What Inspired My Spring Market Report in Gatherings Magazine?

 

Hello + Hello!

I am so excited to announce the release of

Gatherings Magazine Spring Issue!

This is by far the best issue yet!

 

 

The other contributors and I were all given creative license to be inspired by

whomever/whatever we wanted!

What great fun!

( Heather Spriggs Thompson is the best editor ever!)

 

Immediately I knew who I would be

inspired by...

my fellow contributor & friend

Annetta Bosokova of Inspired by Annetta Blog

 

 

I think it's easy to see how talented she is

from this sweet watercolor print that she blessed me with

upon completing a lovely photo shoot at my home.

(You can get your own copy too, just find it on her blog side bar.)

 

>>>>>--------------->

 

I'm guessing you'll be able to see the correlation

between Annetta's piece nestled in my story board

&

my final market report

(arranged by none other than the uber talented

Tracy Locke Castro of Fair Morning Blue )

 

So, if you are a big fan of beauty...

love flowers, enjoy creating an inspirational home

&

well...anything in between?

You

simply

MUST

head over to

Gatherings Magazine

now

and get your copy!

 

 P.S.

As a fun little perk for you my blog friends....

Simply enter code

BLOGFRIEND

at checkout

HERE

&

receive 10% off your issue!

YAY!

Happy Reading!

 

T.

xx

 



Find Inspiration & Win $25.00 at Minted

 Hello + Hello

How are you my lovely friends?

Are your Valentines Day plans coming along beautifully?

I certainly hope so!

Speaking of

LOVE...

I have a happy little 

piece of information to share with you today.

Consider it a

pre-Valentines Day gift from me to you.

XOXO

 

>>>>>---------------->

 

Have you had the chance to visit the stunning blog

written by the folks at

Minted?

Oh....if not, you simply must!

It's filled with so much lovely content

that you'll be Pinning every picture to your favorites board!

 

by Rachael Smith

 

The blog is called

Julep.

The sweet folks at Mintd contacted me asking if I'd be willing

to share about their blog and site.

 

Well,

I can tell you that these sorts of requests happen fairly often....

but I rarely take the time to follow through.

Why...you ask?

Because simply this:

 I value you too much to

inundate you with a bunch of extra shtuff.

HOWEVER,

Minted???

Well, yes please!

It truly is a quality site; a site worth sharing about!

I thought you'd like a big fat chance to win

a $25.00 shop credit to their

amazing site!

 

by Alethea & Ruth

 

There are so many options of items you can purchase there:

Prints

Wall Decor

Stationary

Business Cards

Party Supplies

etc...

they carry just about anything paper you can think of!

I can't imagine not being able to find something

for $25.00

the problem might be trying to keep it to that??

 

>>>>>-------------->

 

Do you want to enter & win?

Just head on over to the

Minted Facebook Page

and give it a like!

Then make sure you leave a comment here about what you'd

like to buy from Minted.

Already "like" Minted on Facebook?

No worries,

just leave a comment here.

Maybe you could tell us about what you've purchased

recently from Minted.

 

*** PLEASE NOTE: ***

Contest runs through Wednesday February 19th, 6PM PST

at which time I will announce the winner soon thereafter.

You will need to watch for the winner announcement

here on the blog in order to claim the prize.

If you are the lucky winner who's chosen at random,

I will ask you to contact me via email to claim your prize.

 

by Kelli Hall

 

So,

head on over to

Julep

for amazing

DIY's

&

inspiration galore!

 

 

by Olivia Kanaley

 

Then,

head on over to

Minted

for a bit of

super fun shopping!

by sfgirlbybay; Victoria Smith

 

I think you will be very glad you did!

 

>>>>>--------------->

 

Remember,

to like Minted on Facebook

&

then leave your comment here to be entered to win!

 

See you back here next week to find out if

YOU'RE 

the lucky winner!

 

Cheers!

Trish

**Sorry, this contest is now closed, please check back often for more
contests and prizes.**

A Lovely Surprise... My "Get Well Soon" Blog Feature

Hello + Hello!

Just stopping in here to say a big

Hi!

(long time no speak....sorry about that)

Frankly January is always MY craziest month.

I wish I could have a slow peaceful month like most folks who actually complain

about being bored in January.

But, alas no. I be hoppin' busy!!

I've been off to market for a week in

Atlanta....then came home to be stuck in bed for a week with the flu.

Icky!

Next it's taxes, inventory & the one good thing...magazine/blog feature deadlines.

