Weekend in New York City

Weekend in the City, New York or Paris, both are filled with Art Deco delights to fill your wandering soul. Having lived in both cities myself, I can attest to the Art Deco escape, from the architecture of the building you go in, to the beautiful items available for shopping therapy, ranging true authentic beaded handbags and dresses, to hand tailored driving coats. You can even purchase a vintage car of the era or rent one to really travel in style.

For those of us who can't hop on a plane this weekend, there are plenty of vintage shops on Etsy that sell Art Deco, so you can still have a mini break. Cruise into some of the shops on the IV Team, where you are sure to get some authentic finds and friendly shop keepers. They are quite well educated about vintage and will assist you on creating your own Art Deco oasis. You can find them all by going to Etsy.com and typing ivteam into the search box. There, you will get a list of all the shops have to offer.

I would like to give a special thanks to Anne who owns WeeLambeeVintage and who is also a proud member of the Integrity of Vintage Team (ivteam). Thank you Anne for making this treasury featuring my Art Deco Print. Feel free to visit her shop at etsy.com/weelambeevintage

The Inspired Trader's Vintage Voice: June In the Garden - What's Blooming

The Inspired Trader's Vintage Voice: June In the Garden - What's Blooming: The Mountain Laurels are In Bloom This post is for my friend, who I'll call Rev, a Georgia girl living in Paris, France.  I know sh...

Gotta love the Integrity of Vintage Team! Thanks Deb for bringing me home! Even if Paris has so much to offer, I can't help being a southern Gal and missing to beauty back home in Geargia. Good people, good food and a good ol time!

The Challenge of Compassion

I am a proud member of the Integrity of Vintage Team. We recently had a treasury challenge. The theme was compassion. For me, 2013 got off to a rough start that landed me in the hospital. I'm still recovering. I will tell you that it's at your lowest hour that you find out who people really are. I already knew that most of the members on the Integrity of Vintage Team were a good group of people, but when push came to shove, the members of the team were there for me and went that extra mile. They took time out of their days to send me heartfelt letters of inspiration to get better. They were candid. They were so filled with compassion, that they moved me from tears of fear to courage to heal. They are the kind of people you wish were your neighbors. If I could scoop them all up and make them my neighbors, I would. They all deserve the badge of integrity. I've seen that. The next time I can go on a shopping spree, it will be in their shops, because I feel better about giving my money to good people. Plus, working with them each day, I know they are very knowledgeable about their wares and don't even offer items unless they are certain about it's era and origin. Making a treasury of compassion with these folks put a smile on my face and was not much of a challenge. I know everyone is busy, but often the smallest effort creates an enormous impact in someone else's life. What I will do is challenge each and everyone of you to give just a little compassion to your neighbor, your family, your loved ones, even a stranger. Pick up the phone. Write that email and check up on someone. Help your neighbor get the groceries in. Volunteer an afternoon or hour at a local organization in need. You might be the one needing that compassion one day.

All Blogged in and Covered in Snow

I must admit that winter isn't my favorite time of year. A weekend trip to the mountains will give me all the winter I need to last me all year long. As the snow continues to fall, my dreams of sunshine and Spring flowers grows. What better to do than to stay tucked in and do some shopping in some of my favorite shops on Etsy. Luckily, they seem to as ready for Spring as I am. At least when the last icicle melts, I will be prepared with some of the latest Spring accessories. Stay in where it's warm and do some shopping with me.