Hittin' the Road "Nest"-style.....Part 2

If you read my last post, you know that my last shopping trip had a bit of a rocky start.  From the word "go" nothing went according to plan.  Hey I can be as flexible as the next gal, but in this vintage buying business keeping costs as low as possible is a high priority.  As much fun and the treasure hunt is.....I've got to make sure I sell the goodies at a profit, while making sure the prices are affordable.

Here's a quick recap of the trip so far.........

• Budget Truck didn't have our packing supplies
• Budget Truck had junky trucks and rude employees, (cough, cough, Rudy)
• Uhaul cost $200 more plus mileage
• Could no longer use in-laws as a base camp...had to keep mileage low.
• Had to find/pay for lodging while in Texas.

Undaunted by Rudy and his madness......3 hrs. and a 26' Uhaul Truck, gal pal and I hit the road.  Itching to "buy something pretty" I was ready to peel my eyes, get my hands dirty and discover the treasures hidden in the great state of Texas.  Had to figure out where to stay now that commuting to/from in-laws was no longer an option.  Put in a call to hubby, my travel witch (only with a b...his word not mine...hehehe), to find some safe, cheap digs for our time in Texas.  In true Nest fashion, the hotel he found was a bit squeezy, so plan B was enacted and a nice B&B was found in short order. Let the shopping commence.

A pictures says it all.....

 A sample of some of the finds....... 

My new boyfriend...Albie

A sample of the sights.......

Fast forward....two days into the shopping trip and having a blast.  What you ask is happening on the "Rudy-front"? Funny you should ask.  Ring, ring goes gal pal's cell phone. (Robin stands near wondering who is on the phone.)  Insert dialogue here.....

Gal Pal:  Hello

Speaker:  Is this Gal Pal?

Gal Pal:  Yes it is......

Speaker: (barely above a whisper) This is Rudy from Budget Truck Rental and I'm calling to say that I'm sorry that you had such a bad experience with the Budget, my bad experience was with you and the way I was treated.

Rudy/Speaker: (Now shouting) Listen lady....I'm not gonna let you two BITCHES get me fired! (yes he sooo went there.)

Gal Pal:(Loudly speaking...) I have never been talked to this way in my life.  You are rude, obnoxious (fill in the blank)!  Do not ever call my phone again.  I do not want to speak to anyone but your regional director.  If you call me again I will have you up on harassment charges.  Do you know what that is, RUDY?  Just lose my number from your phone. C-L-I-C-K!!!  **Note: gal pal  I might add is about 5' tall and not 100lbs. soakin' wet) You go girl!

Robin: OMG!!  (figuring out very quickly who was on the other end of the phone.)

Gal Pal quickly relays whole conversation to Robin.

Robin/Gal Pal: (in unison) these b*tches 'bout to GET you FIRED!

A quick call to the Regional Director updating them on good ole Rudy sets the ball in motion.  Let's just say........we did what we said we were gonna do! Guess who's in the unemployment line NOW!  I mean really, he could have faked an apology and all would have been forgotten.  All I got to say is....

No Home Training!!!  Come on, Rudy, did you ready think you weren't gonna get fired?

Remember now....it was a 6 day trip and this is only day 2!  I'll finish up the trip details in my next post.  I'm telling you....I'm a drama magnet! You can't make this stuff up.

Have a good one,

Robin

Hittin' the Road "Nest"-style.....Part 1

As I said at the beginning of the year, I'm ready to blow this popcicle stand.  Well....actually, I been getting the itch to hit the road and do what I do best.  Get into trouble, I mean, buy some vintage treasures!  The tale I'm about to tell is a wild one, but it's true none the less.

Two girls, a truck, and a guy named Rudy!  My gal pal and I flew into Dallas and had my mother-in-law pick us up at the airport.  Our plan was to stay with the in laws and shop about Texas looking high and low for "booty".  What's the saying....best laid plans......  Well bright and early the next morning we headed over to pick up the Budget 24'truck. (Yup, 24'!! We meant bizness!)  Ready for the fun and adventure of vintage shopping, we were in no way shape or form ready for a guy named R-U-D-Y, manager at the Budget Truck satellite location in Tyler, TX.  The only way to truly tell the story is to give you the dialogue....so here goes.

