Headed For The Promised Land

Where's that, you ask?

Why, that would be Bar W Field in Warrenton, Texas.

What? Where? Huh???

  Yeah, that.
First and foremost, it's FUN!

For the uninitiated, let me give y'all the skinny on just what the fuss is all about: Bar W is just one of many fields, halls, barns and venues located in the very heart of Fayette County, Texas. Twice a year, Spring and Fall, these sleepy little (and I do mean LITTLE!) farming communities become home to what is known as Antique Weekend.

This is an event of truly biblical proportions...it is a huge gathering of antique and collectible vendors from across the USA and even abroad. Tens upon tens of thousands of folks descend upon about a half-dozen tiny Texas towns at a point roughtly halfway betwixt Austin and Houston. Most of the shows are to be found along Hwy 237 in the towns of Round Top, Warrenton and Carmine, but there's much to be seen in the surrounding areas as well.

I've been rounding up treasures to take with me next month, as I will be there helping my good friend Effie set up and sell up her fab vintage wares. I wanted to give all of you a little sneak peek at several treasures making the trip...

 

 It's the 

"Satin Mesh MINUTE FACIAL!

With sterilized cotton for applying Satin Mesh! 

Freshen Up!"

 

  

 

From the  old-timey, poofy-skirted lady, to the killer baby pink color, all the way down to the "tested and approved" seal from the Good Housekeeping Institute below the words "Freshen Up", I am soooo in love with this vintage vending machine! If you love it too, come see me in Warrenton, I think we can make a deal.

Procured only yesterday, I stumbled upon this...

 

On my lunch break from my ACLS re-certification, 

(Oh yeah, I passed! Got 100% on the written exam, woo hoo!), I snuck over to the local estate sale, 

which is where I unearthed this industrial piece.

Estate Sale employee and all-around awesome dude Jason told me that he thought it had been a water wheel in the garden. I don't know about you, but I see industrial art / side table written all over this beauty, how about you?

But back to the fun.

 

It was day two of the sale, everything was winding down, and junker Annie wasn't about to waste time huddled 'round the jewelry case with some burly dude with halitosis breathing down my neck to ogle the pocket watches. 

Nope, I followed my usual MO and headed outside, where it was as though the heavens had opened up and shone a light down upon all of these...

*cue celestial choirs*

  

 

 

 Rusty, crusty metal letters!

What do y'all think,  ETSY SHOP or Warrenton?

If any of you folks out there see a way cool letter that you simply can't live without, I might just go ahead and list it in my shop, otherwise, these babies will be making the trip to Antique Week with me.

That's all for now!

I'll be drawing the name of the lucky winner of my 

Flea Market Style Magazine Giveaway

tonight just before midnight CST, so there's still time to enter, just be sure to leave a comment on the post below this one.

It's wonderful, you really don't want to miss out!

I'll post the winner on the top of my sidebar to the right.
Check back later to see if YOU are the lucky winner!

And don't forget, bigger, better  
500+ FOLLOWERS GIVEAWAY
coming soon!!! 

Flea Market Style Magazine Giveaway!

Yippee!

Like y'all don't already know, the long-awaited

Flea Market Style

magazine is finally here!

 

It's every bit as good as we had all hoped it would be, and I was greedy lucky enough to snatch up an extra copy at my newsstand today, so.....

GIVEAWAY TIME!!!!

I would absolutely love to send a brand, spanking new copy of this fab magazine to one lucky follower, so here's your chance to get this baby in your hot little hands!

All of you have to do is

Be a follower or become a follower

and leave me a comment on this post. 

Be sure to let me know you're a follower, too!

Only comments on this post will be entered in the drawing, which will take place Sunday night, February 21st.

I'm calling this Part One of my big 

500th FOLLOWER GIVEAWAY...

I'm planning a bigger, better giveaway in just a little over a week to REALLY celebrate, so be sure to check back.

  Wishing everyone a very happy weekend!

  

Sweetie...and a Sweet Giveaway

 

In a word, that describes my blogger buddy Donna of

Brynwood Needleworks!

She sent me this gorgeous handmade Valentine this past week, and it doubles as an ATC (Artist Trading Card)...my very first one! Thank you Donna, I love it!

 

There's big stuff going on over in Donna's corner of the blogosphere...

She recently celebrated her 300th Post, and is having a GIVEAWAY to mark this milestone event!

 

       Per Donna's blog, here's what she's offering:

• A magnetized metal tray in a silver-tone finish

• A handmade linen pincushion

• Four wooden decor seashells

• A chippy wooden plaque, which you can leave as is, or transform as you wish

• A sweet pincushion/needlework box which looks like a vintage hatbox 

• A complete pattern for a Renaissance gown

• Donna also teases that she'll be adding little goodies to the box, too

But that's not all! 

That's just the main giveaway package. 

There's more!!!

     She's added a SECOND giveaway package which includes:

• A framed J for "Joy" watercolor

• A soft blue coffee mug with an embossed sea turtle and coral on it

• A festive little pincushion made by Donna 

• A pretty white plate

• A beautiful seashell 

• An angel pin made by Donna

But there's MORE!!! ( I feel like an infomercial huckster!)

To find out what other surprises she has up her knitted sleeve, you're simply going to have to head on over to Donna's BLOG to find out what all the fuss is about! 

Become a follower, keep up with Donna and Handsome and Kes, and all their above average kin! 

Tell her Annie sent ya!

Back to the books, have a wonderful Friday!

Another Guilty Pleasure...

Coming out of hibernation to share this video that I cannot get enough of.

Oh my gosh, this commercial is hi.lar.i.ous.

"I'm on a horse."

LMAO.

