Shop At Moxie

fresh vintage finds

Tall vintage drinking glasses in turquoise and red swirl (2 of each color ).  Vintage soda shop girl planter.  Most adorable paper straws in stripes and dots. 

I like the idea of using vintage things in new ways.  The glasses and planter could hold so many items in the kitchen, craft room or office.  The soda shop planter was at my house and now I'm letting her go to make room for something new.  Sweet husband encourages me to find and keep whatever I wish so long as things go out the door in equal ratio to things coming in the door.  He is quite reasonable and practical like that.  Good thing too... because I'm much more interested in acquisitions than in selling off my finds.  So really, the mister is good for business at moxie.  He keeps the vintage rolling out of our house and into the shop.  

A freshly laundered stack of vintage tablecloths.  All of them less than 20 dollars. 

I love the look of a stack of pretty fabrics or tablecloths.  Each pattern peeking out just a bit to entice you to pick it up and look more closely.  Each one ready to adorn your table or be tossed upon a grassy knoll for a picnic.  What's not to love!  No offense to tablecloths of modern times if they are made of cotton but the majority of the ones I come across are poly/cotton and while it may make for less wrinkles, I think it makes for a less than stellar look and feel.  But then I'm a true vintage girl at heart so I would think that :)

Thanks to those of you (and you know who you are...) that have pulled me aside and told me you wished I blogged more often.  Recently I've heard that a lot and I'm shocked and thankful all at the same time.  I will try to honor your requests and get to it.  Thanks so much for even wanting to read my ramblings.  So sweet you all are !

the bedroom remodel continues

A couple of weeks ago we decided it was high time our bedroom got a facelift.  We painted it celery green 15 years ago and it was looking scuffed up and just plain lifeless.  Not a very good feeling for the master bedroom.  Initially I thought a gray and yellow with a bit of black and white color scheme was the direction I wanted to go in.  And I still love that idea but somehow we got off on another track and now the train is moving quickly into the world of color.  So be it.  As much as I love looking at pictures of rooms done in a somewhat limited color palette I just have a hard time keeping to that.  When I look around at all of the things I fall in love with and keep for our house, they have one thing in common.  Color! Bright pops of color just make me happy.  So I'm not going to fight it. The room is fully painted and we are starting to hang art on a couple of the walls.  It is still a work in progress.  We found the cutest quilt for the bed and some pretty floral sheers for the windows.  I'll take some snaps of those soon.  

The wooden standing heart is one of my favorite vintage finds of late.  I purchased it at a cute antique store in Rochelle (Priscilla's Parlor).  Sadly the store recently closed.  I just wonder where it came from and what its original purpose was.  Definitely looks like an old store display.  Whatever it was doesn't matter but it is fun to imagine the past life of cool old items like this.  

I better run ... the mister is calling me to get back to the task I just escaped from.... painting dressers.  Ugg!  I really hate painting but it is another project for this room so I should get back to it. Cheers for now!

the animals speak

.... Just another day on the moxie chain gang ....all work and no play.  No laughing, no lunch, no dancing and definitely no joking around.  You must be uber serious with a serious distaste for frivolity to work here.  Just sayin. 

the big green wall project

You know how some projects are bigger and more tedious than others??  Well the large and very tall  green wall behind our moxie checkout counter is one of our big and somewhat daunting-to-tackle shop projects.  Mostly because the walls are plaster and practically impossible to nail into and the 12 foot long wrap station is in front of the wall and can not be moved so you have to climb the ladder and hang on to it with one leg only while two others hold the ladder in place to keep it from kicking out from under you.  

We've had the wall done up in black and white signage for the last couple of years.  I knew I wanted to change it up but someone near and dear to me ( I won't name names but it might begin with a c and end with a y) was resistant to say the least.  She made valid points about how difficult it would be and how hard it was to nail into the wall etc. etc.  I did not disagree but I made up my mind we'd do it and do it we did.  

Courtney, Maureen, Patty and I tackled the wall today.  Courtney took one for the team and was the ladder monkey.  Maureen and Patty spotted and assisted her  and I was the bossy art director.  Left two inches, right a tiny bit, up a little, down a smidge.  Yes.... right there.  We all had ideas about what should go where and together we got it done in about 3 1/2 hours.  Not bad! 

Courtney really deserves a round of applause because reaching off of the ladder and trying to hammer into super hard plaster is not easy!  Maureen, Patty and Courtney are so very talented and wonderful to work with.  I adore working with them all!!

Now you'll have something new to gaze upon when you are at our checkout.  

Lots of gorgeous new pieces from Kelly Rae Roberts.  Her art is beautiful and inspirational.  We hope you like it and will pop in soon to check it out up close and personal!  

birthday birdie

awwwwww cute!!!!  That's what I said when I found this vintage mug recently.  I mean is that not the cutest chubbiest little blue bird you ever did see.  And birdie is blowing a little noisemaker and wearing a tiny hat.  How festive, how cheery, how darn right swell.  You just don't see chubby birds engaging in party activities that often ... do you?  

I turned the mug around and it said "happy birthday."  This sweet mug needs to get filled with a little gift of some sort and given to a birthday gal.  My birthday isn't until next month and well it wouldn't be any fun to give it to myself.... so who is going to snatch this cutie up and put it to good use?!?

first project for 2012

Mr moxie has been on me for awhile to give our home some attention.  The cobblers kids have no shoes... or something like that.  I will admit to putting in long hours making sure the shop sparkles and then not having enough energy left to do the same for our house.  So in the spirit of new year ... new me... I've decided to spiff up a room or two.  

Our bedroom has had nothing done to it in the 15 years we've lived in the house so it seemed as good as any place to start.  Lately I'm really into gray so we decided to do a darker shade of gray and do white and yellow accents.  I hate painting more than I hate cleaning bathrooms so I get design duty and the Mr. gets to do the painting.  He got two walls done today and I'm liking it so far. Hoping to get the other two walls painted tomorrow.  I took a couple of bad phone photos that don't show the color that great but will have to do for now. The color looks olive in the picture but is really a nice dark gray.  The room used to be a pale celery green.  

The fun part will be finding curtains, pillows, rug etc to pull it all together.  I'll post again as the project progresses.  How about you???  Any projects for 2012?

Oh, and please note .... the bouncy bar stool.... yes, that is my husbands version of a safe ladder.  I kid you not.  He is just that kind of guy.  Livin on the edge!