Saturday, April 28, 2012

herbs have never been so much fun!!

We picked up our herbs this weekend.  
Walking into the greenhouses and smelling the aromas of fresh basil, fresh rosemary, fresh lavender!  
Heaven!!!!
But I learned something really fun this weekend.  
Some plants that you buy have QR codes on the tags....


Download a QR reader App and then you can scan the codes ...
and get not only planting instructions...
But you can also get recipes for the herbs that you are buying!  
How fun is that?
There are some delicious recipes that you print from your computer!
One of our resolutions was to try new recipes and I love adding herbs to flavor!
This will help us with that!
Can't wait!!


We will have a wonderful assortment of herbs, flowers, and hanging baskets for the sale!

Friday, April 27, 2012

these are a few of my favorite (french) things....

This sale we will be offering a few of my favorite french things.  
These are the things that I always love to bring back as souvenirs for my friends and family!
I like to bring the best tastes from my travels back to my friends and family.
Starting the morning with Very Strawberry Jam.  
This is a  delicious way to start the day!  Extra fruity sweetened the old way with sugar cane.  Imported from France for your breakfast table!
This makes a wonderful gift!
The second treat is the best mustard on the planet!  
Traditional , original Dijon mustard.  the best for salad dressing (and spring salads are right around the corner!) 
Imported from France, all natural, no artificial flavoring.  Delicious!


The last item is my absolute FAVORITE thing to bring back!  
Fleur De Sel - translation "Flower of Salt"
All natural sea salt.  Sometimes it is the little additions that make a meal memorable!  
This salt reveals the taste and texture of any dish it accompanies.
Hand harvested, imported from France, it is an all natural alternative to table salt, a natural source of minerals.  
A wonderful gift for the chef in the house.  
Sprinkle over meat, fish, vegetables, salad.
All three are wonderful gifts for moms special day and will be available at the Sale!

spring galvanized

Galvanized says Spring to me!  
From watering cans to buckets and pails...
I like stenciling on them to give them a fresh look!


Thursday, April 26, 2012

young entrepreneurs - local pen artist



As I mentioned before, I love supporting young entrepreneurs and local artists.
In the past I have sold some beautiful pens from Brody, a 15 year old neighbor.
He and his dad make these beautiful pens out of the most interesting materials- 
coffee beans, exotic woods, cereal, yes cereal!  They are amazing!
Here is a sampling of what he has to offer.  
He will be selling his beautiful pens at our sale in May.
Come support local and help this young entrepreneur!


This picture from left to right are:
silver lava, coffee beans (yes, coffee beans!), orange died buckeye burl and shredded wheat! 
Gorgeous aren't they?


They make wonderful gifts for Mothers Day, Fathers Day, graduation, or just a special gift for you!



Wednesday, April 25, 2012

young entrepreneurs- local bee keeper



I love supporting the local kids with their crafts.
One thing that I was looking for, to sell at this sale, was some local honey.  
The benefits of local honey are amazing.  The bees use pollen from the flowers that may cause seasonal allergies, so if you eat the local honey, it will help build up your immune system.  
After researching honey I could not believe all the benefits that honey supplies:


Honey is so much more than a sweetener…
It is high in antioxidants and cancer fighting phytonutrients…Aids in morning sickness, sore throats, bladder infections, arthritis, upset stomach, hair loss, infertility, digestive problems, cough suppressant….just to name a few….   
It can be used as a sweetener or in baking.  Many people prefer it to table sugar!

It is high in vitamins and minerals; it also has anti microbial, anti inflammatory, anti fungal and has antiseptic properties, so it can be used as a salve or antibiotic.



I contacted several local honey suppliers, but no one even returned my calls :(
My husband told me about a young man that he had talked to at a local flea market, that sold honey and did a really good job at setting up his booth.
So we went the next month, and I met Jared, 16. 
He had a wonderful booth and was so knowledgeable about bees and honey.
He told me that he had been keeping bees since he was 10.  
He explained to me that he had light honey - made from Spring flowers, and dark honey - made from Fall flowers.
We bought a jar of both and took them home and tried them.  They were both delicious!
The Spring honey was light and sweet.  
The Fall dark honey was rich and delicious. 
I couldn't decide which I liked best!
So I contacted Jared and bought both for the sale.
If you come to the sale, you will have to try them both!  They are delicious!  


Besides ALL the good things about honey.... It is good to buy local and support a young entrepreneur!

Sunday, April 22, 2012

the barn is shaping up!

Little sis came down this weekend and brought a load down.  
I love these little birds she made.
I'll be sharing some sneak peeks over the next couple weeks!
Here is my favorite color story.  I am loving this coral color with creamy whites!

Friday, April 20, 2012

a couple of recent redo's

Here are a couple pieces that we have recently made over.
a pretty china cabinet...from ugly old varnish...

to pretty french linen and cream!

a vintage buffet...



now, with pretty accents that you didn't notice before it was painted...


...these are a few of the many pieces we will have for sale at our Spring Barn Sale!

Monday, April 16, 2012

invites are out!



Invites are in the mail!  So much to do!  
Sorry I haven't posted in over a month...been traveling a lot for my real job.  
Have so much to do in the next few weeks!
I will be posting more pics soon!
Some exciting news....We will be having some guests at our Spring Sale to offer you more goodies than before.  
More on that soon!
Hope you can make it!