Miss Mustard Seed

Furniture Feature Friday – Favorites & a Link Party

2012-06-01T02:08:32Z

Oh goodness. This has been an exciting week. I got the digital copy of my book last night, which was amazing. Looking through it made me giggle. I was a little teary eyed. I think the full-out crying will happen once I’m holding it in my hands. I also made a couple of big purchases today for an exciting change that’s happening in my business. This has been a crazy ride…

Anyway, tonight is about furniture. If you’re a furniture lover, this is the place for you.

Here are some of my favorites from last week…

I love this room by Meg from RT Tails. There’s something about how the furniture makes the room feel cozy and how many layers of personal touches and textures are there. (Oooo and I love that sign!) Very nice, Meg.

I also love this basement makeover by JosieJones. The colors, the bead board, the coffee table. Very cool room, ladies!

I’ve been picking a lot of room makeovers lately, haven’t I? Well, here’s just a piece of furniture. I think this piece is beautiful in its simplicity. Lora from Leisure Living took an tired dresser and made it look like a Shaker antique. It’s lovely.

Here are the rules for our furniture get-together…

1.) Your post has to be about furniture. Please, please, please…just furniture. If you find your link has been deleted, it’s not because I’m mean, it’s because your post was not about furniture. You can share makeovers, awesome finds, favorite pieces, furniture arrangements, or even pieces on your wish list! Built-in furniture like kitchen cabinets and bathroom vanities qualify as furniture.

2.) Post a permalink (the link to the post), not the link to your blog.

3.) This party will close Friday at midnight PST and I will choose my favorite(s) and feature their piece(s) on next week’s FFF.

Enjoy the party!

small moments

2012-05-30T17:57:34Z

One of the things that makes a house special is the little personal touches or small moments you create. It’s simple things that invite a person to lean in closer, to explore the space. The furniture arrangement and wall color and all of that are very important, but it’s the small moments that make the house scream (or whisper) “you.” It’s where your personality shows through. It’s what makes a home fun to look at and photograph…

…it’s some bundled books with frayed pages…

….a stack of wrinkled linen napkins…

…a skeleton key hanging from a ribbon…

…textures and contrasts that make you stop and appreciate the simplicity and beauty of a starfish perched on some moss…

…a well worn broom hung on a hall closet door knob…

…some gum balls peaking out from a smooth shell…

…and a spotted feather in a tarnished sugar bowl.

These are the things that make your room stand apart from the buy-every-piece-out-of-a-catalog-or-from-the-furniture-store kind of rooms. What kind of small moments have you created in your house?

Christmas in May & an Amazing Sky

2012-05-29T03:16:47Z

I wrote an entire post and then I posted it and the content vanished. Argh!! So, take two. This weekend has been pretty low key and uneventful. I have some Christmas freelance projects due this week, so I’ve been working on those over the last few days. I have one more to finish up tomorrow. My poor boys. They were outside swimming in our kiddie pool today in almost record high temperatures and then came inside to me hanging stockings. “Mommy, why are you decorating for Christmas?” That’s a good question and one that’s hard to explain to a five year old. They are getting used to the decorating and redecorating that is a pretty regular thing in our house.

One project I photographed today is perhaps one of my favorite Christmas projects ever. I can’t wait until it’s published. Here’s a sneak peek until then…

Even though I’ve been working over the weekend, I have spent some great time with my family. One of my favorite outings was when we walked up on the hill in our small town to watch a storm blow in. I don’t think I’ve ever seen such an amazing sky in my life.

My boys really enjoyed it, too. We came walking back before the rain came and they started running, yelling to us and the neighbors, “Hurry! Get inside! The storm is coming!” You could hear the sense of adventure in their voices. It was really cute.

Once I finish my articles, it’s all about the milk paint…

Who are you…

2012-05-27T02:35:06Z

…and what have you done with my husband?

That was my thought when my husband called me at 7:30 am this morning. (He is preaching this Sunday, so he went to the church super early to practice.)

“Hello?”, I answered in a groggy voice letting him know I was sleeping soundly when the ring of the phone woke me up.

“There are tons of great yard sales out here today. I stopped at one and bought a set of router bits, two pipe clamps and eight locking casters for $32!! You need to wake up and get the kids ready to go!”

