Ten Irons in the Fire

Hello + Hello!

It's Spring & I don't know about you...but there are simply too many irons in the fire around here to properly blog! 

I hope you don't mind another pictorial post?

So yeah....we've been pretty busy around these parts lately...& what about you?

xx

T.

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

 

 

 

 

 



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

The 7 Things I'll Share Today

 Hello + Hello!

Having a quicky stop-in to say

Hey!

&

To share 7 things from my week so far...

Above,

you'll see the photos I snapped via

Instagram

while I was at the

Northwest Flower And Garden Show in Seattle

I enjoyed the garden/room from

Wight's Nursery in Lynnwood, Washington

the best by far!

Although the gardens were very nice...they just didn't have that

"WOW!!!"

factor that they had 8 years ago or so.

BUT....

the new vintage collection area was absolutely beautiful!!

(Only a couple of snaps turned out from that area...so I'm only able to share 2 here.)

Last but not least...

I bought myself a new pair of Atlas Nitrile gloves in

PINK!

So, my mission was complete.

It was a fun day spent with my mom, sisters & nieces having alot of fun together.

We also junked our way down to the show...

more on that tomorrow.

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

&

While I was away.........

My sweet hubby was studying his new book

(from the library)

which is all about knots.

This man can master new knots & braids like nobody's business!

He actually whipped this fun little bracelet out for me in no time flat!

I love that guy.

Well....

that's it for today.

Stay tuned for more things I'd like to share

tomorrow!

Cheers,

T.

xx

LIFE: One Snippet at a Time

Hello + Hello!

Just wanted to drop in and get a bit caught up on my blogging.

Life has been busy again here on the homefront.

I've been working on a fun little feature for

Heather Spriggs Thompson of Gatherings Magazine

 and having loads of fun doing it too!

( More to share on that later ok?)

 

 I also decided to update my

Facebook

banner....just for fun.

I felt that it needed a bit of Spring-like feeling.

What do you think?

 

I also decided to upload a few more new things to my shop on Etsy called

Ollie Bollen

I've also been having tons of fun over on my

Instagram photo feed

loading up scads of everyday fun that I encounter

in my home, studio & at work.

Come and join me there if you'd like.

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

What have you been up to this week so far?

Are you working on lots of lovelies?

Cleaing your house for Spring?

Doing your taxes?

Well,

whatever you are doing...I hope you will find all the joy you can.

Life is just one snippet of time after the other...

make sure all your snippets turn out to make a beautiful quilt.

Cheers!

T.

xx

 



A Gold Star Interview by a Highschooler

Have you ever been interviewed by a highschool aged student who thinks they want to do what you do when they grow up? I've done this interview countless times myself. Lots of girls seem to think it would be wonderful to be an interior designer. I'm not saying it isn't....but I'm also saying that it isn't all fun and games either. Want a closer look at what it is that I "technically do" all the time at work?

Here's the scoop...and the interview:

***

1. What is your job title? Technically I'm a Residential Interior Designer, but at Grandiflora I'm the Main Buyer & a Visual Merchandiser (plus a business owner/partner).

2. What are your responsibilities? I am a trend forcaster, buyer, visual merchandiser, consultant, photographer, advertiser, & I take on all manner of business responsibilities.

3. What is a typical day like for you? I arrive at work grab my coffee & check my messages. Most of my day is spent on the computer dealing with mundane office duties. However, sometimes I get to chat with folks at Decor Magazines or Blogs who are interested in either featuring one of our items, our shop, or working up an ad for our online shop Grandiflora HOME. I handle all the photography for our photo shoots, and I do all the ads for both shops. I also spend a fair amount of time surfing the internet for new items to purchase. However... some days I am lucky enough to work with the actual product that comes in via shippers like Fed Ex or UPS. I honestly don't have a "Typical Day"...but what I can tell you is that I never have enough time in the day to get all my duties done! :)

4.What do you like most about your job? & why? I love to do the photoshoots of our product out doors with lots of either vintage product and/or live models. The reason is that I get to be outside working to "style" the photos to exactly the way I like them. It's like creating perfection in my mind. I work on the side as a photo stylist (which is basically an interior designer for photoshoots) I've been blessed enough to have my work featured accross the web. It's truly what I dreamed of doing back in High School! :)

5. What do you like least about your job? & why? Absolutely dislike looking at finacial reports....but....I truly dislike having to help angry customers just as much. :(

6. What level of education do you need for this job? Well, it depends on what you are going to do with your Residential Interior Design degree. I could've used a 4 year college education in business for what I ultimately ended up doing here at Grandiflora. I didn't get that degree however, because most of my knowledge comes from past experience or family members who are happy to help with advise. I did get a two year degree from the Art Intstitute of Seattle....I took it in one year....totally insane to have done....I don't recommend it.

