Viva's Winter Wonderland

And so it began.... I want to hang the kick sled and the sumac I spent days in the barn painting white, hung from the ceiling.

Thanks goodness for such "can do" help!!

I could never pull this off without them

Carol gave me the really great idea of transforming this antique drying rack into a Christmas tree.

Any kind of faux greenery that comes in has to be "fluffed", as we like to say.
Here's Dianne fluffing away before her fingers started bleeding!

Little elves everywhere!

This is an old horse shoe that I decorated.... there is a tiny little blue bird button on the right, and the saying is "and the third was filled with kisses...".

A very busy picture of the "tree".

Very pretty mercury bells lavished on the vanity.

A silver tray full of tiny ornaments.

This was my favorite project. I took old lampshades, took off the ugly fabric, andglued them together for another type of "tree".

We've been collecting old crystal salt and pepper shakers and have decorated them with vintage items, wired and hung them. So charming.

Paper lanterns, snowflakes, penguins and white sumac (on the ceiling) really set a mood.

A very sweet tree already lit and ready to go. Hey, check out the new wallpaper! I found a bunch of vintage National Geographic Maps and wallpapered them behind our restaraunt ware.

Old rollerskates and gingham ribbon... How did we ever skate in these? My sister and I zoomed up and down the alley behind our house at great speeds! Remeber hitting the little pebbles? Over and out!

While they are a little hard to see, there are wings on the candles. So cute, they have little spikes that you can just push into any candle. Love, love the sparkly birds.

Old cherry pails that we put chalkboard paint onto.

Paperwhites and more chalkboard paint on a gorgeous old galvanized planter.

Penguin in charge of the Lepi soap.

These penguins are in charge of Sarahs cupcakes.... how about those hats?

Here we go!!!! Hang on!

Any of you driving by noticed we papered the windows.... some were worried we were shutting down! Nope, just hoping to surprise!

We had a great time, were busy busy and thank you all for the support and kind words.

One more thing, Small Town Vintage was fantastic. Frankly we were so busy that we only go a couple of pictures in on the day of. I will have Katie send me some pictures of her work and let you enjoy!

Taking a Break and Naming Names

I'm taking a mental break from the Winter Wonderland event to share something that just made me laugh and smile.

I came across this great image and could not resist posting it. I found this on a blog that gives away free graphics.... I'll go back and post the name of the blog later.

So, I'm thinking that this picture speaks volumes about those of us who are serious about our junking, garage sales, flea markets and dumpster diving.

I love the bucket turned upside down, handle behing the neck and the cascades of flowers that have been attached to give it that "special" look.

What really made me smile was when I thought to myself "I would so wear that!"

Then I smiled even further when I put a list together of people I know that would also wear this special hat.

I have deleted last names as to protect their privacy.... hee hee....

Carol, Julie, Heather, Jen, Joan, Debbie, Theresa, Katie, Megan, Jeanine, Kellie, Erin, Beth, Kay, Pilar, Lori, Teresa, Diane, Pat, Martha, Amanda, Dianne... as well as lots of you who come through my shop who's faces I am well familiar with, but names are foggy.

They are used to my get ups when I go through the line at the Pig, but this might raise a few eyebrows!

Actually, there are so many of us that I'm thinking that for Fall Fest next year we should have our own place in the parade... hey, maybe we could even toss out some ping pong balls...

Hugs to you all!

The Big Reveal

Viva will be shutting our doors Oct. 21,22 and 23 to utterly transform the shop into a Winter Wonderland! Be sure to mark you calendars for Oct 24th when we will reopen, after the dust has settled and all of the elves are gone, straight up 10 am!

We have lots of surprises in store and two very special guests. Katie, from Small Town Vintage will be presenting her newest treasures and handmade items, and Sarah from Flour Girl Patissiere will be presenting her very special cupcakes for you to enjoy with a cup of tea while you browse

Of course, 10% of the day's sales will go to HELP of Door County which is an organiztion that helps local families in crisis.

I do hope you can attend this event.... it's like nothing else we do!

Stay tuned....

Round Top, Texas and the Queens

Look at this woman.  I can hardly stand her.  (It's due to an extreme amount of envy).

 Look at this vest.  It is made from vintage lace.  This is a friend of mine, of whom I'm very jealous.  She had an adventure, and in the world of retail, was in HOLLYWOOD! 

Keep reading, at the bottom of this post I'm going to give you a link to daydream over... even the music will perk you up.

Here she is again, one of my favorite treasure hunters and display queens with  THE Round Top Queen.

Jeanine, on the left, has her own company called Chippy Shabby.  You may have seen her or bought one of her treasures at the Viva Vintage Market, or one of the other many shows she is a vendor at.  Jeanine is always on the go and is a treasure hunter/junker expert.

I have been to Round Top and am here to tell you that there is no better place to treasure hunt and drool over displays that are CRAZY over the top.  

The Round Top show itself is quite high end and eye popping (prices and displays).  But once you've explored that section, and come back to your senses, you venture on down the road where literally hundreds of vendors are set up and the bargains abound.

The lady on the right is Robin, aka The Magnolia Pearl, maker of the vest as well as everything you see in the picture.   I'm not sure how to define Robin's work.  It's always different, but it's always wearable art.  You may have seen her featured more than once in Country Living Magazine.  On one of my visits to Texas, I came across some handbags she had made out of antique tapestries.  I wanted one so badly, but thought it would be wiser to make my car payment that month.  

Everything that Robin makes is from antique and vintage materials.  I don't think I have ever seen such a creative use of vintage materials.  I'm in awe of Magnolia Pearl and what she has created.  I have been for years.

To see exactly what she does, go to www.magnoliapearl.com and you are surely in for some fantasy.  I wonder what they would think of me at the Piggly Wiggly if I walked in wearing one of her outfits and donning a special back pack.  If I had those pieces, I'm sure I wouldn't care!

Thanks, Jeanine for sharing your pictures, and send us more!

Now, go and drool.

I have so much to tell you!  But before I do that, I am off!  Junkers beware!  I have a free Saturday and am heading two hours South and working my way back.  Most of what I'm looking for will be for our most special show at the end of the month.

I can't wait to show you pictures of my friend Jeanine who was just at the Round Top Show in Texas.  If you like to flea market, this is the dream flea.  In Round Top it is as much about display as it is selling.  And there are characters that abound!  She is sending me pictures as soon as the dust settles and if you need some decorating and displaying inspiration ... stay tuned!

I'm off!  Have a Great Saturday!