A Surprise and Some Reprises

  Yesterday was my day to get my stitches removed; I thought that was a pretty good thing in itself but when I came home this sweet surprise was waiting for me in our mailbox!

Deb, aka Garage Sale Gal made this get well card for me!  She knows I love her cards.  I also love her blog and of course I love her!  She is such a thoughtful gal and I appreciate her!  Thank you, Deb, for all your sweet thoughts and prayers.

Are you on Pinterest?  It's become one of my web obsessions and it was Pinterest that lead me toward the cutest paper angel, posted on http://chocolatecraftsandbearsohmy.blogspot.com/2010/11/paper-angel-ornament-tutorial.html.

I decided I had to try my own versions.  I don't have paper punches but I do have plenty of lace and fabric that I can use to "dress" them up!

 Remember the estate sales we bought out?  Although most of what we purchased was clean and immediately useable other items were geared Spring and holidays like Valentine and Easter.  Those, of course, had to be separated out and packed for more appropriate times to use in the shop.  Still other items need some help or repurposing.  For example, this sweet basket below was among our goodies; however, baskets by themselves are not normally good sellers.

 

Craftsperson that I am, of course I have lots of pine sprigs and "picks" that I've saved from other sales or auctions.  I cleaned up the basket and planted some of those sprigs, mixing in some beads, pinecones, etc.  I love the way it turned out, if I do say so myself.  I'm tempted to keep it but will take it to the shop.

China is something else that doesn't necessarily sell really well.  If it has silver or gold in the pattern people might buy one piece and use it as a decorative wall hanging but not for use on their dinner tables.  It's a sign of the times - if you can't "nuke" it in the microwave, customers are slow to purchase it.  The plates below are beautiful but are only a one place setting - dinner plate, salad and dessert plates.   We could put them in the shop with a cheap price and hope that someone will come in and want a one place setting of the pattern or it could be coupled with a couple of the thousands (okay, a slight exaggeration) of candlesticks we have.

It's now a cute three-tier serving dish with a reasonable price.  This is the time of year people want pieces like this for finger foods and I'm thinking this re-do will sell much quicker.

This little seamstress is one of those items that just has to stay with me.  Okay, it will probably eventually end up in the shop but for now, it's mine to enjoy.

Until next time...Enjoy your lives!

Post Op, We Did it Again and Future Thoughts

Here we are, 8 days post-op.  My doc removed part of both meniscus and did some repair work on a ligament.    Some bruising is showing up and I still have swelling but nothing like the swelling I had before the surgery.  It still hurts to put much weight on my right leg so I'm using either crutches or a walker.  The walker is pretty handy; I have a ready seat  if my leg gets over tired.  All in all, the surgery went well and (I think) I'm doing well with recovery.  Thank you, Lord!

Yep, we did it again!  We didn't buy out an entire estate but we did go to an estate sale last Saturday and ended up buying a large number of box lots.  So, I'm back on the couch surrounded by boxes upon boxes of things that need sorting and tagging.  Most items are clean but not everything is "shoppable".  For example, take a look at this familiar-looking brother and sister. 

The boy looks pretty good but I'm not sure what happened when his sister was getting her eyes painted. 

She looks downright possessed.  I think I can fix her eyes but this isn't a set that is headed to the shop.

Our annual open house is happening Saturday, December 3.  If you live in the North Carolina, southwest Virginia or east Tennessee area, put us on your calendar:  the CORNER NEST, Elizabethton, TN.  The shop is looking even more beautiful, in its festive dress.  Sweet Hubby and I were there until late Sunday night.  I was adding to our merchandise, replacing sold items and Hubby was working on the display for one of our booths. 

My Hubby and his coworkers yesterday were told that the Exide Battery Plant they work at will be "idled".  I guess that's a new term for "closed".  The work they do will be transferred to one of the other plants over the next 12 to 18 months.  The department Hubby works in has an unknown future. Decisions will be made within the next 90 days; we have no idea what that means.  Could be that their jobs will be closing out earlier, maybe later, maybe never.  Please pray, not just for us, but for all the  over 400 families that will be affected.