Notes from A Cottage Industry

Meet me here tomorrow, please.

Yes, I will be back from my time away on May Day, and I hope you stop by and say hello....!

A sabbatical.

Life is busy for all of us, I know.

Right now, I have far too many irons in the fire, and life has gotten away from me...and rather than muddle through with random sporatic  posts while I find my way, I feel I need to let you know that I will be away for a while.(I know. It seems a little odd to be announcing I am attending a Blog Conference this weekend, adn then announcing I won't be blogging for a time...but, my life never seems to be what one would expect.)

Please know that I will be back, and I hope you will still be checking back in, as I truly value our friendships here in Blog-land. 

Getting ready for Snap!

It occurred to me as I started to write this post taht I don't think I have mentioned that I am getting ready this week to attend the Snap! Blog Conference with one of my daughters.(Carter, Coen, and Keaton's Mama!)

The conference starts Thursday, and has a wide assortment of great courses (Business stuff like Branding for Bloggers, and Advanced SEO, along with really inspiring creative courses like upholstery and Printables with Pow!) and inspirational speakers. There will be fun breaks, like a craft night pajama party, and amazing sponsors like Annie Sloan Paint.

Tonight I'm working on my business cards (they said to plan on sharing about 200 of them) and trying to decide what all to pack. (There will be a shopping night, so I want to be sure and leave a little spare room in my suitcase!)

Have you attended a Blog Conference? If so, what tips can you share with us? We're oh, so excited, and we want to arrive prepared!

Weekly words to live by...

 

If you're lucky enough to have an old truck, you're lucky enough.

 

Yet another quick peek at my teeny-tiny booth case at Camas Antiques.

 

When I was down at Camas Antiques this weekend, browsing the basement, I was also re-fluffing my space.

 

 

My favorite new thing I've added to my case are these sweet little dictionary page heart banners. Perfect to string across a headboard, or a spot in your cubical at work, or pop inside a card to mail as a charming surprise for a friend.

I will be back down tomorrow when I am planning on doing a major overhaul to this little space, but for now, here are a couple more shots of my latest eye candy....

 

Happy Wednesday, everybody!

A (semi) hidden hot-spot....Downstairs at Camas Antiques.

 

I always love plundering around Camas Antiques, and it occurred to me that I do not think I have ever mentioned that there is a basement level... a downstairs portion to this fantastic slice of vintage heaven on earth.

And it seems to be getting better by the week these days.

 

The stairs that take you down to the lower level are at the back of the store, and for some reason, a lot of folks seem to miss them entirely.

Anyway.

There are several new vendors down there.

And all of them are fabulous.

Oh my.

 

If you're lucky enough to get to spend some time in Camas Antiques, you've just gotta make sure to go downstairs and check every last nook and cranny out.

You're bound to find something you cannot live without.

 

 

 

Weekly words to live by...

Be with someone who knows what they have when they have you.

Easy-peasy cupcake flags.

 

Yesterday I shared my easy tutorial for frosting cupcakes, and so, today I thought it only made sense to share how I whip out easy-as-can-be cupcake flags to top them off.

All you will need is ribbon, toothpicks, and a glue gun.

 

I take my ribbon and cut it into one inch strips. I then cut little "V's" out of one end of each ribbon strip, by folding the ribbon in half length-wise and making one angled cut. (This makes the "V" perfect and not lop-sided)

 

Next, it's time to add a tiny dot of hot glue to the toothpick, and add the ribbon.

 

 

Pop them in your cupcakes....

 

Ta da!

A cupcake frosting tutorial.

This past weekend when I was doing up my cupcakes for Easter, I decided to take some step by step photos to share just how easy it is to create pretty frosted cuppy-cakes.

Make your cupcakes...from scratch, or cake mix. Let them cool, or, if you bake them the night before, pop them in zip-lock bags and put them in the freezer.

Yes, that's what I do.

I pop 'em out frozen, and frost them....they stay super moist this way, and they defrost in no time at all. (Added benefit? Frozen cupcakes are a cinch to frost!)

Make your frosting. (I do my basic buttercream, recipe here)

Scoop frosting into a pastry bag with a large star tip (I use either a  large star or a large circle for a more modern, simple frost job)

 

 

Then, push the frosting down in the pasty bag to get rid of any air, and slowly squeeze while moving in a slow circular motion....

