Everyday Beauty

Sunday Kitchen

I was in the kitchen this morning photographing some new products, and I just got a little carried away. I knelt down on the floor next to kitchen table and took a picture of my morning cofffee and journal. And the hyacinths I cut from the garden. A simple centerpiece that perfumes the whole house.

A pile of our napkins.

A stack of teacups on a shelf. Along with an egg I kept for myself. {since I didn't keep any last year, my basket was looking pretty sad!}

Looks a bit fuller this year.

These are the ruffles on some prize ribbons I have to put away with inventory. Still sitting on the kitchen table. I WILL put these away today. The goal is to clear off the counters today. It's a tall order!

Aprons hanging on the wall.

Let us not forget the beautiful refrigerator art. W is the letter of the week, didn't you know?

I made some more bookmarks and I think I'll sell a bunch. They, too, are on the kitchen table. It's a wonder we can eat there.

I'll package them in One Hundred Wishes cotton pouches.

I'll spare you the other kitchen photos... {dirty dishes, bananas smashed in Sam's high chair, etc.} You're welcome!

I hope your week is off to a lovely start!

A Dozen Eggs

Hi Girls! If you're interested, the Fancy Ostrich Eggs I made will be listed in my shop at 4:00 EST today. They're a little foofier than the ones I made last year. I was in the mood for fluff and just couldn't stop! There are a dozen of them.

  

I also have a few more of the Nicol Sayre large nested eggs that I sold last Easter. They're trimmed with crepe paper ruffles and just as pretty as they can be.

 

And Easter flash cards are back too. All of this will be available at 4:00.

Thanks!

Daily Candy

 

Pretty exciting stuff! The Everywhere edition of Daily Candy is all about One Hundred Wishes today! It seems they found the prize ribbons I had custom made for the shop, and wanted to feature them!

This is pretty cool. I've been a Daily Candy subscriber since I lived in NYC {way back when}, but never thought I would have a shop that would actually be featured! Didn't even cross my mind. You just never know.

Click here to read what they had to say {in their always-humorous Daily Candy way}.

If you'd like to subscribe and get a piece of Daily Candy in your Inbox every morning, click here to see all of the fun options. {I subscribe to the Kids edition,  Daily Candy Deals, the Everywhere edition and also the Washington D.C. edition.}

I was trying to downsize and simplify and slow down....really, I was. And still am. But apparently there is a greater plan out there that we can't always control. I'll just roll with it, taking each day....

Today I feel lucky, grateful and happy.

Diary of a Shop Owner

If you've stopped by the shop since I reopened on Wednesday, you've probably noticed some sales. There have been quite a few emails from inquiring customers, so I guess it's time to talk. I've always been an open book.....why stop now?  Here's the honest-to-goodness truth.

When I laid the plans for One Hundred Wishes, 2 years ago, I envisioned a shop with unique and beautiful items for creative customers. In my mind, I saw myself puttering around in my studio making pretty things and once or twice a week sitting down to pack a few orders. I thought it would give me the best of both worlds, getting to stay home with my children while still having my own little "thing". I never did it for money. I did it purely for pleasure and the pursuit of a long-time dream.

Well, the truth is, never in my wildest dreams did I imagine it would grow to become what it has. And quite simply, as grateful as I am, it's become more than I ever wanted it to be. Keeping the shop fresh and interesting consumes an incredible amount of time, and I'm just not willing to give up precious minutes with my family any longer. So, it's time to slow down this ride (where are the brakes?) and scale back considerably. I am not closing up shop, just downsizing and keeping the best of the best. My very favorite things.

I will continue making jewelry, and there are some other creative plans swirling in my head and written in my journal as well. All in time. There is no rush, no time line. It's all about doing what feels right. And right now, I gotta tell ya, this feels very right. It's been a long time coming.

