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

 



Boredom & Banners

 Hello + Hello!

Ahhhhhh.....

It feels so nice to be up and about again.

Last we spoke,

I was getting ready to have an

Instasale on Instagram.

I am happy to report,

that it went over smashingly well!!!

However...

(enter impending doom music here)

I ended up getting a super nasty cold just afterwards.

Poo.

So....

I tried my best to keep up with the simplistic demands of life,

and no further.

 However, in my:

"I'm free, but have no energy"

moments,

I reworked my Etsy banners;

Ollie Bollen,

Trisha Brink Design,

&

Wesley Asher.

I'm still tweaking them a bit here and there....

but for the most part it's really nice to see a change.

Right now I'm really trying to reimagine my

Wesley Asher shop.

Emptied of its contents, it's looking a little sad at the moment.

I am trying to figure out which way to turn with it.

I know what I want it to be...but it takes more than 'want' to make it that way.

And so it goes.

Honestly it's so easy for me to get bored with the way things look.

Are you this way?
Or, can you stick with something for awhile?

In some ways it's a blessing to always have change,

and in other ways it's a curse.

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

Well,

I've much to catch up on, so I'm off again into the wild blue yonder.

Creativity in one hand and a heart for change in the other!

I hope you are well my friends!

Cheers

&

Happy New Week!

T.

xx

Candy & Pumpkins & Costumes OH MY!

Hello + Hello!

It's that time of the year again....

...the time we all like to get a bit spooked out!

I don't generally decorate for Halloween.

It's not been a big deal to me to have scary decor.

I'm more of a cute vintage Halloween lover...

happy pumpkin faces & little ones dressed up as cats & pumpkins.

Personally I don't like it when folks let their kids dress up like

creepy creatures or mass murderers.

Call me old fashioned that way....

.....

However,

I don't mind having a time to get dressed up like your favorite character or hero.

My boys are known to have fun dressing up like:

knights, cowboys or robots.

We normally head to our Church's Harvest Carnival

& afterwards....

to close friends and family homes.

It's never been about the super creepy stuff for us

(although I love a good mystery and a bit of a scary ghost story from time to time.)

but more about dressing up, playing games and eating treats with friends!

My favorites as a child were watching

"The Great Pumpkin" - Charlie Brown

&

"The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" -Disney

I always loved Ichabod Crane's character and that silly horse!

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

Well, in honor of a wholesome Halloween...

I've made a fun sign listing all the things I'd like to experience

around this time of the year.

I hope you like it,

&

if you would like one for yourself, you can find them at my shop

Grandiflora in Lynden, Wa.

or online at my Etsy shop

Trisha Brink Design

&

YES!

It also comes in ghostly black and white!

I hope your costume planning and party going is just as fun as can be!

Cheers,

T.

xx



Weekend Autumn Sign Giveaway Contest, Enter To Win!

Hello + Hello!

Just wanted to stop in and say happy (Autumn) weekend!

Isn't it miraculous how things change so quickly sometimes?

I feel like it was just August, and now September is almost over.

I love September here in the Pacific Northwest!

It's almost always sunny & dry...but not too hot.

Perfection.

Oh well, October brings more rain...but all the festivities of Fall too.

I am looking forward to visiting my cousin's

Pumpkin Patch

&

eating fresh pie!

I love to wander in the corn maze and apple fields with my boys,

 and drink their fresh apple cider.

If you are local & happen to get the chance, you simply must visit their farm called

Stoney Ridge Farm in Everson Washington

I must admit, few places really impress me the way I want to be swept off my feet.

I want it all when I go for an outing...I think that is because I'm a creative person.

I can guarentee you that this is

THE

Pumpkin Farm to Top All Pumpkin Farms!

Debbie

(my cousin)

has thought of everything!

(and her hard working surrounding family has helped her to make it a reality)

I often tell people that if they like the way that our family shop

Grandiflora Home and Garden

is, then they will

LOVE

her pumpkin farm!!!

We come from the same creative hard working stock...and you can tell.

Stoney Ridge is not to be missed.

The animals, the hay rides & the friendly workers are just the tip of the iceberg.

How about making it a day?

Head to Grandiflora for some shopping, and then top your day off with a visit to their cool farm?!

I think you would be in

Autumn Bliss!

They open next week Thursday October the 4th.

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

NOW FOR THE GIVEAWAY!

What is your favorite part about Autumn?

I like all the things listed in the Autumn Sign I've made.

If you do too...then leave me a comment below

&

you'll be entered to win one of my 8 x 10 Autumn signs.

They come in perky color (above)

&

candy corn color (below)

 

This contest will last through the weekend until

 Monday morning October 1st at 9 AM

(Pacific Standard Time)

at which time I will choose and announce a winner at random.

If you are the winner, I will send you this sign no matter where you live!

