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a slice of life
Miss Mustard Seed's Milk Paint

Trip to Petaluma

Back in December, I took a whirlwind trip across the continent to the beautiful town of Petaluma, CA.  One of my Milk Paint retailers, Genevieve of Gracefully Worn, invited me out and she certainly rolled out the red carpet!  It was an amazing trip.  It started out with a super early flight from Virginia that got me to San Francisco about 9:00 am their time.  We went straight from the airport to Gen’s church, where I taught two workshops.  I had some time to change, take a few bites of food and then it was show time. I cannot thank Gen and her team enough for all of the special touches they worked on to “Mustardize” the space.  There were sheet music garlands, custom stamped tags with my logo, German glass glitter and a huge chalkboard listing all of my products they were selling.  It was a little overwhelming and

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February 3, 2013 23 Comments
Balance

getting off the merry-go-round

In my business I’ve had to make some tough decisions.  The hardest thing for me is to say no and to set limits.  I want to fly as high as my wings can carry me and I don’t want to be limited by things like sleep and time to crash on the sofa to watch a movie.  I love my work and I love being productive, so it’s hard for me to sit, be still and rest.  It’s hard for me to see the great potential in something and then say no to it and make a clear decision to not pursue it. Well, after about a year of going back and forth about it in my mind, I have made the difficult decision to leave The Old Lucketts Store as a vendor.  I know, I know.  It’s Lucketts!  How could I leave Lucketts?!  I know I don’t need to

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December 31, 2012 No Comments
Antiques

A bit of France in Petaluma

Sorry I’ve been quiet the past couple of days, but it’s been a whirlwind that started when I woke up Tuesday at 3:00 am to get to the airport to fly to San Francisco for a day of workshops and book signings.  It ended last night when we arrived home about 11:30 and crashed in bed.  I have so much to share about the workshops and the people I met and how it gets me choked up  when my eye catches a huge chalkboard with my name on it and a table full of my paint and products under it.  But I’ll get to all of that another day. Today, I want to share about the hotel I stayed in.  As we drove into Petaluma, CA from San Francisco, I was overwhelmed by the beauty of the rolling green hills, age-old cypress trees and quaint row houses.  I haven’t been

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December 13, 2012 No Comments

Traveling, Brushes & Country Living

I have no idea how people work in jobs where they have to travel all the time.  I supposed they get used to it and get good at it – find the best places to eat, where to charge a laptop and iPad, where to rest, and how to get comfortable in an airplane seat.  Most of my trips are going to be spaced out, but I have one scheduled this week right on the heels of my Colorado trip.  On Tuesday, I’m heading out to Petaluma near San Francisco, California to teach a couple of workshops with my Milk Paint retailer out there, Gracefully Worn.   I haven’t been to California since I was four, so I’m really looking forward to it.  I’m also so thrilled that I get to meet some of my blog friends like Maria from Dreamy Whites. The details of my trip to Petaluma, local

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December 10, 2012 No Comments
Antiques

What I found in Maine…

Last week, I had the pleasure of spending some time in the beautiful state of Maine.  My husband and I have been talking about family vacations and we’ve talked about making a point to visit some of the national parks, but that’s all we did.  Talk about it in “some day” terms.  We finally just did it.  And it was so great. We visited Acadia, which was beautiful…   …and saw our boys enjoy nature and each other (most of the time)…   …and I had a chance to slow down and appreciate simple things like colorful buoys lined up against faded wood shingles, the smell of sea salt and my toes in the sand.     Aside from a couple of hoodies, I didn’t buy much (although I did rubberneck at some antique shops…)  I did bring home three big bags of shells collected from the private beaches around

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October 4, 2012 No Comments

…it makes me feel like baking.

Most of you know I have given my kitchen a fresh new look with paint, paint, more paint and some hardware.  I must say that I am thoroughly enjoying it and have experienced some unexpected side effects.  First of all, I want to keep it super clean, which will eventually drive my family nuts.  Second… …it makes me feel like baking, which is really no good, either.  Well, it’s good…like, yummy good, but not good…like..for my waistline.  Yeah.  Not good. I couldn’t resist baking up a batch, though.     I safely arrived in Orlando this evening.  I survived the flight with a two year old and four year old.  None of us cried, either, which was a first!  They’re so much easier to travel with, compared to last summer.  Thanks so much for all of the shopping suggestions and I will definitely be hitting those places.  I stopped by Lucketts

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June 27, 2011 37 Comments

When do you sleep?

I am often asked how I get so much done, when do I sleep and is my energy for sale on Etsy, so I thought it was due time that I share how I do what I do.  Here are the top ten keys to my productivity… I love it. I really, really enjoy what I do.  It’s my hobby and business and I love it.  Sometimes too much.  You know the old saying…when you love your work, it doesn’t feel like work. A business is successful because the person driving it is passionate about what they’re doing.  Oh yeah…I’m passionate. I’m quick. I am not a perfectionist and thankfully I don’t have to be in this business.  Things that are old and distressed are not perfect and I embrace that.  I don’t spend hours sanding every nook and cranny of a piece.  I use a paint sprayer to save a lot of

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October 6, 2010 66 Comments

I’m Marian, a painter, writer, and lover of all things creative. From art and antiques to home projects and everyday life, I share my journey in hopes of inspiring you to embrace your own creativity and make beauty in the spaces you live.

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