Friday, March 21, 2014

Celebrate Spring with a Pastel China Garden

Celebrating SPRING today with a garden of vintage china
in pinks, greens, lavender, and yellows.
 
These are all pieces found in my
Bella Rosa store ... and they have
not sold... yet!
 
(Why not celebrate spring with a 20% off vintage china sale?
 If you are interested, contact me and I will set up the sale price for you.)
 
Tonight we have a dinner outing but this weekend I plan
on finishing up my spring décor...
 
 
 
Seeing all of these flowers is actually giving me an idea for my mantel!
Spring china pieces mixed with my "little bunnies" collection.
 
And since Easter is a big reason to celebrate,
maybe I can find a vintage Bible to display
or a photo of an old church.
 
How about you? How do you celebrate spring?
 
Taking walks around the neighborhood?
Spring cleaning?
Flower shopping?
 
Whatever we do, I will do it with much joy!
We are thrilled that winter is behind us
here in the North East!
(Well, technically anyway. You never know
what the weather will bring!)
 
Linking with Pink Saturday
 

Wednesday, March 19, 2014

Connecting with Vintage, Even at Church

This month my church is doing a series called "Faith at Work."

When I first heard it I thought, well that leaves me out. After all, I am a stay at home, work at home Mom. I don't have a workplace.


But then it occurred to me, staring at all of the vintage displays up on the stage... wait a minute, I work with vintage, I meet lots of people, and I do have a way to share my faith, it's called my blog!

It is helping me take a closer look at how I am reflecting my spiritual views, values, etc.

Am I afraid to talk about it? Sometimes yes, I admit it.

What if I offend someone? Will I lose followers? Or maybe I'm afraid someone might think "She is a Jesus Freak!"  Then of course, my shop will fail and I ultimately, will fail.

 
But if my faith is firm, which I know it is, then I also know that God does provide. He's got this! My shop will not fail because I am Christian. I won't fail because I am Christian.  

I've actually been praying for direction on what to do for a job. Should I keep working with antiques? Do I head back toward the professional world? TV? As Bebe enters school with a full time schedule next year, I will have more time on my hands.





After experiencing God's work in my life before, I know without a doubt, He is true, He is just, He is faithful. 

I will be patient.

So, here I am, connecting, growing, and serving.

I wouldn't want to have it any other way.

Now how about three cheers for the staff in putting together these cool vintage displays????


Monday, March 17, 2014

Minnie and Me: A Sweet St. Patrick's Day Story

Today is my "bestest bud in the whole world's" birthday. 
(My hubby will be jealous.)



My Minnie Cat.
 
Today she is 18. That is pretty old for a cat.

 
Here she was as a tiny pipsqueak.
I went to a humane society and picked
 the liveliest one out of the litter.
The rest of her "siblings" were all black and she
was trampling all over them.
 

 
Minnie is a very persistent cat.
When I was single she used to run
along my vertical blinds in my bedroom
to try and wake me up
and get some food in her bowl.
 

 
She also likes to sit so refined
and she has very silky fur.



 
This is one of my favorite photos of her.


This is a photo of me from well, about
twelve years ago!
 
So, that is it for this St. Patrick's Day.
Nothing to sell.
No green perfume bottles, lucky hats,
or vintage blarney stone gadgets.
 
Just Minnie and Me.

Friday, March 14, 2014

New Arrivals! Vintage Fashion Meets Creative Fun! And A Friday Flea for the Bargain Hunter

 
My new arrivals this week are a bit eclectic,
I admit... but not everyone likes the same treasures!
 
My "Just Listed" page can be found, here.
 
 
 
Bavarian China

 
It is going to get here,
I just know it.

 
A vintage 50's pink and black bow tie!
I think when you walk in wearing this
everyone will know that you have arrived!
Love it!

 
Lovely!

 
Beautiful illustrations inside
the 1940's / 1950's from
Whitman Publishing.

Illustrations are by
 Ruth E. Newton.