I want to play more with my boys. And sit on the couch watching movies with my husband after we put the kids to bed. I want to bake more. And create more. And relax more. And clean my house better. And do more yoga. And I can't wait to work in the garden and have Mario there digging by my side. And I want to have free time to meet friends for lunch and catch up. I want to enjoy these days, because I know how quickly they will fly right by me if I don't make the conscious decision to savor every moment. Sam is so big. When did he get so big?? Was I packing orders while he was growing? Was I too stressed out to notice that Mario doesn't want to play trains alone. He wants to play with me. And I want to play with him. Because someday he won't want to play with me. Right now, I'm his best friend. He told me so. And I want to bake {not buy} every birthday cake for George, Mario and Sam from now until forever. Not because I have to, but because I want to.

So, there you have it. The raw truth. I hope I don't come across as sad in this post, because I am as happy as can be! I feel like a huge weight has been lifted off my shoulders. It feels like everything has come into a very clear focus for me. Those of you who are close to me know this has been on my mind for such a long time. It's so good to set it free. Simplify.

I have also decided {after much consideration} that I will no longer be shipping orders internationally. For domestic orders, I ship everything through USPS Click N Ship, right from my front porch. But, international orders require additional paperwork and trips to the post office with the kids in tow, several times a week. I have greatly appreciated every international order I've ever received and want to say a big thank you to each one of my faraway customers and friends. Orders have been shipped to South Africa, Italy, Malaysia, England, Peru, Canada, France and everywhere in between. How amazing the Internet is. Thank you for your support and your loyalty. It truly means so much to me.

Whew. I'm long-winded today! Glad I got all of those thoughts out though.

So, what does all of this have to do with these pictures of pretty velvet strawberries? A fair question, I would say! I purchased these handmade berries for my shop late last year, and they arrived in the mail this week. One last shop update for a while....and a very pretty one I think! These strawberries were handmade by one of my customers, Kimber Van Heukelom. Each one is topped with hand-dyed wool and dotted with seed beads. Kimber also made the adorable tuffet with the tiny berry emery. As you can see, she does beautiful work. I love them and I love that they are handmade.

There are a limited number of these strawberries in the shop now, and I also put one aside to do a fun little giveaway. If you'd like the chance to win a velvet strawberry, leave your name and email address and I'll draw a name on Monday!

You can also contact Kimber directly for special orders. (515) 993-4005 or tkhook@msn.com

Happy Weekend everyone! Don't forget to make it count. Thanks for reading this far....lol....

xoxoxoxoxoxo Andrea

Vintage Trinket Bracelets

 

There are 5 new bracelets just listed in the shop. For this collection, I used some old pearl and beaded bracelets, and I think the variation is so pretty. I can see it's time for a flea market run....I'm getting low on trinkets and am itching to make more!

Trinket Treasures

 

Hello Jewelry Junkies! As you can see from this picture of my desk, I've been busy assembling more Vintage Trinket Jewelry and should have it listed in the shop sometime on Monday. I wish I had time to make one for each person who has emailed or called with a bracelet request, but unfortunately I just don't. Hopefully, some of the pieces I've been working on will tickle your fancy.

 

Have a lovely weekend!

Seam Binding Sell-Off

I've decided that I no longer wish to sell seam binding, and I have just listed all of the remaining stock in my shop by the spool {$14 for a complete 100 yard spool}.There are limited quantities remaining, and when it's gone it's gone! Click here to shop.

  
P.S. because I know I'll get questions form customers wondering why..... It's very time-consuming to measure and cut and bundle. Over the weekend, I went through and added up all of the orders I've placed with the seam binding wholesale company and discovered that I have measured, cut and bundled tens of thousands of yards of seam binding since my shop opened. Holy cannoli! It's just time to move on, baby!

'Tis the Season

 

Well, today, Black Friday, marks the official beginning of the Christmas season. I must be honest, you generally won't find me out shopping on Black Friday. Crazy traffic and crazy lines! But I'll happily shop from home today. If you're like me, one of those content-to-be-in my-warm-house-eating-leftover-turkey-sandwiches-in-my-jammies type shoppers, you may be in luck. I've spent the past 2 weeks adding over 50 new items to the shop. Click here to shop to your heart's content {from the comfort of your cozy chair} Some of the new items include....

