Notes from A Cottage Industry

Life is funny.

 

Ya, it is. Not always so much funny-ha-ha, but funny-weird-how-life-goes.

I stumbled upon some pictures a couple of weeks ago of the last house I lived in while I was married, quite by accident on my computer. See this picture?

It's a picture of a small portion of the front left corner of the "Big House" as I refer to it these days. The photo was taken in the fall, as you can tell by the ridiculous amount of pumpkins scattered all about. (I am and probably always will be a more-is-more girl, with holidays, shoes, and pretty much everything else in my life, try as I may to scale back my enthusiasm.)

Anyway, I get the oddest sensation, looking at at this picture after not having seen, or even driven by this place in over four years. It gives me a weird kind of deja'vu feeling. (kind of how I would expect I'd feel if I were an amnesia victim...) Did I live there, really? Was that my home, with the husband, and kids, and dogs? I can smell the pine trees and see inside that door, but wait....was that really my life, or was that some other girl that I knew who only remotely resembled me?

I remember the girl that lived in that big house. She was happy to a very nearly idiotic point, and she felt her life was full.  

And well planned. (Oh, that girl was all about having everything all planned out.) And organized. She knew exactly how her life story was going to unfold...she thought.

So..ya, that makes me say that life is funny. Like the other Tracey likes to say, "If you want to make God laugh, tell Him your plans." (Ain't that the truth.) When I looked at those pictures and tried to really remember the girl in that house, I realized that while I definitely have my struggles these days, I am genuinely happy with the actual person that I have become. I've gotten to know myself better. I've realized that I am a survivor of sorts, and I have become a risk taker...with my out-of-the-ordinary ways of earning a living, and with my heart. I've also learned not to take myself quite so seriously, and I've loosened up a bit on needing to have my life all planned out. (Okay, I am still working on not jumping ahead at times, but I am definitely moving in the right direction.)

The reason I am sharing this with you is that so many of you have written to me over the past couple  of years, sharing the sudden changes happening in your lives as well. More of us than not seem to have found ourselves in a new world we didn't expect, want or plan for. Lay-offs, divorce, or serious health issues seem to be a reality to so many of us these days. While these things might not remotely seem like a good thing in the beginning, there are so many silver linings to be found, if we just take the time to look a little closer.

Blessings in disguise are still blessings, after all.

 

Rx for getting well soon.

One of my best buddies is suffering a hideous relapse of this season's nasty cold bug, and I was feeling a little helpless in how to help out, so I took a lil' break from painting and ran down to the grocery for some chicken noodle soup to hopefully assist in recovery. I had a lot of fun putting things together, and it really only took me all of ten minutes to create, print and assemble. And, it was basically a free-by project, since all I had to pick up was the deli-soup. Okay, I will admit that I got a teensy bit carried away in my packaging job, but...well, that's my style, you know? ...and anyway, sometimes a lil' TLC is just what the doctor ordered.

Be mine.

Valentines Day is one of my favorite holidays of the entire year. Yes, a lot of folks (men mostly I am pretty sure) think it's a cheesy-Hallmark-card-created-overly-materialistic day, but I am not talking so much about the gifty end of things...I just love the concept of it, you know? Shower the people you love with love and all that. Bake heart shaped sugar cookies and give your grandbabies a special little you-are-sooooo-loved baskets of treats kind of stuff. Write I-love-you on a card, and mean it.

*sigh* I know, I know. I am a hopeless romantic.

Anyway.

Here is my latest lil' E-Kit, all ready for Valentine's Day. (The sweetest day of the year will be here in just a couple of weeks, you know!) You'll find it in my Etsy shop, (Click here to see...) and it includes instructions and templates to make a nice big banner, and as a lil' bonus, eensy-weensy letters to make a coordinating mini banner, all for $6.99.
Make one for yourself, a couple for friends, and several mini banners to pop in the mail inside your Valentines....

Pretty sweet deal, huh?

Changing lives, a piece at a time.

As I type my nearly daily blog posts each day on my laptop from the comfort of my cozy bed, I realize that even on my toughest days, I live quite a cushy life. A roof over my head, food and heat, more channels on my TV than I need, and wireless internet.