 
How elegant can you get?
 

 

 
Retro Christmas Tree Star Topper!

 
 

 
Colorful Tapestry with a French Scene
 

 
Fun with an old Uncle Wiggly Game!
The cards would make great scrapbook
or mixed media projects...
and you can decorate a family or kid's
room with the game board!
 
 
And this lovely antique wallpaper
style hat box.
This was decorating my office
for a while but I thought why
keep all the good stuff to myself?
 
AND ....
 
Let's not forget about the Friday Flea.
Here are the items I've linked
and they are all on SALE!
 
(Also available in my Flea Bella Category)
 
 
Also linking with PINK SATURDAY, of course!
 
 

Tuesday, March 11, 2014

Disjointed

Someone is a little bit disjointed today.
 
What to name her?
My new vintage find.
 
Rosa?
Belle?
 
Gertrude?
 
 
I was working on my antique booth yesterday
when I happened to spy this vintage
dress form in another dealer's booth.
 
Our antique mall has sold. I'm wondering
if it was marked down for a quick sale,
because I thought she was a great price!
 
 
Maybe it is because she was very
disjointed when I found her.
 
I did a little rearranging and helped
to get her back into shape.

 
What to do, what to do?
I am usually selling things as they are,
not making them into something new.

 
She has areas of wear and tear.


 
Anyway, I'll be mulling it over...she needs a name.
She needs some TLC.
 
Stop by and let me know what you think....
what should her name be? What should I do with her?
 
Linking to Ivy and Elephants
"What's it Wednesday?"

Monday, March 10, 2014

Change is Good

Yesterday I put some time in at
my antique booth.
 
The mall has been sold...
It's fate up in the air.
 
I've been a dealer there since
 the year 2000. It is time to
move on so I'm not too upset.
We are so busy with family
events on weekends it was
difficult to keep up.
 
But the memories, the friendships,
they remain.
 
Onward and Upward as my old
boss used to say!
 
 
We'll be emptying out our booth soon.
Where will we put everything?
 
We also have a basement renovation
going on at the same time.
 
The two will have to collide at some point.
 
 
On a more positive note... here are my
latest finds. I'm just tickled pink about them.
 
Then again, aren't I always?
Enjoy your day...
I'll be listing either Wednesday or Thursday.
 
Stay tuned! 

Friday, March 7, 2014

Waves of Pink

Today I am joining a couple of linky parties but
first I am sharing with you my thoughts, as a Mom.
 
The photo below was taken during our
quick visit to the gulf coast of Florida
a couple of weeks ago. And Bebe just
happened to be wearing a pink jacket.
 
(I love the contrast of the pastels!)
 


But as I am looking at this snapshot of a brief moment in time,
I see so much more.

I see Bebe with her whole life ahead of her, vast, wide, very open.

What will her journey be like? Will there be many storms? How will she fare?  Oh how I wish to always be there for her, to protect her. But I know this won't always be the case.

I hope our teaching will at least be a strong and helpful oar for her to paddle her way through.

One thing I do know, most of what will happen in her life will be out of my hands.

I believe that the only hands that can truly guide her, like a lighthouse to the sailor, are found in Psalm 146:6

(He) Who made heaven, and earth, the sea, and all that is therein: who keeps truth forever

How blessed we are and I try to count my blessings each and every day!
A thankful heart is a happy heart!

And so without further ado, I am linking to Pink Saturday
 
 
*****
And also joining with the Friday Flea
 
where I am featuring the four items below
from my Bella Rosa Shop:
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Thanks so much for your visit!
 
Enjoy your weekend!
 
-Jillian
 
 
 

Wednesday, March 5, 2014

Decorating with a Twist

Just returned from Bebe's school! So excited to design/decorate for an upcoming
luncheon at the school.



They really liked what I did for the Kindergarten open house so I've been asked to come back!



The theme is two-fold. Showcasing the arts and music and how the school can help influence career choices and creativity within the students. The second underlying them is "Oliver Twist."

