Getting Ready for Vacation

This week, next week is on my mind. Yep, that's what I said. A week from today, I leave for a vacation to Playa del Carmen in Mexico! The trip that I made to Tulsa over the 4th of July, was just a warm up for me. The group that I spent the 4th with, mostly makes up the group that I will be in Mexico with. I am so looking forward to seeing the "crew" again, as well as experiencing this side of Mexico.

I have been to Mexico once before, but that was back in the 70's, when I was in high school. I was a part of a church group going to Mexico to work with some missionaries there. That trip consisted of riding on a school bus (that ended up getting stolen during the trip), food poisoning for a great many in the group, being in a small village that only had water for 2 hours per day, and many other stories that bring back a lot of memories. However, for some reason, I do have to say that I'm expecting quite a bit of difference between that trip and the one I am going on this time.

This is the first time that I will be seeing this:



The ocean and a real beach!!! Now, even though I don't know how to swim, I can still look forward to a walk on the beach and getting a new profile picture for Facebook with my toes in the ocean/sand. :)

This picture is another part of Playa that I am looking forward to experiencing. It's called 5th Street, and it's where most of the tourists shop while in Playa del Carmen. I've been told that I will want to barter for what I want to buy. That's going to be a tough one for me. It took me quite a while to get into the habit of NOT bartering when it comes to my prices in the window treatment industry. Just goes to show that there are exceptions to every rule.

I'm certainly hoping for a lot of pictures that will be better than those posted here. Mostly because they will have been experience, and not just Googled.

Here's to a great week for all of you. I'll be back to my blog in 2 weeks.

Cheers!

Creative Camp

Have you ever looked at the side bar of someone's blog and wondered what some of those things mean? I was looking back at the first blogs I ever wrote and noticed that my second blog post was about attending Creative Camp in Houston, Texas. It just so happens, that the logo for that camp is one of the logos that I have on my side bar.



This is a workroom conference that I have attended for the past 3 years. It has been a wonderful experience to say the least! Just because it's called "camp" doesn't mean that we sat around the campfire and shared a can of beans. It's called "camp" because it's held at Camp Allen in Navasoto, Texas. That's where the similarity to camp ends. Well, unless you consider a bunch of women sitting up all hours of the night chatting and getting goofy, camp. :)



Creative Camp is a very intense weekend where we, as workrooms, are kept up to date on the latest styles, techniques, and products that we use on a day to day basis. The networking that we gain with other workrooms is amazing! We get to know each other on a professional as well as a personal basis and the friendships that we build are life-long relationships. It's so great to know someone across the country that you can stop and call at a moments notice with a question or comment, just because you met them at camp.



Our education in the workroom industry is extremely important. It wasn't too long ago, that there were no resources to speak of, for workrooms, and if you wanted to know something, you just had to figure it out on your own. That has truly changed, and this event is one of those places that you can learn until your head is ready to explode! And at this conference, you will not just sit behind a table and listen to the speaker. This conference is hands on. We learn so much better by doing, then just by listening. There are some lecture style classes, but the hands-on classes are the highlights, where you will actually make what you are being taught. Then those items go right home with you to be used as samples. I have made complete pelmet and cornice samples to come back and hang right in my workroom. Other samples could be used as pillow fronts, or valance overlays, only needing to be completed as the product you want to use them for. You definitely come home with more than a bag of business cards and goodies from vendors - although that is fun too! :)



In 2011, Creative Camp is having what I think of as a very special teacher, not that they all aren't. Rebecca Day, of Merrick and Day fame, is actually coming all the way from England just to teach at Creative Camp. That is really saying something, when someone of her caliber is willing to put a weekend in Texas on her schedule. I'm already drooling, thinking about what will be taught next year, not only from her, but from all of the teachers.



If you're interested in any information about the camp, you can click on this link:



http://www.csisews.com/



You can see more details about the event and sign up for their mailing list.

If you're a workroom, this is an event that you shouldn't miss!

4th of July Vacation

Well, I got back from my vacation to Oklahoma. It was the most relaxing, yet fun week I can remember! We spent a couple of days on Grand Lake and got to enjoy the fact that the holiday weekend crowd had not arrived yet. It was such a relaxing time, and not being a swimmer didn't hinder my enjoyment at all. :) This is a view from where I stayed and the boat that I got to cruise the lake on.





