Shopkeeping: Looking Back & Looking Ahead

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Hello friends! Let me start by saying that I have been working on this post on and off for almost a week. I've shortened it, lengthened it, threatened to scrap it all together as pitifully self-indulgent, but I finally decided to go with the full version. I think it will help with closure on this chapter of our life - yep, we are closing our space at Whispering Willow Gift & Antiques. I explain why and tell about our next adventure at the end of the post...should you make it that far ;o)
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Ever since my then fiance (now Hubby) and I went to our first Flea Market together, we knew we shared a love for all thinks junk - the glorious hunt for hidden treasures and the joy of restoring and repurposing those treasures into works of heart...

...like old cabinet doors... 

...cleaned up...

...and painted...

Before long, we had quite a collection of goodies in various stages of completion, but no clear plan for what to do with it all...

Then, while junking one Saturday, we stopped by an antique/gift shop called Whispering Willow because they had junk/antique booths set up all over their parking lot. While looking through the booths, I saw a sign on the porch of the shop that said "Dealer Space Available", so I asked the owner about it, and she showed me the spaces available, and before you know it, we were all set to open a space in June 2008! It was the perfect set up because she did not do long term leases - it was just for the Summer, so I knew if we were a flop, we wouldn't be stuck there for 6 months or so. At the time,  I referred to the opportunity as "Summer School", because we had never done anything like this and knew we would be learning A LOT - and we did! It was a sweet, sunny space and I had a blast getting it all set up and filling it with all our treasures...

...our very first space...boy, we needed more stuff...

...but we built it up over time...

Then, along came a couple of storms - one was Hurricane Ike in September, which damaged the building that Whispering Willow occupied. The shop had to close and begin a search for a new building. By that time we had begun feeling the strain of my working full time and having the shop space as well, so we knew that the shop relocation was our cue to step out. The other storm was the news in November that my full-time day job was being outsourced, which started us on our incredible downsizing journey into my Hubby's paid for mobile home. The work to prepare/restore the place became my other full time job, so pursuing a shop space was out of the question...for a season...

But sometime late in the Summer of '09, I stopped by the new location of Whispering Willow to say hi and to see how things were going. Before I knew it, I was taking on a space in the new shop, beginning October 1st! Here's a recap of our time in the new shop...

Small space in the front room for October...

Moved to much larger space in the front room on November 1st
(this was probably my favorite space of all)...

We started out with a sweet pink Christmas tablescape...

...and added some fun vintage red and green to the back part of the space...

...then in December we changed from a pink tablescape to a more traditional red plaid and green color scheme...

In January, we brought in a few new pieces to the space and moved things around a bit...this black cupboard/bar right by the front door became the anchor for our space and a conversation piece for customers...

We moved the big dining room set to the back of the space and prepared for Valentine's Day (it was great to be able to re-use a lot of the pink decor from the shabby pink Christmas display)...

...as Winter melted into Spring, out came the Easter fare and all things sweet and spring-y...

We also added a few vintage/kitchy/retro touches to round out the space...

But soon, the weight of keeping up the large front room at the shop and working several days there per month, with little to show for it at the end of each month, forced us to re-evaluate our situation. When a smaller space came available in May for half the price and half the number of work days, we jumped on it. The new little space was cute and easy to maintain...

However, sales, though always decent, have not been steady enough to justify the continued cost and time commitment....plus, the overall mix of merchandise at the Willow is decidedly more formal and somewhat more costly than our fare (traditional antiques versus our cottage style). SO, July 31st was our last day at the shop...

It is a bittersweet time for Mom and I. We LOVE all the sweet, talented dealers at the Willow and the gals in the Bakery, and we will miss them all terribly. But we already feel the weight lifting from our shoulders, and we know this is the right move for us...

The inevitable question remains - what do we do with all our cute cottage stuff...? Well, a new adventure awaits, and it will be a whole new learning experience for us too. We are going to rent a space at Larry's Old Time Trade Days in Winnie, TX for their November 5th-7th show. Winnie is starting to become a little Canton, and we hope that our vintage cottage mix, hand-crafted and repurposed items, and my Dad's woodworking pieces will be well received. It is a laid-back atmosphere with that Southeast Texas charm and down-home folks that I just love. We are taking an information gathering trip to their August show this Saturday to scout our best location and see the types of setup options we have. We are SO excited!

I have no illusions about this being less work than the shop - I know set up and tear-down will be A LOT of work, and we are already gearing up to do a lot more handmade items than before. But, we are looking at it as a fun new adventure, one that my whole family and some friends will be involved with too! I'm looking forward to sharing sneak previews of some of our new handcrafted wares as we prepare through the coming 3 months. Should be fun!!
 

Meanwhile, many thanks for your continued patience with me and my spotty blogging. In addition to packing up the shop and storing everything away, my sweet Hubby injured his eye while mowing the yard (all is well now), plus my Aunt (Mom's sister) who is battling brain cancer, underwent her second brain surgery on Monday. Praise the Lord, she is doing great and is already home today (Wednesday) - amazing!!! So, we've been all over the map. But I have put my anchor down in Lord Jesus and He is holding us and guiding us through the storms and changes...I just love Him for that...

"So God has given both his promise and his oath. These two things are unchangeable because it is impossible for God to lie. Therefore, we who have fled to him for refuge can have great confidence as we hold to the hope that lies before us. This hope is a strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls."

Hebrews 6:18-19