“Okay…just….give….me…a….minute.” I hung up the phone. Did I just dream that? Was that perhaps some other husband meaning to call his wife and reached me instead? Had I slipped through some wormhole while I was sleeping and was in a parallel reality where my husband has to wake ME up to go to yard sales.

It was indeed my wonderful husband who called. He was home in about 10 minutes and quickly got the kids dressed and ready while I shuffled out of bed to get some clothes on and make my hair look somewhat presentable.

“We’ll get breakfast on the way. Let’s go!”

I’ve done it!! I’VE CONVERTED HIM!!!

Well, we’ll see. It was probably just a fluke thing, but I got a kick out of it and the adrenaline started pumping through my veins as soon as I spotted this at a yard sale…

(Thanks for waking me up, babe.)

…and these wooden theatre seats…

(You rock, hon!)

…AND a Johnson Bros ironstone casserole for $2.00…

(This casserole is undeniable proof that I married the right man.)

The crazing is perfection!

It was pretty funny. I spotted this casserole from the street on a table full of dishes and teacups. We did the usual “yard sale drive by” and my husband said, “Nope…just dishes.” “Yeah. We can keep going – WAIT! I see ironstone! Stop the car!” “Well, if you see ironstone, you’ve got to check it out.” He knows me too well. I ended up getting an entire box of it for $7.00. Score!!

I also found 8 Dr. Seuss books for my boys for $2.00. No superheros (or “guys” as we call them), though, much to their disappointment. I had to explain to my boys that yard sales are that way sometimes. One day you’ll find a typewriter, antique theatre seats and a $2.00 ironstone casserole and another day you come home with a box of Spiderman costumes and a Batcave. Today was just my day.

…and to think I almost slept through it.

Amy’s Manifesto

2012-05-25T23:48:48Z

I received some amazing e-mails a couple of days ago in response to my “Overwhelmed” post. Women wanted to share their stories with me and while all of the stories are different, the idea was the same. They were churning through life and finally got tired of it. (I shared my own tired-of-churning experience in my post about losing & finding myself.)

One e-mail that stood out to me was from Amy of AttaGirlSays. In that e-mail she shared with me the moment when she realized she was just churning through her life and decided to write a manifesto. I immediately thought of the moment in Jerry Maguire where he stayed up all night and wrote that huge memo that got him fired, but changed his life. I’m not suggesting everyone flip out and steal the office goldfish, but I think it’s an awesome idea to take stock of your life, put pen to paper and write about what inspires you and who you want to be. (Like the Switchfoot song says, “This is your life. Are you who you want to be?”)

Here’s Amy’s manifesto…

“I have a vision for my life, but I’m not really living it. I’m so overwhelmed with work lately and not really enjoying it as I once did. Things that should excite me – getting a client featured in House Beautiful or on the Nate Berkus show – don’t. Blah. So what! I’m tired of mile-long to-do lists and never feeling finished. I’m tired of feeling that my family is keeping me from my work, when really it is the other way around.

I’m not sure I’m completely ready to let go of my old life or to quit my job. To do so would mean giving up half of our household income. I know you’ve each done that, but it’s scary for me, and I don’t know how manageable/feasible it is.

But I need to do something to shift my priorities and efforts – to find a way to contribute to the family financially that also enriches me personally and creatively and doesn’t zap so much of my time and energy.

So, what is my vision for myself?

I can honestly say I am lucky to be living in my dream house, but I’m not enjoying it the way I’d hope. It is hard to maintain and to create the atmosphere here I envisioned when I’m so busy with work responsibilities. I’m finding I cannot tend to them in the 9-1 hours when Jackson is in school, and I doubt it will be any different next year when he is in real school, 5 days a week. There still won’t be enough time.

