I've been working very hard to get everything in order at my new Booth for the March 1st Grand Opening of THE BRASS ARMADILLO WEST in Goodyear.
So today I'm Revealing my Booth as it is nearing completion now.
Thankfully I had a lot of the props on hand to decorate the Booth and make it my own Style & Aesthetic, so there was minimal outlay to transform it before rolling the Inventory in. I was on a shoestring Budget to make this happen, which makes one be quite rescourceful and Creative... so not a bad thing really.
All of the Inventory is in place and I Hope you will like the Boho Botanical Vibe I've Created as much as I enjoyed Creating it.
I was fortunate that my Booth was already painted one of my favorite hues, Peacock Blue... how fortuitous and it looks nice peeking thru the Burlap too! I hate painting and time was of the essence so this was a Big Deal to me to get a perfect location and booth size with the perfect color already in place! *Whew* I wanted a feel of Mardi Gras & loads of Feather & Botanical touches... I "Heart" Feathers & Plants in Decor & a Party-like Atmosphere!
And of coarse there HAD to be Exotic Rugs... not only to cover the bare cement floor and make it Inviting... but also for Sale so that those of you who are Exotic Rug enthusiasts such as myself can Feather your Nests with some Lovely Saudi, Persian & Native American Rugs as I Source them.
Since The Man has been so sick & in the Hospital off and on he was unable to build me any shelf units out of Salvage Lumber as we'd envisioned. So I improvised & slapped some Salvage Lumber from the Bohemian Valhalla Homestead & Old cut up Exotic Rugs on a Thrift Store 'scored' shelf unit that I went on a Goodwill Emergency Run to locate... *LOL*
Yes, as I've said before, necessity is the Mother of Invention & I had a "Make It Work" Moment! *Winks* It had to be the right dimensions, which if you're not having the custom made shelves can be a bit tricky, but the Treasure Seeking Mojo was working in my Favor & it was darn near perfect in a pinch! If I have time I will lightly sand the shelf unit, which has good bones but a too pristine paint job for my liking. *Smiles*
And dried Botanicals and Sepia hues coupled with bold Jewel Tones was my Color Palette of choice.
And having Faith Based & Religious items for Sale was also an important consideration for me... I personally have never Decorated or Styled our Home without them being present.
Rosaries will also abound consistently since they are among my oldest Collectibles and I've also included some I've made. For those of you who Love them as much as I do you will always be able to find some at my Booth... if I can't Source Vintage ones I shall Create some... this glowing bead Rosary is one of my Creations... I don't know how or why the beads glow, but I like the effect of them appearing that way when Light hits them. Beads has been another Passion of mine since Childhood because my Dad's side of the Family did Native American Tribal Art and it always incorporated Magnificent Beadwork.
I had a lot of Fun Styling my Booth Space and having it become an extension of my Home Space so to speak...
And though my Friends and Family could hardly believe it I even parted with some of my Vintage Tablecloth Collection to offer here!
Now this is a very Big Deal for me... because though I rarely have much attachment to most objects in my Home & Collections, Vintage Tablecloths are most definitely an exception! *LOL* I have hundreds of them and as the Great Edit & Purge of 2012 began I had vowed that I should downsize this Huge Collection to a more modest number... easier said than done however! I'm apparently VERY emotionally attached to my Vintage Tablecloths & the "Letting Go" stack was paltry compared to the "Save" stacks! *Winks* But I did come up with about a dozen in this 1st attempt, and that's at least a promising beginning!
And my Love of Yarn is legendary, though thankfully I don't get attached to Yarn, I just have a lot of it. And so for those who Craft with it or enjoy Decorating with it I've got the Bright Bold Boho Gypsy hues...
And the Organic Sepia ones. I adore Twine, Jute, Burlap & Hemp Rope as well so I have decorated with lots of those Lovely Textured Natural Elements. My stash of 100 year Old Burlap Sacks came in handy again...
So they cover the entire back wall of the Booth along with a fab Bunting that my Friend Minnie made and I've been Saving for such an occassion as this to use in a Project! It's a Small Beginning but I attempted to make a big impact in a small space.
And offer a fairly wide selection of initially blending Garden Style, Retro, Bohemian and Shabby as I cull some of my personal items and then eventually Source only what I know Loyal Customers would Love to discover when they're on their Found Treasure Hunts.
For the time being I will not be offering my Custom Bohemian Bags at the Booth since they take too long to Create and are only by Special Order with a waiting list right now... since I'm a very slow and temperamental Artist... sometimes I'm on and sometimes I'm off. *Winks* But I do also enjoy Upcycling Vintage Bags I find and adding some Bohemian Bling to them... and since many peeps have asked about these Bags I often use myself I've decided to offer those at least for the Bohemian Bag enthusiasts.
And every Gal needs some inexpensive Bags & Totes so that her best ones aren't worn out or abused in the daily use our Sacs endure. But who wants the mass marketed Styles... not I!!!! And probably not you either if you're a Kindred Spirit.
So I do Hope you shall enjoy some of the Fun little bags I've Sourced and Upcycled with my Bohemian Bling stash. It's Fun for me to find a Brooch in my vast Collection to match up with a cute little Vintage Bag I've discovered and want to breathe new Life into with a simple touch. I know I always feel transformed by a piece of Bohemian Bling too! *Winks*
And The Man has promised to seek out a few Mantiques... I actually like Mantiques too, so I have no problem incorporating them into the Bohemian Valhalla Booth... Salvage is just in our Blood and rescuing Treasures is my main Goal here with this little Booth. After all, I can't KEEP them ALL... but I want to RESCUE them ALL & the Urge is practically Primal to do so... and so, here's where you all come in... you will have to take some Home with you from time to time and therefore know that we're all doing our part in Saving History one piece at a time! *Smiles*
And just in time for Easter I'm offering a cute little Slag Glass Bunny and some Lavender Glass... which alas doesn't photograph in the Beautiful Lavender hue that it actually is.