Three new Wendy Addison glass glitter door swags:  Merry Christmas, Noel and Believe.

  

This pretty address book, full of vintage-style decorating photos.

    

This Flea Market Finds Journal is a really fun way for die-hard Flea Marketers to document their finds. It's loaded with beautiful photographs and pages of ideas for cleaning, storing and displaying vintage treasures. It also includes pages of flea market directories and sections throughout the book  to record your ideas, wish lists, vintage purchases and much more. Love this!

 

It's divided into sections.

Here is a picture from the inside of the journal:

 

And another one:

 

And there is also a new Greeting Card Organizer. Mine's already all full of cards to have ready for birthdays throughout the year. With places to write each upcoming birthday and pockets to store cards month by month, there's no excuse if you forget! :)

Back in the Summertime when I ordered the journals and address books, I also ordered these giftable Note Card Sets in tins. {in 4 different designs: Cupcakes, French Home, Stilettos and Country Flowers}. I'm thinking teacher gifts....

 

New Splendid Sweets include the Gourmet Candy Canes shown above and these delicious fruit-flavored pastel candies from England.

 

Vintage Sweetheart Pins {I found loads of old unused stock. Aren't these the best?}

 

Vintage Sweet Heart Charms.

Sweet 16 Charms. {I don't know what it is, but I love the whole nostalgic idea of a Sweet 16 party.}

 

Pink Velvet Rose Ring Boxes. {All good words}

Three new glass glitter colors. {Peony Pink, Strawberry Red & Limeade}

 

New Satin Sentiments ribbon {in 3 colors}, printed with Joyeux Noel.

 

Christmas Flash Cards with fun and festive words.

 

Victorian Style Hand Clips in silver....

 

...and also in antique brass.

This Feathered Heart Hook. {As a lover of both hearts and feathers/wings, I just had to buy these!}

 

Gold Dresden Christmas Trees {and silver ones too}.

 

Silver Dresden Wreaths.

 

There's actually more, but I won't go on and list each and every item here. You can click the What's New page for a glimpse.

I hope you have a wonderful weekend! And may it be the perfect commencement to the Christmas season!

 

 

Prom Pretty

 

I'm getting so excited about the Silver Bella Prom!  My friend Holly was sweet enough to let me borrow her fabulous flea-market-found vintage prom dress. Layers of pink poofy tulle and ruffles....what more could a girl want?

I've got a crinoline all fluffed up and ready to go, thanks to a friend of a friend who let me borrow one. I think I'm going to need an extra suitcase just for the gown and slip!

 

And I figured since this is The Prom, after all, I should go all out. I even have a sash to wear on vendor night!

 

Since the Miss America Pageant is not in my future {sadly}, this is surely the only time in my life I'll ever wear a sash. I just couldn't resist...

  

What fun we're all going to have at the prom! I can't wait to see what everyone wears and how the event unfolds. I'm sure Teresa has so many fun things in store!

Things I Accomplish When the Shop is Closed

 

This mini shop break I'm taking has been quite productive! Boy, did I ever need this time to regroup and recharge. I've been puttering around creating little vignettes in my home and studio. {something I could easily get carried away doing all day long if certain sweet little boys didn't keep me on track.}

It's been fun gathering trinkets to use in my Silver Bella workshops.

And I even baked Natalea's Chocolate Sheet Cake. {and unwisely ate 50% of the pan myself. It's so delicious, although not so good for the waistline...oh well! Yum is an understatement, girls.}

Been photographing lots of new items for One Hundred Wishes. Like this sneak peek below {which is my new favorite thing and I can't wait to show you!}:

And this:

And this:

And I've even been making jewelry. I know! It's been a while, huh?

And I crafted a couple little paper projects too.

 

There is still so much more to do this week, so I guess I'd better get busy!