Robin: Hi, I'm here to pick up my truck, here's my reservation.

Miss Sales Lady: We'll get you taken care of. Hey Rudy, can you bring a 24' truck around? Oh, btw, we have NONE of the blankets or packing supplies that you reserved. (cause that's just how we roll, ok, I improvised here).....Here it is.... Make sure to check the truck out first to see if it is alright.

Robin: Great. Hey Gal Pal, (aka Yvette from Foundry by Freeman) check out the truck while I finish the paper work.

Gal Pal: (after checking out truck) This truck won't due.  The transmission is about the go and it's completely filthy.  It's not safe for two women to drive cross country.

Rudy:  (throwing 2 sets of keys on the counter), go in the back and see which truck you want. **Side bar...do you really think Budget Truck knows that we now have three sets of their truck keys and that we are headed back, unattended I might add, to the sanctum sanctorum to pick our truck out???? Me thinks NOT.

We.....walk back, look over trucks, pick one and head to front of store.

Gal Pal: Hey Rudy, we'll be on our way just as soon as you remove the dirty nasty used mattress from the back of the truck.

Robin: Why does the truck have a mattress in it?

Rudy: We don't clean the trucks. I can't have my men move the dirty nasty used mattress (ok, he didn't really use all these descriptive words)....it's a sanitation issue.

Robin: It's a sanitation issue with us!!

Gal Pal:  So let me get this straight....you want me to pay you $1000 and remove the mattress myself?

Rudy: Yup!  You can't leave it here though....I have your info. and I'll have the city fine you.  (YES he DID!!!)

Gal Pal:  I want your name and the name of your supervisor......Dial, dial, dial......Hello Ms. Supervisor let me tell you what just happened.  blah, blah, blah.....

Ms. Supervisor: Of course you don't have to remove the mattress yourself, I will make Rudy do it.  I'll call him right now.

ring, ring, ring.....20 min later.

Gal Pal: We are still waiting to get our truck WITHOUT the mattress.

Ms. Supervisor: I have tried to call Rudy 11 Times  and he hasn't picked up his phone.  (meanwhile, I must point out that Rudy is not in the loo, he has been in the store for the last 20 min.)

Gal Pal:  I want to file a formal complaint.

Meanwhile......
Robin: I want to void this transaction.  Just pretend I never walked into this crazy place.

Miss Sales Lady: We can't void it, the charge has already gone thru.

Robin: WHAT????!!? You need to call somebody and figure it out.  I'm NOT leaving here until I get my money $$$$ back!

2 phone calls and twenty more minutes.....the contract was finally voided.

My poor sweet mother-in-law.  She witnessed the whole thing!  After 2.5 hours we still had NO TRUCK!!

After some quick scrambling and hurried phone calls, we found a UHaul dealer.  (Side note....got lost and drove another 35min, yikes!) The truck cost $200 more and didn't have unlimited miles, but what were we to do????  Chalk it up to another episode of "How hard can it be?" and hit the road!!

Stay tuned for Part 2 of this crazy shopping trip!  You won't wanna miss it!

Have a good one,
Robin

Take your daughter to work day....VINTAGE STYLE

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It's been a long hot summer here in good ol' Boonsboro, MD.  Our schedule was jam packed with trips, vacations, camps, work, blah blah blah.  You get the picture!  I'm sure it looked pretty much the same in your neck of the woods.  (Gotta love a little Al Roker reference, baby!) 

When my little birdies are out of school I find it difficult to focus on my vintage business.  I just want to hang out and spend as much time as possible with them.  My oldest birdy is 26 and my youngest is 13.  I know their time in the "nest" is coming to an end.  This being said...when I do have to work in the summer I try to include a birdy or two whenever I can.  (Sometimes bribery comes into play.)  This is the topic of this blog post.


