Happy, Happy, Happy

Today's post is brought to you courtesy of the Rolling Stones:

I have been a Stones fan since high school, mainly because they were my boyfriend*'s favorite band. This comes in handy now-a-days because my son also likes the Stones, so it's something we can both enjoy on the drive to school. And we turned up the volume today, because you only turn 15 once:

Happy Birthday, Jack Garrison -- faithful member of rhubarb reign's creative team and my all-around favorite son. It's gonna be a good day!

In addition to the birthday excitement, I have a bunch of things to be happy about today. Joe and I set a new sales record for December at Kane. WOW! Many, many thanks to all of our excellent customers for making that possible.

Sales were strong in all categories, from holiday handmades to furniture, big and small. Smalls did well, as did industrial. We didn't sell much art or paper this month, but blew through all of our Christmas. Excellent! We'll get to work tomorrow for Grayslake.

But until then, I'll be sippin' hot chocolate laced with these excellent marshmallows. If you have a Williams-Sonoma nearby, I suggest you stop reading right now and go get yourself a box. They are amazing, practically guaranteed to induce happiness.

And I'll be wearing this excellent new skirt, purchased from our friend and customer Cheryl Herman at Panache in St. Charles (IL).

(It is part of the Cutest Outfit Ever, which I'll be sporting tonight at Jack's party. Cheryl was nice enough to stay open Saturday so Joe and I (along with our pal Diane) could get a peek at her newly redesigned interior. It is stunning. Every bit as cool as Anthropologie, but much more personal. A smart blogger would have thought to bring her camera along. Hmmm. Guess I'll just have to go again in January (with Christmas money)! And to do a post. Wish I could figure out a way to visit all our customers' stores next year, so that I could share them with you. So much creativity out there! )

And I'll be turning up the Stones, working on Christmas cards and wrapping gifts. Happy, happy, happy! xo

*One of the many dangers inherent in small town life is that you have a greater chance of running into old boyfriends. Last time I saw this one in particular was at church a couple years ago. He looks EXACTLY the same, while I look like a green grape speeding towards raisin-hood. This is not a topic that can be included in my Happiness post, so we will cease discussion now. (:

KANE COUNTY THIS WEEKEND! COME SEE US!

Transformation Thursday: Lamp Base Christmas Trees

People know that we love to make things, so it's not uncommon for someone to come by with a bag or box of stuff that they couldn't bear to throw away, thinking we could surely use it. Case in point: a couple of years ago, a favorite customer came to a show with two bags of branches from a vintage Christmas tree. The base had long ago gone missing, but he figured (rightly!) that we'd think of something to do with the remaining pieces. As it turns out, we've used that windfall for several seasons, this year using vintage lamp parts for bases:

First, the lamps are disassembled and cleaned. Then, florist foam is cut and glued in place underneath. Depending on the size of the opening, a washer is epoxied to the top of the lamp base to hold the branch snuggly in place. Next, the branch is cut to size, using either wire cutters or a dremel. Last, vintage paper is attached underneath to cover the foam and stem:

To see more of this year's holiday projects, check out our friend Katie Palmer's site, SoBo Style Journal. To see more cool projects, click the button on our sidebar to visit this week's installment of Transformation Thursday. xo

Calling a Dealers: New Show in Town, Plus a Peek at the Midland Load

Calling all dealers: there's a new show in town! Zurko Promotions, of Grayslake and Wheaton fame, is now booking space for the first weekend in January.

Booth space for the new show, to be held in St. Charles (IL) at the DuPage Expo Center, is comparable in size and cost to Zurko's other shows, so what are you waiting for?! Get the new year off to a great start. Joe and I are psyched -- with Kane County on break in January, this is just the opportunity we were looking for. Come join us.

Back to November: hope everyone had a terrific Thanksgiving! On Saturday, we took the day and went to restock at Midland. We were really happy with this load; lots of interesting industrial pieces, plus groups of smalls that worked into logical vignettes:

Let's play store! Mannequins, hat blocks, display cases made this corner feel like an old department store.

Cool It! A great group of vintage fans -- all of which work.

Heavy Metal -- stacking bolt bins, fabulous film reels, vintage metal advertising pieces.

The parking lot was packed -- we were busy all day -- hauling, rearranging, pricing and chatting with customers. Whew! Today, we start work for Kane County. We'll have lots of great stuff -- furniture, industrial, smalls, plus tons of handmades and gift ideas for the holiday. Come see us! xo

HAPPY THANKSGIVING! We so appreciate your friendship and support.

Many Ports of Call

We just got back from an appointment at SoBo Style in Columbus, Ohio. The store looks fabulous -- all decked out in pink and silver for the holidays. Katie's clerk, Heather, made these pretty frosted roses -- don't they look tipped with a light dusting of snow?

The pink and silver holiday pieces were perfectly set against Katie's green walls and painted furniture. Her windows were adorable -- simple and striking -- with a handmade paper chain pulling everything together. Katie said mercury glass has been a huge seller again this season -- wouldn't it just make your holiday table?

She also has a terrific selection of Cody Foster -- I picked up a new piece for my collection. Katie called while we were on our way home to say that she'd just had her best Sunday in the eight years she's had the store. Excellent! You go, girl!! For more photos, check out Katie's blog and watch for details on her upcoming open house.

Last Monday, I was on my way to Chicago for a little face time with my BFF Kathleen Hughes. We went to see the Victorian photo collage exhibit, which was fascinating. I was glad that they had a catalog to go along with it, as the pictures are very intricate and detailed -- full of symbolism, which I love learning about. The catalog will give me more time to do just that.

Here's just one example: who knew that spider webs were common themes in Victorian photo collage? Seems kinda sinister, especially with the bats, but I gather that was not the implication. Don't see much of that on the scrapbooking shelves these days. I could do a whole post just on one or two of these pages. Stay tuned -- I'll come back to it.

The day before my trip to Chicago, we'd been at the Wheaton Antique Market. Although Wheaton is the smallest Chicago show we do, it was our biggest venue in November -- wow! Many thanks to our wonderful customers for turning out in force to support it.

Here's a peek at some of my favorite projects from the weekend -- Snow Day Mini-Photo Holders;

Fanfare Jewelry Displays, made from vintage lamp parts;

Aladdin Trees, again made from vintage lamp parts;

And this Enchanted Forest tree, a special order for one of our favorite clients -- I loved the glass ball and finial at the top. We sold merchandise in all categories at Wheaton and were delighted to see some of our wholesale furniture buyers, who were mostly absent from Kane and Grayslake. They've just been busy was their report -- again, good news.

I hate to end on a somber note, but I wanted to share this with you, as I'm still thinking about it. I was running late last Saturday, needing to get to the studio to finish the projects I just showed you. But Jack and I were decorating the front porch with flags. Not for a parade; this time for a funeral.

We were surprised and saddened to learn that one of the soldiers killed at Fort Hood was from our little town. Although we didn't know the family, we'd driven the same streets and walked the same halls. He was a neighbor. The motorcade for SSgt. Justin DeCrow would pass right in front of our house, and we wanted to let his family know our thoughts were with them.

The town turned out in full force to say good bye on a beautiful fall day that was eerily reminiscent of 9/11 -- remember how blue the sky was that day? He was only 33, with a wife and little boy. What a shame. Please remember them, and our other soldiers and veterans, in your Thanksgiving prayers. xo

Taking a Break -- Back Next Monday!