Better Late Than Never....

I know......

I know.........

I promised ya'll all the

juicy pictures and great stories

of my trip to Warrenton.

It just so happened that I started my new job

the next day and I'm just getting into the swing of things

sooooooo.........

here...

we.......

gooooooooo!!!!

My very first stop was to

Jill Suzanne.

This young lady lives just a hop and a skip

down the street from me....literally.

She has some of the most amazing jewelry and

vintage finds you could set your eyes upon.

I am totally in awe of the stark contrast

between fine china and deer horns.

Jill finds a way to make it look effortless.

She has some amazing books that have such a nice patina

along with some really funky crosses made out of old license plates....cooool!

One of her biggest sellers this year

was one of these guys.

Her primitive rabbits sold super fast and are just adorable.

Perhaps Jill is best known for her

amazing handpoured candles.

The scent can't be beat and I just get

dizzy over these Mason jars with zinc lids....swoon.

One of my next stops was none other than to....

.

I can't even begin....begin I tell ya' to describe

Mindy's booth.

Mindy has one of the most impeccable displays around.

I was truly in love with this silver and black display.

It is simply vintage elegance with a modern feel.

This particular vignette had me hyperventilating!!!

It's vintage appeal has such a designer flair....

GORGEOUS!!!!!

Mindy's take on antiques was sheer genius!!!

The best part about seeing Mindy is that she

was in cohorts with the author of these awesome creations...

Robelyn of red.neck chic was there!!!

If you have not had the opportunity to see beauty in its finest,

then RUN....don't walk over to her blog and experience

purse heaven firsthand!!!!

Robelyn is one of my long lost sisters and she never fails to

have the greatest imagination.

See this?

This is not the skirt to a frilly dress....uh uh.

This....my dears....is a purse.

That's right.....a purse.

Only Robelyn could create such whimsy

and elegance in one breath.

This purse was my fave.

The detail is simply divine.

I was going to buy one but I was getting the

"stank eye" from Mr. M.

c'est la vie!!!!

I can't wait to show ya'll the rest of the awesome vendors

and finds that I encountered on my trip...

I hope that you will enjoy them too.

Round Top Ruckus

Okay.....

most of ya'll know that I spent last weekend in Warrenton

and Round Top

doing my fair share of junking and shopping

for some amazing antiques.

But....

no one knew that I was there on an exposé.

I've heard all about what goes on behind the scenes

at Round Top and I was going to get to the bottom of it.

I started my undercover mission like any non-assuming shopper.

Cart....check.

Cute clothes.....check.

 Fist full of money burnin' a hole in my pocket.....check.

I came across this woman first.

Oh.....she was wheelin' and dealin'

and she even tried to entice me with her candles and wine

but I didn't fall for it one bit.

I knew that I had to dig deeper.

I continued shopping and searching when I spotted these two...

Don't let the sweet faces and charming grins fool you.

These ladies in Bar W field are masters at their game.

There was a conspiracy brewing.....I just know it.

They tried to throw me off of their scent by

bringing over their helper.

I wasn't taking the bait.

These ladies tried so hard to get me to stay awhile and make me

forget all about my investigation but I was hot on the trail.

I made my way over by the Gin and

was immediately sidetracked by

this woman with hugs and salutations.

(I think she was tipped off by the Bar W ladies.)

I stopped and chatted but all the while I was taking notes

and gathering evidence.

I was getting all ready to blow this Round Top ruckus wide open.

I figured I must have been onto something

'cuz the muscle of the organization

came looking for me.

I was able to sweet talk my way out of that one

and continued my pursuits.

A hot tip

(and a cool beer)

led me to Zapp Hall

where I met some of the major players

in the dealings that go on in Warrenton and Round Top

like this woman.

She seemed nice enough but she wasn't given up any

insider information.

This one just looked shady....

I think she was stealing something.

After several hours of hunting for a great story,

the only that I did leave with were some great finds

for my home and some awesome time with some amazing friends.

(I'm still not letting these two off of the hook just yet....)

I have left the names of the above absent

to protect their innocence...RIGHT!!!!

See if you can list everyone pictured here.

P.S........