Take your daughter to work day.....Vintage Style!

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I've mentioned my good friend Kelly from Madison & Mabel many times who is my vintage road trip partner in crime. Well, she has a daughter, Paige, about the same age as my little birdie, Bella. Get two crazy gals to thinkin' and voila, a plan to bring our girls with us on a flea market shopping day up in PA. 

 

 

 

Lunches/snacks packed, check! Clothes laid out the night before, check!  Alarm set for o dark thirty, check!

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My sleepy-eyed birdy moaned and groaned as we hit the road to meet up with the M & M girls.  Kelly and I looked at each other with a mixture of fear and amusement as we listened to our daughters complain in the back seat.  Although the trip had just begun and both of us had packed all our food for the day, a little bribery was certainly in order. 

 

Moms:  "Girls...hang in there!  There's a Dunkin' Donuts just off the exit before we get to the flea market."

Girls:  "How long is it gonna take to get there?"

Moms:  "About two hours....just go to sleep."

Girls:  "Are we there yet?"

Girls:  "Are we there yet?"

Girls:  "Are we there yet?"

 

Well.....true to our word our first stop was for donuts.  By the time we got to Dunkin' Donuts they were crabby, lazy, sleepy and hungry.  This did not bode well for the rest of this vintage shopping trip. 

 

 

Insert 24 donut holes....YES 24, between the two and presto chango they were riding the sugar train!  Really hopped up on the "junk"!  Like Energizer bunnies, Bella and Paige were ready to shop!  If you know me you know that I'm a bit of a tree hugger when it comes to food.  No fast food, whole foods, organic, you get the idea.  But shopping is shopping, I figured that one donut frenzy is not gonna kill her.

 

Shop, shop, shop......blah blah blah

 

The four of us shopped our way through PA and were on our way home.  Lo and behold, what do we find?  A bakery that creates custom donuts!!  Really..... 

 

Girls:  "please, please, please....let us get some!!!"

Moms: "You already had donuts this morning!"

Girls: "Pah leeeeeze.........these are custom made!!!!!!"

Moms: "What the heck, you only live once!"

 

 

 

How was the vintage haul for this trip????  It S-U-C-K-E-D! Neither Kelly or I found any treasures, and quite frankly, hardly bought a thing.  And yet, for me, this was one of the best shopping trips I've ever been on.  It was a blast watching the girls act silly and just being girls.  At the end of the day, I work for myself so that I can spend time with my family.  And that's just what I did!!

 

Have a good one,

Robin

 

 

 



Where the bleep is Robin?

Wellll......once again, I'm MIA!  I feel like I'm a jack of all trades.  Hey, I'm a mom, wife, interior designer, vintage furniture dealer, painter, fixer, cleaner, shopper, problem solver,  accountant.......yada yada yada!

 Like most of you it's so hard to balance my time between all these duties.  What can I say....I do the best that I can.

 

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Ok...now that I've gotten that off my chest and don't feel so guilty about bailing on my blog, let me tell you about my latest crazy scheme!

 

 

Ever heard of the one and only...World's Longest Yard Sale? It's a crazy long yard sale spanning 690 miles, from Michigan to Alabama!  Can you believe that??  I have a friend that has actually shopped this for the past 2 years.  She invited me so of course I said YES! Not so crazy right?  Well, maybe a little bit. Split the hotel, gas and driving, hey I can do this. It's 4 days of vintage amazingness...so worth it.

 

 

 

 

Now for the twist....friend can no longer go.  Trip is off.  How can I do it by myself?  Nine hour drive each way, paying all the expenses myself.  No fun, giggles, and blabber along the trip.  Ugh!

 

Then course, my crazy brain starts to kick in.  Why can't I go by myself?  Robin's famous last words..."How hard can it be?"  I sit down with hubby, plan my route, cash in some points to pay for 2 nights at mediocre hotels (word used loosely here), and set my sights on Chattanooga, TN! Hubby swears his 30 hour audio book will keep me company...please know that I've threaten his life if it doesn't!

