Blaming It on the Heat

BOOKEND: "Leadership 101" by John C. Maxwell

I am generally not much on reading business books. Mentally, I see the value, but they always feel, well like work! However, my husband has been reading this one, and I got intrigued after he shared a few passages with me. Now I am hooked and am planning to order the other three in this series. Just a sample: today's chapter quotes French essayist Jean La Fontaine: "Man is made so that whenever anything fires his soul, impossibilities vanish." And I thought -- that's it! Everything about this business is crazy-making, but nothing captures my imagination quite the same way. That's what makes it worth doing. So, what are you reading? Leave a comment and share!

ALLEGAN REPORT
OK, I am blaming it on the heat! I completely forgot to take photos. We were really pretty busy from the get-go, seeing a number of our dealer customers for early buy Saturday. Sunday, the crowds were steady until about 2 p.m. Then I think everyone wilted. Once again, not much big stuff, tons of smalls. So I will go off hunting again this afternoon for Kane. Check back later this week to see what we come up with! And plan to join us in St. Charles next weekend. P.S. Just wanted to give a shout-out to our hosts at Allegan, Dan and CJ Zondervan. The friends you make are definitely another thing that makes up for the craziness! Check out their blog, VanDaff's Interior Design and Antiques, listed on our sidebar, for a look at what "fires their souls."

GRAYSLAKE UPDATE
Just a reminder that this month's show will be SUNDAY ONLY, due to a schedule conflict at the fairgrounds. Stayed tuned for an update. xo

SUMMER BEGINS! ALLEGAN MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND SHOW

We are SO EXCITED about this weekend's ALLEGAN (MI) ANTIQUE MARKET! It is Memorial Day weekend, and we vendors really pull out all the stops to ensure a fabulous show. Be sure your holiday plans include us. Details are just a click away on our show sidebar! I will try and get some new photos up on Facebook so you can get a peek at all that is coming. We have a HUGE load of furniture, smalls, handmades, industrial, garden, beach -- you name it. See you there! xo

Paper Love: Rabbit Wreath

Love this wonderful BIG wreath that I bought at SoBo Style on one of our recent visits. It was lovingly handcrafted by the very talented Heather Riegle, of Hedy Regal Designs. If you have read any of our past posts, you know that I am a sucker for any and all things paper. Plus, I have a thing for rabbits, being a Rabbit myself in the Chinese zodiac realm. So it was a two-fer. I was so pleased when I got it home and hung it in the front hall -- love the way it looks on our french doors! Have a favorite paper project? Send me a photo so we can share the inspiration and spread the paper love around. Just found out that one of the visual directors at Anthropologie has a new book out -- 101 paper projects. I am on the lookout. Has anyone else seen it? xo

P.S. Make sure you visit both blogs -- Katie Palmer, SoBo Style, was a featured vendor at last weekend's Junk Market/Vintage Market Place in Springfield, OH, hosted by Sue Whitney; and Heather, Hedy Regal Designs, is just back from the Rural Society show, which was featured in Country Living. Lots of photos!!

It's Always SUCH A PROJECT, Grayslake Report, Greenhouse Visit

It's Always SUCH A PROJECT: "Found" Memo Board:  Joe and I both love repurposing. So when we found a whole stack of wonderful industrial shelves, we immediately started listing the projects they could be used for. The simplest one -- a terrific magnet board. The existing holes add a great decorative element. All you need to add are the magnets. Come get yours!!

 GRAYSLAKE REPORT: Beautiful weather led to crowds both days. Saturday was steady and Sunday unusually busy. Our wonderful zinc-top table was actually the last piece to sell -- going home with a lucky gal to be used in her studio. Smalls and projects carried the day; still not selling a ton of furniture. Seem once again to be missing our retailers...but happy to see everyone else!

TRIP DOWN MEMORY LANE: GREENHOUSE VISIT
Yesterday was my bookkeeping day, but it was so lovely out, I decided to take a side trip at lunch time to Plymouth's lovely old greenhouse, rationalizing that I could pick up some plants for Allegan. I used to love to visit the greenhouse where we lived in Chicagoland. It was huge. And old. And famous -- it was featured in the movie "Flat-liners*." Plus it was right around the corner from our house. One of my favorite spring rituals was to pack my son, Jack, in his wagon and head over, wandering for as long as he could stand it down its beautiful rows of plants. We had quite a big yard then, and it was great fun to pick out new plants to try together. As fate would have it, when I was putting yesterday's choices in  the trunk, a young mom and her son pulled up, and began their search for the perfect wagon to pull down the rows. Every wagon her son tried was too big, so I hurried up so I could offer the one I had used -- a red Radio Flier, just the right size for small boys to pull. "Come on, Jack," she said as she thanked me for the wagon. Her son was Jack, too! Made me smile. There's just something wonderful about spring, wagons, flowers and boys!! xo

*P.S. Just a fun aside -- both Kevin Bacon and Kiefer Sutherland were involved in "Flat-liners," and were so kind to the kids in town, visiting the schools and answering questions. It was really fun to have Hollywood come to town!


