I'm published!

 Hi guys! This week in the mail I received my care package from Northridge Publishing. I was contacted last fall about submitting one of my items in my Etsy shop for the magazine/book Handmade Paper Crafting.

 I didn't want to say anything until I saw it in print because they told me maybe 1% of the time they have to cut something and I was afraid it would be me!

 But there it is! The only slight bummer, they forgot to put in my Etsy shop address..but oh well..still happy!

They also sent me some goodies to play with. Now I need to make some things and actually submit something! For now it is off to the shed to load up the trailer for the show this weekend. I need more time to create! Til next time..Julia

Irises, Cat proofing the garden, and new projects

 Hi guys! I have been busy lately..and not a lot of pics to show what I was up to! In the garden the irises are blooming..they smell wonderful.

These are ones that I transplanted from my husband's Gramma's garden In SD a few years ago. 

 Gramma Minnie was a wonderful lady and lived to 104. I felt like she was my gramma too!

 Her irises seem to like living in TN. I guess that is why they are the state flower. I am glad I transplanted them. I feel like I have a piece of her still with us.

 These yellow ones weren't from her garden, but pretty nonetheless.

 I have raised beds in my gardens and have had issues with our lazy outdoor cats treating them like their personal litterboxes (ewww)I surfed the web for answers and tried this this year. Plastic garden fencing from Lowes. It comes on a roll. I got a large one for $35 ish bucks. It did all my beds. I just drilled a few screws into the bed edges and hooked the plastic on. I have already folded it back off the tomatoes and peppers when they started growing through it.

 I used newspaper to deter the cats after I folded the netting back.

 I just laid it right over the top of the peas and beans that were not planted in raised beds. I have since removed them from the peas and have added them to a framework over the top of them to act as a bit of light shade.

 I planted the squash and watermelons in my former tomato cages. I wanted something for them to climb on. We'll see how these turn out!

 These are the latest in my Etsy shop. These are reproduction enamelware that I have added waterslide decals onto.

 I also made canisters. I wanted them to look like the old French ones I am too poor/cheap to buy!

 I did them in red..

 a blue that I matched to old transferware that I have..

 and black..always a classic.

 I also did some pitchers and have some wallpockets waiting for my attention. I spent last week ripping tile off the walls and floors in my bathroom. We have it almost replaced with new floor tile and beadboard wainscotting. I'll take pix when it's done! I spent most of this week tearing my antique booths apart..taking 75% of the things out and putting new old things in. We have the HWY 11 yard sale in Sweetwater this weekend and I have space that I plan to fill with things lurking in my sheds and house that are too big for my booth and things clearance priced. I hope it doesn't rain! It has rained almost every day for the last 2 weeks..craziness. I need an ark! I have also been working on painting projects and I hope to have more pics soon..check back! Til then! Julia

Spring and the Nashville Show

 Hi guys! My post is a mixed bag today. My first pics are of the Sweet Honesty that is blooming on the edge of my driveway. It is also called Luminaria or money plant. The seed pods when they are dried and you remove the outer coverings are papery luminous white discs the size of a quarter..hence the names!

 I planted this once and it reseeds itself every year. Sometimes I help it along a bit by knocking the seeds loose or if I cut the seedheads, I remove the outer husks and seeds to get to the pretty inner seed membranes and I toss the seeds back where they came from to replant them. The dried seed heads make a pretty arrangement in the fall.

 These have survived my husband trying to "RoundUp" them and... I am embarrassed to say..the little boys peeing off the edge of the driveway when they are outside playing and too busy (lazy) to come inside and use the bathroom! They don't do that when I can see them! It is pretty here today and my husband is out mowing the lawn for the second time already!

 I did the Nashville Gathering show this weekend and here is my booth. I used the tent frame again to hang things. It rained all day Wednesday so I had to load the van by myself Thursday morning, drive 250 miles to Nashville and unload it and set up the booth alone. I was a bit tired that night and a bit nervous as my hotel room was on the ground floor with an outside entrance. I was in the shower and the bathroom light went out..I leaped out of the shower (straight into the trashcan) and grabbed a towel. I could see the lights were on in the rest of the room through the gap of the door. I brushed up on my ninja skills in my head and thought "I can't die until I lose 20 pounds!" and slowly peeked out saying ..of course..."Hellooo?" Luckily no knife wielding madman but I checked every inch of the room before my heart rate returned to normal!

 I made this booth banner with the help of my grandson Hunter. The oversized "tags" we cut out of manila folders. We added pretty scrapbook paper. The middles are vintage dictionary pages that I painted hope and joy home onto. I could have printed them on the computer, but for me just painting them was infinitely faster!

 We added dots of black glitter to jazz it up and because Hunter said we HAD to use glitter! I like the look.. it makes it "pop". I made word spacer tags to which I added punches of vintage wallpaper. I threaded them on twill tape the length of my tent frame plus a lot of extra to tie it on. I used clothespins to strategically pin it up between the words.

