My booth opened and Anthropologie giveaway!

 Look, y'all! IT'S MY BOOTH!!!

I'm so excited! The big day arrived with a minimum of drama and angst....
My booth opened today at the Antique Mall!

It was less than 2 months ago that I began blogging about my dream
of opening up my very first booth, and here I am!
I have to say, I really am quite thrilled with how it all turned out.
It's not perfect, but I'm proud and grateful for all the help and support
I've received from my family and friends.....that's YOU!

In celebration of this momentous event, I'm having my first giveaway!

I'm offering one lucky individual a $25 gift card from my favorite store and yours,

 

Anthropologie!

Awesome blossom, right?

There's more to this giveaway, 
but first some more pics of my booth!

 

 

And finally my two Jethro's, my Handsome Husband (left) 

and Dapper Best Friend hoisting my sign in it's future space!

Whew, that makes me tired (and giddy!) 

just looking at all these pics again!

The owners of the mall seemed to be super happy 

with my booth, and even suggested that the local newspaper 

could do a feature on my booth to drum up some publicity.

 But back to the Celebratory Giveaway....in keeping with the 
Anthropologie theme, the winner will also receive 
this gorgeous  Anthropologie Cloche!
 

Beautifully hand painted and distressed in a rich taupe/tan finish, the dome is a strong wire and has an iron knob at the top. The dome is removable and separates from the base which has feet at the bottom to raise it slightly. It measures 10" by 9 1/2".

The patina is just perfect for any style decor, 
but especially for those of you partial to the Jeanne d'Arc Living style. 
And if you're wondering who the super cute instant ancestor is in the photo, 
it's my very own mother! This beauty retailed for over $100 
when I purchased it awhile back, and it's proudly graced my living room 
for the last year or so. Now, in celebration of my booth opening, I want it to be yours.

 

 To have your name tossed into the proverbial hat, here's what ya do...

If you are a follower or become a follower, you get 3 chances.

If you leave a comment on this post, you automatically get another chance.

That's all there is to it! Easy, right?!

I'll be drawing the name of the lucky winner one week from tomorrow on Sunday, October 11th.

In closing, thank you all so, so much 
for being a part of this amazing ride with me.

Here's hoping all your dreams come true, too.

~ Anne

 

More Warrenton goodies, and the kitchen sink...

Well, not literally the kitchen sink.
But I'm sorta using this post as a catch-all
for several things buzzing through my mind tonight.

It's my dutiful and longsuffering husband fixing up 

my newly refinished dresser...that I painted and tea-stained all by myself! 

Supervision provided by the cat as per usual.

 I'm going with using the cat picture as my lead photo, since:
1. Whenever I post a cat pic, y'all go nuts over 'em.

2. Vintage Sue, Version 2.0, my new Junkin BFF, loves cats.

Firstly, lookie loo at the most expensive thing I bought in Warrenton last Saturday!

Pictures hardly do this justice.

It's vintage French lace, and I'm going to be using it as a backdrop to cover up fugly pegboard.

All together now....ooooh, ahhhh

Look at my pups in the background acting like they're not at all impressed....

Okay, stay with me here, people. On to the next topic.

Here's my new business card holder for my booth....

It's a porcelain soap dish!

 

Cute, right?

Moving right along.

I debated about this last thing for a good long while.
I hate to offend, and I hate to seem ungrateful or unappreciative or just plain rude.
But I've decided to go with an award-free, tag-free blog.

There have been a handful of generous, thoughtful folks
who have given me these undeserved awards,
and I thank them from the bottom of my heart.
But I really, genuinely feel that I'm no better or smarter
or more talented than anyone else...that, and I'm afraid that given how
frantically busy I'm becoming, I still haven't given proper due
to the last couple of people who bestowed these on me.
And I'd hate to appear to just be flat out ignoring someone. That's all. Let's hug it out, k?

And now back to work.

Must start packing up my breakables
for the booth move Saturday morning.

