Bring on the sunshine! Time to plant my veggies and mow the lawn! When you work every weekend like I do, at shows or auctions or hunting antiques on dusty roadsides, Monday and Tuesday are days spent cleaning up the house, planting and pulling weeds around the garden and taking stock of what work has to get done the rest of the week. Sunshine looks like it will be precious this week, so I will try to keep the laptop work to a minimum and get some much-needed Vitamin D! This is my first Spring at the new house, so last weekend we filled the planter boxes with compost and dirt and this week I will start to see how the seeds will like the spot I chose in the yard. There’s not too much shade in my sunny beach-side yard, so I will have to keep my fingers crossed!
As for work, this weekend was another busy one, at the Great Canadian Craft Show, Spring Fling. Thanks again to all the customers who visited my booth. I just love chatting with people and seeing their faces light up when they recognize a vintage image that triggers a child-hood memory. It’s fun work, and I am grateful for every minute!!
I’ve reopened my Etsy shop today, and will be listing more notebooks in the coming days. As well, my Ebay store has been suffering because of all the recent shows I’ve had scheduled, but look for some cool vintage barbie clothes, toys, photos and other goodies coming soon!
Drop me a note, if you have a question... and don’t forget to “like” my Facebook page or follow me on Twitter!!
xoxo

Well that was fun! We all had a great weekend at the Make it Vancouver craft show. There were a lot of fabulous vendors, the place was jumping with tons of customers and I loved the feedback I got from all who visited my booth.
I am off for a short jaunt into the country to do some antiquing and will be back soon to fill my Etsy & Ebay stores with new merchandise and to load up my booth for the next big show... the Great Canadian Craft Show, May 11-12th. Hope to see you all then!

Good morning! It’s less than four days to go before Make It Vancouver, the super cool, huge craft fair in Vancouver that I’m going to be selling my creative goodies at. I’m really excited not only to see how people respond to my creations, but to also do some shopping myself at all the cool vendors. I’ve always found great stuff for myself and as gifts when I’ve gone before as a shopper!
In my own booth I will be selling my ‘upcycled’ vintage art and gifts. I’m still making things every day, loading up my stock so that I will have enough to go around for all who come to the fair.
My mandate is to find creative ways to give new life to lovely and cool vintage items that would otherwise be stuffed in drawers or boxes and forgotten about. I love to see how people smile when they see something that they remember from their childhood, or something that amazes them from a past era.
Yesterday I found an old tattered book with great images showing a Victorian era woman teaching how to do Jiujitsu! The images are so unique, and frankly odd, they will make great magnets! I also made some magnets from old comic book art, hockey cards, postcards and other cool ephemera.

I’ve also been making a lot of really beautiful notebooks and journals, made from the covers of old books, antique cigar labels, and other vintage ephemera. They come in all different sizes and shapes and are almost all one-of-a-kind!
These are just a few of the goodies you will find at the Salvage Style booth, so come by and say hi!
Okay, now I must get back to work!!

Hi, it’s late Sunday night and I just got home from watching my boyfriend’s beer-league hockey game (he finished the regular season with another win and they’re off to the playoffs!) And now, while he is having beer with the boys, I am hard at work, once again. It’s tough sometimes, trying to find time to be creative when life threatens to fill every hour of every day. I managed to get about 2 hours of work in my sun-drenched studio this afternoon, and am hoping to fit some more time in tonight before I fall asleep! I should have gotten more done today, but this morning was beautiful and sunny and we couldn’t resist a walk on the beach!

I did stop in to visit Linda Lock at her beautiful store Cottage Living. We admired her new creations and took a picture of some of the vintage dishes I have on consignment with her. Many years ago I had my own little antique shop although I ended up taking my business online to Ebay and closing the physical store, I really miss setting up the display of items and creating an inviting atmosphere for people to browse. Linda does a fabulous job of creating such an atmosphere and it’s been fun bringing her some of my vintage goodies to display for sale.
Earlier this morning I finished transforming some vintage metal hockey figures into keychains and fridge magnets. They are a big hit with the guys and I will be posting them for sale in my Etsy shop tomorrow! They should go well with the hockey card notebooks that I’ve been selling at shows and online.

Today I also worked on some more button rings, using some of the fabulous collection of buttons I got at auction this week. Check my twitter feed later this week to see some of the best buttons I discovered!
I am also working on some children’s artwork that I’m really looking forward to putting online. I’ve been collecting vintage children’s toys for years and have some creative ways to mount and frame them for display... can’t wait to show you all in a few days.

Perhaps most important for me this week is that the deadline to apply for several craft shows is coming up! I am super excited for the upcoming season to get out and meet other creative people and get some more feedback from customers. It’s my favorite part of doing the craft shows... seeing people smile when they see something they remember as a child reinvented in a way that they can use today! It makes all the hard work worth it! I will post the upcoming shows as I set them up. Please send me a notice if there are craft shows in your neighbourhood that you think I should attend. I’d love to do as many are possible this spring!

I hope you all made it through the new year with lots of good memories! Sometimes around this time of year our pocketbooks feel a bit lighter than usual and our bodies feel a heavier (sign) but the good news is that we all feel like turning a page on the last year and starting afresh! I’m no different, but I did really enjoy 2012 and want to continue the good vibes as I move forward. And I’m also really excited to share with you my updated Etsy store which is slowing loading up with goodies from my studio!

This week I’ve listed some beautiful earrings made from the most fascinating glass hoops. I found them a few years ago at an antique sale, gently stored inside a Victorian era box! It’s amazing they survived this long. They are meant to be used to hang curtains from a curtain rod, but work perfectly for earrings! They are each beautifully formed and really look wonderful catching the light as you turn your head. Most of the hoops are facetted glass with multi-colours. You have to see them up close to appreciate their beauty, but I’ve tried to include some high-quality photos on each listing so you can get the idea. I’ve been wearing my own set almost every day for several months and I just love the way they feel and the compliments I get!

I’ve also posted some funky jewellery made from vintage Monopoly pieces, which I just love! So much fun! Upcycling is not just a great way to reuse things you think might have outlived their usefulness, but it’s a great way to relive a bit of your past, inspire a smile and make the world just a bit more fun! I’ve got lots more in the studio waiting for the camera to bring them to you... so please check back often.

Before I forget, I should mention I’ll be selling my vintage treasures this Sunday at the 21st Century Flea Market in Vancouver, so check my Upcoming Shows page for details!