Storybook Ranch

Lucky Number 4: You Win!

2011-11-25T11:40:00.000-05:00

Thanks so much to all who entered the giveaway! The winner of the $40 gift certificate to Storybook Ranch on Etsy goes to commenter #4, SWEET BEE COTTAGE! Congratulations!!! Please email me within 7 days for information on how to redeem your prizeStorybook_ranch@yahoo.com

$40 Giveaway to Storybook Ranch on ETSY

2011-11-16T08:56:00.001-05:00

Hey there! It's been ages since I've hosted a giveaway, so here it is: You could win a $40 gift certificate to Storybook Ranch on Etsy (open to continental US residents only-sorry!) 3 ways to enter: 1. Leave a comment telling me what you would purchase with the $30 if you should win 2. Blog about the giveaway & leave another comment with the link to the blog post. 3. Become a follower if

I Made Art

2011-11-14T13:57:00.003-05:00

This painting was a garage sale leftover (from my Aunt) that has been hanging in my living room for months now. I LOVED this painting and frame & that's why we kept it instead of donating it. But the more I looked at it, the more it felt "out of place" in our living room. And when I saw THIS on Pinterest , I pinned it on my DO THIS board, with the intentions of creating my own version of it.

ATG's Re-sellers Listing Challenge: Update

2011-10-26T14:52:00.000-04:00

It's been a busy month over

Why Santa is taking advantage of Layaway this year

2011-10-19T08:54:00.000-04:00

Mrs. Santa is starting her handmade holiday gifts today (I'll share them after the holidays), but since there are some things I just have to purchase at either Wal-mart, K-mart or Toys R Us this season (mainly LEGOS), I'm totally taking advantage of the layaway programs they're rolling out for quite a few reasons: 1. I can get all of my shopping done NOW: a. I don't have to shop in my bulky

TV TUESDAY: Clean House PT 2, KOOKY KITSCH

2011-10-18T21:13:00.011-04:00

I secretly have this crazy desire CLEAN everyone's home in America. Don't get me wrong, I don't want to scrub floors or polish their furniture. I want to walk in, clear all the clutter & have a massive yard sale. Maybe I have some sort of mental illness, but mainly it's because I really believe in the POWER of clearing your space & life of clutter. It amazes me how many bags I can drop off at

Wood Is Good.

2011-10-13T09:50:00.001-04:00

I tried thinking out of the box last week and picked up some cute wooden items that I could brighten up by painting. {Like cloth vs. disposable has the ability to divide mothers, I am aware that there is a division among us of wood painters and wood purists} {I like to think I'm somewhere in the middle, sometimes I paint, sometimes I refinish} Anyways, here's what I brought home last week: .I'm

Apron Thrift Girl's Resellers Listing Challenge

2011-10-11T08:40:00.000-04:00

Selena over at Apron Thrift Girl is hosting a listing challenge for the month of October: My Goal for October's Challenge: 1. Etsy Goals: get inventory up to 150 and to make 30 sales. Current Stats: 130 items for sale/ 9 sales. etsy 2. Half.com Goals: List 30 items. Current stats: 19 items listed 3. Ebay Goals: List Mr. 5's clothes that no longer fit. and sell them all! Current stats:

October Etsy Promotion: Buy one, Get one 50% off

2011-10-08T07:38:00.004-04:00

No sign of a job yet, so I gave myself more hours over at Storybook Ranch's Etsy Shop. And since I've been promoted to marketing director, I made the executive decision to run monthly promotions October's promotion is: Buy One Item and Get A Second Item (of equal or lesser value) for 50% off. There's no coupon code for this, so if you do make a purchase, just enter "October 2011" in the notes

Lucky me (finally) found some Gravel Art

2011-10-04T12:15:00.000-04:00

I've drooled over gravel art on all the cool blogs and thought I'd never find any of my own. But, I found one and I have to say it's even cooler than paint by numbers.I feel like it should have a partner, though?

The Tupperware Collective

2011-10-01T09:51:00.000-04:00

Do you love Tupperware? Retro Tupperware? Well, there's a fun new blog called THE TUPPERWARE COLLECTIVE, the long lost sister of THE PYREX COLLECTIVE. So, If you have some cool Tupperware to share or just like to see everyone else's, head on over. I posted my first post this morning. Have a great weekend, everyone!

Fall or Autumn?

2011-09-29T13:21:00.000-04:00

I know it's technically called Autumn, but I like the term FALL. After all, it is the time of year when things start to FALL: like leaves, giant sunflower heads, daylight hours, the temperature and sometimes *SNOWFLAKES!! The most exciting harvest of this years garden for the kids has been SUNFLOWER seeds. There's a very small window to get out there when the seeds are ready, but haven't been

Slapped!

