And all our other inventory is on sale… yay!

If there is a specific item you’d like to see go on a 99 cent auction listing, click “watch this item” in the top right corner. I determine which items will be sent to 99 cent auction by the number of people watching it… so cast your vote :)

We combine shipping, too!

Here are some items that are starting at 99 cents!

15-50% off everything!

Take a look at www.violetcottage.com! :)

If you place your order by Thursday, December 18th, you will definitely get it by the 24th. If you wait until Sunday, the 21st, there’s still a slim chance but it’s pushing it :) Yes, the United States Postal Service runs on December 24th, in case you were wondering ;) If you would like overnight delivery or service with UPS or Fedex, please shoot me an email. Thanks so much!

Happy Holidays!

To be notified of the sale, and to get directions etc etc, leave a comment here (make sure to include your email address in the comment form, only I can see it) and I’ll shoot you an email when I figure out the dates :)

Have a happy Tuesday! :)

Yes, I’m going to be in a puddle, on the floor the days leading up to closing the doors. I’ve already had some surprise tears hit me for no reason. The way the floor squeaks, a nail that I remember nailing in the wall at an odd angle, the way the store smells… locking the door after a long day and standing back to view a window display I’ve been working on for hours and hours.

I’m not sure how I’m going to do it…

There was this one day in December… something happened. On my 25th day of working almost every day…. I snapped. I had to get out of the store and look at the sky. Sit and sip a latte. Be by myself. I realized at that very moment that I couldn’t do it anymore… it was overwhelming. Normally, a decision has a 1 or 2 year shelf life for me. An idea/change/opportunity is presented to me and I have to sit on it for 12-24 months. With the store, everything was easy. I wanted a store, I wanted to expand. There was no question in my mind that I couldn’t make it work. But on this day in December… I knew that this chapter was over. And it has felt right ever since. A few people have asked if I’ve lost weight… “Yes, about 60 tons!” (How much does a building weigh, anyway?) If you have ever owned a store, you are nodding right now.

As the news spread (fast)… I have been getting the most beautiful emails. Not one has been angry. All… supportive. Sweet, thoughtful and kind words. And even messages on my answering machine! I well up just thinking about it. You get it… you get all the love I put into this space. You get that with the energy I put into all of this… every tiny square inch has been delicately thought out at one time or another. My spirit lives there.

I wouldn’t call this a mid-midlife crisis… but with that change, a flood of change came with it. I eloped last December. Nathan and I have been together 8 years… engaged almost 3… it was time. And it was perfect, in my humble opinion :) The drive-thru wedding chapel in Las Vegas on a Sunday night. Spontaneous, simple… I wore jeans. It felt right, and it was so “us”.

The other huge change is that we are moving to North Carolina. This has been a subject of conversation for over a year now. My cousin is there with her family, two of our best friends are in the area, too… but that wasn’t the reason to go. Two visits, both with me hugely reluctant and pouting like a baby… the first visit left me hating the place. The second one, even with a terrible cold… I could see the beauty and opportunity of the area. Young families everywhere. It’s really clean, safe…. making all sorts of lists as one of the best places to live in the United States. I’m normally freaked out by any little change… so, I had to push those fears aside. For the first time in my life, I’m taking a leap of faith that this will be good for us. If it isn’t, heck… California isn’t going anywhere. I could go on and on about North Carolina, the Durham/Raleigh area more specifically… only because I’ve done SO much research.

I will continue to blog and list on my website. And, I’m really excited to get back into my art. I’ve been talking about a wholesale line forever, I think this finally gives me the opportunity to give it the time it needs.

I hope that you will all keep in touch, and I can receive updates on things happening in La Crescenta :) There is so much I’ll miss about the store, this little city, California… but deep down, I know I’m doing the right thing for me :)

So, here is the postcard I sent out… click on the pictures to see them larger…

I’m going to miss everyone so much! I’ve made so many friends, and many have become quite dear to me… I’m calling this the best learning experience of my life, and best opportunity of my life. Thank you for taking this journey with me, I really couldn’t have done any of it without all of you :)

Please note, due to fast-moving inventory on the web and in the store, it’s possible something you buy will not be available when you purchase it. I will let you know immediately what is not available and your credit card will NOT be charged until I get authorization from you :)

Thanks!! And Merry Merry!!! :)

Lots of buy one get one free items including Colonial Candles, Christmas Ornaments and Webkinz… come on up, shop, have a cup of coffee and say hello!

I’m a tad behind on updating the website… along with that I’ll be adding lots of new things to the physical store and the interweb store :)
*New fashion jewelry
*Awesome new soy candles
*Cupcake moisturizing bath fizzies (I can’t tell you how excited I am about these!)
*Purses
*Paper lanterns… lots and lots of new paper lanterns (more by popular demand!)
*Bath Salts!!! They’ll be done by Saturday morning! (yay! finally!)
*More paper products by FG & Co.
*Handmade semi-precious stone jewelry… lots made by me :)
*Cathi Milligan glass jewelry
*Finders Key-purse things plus their new purse hooks to keep your investment off the ground! (sidenote… I’m not an investor in brand-name purses, but if I had a $300 purse, I would surely keep it off the smelly stinky ground at the restaurant or dangling off the back of my chair… eek!)

