Eulalie's Sky Milk Paint and a New Booth

I'm back in the saddle again!  After not painting furniture for a couple of months because of the move and closing my booth in Raleigh, it felt good to work on new project with a new color.  I'm sort of a product junkie when it comes to paint and supplies.  I love to try new colors and brands of paint, wax, etc and when Miss Mustard Seed came out with the Eulalie's Sky color for her line of milk paint, I knew I had to try it since I gravitate to blues.

Country Living Fair & Shopping in Atlanta

Whew!  I'm finally back home after a long weekend away in Atlanta attending the Country Living Fair and doing some shopping around the area.  I'm glad that I finally made the trip down to check it out!  I started out this little business selling at fairs and shows like this so I always enjoy attending them.

High Point Market Fall 2013 Highlights

Gypsy Marketplace

I feel pretty lucky just living about a half hour away from the largest furnishings industry trade show in the world...  With about 11.5 million sq ft of showspace, I still have so much to see and learn at the High Point Market, but I always walk away inspired.  The Market is held twice a year and you might remember my first trip last Spring which I posted HERE and HERE.

Gypsy Marketplace

Introducing...Carolina Vintage Market!

I have some exciting news!  I've hinted around in the past few weeks about having a sale and I'm happy to announce the launch of the very first Carolina Vintage Market (mini)!  On June 22nd and 23rd, Amy from Atta Girl Says, Barb from Farmhouse Decor, and I will be filling "The Hen House" at SuzAnna's Antiques for a "mini" vintage market!

High Point Market Part 2 and My Loot

Gypsy Marketplace

I hope you enjoyed the little tour of some of the High Point showrooms that I shared the other day.  I promised to post my favorite part of High Point as well as some goodies I brought home!  As much as I loved looking at the new furniture lines, there's a part of me that loves digging through warehouses, barns, etc for the old stuff...

High Point Market Highlights...Part One

I had the incredible opportunity to visit High Point, NC for a few days this past week to preview and shop the High Point Market.  High Point is a furniture mecca and is where many furniture and home decor lines have permanent showrooms, but many more descend upon the area during Market Week to set up temporary showrooms for the thousands in the industry that come shop for new looks and products.  

Noir Showroom

Moving On...Again!

This is one of the more difficult posts that I've had to write and I've gone back in forth on how and when to write this post.  I think I've typed and re-typed it several times... I try to keep my blog strictly about home decor, DIY, furniture projects, etc as I know most readers aren't too interested in my personal life, but the time has come to let everyone know about some personal changes that do affect the blog, etc.

Our house back when we moved in...

As of this weekend, our house will be officially for sale.  Those of you that follow my blog will know that we haven't lived here very long and that our family relocated from the Pacific Northwest to the Raleigh, NC area a little over a year and a half ago.  That wasn't our first move, in fact, we've had to move three times in the last three years due to job changes, so the fact that we have to put our house up for sale and move yet again is not exactly good news for us.

Snippets of the New House

Last week, I mentioned that my mom and step-dad were closing on their new house in the subdivision next to mine.  They moved out to the Raleigh area from Spokane, WA last summer and lived with us for a few months and then stayed in an apartment while their house was being built.  After much deliberation of house plans and communities in the area, they ultimately chose a beautiful community with the equestrian barn, miles of beautiful jogging trails, and many other amenities. It's a great community with lots of wide open spaces which was important to them after moving from their previous home on three acres.

How to Make a Garland with Magnolia Leaves

A few weeks ago, I shared my garden-inspired Christmas mantel with my handmade magnolia garland and I promised I'd share how to make one with you.  It just took longer than I thought to get the tutorial done and thanks for being patient if you happened to be waiting for it!

Getting Ready for Holiday Events

I've been painting and crafting up a storm this week in preparation for some upcoming local events that I'll be participating in...

Southern Snow

I admit it...there have been many times in the past year since moving to the south that I get homesick.  It's been a big change...like living in another world.

Southern Bloggers Conference Recap

Wow...I think I've finally recovered enough from this last weekend...not sure if my house is fully recovered yet from me being gone, but it's getting there.  For 14 weeks, a wonderful group of women...Barb from The Everyday Home, Shirley from Housepitality Designs, Amy from Atta Girl Says, Suzy from Worthing Court, Cindy from Living on the Bliss, and myself had been planning the first ever Southern Bloggers Conference here in Raleigh, NC for this past weekend.  Here's a brief recap of the weekend...

An Antique Bed, Furniture Facelifts and a Blog Hop Party!

I've pretty much have always loved those old beds with curved footboards...aren't they so pretty!  I found this antique bed about a month ago when a few of us Raleigh thrifters got together for "I Love Thrifting Day".  I had a blast and found some great things, including this bed that I picked out for my pre-teen daughter's room...

Eastern Migration

Well, it's official!  I'm excited to announce something that's been in the works for a few months...  After my husband and I and the three girls moved from the Pacific Northwest to Raleigh, NC last summer for my husband's job, my mom and step-dad decided to migrate east as well.  It's been a stressful time for all of us the last couple of years with two 2600-mile moves (and them having to sell their gorgeous home above), but we are all happy to be together again and of course, the girls love being with their grandparents...

Southern Bloggers Conference...Where Creativity Blossoms!

I am so excited to be part of a wonderful group of bloggers that are in the process of planning the First Annual Southern Bloggers Conference where bloggers and DIY addicts can all come together in Raleigh, NC to meet and enjoy each other's company as well as learn from some incredible inspirational speakers and DIY demonstrations. 

Simple Summer Soiree and French Bee Dining Set

One of the reasons that we were drawn to our current home is the beautiful wooded view beyond our backyard.  Luckily, much of our lot extends back into the woods and the property line backs up to a private, natural buffer that cannot be developed.  It's a beautiful place to build a tree house, explore with the kids...or to have a little summertime soiree!

Easy Breezy Summer Mantel

My family finally had the chance to escape to the beach a couple of days ago and we had so much fun!  We are so fortunate to live just two hours away from Wilmington, NC where we can go to Wrightsville, Carolina, or Kure Beaches, but for some reason it is always hard to get away for the day and we don't go nearly as often as I'd like.  One of these weekends, we are finally going to check out the Outer Banks...something I've been anticipating since we moved to NC.

Days O Work & Luckett's Preview

Yes, this is what my days are right now...full of work getting ready for the Luckett's Spring Market on May 19-20!  When I came across a set of these old tobacco press sheets used for pressing images into tobacco back into the 1920's, I had to keep one for my office.  I'll have the rest available at Luckett's in a few weeks...

The Church

I've always been the sort of person that likes to take the way less traveled.  I'd much rather take a winding country road lined with farms and homesteads than an interstate or highway clogged with traffic and billboards.  Maybe it's because I grew up on those country back roads as our family's dairy farm was little ways away from the small, rural town that we lived by?  It's all I ever knew until I was 18 and I'm still very much that farm girl longing to get back to the country. 

A Great Day with Miss Mustard Seed and Fellow Bloggers

I've always been so inspired by Miss Mustard Seed.  Not only is she amazingly talented, but her blog is so authentic and a joy to read, so when she put the call out to do some shopping and socializing in Raleigh this weekend, I was so excited to have the opportunity to meet her and some fellow creative women from the area.