 

 

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 So at O dark thirty I'm hitting the road tomorrow morning!  I'll be loaded with food, packing blankets and hopeful dreams of the ultimate vintage mega score.  Be sure to stay tuned.......

 

Have a good one,

Robin

Okay...It's time to tell the tale

Sorry I've been M.I.A. lately, lots of drama with my little birdies in The Robin's Nest. 

Okay, well I'm ready to fess up about a little "incident" that happened a few months back. As many of you know my mode of transportation is my 2005 Chevy Trailblazer, aka "The Junk Mobile". In order to score big and buy the goods I pull a 6' x 12' trailer that I may or may not have flipped on I-66 some years ago. (Hey...only one embarrassing story at a time!) I LOVE my trailer, battle scars and all!

 

Being a small business owner, this girl works hard for her money.  I can stretch a $$ till it bounces!!  I try to keep business expenses to a minimum. (Except when it's power tools, I LOVE me some toys!) Ok, back to the story.  As I said a couple of months ago the Junk Mobile gas gauge konked out on me. Well..."I'll get about to fixing it, I mean all ya gotta do is use the odometer to keep track of mileage" I tell every patient Hubby. "No big deal!!!"  Weeks go by with nary a problem.

Now here's when it gets dicey.....

Birdy #2 is a hard worker and jumped at the chance to haul furniture each month during the Tag Sale.  It's a real treat to have some alone time with him and chat while we drive to and from the barn. On a chilly morning we stopped at Sheetz, the fine dining/bank/gas station and grabbed some coffee/fruit (me), hot chocolate/donut (birdy #2).  Did I get gas, you ask??? Heck no...by my calculations I gotta another 48miles to go and we are running late.  (Insert dum, da dum dum DUM.....)

Slurping coffee, munching donuts, chatting and cruising up South Mountain...I said it South MOUNTAIN......

Suddenly the Junk Mobile, sputters, lurches forward and then......stops!!!!!! Oh Crap!!! We are going uphill on a mountain, pulling a trailer, on an Interstate!
Me:  Birdy #2...there's something seriously wrong the truck!
Birdy #2: What are we gonna do, mom?
Me: Gonna call Papa Bird and AAA
Birdy #2: These trucks going by are really shaking the truck...it's a little scary.

I call Hubby, and tow truck.  Oh of course...you can't tow the truck with the trailer.  I'd love to leave my trailer abandoned on a mountain half full so that it could roll down the Interstate and kill all those in it's path.  Enter super hero friend/carpenter to the rescue with his truck!!! He, birdy #2 and I unhitch the trailer and roll it DOWNWARD (yikes!) to make room for friend's truck to pull it and drive the trailer to my house. (a little scary even I have to admit)

 

Hubby comes, tow truck comes.. birdy #2 and I to the barn, Junk Mobile to auto garage.  It's all worked out.  I spend most of the day worrying about how much this car repair is gonna cost!  The phone rings, it's repair man...hit me with it! 

 

Repair Man: Mrs. Lady...before we check in more detail, I noticed that the gas gauge was on E.  Is there any way that the Junk Mobile is out of gas??

Me: Oh I know, it's broken...I've got about 48miles to go on that tank.

Repair Man: Why don't I just put $10 in it and see

Me: Oh sure thing...And while you've got it in the garage, why don't you go ahead and fix the gas gauge.

 

Tick tock, tick tock....15 minutes pass.

 

Repair Man: Yup...you were out of gas!!!

Me: Yikes, now I gotta tell hubby.

 

Me: Well great news, cheapest car repair in history.

Hubby: What was wrong?

Me: You're gonna think this is funny....um um  it was out of gas

Click!!!

 

 

Me: (after redialing Hubby) Are you really mad at me?

Hubby: I just don't know what to say...maybe it wouldn't be so bad if you hadn't been at the gas station a mere 3 miles before the car died!

Me: If its any consolation, I had repair man fix the gas gauge.

 

I guess there's a lesson learned here....maybe I need to brush up on my math skills!!!  He he he.  Don't tell hubby I said that, it still might be too soon!