This guy professed that he would give me the

whole scoop........

so I brought him home.

I'm Outta HERE!!!!!!!!

My bags are packed

the camper is hitched

and I am on my way!!!!!

I can't wait to get to Warrenton and see all of my good

bloggy friends

as well as some dynamic shopping!!!!

I will tell ya'll all about it......

on Monday.

What Happened???

Do you see my followers?

Did you notice anything different??

I lost four....count 'em....FOUR

followers in one day!!!!

Okay...so I'm not a numbers kinda gal...

I don't measure my blog's worth by how many followers

that I have or how popular I am....

but this kinda hurt...

I will definitely be posting more blogs now that

I'm back in the game...but what did I do?

What Happened????

To my previous followers......

if I did anything to offend you....

I'm sorry.....

I promise that I can be a better blogger.....

honest.

Good News!!

I just HAAAAAD to share the good news with ya'll!!!

I will be starting a new chapter in my nursing career

as a clinical research nurse on Monday!!!

I am very excited and nervous all at the same time.

This is a whole new aspect for me.

There is so much to learn and do and room to grow in my new career.

God has something awesome planned for me.

I can't wait to see the end result.

Thank ya'll for praying for me and giving me kind words of encouragement

throughout this whole ordeal that I have had.

It definitely helps when you have good friends by your side!!

Look Out World!!!!!!

Here I come!!!

That's right!!!!!

I am headed to Round Top and Warrenton

for the Spring Antique Show!!!

I can't wait!!!!

The Divine Mr. M has the camper all ready to go

and I'm counting down the days until

I get to go back to the greatest show on earth!!!

If you have never been to the antique show in Warrenton,

then let me show you what you're missing...

Country Living

There are some of the most

jaw dropping antiques

and just good junk

for miles and miles!!!!

(insert squealing and clapping)

The best part is all of the great vendors that will be there!

There are some awesome folks that will be out and about like

Mindy of Primitiques 'n Poetry

The amazing Robelyn of Red.neck.chic

My fairy blog mama will be there...

the infamous Debbie of Talking Trash

and the ever so adorable

Adrienne of The Flying Bee

will be there just to name a few.

I am, of course, super excited to announce

that this show is the premiere show for

Anne of

Fiona and Twig!!!!

My girl is going to be with the

extraordinary Effie

(I call her E...)

So....

Whatcha waiting for?

Run on down(or up) to Warrenton and Roundtop

and say hi to some really good folks

and get in some really awesome shopping as well!!!!

It's Hip to be Square

Today I buried an old friend.

A friend that has endured sunny days and rough storms.

It was with great sadness that I had to say goodbye....

to my old wreath.

She was a faithful wreath form..

sitting all alone on the clearance aisle at Michael's

I brought her home and made her mind.

She was hardworking and never complained.

She endured whatever came with grace

and then one day....

She started to fall apart.

I don't know why.

Perhaps it was the stress from the demands of her job...

greeting people and standing at the entrance of my humble abode.

Maybe she was just starting to feel her age

as her joints and limbs started to give way.

Mr. M laughed at her...and at me

as I bandaged her up on many occasions.

Alas, the day came when she could no longer be repaired

and I was forced to say "adieu."

I decided to pay homage to my dear wreath form

and create another sqaure in her memory.

I used natural vine garland,

vine wrapped wire,

dowel rods,

and thin green floral wire.

I shoved my dowel rods into the garland and secured them

with the vine wire so it could all blend.

I don't advise cutting your garland until you tie in the dowel rods

or you might come up short.

This is a close up of the back of the wreathform that I made.

It's not very pretty but it won't be seen anyway.

Once I had my form made, I started adding the boxwood

from the first wreath by tying it on with the thin

floral wire.

I preferred the single  wire stems as I didn't feel like cutting wire every few feet.

In little over an hour, I had a new square wreath

for my door.

As you can see I wanted a very full wreath

so I just kept going around the form with my boxwood

until I had a thickness that I was happy with.

The lushness of the wreath against my horse bit

wreath hanger that I purchased from Margo

is simply stunning on my door.

I hope that my old friend can rest in peace now

as I have a great love in my heart for all things

square because of her.