Sheba and the new babies

It has been so hard around here getting everything done with the new babies, Esme and "that other cat." No one has been able to settle on a name for him because he defies all of us and photo opportunities as well. We have tried,"Calvin,Boo Radley,Fanta,Red,and Rusty." Nothing fits. He is such a little fireball too, acting shy one moment and then totally going after poor Sheba, who is having the hardest time getting used to these little babies. She just wants to love them or eat them to death.Hopefully soon he will get a name and maybe we'll be able to get another photo of him. He is so cute!

No Sleep Til Brooklyn, Brooklyn- Etsy Trashion Trunk Show

I've been on a caffeine fueled journey the past few nights trying to get everything together to send to the Etsy Labs for the Trashion Trunk Show happening this Friday night, July twenty something and keep up with all of my orders.
I decided to make a bunch of limited edition cuffs to send as special swag for those who show up early to make the event memorable.
This is the first edition entitled "Creme Brule." I am hoping to also get out a group caleed "Oysters Rockefeller." Wish me luck!

Meet Esme (white with spots) and Calvin (orange)

Our neighbor Joette MacBride has been pretty busy running a no-Kill shelter of her own since the Big K. It is not uncommon for Joette to have more than 20 cats running around in her Victorian shotgun home or have cages full of wee ones basking in the sun light of her back porch on some of these almost cool July days.

We walked over to visit the other day and found ourselves adopting Esme and Calvin. Who could resist? Joette and her friend Vonda recently trapped and rescued ten kittens from a school that was being torn down post K.They trap and nurse cats back to health and then get them spayed or neutered. Kittens are adopted out and they often keep the big cats until a home can be found. They often release the Momma cats to their original domains after they have been spayed and given shots.

We were just going to keep ESme as a friend for Estelle but we realized that Esme needed a friend her own age to play with. Also, supposedly male orange tabbies are supposed to be super sweet.

Thrifting in the Mississippi Delta

After returning home from a visit to the Mississippi Delta, I discovered a bit of a snafu with my camera and had lost almost all of my pics except for this lovely tractor.Undaunted, I tried to look up some of the shops I had visited in person to see if they had an online presence.Not to be, but, it seems Lucky Magazine has also discovered some of my haunts ( and the antiques shop where I used to have a booth).
So you must check it out:
http://www.luckymag.com/cityguides/oxford_ms

I Love the mustard Seed for the unusual quality of linens you can purchase there which you simply just cannot seem to find anymore. I also discovered this hidden secret:
http://www.brockauction.com/

The Brock Auction Company operates a storefront in an abandoned Walmart on Highway 61 in Batesville, Mississippi. Many of their leftovers from Auctions can be found here. Check out Brocks for their furniture. Should have brought the TRUCK!

Thrifting in St. Tammany Parish, Covington Louisiana

On of the good things to come out of the storm was that I had to work quite a few days in Covington Louisiana. Right as you veer off the highway and turn into downtown historic Cov., is a fabulous Goodwill Store on your right, behind Rouse's Supermarket.
I had the good fortune to visit on my way to the Mississippi delta for fourth of July festivities and the store didnt disappoint. This Goodwill is an absolute must for anyone furniture shopping in the area.My recent visit yielded two old singer sewing machnes - the cast iron ones, several sets of dining room chairs, and the above featured sofa and chairs. I wasnt about to displace my dog to drag some of this loot home, but I was sort of tempted.
Another thing I love about Goodwill is that they take all credit cards. And they have decent hours - 9am to 7 pm , Monday through Saturday and 12-5 on Sunday. These people know how to conduct business too. You are allowed to leave your furntiure there for three days until you can get a truck to move it.
But you have to go to this store DAILY to get the good stuff. Antique and junktique dealers are also there every day checking the deals, so get their early and often.
p.s. DONT visit here for clothing unless you want a vintage coat. The clothing is very picked over and not very stylish, IMO.

Working on the house...the (long) road home

I never thought it would take us almost two years after Katrina to start rebuilding the studio.The studio is the main reason we bought this house so that we would have a safe place to store all of our art stuff and get to work.It just seems to daunting. I have embarked on a massive destash mission in order to focus on all that needs to be done and you can see the tender beginnings of that in my etsy shop. My home chores are as follows: sand and prime the bathroom in the main house, tear out the sheetrock in the upstairs studio bathroom,get the old tiles up off the floor in the studio, start banging all of the nails out of the cypress weather board on the facade. We have to find a cement company and hire an electrician. And will another storm come along while we are doing all of this? heaven only knows!It seems so much until you hear about people who are still in their FEMA trailers.I think I might start FEMA trailer applique.

Home Renovation Blues

This is but a mere blip of all that we need to have stored to continue renovations. I cannot believe what Heather was able to accomplish in this scant sixty foot space.She is a true organizational genius. Good thing, because without her I'd have to have three storage units.We are unable to get into the attic at this time due to an incident with an overweight AC inspector and some aging attic stairs.Thus, this space entered our lives.And it is lovely.

All you can see is one side- the other is free,super free space to put more stuff. We can spread west like manifest destiny. Meanwhile I am having a super destash sale at my rustchic shop to get rid of fabric.There isnt enough time in the day to photograph all of this fabric. If you have any special request, shoot me a line and I'll look. As long as it is vintage, I've got it, sho nuff.