7. Was there a specific degree or job training that you needed to complete to get this job? If so, what? It would've been insane for me to enter into this particular job without having worked from the bottom up in retail which was centered around the home decor business. I truly do use my Res. Int. Des. Degree on a daily basis....so not having it would be a huge dissadvantage for me.

8. What types of reading do you use on the job? Every Home and Fashion design magazine both online and in print that I can get my hands on. Trade publications are great for trend forcasting. I read blog after blog after blog (and even write two blogs myself!). I read home decor books & also books on crafting, cooking, and entertaining as well.

9. How do you use writing on the job? As I said before, I write two blogs (one for the shop, and one for my personal business use). I also type numerous emails everyday to all my contacts. Every order I write is done in longhand first, and then typed for ease in emailing. I've also had to write a number of stories and conduct many interviews for magazines and trade publications.

10. How is math important to your job? What type of math skills do you use? Obviously in visuals/display/design, measuring & fractions are super important. I also use alot of percentages, addition, and subtraction for all the business work I do. Multiplication is important for orders as well.

11. Why is it important to have good listening skills in this job? When a person is telling you what they want to accomplish in their home, you'd better be listening! A person's home is their "sacred" place to be themselves....messing that one up will land you jobless with not a single reference to speak of.

12. Do you ever work in teams on your job? How so? Yes, I place orders with my partner and our store manager. I complete many business decisions with our bookeeper and accountant. I also work as a team with any clients I might have.

13. What kind of computer skills do you need to perform your job? Super fast typing skills are a must! I need to know how to use all forms of social media ( as I'm in charge of that for all my businesses). I need to know how to photo upload, edit, and enhance. I need to upload large quantities of product information for our online shop. The list truly goes on and on!!!! I am glued to a computer most of my day!

14. What kinds of problems do you solve on the job? How to help customers find just the right look for their home. How to deal with shipping misshaps. Computer tech questions when dealing with online design issues.

15. What skills do you need to solve these problems? Basic understanding of good design. Communication skills. Basic uploading skills with Photoshop style editing systems etc...

16. What is the proper dress and etiquette for this position? Oh my! It truly depends on what I'm doing from day to day....but most days I'm "smart casual". If I worked in a bigger city where fashion actually played a role in day to day work....it would be more important! ;) As an artist....I can wear just about anything I like (as long as it's appropriate) and get away with it! :)

17. What is your advice to someone who wants to enter this field? Be prepared for the fact that unless you are going to live in a large metropolitan city, you will not make much money as people generally don't value the arts. It's sad....but it's true. :(

18. Is this job flexible time wise? Absolutely if you own your own business...otherwise no.

19. Do you think this job is currently in demand? Yes...but again, not in our area. You would need to move to a larger area to find people who are consistantly willing to pay for your services.

20. What does it take to succeed in this job? Awesome basic gift for style, great communication skills, a very large amount of self confidence & the ability to make "something" out of "nothing".

21. What is the most important trait/characteristic to have in this job field? Artistic abilities.

Well, that sums it up folks....even with all the "not so much fun" things I do in any given day...I love what I do! Hope you enjoyed the peek into my interview?

Have you ever done one of these???

If so, how'd you do?

;)

T.

xx

Some Lovelies on my Table Recently...

Was having fun the other day working with some of my vintage lovelies for

Heather Spriggs' Gatherings Magazine

I am smitten with these vintage butterfly prints, and have been racking my brain as to what to do with them.

Maybe I should do a simple wall collage with a little washi tape?

Or,

I could frame them?

Maybe deacoupage them to something?

Oh well....

whatever I decide to do,

I'm sure it will be a fun project to work on.

AND,

you'll be sure to see it here too!

:)

How have you all been?

