GOODBYE & HELLO!

26 January 2015

Well hello my dear friends – it has been far, FAR too long! I took a much longer “break” than anticipated in my attempt to get into the swing of this whole motherhood thing. Some people fall right into a routine and get that system down from the start, and some people…don’t. I fell into the latter category and 15 months later, sometimes still find myself struggling with the daily routine. I’m not the only one out there feeling this way, right? RIGHT?!

Anyhow, while I’ve been quiet on this site, I’ve been not so quiet behind the scenes, trying to get myself back into working order. In this oh-so brief time I’ve been away (ehem…), I’ve managed to nail down a studio space and created a new site (someone managed to pull The Modage Cottage domain name out from under my feet, so I am officially at http://www.modagecottage.com – feel free to bookmark the new page!). I’m still in the fledgling stages with both the studio and the new website, but with a little encouragement and a lot of work, I hope to hit the ground running very soon!

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YES! (pulled from one of my favorite sources of inspiration: Knack)

Please feel free to subscribe/like/bookmark, etc. the new site and any feedback, suggestion, and constructive criticism is greatly appreciated! Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU (really, I can’t thank you enough) to all those that have stuck with me through thick and thin…and long radio silences. You are the reason I keep plugging away at this.

I will have this site up for a few more weeks, and then I will be transferring it over to the new site. Cheers to new beginnings (no matter how slowly…) and I hope you will join me on this new and exciting journey.

xoxo.

A BIT O’ PICKIN’ & SOME DECORATING.

10 December 2012

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Well hello and I hope everyone had an excellent weekend! I spent my weekend picking up a few things for my new space over at Greenwood Antiques (more on this below…) and, of course, finally picking out and decorating the Christmas tree. I’m not quite finished with the latter – I’ll be adding a few handmade pieces throughout the week – but the lights, the bulbs, and ribbon are on and my home officially feels like Christmas. Hallelujah!

But, back to Greenwood! Greenwood Antiques has a bit of a Old Lucketts Store feel, but without the fan base….(yet!). It’s located on a beautiful country road with views of the mountains galore, and wineries and orchards located just around the corner (pictures coming soon). It’s quite heavenly, actually, so if you find yourself in the Charlottesville area, I highly suggest that you stop on by – 7572 Greenwood Station Rd., Greenwood, VA. I’m sharing a space with a friend that has her own fabulous pieces (I will have my portion of the space up and running in January) and we’d love to see you! Here are just a few things I managed to pick up over the weekend that you will soon find in my space…

An old industrial arrow, and some iron (and incredibly heavy!) horse heads.

Yet another industrial piece and a chippy green wire basket!

A concrete foo dog (don’t you just LOVE foo dogs??!) and industrial iron letters.

I also picked up a couple of furniture pieces that I’ll be refurbishing soon.

Now, onto Christmas! I wanted to keep things fairly simple this year, and went with a white, gold, and silver theme, with a few birds thrown in there for good measure:

(I’ll be adding a handful more bulbs and some handmade vintage sheet music ornaments…)

Unfortunately, the twinkle is lacking in this daytime photo, but you’ve got yourself the gist of it!

Tell me, have you managed to get your tree up and fully decorated yet?

HAPPY HUMP DAY! THERE. I SAID IT.

14 November 2012

15 Comments

“There. I said it.” As many of you may have recognized, I completely stole this title from a Miss Mustard Seed post written back in early October, but it struck such a cord with me that I’d like to ruminate on it just a bit more.

I think for so many of us, putting ourselves out there in any form can be an enormously daunting prospect. The possibility of embarrassment, of failure, and the ensuing disappointment and heartache…it’s just too much. So instead, we keep our feet solidly on the ground, silent in our pie-in-the-sky dreams, but secretly hoping – if we dare – that one day, perhaps that pie will drop right out of the sky and fall directly into our very ready laps.

Unfortunately for most of us, that’s simply not how life works. To transform dream into reality takes effort, a tremendous amount of trial and error and, I think most importantly, the ability to fall and land softly. What determines success is what you do after the fall – do you pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and move on with timid grin? Or do you loll about, dejected and spent from something you’ve really only just begun?

For me, starting this blog was a huge step forward. But every. single. day. the thought of putting myself out there makes my heart lurch. I’ve spent sleepless nights wondering what people are thinking about me. Are they laughing? Do they think I’m nothing more than a joke? A failure? Or perhaps they’re not thinking anything at all because no one is even reading this itty bitty blog in this big, bad Blogdom.

