Getting Back to Normal

I hope you had a wonderful Memorial Day weekend!  I spent Monday decompressing from Lucketts and having a houseguest.  The day after the Spring Market I had to jump right in to get ready for our guest and get the house back in shape. Then of course there was the staying up late catching up, yakking, wine-ing and dining, etc. you do with out-of-town visitors.

 

So yesterday was the first day I've had to actually relax for a little bit.  Not exactly an exciting holiday, but exactly what I needed!

 

This week I plan to work in the garden ... 

start on this buffet--I have a big transformation planned!

And move Mr. P's from this space ...

to this one, which is just getting finished.

You can't really tell from the photograph, but it's a bigger area and I'll have a back wall and some side walls.  I found being out in the open hard to merchandise.  In this new space I can utilize the walls, merchandise up, and get in more furniture pieces.

 

Plus this week I need to get caught up on all the paperwork that's been piling up, and hopefully get some photos done for my sadly neglected Etsy page.

 

Life is finally getting back to normal around here!

 

What do you have on your agenda?

A Lucky Lucketts Find

When you walk into our house you'll see my latest foyer display. No new finds here.

 

 

 

Turn and look left into the living room and you'll see this little vignette with a recent horse acquisition. But that's not my lucky Lucketts find--it's from an estate sale.

 

 

 

 

 

Look on the coffee table and you'll see this lavender I picked up at Lucketts.

 

 

But that's not my lucky find.

 

Look right and what do you see?

 

 

 

 

Yep.  Another door! 

 

Now if you've read this blog you know I have a thing for old doors.  I have one in the family room, which I love.

 

 

 

But as much as I love the architectural element they bring into our boring 1980's house, I thought I was okay for doors and shutters.  I have the door in the family room, shutters leading into the living room and out of the dining room--I thought I was good.

 

Until I saw this one.

 

 

 

I had to have it.

 

 

 

The white chippy paint.  The many panes.  The hardware.

 

 

 

It made my heart sing!

 

So it came home with me, and is living in the living room.  It might go somewhere else in the future, but I'm kind of liking it there for now.

 

 

 

But here's the best part.

 

I didn't find just one door at Lucketts--I found two!  Another vintage, chippy door with soul and character.  It's going into my booth for display, and I'll show you when I get moved into my new space and all set up.

 

Two doors!  Cue the happy dance! Gotta love Lucketts!

 

P.S. if you missed it, here's the link to a post I recently did on all the ways you can repurpose old doors.  If you find one, snap it up! Or ... give me a call :-)


BTW, I'd love it if you'd "Like" Mr. P's Emporium's Facebook page!




Sharing at:
French Country Cottage: Feathered Nest Friday
My Romantic Home: Show & Tell Friday
Coastal Charm: Nifty Thrifty Tuesday

Whew! I Made It!

A little soggy.  Bone tired.  But all it all, none the worse for wear.  Lucketts 2013 is behind me.

 

 

Can I hear a hallelujah?

 

We set up on Friday, and once again I felt inadequate.  I tried to get more stuff ready for my booth, but between everything that's been going on for me the last month, I didn't have it as full as I would have liked.

 

 

 

Especially when I looked at my neighbor's booths:  To the one side I had Susan from Uniquely Yours ... Or Mine, who is one productive and talented lady.  Plus this year I was sharing my double space with Erin from Picked and Painted--who also turned out to be a furniture-painting fiend.  They both had tons of cool stuff.

 

 

 

However, I've got to say, when I looked around at other booths I thought mine was okay.  I just happened to be surrounded by over-achievers!  :-)

 

 

 

And by Sunday night I was glad that I didn't have much to pack up and move back.  Especially since I didn't have a contingency plan on where to put it!  It was nice to look into my living room and actually see it instead of a stack of furniture.

 

 

 

It rained Friday night, and threatened to rain all day Saturday.  Finally in the afternoon the skies let loose and we all had a mad dash of bringing in and covering our furniture.

 

  

 

Thank goodness all my furniture was waxed or finished with wipe-on poly though! I felt sorry for all the people who had upholstered pieces sitting out. 

 

 

 

Sunday dawned foggy, but no real rain thankfully.

 

 

 

I had a chance to shop around a bit, and came home with some goodies which I'll show you once I get them set up.  I loved looking at everyone's booths to see how they were merchandised.  There are a lot of talented people out there!  Unfortunately I didn't get a chance to take photos.

 

 

 

Sales weren't great because of the weather, but I'm happy with how it turned out for me.  All the work was worth it.

 

 

 

But you know what I'm really happy about?

 

 

It's over! 

 

Now I can get to all of the projects around my house I've been needing to do.

 

And the next big event for Mr. P's Emporium is moving into our bigger space at the Homestore.  I'll show you photos once everything gets settled!

Last Piece for Lucketts

Of course, leave it to me to finish up the last piece for Lucketts the day before we have to pack and set-up for the sale!  Once again, my time management skills seem to leave a lot to be desired--especially since I still have to finish tagging everything!

 

But I thought I'd take a break and show you a quick before and after of this little cabinet.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I got it from another vendor who was closing out her business.  I know she got it at an auction, but where it was before that I have no idea.  From the crud that needed to be sanded and cleaned off, I'm guessing it was in a barn or old basement somewhere.

 

I painted it in ASCP Paris Grey and waxed it with Liberon Wax Polish.  This was the first time I've used this wax, and it goes on really smoothly.  Plus, I think it smells good!

 

 

 

 

I had to use the shellac trick because the wood bled through in some areas.  Do you know this trick?  Sometimes you'll get a red hue bleeding through the paint--usually from mahogany pieces from around the 30's for some reason.  Just give the area a coat of shellac and paint over it to take care of the problem.

