No More Shoes

Today we packed up and loaded the car and then headed off for one more day of buying. About an hour into the trek, I realized that I had exhausted my shoe wardrobe of anything that could remotely carry me through another day in even slight comfort! It's time to go home.

We spent the day shopping for fun things for the store, as well as a few customer requests that I needed to resource. The market was absolutely empty! It was bliss. No lines. No waiting for the elevator. No crowds in the elevator. On other hand, there were also no salespeople. No food. No complimentary water. You get the picture. The last day of market is only for the die-hards. Anyone who is left roaming the floors is a kindred spirit.

We selected 4 floors that had a concentration of home accents and went to work covering every showroom on each floor.Here are just a few of the great finds that I ordered today for the store. I think you'll be excited as I when they arrive!

Delightful course linen printed chair with colors that were calling my name!

Equally fabulous coffee table (never mind that rug!). Great style. Great size. Great price.

I love this new interpretation of a dining room chandelier with glass drum shades.

Yes! A chartreuse lamp!! Be still my heart.

In another showroom altogether, this artwork themed around, you guessed it, chartreuse!

While perusing multiple art showrooms, I found this very exciting print of a baby grand piano.

I placed an order for this favorite of years past in the hope that my darling friend, Lisa, will fall in love with it for her new Ralph Lauren inspired den now being designed.

Trophy vases. I love them! I have a collection of vintage ones, and I can never get enough. These reproductions are a great fools eye addition, soon to be arriving! (I'm sure Ralph would approve).

A box of old books, made to look even older could not be resisted. I'll find many uses for these treasures.

At the end of the day, we came across this quote by Henry Thoreau! My mother and I used to have favorite calendars with quotes that we would share each day. I kept a file of my favorites, and this was one. It brought back many memories of good times with my hero. Who wouldn't want this as an office statement piece?!

We left the market with a full bag of orders, new resources, and jewels from the cash and carry. Many pair of shoes later,and loaded with piles of purchase orders to sort, new Christmas stories to be revealed next October, preferred resources to share, and too many new ideas for two design minds to hold, we headed for Charlotte, NC.

I'd say we had a successful and productive trip. As for myself, I may have a nap on the plane ride home tomorrow.

Chartreuse Trend!

A week ago or so, I reported that I had several favorite new fabrics and a new favorite color! How pleased I was to find that it appears that this is an overall trend in the design industry! It always surprises me when this happens...my favorite blues of the past few years are now the hottest color trends everywhere!

Just take a look at some of the "chartreuse sightings" as I like to call them...in every category!

Literally in almost every showroom, chartreuse showed up and caught my eye immediately.

Fabulously large chartreuse lidded vessel...

A wee bit smaller, still the same great color!

Candlesticks...chartreuse, of course!

Finials are a favorite category:: chartreuse finials; the best!

...even dishes

This grey and chartreuse rug...absolutely perfect with my favorite new pallet noted a few posts ago!

One more hip rug with chartreuse playing a major roll. My flash has distorted the color slightly, but take my word for it...oh, yea. Chartreuse!

We spent a good hour in a favorite showroom ; Whitehurst. They specialize in the finest imported glass ornaments from about an inch to 8 inches! For years, Black-eyed Susan has been known for having these unusual sizes (you know, bigger is better!). Last year, I was really missing the addition of the 1" accent ornaments in as many colors and finishes as you can dream of. This year they'll be back! These little darlings have hundreds of uses and you can expect to see them in unusual settings throughout the showroom.

This long shot doesn't even do justice to the hundreds of selections available! Not only color, they are available in shiny, matt, and pearl ! We had to search the entire building to find them and query many vendors; voila! Success. You're going to love these as much as I do.

...and just one more happy surprise! A brand new color for this year! Chartreuse!

Oh, happy Chartreuse. My mother would love this new trend. So do I.


Tomorrow is our last day, 7 of 7. Whew. We're ready to get on the road to get home. We've found some great new offerings and look forward to presenting them to you. I'm thinking tomorrow will be a day for flats. Yes, flats for sure.

Stylish Finds and Then Some

Just for the record...aforementioned cutest stylish rolling cart at market...(a little overstuffed at current time with orders, memos, and all items previously noted).

We began our day hitting one of our favorite areas, High Design. This part of the market is filled with stylish vendors who reside on the high side of style-so perfect! I will start by noting several vendors not in the club, so to speak.