 

Have a good one,

Robin

 



 

Vintage shopping with HUBBY...did we kill each other?

 Latest shopping trip.....



My partner in crime, Kelly, was sick and bailed on a scheduled treasure hunt. Hubby, who NEVER shops with me, asks if I'd like for him to go shopping with me. I love my husband, but he just doesn't have the crazy vision necessary to buy vintage stock for the shop. Oh well, what the heck..."sure, Weetie" (his nickname).

 I try to get my gear ready the night before so I don't need to get up any earlier than I have to. While packing our lunches and snacks I go over the "rules" with Hubby aka Weetie.  No buying a bunch of crap food...we pack, baby.  On the way home we stop for Starbucks...that's the deal.

 Alarm buzzes at 4am and I quickly hop out of bed. (I'm a morning person) I tiptoe around, wiggle into my clothes, put my "face" on and plop my hair in a pony.  Gotta wake the poor guy up now. He grunts and slowly gets up and into his clothes.  We head downstairs, grab our food and we're off.

Time to hit the road!!! Gassed up...check, food packed...check, boxes and bags for treasure...check, CASH.....???? Oh crap, we forgot to get cash at the bank! Vintage shopping is a cash only deal. I usually bring $1000 on my trip.  Not trying to sound like a big spender, but I only make this costly trip once a month and I gotta fill my 6' x 12' trailer to the brim to make the trip worth while. 







 
Reading my last post you say....go to Sheetz (mega gas mart), which we do.  Gotta couple of problems though.  1. You can only get out $300 per transaction  2. My bank only let's you withdraw $500 per day (keeps the robbers away, a funny for ya).  I soooo have a solution for this.

Me perky and He groggy, head into Sheetz "the bank". I withdraw $300, then $200.  I make him withdraw $300, then $200.  Four transactions and 10 min later with cash in hand we hit the road.  I'm ready for the shopping  to commence.

Having 3 kids, 2 dogs, crazy jobs and lots of travel, I don't get to spend a lot of time alone with Hubby.  I'm looking at this trip as a "date", time to catch up.  Remember, it's 4:30am and I am a morning person and he is not!  I blabber, joke, giggle, and banter all the way to our shopping destination.  He does his best to hold up his end of the conversation.


 



 

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I knew I had to keep his belly full while shopping so I kept the food coming.  Problem again, his idea and my idea of lunch is very different.  I had salad with a blob of chicken salad, he..a lean roast beef sandwich. Snacks...grapes, blueberries, carrots, green peppers,hummus GF pretzels and crackers.  My normal fare.  He seemed to be fine.  By this time poor sick Kelly couldn't stand the thought of a shopping trip without  her so she's texting furiously to see what I bought.  On the trip home Hubby calls her (I'm driving) to check in. 

 

Hubby:  "How ya feelin?"

Kelly: "Just a head cold"

Hubby:  "Is she always this perky in the morning?"

Kelly: "OMG, she never shuts up!!"  Note**** (guess she's not a morning person either!!)

Hubby: "She's feedin' me like a bird!"

Kelly: "ha ha ha ha"

 

So believe it or not, the day was great!!  We found some good pieces at decent prices.  Once the sun came up and Hubby woke up he was his usual funny charming self.  He spied a few treasures so there's hope for him yet.  Still.....glad Kelly is feeling better!!!!

 

Have a good one,

Robin



Oops...I did it again!

As I've mentioned so many times before, when it comes to pulling by 6' X 12' trailer behind my truck, I am FEARLESS!  Insert cringe and shreaks of horror from Hubby and family.  You know my motto... HOW HARD CAN IT BE? Well, I got into a bit of a pickle today..........

 

So, on my way to Georgetown to meet up with a friend/follow shop owner.  Yup, I pull that bad boy through the crazy streets of DC on a regular basis. Cruising down I-270, crankin' the Bruno Mars, not a care in the world.  Then it starts...

 

(via bluetooth, of course)

Friend text: Hey, pull around back to pick up the furniture you are getting.

