Sunrise to Sunset, we are Retreat!

This was our view of the sunrise while driving off the Island on Sunday morning, heading to the show...

Completely unretouched photo. The sky really was this color!

Here's a shot of the booth setup with the canvas rug added - does a MUCH better job of showing off the cute black folding chairs, don't you think?! (Two of them sold)

We had such a great day! We saw so many of our friends, fellow dealers, shop owners, decorators & designers, even blog-ebrities (blog celebrities!). And you know, I'm a bad bad blogger - I didn't take one single photo of any of them. sigh. I really did have good intentions, but it was so BUSY. We sold a slew of stuff, including every lamp I had, save one! I am now Lampless in Seattle and have to get my rear in gear to create more for our next show in two weeks.

On our way home, this was the sunset. What a glorious day! Thanks to everyone who came out and said hello, made a purchase, brought a friend, or left a comment here on our blog. We appreciate you SO MUCH!

Now it's on to the next thing... re-set our room at Poppyseeds with a new fall look and prepare for the French Flea Market in Mill Creek! Be sure and click on the link in our sidebar for info on that one....

Creating a Mood....

The work is done (after a remarkably easy, low-key day!) and we'd like to share a few peeks at our space at Sand Point for Sunday's show.... (and after viewing this photo, I'm taking in a canvas rug to place under this table in the morning. You can't even see the cute black vintage metal chairs in the shot!)

Inspired by our love of late summer leading into fall, and the simplicity & calm of Danish/Euro design trends...

Classic lines, fresh approach....

And FAB.u.lous lighting fixtures & shades!

Yum! I love this palette: Soft tan, warm brown, mottled zinc, tarnished silver, rubbed white and velvety black paint, and a bit of creamy vanilla for good measure. The perfect mood for an Indian Summer/Autumn season....

The finishing touch to our setting was an art installation on the wall.... I found a huge portfolio filled with charcoal & pencil sketches at a garage sale in Portland last weekend. FREE! I was thrilled because this effect is exactly what I thought of when I opened the portfolio and saw black & white. To Joanne, the artist, and her sweet daughter (never found out her name) who was selling/giving away mom's belongings after her passing: Thank you. Your art is beautiful, and it will be appreciated by all who see it! (I particularly like the sketch that includes a pair of Mickey Mouse Ears.... ;0) )

We hope you will come by and say hello! (or Gut Morgen!)

She's ready for her close up, Mr. DeMille.....

So, she's been to the 'spa' for some beauty treatments. Been pampered and polished. Been accessorized with swanky hooks and a foofy mirror...

Painted three shades of soft dove gray and whitewashed, drybrushed, and detailed to within an inch of my life to imitate years of age... yes, the kind of age that was present on her original red coat of paint! Irony, I guess.

She's ready for not only a close up, but the beauty shot:

You'd never guess this was the same red Butler's Table! Amazing what a marvelous application of paint can do for a piece. She's gone glam. Totally Jeanne d'Arc Danish Living style, don't you think?!

Oh, yeah, and that's her little sister standing next to her in the photo above. These two 'Butler's Tables' or 'Hall Trees' are just perfect for an entryway, hallway, stairwell.... back porch... front porch... store display..... (shall I go on?!) small kitchen that needs a spot for your morning cuppa'... powder room.... you get the picture!

She's loving the close ups, too... Do come and meet our beautiful girls on Sunday, won't you?! We can promise you more wonderful Retreat products and inspiration. And THAT's entertainment!
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Sand Point Antique & Design Market
Sunday August 30th 8 AM - 4:30 PM
Warren G. Magnussen Park, Seattle / University District
Check their blog for info & maps
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She's DONE!

OMG, be sure to check in first thing tomorrow morning. Have we got something to show you! ;0)

Weekend Update....

And now, the news:
It's time once again for the Sand Point Show on Sunday. It's going to be a great day for some antique/vintage/junk shoppin' in the Northwest, let me tell ya'....

