Friday, July 15, 2011

Red Shed has Gone to the Dogs

We admit it, we have gone to the dogs. When it gets so hot in Texas, our brains start whirling and the silliest things crack us up. Admittedly we usually think we are a WHOLE lot funnier than everyone else thinks we are.
So back to the dogs. Yes, we torture our poor little French bulldog mascot, "Red" and dress him for each and every sale and holiday...
We can't resist any great stray dogs. Like this one who found his way into the shop..
A few days ago we were at a great estate sale and Michele found another little stray. A buddy for Red.!.
 Immediately, we said, "lets put him in the car, lets put a seat belt on him, lets take pictures of him!"Before we knew it, the people running the estate sale were taking pictures of us taking pictures! Of course MM had a ball driving back to the shop and pulling through drive-thru's, just for fun....

So not exactly what you would expect to see at the Red Shed....but we added a little vintage lingerie on his head....
because who hasn't had their dog chew on their underwear??... Then we found this TO DIE FOR "Beware of Dog" Fence...
Hmm, I feel a theme coming on... And it is true...We have absolutely gone to the Dogs......
And maybe to the cats a little bit too...

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Where Real Women Create

(This is a reprint of a previous blog to link up with Karen Valentines "Where Bloggers Create 2011" check it out!)
I was knee deep into a project last week when I literally put down my scissors and started giggling and taking pictures..... I was thinking about the blogs I had been reading and viewing and women talking about a magazine they just loved called "Where Women Create". It is absolutely gorgeous, with beautiful women and inspiring spaces.
But I have a little tiny house, and no studio. I create at my kitchen table. I have to spread everything out so that I can see what materials I have and stimulate my imagination....
I compete with the cat.......And the cat food......(on the table so the dog won't eat it)....My computer is shoved to one side so I can check emails, or in case the travel agency needs to forward phone calls to me.......
Of course, if they do, my phone is buried and it's likely that I won't be able to find it.....
Sometimes, I run out of room on the table, so it continues onto the floor...
My "space's" one redeeming virtue is a lucky view, out of the very dirty windows, of the creek in my back yard, offering precious distractions of ducks, herons, turtles, owls, various song birds, squirrels, deer, and the transient raccoon.....
Then the whole mess is cleaned up and put away each night, because my DH is a "neatnik" and could not possibly go to sleep with the kitchen in "chaos".

So here is what I created last Wednesday amid the chaos......
These are huge 200 year old crystals that I purchase each year at the Paris Flea Market. (to see me buying the crystals, click HERE) Each one is about 6 inches long and 4 inches wide. There is NO WAY that new crystals have the look, feel or weight of these beauties. I fuse 100 year old French documents to the back so that it shows through the front, and a different one on the reverse side, which is then covered with several layers of a clear glass like resin. The crystal is then reversible. I wire on a loop and add a vintage seam binding cord. I can only make 10 or 12 a year because I only have access to that many crystals. They sell immediately and I'm not really sure what people do with them. They look fabulous hanging in a window, from a mirror or on a lamp shade.

This one has a French perfume company check on one side........$45And a French postcard on the other. Look closely for the child playing in his mother's dress form...

This soft pink is from the front of a 1898 French legal document....$45The back is a vintage French postcard with puppies chasing a frog...

This is my favorite. The front is a French postcard with an angel painting from the Louvre.. $45 SOLD
The back is an old French letter........This crystal is almost 3/4 of and inch thick, look at all the bevels!

This last one is almost small enough to be worn as a necklace. The front and back are from a French Postcard...$35 SOLD
All are now residing among vintage French lingerie, at the Red Shed, until they go their new homes.
Oh, I also made these darling magnet-clips the same day.....also currently at the Shed.

So, I didn't do too bad among the "chaos". Now, you tell the truth......Where do YOU create???
Valarie

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Saturday, July 2, 2011

360 West Magazine Red Shed Article Thank You!

Thank you so much to 360 West Magazine for featuring Red Shed Cottage Chic in their "Objects of Desire" section. We are very blessed and appreciative. They featured both the shop, the travel agency, as well as our growing list of French Flea Market shopping trips to Paris and Provence. You can read the article on page 48, HERE.


 In the shop now....We just finished these wonderful French baubles and necklaces from antique medallions, keys and papers.