2011-09-28T08:38:00.000-04:00

Rewind to about 2 weeks ago, I was sitting here (taking life way too seriously), drafting a list of 35 items from my DAY ZERO list to complete by my 35th birthday. I was reading help wanted ads & applying for jobs about 4 hours a day. I was working out for 2+ hrs a day. Making daily schedules. Stressing over the bills and (soon to be)holiday gifts, feeding my family only the healthiest foods,

Time

2011-09-05T14:47:00.000-04:00

Wow-That went fast!! I hope everyone had a great summer. I was busy making plans and while I was busy doing that, the Universe was busy laughing at me! Perpetual Calendar $19 I was making plans to go back to school and/or work. A majority of the summer was spent planning on it: interviewing, sending out resumes, taking tests, writing essays,enrolling in classes, making budgets,

Growing

2011-08-23T22:56:00.000-04:00

We (I) intially started a vegetable garden 2 years ago to save money on food. But, over the summers the garden has provided us with not only an abundance of food, but also an abundance of valuable life lessons, such as patience, goals, diligence, hope, failure, disappointment,sharing, growth, progress and rewards. We've also learned to appreciate RAIN. Anyways...This is what our garden looked

It's not you, it's me.

2011-08-17T13:25:00.001-04:00

Dear Weight Watchers, It has been one year since we met and fell in love. Like all romances, the beginning was great, I was infatuated and eager to learn everything about you, I looked forward to seeing you every week for my weigh ins, I planned meals & activity religiously. We set goals & made plans for a future together and I lost 20 lbs! Then, life happened and we just couldn't sustain our

Thinking about this set

2011-08-15T09:45:00.000-04:00

I've almost dialed the telephone number a dozen times. $75 for all. It wouldn't hurt to look, I guess The chairs are what I'm really interested in. I just have this weird sort of phobia of other peoples bedroom & living room furniture...

Left hanging

2011-08-10T11:13:00.008-04:00

Wow, that was an exhausting ordeal. The whole interview process, finding decent clothes to wear, babysitters, drying my hair properly, putting on makeup. TWICE! All that to not hear anything for over a week, no answers to my followup telephone calls nor emails. Ah well, it's a learning process and at my wise old age of 34 I'm not so upset over things I can't control and feel confident that

Madness

2011-07-27T09:28:00.004-04:00

It's with great madness that I declare I have no idea where my life is headed, career wise. Even though I have already enrolled in school (part time) for the fall (pending financial aid reward) and have been sending resumes out left and right-I still have no idea what I'll be doing come September. Two very nice women interviewed me for a great position yesterday, and I was a nervous wreck! If I

Garage Sale Leftovers: Part 2

2011-07-22T08:24:00.018-04:00

I thoroughly enjoy seeing what everyone has scored at sales this summer! But, I've been a bit envious since I haven't been able to make it to any yard sales yet. I missed a friends block sale a few weeks back. But, she was sweet enough to call me up & tell me that I could go through her leftovers & take what I wanted before she donated them. HOW AWESOME IS SHE? Mostly, I picked up a few things

How's it Growing?

2011-07-20T10:27:00.000-04:00

Wow! What a difference 6 short, beautiful and sunny weeks can make! Here's what the garden looked like when we planted it: June 1st And here it is now, busting through the "fence" I made for it: The only thing we've harvested so far is lettuce. Delicious lettuce. Success! I'm estimating 100's of tomatoes by summers end,dozens of peppers, a few sunflowers and just enough Zucchini. Maybes?We

Hanging Out By The Pool

2011-07-18T10:26:00.000-04:00

I am in love with this clothesline a little bit. My aunt & uncle brought it over for the garage sale and I fell in love instantly, but knew it had to go towards the sale. However, a few days prior to the sale, my father asked me to save it for him, so I didn't put it out. Post-sale, he they decided he couldn't use it, so I adopted it!! It's been great for drying towels by the pool, which has

The Prettiest Mirrors on the Wall

2011-07-06T08:57:00.000-04:00

I recently picked up an amazing plastic faux bois (fake wood) looking Syroco mirror for FIFTY CENTS and painted it yellow. I sorta love it! I have to admit that in the past, I wasn't very 'colorful' and just the thought of yellow would have made me roll my eyes. Yes, I (thought I) was too cool for yellow. but dang it! IT'S TRUE!Colors DO make me feel happier! I also repainted a white,

Easy Peasy, Lemon Squeezy Craigslist Shopping

2011-06-30T11:52:00.000-04:00

Each time I use CraigsEasy, I think of all of you. And today, I'm finally sharing with you. It's a top secret (not really) way to search craigslist in photos. Meaning, it saves a lot of time and is great for people like me who get antsy reading lots of text with no photos. Here's what Craigslist Browsing looks like without CraigsEasy: And, here's what browsing looks like with CraigsEasy:

A couple of my favorite couples

2011-06-29T11:02:00.068-04:00

Ahhh...my very favorites: The Pyrex, Butterprint Couple. I've been collecting the blue folks for years and just came across this gold Cinderella bowl (for 50 cents!) What can I say? They're simple folks & I love them! This quaint couple was rescued from the back shelf of a thrift store, covered in years of dust. They've been married for 55+ years and are totally devoted to each other. You