While out on the water, it was so nice to see the views and know that while I was there, I didn't have a care in the world!

We did a lot of shopping, eating, enjoying each other's company and did I mention shopping? We even had a ring side seat for a wonderful fireworks show on the 4th.

This is a group that had some friendships built that will last a lifetime! I so enjoyed getting to know each and every one of them! You guys are great!

In fact, I enjoyed my week so much, that I have to admit I became an Oklahoma fan. And when you live in Nebraska, you can only imagine what that means! :)

I hope you all had a wonderful holiday weekend too!

My Take on Social Networking

I have to give you a readers digest's condensed version of my take on social networking.

When I first thought about signing up for a Facebook account, I was very hesitant. I couldn't see how it would benefit me. I thought it would do nothing but take up my time. And, if it was something that my kids are doing, is it really for me?

Well, I ended up taking the plunge and some really cool experiences have happened. It did take a while to get used to it, and it can take an awful lot of time, if you're willing to let it. When I first started out, it felt kind of weird to "chime in" on other people's conversations. However, you soon come to realize that's what it's all about!

So I jumped in with both feet and started getting to know people. I have met a lot of people in the drapery industry and have had many great conversations! Some of them I have met in person and some I haven't, but you feel like you know them all equally well. You also learn that there are some people that you seem to really "click" with.

Not too long ago, one of my Facebook friends invited me to visit her in Oklahoma over the 4th of July. I was astounded to even be invited! At this point it felt like "internet dating". :) She is definitely one of the friends that I "click" with and I am totally excited to not only meet her, but to spend a week getting to know her. I know that we'll have many stories to share and I think that we're both totally nuts! And believe me - that's a good thing.

So, as of this coming Tuesday, I'm headed out for Oklahoma and will be gone for a full week. I'm not taking my laptop, as I want to totally disconnect and enjoy my time. I know that I'm in the process of building a fantastic friendship that will last a very long time and I can't wait to get started!

I hope you all have a wonderful 4th and I'll be back afterwards with some great pictures to share

Happy Father's Day to my Dad

As we think of celebrating Father's Day this weekend, of course I think of my dad. I'm very blessed that he is still a part of my life. As I look back at what I know of his life, it has always revolved around music. Here is a picture of him playing a saxophone with a band back in about 1948 - before I was ever born.



After I was born, the things that I most remember about my dad, is that he was still always playing with a band. Him and my mom opened a music store when I was 3 years old, and I spent 8 years of my life in that store most every single day from open to close. He was also a disc jockey and worked at numerous radio stations over the years, even one owned by baseball Hall of Famer Bob Gibson! Every memory of my dad is music related in some way or another. Here is a more recent picture, taken about 1998, with his guitar, fondly dubbed Mickey Mouse. This is the instrument that I remember him playing the most, even though I don't think that there isn't any instrument that he cannot play.

This year, my dad turned 83 years old. Even now, he spends numerous days each month going to nursing homes and entertaining the senior citizens of Omaha. My boys both tease him that he is playing to people younger than himself, and in many cases he is.

I'm not sure how long my dad will be around to enjoy, but I do know that the music will live on. My son Levi is a bass player and my younger son Noah is a guitar player. I might be prejudiced, but they are both extremely talented. They both play in bands and love to entertain a crowd. We definitely know where they get it from.

Thanks Dad and Happy Father's Day!

I Love you!

Dumber than a...

OK, so if you know anything about me at all, you know that I hate to procrastinate! However, some things just take longer than expected. Here is the perfect example...

Over 20 years ago, I got a phone call from my Grandma telling me that they were going to tear down the old family farm that her and my Grandpa had built as their first home. She asked if there was anything from the house that I would like to have before it was demolished. I'm not sure why this even came to mind, but I told her that I wanted the door knob from the front door. I think that I was planning on using it for the front door of our first home. However, I wasn't even thinking about the fact that the door knob didn't have a lock, or that we would have to replace it if we ever sold the house, etc. So, the doorknob sat - for a long time.

On the other end of this story, I have a very artistic Uncle who has a number of antique doorknobs that has mounted on blocks of wood and hung for decorative purposes. So, that thought started to take root as another option.