Wanted to say a quick THANK YOU to our pals Anita, from the IOWA JUNK GYPSIES, and Jeanine, from CHIPPY-SHABBY, for their recent posts on Mishawaka Antiques. Both blogs are listed below on our blog roll -- just click to go and check them out! Many thanks to Diane Passi for pointing the listings out. xo

GRAYSLAKE GARDEN EXTRAVAGANZA

Join us this weekend for the Grayslake GARDEN EXTRAVAGANZA! That's right -- just in time for the season, the show-within-a-show will feature everything for outdoor living. And for bringing the outdoors, in. Take 50-percent off general admission by printing this red coupon and bringing it with you. Make as many as you need for friends. And bring your mom -- the Mother's Day show is always one of the best. We'll be pulling out all the stops. Make plans now to join us! Need more information? Just click the show sidebar to go directly to the promoter's website. xo

 KANE COUNTY REPORT

What a funny show! The usual traffic pattern was tossed out by the inside dealers long about lunch time Saturday. We didn't sell much in the way of furniture until afternoon Sunday, and next to none of our regular wholesale crowd was in evidence. That being said, we actually ended the day slightly over our sales goal, but it was anything but business as usual! Smalls carried the day; garden and industrial are still going strong. As always, many thanks to all who came out to shop -- the Robinsons reported a record crowd for Saturday. Yeah! The show looked great, too. Some really creative displays and ideas in evidence. A special thank you to our new friend from Texas -- she came to the show after reading about it right here. Thanks for introducing yourself! Hope you had a great time. xo



 BOOK END  

I am still trying to figure out Bloggers new platform! Sorry if this layout looks goofy! That aside, be sure to check out "The Perfectly Imperfect Home," by Deborah Needleman, former editor of the beloved DOMINO magazine. Needleman is a wonderful writer, smart, but witty and warm . The book is perfectly charming, full of great advise -- like chatting with a helpful big sister with a great eye -- and the illustrations are charming. 

GRAYSLAKE IS UP NEXT

We are super excited for this coming weekend and our trip to Grayslake for two special reasons -- it will be Mother's Day, and that weekend is always dynamite. Plus, the focus will be GARDEN -- all the dealers will be pulling out the stops to make sure it is fabulous. We started work today and have lots of big plans! Be sure your weekend includes coming to see us! As always, print the red HALF-OFF coupon and bring it along. It is good for 50-percent off regular admission. See you at the show. xo

Come See Us This Weekend at Kane!

Come see us this weekend at the Kane County Flea Market in St. Charles, Illinois! One of the oldest and largest markets in the Midwest, Kane never disappoints. As always, we are in the Main Building -- our double space will be PACKED with great stuff. We have some lovely furniture, including a beautiful sofa table and two buffets, plus lots of great stuff for the garden, some new industrial and lighting, as well as tons of smalls and projects. I am promising to TRY and get some new pics up on Facebook today -- just click the link on our sidebar to see. And if you need more information about the show, such as hours or directions, there is also a link there to visit the promoter's website. See you there! xo

Rin-Tin-Tin: Allegan Report

We've been snapping up these great vintage tins whenever we find them. Usually made in England, it's fun to imagine what they originally held -- biscuits? cake? tea? candy? But think of all the repurposing possibilities -- gift container; storage for office supplies; catch all for jewelry or craft supplies. And too cute for words! What could be better?

The ones pictured here were part of a group we had over the weekend for the season opener of the Allegan (MI) Antique Market. What a great show! Our set-up had to be postponed on Saturday due to rain, but thanks to the help of our excellent pal, Lynda Boyd, (and getting up at 3 am!) we were ready when the gate opened Sunday morning. The crowd was waiting, and the weather improved all day long. By afternoon, we had shed our mittens and boots -- the sun was shining and things were hoppin'. It's always so much fun to see our Allegan customers and dealer pals, whom we miss over the winter season. We're already making notes for next month.

Yesterday, we started work on next weekend's show, Kane County (IL). New pictures coming to Facebook! See you then. xo