Retreating

Whew. Sometimes life really hands you a STOP sign. Usually it happens when you have a plan in place, and are set to step out and move forward in a particular direction that you have chosen. You lift your foot, swing your leg, and just as you are ready to put your foot back down on terra firma in a new place - BAM! The unforeseen swoops down and stops you in your tracks. You THINK you know where you are going, but suddenly all of the roadsigns start pointing in every other direction than THAT one. Confusion and frustration result. We're there, my friends.

We were told many years ago that this occurrence was a test of our 'devotion'. We've learned that it is, actually, a test of our flexibility! We are most certainly devoted to and determined to pursue our goals and plans for our life and for Retreat... but the underlying mission statement of our business is that 'we will be building this business and developing it to benefit our family and help other people & families along the way'. If we can help others build small businesses doing what they love, and that can bless their lives and families, as well as contribute to a growing local economy, it fulfills a large part of our mission.

While we are planning and waiting for the 'big parts' of that plan to unfold, we've also been working out ways to take smaller steps 'in the meantime'. One was to have begun this past week... but our emergency trip to California has stopped that. Will it ever happen? Yes. We just don't know when. Ditto for the big stuff. It's a bit frustrating to be standing here staring at signs that look like that photo above: 'Turn right! No, turn left! No, go straight! STOP! GO! Yield! U turn!' All we can do is what we can do at any given moment. I know you've probably all felt that way at times, too, so you understand. Especially our generation, who are all working on balancing our own lives with being parents of adult children and parenting our aging parents.

Being in SoCal, considering whether or not this situation necessitates our relocation back here, and discussing how that would impact our life, our family, and our business, is a very heavy subject for us right now. It is not our choice to do that - to leave behind all that we have discovered, built up, and planned for in Washington. There's that concept of 'flexibility'.... are we willing to do that? Are we willing to change everything and for the time being give up our goals, our business, and life in our house on our island in Washington -  along with the very real chance that we may never get the opportunity again? Or are we willing to work harder to find a solution that will benefit everyone, and not cost us what we have worked so hard for up to this point? Our choice is the latter, but we may need to be willing to be flexible.

We are watching the roadsigns and listening for guidance so that we make wise and workable choices. I guess you could think of it as our Universal 'Garmin', whispering directions in our ear as we travel this road...

Our Little Angel..... um...... Lil' Devil.....

We thought we'd share a peek at how we spent our Halloween....

This is our second grandson, who is our son Joel's son. Mr. Cute Stuff up there is Jameson Ward Kennedy, AKA Bubba, Jamers, and Lil' Dude. As a result of our last-minute trip to Southern California for a family medical emergency, we got to see all four of our kids and our grandson at the same time. No small feat to accomplish that, let us tell you! Seeing Bubba in his Lil' Devil Halloween costume was the highlight of our day today.

We have enjoyed having some special family time together with Bob's parents, our girls, our son and his wife & son. And yet, on everyone's mind and heart is the failing heart of Bob's dad, and how to help him and mom as things proceed. One thing we've learned about in life: Enjoy every moment, and remember that the happy often accompanies the sad.

We had some plans in mind for Retreat's next month or so, but this trip has put all of that on the back burner. Right now, nothing is more important than family. We are trusting that our needs will be met as we help here with everything we can...

Halloween 'ReTreats' at Poppyseeds!

Today we added more Halloween Re-Treat goodies to our space inside Poppyseeds! The punch of black looks fabulous with the soft grays & whites in the space, and a few creepy details make it perfect for haunting:

Madame Matilda, ensconced in her crystal ball, glows eerily... or you can get a slightly less creepy non-lit version!

There are still ivory and tan Sweet Sweater Pumpkins to be had, and now you'll find some Sweet SWANKY Pumpkins in black & white, as well. Great for decorating all fall season long!

Two of the mini-chandelier ornaments in black are still available!

Altered books & bottles are ready for use in your Spells & Incantations...

