Homegrown Hootin-annie's Fall Festival

I have an exciting announcement to make, but FIRST, I'd love to share some pictures with you of the fabulous Visions of Paris event held 2 weeks ago at Zona Rosa in Kansas City. The first three are vignettes from my own space.




Some of Jill's woooonnnnnderful handmade soap creations.

A small sampling of the many other multi-talented vendors' spaces.




All of these photos are courtesy of Jill at Bittersweet & the Little Soap Co.You can visit Jilly here.

I'll have news soon of another event coming in November at Zona Rosa. But the real news of the moment, and what is consuming all of my time, energy and thoughts, is a not-to-be-missed, fun and festive fall event that I am so, so excited about.

Can't wait to tell you more about it soon. Must get back to work creating now. But first, big hugs to all my bloggie friends, who I have neglected to visit :( but are in my thoughts and I will eventually make it by to say hi.

Crowns Baby

My most recent rusty wire creation ~ a crown cloche, with a porcelain baby-head finial.



The baby wears vintage rhinestones around her neck. Kinda quirky, I know. I'll be adding this piece to my shop soon.

Peek in the Window at Visions of Paris

Neeeew, neeeew, neeew, not just yet! Window shopping is all that's allowed for now at the store front where several talented vendors will soon be gathering to hock their Frenchy wares.






Northland Vintage Market's Chapter Two event, Visions of Paris, will be held at the beautiful Zona Rosa in Kansas City September 10, 11 and 12. (Window display photos courtesy of Northland Vintage Market and The Pink Chandelier ~ Merci!) I'll share photos of a few of my own displays in a future post. If you live in the Kansas City area, I hope you'll make plans to attend this fabulous event.

Handbag Harvest

This adorable vintage purse came with one broken handle and one handle missing. Sad huh? Not really, because . . . with a little help from some pearls and crystal beads, it will soon get a makeover that will make it as good as new ~ maybe even better. I'm busy preparing for Visions of Paris, and will have photos of that to show you soon, but as soon as I can set aside a few spare minutes, I can't wait to give the veggie handbag its new handle and add it to my store. I'll share the "after" shots with you then. Hope you're enjoying a bountiful summer harvest.

Blooms & Views, #5 ~ Hello Baby Boos

Hello, you adorable Baby Boo pumpkins, how sweet of you to make your arrival. Signaling the nearness of autumn, this is the way my little white pumpkins looked a couple of weeks ago.






And this is how they look now.


They're in various stages, but at least 25 of them are ready to pluck off the vine and be pleasingly arranged into a white on white on silver autumn display. And it's only August! I think last year they weren't ready till the end of August, but they stayed gracefully in service as long as they were needed, through Thanksgiving.
I ©Baby Boos.

Best Catch

Here are just a few of my "best catch finds" on the trip home from our recent fly-fishing excursion. All the items in this pic will be for sale at the next Northland Vintage Market in September (if I can stand to part with them all).

I am on the hunt! In keeping with the "Visions of Paris" theme for the upcoming NVM event, the rest of my month will be spent scavenging around for all things vintage French and French-inspired. Stay tuned...more to come about NVM in a future post. And I'll have news about an October event (oooo, love the fall!) at a different venue that will be a total blast. Can you believe fall is just around the corner?

Spread The Love

Sweet Tamerie at A Little of This That and The Other gave me this award. I almost decided that I couldn't decide who (not) to give it to and therefore wouldn't pass it on. But, I couldn't not "spread the love" could I? So here goes. A few friends who I suspect prefer not to participate in the award stuff were not included in my list, and please know that if you prefer not to, it won't hurt my feelings at all. I pass this award on to:

Suzy's Vintage Attic
A Thrify Mrs.
The Beautiful Life Blog
The Summer Kitchen Journal
Bonjour Madame

No rules were given with this award, so send it on however you like.©

Blogging Etiquette: Am I Doing Something Wrong?

RING PHONE RING! Ever feel like that?

Feeling a little down about my lack of comments (i.e. friends) so I decided to cheer myself up by compiling a
List of Possible Reasons:

1) I have a big sign over my blog that I can't see that says, "Stay Away From Her!"

2)To have a friend you must be one. But I've left hundreds and hundreds of comments...

3)It's summer and everyone's too busy. Yeah, yeah, I know. So how do I explain the abundance of comments everywhere I go.

4)I came in too late in the game. Okay, but doesn't anyone have room in their heart for a newbie?

5)I have a comment-neediness that is so obvious that it repels would-be commenters.

6)My lack of consistency with posting ~ working on that one...

7)My text is too small (grasping here).

8)I was put on this earth to be a comment fairy, going around sprinkling comments about.

9)My posts are just self-absorbed and boring.

10)My posts are just too amazing, leaving the reader speechless.