Holy cannoli, that's tomorrow!!!!

Warrenton Regrets..

"Regrets, I've had a few:

But then again, too few to mention...."

Oops sorry, just channeling a little Frank Sinatra there!

All in all, my trip to the Junkin' Shangri-la
known as Antique Weekend in Warrenton was a huge success,
both personally and God willing, professionally.
I scored some truly amazing one-of-a-kind finds for my shop,
met and made some incredible new friends,
and took home enough warm and fuzzy memories to last me until,
oh, I dunno, at least

April 2010.  ;-)

But if forced to enumerate some things
I'd like a "do-over" for, here's my list:

1. 
   Wear more comfortable shoes. Yes, my cowboy boots were way cool and kick-azz,  but I came home with a blister on my right heel the size of a lemon. Cow-patties be damned, next time I'm wearing my Birks!
   
   
2. 
   Bring more cash. Seems like a no-brainer, but cash rules.
3. No 3......is actually no 4. Blogger is jacking with me today.
4. 
   Plan on spending more than just one day. I mistakenly thought that our inability to secure lodging in the immediate vicinity would be a deal-breaker. This native Texan shoulda just whipped out an atlas and did the math...lots and lots of affordable rooms to be had in Austin, and it's not that far away.
   
   
5. 
   Actually refer to the map/guide inside the Show Daily Guide Book before the drive back home. Another Captain Obvious mistake. It has a handy dandy cross reference guide in the back to help you locate just where to find which vendor sells what.
   
   
6. 
   Quit rationalizing about all the reasons why you can't go back....already spent too much money, gotta get the booth stuff ready for Saturday, blah, blah, blah, baby fishcakes.....just DO IT!!!! It's like Disneyland only better, it's like Canton on steroids (I totally stole that last bit), it's the most fun you can have smack dab in the middle of nowhere in a cow pasture!!!
   

One thing I don't regret?

This schweeet little purchase right here...

Have you ever seen anything like it?

If you have, you're a better man than I am, Gunga Din.

Cute little Asian inspired crusty child's toy chest, 

or as my husband is wont to call it, the "ugly baby thing".

It needs a little love, but once I give it a good spit shine and some polyurethane, 

it'll be ready to head to its happy new home.

Come see me at Water St. Antiques in Kerrville, Texas, 

for the ugly baby thing and lots, lots more!

Rate My Junk, Tuesday Edition.....

Welcome one and all to the decidedly
white trash version of HGTV's  Rate My Space!

This is a follow-up to yesterdays post wherein I bragged shamelessly
about all the swell swag I confiscated for my booth.

Ready for some more gloating AND the opportunity
to tell me just exactly what you think of my finds without impunity??

Alrighty then, let's get goin'!

First up:

Awesomely creepy little girl doll! Not creepy enough, you say?

Hmmmm, okay, tough audience....

Here's some of her kin just down the way:

Now that's what I'm talkin' about!

You know the whole decorating-with -creepy-doll-heads thing 

we've all been doing forever?

Ever wonder what happened to the rest of said dolly?

Well, wonder no longer! 

Fiona and Twig considers it our civic duty to answer these 

vexing questions which keep you awake at night. Here they be!

Oh my stars, you guys would've gone into an apoplectic fit 

if you'd toured this fab Field of Junk Dreams with me yesterday!

Where oh where to begin?

Feast your eyes....

What the hey??!!

Stroller for 4?

Kiddie-park ride?

No child restraints/seatbelts?

Wheeeee!!!!!

In keeping with our slightly macabre kiddie theme, 

walk another row over and you are met with this:

Do you have to ask twice if I'm going back for this???

And just in time for Halloween, too.

I'm wondering if the genteel locals are going to "get" my 

Curious Sofa-esque Halloween vignette?

Round the corner and all of this 

is pretty much ripe for the taking (dirt, dirt cheap prices!):

I'm in serious love with the garden lounger and birdcage.