Fast forward more than 20 years and I finally had my husband mount the door knob onto blocks of wood for me to use. Since the knob has 2 sides, he was able to use both sides and give me 2 "hooks" for different items. Here is a picture of one side of the knob after he mounted it on the wood block.


I had him hang one by my desk in the workroom so that I could hang my favorite tote bag. It has always just been laying on the floor and always seems to get in the way, so I really like having it hung up.

Then, I got to thinking about my necklaces that I really had no place for and figured that this would be another way to use the second part of the knob. You can see the screws that we used to hang this, in the picture, but when you see it in real life, they really do hide quite well. This side of the door knob actually has some paint on it from some point before I ever got it. In any other situation, I would probably want to clean that off, but considering that these are more memories of my Grandparents than anything else, I wanted to leave them exactly how I received them - paint and all.

Maybe the next project won't take 20 years to finish!

Have a great weekend everyone!

Luggage tags

With summer upon us, I'm thinking about the 2 trips that I have planned so far. I have noticed that when you're standing at the baggage claim at the airport, so many suitcases look alike. There are people who take a strip of fabric and tie it around their suitcase handle to make it easier to spot theirs. So, I took that idea and decided to make a tag to put on my suitcase that would be easy to spot. This is what I came up with:



On the left is the back side, and on the right is the face - just some scraps that are pieced together. It was fun to do and went pretty fast! I made one for myself and one for my best friend, while I was at it.
You have to admit, the colors have a tendance to jump out at you! I was thinking about attaching my business card to the back side, but having it in bown and green, just didn't look good - so it goes in the one that came with the suitcase originally. I have to amit though, I love the colors of my new tag up against the black!

I've got my first summer trip coming up at the end of the month, so I can check 1 item off my list. Next is to get a new swimsuit. Don't worry, I WON'T be blogging about that. :)

Unique cornice

I worked on a very unique cornice this week that I wanted to share with you.

It's a little longer than I could fit into the picture, but you get the idea.

It was created with a horizontal area going through the cornice that is wider than the cornice face and also comes out into the room further than the rest of the cornice, giving it a depth difference.

Then we attached circles out of a contrasting fabric to that center area. These were also created separately then attached, so that they show some depth as well.

Then, to finish it off, each of the circles has a covered button in the center to bring that main fabric color back in.

Here are a couple of views of the cornice so that you can hopefully see the detail.

I had a very busy week, so I am ready for the 3 day holiday weekend! Hope you all have a nice holiday!

Re-make

I just finished a project that was a re-make from 2004.



Back then, I had made the following treatment for a client. It has the gold panels gathered onto a board and swags and cascades over the top. Then there are also short little gold valances to cover the open areas behind the swags. The last part is the cords and tassels that hang on either side of each valance.

Fast forward to this week - 6 years later. I got a call from a new client (designer). She happened to be working with this same person! They wanted to paint this room a new color and the red/gold embroidered silk swags and cascades would not match. So they chose a new color and had me just replace the swags and cascades, leaving all the gold parts as is. They also chose to leave off the cords and tassels.



This picture is just in my workroom, so I'm sure it doesn't do the finished product justice. It will be nicely steamed and dressed. I have no idea what the new wall color is, but I am amazed at what a difference one color makes. Even though you can tell it's the same treatment and still even silk, but that color changes everything!

Then of course, no blog would be complete without a new Grandma's pride and joy. Meet my first grandchild! Genevieve Morgan Davis was born on Tuesday morning, May 19 at 5:23 am. She weighed in at 7 lbs 14 oz and was 20" long. I've only got to spend time with her once, so far, but she already has a special place in Grandma's heart!

Welcome to our family, Ginny!

Cornices

This week I made 2 cornices, as well as many other things. This picture is 1 of the 2 cornices that I made, and how it looked before leaving my workroom. As a trade only workroom, I do not do my own installations, and therefore, rarely get to see any of my projects after they have been installed.





However, with this particular set of cornices, I had contact with the client, and was able to ask her if she would be willing to send me a couple of pictures after they had been hung. She was very sweet about it and shortly after installation, I had pictures! It's so nice to see how everything looks in its setting.

Here are a couple of pictures of the cornice hanging. I realize that you don't get to see the entire room, but it makes such a difference seeing them over a window, rather than on my work table! I appreciate this client and the time that she took so I could have these pictures.

