My favorite time of year is Fall. It is a time to gather with friends and family, bring out the cozy throws, fill your home with natural greenery and share traditions and recipes.
Fall 2012 Newsletter
have finally recovered from another fun and successful Remnants of the Past show. The vendors outdid themselves again with merchandise and creativity. There were so many special moments. Saturday, a flash mob showed up and danced to “Do Re Me” from The Sound of Music. You can watch the video here. Sunday, we had a drawing for a beautiful European table won by Darlene Peterson Buchanan of Arroyo Grande. We also drew the winner of “Win a Trip to Remnants” for our next show. Please take the time to visit my blog and Facebook to view all the beautiful pictures. I am already planning our upcoming Remnants of the Past show. Please save the dates: June 1-2, 2013. I will share the theme as soon as I fully develop my idea. One thing I can share is this exciting tidbit: our special guest is Jen O’Connor of Earth Angels. Jen will bring her nationally known show, Spring Fling. This means she’ll
bring 20 of her top artisans to share with all of you. I don’t know if I have ever told you this, but nearly 15 years ago, I clipped out an article from a magazine about Earth Angels. This was my initial inspiration for Remnants of the Past. I loved her show’s concept of featuring different and talented artists. I filed this clipping and thought one day I wanted a similar show featuring vintage vendors. I look at Remnants now as a showcase of the top vendors in the nation. I am so proud of them! My favorite time of year is Fall. It is a time to gather with friends and family, bring out the cozy throws, fill your home with natural greenery and share traditions and recipes. My grandmother was from England and her love language to her grandchildren was sharing the warmth that came from her kitchen. Her cookies, cakes, homemade mincemeat and delicate tarts were what brought us kids running to gather around her for an extra cookie and a 3
pat on the head. I was the grandchild who most cherished all the memories and items that reminded me of my family. As a result, when my mom died, I inherited the “black binder” with my grandmother’s carefully typed-out recipes from her old typewriter. As I thumb through the pages, it brings back so many memories of her kitchen and the love she poured into her baking. I am going to share some of my family’s recipes with you from time to time. I love the name of one cake called Maids of Honour. Grandma’s name for the pan she used, “patty tins,” cracks me up to this day.
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I am so fortunate that my children love our family traditions and I love watching my newly married daughter, Devon, create her own traditions. One of the traditions Devon started is turkey bowling. My family and I love visiting Big Sur during Thanksgiving. While we’re there, we stay in a cabin, build fires, sip hot chocolate and play games. One Thanksgiving, Devon showed up at our cabin with her arms full of empty plastic soft drink bottles and a frozen turkey. She filled the bottles with water, lined them up at one end of the deck to our cabin and handed our team, The Grizzleys, a frozen turkey and said that old people were playing against The Youngins in a game of turkey bowling. Initially it was met with skepticism, but then we caught the competitive spirit. We raised such a ruckus that people lined up outside our deck to watch us play. It has become a family tradition. My sister visited us one Thanksgiving and participated in our tradition. She loved it! The following Christmas, we had a family gift awaiting us under the tree. We opened it and to our delight discovered a set of vintage bowling pins that my sister and her husband rescued from a bowling alley that was being torn down. My brother-in-law lovingly sanded and finished the pins and made a trophy out of one of them. Each year now, we bring out the pins and enjoy this new tradition. During this change of season, I love re-decorating our home to make it welcoming for guests that visit. I lay out extra throws on the sofas and in the guest room, light special scented candles, hike the neighboring trails looking for natural elements to place in ironstone bowls, and fill our home with scent of freshly baked pumpkin bread and homemade soups. Take this time to relax and enjoy your family, make new traditions and try a family recipe. But most of all, spend time absorbing the specialness of this season of faith, family and renewal of spirit.
I am excited to announce a that I am partnering with The Nature Corp to celebrate a special evening at the Hearst Castle. The State Parks provide Evening Tours that allow visitors to travel back in time and experience the Castle as one of Mr. Heart's own visitors might have during the 1930's. You will have a chance to win free Evening Tour tickets and to see the Castle with my family and I. To enter to win 2 tickets to an Evening Tour of Hearst Castle and a one night stay in a hotel in San Luis Obispo, CA, you will be given three questions during the next two weeks about the Castle and if you answer all three questions correctly, you will be entered to win two free tickets to see this wonderful Castle all dressed up for the Christmas.
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… Jen O’Connor Presents… Artful Décor and Accessories for the Handmade Life and Home
home décor, folk art, paintings, jewelry & accessories, textiles, soft-sculpture, heirloom toys, pottery, art dolls, vintage fancies, luxury goods, books, fashion and more
Catch the Art Girls’ RoadShow Shopping Events! March 1 & 2 • “heART of winter” • Sanford, FL June 1 & 2 • “Remnants of the Past” • San Luis Obispo, CA tba • NorthEast “Country Living Fair” — stay tuned!!
VISIT US!
We re-lauched the website with a whole NEW look last Fall. Visit us soon to see what we’ve been up to and browse our NEW offerings. Join our weekly e-mail newsletter for special promos, SALES and events news.