I shared a while back that Carter's Mama and Daddy are in the process of adopting a child from Africa. It's a slow process that has opened all of our eyes to the reality of what life is really like for those living in places other than the good ol' U S of A.

Through this experience, we have gotten involved with a wonderful organization called UjimaCare. It is an organization here in the U.S. with a base in Ghana. It was founded by two brothers from Ghana. One now lives here in the U.S. while the other lives In Ghana and spends all of his time working and caring for orphans. Together, through Ujimacare, they are building an orphanage and school. It will be the first in the region.

So far, they have funded every bit of this orphanage all by themselves. You can see the progress here. They need $20,000 for phase one which will be a 10 room building. This will help so many children who otherwise will not have shelter, food, or an education.

As a way to include friends and family that have asked how they can help to be part of this great organization, Carter's Mama came up with a very clever idea that she shares on her adoption blog here. She got a 1,000 piece jigsaw puzzle that will be put together a piece at a time, with friends being able to buy a piece of the puzzle for $10 each. Once the puzzle is complete (with the puzzle glued to gether and all of the participants names on the backs of the puzzle pieces) it will be hung in the orphanage office in Ghana. To donate to this puzzle project,  click here, IGNORE that it says $50 for donations and simply click on the donate now button...and make sure you write what name or short quote you'd like your puzzle piece back to say...just remember, it is a small puzzle piece, so if you have alot of words, you may need to buy several pieces!)

You know, it's truly impossible for me to actually grasp 100% what daily life is really like in places like Ghana. I see pictures, yes, but still...I cannot actiually imagine living in a place where there are so many orphaned children that they are found simply wandering the streets, nor can I imagine living in a make-shift home that inlcudes a small room with only three walls, and that room is still called a kitchen.

My intent in sharing this is not just about climbing up on my soapbox looking for donations. I am sharing this with you because I think of all of you as friends, and many of you are like an part of my extended family. I want you know that I am not only focused on making my home charming, and following my bliss of creating little treasures. I want to know that when I am gone I will have done some things that hopefully made a difference, however small, in someone elses life. My budget is miniscule these days, but I am seeing that I can still have an impact. Knowing that I can help, by doing things as simple as buying a puzzle piece or two, makes everything worth while.

 

Goodwill pitstops for more cool junk during a trip to the coast.

You know, thrifting is a hit n' miss kind of thing, whether it is right here at my local haunts, or when I get the opportunity while out of town, in a new place. Sometimes you get a couple of pretty cool finds, sometimes you come out the door empty handed, and once in a while, you hit the motherload.

Out near the coast, I was lucky enough to get to snoop around not one, but two Goodwill stores this past weekend, and I managed to fill my Rock n' Roll Buddy's car trunk with my finds from the first store alone. You know you've got a real friend when he's okay with driving you a full half hour off the beaten path (each way, and in two different directions...) to wander the aisles of a thrift store, looking for cool junk, even if he doesn't quite "get" why you're buying that old trash can and a pair of little tap dance shoes.

Up to my eyeballs in paper goods.

I'm going to be bringing along some banners, and cupcake flags, and other lil' papergoods to the Funky Junk Sisters event and I've been printing and cutting and hole punchin' like mad, but I wanted to pop over here to my blog for a quick hello...

I think I will also be adding actual paper banners, cupcake flags, and other papergood to my etsy site in the weeks to come for those folks out there that aren't into E-Kits to create themselves.

Back to work now....hope you all are gearing up for a fabulous weekend!

A trend in booth space backdrops.

While wandering through Monticello's the other day, I realized there is a definite trend in backdrop materials for booth spaces. It's painter's dropcloths.

Found for a great price at hardware places like Home Depot and Lowe's, it makes for a great texural look behind vintage finds, that's for sure...

There were some other great backdrop ideas as well... old sheets of player piano music..

and old boards...

If you've got a booth space at a Mall, remember, there are lots of things you can do to create a great vintage feel...so much more inspirational and impressive than peg board. I'd love to hear what other ideas you might be using out there...do share!

 

More Monticello inspiration.

I took a short break with my girls and my local babylove (Little Mr. C) from painting and prepping to gather some inspiration. Mmmm hmmm, we took a quick drive over to Monticello. Always so many great display ideas.. eye candy... all the details... I came home and was inspired to work on my littles for the upcoming faire. It's going to be fun to set up the display in the booth!