Robin text: I've got the trailer, don't know where back alley is..(remember it DC!)

Friend text:  Hmmmmmm, pull in front of the store and I'll hop it and show you how to get to alley.

Robin text: Great!

 

I pull up in front of her store, and she hops it my truck.  Of course, her knees are too her chin.  After all, she's dodging 2 gallons of paint and a lamp on the floor and a caulk gun, my lunch, and pointy cup holders on the seat.  This is my WORK car, so give me a break, OK?!

 

Finally, after weaving in and out of streets and alleys, we make it!  Touch down...a tight fit, but a  is good!

 

Chit Chat, chit chat, yada yada, blah blah blah....time for me to head home.  This is where it gets dicey.



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Remember how I told you it was a tight fit in the alley?  Weeelllll, fearless Robin tries to make a right turn into another alley to head home and wham, bam, thank you mam, you guessed it.. I GOT STUCK!

(Re-enactment...sort of)

 

The wheel well of the trailer got stuck on a telephone pole.  Call me a ding bat, (ok  DING BAT) but in all the excitement, I didn't think to take a picture. Only one thing to do...call shop friend.

Robin:  Hey

Friend:  You got stuck didn't you?

Robin: How'd you guess?

Friend: I'm coming outside now to help out.

 

Two minutes later, Friend and her Brother come walking down the alley.  (oh brother is right)  Now I have to share my shame with two people!!!!!! After  much maneuvering and and shouting to driver the trailer is free.  Sad to say, not by me....Brother did it. Oh dear, maybe I'm not Wonder Woman!

 

 

At least I didn't do this....

 

 

Or end up like this!

 

 

Hubby is in Mexico for work, sooooo I think I'll probably keep this fiasco to myself.  Promise not to tell!

 

Have a good one,

Robin

 





Lessons Learned while vintage shopping....

If you read my blog or know me from facebook you know that one of my most favorite things to do in the world is shop for vintage "treasure".  Most often the items go straight into my shop, however, if they pluck my heart strings and I just can't part with them....then home they come.

 

Recently, I had the opportunity to go on a shopping trip with my pal and partner in crime, Kelly from Madison & Mabel. Insert side note...you have to check out her website, Kelly designs the most amazing custom furniture.  Ok back to the story.... I have a 6' by 12' trailer hitched to my Chevy, so I am always the driver.  She's navigation and comic relief so our shopping trips are always a blast.

A little peak inside the trailer......

 

Now I must say that I pride myself on being fearless when it comes to pulling the trailer.  (Much to my husband's dismay and just plain horror!!!) So...the idea of driving through NYC from rural MD to get to Long Island, NY didn't faze me at all.  "How hard could it be??  You just stay in your lane, Kelly", where my famous last words.  Our first stop was in PA at 7:00am, let the shopping games begin.  Oh, let me back up...when we met at 5am Kelly informed me that the left blicker light on the trailer was out.  In my early morning daze this didn't bother me, keep this info. in mind as you read on.  Onward ho!!  We picked up some great deals in PA and pointed the train toward NJ.

 

This is where is starts to get crazy.  NO place to park in a quaint little NJ town.  30 min later I jack knife parked, my specialty I might add, in the library parking lot.  It had flipping parking meters in the lot!!!  What free library does that??  Actually found some fab shops for inspiration, no buying here too much $$$. 

 

 

LESSON 1:  If it's too pretty, it's too pricey.

 

There was a nearby town in PA that had the reputation of being creative and cutting edge.  What's a trip of the bridge, we're already here, right.....

 

 

 

LESSON 2: Creative and cutting edge is code for HIPPY DIPPY!

 

Well it's getting late and we still had about 3 hours to drive, or so we thought.  I turned on my Garmin, named Penelope and set to speak in a British accent, plugged in the hotel locations and we-re off.  Kelly and I decide to hold off on dinner on the road since Penelope said we would arrive at 7pm.  No worries until until NYC.