As per yesterdays post, I'm breaking up my plentious finds 

from this weekend into several posts, but here's something 

on the more kid-friendly end of the spectrum.

Look y'all, it's Muff's Toybox!!!

Beats me who "Muff" is, but Aunt Jane and Uncle Scottie 

sure did think he was swell...

If I divulged just how cheaply I procured this toy box, 

you might just have to resort to calling me naughty names, 

so let's just say it was decidedly non-spendy and leave it at that.

Coming up on my next edition of Rate My Junk:

Life, Death and a Foe Defeated.

Clear as mud?

Good. I loves me a cliffhanger.  ;-)

'Night All,

Anne

I'm legit now!

The card says so, so it must be true!

My business cards and my store banner arrived in the mail today,
and I'm feeling an odd mixture of glee and doom.
Is this even the least bit normal?
I mean, they actually look professional!
Yikes, people are likely to expect something from me now.

True, it's not on the level of a tent in Warrenton
or my own brick and mortar store, but it's sort of a big whoop for me.
Baby steps, I have to keep reminding myself of that.

On the agenda for this week....work my day job as an RT
at the hospital for the next three days (12 hour shifts, ugh),
Church on Sunday like the good Catholic I am,
followed by a quick trip to Trade Days in Fredericksburg.
Before ya know it, you'll be seeing my smiling face in Warrenton!

I'm not due to take over my booth until the 1st of October,
so I still have a bit of time to beef up my inventory
and brainstorm some display/vignette ideas.
Does it always feel like no matter how much time you have to prepare,
it's never enough? No? Just me? Anyone? Anyone? Bueller?

For all of you getting ready for the big shows in just over a week,
my thoughts and prayers are most certainly with you.
God willing, we will be sharing a tent one day in the not-too-distant future!

Happy Trails!

~ Anne

On second thought.....

Ever go back sometimes and re-read your blog entries?
And what sounded wry and ironic and erudite at 3am
suddenly sounds puerile and petulant by the light of day?
Welcome to my world.

Kindly consider this posting an apology
for my for carnival-themed entry yesterday.
Upon re-reading it, it feels jumbled and a bit peevish,
neither of which I want to convey to anyone gracious enough
to read what I have to say.

Mea Culpa.

Unrelated to that, I'm sort of obsessing about
how to decorate my booth. Anybody know a good source
of either canvas or muslin backdrops? And by good, I of course mean cheap. 
In particular, I'm looking for something to cover up the fugly pegboard.
I'm not the least bit crafty and I can't sew a stitch, so easy is the name of the game.

Ideas?

Have a blessed Sunday....

~ Anne

This post was edited to remove

any photos not taken by myself, Anne Lorys.

I rented my very first booth today!!!!!!!

 This is the banner I'll be hanging in my booth!

Do you think that was enough exclamation marks in the title?

Naaaah, I think not. Here's a few more...  !!!!!!!!!!!

Can ya tell I'm just a wee bit excited?

Doin' the happy dance here,
I cannot believe that it's FINALLY a reality!

Here's the scoop:

This is where I'll be located.

It's a well established antique mall with tons of foot traffic.
It's a gorgeous, two-story, turn of the century building
complete with creaky wooden floors and a tin ceiling.
It houses over 20,000 sq ft of antique bliss! Here's a few interior pics...

Lots of nifty retro signage above the front entrance.

Didn't I tell ya the tin ceiling was pretty rad?

Mmmm, hmmm, thought so.

Hey looky, we're headed up the stairs
to where my booth space is located!

I even love the stairs here!! Get a load of that patina.
Errr, maybe I oughta turn the gush factor down just a tad, ya think?

Okay now, kindly disregard the not so cool crap other dealer's stuff
in the space right now and picture all my rusty, chippy, industrial,
dreamy treasures instead. Got that image locked in? Okay, here's my spot...

Angle #1....I'm just off the stairs,
so I'll be getting loads of traffic!

Thankfully, the cruddy looking carpet is going,
leaving me with the glorious, original hardwood floors beneath.
Yippee Skippy!