And for the first time at Poppyseeds, we offer Deb's original 'Junk Queen' Crown creations. This time, it's a special Halloween version with smoky vintage crystals - perfect for the 'Scream Queen' in YOUR life!

Or maybe, just for your Halloween pumpkin?!

As an unadvertised special offer for our blog readers, All Retreat Halloween products are 50% off of our already low prices, this week at Poppyseeds! We aren't advertising this offer in the store, only here on our blog. So just ask Julie or MaryBeth for the discount when you purchase our Halloween products at the store!

It Was FUNky!

Thank you SO much to all of the wonderful women (and a few 'manly men', who clearly don't mind being surrounded by dozens of women in pink feather boas!) who came to the show in Puyallup this weekend. It was wonderful to see friends, customers, clients, and fellow dealers alike over the past few days, and we both want to express our appreciation to all of you for your continued support. We know you have choices in where you go, and how you spend your time and money... and we are grateful that you choose to visit us at shows. We hope we always delight you!

 

Our neighbors were JohnBobCoolJunk and their painted pink pumpkins, Miss Tiffany of Shabby Scraps and her fanciful prom dress, Linda of LuLuz who finaly figured out why all the pink was appropriate for this show ;0), and Janet of Blue Ewe and her darling grandbaby! Close by were DeWayne Lumpkin of Home Economics with more cool factor signs, and Patricia of Tippy Stockton Designs with her guys hubby John and friend 'Hot Toddy'. ;0). (No, it will NOT die!) Just around the corner were MaryBeth & Julie from Poppyseeds with more cuteness than should be allowed in one booth alone! Our booth was haunted, we swear.... the lights kept going off all day and night!  (Then again, maybe it had something to do with a loaded circuit that couldn't handle the additional strain of a space heater in another booth, who knows....) While the lights were on, we managed to snap a few shots to share with you. There was a lot to see:                                                                        

Many new delightful furnishings, created from castoff, discarded, reclaimed, and rescued parts in a rather 'frankenstein'-ish manner by Dr. VonBob himself...

There were spellbinding effects, like a hot pink bowling ball serving as a vase, and a mysterious medium, 'Madame Matilda', entombed in her crystal ball....

There were crowns for every Queen, from Junk Queens to Scream Queens (a limited edition of Halloween crowns, featuring dark smoky crystals)

And of course, there were the newest version of Deb's pumpkin creations: these are 'Sweet Swanky Pumpkins' in mod fabrics & colors. We served 'em up hot and fresh on this vintage stove (that actually works!)

So many of these treasures went home with happy girls, but we still have a few of the Halloween decor items and will be adding them to our room at Poppyseeds in the next day or so. We connected with Mandi, owner of the wonderful shop Creme Brulee in Friday Harbor on San Juan Island, who is interested in carrying our products, and we are looking forward to working with her to create some special new pieces. The next show on our schedule isn't until December 6th, at Sand Point, Seattle, so for the next few weeks, we'll be busily preparing for another new adventure around here. We will share that with you all very soon! (and for those of you whom we have already told, SHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!)

Just one important final note: Our appreciation goes out to two sweet young ladies in particular, who always travel to see us at shows, regardless of the distance involved. These two perservered for hours to locate the show venue, finally arrived yesterday just before closing, and as we caught them walking in the front door, they looked more than a little relieved to have found us at last(and you know who you are!). We offer yet another hug and our endless gratitude and hope the special 'I finally got it!' treasures you both took home from our booth made the long trip worthwhile.

Thinkin' Pink and Junkin' It up!

Our booth was filled to the brim tonight for the evening event at the Funky Junk Sisters Antique & Flea Market Show.... it was a great evening with a huge turnout of fabulous girls, and booth after booth filled with a plethora of perfectly pink pretties. A lot of stuff went flying out of our booth, so we'll go in first thing tomorrow morning to re-set, re-style, and foof up our swanky urban country look to be ready for a full day's show. (Can you see those Sweet Swanky Pumpkins in the old stove?!) Oh, yeah, there's more where that came from! Doors open at 8 AM for early bird shoppers AND for the Junk Bus Gals - we'll see you then!

