First off, thank you so much for all of the beautiful comments on my last post.  Your stories and words were an encouragement to me.  There are definitely drawbacks to the online world, but there is also a lot of good to be found and this community of kindred spirits definitely falls on the good side. Today, I’m sharing two beautiful gifts I recently received. The first one was a complete surprise.  It was given to me by the owner of the Mercantile in Knightdale, NC.  Remember I taught a milk paint demo and did a book signing there over Thanksgiving?  Well, as I’m preparing for the demo, Jenny walked up to me carrying a large paper bag.  She handed it to me and explained it was a thank you gift and something she thought I would enjoy. When I pulled the gift out of its wrappings, I gasped.  This was

Last week, I needed to step away from my computer and get out of the house for the day.  I actually had some supplies I needed to get for my upcoming freelance projects, but I also just needed to get out.  In addition to the necessary errands, I stopped by a couple of my favorite local stores – Churn Dash Antiques and Kismet Consignment. At Kismet, I was hoping to find a piece or two to paint.  The problem is that most of the pieces they have in the store are in great condition!  It’s actually a nice problem to have.  I know their pieces have already had a once-over to make sure they are in good, sellable condition.  I really do try to find pieces that need some help and most of their pieces, even though they are priced very well, just don’t need help.  I managed to find two

Yesterday, I shared about our shopping trip to Lucca and today I am showing all of the goodies I bought, carefully wrapped, strategically packed, and brought home in my suitcase.  Well, and I borrowed some space in my mom’s suitcase, too! If you remember back to my post about shopping at the flea market in Paris, I shared how much I drooled over the antique copper in one particular booth.  Of course, I was attracted to the oldest pieces (from the 1800’s) and therefore the most expensive.  Even though I had saved money to spend, I couldn’t stomach spending €300 (about $350) on one bundt pan or jelly mold.  I held them and took pictures, and continued looking for things that would persuade me to part with my money. When I was in Lucca, I spotted a small shelf hanging from a tent, filled with similar copper pieces.  I must admit that,

This weekend is the big antique event in this corner of the world – Gold Rush!  It’s an antique market that sets up in the entire town of Oronoco, MN and at the Rochester Fair Grounds.  I went last year, but it was raining, so I only experienced a small fraction of the event in Oronoco.  I did get to shop at the Rochester Fair Grounds venue, though, since most of that is indoors.  That’s where I bought this piece last year… This year, I was able to get a friend to watch the boys and I met up with another friend (a Gold Rush veteran) to do some antiquing. The weather was nice this year (or at least not raining), so I was able to see a lot more and get a better feel for the event.  Like most antique markets, this one is a mixed bag.  There is