 

Building inventory.

...working like a mad woman, painting, and pricing, and prepping for the upcoming show in early February.

My dining room here at the Barbie Condo looks like a carpenter's workshop, and my living room looks like a manufacturer's warehouse this week.

Progress in the making!

My new little etsy shop!

Yes, I've finally made some headway this weekend in working on my ETSY Shop! I wanted it ready and open for business by the time I do the Funky Junk Sisters show on February 5th, you know.(Oh! And speaking of the show, don't forget to print the dollar off discount ticket if you plan to attend. Admission is $7 but only $6 with the card, and I get credit for anyone using my discount tickets!!)

Stay tuned for some pretty big changes coming to my blog layout over the next few weeks, and I'll be adding more kits to my new ETSY shop all week long!....You can check it out here.

Another little peek at my booth....

Just thought I'd share a couple pictures I took today in my booth space at Camas Antiques...

it's not as full as I'd like it to be, but it will be full soon. Very soon.

Buried treasure.

Yes, it is what you think it is. (that is, if you read my last post...)

Nothing short of a true miracle, my long lost (okay, at least lost for fifteen days, minimum) watch has been found and will never again be tossed onto the dresser top carelessly. After scanning my brain and a lot of deep thinking, I retraced my steps for the obvious places I should have been putting my watch when I took it off. The dresser in my bedroom was top of that list, and so I decided to empty my top drawer again....and, voila'! From out of my pajama top I heard a clink! My watch appeared. Thanks for all of the suggestions and tips!

....now I can get back to minding my business!

Does anybody know what time it is?

I started this blog post last night. Nothing creative, crafty, witty, or otherwise entertaining came to me. Seriously, nothing.

I tried again this morning, to no avail.

Oh, except for the fact that I seem to have misplaced lost my watch.

And I am obsessing about where it might be hiding, here in the Barbie Condo.

I've tried retracing my steps as best I can. I know I wore it on Christmas Eve, and I am fairly certain I wore it again on Christmas Day...after that, it's a wild guess. I think I must have been wearing it the day after Christmas while driving my Mom to the airport...but that's a maybe, at best. I know that the day before New Years Eve I worked at the bank and I didn't find it to wear that day.

Did I look for it then, or panic? Oh, gosh, noooooooo.

I waited until this week like the crazy woman that I am, and realized that I needed to find it. After all, I should take care of the few nice things I have, right? That's when I realized it was actually lost and not simply misplaced. (There is a difference between lost and misplaced to me and that difference would be the fact that I am not obsessed or panic stricken when I misplace something.)

Now, my family, and friends that know me well, (And have not had to already endure me whining on the phone about this uber-stressful situation) are all doing a double eye-roll followed by shaking their heads with a loud sigh, because they are used to hearing me say in a rather dramatic fashion, "Oh! I can't find my..." (fill in the blank here people, with...watch, blue-tooth, phone or glasses) usually followed moment later by a huge loud sigh of relief and, "Oh! Here it is."

I am off from the bank with a nice slice of three days off in a row and I need to make the very most of these days, prepping for the upcoming show and my booth space. This is now nearly impossible for me, because about every fifteen minutes or so I think of a spot that I may or may not have already looked for my little time piece and I have to stop what I am doing and rifle through the drawer, purse, old shoebox, gift bag, or whatever to see if it is there.

So far, nada. (I know! See? Stress-ful.)

Hopefully my treasure will turn up very soon (tomorrow would be nice.) and I'll be able to refocus on important things like earning my grocery money, and blog topics and get back to living my life as someone more closely resembling a normal person.

 

Painting, and crafting, and thrifting, oh my!

I'm crazy busy this week, preparing for the show in February, restocking my booth at Camas Antiques, and working at the bank. I've got lots of great lil' treasures gathered already for the Funky Junk Sisters show, and many adorable crafty things I'm working on as well.

The biggest problem I am experiencing is deciding what to save for the upcoming show, and what to run down and fluff up my Camas Antiques booth space with.