 

Adventures in Estate Sale-ing

Another Friday, yet another wonderful sale from our good local estate sale folk!

But this wasn't just any Friday or any sale, this was the day I hit the trail with one of my new junkin BFF's,

Jan from The Polka Dot Barn. Jan all by herself is a hoot and a half, but this time she brought her cute mom along, and lemme tell ya, we had a blast!

I was kinda meh about the sale going in, as the advert for the sale read as follows:

This is an awesome sale full of fine things! There is wonderful Sterling Flatware by Reed & Barton~French Renaissance, Japanese Sterling Tea Set, Sterling serving dishes, Huge Mexican Sterling Bowl, Vintage Imari Dinnerware Noritake, Johnson Brothers~Sheraton Pattern, Great Vintage Pistols~Colt~Smith & Wesson~EGI, Baccarat Crystal, Victorian Glassware,  French Provincial Furniture, Oriental Rugs, Concrete Yard Art, Armoire, Sofa, end tables, Patio Furniture, Italian Pottery, Formal Sofa, Italian Tole, Crystal Sconces & Chandeliers, French Art Glass Light Fixture, Luggage, Cambridge Glass, Slipper Chairs, Vintage Jewelry, Rare Fostoria Americana Punch bowl, antiques and clean furniture.

This is one great sale that is clean and roomy!

WE WILL HAVE THIS SALE RAIN, SLEET, OR SNOW!

The sale is inside the home and it will be warm! 

We will have warm cookies for those that arrive on Friday morning!

The home is an architectural treasure, designed by O'Neil Ford, and will be for sale. 

So while some of you might be salivating over the French Provincial furniture and Fostoria punch bowl, I didn't see anything which immediately grabbed me. 'Ceptin for the warm cookies! Still, this was gonna be a day out with my new buddy, so I wasn't going to miss it for the world. I did score a handful of really great finds, so pull up a chair and prepare to drool!

My estate sale MO is as follows...while everybody else is rubberneckin' around the jewelry case and elbowing each other to get to the good silver, I stealthily sneak back to the furthest back bedroom, which is where I found this KILLER trio of vintage hats...

 

Just LOOK at those millinery flowers! Jan just about DIED when she saw that I'd grabbed this!

 

  

Just look at RUBY earnin' her keep! That girl sure can rock a hat!

But there were more, oh yes there were, and yours truly grabbed the best of the best...

The feathers....THE FEATHERS!!!...could you not die???

 

And then there was this...

 

Both the latter two hats will be coming soon to a Fiona and Twig ETSY SHOP near you!

Speaking of, this decadently glam crystal candelabra is just waiting on you right now in my shop, also grabbed at the sale...

  

  

And finally, I discovered this just hanging out in the kitchen, no price on it, looking all unassuming until I picked it up and looked closer...

It's a pie server...

All ornate and scrolly...

 

And with a MERMAID handle!!!

 

Does no one else at these sales have eyes?? Why do they pass this stuff up? Inconceivable.

My buddy JAN grabbed up her fair share of cool loot and swag, but since she's gonna post it about it soon, be sure to keep checking her wonderful blog for the REST of the story.

After the sale, we had a yummy lunch of crab cakes at a local bistro, followed by an altogether MARVELOUS visit to a local antique mall just next door. You will NOT want to miss this post, as I unearthed a remarkable treasure headed for the fields of Warrenton for ANTIQUE WEEK next month!

Next month, can you believe it??? Will I see y'all there? I sure hope so.

Upon heading back to Jan's homestead, I was treated to a tour of her jaw-dropping art studio, and was promptly gifted with this sweet pair of baby shoes that Jan had scored at last weeks estate sale...

Is she not the best???

I promise to use these in the most special of art projects, thank you sweet Jan!

And with this post I am now officially on hiatus for the next week - time to get uber serious about 

studying for next weekends Advanced Cardiac Life Support re-cert class, so I must bid the blog world adieu, with promises of a triumphant return next Sunday.

Hope your weekend AND Valentine's Day was absolutely wonderful!

See y'all soon!

Vintage Valentine Card Party!

Welcome to the

Vintage Valentine Card Party

hosted by Joan at 

Anything Goes Here.

Let's get started!

I just adore these two "space-age" themed cards. So quaintly retro!

 Gotta have a medical themed one, since I work in health care...

 I think this butcher one is just so quirky and unique. Just look at the eyes on the chickens...I love it!

 More from my stash...

 

  

  

And my personal favorite...

Take a closer look at the invitation on the right...

"Special Invitation for Nellie Brown's Valentine Party"

Poor little feller had to get all scrubbed up and spic and span for the big shindig.

His expression is priceless.
I love how one of my blog friends said it, "Darn that Nellie Brown and her clean parties!"

Now for the fun part...head on over to  

Anything Goes Here

for a list of all the other blogs participating in this event.

 

Wishing you and your Special Someone a very

Happy Valentine's Day!

How I Love You!

That's the name of my Valentine's Day mixed media collage...

....created in the wee hours of the morning last night (and on Ambien, no less!), and presented as a V-day gift to my sweet husband earlier today.

Vintage sheet music, tag, bingo game pieces, a lovely red glove purchased at yesterdays estate sale, and the perfect vintage Valentine card.

This is only my second real attempt at doing mixed media collages, and I know I have a long way to go to reach the level of friends like JAN, but I'm determined to become a better artist, so watch out, world!  ;-)

I'll be back later this evening with a second post featuring all my wonderful vintage Valentine's for the big party at
Anything Goes Here.

And because there's only so many hours in a day *grin*, my BIG estate sale post will be up sometime tomorrow.

Off now for a night out with my Valentine!

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