mentoring monday ..

there are so many people we meet along the way in this business who have helped us in one way or another. people who have showed us the way, taught us how to do things, allowed us to look at things with a different eye. i want to share with you a few of the ones i have met. the following is part of a series i want to write and welcome others to join in with their own stories.

he could have been a dead ringer for my father. that is the one thing that stands out most for me about harold. my father had passed away in the late spring of 1992. we met harold in the waning summer months of the same year. we rented a booth at canton in the new pavillion 3. (when the creek was still a creek). being a hot summer day and us being who we were, (we always meant to arrive early, but always ran later than wanted or expected) we arrived late in the evening. he startled me as he walked across the empty concrete floor in his overalls and ball cap ( 2 items my father wore frequently). for a split second, i honestly thought i was hallucinating.

we came to learn that harold was married to a sweet sweet woman named clauda. i am unsure of their exact ages, but i think they were close to the same age as rod and i. it was quite obvious their love was the lasting type. they were in it for the long haul. they were a team. they dealt in coca cola items ... later in cast iron .. and later in artificial fruit.. along the way harold tinkered and reworked things they found and things he made. he made some beautiful tables. they had some incredible cupboards from time to time. they lived in athens. they were part of a group of us that set up at canton in pavillion 3 during the 80s and 90s.

what harold taught me... he taught me that it would be a good canton weekend if the final payday of the month fell on the thursday or friday of that canton. he taught me to give my junk importance. he taught me to move things in the booth around. and he coined the phrase that in my opinion pre-dated shabby chic - his term for the type of primitive, rusty, crusty, painted up, chipped around type of furniture was - 'chickenhouse chippendale'. i love that.

rod and i stopped doing canton when ebay began. we lost contact with harold and clauda. we heard that he passed away. but he will always be part of our experience of learning and growing in regards to flea marketing and junking in general. i am grateful to have known them both.

handle solution ..

i had this old metal chest of drawers that i painted white. the original handles were missing and no matter what i found, nothing seemed to look 'right' with the piece. as i have said before, i find a lot of inspiration in nature. well, i was doing a morning walk and happened to look down and see a flat rock - well, guess what?... tell me what you think...i kind of like it..

some of this, some of that ..

do people still buy beaded fruit? found this in one of the suitcases. didn't even realize it had it and don't remember buying it ..



jar of cars.. had all these old matchbox and tootsie toy cars and didn't think any of them were really worth that much on their own .. had this gallon glass jar .. put the two together.. i think its a neat look ..i don't know how many i stuffed in there .. shook it a few times and pushed some more in .. i probably should have counted them .. maybe i will and create a contest ..



unpacked a lot of picture frames .. i have been picking those up when i see them priced reasonable enough to resell .. i just kind of like the way they look all topping the wicker table here .. i know i have more frames somewhere in one of the boxes .. how i know.. you see the frame with the rounded corners, the one behind the lucite one with the blue flowers? the one with the kind of yellow coloring and rust flowers? i have at least four more in varying sizes just like that ..and i tended to pack like with like .. so i know there is at least one more box of picture frames..



lastly, anyone want to take a guess as to what this is? i found this one morning several years ago on a walk and have kept it thinking it was kind of cool .. it took me a while to realize what it was .. but i hung onto it because i thought it could be used in a collage or something .. so, take a guess ..

gathering ..

i have been picking up lone suitcases here and there .. i like suitcases .. especially the old grasscloth suitcases .. i got them all rounded up today .. i think i have enough for a good showing .. i also have a lot of baskets of different sizes and shapes ..my favorite suitcases are the ones at the bottom left hand of the stack .. and there is a round black faux alligator hat case that is pretty cool ...more stuff to come .. going back to the warehouse this evening to sort and price some more .. also setting up my sewing area so i can get busy sewing some things .. by monday .. also set up our workout area so we can get back to doing our cardio exercises .. and made room for our bowflex ..was a busy morning ..laterz, troy

White Wednesday ...

i wanna play ... i am hoping you don't have to be invited to play White Wednesday .. don't know where the idea originated, but think it is fun and it has always been inspiring ..my friend, Diane of waco decorated this condo with a friend of hers .. the condo belongs to the friend and is located in Grand Cayman .. this is of the master bedroom .. the entire condo is in shades of white .. i love what they did with the master .. love the pair of lamps beside the bed..