I hope you all have a great weekend!

By next week at this time, I fully expect to be a first time Grandma - so just try and guess what I'll be posting pictures of! :)

Follow up from last week

Well, after last week's blog, I went through some old fabric scraps. I pulled together enough to make 2 "scrappy" bags. Here's how they turned out:



The first one is mine. I put two pockets on the front and 1 pocket on the back. There is also one large pocket on the inside.

Then this next one I made for my son's girlfriend. She loves black, so I found some fabrics that would work for her. I made it with the same pocket configuration as mine.

I put grommets on the sides of both bags, so that the handles would be adjustable.

They ended up being really fun to make! They came together much quicker than I expected, and by the time I was done, I was already thinking of ideas for more.

These were pretty basic - I was just getting the idea together. When I get the time to make more, I'll have to add some embellishments and details to make them a little more fun.

Getting out of the box

I don't know about anyone else, but as a workroom, I find myself in a box. Sometimes I don't even realize it, but oh, I am there!

Last weekend, I went to a mini-family reunion of sorts where quite a few family members got together to make Christmas table runners for everyone in the family who was interested. This is my mom's side of the family, and it is filled with very artistic people!

Every once in a while, when meeting with this side of the family, I use it as a good time to get rid of old scraps of fabric that have been laying around for years. When I see these fabrics in my workroom, all I can think of are window treatments, pillows, etc - the things that I work with on a daily basis. Well, last weekend, I looked outside of the box! A couple of cousins brought projects for "show and tell". They had taken some of the scraps that I had given them quite some time ago and added other things and came up with some really cool tote bags! I was so shocked to see what they had done. Why didn't I think of that???

Wow - I don't know why it's so hard for me to get out of this box, but when I do, it really gets the juices flowing. This weekend, the plan is to see if I can pull together some of what I have laying around and see if I can work the magic that they did - good thing I took pictures to help me remember how they did it.

If it works, I'll post pictures of what I come up with.

Have a great weekend everyone!

Cool new tool!

This is the latest of 4 cornices that I just finished for a designer. I was excited to work on this project, because I had a new tool laying here that I was dying to try out!



It's called a Point to Point and it helped me to lay out the spacing for the nailheads. It made this the easiest nailhead job I've ever done. I heard about this tool on the Helser Brother's blog and am so glad that I did.



You can read the post on their blog here: http://www.whyhelser.com/?p=3828



They are an awesome company to work with and a lot of fun. Thanks guys!

Arched PVC rod

It was exciting to recently get my copy of Drapery & Design Professional Magazine in the mail.

In it was an article that I had written about bending PVC to create a drapery rod for an arched window.

A year or so ago, we were asked to create a window treatment that was similar to one that a client had seen in a magazine. It was a beautiful treatment of swags and cascades hung on an arched window. The only thing that stumped us was the arched rod. The article mentioned that it was PVC. From there, we were lost. We actually knew the person who had done that treatment in the magazine, and after speaking with her and doing some added research, we figured out how this can be done. If a client wants iron hardware, then companies can normally bend the iron to fit a template as requested. If wooden hardware is requested, that's not so easy to do. Using PVC for the actual rod, then matching it to chosen finials is the perfect solution. And, as well as anything else, if you know the tricks, it's not that difficult to do!

Here is a picture of the rod that we had bent for the picture in the article.

I found a mascot!

I was with a good friend of mine at our local quilter's guild meeting last month. At the end of each meeting, there is time for "show and tell". Anyone who has finished a project is invited to bring it and show it to the group. Linda and I sat there and about died when a lady got up and showed her version of the above quilt.

We both thought the same thing - this would look PERFECT hanging in our workrooms! We are both quilters at heart and have many projects going at the same time. Since I am also a drapery workroom, I was thinking about even making two of these as wall hangings - one to be a Quilt Diva and the other to be a Workroom Diva. Although the pictures may end up looking quite a bit the same, there could definitely be some differences.

I think she deserves a name and a place of honor as my workroom mascot. First of all, though, I guess I should order the pattern. It will take some time to pick out just the right elements for each detail, but that's half the fun. As I get this going, I'll keep you posted!

Hope you all have a great weekend!

Quilting project

Just a short post for this week. This is a picture of my latest quilting project. It is a miniature table runner that has been framed. The entire quilted portion is just 5" x 21". It's always fun to do a project that can be completed in a very short time. It makes the time consuming projects much easier to handle.