 

See how easy it is? Now, you try it.

You can do this.

Ombre' or no-way?

 

I'm having a major hair dilemma these days.

I've been wearing my hair the same length, and basically the same style for about....oh, four years, maybe?

And I am ready for a change.

Growing it a bit longer, and struggling through the gawd-awful transission stage is hard enough, but now, it seems that everyone is doing the ombre' thing, color-wise, instead of highlights. (Ombre': the look of color graduation, from darker at the roots, to a gradual lightening at and finally lightest at the ends....)

I am not sure what my take is on this look. I am puzzled by it. (See the photo above? I adore the cut...the loose curls...the ombre' color job? No, thank you.) I know it's wildly popular, but it seems to make hair look damaged, and...well, neglected to me, like you got it lightened last summer and then decided it was a bad idea.

I mean, is it just me, or does it look like you have just been growing out a lighter color, and forgot to go get it touched up? Have I reached "that" age, where I do not "get" what is hip?

Oh, dear.

To mis-quote the legendary M.C. Hammer, I'm just not jiggy with it.

I'm now going to date myself even further when I tell you that I while want to be fashionable, I am frankly more than a little worried that we are all gonna look back on this onbre' look very much the way we look back on the mullet.

Let's ponder that a moment, 'coz we all know what reaction the mere mention of the word "mullet" brings on, shall we?

Okay, so there will be no ombre'-ing for me...but, what about you?

I would absolutely love to hear your thoughts and take on this newest hair-did trend!

It's that time of year again.

 

..and, by "that time" I mean the time of year when the dollar store (and every other big box store in America) gets out their summer gear, which includes pool noodles.

You've seen these things, right?

Now, my Mom enjoys a good pool noodle. In fact, when she lived in Nevada, she was part of a click of summer-time pool junkees who boasted sassy swimsuits with coordinating cover-ups, flowered-flip-flops and brightly pedicured toes. They would catch up on the latest news around town, (Remember, they don't call it the biggest little city for nothin'.) and sunbathe and paddle around in the pool with their noodles.

This explains why they were lovingly referred to as the "Noodle Girls".

Anyway.

Pool noodles.

They're not just used as floatation devices anymore, people.

Oh, no, no, no, no, no, no..no.

They're also the coolest, cheapest, most fantabulous boot-plumper (boot holder-upper? Boot support?) in the free world today.

Thank you, Pinterest. (What did we do before Pinterest? How did we live?) Boots that have been abandoned on the floor of our closets for the off seasons,lie there like lopp-eared bunnies, taking up far too much real esttae on the closet loor.(and getting all creased in the wrong spots to make matters worse)They almost always manage to become separated from their mates during this time, so that when boot weather finally does arrive again, it's a scavenger hunt to find a matched pair.

 

 

At a dollar a noodle, you can create two pair of boot incerts (that's fifty cents a pair, or a quarter a boot. You can't beat that!) and they cut like butt-ah when you use a Cutco bread knife to create them.

Just sayin'.

It effortlessly sliced right through the three noodles I bought, and in less than one minute I was ready to go organize the floor of my closet, which currently is just a giant pile of assorted footware.

 

What are you waiitng for? Those pool noodles at the dollar store will be long gone by June, and then you'll have to wait another whole year. (I know this first hand, as I discovered the idea on Pinterest last year, and waited till July to go buy some.)

An easy secret to amazing gift tags that add a whole lotta wow to any gift.

 

Okay.

This is such a no-brainer, I am betting 90% of you already have thought of this, but for those other 10% of you...(or those of you who knew this, but just kind of forget to try it...)

Here's my easy-peasy trick for great gift tags: whatever the occasion, I google up the word (Like, let's saay...birthday, or graduation, or whatever) and, after the word, I type "quotations". Up pops pages of quotes about a topic. I search them until I find one I think is perfect for my need, and then, I copy and paste it into my cheesy print program, and change up the font to a sassy looking one that fits my taste.I add whatever else I want (Such as, "Happy Birthday!" or "Happy Housewarming") Then, I print it, cut it out, punch a hole, and tie it to my package.

Ta da!

A fabulous gift tag to make any present more special.