I dream of being able to wear sweats and comfy clothes more often. Of being able to attend to household chores in a planned and organized manner, not as an afterthought. I want time to devote to creative pursuits that I enjoy during daytime hours, not at midnight. I want to be able to play and read and be with Jackson in the afternoons without feeling that something is hanging over me. I want time to plan and cook dinner. I don’t want to crash every night exhausted, yet still feeling like there is still so much yet to do. I don’t want this constant feeling that I’m disappointing someone, not fulfilling my obligations or this constant barrage of deadlines. I’m tired of feeling “bothered” every time the phone rings or I get an email. What is it now that someone needs from me? That I feel that way in so many areas of life tells me I’m not enjoying my job or being fulfilled by it. But being dragged down by it.

I want to wake up every morning rested and excited about what the world has in store for me. I want to create things of beauty.

I have always enjoyed crafting, and I’m finally beginning to realize and appreciate my own skill in it. And those of the people around me. The things we can do, others can’t. And that’s something to be proud of. There are still some who would look at what we create/make and say, “They obviously have too much time on their hands.” But there are so many more who appreciate our talents and value them. It’s time we start doing the same.

I want time to breathe. I want to make things. But I can’t keep everything I make, nor do I want to. I want to contribute to our family’s financial well-being (though maybe not in the way I currently am). I want to build a brand. I want to follow my bliss. I want ownership of something and pride in something. I want to look back on my life and realize I lived it on my own terms, and that I enjoyed it….”

Inspiring, right? And now she’s doing it. She’s making changes in her life to fulfill the vision she has for it. Awesome stuff.

Now, writing a manifesto doesn’t mean you ditch your family or leave everyone in your life in the dust, so YOU can do everything YOU want to do. (Well, maybe you need to leave some people in the dust if they’re people who aren’t good for you, but you know what I mean.) It doesn’t mean your routine life of carpooling to soccer games, washing slipcovers and cooking dinner can’t fit into your dreams. Your manifesto may be about being a better mom or serving others more or being healthy. It may be about building brand that’s sold in Target or singing on Broadway or writing for a magazine. The point is, it’s your manifesto and it can be whatever you envision for your life and it can be done in balance with all of the other important people and things in your life.

So, I want to leave you with a challenge to write your own manifesto. And, here’s the scary part, share it with someone else. Share it with your husband, your best friend, your blog readers, me, Amy, whoever, all of the above. Just share it with at least one person who will encourage you and tell you that your dreams, no matter how big or small, aren’t silly or something you need to stuff down inside until you burst. It’s something you can work towards one step at a time.

It’s so easy to get stuck in a rut in life. Let’s not do that. Let’s go for it…knowing not every door will be opened and we may hear some (or a lot) of “no’s”, but we’ll keep going for it, because the joy is in the journey, not just the destination.

If you do want to share your manifesto with me, you can e-mail it to marian@missmustardseed.com (and I will read it and probably cry and maybe ask to share it on my blog!) Thanks to Amy for being inspiring and for letting me share this publicly.

Furniture Feature Friday – Favorites & a Link Party

2012-05-25T02:20:28Z

Whew! Well, I’m finally getting back in my groove and am ready for a full-out FFF tonight. Here are some of my favorites from a couple of weeks ago…

OK, do I need to say anything more about this room by Fleaing France? I love every little teeny detail of this space. If that chair turns up missing…umm…don’t come over to my house looking for it. (I think this is the fourth or fifth time I’ve threatened theft during an FFF feature…)

I’m also totally over the moon for this room by Mary Ann of Classic Casual Home. I love the colors, the ceiling, the dutch door… It’s all lovely. If ever that door is missing… (Make that six.)

And this DIY factory cart by Amy (& her husband) from The Blissful Bee is amazing! They did luck out and found the perfect hardware for it, but they executed the design and finish perfectly. I tip my hat.

Here are the rules for our furniture get-together…

2.) Post a permalink (the link to the post), not the link to your blog.

3.) This party will close Friday at midnight PST and I will choose my favorite(s) and feature their piece(s) on next week’s FFF.

Enjoy the party!

It’s in the details

2012-05-23T23:20:38Z

Thanks so much for all of the sweet comments yesterday! I received some amazing e-mails as well that had me all teary-eyed again! Some of you thought I sounded a bit down yesterday, which I wasn’t at all. I was (and am) overwhelmed in a good way. When I didn’t know how to write about Lucketts, I just wrote what was on my heart and that’s what came out. I had a great night sleep last night, so I’m feeling much more energetic today. I worked on some more photography for my book and the labels for my milk paint products. Ugh…labels are so tedious! I’ll be glad when those are all finished! All of the tutorial writing I’ve done is really coming in handy for it, though! My high school English teacher would laugh if she knew the amount of writing I do now. I never gave a rip about grammar and spelling and instead preferred to argue about the interpretation of an Emily Dickinson poem. Anyway..it’s funny how things work out.