Eeeeep!

But, all in all it's truly necessary and ultimately..... good stuff in the end.

>>>>>---------------->

Well,

anyway....until I can have a bit of time to myself to formulate a

well written creative blog post for your enjoyment....

today I'm going to share a surprise blog post which was featured

by a sweet old friend

Claire of

Heart Handmade UK

What a happy day it was (after being so sick)

 to wake up and have such a sweet feature

on my home and studio.

Claire is always reporting on the charming-est

parts of home décor and crafting.

If you've never taken the time to slip over to her blog....

well....

you are in for a big treat!!

I love all that she features,

 and find myself pinning and re-pinning from

her Pinterest feed & her blog

on a regular basis to my own

Pinterest Account

I urge you to take a moment & refresh yourself

at Claire's

beautiful blog.

I know I did...

I bet you won't be sorry you did!

Cheers,

T.

xx

 

 



My Home is Open to the Public this Saturday & YOU'RE INVITED!!!

 

  Hello + Hello!

Long time no post!

Yeah....I've been a little behind on blogging lately...

BUT

for a great reason....and ultimately an even BETTER cause.

My home,

amongst 4 other amazing homes

will be on tour this Saturday December 7th from 1-5.

It's a benefit tour for

Bethany Christian Services

which is a very worthy adoption agency

who works with

people both locally and abroad.

If you want more details you can head right over to our shop blog

Grandiflora Home and Garden

to find out more about tickets & special discounts we are offering to

ticket holders the day of the sale only.

 

I've quickly uploaded a very few photos of my home

FROM LAST YEAR

 via my  

INSTAGRAM

feed.

 

After all.....

....I didn't want to spoil the fun for what my home looks like this year,

as there have been many changes and additions to the decor

as you can probably imagine!!!

My hubby and I have been working very hard on a tight time schedule

&

an even tighter budget

to make our home festive with

second hand treasures,

Christmas décor

&

good old fashioned talent

to bring you the

charming-est

Century Old

1913

Christmas Bungalow

you have ever seen!

LOL!!!

So,

if you're local...

come on out for a really fun day

touring not only my cozy cottage....

but

FOUR

other homes

decked out for the Christmas Season.

YOU WON'T BE DISAPPOINTED.

Both of my sisters'

(also current & former owners at Grandiflora)

homes will be on tour, as well

as another gal who's hubby is a home designer/contractor...

as well as

Tami's sweet stone house, just down the road from me.

See more of her home story on her

blog right over here.

I

hope you can be a part of this wonderful tour

for a wonderful-er

cause!

;)

Hugs,

Trish



A Wonderful Weekend: We Needed One 'THIS' Much!!

Hello + Hello!

How are you all this lovely new week?

I am feeling refreshed and renewed after a very fun weekend

filled to the gills with lots going on.

Don't know about you folks,

but September has literally kicked my butt.

I've been toooooo busy.

This weekend was a great opportunity to

spend some quality uninterrupted time with my

little family.

>>>>>--------------->

 

Friday was the night we actually got to go out alone (as a couple)

to celebrate my 40th Birthday

(which was back in September)

& we had a

BLAST!

Here is a little collage of all the fun we experienced together...

Good drinks, great food & a wonderful movie called

Gravity

Oh my stars.....literally....stars.....this movie is

Ah+may+zing!

GO, RUN to the box office to see it!

If you can afford to, make sure you see it in IMAX 3D!!!

It will blow your mind.

Don't...I repeat...DON'T wait for it to come out on video,

it will lose something on the little screen.

>>>>>--------------->

After we recovered from a late night out,

we worked out in the yard picking the last of the fruit from the trees

&

cleaning up the yard as much as possible until more leaves fall.

Some of you wouldn't consider that relaxing...

but I sure do!

Did I mention it was

SUNNY??

Oh yes it was!

YIPPEE!

>>>>>--------------->

Then...on Sunday

we went to Church and heard an amazing message...

after which we piled into the ol' Suburban

&

took off for the mountains.

The sun was shining

(AGAIN! YIPPEE!)

and there was a Subway along the way,

which was great, because hey...

I was supposed to be relaxing remember??

The first stop

(after the quintessential Subway visit)

was

Nooksack Falls

where we marveled at the rushing waters & beautiful trees.

One must understand that there is no

place you can get a good photo of

Nooksack Falls.

Sadly many people learned the hard way that there was no

"perfect spot"

to view the falls.