 

Heading into the toll booth before the Holland Tunnel I see a sign. 3 AXLE LIMIT, whew, I only have 3 axles, so I'm good.  Having an Easy Pass I roll through the toll booth as the attendant nearly throws her body in front of my truck to stop me.  "You can't take that trailer in the tunnel" she says.  "I only have 3 axles, I counted" was my reply.  "You need a police escort to take you out of here"...her reply.  "Oh crap" says I.

 

LESSON 3: Just because you SEE the tunnel, doesn't mean you can go IN the tunnel.

 

 Over comes an officer on foot, what no car, giving us directions to the Lincoln Tunnel.

 

 

 

"Left, Left, then Right and just follow the 1 & 9 Truck RT. North", ok, got it!  Hey Kelly, do you remember what he said???? Remember now, all these left turns and lane changes are made without a left turn signal.  I've now been flipped off, cursed out and mean mugged in NYC...well deserved I admit. "We'll just follow the trucks, Kelly" following, pot hole, following, barely fitting in construction lane, following as Penelope keeps trying to get us back to the Holland Tunnel, ugh!  "AHHHH...where did all the trucks go????" We are now heading SOUTH on the 1 & 9 Truck RT.  How'd that happen, we were following the trucks AND the signs. 

 

 LESSON 4:  Don't trust ANY of the road signs in NY, EVER!!!

 

Kelly's light bulb moment....I'll use my iphone's navigation to get us there, meanwhile, my Penelope is still belting out directions to the Holland Tunnel.  Kelly's iphone, aka Siri, took us through drug filled slums and actually directed into the Meadowlands Arena parking lot...and duh, we did it.  After circling twice we abandoned the course.  Now driving with 2 automated voices dueling with different directions.  We crossed the same bridge twice and managed to visit Brooklyn, Queens, The Bronx, Staten Island, and finally, sigh... Long Island during this escapade. All while trying to find the Truck RT as NY doesn't like to mix cars and trucks on the road.  It's a Trailblazer with a trailer for gosh sake, not a truck!!!! Sad to say...curse words, hysterical laughing and tears brought us to our hotel 2.5 hours later than expected.  We were in need of food, a bathroom and serious wine! 

 

LESSON 5:  Segregation live on in NYC...between cars and trucks that is!

 

LESSON 6: Sometimes you laugh til you cry...just remember to go pee first!!

 

All said and done, it was an amazing trip!  The trailer was nearly full to exploding and I'm really looking forward to bringing in a ton of new merchandise.

 

Enjoy you day!!!

 

Have a good one,

Robin

 

 

 

VRS Calendar Winner and a crazy trip to Atlanta!

Woot Woot!!!!  Congratulations to Michele from Sew Sweet Vintage!!!  She won the amazing wall calendar from Vintage Rescue Squad and my good friend Sue.  When you are cruising through etsy, be sure and check out her shop.  The pictures are just ahhhh-mazing!

Packing up today and heading down to Atlanta for the annual Gift & Home shop.  Although I try to solely stock my shops with vintage items, it's nice to have a few items that are "shop ready".  No tromping through muddy fields at dawn, schlepping, cleaning, painting, waxing, pricing....yada yada yada.  I make sure I have no more than 20% new items vs. 80% vintage.  Making sure to look for items that inspire me and really have a "vintage" feel.

 

Really......not user friendly or "vintage-y"!!  I go for 2 days and hit the ground running.  Three building with about 23 floors each.  Each manufacturer has a showroom that displays the year's products.

 

 



This is more like it!!!  It's great to be able to see, touch and examine the items that I am interested it.  I always want to make sure that quality doesn't suffer if it's a new item.  Also, I buy made in USA whenever possible! Even if it's a little more $$$ it's so important to me to support artists at home.

Well.....that suitcase won't pack itself, so gotta go.  Look for pics. of my crazy wild trip to Atlanta, GA.

