Billy Idol & Beaded Trees

Let me just start this post by stating something many of us would see as quite obvious…Billy Idol back in the day (can’t speak for now…haven’t seen him in years) was one fine looking fella.

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Ok, so what does that have to do with this post you ask?  Well, Sunday morning VH1 Classic runs 80’s videos for a couple of hours and I find this the perfect time to enjoy my coffee and usually write my blog post….or occasionally something else creative.

This morning it was something else creative….finishing a bead tree I had started (I really hate to admit this) a couple few years ago.  I was moving along focused on finishing the darn tree when all of a sudden Billy comes on the TV singing Flesh for Fantasy and for some reason the 16 year old in me surfaced and I was riveted.  Crazy!

Ok, back to my tree…originally when I started this tree the idea came from where most of my best inspiration comes from….a swanky little boutique.  This was one of my favorite shops in Marblehead called Piara Luna…it has since closed :-( …there is a new shop in it’s place called Surfaces which it perfectly lovely…but it’s no Piara Luna :-(

Surfaces
33 Atlantic Ave., Marblehead MA
I actually really LOVE this shop!

One of my friends & I were Christmas shopping and Piara Luna had just the most lovely decorations so of course we headed in.  A gorgeous display had several of these beaded trees as one of its centerpieces…of course we both immediately fell in love….but as usual didn’t fall so in love with the price tag.  So we headed to the craft store to pick up the supplies to make them ourselves.

Bag of supplies...at least I had the sense to put it all in a zip
lock when I put it aside unfinished...

Since I had started this project so long ago of course I don’t have a picture of the inspiration vignette nor do I have any idea of what that “outrageous” price was…you’ll just have to use your imagination here.

But, I do have my finished product….

I used 3 different sized beads…10mm faceted clear, 8mm white pearl, 6mm faceted iridescent (AB) as well as iridescent sequins and pink seed beads.  I used pink seed beads to give it just a little hint of color since the rest of the beads are white or clear.

These were stacked (seed bead, sequin & bead)on an extra-long pin and then stuck into a Styrofoam tree.  I do have to confess though…there were a few starts and stops (the first 1" pins I used were a bit too small) and another lesson learned was the beads stayed place better when the tree was brushed with some Mod Podge first.

I also had purchased the tree topper back when I originally picked up the beads at my local craft store.  I ended up having to remove the wire that was meant to hold it on the top of a tree and just hot glue the star to the top of my tree.

So another project that I had been procrastinating is finished this year and I’m thinking it looks pretty good with the rest of my holiday trees.

Linking on Savvy Southern Style, A Stroll Through Life

Local Goodness - Grace Sales Co

So, today Christmas shopping begins for me.  Small Business Saturday is so much more my pace than the craziness of Black Friday…and I get to support my local communities businesses as a bonus.

I have decided that this year I am going to do my best to do at least 80% of my gift buying from small businesses (Etsy & Ebay count as small businesses since the transactions are from individual sellersJ).  Wouldn’t it be great for all of our communities if you all could join me in this mission?

So in honor of Small Business Saturday I thought I would share this post that I wrote a few months ago and never actually got it posted. Grace Sales Co has such wonderful quirky things I often wander in when I am in the neighborhood and today this will be my first stop.

Grace Sales Co
185 Pleasant St., Marblehead MA

Sometimes in the place & time you least expect it, you meet the nicest people.  This was the case when after a lovely day of meandering through Marblehead with a wonderful friend I decided on one more stop before heading home. 

My wonderful friend Leslie had mentioned she had missed out on a fab bookcase from Harvard University that was for sale at a fun little antique shop called Grace Sales Co just down the street.  She contemplated just a little too long and someone scooped it up just before her….I call that “just not meant to be”.

Love, love, love these orange wood stools!  They look like something
my friend Leslie would also love.

I have been to Grace Sales Co several times and this is another one of those places where I always see something unusual that I (or one of my friends) just have to have. 

Isn't this blue tufted sofa from Grace Sales window just fab?
Looks very Doris Day in Pillow Talk.
photo source

When I first moved to Marblehead this shop was an interior design shop that had just the most fabulous windows.  I had never visited the shop when the decorator had it but did make regular drive-by’s just to see the windows – they were always so colorful with lots of classic pattern fabrics and chic furniture pieces displayed.  Loved them!