So many people have tried finding the hidden spot...

it doesn't exist...and now they don't either.

We respect fences, they are there for a reason people.

>>>>>--------------->

Then,

we headed for the hills!

And this is where I MUST ask the age old question:

 

I beg to know how it's possible???

There were so many breathtaking spots along the way to

Twin Lakes in the

North Cascades belonging to the

Mount Baker National Forrest

We stopped a few times for some view shots...

 

 

before we actually made it to the top.

where we were surprised with fresh

SNOW!

 

The boys were thrilled!

 

(I was a little less than thrilled that I hadn't taken my boots along.)

We had fun throwing snow balls at each other

(Well, they had fun...I was still trying to gain a calm demeanor from

the last trek up the hill to get there. It was a "little" scary.)

I remember not being bothered by this when I was a kid...

but now?

Hmmmm.... did I mention I'm 40 now?!

Yikes!!!

Also, I'm happy to say the

Suburban has heavy duty tires & 4 wheel drive,

because we needed it:

I enjoyed myself so much...

I felt like a little kid again

(well except for those scary wash-outs on the road).

 I was so happy to share this with my sons & my mountain loving hubby

(who tends to think wash-outs are a challenge to be conquered, not avoided).

 

It was a great weekend.

We need to do this more...

if only there wasn't always so much going on at this time of the year.

>>>>>--------------->

Oh well,

at least we made some unforgettable memories together.

We even made it to a friends'

roadside 'punkin' stand.

 

We are certainly blessed.

Cheers

&

hoping your weekend was amazing too!

Happy new week my friends!

T.

xx

 

 

 

 

 



Ice Cream Social & Book Signing With A Cherry On Top

 Hello + Hello!

How's everyone doing?

I'm floating on a cloud of whipped cream dreams.....

ha ha ha!!!

Seriously....

this past week has been a whirlwind of fun partying galore for my family!

I very much enjoyed all of it...but must admit I'm a little bit exhausted from it today.

All the prep work and excitement of getting things ready for the lovely

Koralee Tiechroeb of Bluebird Notes Blog & contributor to Where Women Cook Magazine

was ABSOLUTELY worth it!

Koralee was kind enough to pop into our shop

Grandiflora Home & Garden here in Lynden, Washington

to sign her new book

Everything Goes With Ice Cream!

 

You may already know I was blessed enough to be asked by

Koralee to be a contributor to her book along with many other wonderful folks.

It was "pure joy" to have Koralee in the shop with us the night of our

Mother's Day Sale & Ice Cream Social.

Many sweet folks stopped in and had her sign a copy of her book for them.

 Of course,

in true Grandiflora fashion,

we dressed up like old fashioned

Soda Jerks

to serve up the

goodness that only Grandiflora can offer!

We had a ton of fun together, and I'm so thankful for all our amazing employees

who are always so willing to go along with my hair brained ideas

for costumes to fit our functions!!!

( I love you girls!!!)

>>>>>--------------->

It was such a wonderful surprise to meet a new friend of

Koralee's named Carol.

(She also has a feature in the book: Ice Cream Snow Balls)

Carol is obviously very talented and has a very generous spirit just like

Koralee....no wonder they are partners in

the sweet pursuit of ice cream crime!

 

 

 Did I mention we had a contest for our customers as well?

Oh yes we did!

All you had to do was come dressed as your favorite flavor of ice cream

(strawberry = pink, bubblegum = blue, etc...)

BUT....

we were also giving away gift certificates to the most

creative costumes;

 ...wouldn't you agree these girls won?

Ha ha ha!!!

LOVE IT!

There were goodies galore & great buys to be had by everyone!

My sister and partner at Grandiflora (La Von)

deserves all the thanks...

If it weren't for her,

I'd never have wondered over to Koralee's blog

and fallen head over heels for her

sweet style.

>>>>>--------------->

Want to know what the

Cherry On Top Was?

Being able to chat with Koralee all night long!

.........

"I'm so glad we met my friend;

here's to your continued success at

Where Women Cook

& with your lovely sweet book

Everything Goes With Ice Cream!"





**All images are credited to my talented niece Emily Visser. Thanks so much for taking photos, so I could have the night off from playing photographer and enjoy my company!**



I'm SO Excited to Invite You to Our Upcomming Ice Cream Social!

Hello + Hello!

I am SO excited to invite you to an event

which isn't to be missed!