Have a good one,
Robin

A Killer Giveaway from VRS for 2013

It's just about time to don your hat and toot your party horns....ok, I don't do party hats.  But as those who know me can attest, I often toot my own horn.  The holidays will soon be a blur and it's time to get down to business.  What business you say????  Let's all get our proverbial "crap" together.
I am one of those crazy people who like to make resolutions. Crazier still, I keep track of them throughout the year and at year's end, see how I did. They are not crazy ones like meet Prince Charming  (check, got em), lose 4012 lbs. ( not gonna happen).  They are more like business goals, places to shop for work, and self improvement goals....(everybody needs a little improvin).

Last year I bought an amazing calendar from a friend of mine, Sue from Vintage Rescue Squad. I have to say the photography is awesome.  Such fantastic vignettes to get the junk juices flowing.  As you know, I make my living re-inventing vintage furniture and accessories.  It's tough to plan all the necessary flea market shopping around my busy family.  Sue's calendar, Dreaming of Junking makes it so easy!!!  Each month has a ton of vintage shopping events located throughout the country.  I've even planned family vacays around an even, bahahahat...really!!  (Like my family doesn't know...he he he)

 

Being the super cool chick that she is, Sue has offered a 2013 Dreaming of Junking Wall Calendar to me to giveaway to help you get ready to shop your way through next year. If you want one now, just scoot over to her etsy site and grab one for $20.
a Rafflecopter giveaway




Happy New Year!!
Have a good one,
Robin

Not so Christmas Gifts.....

 

I love Christmas, really I do.  However, I'm not a big fan of the Christmas themed gifts that I often receive.  But let's face it....red and green trees and stars look a little bizarre in the middle of March!!!

I gathered some of the items in my shop....gotta love a little self promotion.... that are soooo giftable.  Now and later!!!!



Tea towels....okay, so we really don't do tea anymore. But they are great in the kitchen and bathroom.  I had a customer who used them as window panels...fun!  A great hostess gift gathered around a bottle of wine with ribbon.  At only $14 each they are perfect to have on hand.

 

 

Jewelry is a given. I love the new hand-crafted dictionary and typewriter key pieces I just received from my Texas artist!!  They are stylish, chic, and affordable!! Gotta luv that!!!! From $20 -$38.

 

What's trending...owls, white...white owls???? Fabulous Owl Vase $26.95

Amazing Sweater Motifs...in Vases and Votive Holders.....priced from $14-$28

 

 

See anything you like??????

 

Find them and more at The Robin's Nest Holiday Open House

 

Chartreuse and co

NOV 4 - 6, Fri/Sat 9-4pm, Sun 12-4pm.

 

Have a good one,

Robin

 

 

 

Chair Love...Refresh an oldie, but a goody! Part 4

Sorry for the delay, guys!! Here's the long overdue final post from my chair series.

Look how far we've come! I've talked you into sniffing, wiggling and sitting into every chair you see. Seriously though, it's important to check out the chair before you invest time and money into its transformation. You've considered whether or not to paint it and how much to spend on fabric. But.........Speaking of transformation, that's the final topic that I want to talk about in this series

Changing the style of a chair through paint and fabric choice.

Let's say you find a sturdy, comfortable, "un-stinky" chair. BUT....it's not really your style. Doesn't mean you have to keep on walking to find the next potential candidate. If there is even one special detail about a chair, then I focus on that and know that the right paint and fabric can totally change the "look". Best to show this by example. Time for the before and after pictures I promised.

Looking at this cane chair, it's got traditional written all over it. In fact, you could go safe and paint, distress and do the "frenchy" thing and it would turn out wonderfully. However, since I'm on a modern kick these days, I know gloss paint would transport this beauty into the 21th century. Add a geometric print from...let me say it... MOOD in NYC (yup!! went into a fabric coma there!) and voila...MODERN CHIC!

Traditional and Predictable

 

MODERN SOPHISTICATION

 

Outdated Style

 

HOLLYWOOD GLAMOUR

 

It's amazing what a little paint and fabric can do...huh???  Just stop and dream a little. Imagine your perfect chair, then go out an find an ugly duckling. The possibilities are endless.

 

Have a good one,

Robin