I've been trying my best to get around to all my favorite blogs for a looksie & commenting more.

Don't you think it's nice to let folks know you care about what they are doing?

Isn't it nice when you get a little note of encouragement?

I'm not fishing for comments here

(although I'm not telling you that you couldn't leave one either! :)

But...

I think it's imperative to leave a comment when you think something is lovely or ingenious.

So, I've been working on my communicative skills as of late.

For sure it takes time,

but all my friends are TRULY worth it!

They brighten my blogger day with all sorts of inspiration!

I love them all in their very special ways.

Well,

I'm off to share a little comment luv!

I can't wait to have the time to get back here again soon to share more fun things I've been up to, but for now...the kids need to get on the bus to school...

Have a lovely day!

:D

T.

xx

With Enough Coffee I Could....

Fun Treasury on Etsy I whipped up.

I was thinking about coffee this morning & wondered.....

With enough coffee I could....

1. Clean my house!

2. Finish my laundry.

3. Do some paperwork

(I'd say finish it....but it will NEVER be done!)

4. List more items on Etsy.

5. Run to town to mail my Etsy packages.

6. Excercise? Hmm.....not sure coffee would be enough?

7. Bake some cookies...and then drink more coffee.

8. Play with my kids & help them with homework.

9. Be all the places I need to be on time?

10. With enough coffee...I could live on the ceiling, would that be practical?

Well,

I'm off to brew another cuppa....we'll see what I can accomplish after I've had mine?!

How about you???

Coffee & it's effects on you.....whatcha got fer me?

I NEED inspiration here folks....I'm kinda Super Tired here.....ah, c'mon!

:)

Cheerio

to

U

!

Snow in Summer???

Snow Bells are in full bloom here...and I'm inside working my little fingers to the bone!

Sniff, sniff, sniff....part cryin' part allergies!

Oh well....once I can tackle this

HUGE

JOB

of cleaning out my storage room,

sorting through everything,

painting

(note to self....must buy paint)

& finally

getting everything put into place...

I

CAN

CELEBRATE!!!!

WHOO HOO!!!!

:D

I promise I'll be posting some photos soon....but I want enough to fill a whole blog post ok?

Until then, go visit

Paper n Stitch

to see

Wesley Asher on Etsy

as the featured shop of the day!

Whoo Hoo!

:)

I'll be back later with more,

have a  great day!

Trish

10 Reasons I'm Being REAL This Week

1.  The real Me does not care that the laundry is piled as high as her knees (did I mention I'm nearly 6' tall?) Those are some HIGH knees!

2. The real Me only washes her hair everyother day.

3. The real ME weighs a whole lot more than she did in High School.

4. The real Me acts like a total dork when no one is looking.

5. The real Me loves to sing as loud as possible & shake her bootie to the extremely LOUD music in the Suburban when no one else is along for the ride.

6. The real Me wears clothes with holes in them...even in public...yes....really.

7. The real Me smothers vanilla ice cream with peanut butter and chocolate sauce.

( You know you wanna too! Disclaimer: see reason #3! )

8. The real me drinks from the milk carton when no one is looking.

I know...I know...

:D

9. The real me is gonna get really busy this week cleaning the house and organizing because:

10. The real me is going to be missing her 2 sons while they are away with Grandpa & Grandma this week.

:(

Time to put it to the grindstone and get ta work!!!!!

The real Me is gonna enjoy her hubby alot this week....the real Me will not be divulging any of that info in the next blog posts...

;P

...but...

 the real Me might show you some photos of the organization progress,

IF

 the real Me can get up off her bottom and put the ice cream away already!

Really!

:D

Trish

Buttons and To Do Lists...

Sea of Buttons

Just a fun little glimpse of the buttons I found at

The Farm Chicks

show I went to this past weekend.

I am SO busy trying to get caught up on all that needs to be accomplished after being gone over the weekend.

I was feeling so overwhelmed by all that I needed to get done this week...and even just today.

SO,

 I ended up joining a group on

Flickr

Called 52 lists in 52 weeks put on by

Kellie

&

this is what I came up with for todays first list:

I'm doing pretty good so far...the chocolate bar is FINALLY finished! WHEW! Ugh....that was difficult!

I've read to my little Elliot...

I took and edited the photos...

