Saturday Night Latest News from Dixie Cottage

 It's been a LONG week! We have worked until our bodies cried "uncle"!  I finally collapsed on the bed this afternoon after a later lunch than usual and said I can't go another inch...at least not until I've had a decent nap and some supper and then we'll go back over to Dixie Cottage and take some pictures of what we've accomplished this week.  LOL.  And so we did.  So now if I can stay upright and awake long enough to put together this post, you can see what we've accomplished.  

I think it was yesterday (time eludes me right now...not sure what day this is), Ben finally put up the sign on the front of the store...

We stood back to make sure it was even...somehow it looked a lot bigger inside...but it looks nice and it will serve the purpose for now...

There's still some things to clean up and get better organized before Tuesday, but here's the check out counter and the coffee "bar"...

And this dining room set that they have recently refinished...

And Rose is reupholstering the chairs with this beautiful print! I love it!

In every direction there is so much to look at and take in...

One of their vendors brought in this cute little drop leaf pub table and stools that they have refinished:

Here's a few items that my cousin from Tennessee has created and sent on consignment to be sold. This type of woodwork is known as "intarsia", and is comprised of several different pieces of hardwoods to get the colors and design.  He is very talented!

He also did the "Fishing Rules" below on a scroll saw:

And also these lovely trivets/decor:

Starting to get more artwork up on the walls:

Everywhere you look there's more and more and more...

As I've said before this store is smaller in square footage than the previous store, so we are trying to condense a lot of beautiful stuff into a smaller area without being too overly crowded...It's been quite a balancing act...

Another of our new Booth Vendors came and set up today...and she is getting us ready for fall already!

There's a lot to love here...

 Yes, you are welcome!

It looks like a pumpkin patch!

This vendor loves to find things  "restore, repurpose, and reuse"...Lots of cute items and ideas:

We definitely have some very creative and talented artisans in our midst!

The vendor booths are almost all filled up. One vendor had to delay her set up due to illness, but she hopes to be filling up that blank space on that wall soon!

I do believe there's going to be more than enough fun items for everyone to enjoy their little shopping excursion to Dixie Cottage!

We do still have a lot of coastal/nautical type items for those who love that style:

The beach really isn't that far away...

We also got some new farmhouse style decor items as well...a little bit of everything for everyone!

We also have a few unfinished items that can be painted to the color of your choice...

And we hope that everyone will discover something here to help make their homes an even happier place than ever!

A little blurred, but you get the idea:

So from our "cottage" to your "cottage"...

Y'all come!

So now you've had the grand tour!  There may be a few tweaks here and there between now and Tuesday morning, but thankfully the worst of it is over and we are pretty much "all systems go".

  I am thankful to the Lord for giving us the strength we have needed this week to get this job done.  At one point mid-week, my sweet DIL Rose and I were there alone together at the store, trying to figure out what to do next and where to put things, and we were both so weary and beginning to lag in energy and strength to keep going.  We kind of laughed and said to each other, "Well, there aren't any little fairies going to come during the night and do this job, so we'd better keep moving ahead..." and about that time Benton came in and "rallied the team" like a good coach and so we persevered and kept going until the job was done.  But I think we needed that little break before we could resume the task before us.  I really believe the Lord has carried us throughout the week, and I give Him the praise!

"But those who wait on the Lord

Shall renew their strength;

They shall mount up with wings like eagles,

They shall run and not be weary,

They shall walk and not faint."

Isaiah 40:31

God bless you all and hope to see you soon!

Thursday Thankfulness and Friday Foto Friends

 I know you all must think I dropped off the face of the earth this week!  I feel like I've been somewhere else, that's for sure! I haven't been at home very much, but it's all good!  First of all, thank you all for your kind comments and blessings shared in my previous post HERE on Monday.  That seems so long ago now!  Thank the good Lord I have been feeling fine ever since, and He has given me energy and joy in staying very busy all week long.  You ask why I am so busy? Well, if you have to ask, you probably haven't been reading many of my previous posts.  This is the week that our kids are busily preparing for the grand opening of their new location of Dixie Cottage, which will be next Tuesday, "Lord willing and the creek don't rise!"

If you did read my last post, then you saw pictures of how the inside of the store looked after everything was unloaded last weekend.  Everything was pretty topsy turvy and totally without order and a bit confusing.  Of course I was out of commission on Monday and so was my hubby since he had to stay with me, but on Tuesday we hit the ground running to go over and help out in anyway we could to help get things in order...

And so here are the pictures I took tonight after the past several days of hard labor between us and our kids and today another friend showed up to lend a hand:

It is actually starting to take shape and make sense!  It took the first couple of days just to get the furniture arranged in place so we could even begin to think about putting out the decor and other items...but even still as of tonight there is still a lot of work waiting to be done.  My hubby and our son Ben have been pushing and pulling and lifting furniture back and forth all week long to get things in just the right place.  Even we ladies got in on the act as we were able.  I mostly like to be the "eyeball" person who tells them which way to move this way or that.  Sometimes after all the careful "eyeballing" it still doesn't work and we have to go back and rearrange it again...yes it is very tiring work.

Some pieces of furniture have had to be touched up and minor repairs made from the effects of moving, so that also has slowed us down a bit.

Do you see all those jars of paint on those shelves above?  That was primarily my first job on Tuesday, to find all the boxes that had paint in them and get them on the shelves in the proper order. My sweet DIL Rose gave me directions as to how they wanted them on the shelves, and so that was my primary occupation for the first day.  They are dealers for both Fusion Mineral Paints and Dixie Belle Chalk Paints, which are both very popular types of paint for painting furniture and other craft projects.

