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. :)