Also… Cathi Milligan, glass goddess, is going to do another famous glass/fire/torch/melting demonstration on December 9th!!! I’ll make a formal announcement soon :)

Bon Voyage to Babs as she goes across the pond to jolly ol’ England for a week (Perhaps Apolo will be there for some reason??)!!! Have fun and we’ll miss you!!! Also, a Bon Voyage is overdue for Nathan’s folks who are in Mexico on their first cruise… Tiffany is on her first visit to Italy. All these World travelers… goodness!

Oh! I may ask for a few local vendors to participate in a trunk show on the 8th… wait… no… I DO need artists for the 8th of December. So… if you make stuff (sorry, we’re overflowing with Jewelry, so anything but jewelry… but you can send pics of that, too I suppose! hehe!), leave a comment on this entry with where I can see pictures of your stuff :) You have to be local… you have to have a small set up and you have to understand about my last minute-ness ;)

Lastly… does anyone need a kitty??? Check out Graycee’s blog to see Miss Trixie. Also… Cathi Milligan has her hands full with another litter of kittens… I may be posting pics of them for her, soon!!

And… GoodNIGHT… ugh, these 4am nights are getting old ;)

I’m beat. These last few weeks have been trying for this entrepreneur ;) Our 5th Christmas. Wow. Fast. I don’t have any pictures of our first Christmas, for some reason. I vaguely remember the tree in the window, but pictures? They have to be somewhere.

A third person asked me about franchising again today… my first instinct is to quizzically ask “how come?” I tend to lump owning a store into “working”. You know, a job. I guess the only difference is my coffee breaks are a bit spaced out but I still dislike my boss ;) hehe.

So, I turned in the Holiday postcard at 4:35 am the other day… fingers crossed I’ll get them on Monday or Tuesday, but no guarantees. So, I’ll make the announcement here and in some emails later on…

Click on each image to see a larger image… so you can actually read it :)

And more pictures of the store :) Here’s our mantle window… It looks great at night!

These colors are so happy!

The happy little Christmas chandelier… everyone should do this at home! As of this evening, all those ornaments have been sold! Glad I got a picture when I did!

That’s what half of the store looks like when I run out into traffic!

A blurry shot of the turquoise you-wouldn’t-normally-have-this-at-home tree!

The pink and red pig tree and friends…

Happy little snowmen made of, what looks like, old sweaters and socks!

Jennifer Murphy’s little mousey in a stocking… “There’s no coal in YOUR stocking!” Too cute!

The Nicol Sayre corner…

Pastel wonderland…

Wow, that’s a lot of stuff

Christmas 2005

I can sort of see how the holidays are getting more and more overwhelming… the above was my “main” Christmas area in 2005… a little sparce compared to the way I smash it in these days :) I couldn’t imagine it any other way, though.

I keep promising a giveaway. It keeps getting away from me, I apologize. Also, my website is all Halloween-ed out. I’ll get to changing that, too.

In the world of crafting and creating… I got the bug to make soap and bath goodies today. I haven’t wanted to make bath stuff in years… I mean, had the desire to make stuff. It was quite strange. I feel like Goldilocks and the three cosmetic companies… this one is too expensive, this one has terrible packaging and this one is just right… but they won’t email me back! So… guess I’ll whip it up myself! ;) We’ll see… so many things a-brewin’!

What are you all up to next week? Turkey? Shopping? Crafting? Rocking back and forth in a corner wishing it was still June? ;) I don’t know anyone who absolutely hates the holidays, but I know that I really wish my Arbor Day celebration idea would catch on… I rarely show up for Thanksgiving anymore and Christmas is a sleepy blur… Arbor Day… April 27th… would be perfect!! Who’s with me??!?

Penny McAllister Bride and Groom – Normally $56.99 – Now $39.99
House behind the couple – Normally $64.99 – Now $39.99

Penny McAllister Witch with dress (in the pic above on the left) – Normally $26.50 – Now $18.50
Penny McAllister Pumpkin girl with tutu (in the pic above on the right) – Normally $26.50 – Now $18.50

Penny McAllister Large pumpkin box (sort of hard to see… pumpkin head is on a black and white hat box) – Normally $46.99 – Now $30.00

Penny McAllister Kitty – Normally $22.99 – Now $16.00

Penny McAllister smaller pumpkin cat – Normally $16.50 – Now $9.00

Penny McAllister Clown – Normally $22.99 – Now $14.99 (This is a bad pic, but he has a little pointy party hat on)

Penny McAllister assorted ornaments – with faces – Normally $6.99 – Now $3.49
Round Ornaments – Normally $5.99 – Now $3.00

Please call me or send me an email to inquire about these items! :)

(818) 541-1115 or sale@violetsareblue.net

Thanks everyone!!! :)