It's a kinda fun dilemma to have, and I'd love to hear from those of you that enter faires and/or have booth spaces...how to you address this challenge? Do you strip down your booth space to make you fair booth look even more full, or just bust it out, and have them both filled to the brim??

Please, do share your ideas and input on this....I'll be anxious to read about everyone's approach!

Shower invites for an upcoming bundle of joy.

My daughter is throwing a good friend a baby shower at the end of the month, and I got to design and make the invitations. The Mommy-to-be and her hubbs have elected to not find out the sex of thier baby, and will find out the way most people in my age group did...at delivery! 
I haven't seen the nursery, but I'm told it's done up in a black, white and sunny yellow theme, complete with the words "You are my sunshine" painted on the wall. (How cute does that sound?!)

*sigh* It's been a while since I helped in creating some party things, and I had forgotten just how much I enjoy it. I'm excited to be helping with the behind-the-scenes details for this fun party, and rest assured, I'll be sure to share pictures from the shower decorations later!

A lil' jumpstart for a bright new year.

I am getting a jump start on 2011. Mmmm hmm. I, (along with my best buddy, the always fabulous Clark, from Camas Antiques) will be starting things off in a rather grand fashion, by participating as a vendor in the Funky Junk Sisters upcoming first big show in Oregon, the  Junk Salvation Vintage Market in Hillsboro! (just next to Portland!)

Mark your calendars people. Saturday, February 5th.

As a vendor, I am flattered (Actually a bit gobsmacked) by the wonderful blog post the girls did about me for the faire. (for a teensy bit of admitted shameless self promotion, I have conveniently placed a link here.)

But wait, there's more! The girls have created a discount coupon that you may print and bring along to save a buck on admission.  Just copy and print this lil' coupon and bring it along on the day of the flea market.
If you're anywhere near the area, I hope you'll make the time to come by and attend this show. It's going to be such fun, and I'd love to meet you!

Discerning taste.

Aaaah, I had so forgotten about this stage.

You know, when little people begin to make their own choices about which clothes, or toys, or foods they like (or don't like)... and how they make their definite opinions known....in this case, the sudden aversion to a formerly popular dinner food....(You can just read his thoughts by looking at his body language here, can't you?) He's very clearly saying...

"Gramma Cupcake, are you serious here? I ordered some animal cookies and a vente' cuppa cocoa, not this orange noodle stuff."

"Okay, I'll humor you. Let me read the fine print."

 

"What is it exactly? Hmmm, Kraft Mac N' Cheese....it doesn't list any chocolate in the ingredients list..."

 

"Cheese, noodles...nope. No chocolate. Say it ain't so!"

 

"I'll say it again. You can't be serious." 


"Take a good look, Gramma Cupcake. Do I look like I was born yesterday?"

 

"Um ya, I didn't think so. I'd like to send this back to the kitchen please."

 

"No, really, this milk is all I want right now. Unless you've got something with some chocolate in it."

Hmmm, come to think of it, his Mama was just about his age when she decided that she wasn't going to have any milk touching her Cheerios. (or any other cereal for that matter) Ever.

 

Impress your friends and family with what you can do with a little left over bread.

Okay, I know most of you eat all the bread in your home, but for those occasions when you find yourself with a couple of heels and a few slices of bread left over, I have a little recipe you just might like.

I am known across the land (okay, with my litle circle of family and friends) for making a pretty mean batch of home made croutons. It occurred to me yesterday as I was baking up a batch of these wildly popular homemade croutons that I don't think I ever shared my recipe for these easy-peasy-so-yummy-and-cheesy lil' bits of heaven.

First off, as I said in the beginning of the post, when you have extra slices of bread...freeze them. When you are making a salad, or a chowder, pull that left over bread out of the freezer, adn make some of these little morsels of melt-in-your-mouth-heaven.(there are no exact measurements, season to your own taste preferences...)

A few slices of bread, thawed and cut into nice sized cubes

Melted butter or margarine (for about a half a loaf of bread I use two full cubes. (Hey, I said they were heavenly)

Italian seasoning (A nice heavy-healthy amount sprinkled over the melted butter)

Salt to taste

garlic powder to taste

grated Parmesan cheese if desired or if it's handy

Mix all ingredients in  a bowl...

and then spread on a cookie sheet. Bake for about ten mionutes at 385' and then stir around on the cookie sheet.
Back into the oven until lightly brown.
Store in an airtight container after cool if you do not eat them right away.

Be modest when folks praise you for these little gems, lightly blushing as you say that they were a lot of trouble to make, but well worth it.

Another way to showcase words to inspire us all in twenty eleven. (and the winner of my drawing)

 
Wow. So many great words were shared for our "Word for 2011" to inspire us! Check out the original blog post here to see all of the great words and reasons readers chose them. Thanks to everyone that participated! I did my drawing and the random winner was Tracey (What a coincidence that was!) with her chosen word of "BLISS" (another coincidence...one of my most favorite words ever)

A couple of my close friends and family members had chosen words, and I thought it would be a fun lil' treat for them to have their word for 2011 close by, so I took some old frames I came across when I was unpacking and framed them up. It took me all of a minute to create these lil' inspirational reminders, and it's another alternative to a banner. (You might want to steal this idea yourself!)

 

The Reluctant Entertainer.

Okay, I am pretty sure no one sees me as a reluctant entertainer, but I know that many of you are intimidated by the very thought of having guests over for a meal, and I understand this completely. Well, put your fears and concerns aside, because my friend Sandy has uncomplicated and simplified what entertaining should be, and still shows how to make it really fun and memorable.

I met my friend Sandy online way, way back, when we were both kind of new-ish to blogging. She's a devoted wife, and caring mom to her three kid-lets, as well as an amazing cook and hostess with the mostess. You can check her out here.

She has written a fabulous book on entertaining (So much more than a cook book) that I felt compelled to share this with you, because it's just so...inspiring. It takes you through the all of the steps to feeling completely comfortable entertaining...all the fears (Joy Busters, as Sandy calls them) we sometimes feel (Who do I invite? I'm a novice in the kitchen! I don't have "good" dishes...yada ya...da.) to recipes that are fabulous (And easy!) to ideas for ice breakers and ideas that will inspire you (Cocoa or coffee bar? progressive dinner, anyone?)
I can tell you that I thoroughly loved reading this book, (while curled up in my cozy bed with a cuppa cocoa...) and it has gotten my mind all a-whirl with some new entertaining ideas I plan to put into action very soon. After all, it matters not how big your table is, or how fancy the food is. It's about the gift of hospitality, and all that comes with it.

 

As it turns out, happiness IS a warm puppy.

Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr! Baby, it's c-c-c-c-c-old outside!

I know, I should shut my big trap, as many of you are back east and all I am talking about is lows in the 20's and highs in the higher 30's...but....it's still cold. And icy. (To us out here, at least. Seriously, it feels like it's below zero at the dog park.)

I'm not sure how I got sidetracked here, because the point to this post was that Charles Schultz was right about happiness being a warm puppy-love, and not-so-much the weather....(Oh, I remember now...warm...weather...puppy...I was gonna tie it al together. Oh well.)

Our frigidly-cold snap began this week, and then my day yesterday was filled to the absolute brim with technical woes. Without boring you or forcing myself to re-live too much of it, suffice to say that my wireless internet was gone, (Router troubles apparently) my ear-hook-thing-y for my blue tooth for my phone broke (after it was lost in my eensy weensy place for two hours) and I somehow (I am technically challenged, you know) in synching my phone to my laptop lost everything in my phone...contacts, rings, texts....and it took another couple hours to recover what all could be recovered there...sheesh. I've never been so happy for a day to end, I tell ya.

Anyway.

I for one, am grateful and very happy that it is still the weekend, I can stay inside my cozy petite home. (Ehem....still unpacking from the longest-ever-documented-move in the continental United States) Perfect weather for sipping hot chocolate with my big yellow dog, living in my own little fantasy-land, ignoring all the worries and concerns (both technical and other-wise) of daily life going on in my real world.

For now, for this moment....all is calm, all is bright. And warm.

A new decade begins.

Well, it is here. A brand new year, a brand new decade. I have shared this before, but here is one of my most favoritest quotations for new year's....

Cheers to a new year and another chance for us to get it right. 

                                                                                                         ~Oprah Winfrey

Happy twenty-eleven, my wonderful, treasured friends!