PUMPKIN TIME

Hey, Y'all! 
Even though it's still 100 plus degrees here in Texas, Autumn is technically 24 days away. It's almost pumpkin time!! Maybe Mother Nature will take the hint if we all begin thinkin' about the football watchin', hot cocoa sippin', soup makin', leaf-kickin', gingerbread smellin', sweater wearin', nature inspirin' . . . cooler days of AUTUMN!! 

A few years ago I was inspired by some wonderful antique silk crazy quilt pieces I found at a flea market.

I loved the rich colors and worn look of them. So what to do with these incredible pieces of textile history?
Make pumpkins, of course!

I'm not really much of a seamstress, but with a little thread and stuffing I was able to take each square and make a running stitch around, folding in the corners, and come up with a kind of pocket. I then filled the "pocket" with about a cup of dry pinto beans (to give it a little weight and more shape) and a lot of quilt batting. I pulled it all together to meet at the center then stitched it together. For the stem, I used a wine bottle cork cut in half and hot-glued to the top.

I'm still thrilled with the way they turned out -- silk-crazy quilt-perfect imperfection and full of wonderful fall color.

So if it's still sizzlin' HOT where you're at, here's a reminder of how beautiful FALL can be. 

Until next time, 

Peace, love, and all 

the good stuff, y'all!

ROADTRIP RELAXIN'

Hey, Y'all! As summer slips away, I had an intense need to stick my toes in the sand, eat chocolate pie, and read like there was no schedule last week. For our family it takes a minor miracle to be available at the same time, and as our kids get older, I realize that will only get more challenging.

Our son and daughter-- acting silly is a huge part of beach attitude.

We packed a few things and headed for our nearest beach--Galveston. I have a lifetime of memories

on this skinny little island off the Texas coast. My mother's family is from southeast Texas 

and it was to Galveston we went for almost every holiday. Sadly, many of the old fish camp cottages were gobbled up in Hurricane Ike back in 2008. However, there is a lot of newness to the old island since "Ike" and our favorite shrimp "shack" is still there making the best "shrimp and stuff" around.

We arrived in the late afternoon and heeded the call of the sea beckoning us to dig our toes in the sand, breath salt air, and fall into the rhythm of the waves--at least for a few days.

While I didn't do any "junkin'" I did make a few necklaces while my kids and hubby "boogie-boarded" for hours talking about life, school, and other secret things only the waves heard. We ate meals together, played together, and had lengthy conversations. Simple family activities we used to take for granted are now sweet, precious moments. On our last day, I woke up even earlier than usual and took our Charlie Dog for a walk on the beach. We were greeted by the most pinkalicious sunrise! I was inspired to pen a poem.

Nature's Pace

Early morning

at Galveston beach

waves crash

cicadas in full orchestral drawl

thousands of dragonflies 

greet us on the 

dune crossover

birds celebrating fiesta

life slows to the pulse of nature

without calender, clock, or alarm.

Falling into 

it's rhythm

instead of coercing it

to ours.

Heart rate slows--

breath deep and relaxed--

time to contemplate,

pray,

and 

live

nature's pace.

I'm thankful for some time to "pull aside" and enjoy the moment. 

School begins on Monday here and the fall schedule is already full of so many new adventures and fabulous junkin' events. See y'all down the road!

Until next time,

Peace, love, and 

all the good stuff to y'all!

LOOKING DOWN THE ROAD

Hey, Y'all! After a busy summer and a hectic, crazy year, I'm taking a little time off from road-trippin and setting up at Vintage Markets  and Antique Shows. However, being the enthusiastic JUNKER I am, I never seem to take a 

break from "pickin'." So my booth at Hermann Antique Mall will be getting a whole lotta love and attention in the coming weeks. I have totes

and totes of all things rusty, cowgirl, garden, lacy, vintage, 
primitive,  dainty, and industrial that 

will be making its way to Brenham for the autumn junkin' season. 

I'm also very excited to be a part of the Rusted Gingham Barn Sale in Gonzales the first 

weekend of November. I'll be setting up a truckload of FRESH "Victorian Cowgirl" themed treasures!

Until then, I'll be presenting, "Flea Markets, Funky Old Stuff and Murder, Oh My!" to 

the Heart of Texas Sisters in Crime Mystery Writers group in Austin September 8. 

They've asked me to present how old stuff could possibly become incorporated into a mystery novel...I'm beyond thrilled to be asked to explain how that can and does happen (at least to me!) Which leads me to 

mention what is happening with VINTAGE MURDER, the second book in the Jimmie Rae Flea Market Mystery series. To be honest, I'm still working on the manuscript--I know, I know...I said I'd be done already and have it available by the end of the year. I'm still learning a lot about publishing and although the book will technically be "finished" well before then, there's a lot of pre-release marketing and reviewing that needs to happen. I'm working to do just that to the best of my abilities, but it puts VINTAGE MURDER at a LAUNCH date of March 2014...just in time for the SPRING TEXAS ANTIQUES WEEK! In the meantime, look for some fun contests AND GIVEAWAYS, a-hot-off-the-press-Jimmie Rae Junkin' newsletter, the VINTAGE MURDER cover release, and lots of vintage wedding info...hopefully you'll understand and it will be worth the wait. 

Until then, here's the "blurb" for VINTAGE MURDER. 

Love is in the air for everyone but Jimmie Rae. Maxine Huntington and Steve Devine are engaged and the wedding planning is in full swing. Even her Grandmother Star has found romance. All is going as well as can be expected until something blue is wrapped around the wedding planner's throat and she is found murdered near Blessings Antique Mall. 
What's a girl to do when all the clues point back to her best friend as the primary suspect? It's a whole lot easier to host a pin-up girl bachelorette party than to investigate a case with more twists than a funky macrame plant hanger. 
Jimmie Rae goes beyond her duties as maid of honor to hurry and solve the murder so Maxine can be taken off the suspect list and the wedding can go on as scheduled. 
What she discovers leads her to believe she may not know her best friend as well as she thought she did. Only the admission of a strange secret past can free Maxine. But will her revelation leave her broken-hearted at the altar and directly into the trap of the killer? Can Jimmie Rae save not only their friendship, but her best friend before it's too late?
Stay tuned....

My last happy thought for this post...six weeks until FALL TEXAS ANTIQUES WEEK!! 

Until next time,

Peace, love, and all the good stuff, sweet friends!