Painting, Creating & Growing

hey, we know we've been absent from blogland  for a few days, but we've been busy here in real-life land & have some exciting news to share

painting

we got our first two custom jobs this wk.!

a chest of drawers for a cute 4 yr. old's bedroom

& a vanity & mirror for a sweet college student

both of these will be great before & afters so we'll put them in a post for you later this wk

creating

we're going to start a new feature on our fb page. we worked some on our fb page last wk. & hope to get a "like us on fb' button on our blog this wk.

the new feature will be 'in the garage...'

it will be a weekly or more(we'll  evaluate as we go) feature on our fb page of items in our garage that are  ready for sale, so you have the benefit of buying them directly from us! here's our first item ready for a new home

an adorable & i mean adorable, pale pink chest of drawers with mirror,keyholes, glass knobs & the drawers are lined with black & white toile paper

so, once again, you'll need to go to fb & 'like' us to take advantage of our 'in the garage...' feature & please don't forget that 10% of everything we sell goes to

beautiful feet global outreach to support the 'rose of sharon' orphanage

growing

as you know we have each had our own seperate booths for some time now & our first vintage shabby chicks booth together is at 'city farmhouse' in franklin, tn.

our next goal was to have a booth together at the 'bellevue antique mall', nashville, tn.

well, that happened sooner than expected,

we're now together at the 'bellevue antique mall" as of last wk!

vintage shabby chicks now in two locations, we love the sound of that...

so you see, we we'ren't sitting around on the couch eating bon-bons  & watching soaps last wk. ignoring our followers in blogland...

we were painting, creating & growing!

thank you for stopping by & stay shabby,

sharon & julie

Goodwill Hunting

Good morning everyone.  I'm back safe and sound after my recent trip to Portland Or.  I was there with my mom and sister, celebrating my Aunt Athies 100th birthday!  We had invited 40 people to her surprise party and only 2 people couldn't come....now those are some dedicated friends!!  At 100 years old she is as sharp as a tack, unfortunately her body is failing.  It was sad saying goodbye, but you never know, maybe we'll be back for her 101st!

OK, back to business.  I was at the bank in the drive thru the other day.  Driving by, my eye caught a nice looking buffet in the back of a truck.  I was watching where that truck was headed and I couldn't believe my eyes.  It was going to Goodwill!  I almost flew out of the drive thru without my money.  I couln't get out of there fast enough!

Well I got my cash, quickly parked my car and made a bee line to the donation center.  Since I was the first one to inquire about the buffet, I got it for $20...score!  This is what she looked like that day.  Pretty decent huh?

She has dovetailed drawers, original hardware and sexy legs!!  I chose a mixture of Annie Sloan paints to create a new color for her.  I gave her a light distressing, waxed her to perfection and lined her drawers with vintage sheet music.  Here is her new look...

Lately, the topic of distressing has come up.  In closing today, I have a question for you...

Do you prefer light distressing or heavy distressing?  I'd really like to know your thoughts on this.  Thanks for stopping by,,,Stay Shabby!  Julie

creativeblog.net



The Business of Bliss: Finding Your Passion

Years ago I happened across a beautiful book called The Business of Bliss: How to Profit From Doing What You Love, published by the editors of Victoria Magazine. Over the years the magazine included feature stories on women who'd walked away from ho-hum jobs to pursue their passions, turning them into full-time professions: a vintage bridal dress designer, a hatbox creator; a linen pillow maker; a family-owned and run bed & breakfast inn; and a quirky lover of eclectic designs that sparked the enormously successful world of Shabby Chic. The book is a collection of those stories, filled with amazing pictures chronicling some of these new and inspiring entrepreneurs.

It's always been my favorite feature of that magazine. Why? I realized not long ago I come from a long line of entrepreneurs on both sides of my family tree. It's in my blood. When motion pictures first appeared on the big screen, my grandfather saw an opportunity. He started a movie reel delivery business servicing the theaters of Chicago. When I was young, my dad left his boring desk job and bought a vending machine company from a friend (mostly gumball machines). Dad loved being on the go and working for himself, and he made his company a success for more than 36 years. And on and on, the legacies continued, as so many of my relatives learned the joy of doing something they loved and being their own boss.