(or if you are a local, you can pick it up at Grandiflora)

Also note: your sign will NOT have my T.B.D. watermark embedded into it.

Good luck to you,

 and make sure you leave your comment below to be entered to win

 your choice of color ways:

I look forward to hearing about your favorite things to do in the Autumn!

Cheers my friends & once again,

Happy  Weekend!!

T.

xx

P.S.

Want to get your hands on a sign right away?

Head into my brick and mortar shop Grandiflora to score one, or head over to my

Etsy shop

Trisha Brink Design

to find one.

Thanks for visiting!

 



Designing My Own Blog...Hmmmmm......

Hello + Hello
Just wanted to let you know I'll be messing around with the blog for the next little while....
I was tiring of the old layout...wanting to hire a professional...but being too stubborn to.
Thinking it might be fun to try and figure it out for myself???
Fun???
Hmmmm......
We'll see about that.
Until I have it all figured out and lookin' just the way I want it....
.....hang in there ok?
Cheers my friends,
T.
xx
P. S.
Feedback (constructive) is always appreciated!

New Year + New Work = Happy You for a GIVEAWAY!

 Hey all!

:)

It's true....I am a happy camper today!

2011 has been such a lovely year.

Even just in the last bit of it, I've been blessed to come up with yet another idea to fulfill.

I've always enjoyed signs.

How about you?

As a senior in High School I thought I'd go to college to become involved in advertising.

Once I made it into the college realm, I decided I didn't really want to do the nose to the grindstone sort of work in advertising

(insert picture of Jerry McGuire loosing it here.)

I really wanted to work with the decorative aspect of it.

That's when I started really taking art seriously.

Once enrolled at The Art Institute of Seattle,

I had to pick an artistic pathway.

As I'd been personally addicted to home decor magazines, I decided to go into

Residential Interior Design.

What HARD work it was!

Drafting (before Computer Cad was available...yeah...I'm that old!)

wasn't any fun to me. I loved the part where we picked out patterns, styles, and "decorated" the buildings we drafted.

I now realize that all the work I did in college was a way to lead me here.

That's where my new endeavor begins....

I have a real "love" interest in graphic design (maybe I should've gone into this?) and so I've been playing around with verbage and home decor.

As you know we sell signs at our brick and mortar shop

Grandiflora Home and Garden

so it isn't that difficult to know what folks are looking for in the way of sayings.

Most people don't walk in looking to buy a sign....it's usually something they never knew they wanted until it was staring them in the face!

I've been less than satisfied by the selection in the mass produced market for signage.

I work with a lovely man to produce some really great traditional signs for the store.

However,

I was really looking to find a bit more of a modern edge for our sign selection.

After researching a few different venues, I realized that I could do this myself!

I mean, why not?

So, I armed myself with some new tools and stuck my neck out there

 where it feels a little drafty and risky.

eeeeeeeeeeek!

:)

SO, NOW YOU CAN FIND THESE PRINTS FOR SALE

HERE

We'll see what happens right?

The worse that can happen is that I fail miserably....and look like a dork but....

I guess it's better to try and fail, then to sit stagnant and wish a year from now that I'd had more guts.

This year has presented its challenges....but all in all I've felt very Blessed.

I'm thrilled to start new adventures but one must always remember....

that even though all this fun work is well......so much FUN!

My family is what comes first.

I enter this new adventure with many trepidations and silly quirks....

but with excitement and giggles too!

It's all about the balance right?

:)

Just wanted to get your opinion....what do you think of these personalized signs?

I was thinking about offering these on my Etsy site

Trisha Brink Design

 as well.

Let me know what you think.

I was thinking something like fifteen bucks for an 8x8 personalized print?

(plus shipping)

Since you guys are such good sports at helping me out, I'd like to offer

 a giveaway

 right here on my blog for your choice of one of these 8x8 prints.

You could even choose the personalized family print.

Also choose which finish you prefer: matte or glossy.

(NOTE: My shop watermark will be removed from the sign you win.)

I would ship it right to your little door just in time for a fresh new look this New Year!

All you need to do is leave me a comment right here with your

OWN FAVORITE SAYING OR QUOTE.

(yep that's right, I want NEW ideas for NEW signs!)

Please also leave me a little bit of feedback or constructive criticism.

I've got tough skin, so go for it!

I look forward to hearing from you and getting your entries.

Winner will be randomly pulled on Saturday January 7th, and shortly thereafter announced here on the blog.

(Remember: you can comment here on blogger even if you're an anonymous user without a blog yourself. Just be sure to sign your first name and last initial in your actual post.)

Thanks in advance for participating, and be watching for more to come from this wild hair I've suddenly entertained!

I just love you guys, you mean so much to me!

HAPPY HAPPY NEW YEARS

my friends.

May you sincerely be blessed.

Love,

Trish

:)