March 17, 2014

What's New at the Shop

It's St. Patricks Day and I'm staring out my studio room window right now, thinking about how I need to go shovel from the nice blizzard we got yesterday. Not a nice thing when I'm thinking about Spring so much. I've been spending most of my time browsing the internet for floral dresses and thinking about how our Chicago trip is one month away now. It's so close, I already feel like I'm there. 

For a while I wasn't listing anything new in the shop again. I'm so bad for that sometimes. But getting my shop full is still at the very top of my to do list. Not only because I'm going away soon, but Spring means easier access to vintage-hunting here, so I'm sure I'll need some more room for cute things. On top of that we're redoing our basement this Summer, so thinking about my storage space is very important. Even if I do have just as much stuff from bringing in new treasures when the weather warms up, at least maybe I can find an organized designated area for them. Right now it's mayhem.

Anyway, too much babbling. You want to see the new stuff right? 
Okay, I'll show you a few things!
This plant tray is so beautiful. It's from 1955 and it's seen better days, but I just love everything about it. AND it has a dog on it, come on.
It's taking all my willpower not to hang onto this dress. It's a little costume-y for today, but it fits me like a glove. I've never held something like this in my hands before and I'm not sure I will again. It's just that special.
Keeping with the dog theme, I added another dog planter. This guy was mine, but I have two. It was a tough choice on which one should go, but I've decided to try to find this one a new home.  
This little lady is so beautiful. She came from an estate sale, where a lot of other really amazing items were found. The saddest part however, is that her head had broken off at some point and had been glued back on. She was repaired so well without any signs of chips or glue residue that I first thought it was just her neckline. My goal is to find someone who will love her as is, flaws and all. 

Alright that's all I'm showing you today. Head on over to CharmingShopVintage if you'd like to see the details for yourself. I added a bunch of fantastic new clothes, some accessories and a few household items. I hope you enjoy them!

Have a great day!



Marissa xo

March 13, 2014

The Grand Budapest Hotel

 Okay, I am outrageously excited to see the newest Wes Anderson film! So much so that I compiled a list of dreamy items one might find featured in this flick. Of course I haven't seen it yet, because its not out in Canada yet, so I can only speculate and draw what I can from the amazing trailer. I hope you enjoy it!

March 05, 2014

What I've been up to lately.

I can't believe it's March already. That's so crazy. I always find the winter months before Spring so long and tedious. Especially here in Winnipeg. I'm looking forward to finally seeing the snow and ice leaving our city, slowly but surely. I thought I'd fill you in on some things going on in my life.
New hair! Okay, so I haven't taken the best photos of it yet. In my mind I feel like it's not quite at the stage I want yet and I think that's why I'm still hesitant or possibly self-conscious about it. My natural hair colour is a "dirty blonde" colour, and I haven't seen it in around six or seven years. 
It was really important to me to start transitioning back to my natural look. I don't have time for the upkeep super dark hair demands. Although I love and miss it! So there you have it, from very dark on the left, to half and half, to my new colour - blonde! Im having fun trying out new makeup looks to support my new softer look. Heavy liner with smokey eyes is my new look now. I can't help leaning towards edgier things. 
We actually took time off our hectic schedules to hang out at the Manitoba Museum for a while this February. They had a fabulous new (temporary) Egyptian Exhibit that was so worth seeing if you're interested in Ancient Egyptian culture and mummification techniques and rituals. It was so detailed and much more in depth than I had expected. The artifacts were breathtaking.
Even though the main exhibits haven't changed much, it's so quiet and peaceful there. I always feel so inspired every time I go to that Museum. I'd love to bring a sketchbook one of these days and sit there all day drawing.
I've been feeling under the weather lately, but I've been using my time wisely by delving deeper into my artwork. I have so many pieces on the go right now! This is the detail of a background on a piece I'm especially thrilled about.
Recently I've been thinking more and more about how to expand what I can do into a more effective business. (Just as I talked about the other day with the removal of my jewellery from my shop as one example of this.) I plan to be at this for the long run, because I have a passion for creating that can't be stopped. I have a few things up my sleeve that I'm excited to share with you when the time comes.
Surprises are the best!
Spring is on it's way, and of course it's getting me in the mood to start planning what needs to happen at our home this year. We bought a fixer-upper with a lot of amazing character. We're trying to harness the retro beauty that once was and restore it to it's full potential. We've got so much work to undertake this Spring and Summer, from painting to new flooring, to a complete basement rehaul. I'm incredibly excited to get going! I can't help but begin reorganizing and planning for the coming months. I'm definitely a compulsive list-writer and constant room-adjuster.

What are you up to lately?


Marissa xo

March 03, 2014

Out with the Old, In with the New: A New Look for CharmingShop

(Tropical - Mixed Media Collage)
Wow, it's actually been a whole year since I opened my first Etsy shop, CharmingShop.
If you haven't been there in a while, or you haven't been there ever, I thought it might be time again to say hello from the metaphorical shop counter and tell you a little bit about my shop right now, and what I have in store for it in the coming months.

If you've been with me from the beginning, I had originally began with jewellery and started to slowly add in my artwork after I saw the potential of the two blending in nicely together. My overall theme and wish for CharmingShop was over-the-top cuteness and vintage tie-ins all around!
I like sweet things and romantic florals, repetitions and patterns and most of all, colour. Okay Okay, I have a lot of faves and interests. And to say the least, I imagined I could combine all these elements into one pretty adorable and cohesive online shop.
(The Fawn - Mixed Media Collage)
These days I've decided less is more. 2014 will be the year of a more minimal and streamlined approach. So if you've stopped by recently, you may have noticed a new shop look. My banner has changed. My jewellery listings dwindling and slowly exiting the shop. In fact, now they're completely absent. As much as I love seeing my vintage-inspired necklaces, bracelets and earrings among my artwork in the shop, I know that I have a greater focus to get a handle on now. I'm strictly focusing on art and paper goods.

The reason?
Well my original love is with my art. Exploring that world is so important to me. So from now on I will have more time to create and continue to develop my skill. I love making jewellery, but it's more of a hobby to me. Time is so precious and there's not enough of it. Am I right? Now I'm going through my life and picking out what is essential for me and what's not. I feel like only working on art will add new strength to my shop. Unifying it with one look. I'm excited for the future of my work. Thinking about the art I will create is making me so antsy to start new projects! In fact I already have quite a few lined up to be added any day now! 
(The new shop look!)
Thanks for sticking by me. I can't wait to show you what I can do!



Marissa xo