As I was getting ready for Lucketts, I received an e-mail from Kara of McMaster & Storm. She wanted to send me a European stapler to test out and give away on my blog. At first I was thinking, “if it’s not an upholstery stapler, I’m not interested.” Well, this is not an upholstery stapler, but it was the perfect timing for another important project I was working on…my giveaway for the Lucketts fair. I hadn’t even thought about using specialty (cute) staples to attach Reni’s cards to the top of Jami’s bags. I didn’t even know there were specialty staplers out there! So, when I saw these staplers staple cute little brass staples, I realized it was perfect for the Lucketts giveaway. And it was.

It’s a small thing, but these would’ve looked different if I used a standard office staple. The stapler itself is pretty cute as well…

Of course, I got blue, but they come in a variety of colors.

Would you like one? If so, just leave a comment telling me which color you would want if you win. McMaster & Storm is giving away three of them!

The giveaway is open to readers over the age of 18 and those living in the lower 48 states of the US. It will be closed Thursday, May 24, 2012 at midnight PST and I’ll announce the winners on Friday. I was not paid to run this giveaway, but I was given a free stapler! Woohoo!

overwhelmed

2012-05-23T02:11:47Z

I’ve tried to write a post about Lucketts and I keep staring at a blank page or I write something and then delete it. It was a very overwhelming weekend and I don’t even know how to write about it. I feel like I need to stop the clock and write about 30 posts to really capture it all. As I was setting up my booth, a woman came over and hugged me and told me a bit of her story. I was in get-the-booth-set-up-before-the-crowd-descends mode and I wasn’t prepared for it. I started getting all teary and choked up. I had a few other moments like that. When I add it all together…the teary moments, the fact that my family was there to support me fully and execute my (sometimes frantic) requests, how quickly my stuff sold, how many people bought my t-shirts and loved the tags Jami made, the thoughtful gifts people brought me and how much I love doing what I’m doing…it’s just too much. I think that’s why I’m so tired post-Lucketts this year. It wasn’t just the heat and the physical work. It was everything.

When I started my business one ordinary day after a teary breakdown on my sofa and a conversation with my mom, I didn’t have any large plans. I never envisioned a mobbed booth, a book, a paint line, HGTV, Nate, Lucketts, BHG, FMS… I just wanted to earn $200/month to help out with groceries and diapers. So, standing in a booth only three years later and hearing a woman’s story that sounds so much like my own…it is overwhelming and amazing and wonderful and hard to describe all at one time.

I feel like I just need to tuck it away for now and enjoy those conversations and those hugs and I don’t need to write about it.

Thank you so much to Heather H, Mary Ann S, Deborah C, Christine G, Roxie H, Barb M, Jackie M, Mary J, Lauren L, Beth H, Joanna C, Kelly M, Susie E, Meagan K, Lynn S, Julianne B, Cami P, Amy B, Laura P, Cecilia C, Susan H, Constance D, Diane D, Linda N, Robin C, Cathy W, Jill L, Teresa H, Lorraine A, Denise T, Kim H, Mary S, Amy M, Angie A, Becky V, Terry V, Jennifer J, Chris A, Pat M, Pam B, Debbie V, Amanda & Karla E, Liz M, Leann Z, Kerry M, Ashley, Lisa A, Kathy F, Pauline & Dana G, Haydee L, Terri L, Susan D, Jennifer M, Michelle W, Katie T, Amanda H for visiting my space and signing my guest book.

Judy from French Laundry is the “I’m sad I can’t come to Lucketts” Giveaway! Congratulations!