I hope everyone has a wonderful Easter weekend!

Support System

Just like on television, you may see people on the screen, but it takes a lot more than those people to actually put a show on the air. It takes a whole crew - a support system of sorts.




In my workroom, even though I may be a "one person" workroom, I have a support system that I could not live without. My support system is my husband, Scott. He is my carpenter, and without him, a lot of what I do would not be possible. When I'm working on drapes or pillows, I don't need a carpenter, but cornices - now that's another story. We do a lot of cornices in our workroom, and Scott makes them possible. I hand him a work order with a sketch and the measurements and just say "here - go make this". When I get it back from him, it's ready for the fabric to go on. He takes care of all of the math, measuring, drawing, cutting - in my mind, it's all of the hard stuff.






Here are some of the examples of cornices that would not have been possible without him.

This is one of the most difficult cornices that we have ever done. Not only did it go in a bay window, but each section had to be arched. The math that this treatment involved was unbelievable. Normally, you have to have some sort of straight board across the back to hold the angle irons for mounting. In this case, those boards had to zig and zag up and around the window so that you would not see it from the outside. I could not have begun to figure out how to make this one work!

This is a cornice that went into a bay window. Even though the drapery panels that are attached didn't have anything to do with the carpentry, and the cornice was just a flat board with nothing fancy, the angles in any bay window need to be figured and cut at the right angles, taking the fabric and padding into consideration so that when it's time for installation, it all needs to fit perfectly into place.

This is a cornice with a swag and cascades that are attached. The cornice is a huge part of what makes this treatment successful. On the center of the face of that cornice, the wood base needed to be routed out in order for me to place that cording on top of the fabric. Not only did it need to be routed, but it had to be drawn out according to the work order, and then the routing needed to be free-handed in order to get the proper shape. If it would have been up to me, I'm sure I would have lost a finger or two in the process!

All of this to say thank you to my support system. I love my hubby and don't know how I could ever enjoy what I do without him!

The Difference is in the Details

In the window treatment industry, we hear these words all the time - "the difference is in the details". It is so very true. Not only can a detail make a difference in the overall look of the treatment, but it doesn't always make that large of a difference on the price.

Here's an example of a very simple and plain rod pocket valance. It is lined and would be made to fit the exact dimensions needed for a client's window.

Not that there is anything wrong with this valance, and for a client that is working with a very tight budget, it might be all that you can do.

However, with a minimal addition of a contrast fabric and a small amount of trim, this can be changed to this.

Look at the difference that was made in the overall look of the valance. Most of the time, a small detail like this isn't enough to break a client's budget. If you're looking for a custom window treatment, then you should be willing to look at the option of adding some character to that treatment, just like you add your own signature to other areas of your home.

A workroom should be able to show you options that will allow you to get out of the box without breaking the bank. Use them as a resource - that's what they are there for!

Creative Camp

Last week at this time I was in Houston, Texas for Creative Camp. This is an industry learning event that is organized by Susan Kostelecky of the Custom Sewing Institute.

It is a wonderful opportunity for any in the window treatment industry. We took classes from 6 industry leaders, who are all workroom owners themselves. We learned everything from hand sewing techniques to draping fabric. The fabric draping class was actually based on a book that was written back in 1889 - new fangled isn't always the best!

There are already great plans in the works for Creative Camp 2011. One speaker that has already been confirmed to teach is Rebecca Day of Merrick & Day fame. She is actually coming all the way from England to teach! This tells you that not only does she think that Creative Camp is a worthwhile event to place on her busy schedule, but it also speaks to the forward thinking of Susan Kostelecky as she organizes these events and helps keep our industry on the cutting edge.

Thanks to Susan for providing us all with a wonderful event!

New Territory

Well, it seems as if everyone has entered the world of blogging, so I thought it was about time that I jumped off of that proverbial bridge as well.

To introduce myself, I am Annie Davis. I own a custom drapery workroom in the Omaha, Nebraska area and make custom window treatments and bedding.

Feel free to stop by my website and look around. It can be found at www.artisandesignsomaha.com

I am also on Facebook, so feel free to become a fan on my page there.

I'm looking forward to this adventure, and to see where it takes me.