I read on LuLu's blog that she, Susan Wheeler of Pink Lemonade and her friend Dwayne, plus ever-fabulous JohnBobCoolJunk will ALL be there. (They do not, however, have blogs. Bummer.)

With fabulous STUFF. (disclaimer: photos from the March show. BarnHouse and Tarte won't be at Sunday's show. Darn.)

At fabulous PRICES.

You really aren't going to MISS this, are ya'?!

I didn't think so!

Doors open for $10 early entry at 8 AM on Sunday, and for $6 regular entry at 10 AM. Show runs till 4:30 but as we all know, the best stuff goes first! A map to the show location is available on the blog: http://sandpoinantiquedesignmarket.blogspot.com. It's easy, right by University Village & Childrens' Hospital in Seattle's University District.

And that's the weekend update. I'm Chevy Chase, and you're not.
Oh, wait, no, I'm NOT Chevy Chase. But YOU may be...... and if you are younger than 40, you have NO IDEA what that means. Nevermind. See ya' Sunday!

A Giveaway!!!

My friends, you can WIN this FABulous vintage wire shopping cart with stylish liner! Yep. Just head over to the Flea Market Style blog to enter their giveaway. All you have to do is leave a comment below their post on their blog, and they will draw the winner on Sunday night (by midnight, Atlantic time) and announce the winner on Monday's post. Easy-Peasy!

Isn't it funny that these things are now haute couture and considered absolutely necessary for shopping flea markets or antique & vintage shows? I remember when my grandma had one, and we teased her mercilessly about her 'old lady cart'. sigh. Sorry, grams..... and Mom planted flowers in yours, so I had to buy my own vintage version. Wink. (But a girl can always use more storage!!!)

Great Debate

The table in this photo has already sold, but we still have the 'Butler's Table' (old door with half table attached). Red does NOT seem to be a selling point, even tho it is the original paint and in crazygood condition. Curious. So, I am debating a paint job for it. Question is, what do I go with: a similar white, crisp black, or soft dove gray with a whitewash over it? It's gotta' be one of those to fit into the plan for Sunday at Sand Point, to coordinate with the Swedish/Danish/Euro-inspired decor theme we'll have goin' on.

What do YOU think would be most popular? Leave your comments, then come by on Sunday and see what I decided to do with it! ;0)

twenty nine years!

though it seems like just yesterday we were two kids saying our vows (and having that dorky photo taken), we are celebrating our 29th wedding anniversary this weekend! we're headed to portland & oregon city for a few days of antiquing, visiting with friends, attending a fab antique show, dinner out, and lots of fun. just spending time together is the best part of it!

for the past 30 years, we have walked side by side and hand in hand on this journey... climbing steep hills, sliding down slick slopes, trudging across deserts, slogging through mud, and relaxing on sunny beaches. (both actually and metaphorically!) it's been a long and winding road, indeed, but there is no one on earth we would rather have traveled through it all with than each other.

we are both looking forward to all that of the blessings that the next 30 years together will bring us... and we feel very very lucky to have made it this far, with family and friends beside us and a business & life that we love.

What a Flea Market Find!

It's here! Well, the BLOG is here, anyway! Flea Market Style Magazine, coming soon from Ki Nassauer (formerly of JunkMarket and now of Junk Bonanza & Junk Revolution) and Matthew Mead (formerly of Country Home), has a stable of uber stylish, talented editors, contributors, designers, photographers, writers, scouts.... you name it, they have it. This is going to be a good one! I'm devouring the brand new blog right now and can't wait to meet up with Contributing Editor Heather Bullard this Friday in PTown... I hope to hear lots more about what she's up to!

Retreat Reprise

Retreat is making a return appearance at Poppyseeds this weekend - they've got a Flea Market going on outside the store on Saturday. Darlin' Julie called this morning to tell us that a SLEW of our stuff just sold out of our room there. She was wondering if we had anything to bring down and fill it back up again! She also said we really oughta' bring some stuff down there for the Flea Market with such conviction that we decided to join the party> Why not? Since we have to deliver stuff for the room, we might as well bring the whole shebang!