Even glitter can't help this one...

Linda and I started the day donned in some of our newly acquired cash and carry treasures. These are some serious jewels! We wondered if we could carry the extra weight of style...and then cheerfully decided that they would take our minds off our tired feet. It seems to work!
We stopped in the booth of one of our favorite linen vendors to take a self portrait. We entertained the entire crowd with our photography antics.

What do you think of this pillow as a Valentine's Day token? So beautiful. Check out the small charm attached with ribbon. All linen. Put it on my list, please!

Just another angle for your pleasure.

We found these fabulous new offerings in the same booth: handmade wreaths made from recycled old sheet music! I took a minute to examine how they were made and was overwhelmed with the man hours seemingly involved. I quickly placed an order! SO cool.

Closeup of paper wreath...can you stand it?!

I took this photo of a display of delightful designs, each one more enticing than the next! I love these!!

(Close-up of the embellishment tied on with organza ribbon for your delight)!

The whole booth was just inspiring. One pillow after another with embellishments we love. Like these baby mother of pearl buttons. Borrowing a phrase from my daughter, Michelle, "my heart hurts"!

We ended the day by stopping in another favorite find, in honor of my darling friend and Black-eyed Susan fan, Lisa. She has recently found Mary Carol and fallen in love. We have carried our favorite selections from her line for several years. Watch for more to appear!

Fancy that! It seem that Mary Carol and I share the love of several things...thumbs up!

Blogger has not been cooperating on this trip, thus the non post last night! Here's hoping for a more successful try tomorrow before it gets to be 1:38a.m. Mornings come a bit too early this way.

The Problem Is...

Some days, we get so wrapped up in staying on track that we forget to take important photos to document our day. List in hand; appointments scheduled, we travel the three buildings with 20 floors each to find our treasures. Lunch...what's that ?! Dinner, sometimes. Sometimes not.

We realized today that one of our problems is that we love almost anything that is designed with glitter as a factor! I'm not saying that all of our inventory will be glitter encrusted...but I would go as far as to say that there will be a good selection including glitter! Just say'in.

A big theme for this year will be vintage reproduction houses and churches. Take a look at these crystal encrusted, glittered houses, all battery lit for soft atmosphere.

We're hoping to finish most of the Christmas orders tomorrow and move on to general merchandise the last few days. It gets exhausting seeking and culling Christmas selections day after day after day. Good thing there is an end in sight.

We did find these cool things at the end of our day today:

Super fresh music-covered ornaments-we will probably cut the ribbon hangars off and use them as ornamental spheres.

I'm a big fan of birch-themed props that can be interpreted into home decor use. Look at these bundles in two sizes! I can already think of multiple ideas for these.

Tomorrow is day 5. Whew. I'll try to do better with photo documentation for your review. No matter how we organize our rolling cart, it becomes a black hole very easily; full of files, notes, sample fabrics, sample ornaments, pain relievers, cell phones, lipsticks in assorted colors, pens and pencils, sticky notes, gloves, secondary wraps or scarves for temperature changes within the buildings, snacks, multiple eye glasses , directories..even sometimes a change of shoes!.Can you see why it's sometimes hard to mull through all this for the camera?! Now that you have the visual of the rolling cart dilemma...I'll try to pull out the camera throughout the day.

See you tomorrow. It will be a new day.

The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

....collective "style over comfort"...

My third try tonight rewarded me with Blogger cooperating allowing me to upload the remaining photos from yesterday's work! I'll start with this view of our closet showing a weeks worth of shoes to be worn between the two of us. I have mentioned before that Linda is my only dear friend that shares an untypically small shoe size with me! We often look into our collective choices to try to find a shoe for the day that will sustain our long and intense creative purchasing day after day. It takes great effort and stamina to scout out the best and most unique,and well priced items that we will offer for the next year. We work together well, and find joy in the journey. There are many entertaining opportunities throughout each day!

We found this beautiful and majestic glass urn, filled with snowy pine cones. :: on order.

We loved the fresh and unexpected combination of these over sized cone hydrangeas appointed with citrus green glass ornaments and winter icy branches. (While in this favorite showroom, Linda and I were invited to come to Dallas next October to work on the design team for their setup). We were honored,but exclaimed we would be setting up our own showroom at that time!