I did two...actually three blog posts...

I have the package half way packed...

now...

I only need to make that button bracelet & clean something...hmmm....uh hold on...

...

....

......

...yep, my glasses are really clean now!

Mission Accomplished!

YAY!

This list stuff is super easy!

;P

Maybe next week I'll have to take this a bit more seriously?

Cheerio Chicas!

T.

:D

To Do...and Do....and Do!!!

I've been really busy getting ready to do a booth for our shop

Grandiflora

at a really fun show that we are going to be a part of called

2nd Saturdayz

My sister La Von, my mom Jan, and our store floor manager Kim are heading down to whip up a fun booth filled with goodies!

Well, that would mean I need to get those goodies all whipped up into shape with tags and the like.

SO.....

that means I'll be a busy little bee with nary a time for dilly-dallying.

I did however, whip up this sweet little Birthday Card the other day from an antique image.

Cute huh???

I will also be celebrating my little one's Birthday from 4 to 5!

Yay Elliot!!!

AND

MOTHER'S DAY is COMING!!!

Yikes!

Well, with that being said....

I'll bid you adieu for now....apologies ahead of time for slim posting this week.

Hope you can get on top of your

"to do"

list too!

:D

T.

B I F O C A L S ? ? ?

Those are MY old glasses....oh how I will miss you dear old glasses! :(

O.K.

So, it doesn't happen very often that I just don't know what to write about....

but I'm having one of those random days,

You know what that's like?

I had a field trip this morning for my oldest to go see how milk is produced.

(very informative...and cute to watch the kids too).

Then quick to get the little one from pre-school and hear about

"Stop, Drop, and Roll!"

( I'll be heading on the Fire Department field trip soon too! )

Quick trip through a drive through

( very rare for us....no really...VERY RARE)

My tummy is still churning from the greasey food...ick.

Then,

"IT"

happened:

I RAN to get my eyes dialated...

DOES ANYONE HATE EYE DIALATION THE WAY I DO???

Let me

HEAR YA NOW!!!

SUPER ICK!!!!

Anyway...since my Eye Doc is so nice to me....I'll let it slide this time....

BUT,

He told me I have to get.....

(are you listening?)

I HAVE TO GET

B I F O C A L S!!!!!!

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHRRRRRRRRRRRRGH!

:(

Have I mentioned before that I'm a mere 37 years old?

Young....TOO YOUNG

to get bifocals!

:(

Oh well....he swears to me that the no line bifocals will help me not to feel so "old looking".

We'll see.

................

We'll see.

yeah....

We'll see.

;)

T.

Would You Care for a Piece of Doily Delish?

Ok, here it is!

One cannot deny that dessert is one of foods' greatest claims to fame.

Likewise I believe that doilies are one of home decors' lushest goodies too!

I happen to love and collect colorful doilies.

Do you know how much time is put into each one?

LOTS!

Again,

I don't crochet...but I've still got a healthy respect for the grannys who probably made these delicious doilies!

I've been playing alot with doilies lately....

and I have more photos coming soon.

I just wanted to share some goodies with all of you sweetie pies today!

Enjoy!

:)

T.

Confession/Obsession

I have a sort of a confession to make.

Really.

It's a doozy.

Are you ready???

I

can't

knit.

I

can't

crochet.

Now I have a bit of an obsession to admit to.

Seriously? you say.....

Yep....

Seriously.

I

collect

yarn

balls.

Huh???? you say.

Yep.

I

Do.

and....not only that....

but

I

also

collect

knitting

needles

&...........

crochet

needles

too!

I have a problem...

:oP

T.

Just Because I Can!

You know...

sometimes you just gotta have a little fun!

:D

Don't you just love this?

I snapped this photo yesterday

"just because"

I'm in the process of making this into prints

(cute for dressing room/closets)

AND

I'm going to make this print into

BRIDAL SHOWER

CARDS!

How fun is that?!?!

I bet you're wondering how I came to have this pretty funky frock?

Ha haa ahahahahahaha....

That's a whole other blog post...

but I will say this:

"What happens in Goodwill...Stays in Goodwill!"

hee heeehe eheehe ehheee!

:oP

Hope you are all well today?

I'm happy the sun is shining!

Thanks for yet another beautiful day Lord...

you

ROCK!

:)