Recovering

Wow, what a busy time the last two months have been! It's hard to believe that the Evergreen Artisan Market has come and gone. It's time to reflect on what worked and what changes to make for next year.  Yes, I'm going to do it again!

Here is a picture of me at my booth. Unfortunately I didn't have the forethought to have someone take one at the beginning of the show, when I was all fresh and bright-eyed.  This picture was taken by my daughter at the end of the two days, all tired and ready to go home.

The biggest thing I learnt from my experience is that Prince Albert is not the place to sell my wreaths. So to rectify this, I'm busy trying to set up an Etsy Shop. I have been hesitating doing this for a while. I'm not sure why I've been hesitating, just scared I guess.  I just have to figure out the shipping and then my shop will be open for business.  I'll let you know when I get the courage to click that final OPEN button. 

Overall the Market was a great experience. I met some amazing people and made a little money. It's neat to think that some of my ornaments will be hanging in homes around town this holiday season. 

Evergreen Artisan Market

The Evergreen Artisan Market is only a week away! I have been extremely busy designing and building my display, and making product to fill it.  Since this is to be my first time selling my crafts I have little idea of what will sell. So I am trying to have a variety of things at different price points.  One of the hard things for me is to know when to stop. I have lots of ideas in my head but there is definitely no time to make all of them.  

My crafts have taken over my house.  Things are very messy but with the show getting closer I hope to shift my focus to finishing projects and cleaning up.  Everything needs to be packed up so it can be taken to the Rawlinson Center to set up next Friday.  Wow, November 7th is coming fast. 

Here are a few pictures of more products and a peek at the display I have set-up in my dining room.  This is not how things will be at the show but it gives you an idea of what I've been working on. If you are on FaceBook and/or Instagram follow me there for updates from the Evergreen Artisan Market. 

Fireplace

It has proven difficult to get good photos of my fireplace but here is a close-up before/after picture for you. I am very happy with the way that it has turned out. I can't wait to decorate it for Christmas. I have lots of ideas. I will try to get lots of pictures.

It

Product Photos

I've been busy designing my booth for the Evergreen Artisan Market. I've have a lot of ideas but time and money are going to play important roles.  I'm happy with how things are going but I'm going to have to try to be more productive over the next few weeks. The sale is only a month away!

The fireplace is pretty much done (just needs some dusting).  I hope to post some pics this week.

I put together a few promotional photos for the sale today.  What do you think?

Fireplace Makeover

I've been spending some time on Pinterest lately looking for inspiration to update my stairs. That's when I came across this image from thisoldhouse.com. 

Our fireplace already has a draft stopper installed so this should be easy! My husband is always eager to help me with my projects when they involve wood and the outdoors. He was excited about the project so we all piled in the car to go look for some logs. (Yes, his eagerness did surprise me as some projects go months or more without interest. Best not to question and just enjoy!) We found some great birch logs that had already fallen down but weren't rotting yet. My husband has been busy cutting them up and I have been busy painting.

I was starting to think that this project was going to be completed soon when my husband informed me that the wood is still a little wet. So we should let it dry for a couple of WEEKS. Yes, weeks, I was not ready for weeks. I'm going to get everything else ready and paint the stairs. When I'm ready to put everything back, hopefully the logs are dry enough to attach.

Here is a picture of our fireplace before to give you an idea of what I'm talking about. The green semi-circle is the draft stopper that I am painting black and attaching the logs to.  The brick is now white so I think it is just going to look fabulous!

Latest Wreath

I'm so excited about having my application accepted for a booth at this years Evergreen Artisan Market. It is to be held on November 7, 2014 here in town at the Rawlinson Center.  This will be my first craft show so I've been quite busy making my rolled paper roses.  To add some variety, I decided to experiment with adding colour. I decided on a teal watercolour paint to liven things up.  So what do you think? I think I love it! 

Summer 2014

It's hard to believe that summer is long over and winter is around the corner.  As a family we were so busy this summer it went by way to fast.  We didn't get many of the projects done around the house but we did make many memories that will be hard to forget. We were fortunate to have visits from family and friends that were filled with great conversations, laughter and giggles.  The girls and I have never been west of wherever we are living (with every move we seem to inch westward), which is Saskatchewan at the moment. So we spent a week at Elk Island National Park in Alberta and then later took two and a half weeks to drive through the rocky mountains and out to Vancouver Island.  I won't bore you with all the details but I think it was our best family vacation to date. I took hundreds of photos but will leave you with a few family selfies that were taken with my phone.

This one is of us on the ferry on the way to Vancouver Island.

Here we are on the way home, stopping to check out the Hoodoos in Alberta's Drumheller Valley.

 This one my youngest took at the Fisgard Lighthouse Historical Site just outside of Victoria, BC. 

It's my new favourite of us.