But for many, it's much more than that. It draws from a place deep inside. I believe with all my heart God gives each and every one of us a passion for a reason. Whether it's providing a service for others in a specific niche market, or baking cookies or creating personalized bride and groom cake toppers, or capturing beloved pets in breathtaking watercolors - or refinishing old furniture into new, one-of-a-kind treasures . . . we all have something deep within us that yearns to be expressed. I can think of nothing sadder than living a lifetime without ever tapping into that passion.

For me, it's always been writing. But I waited much too long to realize that it was more than just a hobby. In the last couple years, I've finally - FINALLY - learned that the stories in my head and heart were put there for a reason. Just this week, a reader shared with me how God had opened her eyes to a truth in her own life after reading one of my novels. What a profound affirmation that I'm doing what I was made to do!

So what is YOUR passion? What creative yearning has been nudging you deep inside, waiting for a shot? Not sure? Need some inspiration? Do yourself a favor. Grab a glass of lemonade or a cup of tea and spend some time giving serious thought to those things that really light your fire and rev up your engines. Chances are, you'll find a passion that's ripe for expression. And who knows - it might even lead to a brand new business adventure!

Then what do you do? Three words: GO FOR IT!

Diane Moody, Guest Blogger
http://www.dianemoody.net/

 

Hannah's Desk

as i sit here this morning, second cup of coffee on my desk next to me, window open to another beautiful morning in mid-tn & today's post on my mind i need to pause a minute to give thanks for even being able to do this.

to see that in less than 2 months we have an awesome group of followers already just blesses us so much.

one of our first followers was my friend, diane, she has been a great support as we make our way into the blog world & has agreed to do a guest post on monday next week! we're so excited for you to meet her, it won't be another ho-hum furniture post, actually i don't know what her topic will be, but i know it will be good because writing is what she does...

her first novel, 'the runaway pastor's wife' was a favorite of julie & myself. if you'd like a sneek peak you can go to her website,http://www.dianemoody.net/ or her blog, just sayin'

so please come back on monday to see what she has to say you won't be disappointed...

diane sent me an email a few months ago, her daughter, hannah, was selling a desk/vanity was i interested? i think it's really a vanity, as the middle section opens up & there's mirror there, but i'm going to call it a desk because that's how i'm going to use it

it's a nice thomasville piece & it had already been painted, so all i needed to do was add my own touches.

i had just purchased a can of annie sloan 'country grey' chalk paint so i dry brushed some of that on leaving a good bit of the original color coming through....

used a dark glaze over the whole desk & added glass knobs

added some old sheet music to the bottom of the vanity space

& for now it's my computer desk 

it sits in our den behind the sofa  as one of my most favorite pieces in the house

thank you diane for sending me that email & thank you for being our first guest, can't wait to read your post on monday

julie is on her way back, she said that aunt athie had a fantastic 100th b'day & is well on her way to 101!

thank you for stopping by,

sharon

Ready for Paint

hi, we've been so blessed here in mid-tn these past few days to have cool mornings with almost no humidity, so i was inspired today to open up my garage door & get something done with all of the furniture in there...

i didn't get anything painted, but i got several pieces ready,

 hardware removed, drawers wiped out, wood-filler & some sanding where needed.

 as long as there isn't any major repair work needed i enjoy this part of working with furniture.

julie doesn't care for all of that she just wants to jump right in & paint, so we work well together & she'll be so happy to read that i got all of this done while she's celebrating her great-aunt's 100th birthday!

happy birthday aunt athie!

here's a look at a few pieces

we found this small hutch on craigslist, it's pretty beat-up but has so much potential

love this dressing table/vanity with this huge round mirror, i can see it painted a pale pink or yellow for a little girls room

this is probably my favorite piece, a small wardrobe amoire, on casters no less & look at the detailing, it's almost perfect. we'll probably have a couple of shelves made for the inside too, who wouldn't want this in their bedroom or bath?

 

if you live in the mid-tn area & are interested in buying any of these pieces contact us soon & you can choose the color & have your very own custom piece!

thank you for stopping by,

sharon