I'm thinking centerpieces with vintage sheet music, books, vintage movie cam or photography, dancer statue,  drama mask, etc. Maybe some mini gold frame pieces of art work...

Of course my first place to capture ideas was Pinterest. I've created a special board just for the event.


I'll be back to share some of my ideas...

Enjoy the day!

Monday, March 3, 2014

Vacation Memories: Pics and Tips for the Magic Kingdom

So excited!
My photos were uploaded from our trip to Disney.
I was afraid I had lost them. But my Dear Hubby
was able to retrieve them from the camera.
Turns out this simple little Olympus camera
I bought at Costco is not so simple to use!
 
But so happy to have these pics!
 
 
I'm actually planning to make a scrapbook.
This is so unlike me... I am still hoping
to finish my wedding scrapbook and this May
will be our tenth year of marriage!
But there's just something so fun about
 being at Disney when the temps were warm
and our home area was covered in snow!
 
 
Anyway, we were first greeted by "Main Street U.S.A"
and it is so charming... I remembered seeing it when I
was Bebe's age in 1974... we discovered that
 Walt Disney World first opened in 1971.
 
 
We had a beautiful day for our trip to the Magic Kingdom.
 
What is that up in the sky?

I embellished the castle just a little bit with
some "Tinker Bell" stars using Pic Monkey!

 
The cast and staff at Disney are always putting on a
show throughout all of their parks.
 
 
Bebe was able to see, way up high
 on her Daddy's shoulders...


 
Then we happened upon another show in front
of the country bears jamboree...

 
I guess my new ballet classes made me think I should
join them for awhile! It was fun! I didn't care,
I was wearing shorts in the middle of February!
(I'm in braided pigtails)

Bebe was able to meet several princesses,
Pluto, and even Alice in Wonderland!
(More on how we did it on a budget below)


 
And if I'm not mistaken, this looks a lot like Rapunzel's tower!

 
We also visited EPCOT, which is one of my favorites.

The large majestic pagoda(?) in "China"
Beautiful!

Everything was done just right.
You really felt like you were in each
foreign city. My favorite of course, was Italy.

 
There's also "Future World" as you first encounter EPCOT.
 
Here is Bebe looking in amazement at all of the
under water creatures in the "SEAS" exhibit.
 
We sure had a lot of fun. But there were some
things we did to save money. So, here are
some of the things we did to cut corners.
 
Like the "Bippidi Boppidi Boutique."
Really high priced and so were all
of the dresses and accessories.
We've played dress up so much here
at home it kind of lost it's glitz and glam.
And Bebe wasn't even really interested.
If you still want to let your little one
become a princess. . . buy your own
dress & tiara before you get to the park,
put her hair up and have fun!
Big savings! $$$$$
 
We also brought souvenirs in our suitcase
so every time Bebe asked us to buy her
something we would say "Mommy has
some special souvenirs in her suitcase
for you when we get back!"  I think the
mystery behind them was enough to
keep her from asking over and over.
I only spent about $6.00 as I found
 several Disney princess items at the
dollar store! Bebe loved them!
Another savings. $$$$$
 
 
Also, the Fast Pass that everyone talked
about is not so easy to obtain. We discovered
you have to go wait in line for them and you must
go early, early, early. And they only give you three of them
 and you have to know which three rides right then and there.
By the time we figured it all out, most of the
Fast Passes were taken. Our first chance
at getting one was at night. Once we did
get to use them it was great. Just go EARLY. 
 
 
We also figured out that if we used a Fast Pass
to meet and greet the Princesses at
Princess Hall, we could save the money
on the character breakfast or dinner,
which are extremely over priced.
 
We're not cheap, we're just on a budget!
 
Hope you enjoyed our pictures and some of
our money saving tips! It was definitely
a great time, great weather, and
we left with some great memories...
 
Now back to my regularly scheduled life...
when is spring going to get here?