Hopeless Romantic

I must be a hopeless romantic. Lately, I have been collecting and creating artwork of couples. I love the couple in the frame, very romantic and to be honest, the original artwork was so damaged that at times I was hopeless that I would be able to make the necessary repairs. But I wanted the picture to work, so I worked and worked on it and am so happy with the results.

The second picture shows a number of combined old pieces of artwork that I combined to create the romantic couple collage on a wooden cigar box. I think it's very romantic.

I am wondering if this obsession with romantic couples is because I need to have a Pride and Prejudice fix (the A&E version) or maybe it is because our 20th wedding anniversary is next year, or maybe I am truly a hopeless romantic. I hope so.

A Little Shopping Spree

Many of my posts about the Paris Street Market in Littleton, CO have been about my booth display, people I have met and my new designs. Well, for this post about the Market, I decided to show you what treasures I found for myself when I went on a little shopping spree. Below are pictures of my great finds. ( I really must get out of my booth more often)

Great matching pillows, a beautiful vintage handmade ivory blanket with crocheted roses, a very old box with a painting of a woman and a dog and my favorite item of the day was the necklace.

The box has cracked down the front, but I think it still is a great find, such a sweet picture. The necklace was created by one of my favorite local artist who redesigns vintage jewelery.

I bought a pair of these pillows complete with down-inserts. I love the ball fringe made from the matching pillow fabric.

This is the back of the pillow, I hope you can see the detail.

Just a Hare

This blog post is just about hares and rabbits. I have many clients who collect rabbit art and one of them is attending my show at The Paris Street Market Saturday, October 3rd. She wanted a sneak peak of the rabbit canvas art I will have on hand. The above picture shows Rabbits on canvas sizes from 5 by 7 inches up to 11 by 14 inches. All images are from my antique ephemera collection. I also have a few more pictures below.

Rabbit with carrots on 8 by 10 inch canvas

Grouping of 5 by 7 Rabbit canvases

The October 3rd Paris Street Market is the last one until next May. Please stop by and say hello.

Big Ideas

Usually this time of year until year-end, my business completely takes over my life and the lives of my family. Thankfully, due to my clients and stores, this is true again this year. Thank you all! So, I decided to clear out space in my studio for a clutter-free desk loaded with paper, rulers, colored pencils and no computer. My big idea was that I could sit and work on organizing my notes, keep up with paperwork, make plans and come up with new ideas. Ideas are always important, but sometimes are not given the time they deserve. So as a reminder, I decoupaged large wooden letters spelling out "IDEAS", added small vintage plastic birds, hung one of my favorite new canvas designs underneath and completed the space with a pair of beautiful antique french sconces my sister just gave to me. It's a great little space to sit and think about big ideas.

Cottage Fever

Recently, my sister and I spent most of a Friday shopping at The Barn - a store in Castle Rock, CO filled with fabulous antiques, western art, French-styled furniture, vintage finds and many Cottage collections. And yes, it is an old barn. Well, our outing obviously left an impression on me because everything I created over the next few days had a light background and roses. It was time well spent. Below are a few of my new cottage creations. You might say I came down with cottage fever over the weekend.

My Cottage Accessories include plaques, signs, a door hanger, tissue holders and a picture of a ballerina with a wreath of roses around her waist.

Cottage Sign.

A plaque for the Powder Room door.

Beautiful French Roses on a Tissue Box Cover.

You never know just what might inspire you.

My Secret Garden

"There's a secret garden she hides ... she'll let you in her heart, if you've got a hammer and a vise, but into her secret garden, don't think twice"

Those are lyrics from Bruce Springsteen's "Secret Garden". I am sure our meanings are different but my secret garden is just as hard to get into. On the southwest side of our home, there is a small area that is completely enclosed. It cannot be seen even if you are in our backyard. However, you might wonder what is behind the large gate.

Sometimes I like to refer to my secret garden as my European-styled courtyard and it's just about the perfect size garden to take care of. And no, the rest of my yard is not as well kept. I believe the previous owners used the area for a dog run, but they did build a small raised garden bed. Every summer we have added something new to the "Secret Garden" and it is now my family's favorite outside place. Take a look...

Secret garden lamb statue.

Another view.

This summer we built a small patio area just large enough to hold my antique black wrought-iron and glass table with four matching chairs. The patio area sits under an aspen tree and it's a great place to eat dinner. It still needs a little work, so maybe by next summer it will be ready for pictures. I hope you enjoyed your visit.

"A" is for Absoutely Perfect

Late last Friday evening, I was trying to think of what I could bring for an absolutely perfect hostess gift (that I needed the next day). I did not want to bring a bottle of wine or food, I wanted my gift to be more personal. Never setting foot in their home before did not help my quest. In my studio I had a few hundred tissue box holders, trays and boxes to choose from, but did not have a clue what would work in their home. Then it hit me. I could make something with their family name initial "A". At midnight, I decided to make a paperweight. While the initial part was easy, I had to design the background and choose a style and color. I remembered that the hostess had once worn a beautiful brown and white jacket. So, I decided brown would be a safe bet. I then took one of my antique French floral images and changed the colors to shades of brown and added a chocolate colored "A". She absolutely loved it and it was absolutely the perfect gift.