i actually remember a time when white was considered daring - it wasn't unusual to hear comments like 'love the white sofa, but who would want it in the living room?'.. white has come a long way .. used to be when you found a great old primitive cupboard or cabinet, painted white - you almost couldn't contain yourself until you could get home and take your secret paint stripping recipe and get all that old paint off and let the natural beauty of the texas pine or midwest oak shine through..and the thought of painting a piece of wood furniture white - never - i have been painting and distressing and loving painted furniture for almost 20 years now - i remember when rachael ashwell made it famous and gave it a name -
we had another name for it, but that is a story that involves another and a tale all on it's own - and i will share it later..

so white is where we are .. it seems .. i like using white when i can .. using other accent pieces for bursts of color allows me to change the look and feel of a space with ease.. i have also stepped back and begun to reconsider the piece of furniture .. for instance, i found a wonderful victorian era walnut pedestal table.. it has a single column support with four scrolled legs coming off the center support, a round top that lets the sides drop to make the table rectangular shape - anyway, it is wonderful.. honestly, i first thought when i found it was 'oh, this will look great painted white'.. now the more i look at the piece and as we work on re-gluing the legs and our hands are touching and feeling the piece, i just don't think she wants to be white - i think she wants to stay as she is .. and that is how i am bringing her to Zapp..

my favorite white - that i myself created - my first slipcovers - made them almost 10 years ago - they were white cotton duck - a cute little pleated ruffle across the short skirt and up the sides and across the top - sold them real quick at warrenton .. laterZ ..

pricing ...

do people buy belt buckles? somehow .. i haven't the foggiest notion how .. i have accumulated a large collection of belt buckles .. taking them to Zapp .. priced very reasonable .. of course ..i also ended up .. somehow .. with a sizable handful of those metal folding hand fans with asian themed art work .. ended up pricing them a buck a piece and found a cute container to aid in their display ...

so i got a question ...and i am looking for opinions ...i am torn on what to do with this cute little french styled chair..the upholstery is torn and a little frayed .. i could re-upholster, but never sure if the fabric is something someone will want .. so thinking about just leaving it like it is and pricing it reasonable and then if it doesn't sell, look at re-doing it .. should i leave it as is, or re-upholster it?

we got pretty far today.. there were a lot of things we sorted through that didn't really require anything done in order to sell.. so we started a new pile of things we could sell just as it was ...just price it.. these will be going to warrenton ...the little caned french style folding screen is adorable ...and the gold painted candle stands are great also .. the mass of bubble wrap on the table is a super hand made curly-que corner wall shelf that is larger than any i have ever seen..


i set up 4 shelves and one i labeled - canton - 1 i labeled - warrenton - 1 is labeled - ebay and the last is labeled - garage sale. so as i am sorting through the boxes and crates, i am sorting where it should be sold. ebay is mostly paper stuff and tiny smalls - like good jewelry and the like - canton is stuff that is kind of fun but might not be something i want to take to warrenton - and warrenton is the stuff that is both fun and funky and just out and out great - i am trying not to get too much into smalls that are breakable - but who knows what is going to want to go (my stuff talks to me and it is all very excited about zapp hall) oh and garage sale is the nascar stuff i seem to accumulate - so after sorting through as many crates and boxes as i could today - i ended up with a total of 3 crates - priced and packed and ready for warrenton -

it's too early in the evening to be pooped.. but i think i am ..laterz

balance ...

i think finding a balance in what we attempt to accomplish in life is one of the most rewarding pursuits .. for me that balance is with nature .. i think .. i am invigorated when i see something as beautiful as the sunset .. as quiet and calm as the summer winds over the trees .. the way they dance across the tops of the oak and pecan of texas .. the silhouette of the day falling into slumber .. the marking of evening .. i love that time of day .. when supper is either been had or being fixed .. and we do fix supper down here ..i can see fall in the air .. i know the good is upon us ..
we started 'the sort' today. i spent a lot of time 'fiddlin' - trying to make sense of the endless trinkets and do dahs i have managed to rescue. i decided instead of sorting them all out and placing each in a small bag and pricing it some small price - i would go big - i am going to set it all aside and use the little pieces and bits to create something big and noticeable - something that says 'look at me' - something that won't get lost and hopefully won't chance a destiny of landfill abandon.
balance.