I also want to give some awesome hubby awards to Bob H (who snuck in the gates early to find my booth for his lovely wife Jill), Trinity’s husband who has driven up with his beautiful wife from North Carolina for my last three shows, and Diana’s husband who allowed her to rent a truck to get one of my pieces of painted furniture home with her. I think we should have a support group for our husbands…

Shopping at Lucketts

2012-05-22T01:41:15Z

I’m still recovering from Lucketts. (Well, I guess I need to give myself a break. It just ended yesterday and I still need to de-Lucketts my house! Events have a way of taking over.) My parents are leaving tomorrow to go back to Florida to tie up loose ends and get ready to move up here, north of the Mason-Dixon line for the first time in their adult lives. We went to see the house their having built today and it’s coming right along.

So, I worked on cleaning out my e-mail inbox, which was way out of control. I shuffled around and picked up some of the mess that was the result of dumping the contents of my van in the living room. Mini made fun of my squeaky, raspy voice pretty regularly. My mom and I finally had our bowl of cream of crab soup. I was in a post-Lucketts fog through most of it. Finally about 2:00, I felt like I was coming back to life. I was able to snap some pictures and did some work on my milk paint line. I think I have solidified the wax that will be carried with my paint. I am so excited about it, because it’s creamy, easy to use and not stinky AT ALL! I’ll be testing out some dark wax to determine the right ratio of tint-to-wax, so it’s easier to use and not as heavy as traditional dark furniture wax (which is really meant for staining wood.) Anyway, I was pretty giddy about it this afternoon. I have some calls tomorrow to discuss additional photos needed for my book and to work on the paint line. Very fun stuff.

With all of this going on, I haven’t been able to sit down and write all about Lucketts and the wonderful people I met. I will do that, but until then, I’ve been posting and sharing some things on my Facebook Page. I didn’t want to not post at all today, so I thought I would show a couple of the things I purchased at the fair. I usually don’t have time to shop until Sunday, so I am always surprised when I find great stuff!

I actually shopped my own booth quite a bit. There were a few pieces I wanted to keep, so I priced them pretty high and my strategy worked. (If ever you see something with a ridiculous price, it means I love it and want to keep it!) So, I was happy when I got to take home this zinc milk bottle carrier.

I made sure to check out the tent of Pete, one of my favorite vendors at the Lucketts Store, and found an awesome pair of French caned chairs. I couldn’t believe they were still there! The caned seats had been punched through, but it’s an easy fix to reupholster them. The frames are sturdy and I love the shape. I also bought a monogrammed hemp grain sack from him.

I bought a bunch of feathers from another Lucketts Store vendor and my booth neighbor, Lisa. I was fawning over them when I first saw them filling a huge silver bowl.

I look forward to being rested, so I can share more. On that note, I’m off to bed…

Lucketts Recap 2012

2012-05-21T02:45:53Z

I’m not sure what it was about Lucketts this year, but I am more tired than I have ever been after a fair. My voice has been raspy and squeaky for three days, my foot that I broke when I was a kid is aching, my hips are sore, my nose is sunburned and I am totally exhausted. Now that I got the grumbling out of the way, I can also say this was my favorite fair ever. I’m proud of the stuff I brought, I was overwhelmed by people I met, I love that my family was there with me (and Mini)…

…and I am so thankful that I was left with very empty tents at the end of day two. I sold all but one of my painted pieces of furniture. This was my favorite fair, but it was also my busiest. Five of us were working in the tent on Saturday and we needed all five people to manage all of the shoppers. I would be chatting with someone or hugging someone or taking a picture with someone and I’d turn around and things were gone. It was total craziness. In a good way.

The group picture above was snapped seconds before the gates opened on Saturday and then I ran around and took a few quick shots of my booth. I’m so bummed i didn’t get more, but I had to put the camera away as the crowds started to descend.

(Please let me know if you’re the one who bought the caned French chair pictured above. That was one my favorites.)

We sold lots of t-shirts, but I do still have some available to sell online.

I’m hoping some of my blog readers and friends can share some pictures with me, since I was a bit of a failure in the photography department this year. I was too busy and then too tired. I think next year I’m going to ask someone to come out to be my photographer/social media guru for the event.

Anyway, there is so much more to tell, but I need some sleep and some rest and I’ll share more through the week. I did purchase a couple of things and some very sweet readers gave me some gifts I can show off later. Nighty-night.