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Running a Business

Antiques

restocking my room

My *plans* have been derailed so often lately that I’m hesitant to use the word. I’m afraid my spleen will burst or we’ll have an epic snow storm in April or maybe lose power for two days. Who knows. I am just using the word *plans* generally. So, when I planned to go to Lucketts this Thursday, I wasn’t going to hold my breath. Tomorrow is Thursday and the plans are looking good. (I’m wincing right now…) I’ve been pricing, sorting, cleaning, loading (only a little) and working on last minute things I can take to restock my space. It’s almost like I’m moving in all over again. I moved into my new space on the first floor in December, but Karen and Jennifer started babysitting the space for me almost right away. I had a few pieces in there, but now all you’ll find is one dresser, a handful

April 11, 2012 No Comments

my business story

{dreams for the future}

The other day, one of my readers asked what my dreams were for the future and I thought it would be nice to share the answer in a post instead of a comment. Before I share my dreams for the future, I’m going to share a bit about the past. Many of you know my story. In short, my business was started out of the desire to add a little income to the family budget. I didn’t have any big dreams attached to it. I just wanted to make a couple hundred dollars a month to help with some bills. I’ve never considered myself an entrepreneur or a designer, writer, photographer…any of that. I was just a stay-at-home mom who wanted to do something more than what I was doing, but I wanted a job that would allow me to stay home with my boys. About a year into my business,

April 7, 2012 No Comments

my business story

The Nate Berkus Show

I shared back in January that I had the opportunity to go up to New York City to be a guest on The Nate Berkus Show. Well, the wait is finally over and the show aired (or airs, depending on where you live) today. Here’s the video in case you missed it… I’ve been sitting on (not literally) all of my behind-the-scenes pictures and I am finally able to share them! It really was a great experience. I was extremely nervous, but my word of the year is celebrate and I was determined that this trip and opportunity was going to be a celebration, not a bundle of nerves. I was not going to let self-doubt and fear and anxiety rob me of the joy. With my mind made up about those things, I had some butterflies, but I was able to thoroughly enjoy myself. The morning of the taping, I

April 2, 2012 No Comments

buying & selling antiques

Lucketts Eye Candy

On the way back from the Annie Sloan workshop yesterday, I stopped in at Lucketts to pay my rent and check out my space. I really miss that place! I was looking forward to getting my space filled again after working on the book, but then my gallbladder decided it wanted a divorce, so that upended those plans. I’m hoping to get some pieces ready this week, so I can move back into my space next week. I can’t thank Jennifer and Karen enough for keeping my space full and beautiful in my absence. While I was there, I couldn’t help but snap some pictures of some things that caught my eye… I love these chairs and was pretty tempted at $98/each, but I know I can find ones like this on Craig’s List for a lot less and I have enough upholstery projects to keep me busy. Hello legs…

April 1, 2012 No Comments

Photography

50mm

I’ve become a bit of a lens junkie over the past year. It all started when my old Nikon lens (that came with the film SLR I bought about eight years ago) wasn’t working with my new D7000 Nikon. It worked, but it took forever to get it to focus, so it was finally time for an upgrade. Since then, I’ve bought four new lenses and just added one more…a 50 mm. (If your curious about my camera and other lenses, you can read about them HERE.) It’s not the one I really wanted, but this one is $130 and the one I really wanted was almost $700, so I decided I would get this one for now and upgrade later. One reason I wanted this lens is because the aperture can open to 1.8, which is big. That means the camera lets in more light, which is nice for interior

March 10, 2012 No Comments

Decorating

recharging your creative batteries

As I shared in my post yesterday, I’ve been feeling drained lately. I usually feel that way after any big creative endeavor. I’m always toast after the Lucketts Antique Market, the Christmas Open House left me in a creative coma for a couple of days and I’m usually useless after I finish a large round of freelance projects. I was in serious need of a creative jolt today, so I decided to get out of the house. I dropped the boys off at school set out for some retail stores. I almost always shop second hand, but it’s nice to get into a home store to see the colors, patterns, displays and trends. I dressed my very best for the occasion. Seriously. That’s what I wore. With a sweat shirt and bandanna on my hair to round out the ensemble. I did wear mascara. Anyway, I was looking for

March 7, 2012 No Comments

the book

My life for the past couple of months has basically revolved around the book I’m writing. Things are finally starting to come together. We’ve edited through chapter nine (out of ten) and I just finished my last photo shoot today. YES!! It’s been a lot of work, but very rewarding and I know I will be absolutely over the moon when I see it in print. So, I wanted to answer a few questions I’ve been getting about the book, so you have an idea of what I’ve been up to. How it happened… First of all, in case you’re new(er) to my blog, I want to let you know that my business was started just to help out with the family finances and I had no idea I would ever have the opportunity to write a book. I started writing one about 1 1/2 years ago and shared about

March 5, 2012 No Comments

Miscellaneus

more peeks…

Well, the flurry of activity will be prolonged for a few more days…fortunately. My original deadline for the photos has been extended. Whew! I was going to make it, but I was definitely going to be limping to the finish line. I feel like with a few extra days, I can make the photos even better. I started out the morning by moving things around in my office to make room for hanging wallpaper. I brought in a professional for the job for a few reasons… One: I have never hung wallpaper before and this is unpasted paper, two: I have dozens of other things I need to get done in a short period of time, and three: the paper is for a special project and it’s not a time for me to expand my DIY horizons. I couldn’t help myself, though, and I was soon up on a ladder,

February 25, 2012 No 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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