I need to consistently remind myself that it doesn’t really matter. What does matter is that I have taken that step forward, I have put myself out there, and I have found the courage to dream out loud…

…but with all this said, even I have fallen, and I don’t always land softly. In fact, I’m only just beginning to pick myself back up after a recent hard fall, which is exactly why I felt so inspired to write this post.

I love decorating, I love styling my home and offering inspiration to others; I love antiquing and “picking” and realizing the potential in dilapidated furniture pieces; I love transforming these pieces into something unique and beautiful, and I love having the opportunity to find them a new home.

I have a dream to one day own a studio and showroom space, a little piece of creative heaven, but in the meantime, I have very little storage and work space to build on this endeavor. So while I wait (and wait and wait…) on an appropriately priced opportunity, I find myself losing a little bit of faith. Frankly, my work has stalled and my drive is failing me.

I need to remember to believe in myself; “pushing through the self-doubt, the fears and anxieties, and the nay-sayers” (per Miss Mustard Seed). And, as she also so wisely advised, I need to put it out there in writing.

So, as much for myself as for all those silent dreamers out there, this is my dream:

I want to find a healthy balance between my love for home styling, furniture refinishing, and events planning, and have a conglomerate of these things within my small business. I want to have my own studio space in which I can showcase my services: provide styling ideas, tablescapes, and vintage and refinished products all available for purchase. I want to be able to articulate my dreams fully, because so often they become lost amidst so many other ideas and aspirations, and I want to create a clear and concise business plan that I can pursue without hesitation

I have no doubt that it will take time, a huge amount of work, and I’m certain that I will fall more than a few times, but I have every intention of getting back up each and every time. All I ask of myself is a little patience and a lot of strength, and all I can ask you, my dear readers, is for an encouraging and supportive community!

There. I said it. And I hope you have the courage to say it too. So tell me, what’s your dream?

A STUDIO, A SHED, & A SHAMELESS PLUG

28 August 2012

2 Comments

When I first began writing this blog, just a few of months ago, I was on a desperate search for a studio, as you may have seen from this post. Not just any studio, mind you, but a space so full of vintage character and industrial charm that simply stepping foot into it would transform me into a state of inspired bliss.

And for a brief second, I actually thought I found it; obviously, the space was being used for storage, but try to imagine it as a blank canvas…

(note the list of dates on the building – these are flood lines! The James River is just a block away…now with a well-built levy, of course.)

Oh, be still my heart! The distressed brick and original wood beamed ceiling (the track lighting is an added bonus!) makes my heart go pitter-patter. The only downfall: location, location, location! While located in the heart of Scottsville (about 20 minutes from Charlottesville), the heart of Scottsville consists of half a block of storefront…and nothing else. Beyond this is farmland, a few gas stations, and a dollar store.

Of course, despite this one, huge downfall, my heart was still set on this little building, but being a bit risk adverse, I decided to test the market with a 12×12 space at an antique mall down the road first. And for once, I can actually say that I made the smart move.

Yep, I sold next to nothing and my little dream of becoming a shop owner went straight to the gutter.

Now, I haven’t fully given up on this dream, but I have become slightly more realistic with it. Rather than jumping headfirst into the unknown, I’m taking baby steps. First things first: find a space to store my pieces!

I’m in the process of closing my little 12×12 nook in Scottsville, which means that all my vintage and furniture items will be finding their way back into my home…

…but have I mentioned to you the lack of storage space in my house? No attic, no basement, no garage, and a shed the size of a hobbit’s home (or a Mattie-Lu size pup…):

It’s cute (the shed and the pup) but the lawnmower and garden tools already fill the shed to the brim!

So, I’ve decided to build a new one. And amazingly, my husband actually agrees with me! We’ll be keeping the shed you see above – possibly converting a portion of it into a chicken coop (more on this later…) – and will build an additional studio shed in the far left corner of the yard. Here are just a few ideas…(click on the below pictures for link to original source)

(I’d build a one level extension to this on the right side, but I love the idea of having a portion of the shed two levels to create a loft space feel.)

We are debating whether to go with the rustic vibe (my husband’s idea) similar to the shed we currently have, or the glam cottage style (my idea…). What do you think?

Lastly, when finished closing up Scottsville shop, I will be reopening my Etsy shop – this is where the shameless plug occurs. Please keep your eyes peeled for the Grand Reopening! Here are just a few items you will be able to find in my shop: