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Lovely Shops

August 2nd, 2013 | Posted by Leah in Decorating | Vintage Market - (10 Comments)

This week I spent some time driving around delivering postcards for The Olde Farmhouse Vintage Market!!  I started off on Monday heading into Vancouver.  I met some very nice ladies who were happy to hand out cards to their customers.  These were shops that I had not been into before so of course I had to have a look around!!

First stop was Meuse Boutique  .What a gorgeous store and the young woman in the store was so nice!! The store was a mix of home decor, jewelry, wedding decor rentals, and some beautiful dresses!

https://www.facebook.com/MeuseBoutique

http://meuseboutique.blogspot.ca/

Next stop was Heather Ross.  I was so sad to find her shop closed on Mondays, but that didn’t stop me from window shopping!!  I have this shop at the top of my list to visit when I get back from holidays!!  It looked beautiful!!  On Tuesday I called the store and spoke with her and what a friendly, nice woman! She was happy to hand out cards as well and  I look forward to going back and meeting her in person.

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Heather-Ross-natural-eclectic/131330576926944?fref=ts

http://www.heatherrossinhouse.com/

I was then on my way to The Cross Decor & Design.  Once again I was greeted by friendly staff and they welcomed the cards for their customers.  This is a store filled with a variety of items for your home…make sure you have some to look around!! There are lots of great things in this store!!

http://www.thecrossdesign.com/

Throughout this week I have been popping into my local shops here in Maple Ridge.  I really love the feeling of a “small town”.  The businesses here really look out for each other and support one another.  Everyone was so excited about the market and so happy to hand out cards.  Some of them had already heard about or had been to the past markets, so they were excited to find out about the upcoming fall market.

Monkey Business Kid’s Boutique is a wonderful children’s clothing store.  They have beautiful items and very friendly staff!!  I love this shop!!  I couldn’t resist doing some shopping….are you surprised??  I must admit that delivering the market cards is dangerous for a shopaholic!! Going into all these wonderful stores…I am a kid in a candy store!!  Anyways….I just happened to find a couple items for my daughter and guess what?  They also carry TOMS shoes for kids and LADIES!!!  They just happened to be having a 30%off sale on shoes, so one thing led to another….and I couldn’t leave the shop without these awesome wedge Toms shoes!!  And Yes, I did remember to leave the cards for the market! LOL!

https://www.facebook.com/MonkeyBusinessKidsBoutique

http://www.mbkidsboutique.com/

Down the street is T’s Once Upon a Tea Leaf.  Seeing how I love drinking tea, this is a favourite shop as well!!  Even if you are not a tea drinker, you still must stop in.  They have so many other things as well…jewelry, hair accessories, hats, purses, mugs, travel cups and some home decor.  A couple of the vendors from The Olde Farmhouse have their items in the shop for sale too!!  I came away with a new flavour of tea to try….there are so many to choose from!!

https://www.facebook.com/OnceUponATeaLeaf?fref=ts

If you are in the mood for some fresh flowers around the house, you must visit Sandra at Westgate Flower Garden.  I met Sandra many years ago ( I am afraid to start counting…roughly 15yrs…yikes!!) when my parents introduced me to her when planning my wedding.  The moment you start talking to Sandra, you love her!!  She is so sweet and her love of arranging flowers comes across in everything she creates!!  If you need an arrangement for yourself, family, an occasion or just because…this is the place to visit.

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Westgate-Flower-Garden/236756436389696

http://www.westgateflowergarden.com/

OK, my next weak spot in Maple Ridge is Favorite Finds Located inside Valley Fair Mall is a wonderful boutique and the most friendly ladies who are so helpful!!  With a mix of items from clothing to jewelry, scarves, home decor, soaps and lotions and more!!! Antonella has created a beautiful selection of items (and some of them are made locally) that are perfect for unique gifts, or something special for yourself!!  They have the best jeans and really unique, gorgeous sweaters, dresses, tops and scarves….Oh I could keep going on and on!! Go check it out for yourself…grab a Starbucks from across the way and then take some time to browse through the shop.  

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Favorite-Finds-Home-Btq/369557373063744

Welcome Home is a wonderful corner full of vintage items and furniture inside the Home Hardware in Maple Ridge.  Noreen and Roxanne have been vendors at the last two Farmhouse Markets and I love their style!!  They  have gorgeous  items that are always changing, so be sure to check back often!  You never know what you will find!  These ladies are also your go-to for CeCe Caldwell Clay & Chalk Paint.  A wonderful Eco-friendly, Non-toxic paint that can paint over anything!!  No need to sand your furniture first!!!  Noreen and Roxanne will again be at The Olde Farmhouse Vintage Market with all their treasures as well as the paint!!  They bring lots of cans of paint, brushes, samples, and can explain and show you how to use the product.  They always have beautiful pieces painted up in fantastic colors, to buy or to get an idea of how your furniture would look in a certain color.

https://www.facebook.com/welcomehomedecor

http://welcomehomedecor.ca/

Well that concludes my tour of Lovely Shops for this week!! Maybe you will find yourself in the area of one of these stores…be sure to stop in!!  I still have more market cards to deliver so I will be sure to fill you in on where I go next!!  If you have a favorite shop in your neigbourhood, I would love to hear about it!!  

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The Farm Chicks!!

June 8th, 2013 | Posted by Leah in Junking Journey - (18 Comments)

The first weekend in June is the annual Farm Chicks Antique Show.  What a great weekend!!  My husband Tom and I hit the road early Friday morning with our friends Barb, Michael, Marcelle and Blair.  We planned to meet my sister Tanya (from The Vintage Verandah) in Spokane, as she was travelling from Cochrane Alberta.  We were all so excited for a weekend away and were anticipating what treasures we would find!!

The drive to Spokane is a little long but definitely a pretty one.  The day started out cloudy, but the closer we got the brighter the sky got…sunshine to match our happy moods!!

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We could tell we were getting close….I mean where else would a pink vintage camper be heading!!!

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Yah!!  My sister made it to Spokane too!! Safe travels for us all.

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After checking into the hotels we found a family run Mexican restaurant to have dinner at.  Over some delicious  food and some margaritas, we planned out our morning strategy!  For those of you who have never been to a market like The Farm Chicks, I must tell you that the junking world is a crazy one!! LOL! But in a good way!  Everyone is happy and eager to get their hands on that treasure they have been wishing to find!!  But with that excitement also comes a line up!!  And we figured that if we have travelled 8 hours to get here, we are going to be at the front of the line!!

So here was the game plan….Tom and Barb were willing to take the early shift, so they headed down there at 4:30am!!  Tanya and I followed at 5:45…with the mandatory stop at Starbucks of course!!  Michael, Marcelle and Blair followed at 7am, with a second round of Starbucks shortly after!!  What you have to do to keep yourself going!! LOL!!  Our plan worked!! We were first in line !!

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Ok…so now you think we are a little crazy for being there so early…but check out the line up!!  If you look really closely in the second picture you can see on the left side (through the chain fence) the line up wraps around the corner!!

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First through the doors!!!  Do we look like we are on a mission or what?!

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But the early morning was worth it, we had a fantastic first day of shopping.  We met some wonderful vendors and had so much fun looking through all the booths.

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Here are Billy and Pat, my favorite vendors!!  I visit them every year…how can you not love these ladies!!

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Day 2….We didn’t have to line up as early, and we were happy about that because it was a cool, rainy morning.  Inside many vendors re-stocked their booths, so it was just as much fun to shop on Sunday!!  After spending a couple hours shopping, it was time to load the uhaul.  SAM_0416

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Back at home Tom and I spent the day organizing the garage so we could load in all the finds!!  The garage is full and I am so excited to get started on my projects!!!  Thanks honey for giving up your garage for me!!!

Did you go to Farm Chicks this year, or in previous years??  Did you love it??  What did you find??  Maybe you have found a market that you love to go to…I would love to hear all about it!!

HAPPY JUNKING!!

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Red Door Farms

May 15th, 2013 | Posted by Leah in Uncategorized - (5 Comments)

I had the pleasure of visiting Red Door Farms in Langley, BC this past weekend.  My daughter Allison and I attended Cheryl’s “Fancy a Cuppa?” open house where she had all your essentials for a vintage Tea Party (and so much more!!)  The rain held off and we had a wonderful time strolling through her yard, admiring all her displays and picking up some cute items along the way!!  It was a wonderful way to spend a Saturday morning with Allison.

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First stop…beautiful linens!!  The only trouble was we didn’t know which one to pick!!  We wanted them all!!  In the end, I chose a cream Irish linen cloth that will look absolutely gorgeous on my dining table!!