Our eyes lit up when we found this glorious wreath of sugared green apples. :: on order.

You all know my penchant for crows....this one did not make the cut. :: not on order.

On the other hand,this one with glitter appointments and a crown :: Definitely on order.


I'll end this post with the additional spooky witches that did not make the cut...oh, my!

I swear,one is worse than the next...

I'm having a hard time imagining what kind of store carries these...

Smug as she is, absolutely, she did not make the cut. :: NOT on order.

By the end of the day, we had our 2011 holiday stories planned. They will remain a secret until next October when the magic is unveiled once again. It will be worth the wait.

9:00 p.m. finds us back in our room, reviewing paperwork, blogging and having a favorite dinner...popcorn!



Tomorrow's another day. What treasures await us!

Mostly Bad!

Isn't this just a great way to scare you away from my market post?! See below for details...I won't be able to give you the complete report due to technical difficulties...sorry. I had no intention of this being the first picture to post...nor the near last. So frustrating.

We got off to a good start this morning! Up and ready to go by 8:30am, dressed in appropriate shoes for the day...after reading the handbook "rules" ..."please choice comfort over style". I will say that this seems to be well taken among most attendees!

We continued scouting out new and old resources for the best ideas and color themes for the 2011 Christmas offerings. Of course, along with finding the best, we stumble onto some of the worst while we are involved in the hunt.

For instance...

Okay, out of total frustration with Blogger, I give up for the night! I had plenty of good photos for you! However, Blogger has for some reason decided to not let me drag, cut and paste, or locate photos in my picture files. gurrrrrrr

How there can be such a plethora of unsightly and downright spooky offerings at any major market cannot be explained. But don't worry, we found plenty of cool ones too. I only wish I could have shown you the "didn't buy this crow" and "did buy this crow"!.

Also, try to imagine a great photo of a closet full of the exact shoes for style over comfort, and you can get the whole picture! Hopefully, tomorrow night, Blogger will be in a cooperative mood and I can get on with things...

Sad, sad, sad, so sad, very sad, WAY sad. SAD.

Catch me again tomorrow night and I'll be hoping for better success.

Everything Old is New Again!

After multiple nights of Christmas take-down, sorting and revamping, I'm happy to report that everything old is new again! While at times and in varying degrees this project seems a bit overwhelming, when all is said and done...I'm happy with the end result; a fresh new look in every single corner of the store!

Here's a quick preview. You'll need to come in for yourself to see the real magic that happens when the store is flipped.

New mantle display; fabulous new mirror and french tray...always a few books, and voila!

The cutest props ever! Photocopied miniature French letters. Oh my! Available as a set in a tiny envelope. These will go fast.

Another cute prop to purchase...reproduced vintage photographs. I sunk mine down into these apothecary jars seated with dried Lima beans. (This might be the best use for Lima beans that I know!)

One of my absolute favorite new deliveries...this reclaimed wood top table with industrial iron base. So cool, and a very good price too!

When a complete floor change is done, every sofa, chair, bookcase, table and accent find a new home. Whew! My favorite new sofa (for now!) has found a home in the orange (Yam) room, inviting all to peer into the front windows for an inspiring peek.

Layered vintage frames, flea market music pages and dried broad leaves from my summer vacation set the stage. These repro alphabet cards bring interest to the mix, and the large rams head urns ground the display. Tiny fig trees and once again, beautiful book volumes finish the mantle design. All these items are available for your purchase.

The appearance of fresh spring floral orders just make me happy! These look like they could have been cut from the garden...never mind several inches of snow on the ground! Ahhh, the beauty of artificial perfection.

Some one's cottage or shore house is waiting for these darling chairs. And, they are as comfy as they are beautiful. The reclaimed table adds the perfect touch of modernism and interest. Hand carved wood finials and hurricanes punctuate the room setting.

Check out this cool console! Reclaimed wood top; industrial iron base; mirrored accents, just right!

I have been waiting for these chairs to come in for at east 6 months! Finally, they appeared and after a good steam ironing, here they are! I only have two left, but special orders can be taken. These are under $300.00 each! Yea!!

Okay, so I have one more area to complete...some of the items are close at hand for this last effort. I promise I'll have it completed prior to my leaving for Market on Monday!

Come see the magic. Like I said, everything old is new again!