Don't get me wrong, I am not aiming for some large number of comments or a sense of popularity. Just some human connection, that's all. A group of friends that stop by to say hi on a regular basis would make me smile. And I do have a couple of those that truly warm my heart with their visits. Posting a rant about not getting comments is probably not the way to endear you to me and invite comments, but at least you've allowed me to vent. Whew! I feel better. Bottom line, I love to read your blogs and I love to express myself in writing, so I'll keep blogging no matter how many comments I get.

Promise not to laugh...

Oh go ahead and laugh ~ I did! Back from my first fly-fishing experience and it was everything I hoped for and more. Here I am in my chest waders.

Not only were they not pink, they resembled an oversized paper bag made of heavy, scum-green rubber. They were neither comfortable, nor cute, but despite my fashion-starved surroundings where the only bling to be found were the beaded nymphs dangling from our fishing line, I can actually say I had a good time. Standing in the stream for hours each day had sounded like a bit of a chore to me before going. But the air was so fresh and the spring so cool and peaceful that the hours passed without even noticing.

By the second day I had perfected my cast and I even caught a fish!


One of G's catches.

And the 6-hour road trip home was dotted with several
small-town antique shop stops where I found my best catch (I'll save that for another post). I can't say that I'm totally "hooked", but I will definitely go again the next time my husband invites me along.

Uhh...fly fishing? Ehh...me?

Yes, I'm going to learn to fly fish! We're getting ready to go on vacation-mini #3 for 2009. Trip #1 and #2 were both Ann-oriented, so I've agreed to try something my husband loves as our #3 destination. I'll be donning the lovely and fashionable hip waders (please, could I have pink?), learning to cast, and finding out what it is that makes my husband go berzerk for this past time. Time spent in the cool springs of Montauk State Park will be refreshing and, who knows, maybe I'll get lucky and actually have fun catching fish?! I'll post pictures in a few days when we return.

Blooms & Views, #4 ~ Late-blooming Peonies?

The truth is, these peonies were in bloom a few weeks ago, but it's taken me till now to post the pics.

This is the view I see from my north-facing living room window.


Cant-cha just smell the fragrance?



We have 5 nice size peony bushes, each of which blooms like crazy in the spring. But for years they were hidden in a shady wooded area on our property, unbeknownst to me, where they remained straggly and barren. A couple of years ago I remarked to hubby how much I loved peonies, and he showed me the little patch of growth-stunted stragglers that he had known about all along. At my request, we immediately transplanted them into sunny spots. Since then, they've quadrupled in size, and, to my delight, produce the most beautiful blooms.

Happy Times, Sad Times

Chapter One of Northland Vintage Market was a success! Click here to visit Three Shabby Chicks and see some of the fun that was had.

On a sad note, I had to say goodbye to my beloved kitty cat Sneakers. We got her when she was 8 weeks old, and last Friday she died, at the old kitty age of 16 years. Here are some pictures of the fun times I'm remembering. She was the best cat EVER! I hope this will be the last post about someone I love leaving my life for a long, long, long time.








On a happier note, here are some pics of my sweet grandson helping PomPa shine up his riding "aw-more".

Summer Porches

I'm excited to tell you about an upcoming event that I'm blessed to be a part of.
If you're in the Kansas City area, I hope you can make it! Find out more by clicking the pic.

Another fun event that I attended recently was "Takin' it Back to the Farm" at the beautiful farm of talented designer Kelly Littmann.
Here are some pics of me and my hubby (what a trooper!) at the event.


Three days from my next hair appointment and a windy day made for a very long and shaggy "do"!
You can see more of the Farmstead by clicking here.

Rust My Style!

(In my most operettic voice)...taaa-daaaaa! So maybe these don't actually deserve all the fanfare, but I've seriously tried to get them finished and posted for soooo long! I've been creating things from rusty wire, and these are the first two I have ready to show you. A crown made from rusty wire and a crusty wire bird's nest/stand.

"Queen of Rust" is a crown topped with a finial, wherein resides a 1920's flapper girl.




"Bird on a Wire" features an embellished bird wearing a rusty crown topped with a sea blue-green Swarovski crystal.

The stand sports a blue egg cradled in wire and a curled wire "nest".

They are listed in my online boutique, and can be viewed in greater detail by clicking here.

I would like to take a moment to mention my late father-in-law, who went to heaven Friday, May 29. He knew where he was going, and went peacefully. A very funny man with a kind and gentle spirit, he will be greatly missed. I'll always be grateful to him for raising the wonderful man that is my husband. Here's to you Jewell ~ I'll see you again.

I'll Be Back

Just a quick post to check in and let my friends know that we're in the middle of a family emergency, hence my absence. I hope to be back soon to post again.
Lotsa love,
Ann