Awhile back, you might remember that I was

blessed enough to be included

in a really adorable book called

"Everything Goes With Ice Cream".

If you are local, you may also know that I co-own

a wonderful shop called

Grandiflora Home and Garden

right here in Lynden, Washington.

Well,

I would like to take this opportunity to

invite you to the culmination of the two!

>>>>>--------------->

Come meet 

a very special blog friend of mine

&

save on a gift for Mother's Day too!

We are hosting this wonderful event

Thursday, May 9th

Save 10%* storewide;

**The store is FULL of new products

just for this event.

**Free Ice Cream & Toppings,

6pm - 9pm

**Book Signing 6pm -8pm

**Book will be discounted

this night only!

BC author & Blogger,
Koralee Teichroeb
is well known for her contributions to

"Where Women Create/Cook" magazines.

This book features crafts, recipes

and more, to celebrate

women's creativity.
 

Also, we are giving away

30% off* coupons

good for 1 item

for those

who come dressed

as their

favorite ice-cream color.

(EXAMPLE: Strawberry = pink; Chocolate

Chip Mint = green & brown)

Be creative! 3 costume winners will

receive gift certificates for most

creative costumes.

*Coupons and discounts may not be used on Consignments, Gift Certificates, Chalk Paint™ by Annie Sloan, previous purchases, red lined items or online store.

So, come and get your signed copy of:

 



and say "hi" to

Koralee while you are at it.

I know I speak for both of us when I say we'd

LOVE

to meet you!

Hope to see you there!

T.

xx

P.S.

want to know more?

Visit our shop blog right over HERE for more details....

&

oh yeah...

here's a little sneaky peeky from my contribution to Koralee's book....

Eeeeeek!

Can't wait to see you there!!!

 

The 32 Things I've Been Doing Since We Last Spoke

 

 Hello + Hello!

How have you all been lately?

Long time no speak...

yeah, I know....my bad.

Quite honestly I needed a little break from the internet/blogging,

but...just for a bit.

I guess I should've given a warning...but you know...it just didn't happen.

WHAT DID HAPPEN HOWEVER

was a bunch of stuff!

Whew...have I been a busy little bee.

In addition to my normal everyday job at

Grandiflora

this is what I've been up to while not

mothering...or wifey-ing

(is that a word?)

Ha ha ha!

 

>>>>>--------------->

 

Anyway...here goes:

Above you'll see that I painted a dresser for my son's room.
I also did a bit of fun painting for Etsy & Grandiflora items.

Next, I ripped up a neat old butterfly book and went a little

crazy with the gold and white washi tape!

I love how it turned out!

Then I started on some projects I can't reveal yet....at least not fully.

Isn't blanket stitching just the most relaxing thing?

I tried my hand at making a grocery tote from vintage sheeting....

it was actually going quite well

( I don't sew....no....frankly....I don't like to sew...not enough patience.)

until the machine decided to be stupid and I almost

threw it through a window!

(Well not really....but I thought it sounded like a good idea at the time.)

Needless to say,

I may be calling up one of my seamstress friends to finish it for me?

 I feel that I've been surrounded by books and magazines lately as well.

Truly I've not had the chance to really enjoy all of these lookers yet...

but everyday I savor a page or two!

I have been out picking and thrifting for finds lately.

Most of them go to one of my Etsy shops....but a few I either keep,

or send into Grandiflora.

I love shipping out orders from Etsy

&

washing and caring for the sweet vintage items.

A couple of other things I've been up to in my silly life are:

taking care of the t-shirt ninjas that seem to have invaded my life...

they demand fresh Asian food...mainly Spring Rolls.

I roll my eyes every time they get their swords out!

 

Our Chickens seem to have forgotten what a nesting box is....

or maybe they are practicing for Easter?

Again,

more photography for Etsy of this lovely vintage wallpaper.

Found a funny old photo strip pic of

hubby and I in 1992!

( Buah ha ha!)

Another chair that needs a little help...son picked it out for me.

(Frankly was pretty impressed with his selection!)

And....last but not least,

the new glasses arrived.

It's been mostly rainy lately....so it seems all I've been up to is

using the front of my shirt as a windshield wiper.

But there was a day or two when I was able to pull out the

new prescription sunglasses!

Whoo hooo!

 

>>>>>--------------->

 

Well,

I hope you're all enjoying your early Spring?

And....

that you're going to have an excellent weekend!

I hope to see you back again sooner rather than later...

but here is to a much needed break.

Cheers my friends!

T.

xx