Angle #2:

Angle #3:

That black bookcase might be staying, not sure yet.
It doesn't exactly rock my world, but I guess I could make it work for me.

More views...

So whaddaya think? It's not my dream space, but it's a start!

Here's a review of the mall that I cribbed from the web:

★★★★★ by Yahoo User
This is great fun! You can spend a couple of hours here poking around the many different dealer's areas. You'll find antique dolls toys vintage clothing coca cola memorabilia books china furniture and all the stuff you can remember from either your life your parents' life or your grandparents' life. The prices are great and the building itself is vast. The wooden floors and high ceilings sets you in the mood for years gone by. Poke around at your heart's content and find a few treasures to take home. Also because it is right in downtown Kerrville take some time to walk through some of the art galleries museums and shops all within walking distance. And...stop and have lunch at one of the good eateries right in downtown - lots of choices!

Here's two of the owners. Nice, nice ladies!
They even posed for this pic for me!

I head downtown bright and early to pay my deposit.
I don't think I'll actually taking possession until after Warrenton,
so that's good news for all you dealer buddies
who'll be selling there....you hear that Theresa? Mindy? Troy?
That means I'll be making one last hurrah
to stock up on inventory. Bring your good junk, k? ;-)

Big hugs to everyone who has walked this walk with me thus far!

XOXO,

Anne

What's a girl to do?

Installment #22 here of "Who, ME, a shop owner? Sheeyeah, right..."

If you're a new reader, kindly allow me to bring you up to speed.
This blog was created to document and share
the birth of a dream, namely, my dream of owning my own shop.
It surely won't be a full-blown affair from the get-go...rather,
I'm looking at renting a space in an antique mall to start out,
and I'm down to the final two contenders.
At this point, I'd like to defer to all of YOU who have actual experience at this sort of thing, because I'm a bit stymied right now.

Contender #1: 10 x 10 space in a large, multi-vendor, two-story shop. Rent is $89 month, must sign a three month lease, and 10% commission to the owner. I would not be required to work at all. I'd pretty much have complete autonomy to do what I want with my space, which is a big draw for me. I want to be able to express myself creatively and artistically within my booth, and this space will allow me to do just that. It gets a pretty good amount of foot traffic, too.

Contender #2: No clearly defined space, per se. I would bring my things in, be allowed to set them up, but they mentioned that they like to move things around to keep things fresh. No rent whatsoever, but owner gets 20% of sales. You are required to work one weekend a month, as you will rotate this out with the other vendors. Right now, there are three other vendors. Six month lease. Not as much traffic. The owners are the nicest people I think I've ever met, but I'm really not digging the fact that I wouldn't have a spot that's just mine. Yeah, I'm an only child, how'd ya guess?  ;-)

Me in all my spoiled rotten only child glory...

I'm also on a waiting list at a couple of other spots,
and there are a few other malls that have expressed interest in having me,
so I'm not limited to the two I've shared with you here.

At this point, it almost feels like a no brainer~go with Contender #1.

But am I missing something here???
Is there something just glaringly obvious, a red flag,
a Whoa Nelly, a Danger Will Robinson thang I'm just not seeing in either of these choices???

Can ya help a sista out here?


This post was edited to remove
any photos not taken by myself, Anne Lorys.

Big Orange Betty

It's going to be tough to part with her
once I get a booth or shop off the ground and running.

Oh, my apologies, I haven't introduced you
to my newest family member yet.....this is Big Orange Betty.....

She's a little self conscious about her height,
being 7 feet and all. A chunky hearty farm gal
from the plains of Minnesota, donchaknow.
How she made it to a flea market in the Texas Hill Country
is likely a tale to rival the very best of Lewis and Clark!
And don't ya dare even think about calling her Ugly Betty...
why she'd just as soon whomp you upside the head
with a rolling pin as put up with that sort of sass.