Spacin' Out for the Funky Junk Sisters Show

Hey, gang, I have some more news about next weekend's show to share, in addition to the photos a few days ago. The Funky Junk Sisters have just put a new post up with some show information on their blog:
They have posted a list of participating dealers (above)

and a map of the floorplan (above).

If you are, like us, a dealer participating in the show, you can see where the girls have decided to place you in the show floorplan. Also just received an email from them, letting us know that dealers can load in on Thursday night from 6 to 9 PM - no set up, just drop off. That should help with the inevitable rush the next morning - though they are saying we can drive into the building, I don't think that's an option for us with our truck and 25' foot trailer rig!!! The girls mentioned that they are also going to be taking photos of the venue and sharing them, so keep an eye on their blog for those. (Maybe there will be some of those interior shots that we couldn't get!)

There are 90 spaces, and 60 dealers/businesses listed as participating in the show. Some are returning from the first FJS show last June, and many are new to this show. Linda posted on Facebook that many of the dealers are first-timers doing a show, too, so it will be one hoppin' place!

By the way, if you are a dealer who is donating a pink ornament for the pink christmas tree, please make sure your name and contact info are on it, and bring it to show setup on Friday. I'll be completing the tree decor at the end of the day (after I get our booth set up!) and will add all of your special ornaments then. And thank you all SO much for participating in this raffle project.... it's such a great way for all of us to contribute to a very good cause. Oh, yeah - wear PINK on Friday night!

If you are going to be attending the show as a shopper, the two images should help you to find the locations of all of your fave dealers, and plan your assault. We hope to see you in our Retreat spaces, #4 & 5, located immediately inside the entry door on the left side. (seen just above the middle on the left side of the image above). The entrance to the show faces the Sears wing of the South Hill Mall, BTW. See ya' this weekend!

Photos from the Funky Junk Sisters blog

Sharing A Fave Fab Find!

We are re-visiting one of our previous posts, in order to participate in the 'Flea Marketeer' party at the Flea Market Style Magazine blog! We hope our regular readers enjoy this blast from the past, and we'd like to welcome new readers to our Retreat blog! Our business is all about restyling found and thrifted items.... check this one out:

Hi guys, it's Bob... thought you might like to see how a discarded piece of furniture turns into something special here at Retreat! This 60's cabinet/server, above, is one of the items we got from Beth Evans-Ramos earlier in the week. Deb & I stood and looked at it, trying to figure out how to make it into something with a more current look AND fit in with the theme we will have for you at BarnHouse next weekend. It took us a bit, but some spirited discussion and a serendipitous movement of the flag in our yard inspired us. And between the two of us, we finally came up with a game plan (it's fun when that happens!)... here's what we did:

Added a new top, made from some old T&G siding (also from Beth), and some moulding to trim it.
Made the legs a bit shorter, to remove the tapered ends. Added finials as feet.
Took the door and drawers and enhanced the 'board' effect. I deepened existing grooves and added a few to the drawers, to make this look like we had assembled it from miscellaneous parts. Added some old ceramic knobs, too. Then Deb did her magic with paintbrushes (using some paint that Beth was discarding!), and the result is..... (drum roll, please).....
Something that you, we, and Beth find it hard to believe is the same piece we started with!!! Pretty cool, huh?! Deb said we needed to share the story of its transformation because it looks like a brand new piece by Lane Furniture or something...but I disagree. I think our stuff is much more interesting than anything by Lane. Thanks, Beth, for providing the raw materials that became this one of a kind piece of furniture for someone to love!
Oh, and this beauty has friends! Lots more 'pieces with personality' for your home or summer beach house will be in our space at the BarnHouse Flea Market next Saturday.... right in the center of the barn, under the awning. Come see us!
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This post originally appeared here on our blog in July of 2009, and the dresser sold after the BarnHouse show, when we brought it back and put it into our room at Poppyseeds. It now lives happily on the other end of our island. Meanwhile, we are busily creating new products from old 'stuff' every day!