la belle brocante

A dream come true...

2010-09-14T17:07:00.000-07:00

A dream came true this past month....my own little place in this world to call my own! By the power of co-creation, I was handed a beautiful little historic bungalow-turned-boutique, and told to make it my own. So I did....

Girlfriends Craft House is now a place filled with beautiful hand-made creations, all made from beautiful creative people, and the best is yet to come! It has been stressful to find artists and crafters to share this space, but I think there is a really good mix of people (all women right now!) with a good mix of everything!

But there is also the back-office part of owning a store....permits, bills, licenses, bills, taxes, bills, advertising, store supplies, bills.....you get the picture.

I can only hope and pray that word gets out about The Craft House, and that "if you build it, they will come"....

Busy as Bees...

2010-03-31T14:37:00.000-07:00

All of the new items pictured below can be found at "GirlFriends" in Glendale AZ or on my Etsy Website, www.labellebrocante.etsy.com

Little Girl's Shirt Dresses.
Jean Bag, created from one pair of jeans and lined with a shabby-chic cotton tablecloth
Antique Chair planter, ready for the real thing!

Springtime brings a sense of newness, and with it a need to create new things, with new (or should I say "recycled!") fabric. Freecycle.org provided me the opportunity to score a bag of men's suits, that will soon find a new life (minus the moth holes!) as playful creatures.
My "newness" also means finding new opportunities to expand and solidify my OCD of crafting creations. So, needless to say I have signed on to display my creations in a new place, that will be opening in April in Mesa. She doesn't have a name for it yet, but I hope it goes well!
I have also taken opportunities to provide my creative services to the Boy Scouts (pack 548, Den 1 Tiger Cubs!) to sew Market Bags out of the 75+ t-shirts they collected. Katie, from www.kidswithautismcan.org, has also asked me to donate a few items for an upcoming silent auction in May.
Not to mention a few more craft shows to participate in before the hot weather gets here at the end of May.

I love the springtime!

Allorahandmade Party Sunny Necklace GUEST GIVEAWAY!!!!

2010-03-19T09:34:00.000-07:00

Allorahandmade Party Sunny Necklace GUEST GIVEAWAY!!!!

Spring has Sprung!

2010-03-12T06:21:00.000-08:00

Well, almost. At least here in the Valley of the Sun, where catching a baseball game while lounging in the grass can fill your weekends...enough bragging about AZ!

I have created (or should I say "upcycled") some new items, just in time to start thinking of wearing lighter clothing. Renee's Berets have been created from light wool skirts and adorned with t-shirt flowers. Meanwhile, our shirt-dresses are are been upcycled from men's business shirts, so no two are ever alike!

Want to see more in person? Check out "Girlfriends" in Glendale. Or look at my other websites, or to see all our other goodies!

Also, a huge "THANK YOU" goes to Den 1 (Tiger Scouts) of Pack 548 in Scottsdale, AZ for unitlizing my services to create their fundraiser, Market Bags, to be sold on April 10th at a Craft Market.

New Venue for Me!

2010-02-28T16:36:00.000-08:00

Well,as they say, the power of co-creation is a powerful tool...

On January 1st of this year, one of my personal goals I wrote down was to have my creations available in a boutique. I wrote it, I visualized it, I dreamt it. On January 3rd, out of curiosity, I glanced through the office/commercial section of Craigslist, just to see wha was available. There it was, a listing from a small boutique in Glendale, AZ. They were looking for vendors who wanted to sell items at retail, without the total retail obligation of owning a store. There I sat, staring at the ad, wondering if this was my "calling." I emailed the owner that day, expressing true interest in selling my handcrafted items in a retail environment. Needless to say, long story short, my handcrafted, upcycled items can now be found at "Girlfriends" boutique, in a beautiful, quaint little bungalow-style house in Historic Glendale. If you are ever in the area of 58th Avenue and Myrtle Avenue (just north of Glendale Avenue), you need to stop by and hang out for a while.

Girlfriends Designer Boutique, 7163 N. 58th Drive, Glendale AZ

When is too much too much?

2010-01-29T20:26:00.001-08:00

Ok, so I have my own website, my own Etsy shop, a Facebook page, and now a blog. I have just discovered a website that offers a free website (www.webs.com). But I refrained from creating one...just yet.
As determined as I am to truly, truly, truly get my business off the ground to the point of getting my own brick-and-mortar, I wonder if I can have too much "tech" info to keep track of. It seems I spend half of my time on the internet, updating this and posting to that. Can a small business have too much exposure to keep track of?
So far, I think the answer is "no."
So as I continue to find ways to get my name and product out there, continue to google La Belle Brocante, and see how many ways I can get listed!
I also hope to create better, more enjoyable reading, accompanied by some amazing pics...stay tuned!

Wow, I'm blogging!

2010-01-14T22:28:00.000-08:00

Always heard about it, read about it, envied it, now I'm doing it....blogging! I can only imagine my first few entries will be mush, butchered beyond recognition. But hey, at least I can now say "I blog!"
But now it's late...way past my bedtime. And I am too bleary-eyed to see the keys...good night!