One of the local antique store Proprietoresses (is that a word?)
had her eye on Betty for a few weeks prior.
I know this because said Shop Owner is a friendly acquaintance,
and we've shared tales of our latest finds and acquisitions.

On the morning I picked Betty up from the market,
my trusty friend Junker Earl informed me that Shop Owner
had come by bright and early before I had arrived
to make doubly sure that I still wanted Betty and was
planning on picking her up. ]I know for a fact
that Betty wouldn't have left with her anyway....even though I got her for a steal at $85,
Shop Owner has a glorious shop full of beautiful but pricey treasures.
Betty, being a simple gal, instinctively felt more at home with me.

So, me and dutiful husband and dutiful friend loaded her up
and off we went. Got her home and began to play dress-up....

A little strip of burlap to temporarily cover the stains....

Enough lollygagging Betty, time to get to work!

Out with the unpacked wedding china,
into your watchful bosom, old girl.

She's going to be tough to say goodbye to on that fateful day,
but say goodbye I will. My shop will need a good-hearted,
big-boned sentry like Betty to keep an eye on things.....donchaknow?

Portal to the unknown....

Those of us old to remember Let's Make A Deal" (that would be me) 

recall that the height of suspense during each episode 

was the revelation of what was behind door #1, door #2 or door #3.

We are a nation of gamblers, of fearless risk-takers; 

from our forefathers right down to the 

preposterously costumed contestants on the aforementioned game show, 

all the way down to a medically trained gal who has 

nurtured a lifelong dream of opening her own antique shop.

I am presented with only two doors before me now....

the door on the right, door #2, represents the life I now live, 

the comfortable, safe, predictable choice. 

I enjoy what I do, and I feel that I'm good at it. 

My patients seem to agree, and I make a comfortable living. So far, so good.

But what if.....

What if I dared to peek behind the door on the left, door #1?

Gosh, it looks like there's some sort of obstacle
just on the other side, through the glass.

Do you see it? Do you think it's jamming the door shut?
Do you think someone's already in there? Do you think they might deign to help me?
Do you think there's room enough for me, too?

If I go ahead and chance it, if I proceed through the door on the left,
will I be able to regain entry into door #2 if I am unwelcome, if I fail?

So many questions, more than a few doubts,
the odd fear every so often.

And so it begins.

I stand on the threshhold and prepare to enter door #1, the portal to the unknown.
Building a business of my own is a dream I've kept tucked away for far too long.
I've received much support and encouragement from my fellow bloggers here,
and for that I thank you all.

I mentioned to someone earlier today that my blog, hopefully,
is going to be a chronology of the birth of a business....
as I said in one of my posts, y'all are getting in on the ground floor.
I hope to be able to share the excitement of someone just starting out,
but I also plan to be brutally honest and not sugarcoat things
when and if discouragement sets in and I ask myself
"What the heck did I get myself into?!"

Many blogs here are filled with wonderful, inspiring examples
of those who have made this dream come true....
this one is very much a work in progress.

So what say you? Will you accompany me as I make this journey?
Hopefully, once I am comfortably ensconced behind door #1,
I will be able to welcome the next trepidacious traveler
who dares to follow their dream.....

This post was edited to remove
any photos not taken by myself, Anne Lorys.

Fiona & Twig is born!

Greetings All!

Welcome to the misadventures of a budding shop owner.
My fully formed blog space will be awhile in coming, but just a little info....

Fiona and Twig were two pretty special calico cats in my life.
This blog as well as my shop are dedicated to them,
although you'd be hard pressed to find
any cutesy cat knick knacks among my wares.
Dont get me wrong, I adore my felines,
but my tastes run more to vintage, industrial, retro,
architectural salvage, French ephemera, etc.
I am a Respiratory Therapist by trade, a frustrated,
wannabe writer/vintage shop owner/erstwhile superhero by night.

Welcome to my humble corner of the web.

Pax....

Anne

This post was edited to remove
any photos not taken by myself, Anne Lorys.