 

 

 

 

I distressed the piece with a sand block, and because I didn't have time to get glass cut for the doors, put in some chicken wire.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I had to use new knobs as the original ones were broken.  They're from Hobby Lobby, and I think they're pretty cute.

 

 

 

 

 

Here's the before again ...

 

 

 

 

 

And the after.

 

 

 

 

 

A big difference!

 

Now  I have to finish tagging my small items and pack up for tomorrow.  We're picking up the UHaul bright and early!

 

Did I get everything done I planned to?  Nope.  Between going to Seattle, getting sick, and like I said--my time management probably isn't the best--I didn't get to any of the things I wanted to make for the sale.

 

And despite starting earlier this year, I think I have about the same amount of pieces as I did last year.  I didn't have my booth space last year, and some pieces that were slatted for Lucketts had to go there to replace items that sold. (Not that I'm complaining about selling things!)

 

But ready or not, here I come Lucketts!

 

If you are local you won't want to miss this sale.  And when you come, please stop by and see me!  I'll be near the back entrance (the one by the Design House--which will be open during the market!).  Between the first and second row to the left if you come in that way.

 

A couple of tips:  For best selection, come early on Saturday.  To get the best deals, Sunday is your day. Most vendors will mark their remaining items down or negotiate with you since they don't want to have to pack and take the items home.  Since it's been raining, the parking lot may be muddy so wear appropriate shoes.  In addition to 170 vendors, there will be food available and entertainment for when you want to take a break from shopping.

 

I'll try to post photos of the booth set-up tomorrow!

 

 

 

 

Sharing at:

 

Elizabeth & Co.: Be Inspired

French Country Cottage: Feathered Nest Friday

Redoux: Link Party #104

Miss Mustard Seed: Furniture Feature Friday

 

 

 

 

Minty Fresh

I'm still fighting my cold, but I thought I'd check in and let you all know I'm alive!

Because of my cold I'm behind schedule, so I apologize for my quick, un-styled photos.  Not that I have much space to work with anything these days--what with my rooms stacked with furniture and all!

But I wanted to share my recent "minty" experience.

Between coughs and frequent rest periods, I had just finished these two pieces for the shop.

I used Ce Ce Caldwell's Kentucky Mint, a color I had bought for a two-toned effect on another piece,  for this project.

While the curved detail top drawer and the feet of this dresser are cute,  after painting it in CCC Vintage White, I decided it was boring and needed something to make it pop.  I didn't have any particularly interesting handles on hand, so I painted some brass ones I had in the mint and waxed them.  I think it gives the piece a nice, fresh look.

I thought a little accent table would look cute in the color as well, so I did the table while waiting for coats to dry on a dresser I was working on for the Lucketts Spring Market.

The next day I received an email from Better Homes and Gardens which mentioned Mint Green as a design trend. (See the video at the link.)

 

 

Who knew I was so on-trend? I just thought a fresh green seemed perfect for the spring!

 

 

All photos from BHG

 

 

Someone must be trying to tell me something, because not only did I get the BHG email, the next day I came across the vase at Goodwill.  While not exactly the same color as Kentucky Mint, it's another nice minty accent.

 

While these pieces are for the shop, I'm still working hard to finish up my stash for Lucketts.  I'm working on my last piece today, and I'm finished with the Lucketts pieces when it's done. 

 

Whoohoo!

 

Of course I still have to tag everything, pack it, schlep it to Lucketts, and set it up ... but at least I'm seeing a light at the end of the tunnel of my furniture prep!

 

Now I'm keeping my fingers crossed that the weather forecasters are wrong, and it won't rain over the weekend.  They're always wrong, right? 

 

Wishing you a good rest of the week --please think positive thoughts with me about sunny skies!

 

Countdown to Lucketts

Leave it to me to get sick the week before Lucketts!  Not what I needed after being gone for a week.

I picked up a dresser I found on Craigslist this morning, and was happily painting another one when the cold that I've felt coming on hit me full on in the chest.  I seem to always get sick after I take a plane.

My plan was to finish painting this week, which would give me next week to leisurely tag my pieces before move-in on Friday.  Well, best-laid plans and all that.

On top of freaking out about not having enough pieces ready for the Market, I sold a couple of big pieces from my booth (yay!), which leaves it a bit sparse so I need to come up with something for it as well (not yay!). 

Moving to my new location was definitely the right decision, but I hadn't counted on my pieces selling so quickly, so that means even more sourcing and painting. A good problem to have, but right now since I'm feeling crummy it's just another stressor.

Oh well. I read Miss Mustard Seed's post today--and even someone as experienced and productive as she is stresses out over Lucketts.  Of course she has mega booths to fill as opposed to my measly one, but it made me feel better!

I'll pull it together and get my pieces done.  And this year I have a lot of cool small items I'm excited about that I've picked up at auctions and estate sales.

I hope to have photos to show you on Friday or Monday, but if I don't you'll know that my cold has me down.  I need to take care of myself and get over it so I'll be ready for the big weekend!

Azaleas Welcoming Me Home

First of all, thank-you to those of you who posted kind comments and sent me emails about my cousin.  It was a bittersweet visit, but I am so glad that I went.

I came home Saturday to find that our Azaleas had bloomed while I was gone.

I haven't had the time to clean out our beds (that and a hundred other things are on my list for after Lucketts), but the Azaleas draw your eyes away from the leaves and weeds!

I spent Sunday cleaning and getting the house in order--or at least as much order as can be expected when you have furniture stacked in your living room and dining room! 

But at least I got rid of the dog hair bunnies which were threatening to take over the house. 

Today it's back to painting!

Have a wonderful week!