 I like how I set this booth up. I used the vintage gray shutters as a backdrop with some vintage barkcloth panels. I tied clothesline across the back and clothespinned the panels to a hanger and hung that. The shutter leaned against the tent frame and also had the clothesline behind them just in case to keep them from tumbling into the booth behind me! (That would be tragic!) I used stacked wooden crates for height because that is what I brought with. I ended up selling most of those!

 The clotheline with my vintage baby dresses. I lucked out and had open aisles on both sides of my booth which really about doubled my booth space since you could shop it from all sides!

These are some of my handmade paper peonies and an upcycled lamp part candleholder. I think the flowers added an element of pretty. My tablecloths are vintage white damask ones topped with 2 pink sheer dotted gathered curtain panels I bought for like $2 at a yard sale. The pink and white ties the booth together.The show was OK..the attendance was loooooow, but those there were buying so I did ok. I hate when other vendors tell you.."Oh you should have been here LAST time!" Ed came out Friday night after work so I didn't have to load alone and had company. I think I will still do the Knoxville shows, but if I come to Nashville again it will be for the Flea Market over this show as that has a LOT more traffic!

 This is what I came home to..momma cat had Kitties! Too cute!

And THIS is what my South Dakota friends and family are dealing with TODAY..April 22nd! Sorry guys! Hopefully this is your last snow! So that was my weekend..hope you had a great one and stop back! Julia

Weekend antique and handmade show

Hi guys! For some reason this post wanted to post itself before I got any words added! I did a show this weekend in Knoxville..The Gathering Show. It is a newish show for Knoxville, it has been running in Nashville for a few years. I did the fall show so this was my 2nd in Knoxville. This is a vintage tutu I took (sold). I thought it was so adorable!

When I got it, it didn't have the rosette, but I thought it needed a bit of "something" so I dipped this vintage net rosette in Rit dye (petal pink) and pinned it to the waist.

I made these upcycled "shrines" out of antique claw foot tub feet and tart tins. Here they have some of my photo ornaments on them..that is my Gramma Hardie on the left and Gramma Cleberg in the middle. They are just color copies that I colored further and Mod Podged to 1/8" luan plywood that I painted. I have a bunch that I display on my Christmas tree and year 'round.

I made hooks from vintage silverplate spoons and forks. You can use these as a hook hung "upright" and as a funiture pull used sideways.

My van was packed to the gills as usual..I had old 6 pane windows, posts and table legs and some cool old interior shutters. They all sold well and I need to take more to my next show.

I took the top off my tent and used just the frame to hang up my clothesline for my vintage baby dresses. This is a "before" pic. It looked cool..sort of like an arbor and didn't block the light since this was indoors. My pics are NOT good..I think I had my camera on Macro..boo!Here you can sort of see my ladder shelves. I set up 2 same size ladders and run boards through the steps for shelves. Folds flat and easy for me to set up alone..which is what usually happens!

A partial "after" You can see a bit of the chalkboard antique frames I did on the floor in the back..my other pics of them were blurrier than this!

Two Arne Jacobson series 7 chairs and the heaviest wooden folding chairs ever (those sold) in cream and red.The shabby pale green boxes on the ladder (sold) were tin receipt boxes and were cool as heck. I have some more in the shed for the next show. I made the fabric totes.

Pillows, wire cloches and the copper plant markers..sold some of all those.

Gardeny table with vintage barkcloth, tools hooks and the most perfectly verdigris-ed tea kettle ever (sold)Fab for a planter.

Vintage Nylint truck, candleholder, votives and another chalkboard. I've been on the lookout for succulents..I got these at KMart!

Some seed flats left over from my former store, vintage wire baskets (I think those sold too) and galvinized buckets with vintage tin roofing tiles.

My clothesline of vintage baby dresses..I needed more clothesline but apparently left the rest at home (of course!)

Buried under here was a cool metal folding chair (sold) My online sleuthing said it was Russel Wright..it had the most perfect shabby green paint! The pillows are ones I make of vitage textiles and the stool is a stainless steel medical one..love that look!

Here's the Arne Jacobson chairs again..love these too.

You can see a bit of the metal cups that I added Frenchy decals to..perfect for votives!

The primitive cabinet is now in my livingroom holding our TV on top ..at least for the time being. I love that blue and it was skinny enough to fit on our hearth.A wire dress form with a cute vintage apron.

These are my latest creation..French decal-ed enamelware. I did pitchers, the small cups and these canisters.

Red ones plus decaled votives.

The blue ones..I think these are my fav color.

A cool Italian candle/plant holder. I had a little lady offer me half for this (snort) and I politely declined and counter offered $5 off. She walked off and came back later and got it. Overall the show had lowish attendence, it was the first nice Saturday here. The line for the zoo was backed up to the interstate! However, the shoppers that were there were buying so it turned out a B- show for me.

Except for these vintage Frye boots I bought for $20! I was actually just that morning trying to justify buying a new pair ($400+ for the pair I liked) but these will do nicely ...A+ on the boots! I have a show in Nashville not this weekend but the next and am busy getting things back in my local booth and online on Etsy and Ebay. We mowed the lawn yesterday and my sympathies to my SD friends and relatives that got an ice storm and lots of snow this weekend! "Til next time! Julia