This was one of a pair...wouldn't these just be magnificent in grey?

I’m not exactly sure when the decorator vacated and Grace Sales Co. moved in but I do know Grace hadn’t been open very long the first time I went in.  She has such great things that I have returned many times and usually with friends and we’ve all purchased something.  

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I find this isn’t a shop where I just can’t live without everything in it but there are always a few really cool things I lust over.  And really isn’t that all it takes?

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So on this particular Saturday I stopped in with very little on my list of wants/needs but was in need of seeing what new items were in the shop. 

What a great way to bring a pop of color to a room

While browsing in the back room I happened to strike up a conversation with a woman who was in the middle of checking out a vanity that her teenage daughter was admiring.  Her daughter really, really wanted it but she couldn’t figure out exactly how she wanted to update it.  I suggested Annie Sloan chalk paint and perhaps doing an accent color on some of the edges to make it pop as well as some new hardware (or painting the existing in a fun color).

Some teenage girl in Marblehead has fab taste...this is now a part
of her bedroom.  She loved the lines.

We ended up having so much fun imagining what this piece could be she bought it and was heading out to get some paint to start her project.

Sure hope it looks as fabulous in pink as it does in this original form.

I purchased these a bit ago and love everything about them!

This will soon be hung in my dining room.  I love both transfer ware
and commemorative plates so this just had to come home with me!

So today, I head back to Grace Sales Co to see what interesting finds she has for Small Business Saturday.  Wish me luck on my quest to find all of the goodies my family & friends desire at all of the lovely shops locally owned & operated.

Hit The Road...How Could I Have Forgotten!

Holy Cow I can’t believe I forgot to tell you all about one of my favorite places to find decorative items in all of Atlanta!  Have you all heard of or seen a catalog for Ballard Design?  I kind of describe them as the French Countryish version of Pottery Barn – they have fabulous looking things!  Well, their corporate headquarters is in Atlanta and here’s the real bonus…they have 2 retail outlets in Atlanta!  One is on DeFoors Avenue right next to their corporate office off I-75 on the western side of the city and the other one is on Holcomb Bridge road right off Hwy 400, exit 7A in Roswell.  I always make a habit of visiting both stores on my visit’s because believe it or not they have very different merchandise in each.  The Holcomb Bridge location is a true “scratch & dent” store where they sell returns, overstock and damaged product at bargain prices.  The DeFoors location used to be more of a warehouse environment but has transitioned into half scratch & dent/half full priced retail.  Neither location has everything that is offered in the catalog but do have a random offering that I am never disappointed with.

This trip I was on the hunt for 2 items that I am obsessed with but unwilling to pay the full retail price for….



British Royalty Pillow

Brit Pillow Ordering Link

Terra Cotta Rabbit Planter

Rabbit Planter Ordering Link

Now as I mentioned these stores are a hit or miss experience and if you are looking for something specific it’s not guaranteed that you will find it.  Unfortunately, I was out of luck on this visit – no pillow to be found and the only planter they had in the store was full retail pricing and let me tell you this baby weighs much more than it looks so packing it and shipping or taking it on the plane were not great options.

What I did find however was another fun pillow that was not only on sale but an additional 50% off!…

Antique Hare Hooked Pillow

Hare Pillow Ordering Link

I love accent pillows they add color/fun to a room without any permanent commitment.

And this lovely jute tote in Pink. 

Monogrammed Jute Carry-All

Monogrammed Tote Ordering Link

They had probably 50 or so of these totes in all colors that were monogrammed with apparently mistake initials or returned totes and really how is Ballard going to resell a personalized tote?  Well, let me tell you how, they put them in their outlet store and sell them for cheap!  I paid I think $3ish for a med pink tote with the monogram KPA – close enough for me (who really knows my middle initial is D instead of A right?  there are lots of great names that begin with A that I can adopt for a $3 bargain).  It’s a great size and accommodates a laptop and files nicely for a spring work tote.

Last year on my visit to Ballard Design I wasn’t on the hunt for anything in particular but I did find this lovely picture that now brings some brightness to my bedroom.

Sea of Poppies Giclee Print

Poppies Print Ordering Link

You never really know what you will find at Ballard but as I said earlier it is always worth a quick visit!