So, tomorrow, Saturday, August 15, from 10 AM to 3 PM, come on out to Stanwood and check out our furniture and great goodies from all kinds of other dealers of decor, vintage wares, clothing, miscellany & whatnot. Grab a morning coffee & pastry at Scandia, shop at Poppyseeds, head to several farmer's markets in Stanwood & Camano, grab lunch at the Diamond Knot Brewery on Camano, and then hit the beach at the south end of the island. Enjoy dinner at Gerry Andal's cowboy hangout or the Viking Restaurant before catching the Interstate home.

Now doesn't that sound like a great day?!

I'll make it even better: tell us you read this post on our blog, and you'll get a ten percent discount on any purchase of Retreat products over $25.00!!!

Oh yeah - Kandi has first dibbs on the red table!

It's Always Somethin'...

Today has been a BANNER DAY for Retreat! No, we haven't inked a book deal (yet) or appeared in a magazine (yet) or signed up for another show or store space... but today we made some discoveries and decisions about where Retreat is headed from a design standpoint. A drive, a bit of research, a lot of conversation, some decisions and a plan, and here we are. We sure can accomplish a lot in four hours! We have a refined outlook for our presentation style and our product lines, and a marketing plan that has us hoppin'.

As the great philosopher Roseanne Roseannadanna said, "It's always somethin'. If it ain't one thing, it's another..." She was so right! And we mean that in a good way - there is always somethin' going on that is grabbing our attention, driving our imaginations, and inciting a riot of creative ideas. Our life is our business is our life and so on in a circle, and every part and parcel of it is our passion. We love how it entices us, draws us in, pulls us along to ever bigger & better things.....and OH! Are we excited! We can't wait for you to see what we have in store for you at our upcoming shows..... and we thank you for being with us on this amazing journey.

Like Music to Our Ears...

This weekend, we discovered 'Island Home Collection', a home decor boutique in Anacortes, Washington. We ducked inside to browse and got stopped in our tracks by THIS:

They use it as their cashwrap! (And it's REAL - still playable) Just goes to show that we aren't the only crazy people on Earth who see a baby grand piano and come up with something different to do with it! Thank you, Steve, for letting us snap a photo in your store.

We just love these upholstered stools sitting around it....Bob says it inspires him to come up with some stools for our Piano Bars. Check out the Island Home Collection web site for info on their store and products. Not exactly recycled or art furniture, but beautiful stuff!

We'll Be There!

Cindy has just added info on her blog & web site for her upcoming show, so we're doing our part to help promote it. Join us on Saturday, September 12 from 10 AM to 8 PM for a French Flea Market at the Clock Tower in Mill Creek Town Center! Cindy's store 'Haley's Cottage' is sponsoring this lovely gathering of artisans right in her own backyard, so to speak - the event will take place in the parking lot right behind the store.

We are so thrilled to be participating with amazing vendors like sweet Miss Tiffany of Shabby Scraps. We'll be bringing a lovely selection of restyled furnishings & home decor inspired by French and Danish interiors, all in grays, whites, golds, and of course our trademark use of vintage sheet music on collaged items. These looks are perfect for the transition from Summer to Fall decor, setting the stage for cool weather and creating a perfect background for your winter holiday celebrations. We've got some great things in the works for you!

There are marvelous restaurants, the fabulous Central Market, Starbucks of course, and - yes -even a donut shop/cupcakery called FROST (thank you WSU Laura for the correct info!) in Mill Creek Town Center to fortify you for a day of shopping and fun. So put it on your calendar, call your girlfriends, and get ready for a wonderful day. If you are going to attend, snag the blog button on Cindy's blog and post it on your own blog to spread the word!

Photo Credit: Event Flyer courtesy of Haley's Cottage 2009, from their website.