Today Rose and her friend Donna worked tirelessly (well,  they did get tired, and then Rose had to go to her other job at Home Depot for the rest of the day, bless her heart) setting up the stock/storage room. That was a tough job, but they already have it well organized and looking good.

Little by little we are finding things and trying to find places to put everything. This store is much smaller in square footage than the one they had in St. Augustine, and so we are having to be very creative about how we can display items for sale, and we also have to be choosy about what needs to go out first and what can wait.

But little by little it is coming together believe it or not.  

Tomorrow we will be setting out more stuff and also putting things up on walls wherever we can.

They also got the go ahead from the state food and beverage department to serve coffee, which is a new idea for this store. They will feature different brands of gourmet coffees and will sell it by the cup and/or by the bag. Not a cafe', but just have some coffee while you shop, and if you like it you can buy some to take home! I don't know the names yet of the brands, and since I am not a coffee drinker, I probably won't be getting too excited about that aspect of the business! However, I believe I've been told that they will also offer some selections of teas just for me! LOL.  

So here we are working on getting our coffee station set up and ready for action. No that is not fresh fruit. We can't sell that w/o a license. LOL.

Oh, here is the new sign that has to go outside on the front of the building. We are waiting on the final coat of paint to be put on before we can hang the sign. 

Another new feature of this store is that they will be having several different vendors with their individual booths.  Little by little they are being set up. The space is pretty limited, so we will only have about five or six different booths, but so far the items are pretty interesting.

This one is just getting started and has a lot more stuff to bring in.

One lady was a florist for many years and now is retired but enjoys making silk wreaths and other floral arrangements, so here is her booth:

She does very nice work...

And this lady is probably going to be my favorite vendor...she makes bird feeders and bird baths, etc., out of vintage glassware:

I've already got my eye on several items for my "secret Memorial Garden" and/or Butterfly garden.

Isn't this bird bath absolutely gorgeous?  

And right next to her is this other lady who does beautiful stained glass items:

I think I know where I will be doing some Christmas shopping this year!

So as you can see we have been very busy this week, and it's not over yet. There's still tomorrow and Saturday and Monday before the grand opening on Tuesday. Yes, we do plan to be sure and take Sunday off from our labors and have a day of worship and rest.

Genesis 2:2-3

"2 And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done. 

3 Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it He rested from all His work which God had created and made."

I know I will be very ready to relax and rest that day after Sunday School and Church.  I haven't worked this hard in a long time...probably since we moved into this house 3 years ago!  I am thankful that God created the Sabbath day for us to rest from our labors. 

And so you may not hear from me too much again for a few days.  I've been coming home pretty tired each day and ready for a shower and early bedtime after supper.  But we are thankful and happy that things are going well and we are praying that God will bless this little business venture for our kids and that the store will be a blessing to our community. Thank you all for your kind thoughts and prayers and well-wishes!! I'll be back as soon as I can, hopefully with more pictures of the finished product!  Good night everyone, and Thank You, Jesus!

Monday Monday~Great News!

 This morning we rose bright and early to head over to St. Augustine for my medical procedure.  God blessed us with this glorious sunrise to enjoy while on the way:

It was a misty foggy morning as we rode through the country...

But the sun just kept rising in the sky ahead to light the way...

Sometimes it just pays to get up early and get out on the road and enjoy the view!

Here we are crossing the St. John's River...

Now, wasn't that worth getting up early to see??

And we made it to our destination in plenty of time...even before the staff arrived. Didn't think to take any pictures there, but the good news is, I came through the procedure just fine! I will see the Dr. again in 3 weeks for the results of the findings, and then again in five years for my next procedure.

God is good, and I am very very thankful for your prayers and concern. Yesterday was a long day of you know what in preparation, and now I am "refueling my empty tank" and taking it easy while I recover from the effects of anesthesia.  The instructions were to make NO important decisions today! So I told my hubby he could not ask me to pick up and move to Tim Buk Too or any other crazy idea today! LOL.  No worries there...

Meanwhile, over the weekend things really got busy over at Dixie Cottage.  If you're a Facebook fan, you already know about all of this, but if not, here goes:

I guess they'll have to redo this sign...it's no longer in St. Augustine. Everything has been moved now to the new store in Interlachen.

Now comes the fun part of arranging and setting up and unpacking and making it all look presentable:

They've definitely got their work cut out for them:

It was wonderful to have family and friends all pitching in, and also wonderful that God gave them two beautiful days with none of the predicted thunderstorms to cloud or drown out their day!

They were able to get it all with the help of pick up trucks, cargo trailer and open trailer and didn't even have to rent a UHaul!! That was nice!

This is Rose and one of her dear friends who came and worked like a trooper too...

Everything neatly stacked and ready for the fun part...

They are still on target for their opening date of August 2nd, Lord willing and the creek don't rise!

Oh, and about that new door color?  I know most everyone said they really liked the blue doors, but the Landlady had another vision in mind:

I think they are very pretty and classy, what do you think?  If you prefer the blue, come on inside, because they are still blue on the inside!  Either way, a warm welcome awaits you when you do come for a visit...just wait until after August 2nd please and hopefully everything will be in place and ready for business!!

So, until next time, remember my slogan...

"When God closes a door, He opens a window"....or in this case...a green door!

Here's some food for thought:

"I know your works. See, I have set before you an open door, and no one can shut it; for you have a little strength, have kept My word, and have not denied My name."

Revelation 3:8

Something to think about during these troubling times in our world today...

May your day be filled with joy and blessing and the strength of the Lord.

Thank you again for your kind thoughts and prayers!