booth. Super cute! She sold a ton of stuff.

I have to send a giant cyber hug to Joe, Jermonne, Cindy and Celeste from Chaps for the fabulous party Saturday night. I haven't had such delish food and laughed so hard in years. These gals are the reason for all the laughing. Okay, maybe the lemon heads were to blame. Sorry for the awful picture, but this is the only one I took.

(Terry, Timi, Laura, Donna, Isabel and Michelle)

Sunday at the show was a lot quieter. I did manage to step out of my booth for a few minutes to shop a little, but I forgot to bring my camera.

Overall, it was a wonderful experience for me. Even with the rocky start I am excited to go back again next year. Isabel and I have already been talking about what we will do differently.

On my next post, I'll share with you the few things I bought at the show. If you haven't had enough Farm Chicks pics you can see more at the links on this post.

Have a great Thursday!