finding a way ...

finally got everything moved - all in one place - all awaiting transformation or just waiting approval as it sits and to be priced and repacked and transferred to a new home, a new owner, a new caretaker. we have almost completely filled 4800 sq feet. i hang my head in shame at my inability to allow anything i consider useful to litter the landfills. i strut with pride the gift God has granted us, the creative juices to transform the items that cross our paths. sometimes it feels like a curse to pass an odd shape stone in the road and have to fight the desire, no need, to pluck it from its surroundings and transform it into something others will appreciate and seek to display.
i have many things in store to share with you and i hope you will ride this journey with rod and i. i promise i will always have something to say. and i will share some interesting thoughts and creative ideas with you.
i have some series ideas coming up.
for now, take a peek at some of the things that fill our warehouse. we are considering doing one show in the un-reserved section at canton and then we will be at Zapp Hall in Warrenton. i believe that rod may also be setting up with some friends behind das blue haus in warrenton. so we are having a time deciding who gets to take what - i'm thinking a little girlie, a little shabbie, a little white at Zapp and more primitive, rustic, texas with rod. we'll see and trust.
this week we tackle unpacking the boxes and crates. also going to get some painting of furniture done and maybe some lampshades recovered. i got some things listed on ebay tonight. and my sister might be having surgery in the middle of the week down in temple. so lots lined up. but did i mention how happy i am to be doing what i love to do? i am.

lifes pieces ..

sometimes it's not what you think it will be - life that is -

got most everything packed - now it's about getting it moved - we rented a large warehouse - 4800 sq ft - and will be staying with my older sister who is scheduled for some upcoming surgery - excited about getting to work on things again - nervous about what will sell and what won't - will i get it priced at a reasonable enough price to sell and good enough for me to make a profit - those things you think about - at least i do -

kind of feel like pieces today - a piece of that and a piece of this - nibbled on food all day - heard bits and parts of conversations - watched portions of shows as i packed - just a piece-y kind of day - say it real slow and with a deep southern drawl - yeah, there ya go -

so, you know what i mean -

here is a table top rod made - made from bits and pieces of painted wood - used an old bar pedestal table as the base - can't wait for him to do more -

laterz, troy

see how i put the Z in that?

brand new day ..

same me .. same you ... different town .. different view

what a great way to start anew ... heard from cheryl at zapp hall today via email .. she will find a spot for us .. so excited .. we should have everything moved into our warehouse by next weekend and we can start sorting and pricing and getting things ready for warrenton.. i will be adding pics as i can to let you see what we have for the show ... first zhow on the list though is canton, we are going to try and get in somewhere in canton for the end of august here .. think we will mostly take stuff to move quickly and get out of the way ...

what will i be bringing to zapp? not zure, yet - have a great tufted barrel ztyle 1920z deco tub chair with awezome wood trim - zome beautiful brazz frilly sconzez - (ok, i am going overboard with the z's - but i am so excited with the news - i am going to be at ZAPP HALL!) - also, some great mirrors, a super wonderful industrial table that would make a killer island - another industrial piece that i used for storing quilts - oh, the quilts too - i don't know yet the size of the space - cheryl just assured me i/we (i do have a partner, his name is Rod - i forget him sometimes) that we were in - what i plan to do, depending on the size of the booth - go in dress it up and then bring more stuff as needed to replenish the booth during the show - yeah, that is what i am going to have to do - people are going to be buying like crazzzzzy! oh and i have tons and tons of trunkets and do dahs - lots of things for 'sussies' - some pretty pieces of china - lots of things with roses, some stoneware - a gorgeous stoneware tureen - all of which you will see pics of in the weekz to come -

i will see about adding some pics of the storage rooms i will be sorting through for the show - but once i get it all back from where it started over 10 months ago - i will get you some good pics of stuff to really and truly excite you -

we now have 4800 sq ft in which to sort and create - yeah!