And so I tried and tried to capture the Essence of this Lovely pressed Glass... to no avail, sorry... guess you'll just have to see it for yourselves. Though I Love this Lavender Glass I never have been able to 'score' enough of it to call it a Collection and so I've decided to let it go, perhaps to someone who has amassed a Collection of it... because it does look Magnificent en masse!
My Palette... in a single Image!!!
How cool was it that The Man's Mantique Signage actually had a similar Color Palette!!!???? We have actually owned this Sign since 1995 so it was time to offer it to another Phoenix Suns Fan... or Beer enthusiast *Winks*... I could picture this in a Man Cave, can't you? I always Loved the Colors.
Good-Bye Slag Glass Bunny... you'll be missed... but I know your Adoptive Parents will enjoy hiding Candies in you too!
The Man enjoyed himself WAYYYYYYYYYY too much Photographing a much too sweaty & chubby me weilding a hammer in my Booth! *Le Sigh* Sure I was working so hard & having so much Fun that it was something to be preserved for posterity I suppose. But isn't it weird how you can stand in front of a mirror and totally delude yourself with your own eyes into looking at a reflection and thinking you're not THAT Fat... and then you get a Photo taken and Holy Mother of God, Reality hits you right in the face & confronts you with the Truth!!!!!!!!!!!!! I feel as though somebody oughtta be yelling, "Harpoon!" *LOL* This 2012 Weight Loss attempt better work because I'm at my heaviest ever and I HATE it! I am a Hot Mess and yet I'm working so hard at dieting, portion control and exercise, so it's SO unfair I tell you!!! *Sob* I'm told by my Docs that its probably Menopausal Hormone Imbalance & extreme Chronic Stress that is the obstacle... whatever... it sucks! I'm reluctantly sharing this only because I Promised The Man and you all that I would, not because I'm proud of this visual in absolute Humility! *Le Sigh* But a Too Fat Pix is just the motivation to work harder at achieving the Weight Loss Goal I've re-set for myself... again!!!
So keep that in Prayer for me my Friends... it really is something that I thought I could have control over and yet I'm constantly waging this ongoing battle... which I NEVER had a problem with until after age 50 and a Hysterectomy... I'm not comfortable being overweight, I doubt anybody is... but I digress... back to The Booth! *Winks*
I decided that it had to have Bohemian Bling... I adore Jewelry... so the pieces will either be Sourced when I see something Boho...
Or something Created by me using favorite objects.
And I "Heart" Salt Rock Votive Holders too so anytime I can Source some of those I'll be adding them to the Booth... I Love those I own. The Man and I adore Rocks and have been Collecting them for years too... so anything Created out of Rocks is intriguing to me and Salt Rocks are so opaque and Lovely with illumination from the inside casting a warm glow.
You'll always find Candleholders in my Booth as well... I'm such a Pyro in fact when it comes to Candles! Actually anything to do with Fire... Fireplaces, Firepits, Campfires... *LOL*
I Hope to make visiting my little Space Welcoming and Inviting...
I've already met so many Lovely People in the Process and we haven't even Opened yet!!! Many of the other Dealers and their Families drop by every day to visit and say they enjoy my little Boho Booth's Ambiance & Style...
That's exactly the Vibe I had Hoped and strived to Create so it meant a lot to hear it as I was transforming the Booth into my Vision for it.
It is probably a very good thing that I spent most of my Adult Life living in a Trailer and moving often Gypey Style, so that I was used to Styling and entertaining in very small, often tight spaces... so it makes Booth Foofing and organizing a lot and the necessities in a little bit of square footage less challenging for me because I'm so used to it.
And it could also be the very same reason I went so Hog Wild with accumulating so many Found Treasures once I had a big Home with lots of rooms... without wheels *winks*... and Acreage... *LOL* A double edged sword getting what you ask for... to whom much is given, much is required!
I know it's going to date me, but I learned to Type on one of these Style Typewriters! *LOL* This is a 1954 Royal... it weighs as much as a boat anchor! *Smiles* But they built these things to stand the test of time & I'm still fond of Vintage Typewriters.
And this one has the Original Owner's Manual! Loving the Vintage Graphics... aren't Vintage Graphics just the best!?! I Love that some people actually Saved small pieces of History Memorabilia & Ephemera like this, things that most people just discarded & so though it was probably common back in it's day, because most of it wasn't considered of any value, few probably remain.
And I Love Art by Unknown Artists... like this sweet Vintage Rose Oil Painting...
The Cherubs seem to be enjoying their new location... *Winks*
And I got some cool new Booth Neighbors, Kendra & Suzie, in the Space just the other side of this Cart... and the best thing is that they are into Retro and Vintage! *Whoo Hoo* They repainted the awful dull Army Green their Booth was in to a gorgeous Pale Aqua hue, which now looks Lovely beside my Peacock Blue Booth... and I feel our Styles will definitely compliment each other.
I was a little concerned about who my immediate Booth Neighbors might be lest they be selling Darth Vader Heads or something? *LOL* Not that there's anything wrong with the Star Wars Genre of Collectibles if that's your Thing... but I was Hoping my immediate Booth Neighbors would have a Complimentary Vibe to my own Sensibilities & so far they have.
Well, I Hope you've enjoyed your visit... and might stop by in Person to Scout for Found Treasures on the Far West Side?! I'll have some inside favorite Show Room Reveals in my next Post! There is a Mantiques Man Cave to die for... I even adore it enough to know I'll be spending time there often even when The Man isn't with me! *Smiles*
Dawn... The Bohemian