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 Being in the gardens, surrounded by all these pretty plants makes me want to start gardening!!

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SAM_0302 We had to make sure to take home a dozen fresh eggs!!  Can’t wait until breakfast tomorrow!!SAM_0303

SAM_0306                                                                                      Stopping to smell the flowers!!

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 I love this door!!

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 Allison and her doll were having so much fun looking at all the displays Cheryl had set up.  A few of the treasures had to come home with us!!

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I LOVE this!!! And it smells so beautiful!!!

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 And nestled in the trees is the most beautiful little cottage!!

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 The windows are just stunning!!  I just wanted to curl up with a cup of tea and a book inside this little cozy cottage!

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Allison’s doll, Bree, had to take a moment and put her feet up for a little rest!

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Something to remember…Red Door Farms is also a Christmas Tree Farm!!  I can just picture coming here at Christmas with the family to choose a tree!!

Thank you Cheryl for a wonderful morning!!  Allison and I really enjoyed being at Red Door Farms!!

 

 

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My Mom

March 11th, 2013 | Posted by Leah in Uncategorized - (6 Comments)

My mom is a wonderful lady and I am so lucky to be her daughter.  She has taught me so much in my life, but over the past couple of years I’ve begun to teach her some things too!!  I convinced her (and my sister) to come along with me to the FARM CHICKS a few years ago….and she caught  the junking bug!!!

My mom Marilyn, my niece Megan, my sister Tanya and myself at The Farm Chicks!! One of the many trips out to the car with our finds!!

I must say, like so many of us, her style of decorating has changed over the  years.  She and my Dad have recently moved to the Sunshine Coast and built their dream home right by the ocean.  This in itself provides so much fun for decorating!!  West Coast Style mixed with the Ocean view….ahhhh it has been so much fun watching and helping her fill her home with new and old treasures over the past 3 years!! 

Her latest project involved painting!!  I am so proud of her for tackling this big job on her own!!  One of her guest rooms has the bedroom furniture that my parents bought so many years ago.  Very nice furniture, and made so well….BUT…not the style or color for her new home.  She came to visit me one day and she and I went and spent some time looking over some CeCe Caldwell paint colors.  She bought some supplies and carried on home and the next thing I new she started sending me pics of all this furniture she was painting!!  I must admit, I was shocked that she took the plunge and painted it!!  But what a great surprise!!  It looks wonderful!  And she is so happy with how it turned out that she is far from done!! 

Here are a few pictures of some of the projects she has been working on…

 

 

 

She’s still thinking that she would like to change the knobs…she just hasn’t found the right ones yet.  And I did have to give her a little trouble for not taking before pictures!!  But to give you an idea, they were a VERY dark wood before.  She still has to paint the bed, so I will make sure that she sends a before picture as well as the finished project!!  I can’t wait to go and see it in person!!

 

Great job Mom!!  What a wonderful makeover for such a small cost!!  She loves it so much that she has picked out a different color and is getting ready to tackle her dining room table, chairs and china cabinet….it is going to look fantastic!!  I will make sure to post lots of before and after pictures on that project. 

Here is one of my favorite pics of my mom and I and my kids.  Just a little stroll after dinner one night at their house.  Wonderful Memories!!

I would love to see some of your before and after projects!!  It’s amazing what a coat of paint will do to change the look of a piece of furniture.  Maybe you have your eye on a piece in your house right now….don’t be afraid!!  Take the plunge and do it!!  If you need any advice on color or technique, don’t hesitate to drop me a line!! 

Cheers!!  And Happy Painting!!

 

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Save The Date!!!

July 24th, 2012 | Posted by Leah in Announcement | Vintage Market - (7 Comments)

Hope everyone has been out and about enjoying the Summer. We have been enjoying it as well,  but not doing your typical Summer activities. We have been busy getting plans together for The Olde Farmhouse…at Christmas!!!  The market will be held on Friday, November 16th  5pm – 9pm and Saturday, November 17th  9am – 4pm.  Please click on The Olde Farmhouse…at Christmas link at the top of this page for all the details!! We hope that you are as excited as we are about this!!!

 If you are intereseted in being a vendor at the market, please click on the vendor link at the top of this page to view our application form.

Cheers

Leah & Barb

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