How to Create a Faux Ship Lap Wall and a Unique Clothing Rack

Last week, Angea and I gave our booth space at Uniques and Antiques a mini makeover! We had  been pondering painting the walls (yes, again) and we wanted a new clothing rack.

Our goals for the makeover:

• transform the appearance of our wall
• not disrupt our space for a long period of time, since the store still had shoppers
• use items we already had to create an eye-catching and creative display
• create a better clothing rack, allowing better access to shop our one of a kind pieces

So what did we do?

• A faux ship lap wall
• A clothing rack and shelf  made with old porch columns, a tree limb, and a board. 

You might recall that we painted our walls a whitish - grey color, when we moved into this space last June. You can see that makeover here. We had picked out a light grey paint, but it looked much whiter on the walls in our booth. The two side walls of our booth are made of thin paneling and it makes hanging things on the wall a little more difficult, so we decided the clothing rack would be set in front of the paneling wall, giving us more access to hang things on the back wall (that is much sturdier and we can drill or hammer into it.)

"Junking isn’t just about finding or selling something for us. It’s the adventures we have, the friends we make along the journey, and being able to take something we found and creating something new and different." - Janice

So how did we create a ship lap wall for pennies? Painters tape and some grey paint! 

Angea measured off 8 inch marks and I taped the lines. 

She then took cheap acrylic grey paint (that she already had) and thinned it with a little water.

Then we both went to town painting a thin line, right above our tape marks, to give it the appearance of board planks. 

My lines weren't perfectly straight, but neither are old boards 😉😉

We dabbed our previous nail holes with paint and then I used an envelope as a guide to create the vertical lines. We were just winging it at this point and I found an envelope in my planner, that made it easy to draw the lines, without needing additional tape.

Easy peasy and then it was time to create our clothes rack and put everything back in our booth! 

"You gotta crack a few eggs to make an omelet" - Angea

There's a mess, before its going to be pretty...

We previously had two chairs hanging on the walls, to hang our clothes on, although we decided we needed something with more hanging space and easier to browse through the clothing. I saw a suspended branch clothes rack on pinterest that we both really liked, but we didn't want to have to deal with hanging things from the ceiling or involving our guys having to go help us. We got to brainstorming ideas a few weeks back and decided to take columns to build a display!

A little back story on the columns-
Angea called me one morning last year, that she had found two porch columns at a garage sale for FREE and ask could I come pick them up in my truck! I got dressed and went to rescue them for her! Later on, she found feet for them at Canton Trades Days and we hauled them home with us last spring. Trust me when I say the ornate feet weren't cheap and Angea says it would tale a "pretty penny" if someone wanted them! 😉

A board attached on top of the columns anchored it all together, give us a display shelf , and support for us to hang our tree branch and clothes.

We took some grapevine, greenery, and lace and wrapped around the arch, then started filling her up! 

We must say, we are excited about the outcome and spent very little out of pocket to make it happen! Win-Win, especially when you rent the space and want to make an easy makeover.  

You can catch more of the booth and reveal in our Facebook Live video below. I really like the ship lap look on the one wall, so we may go ahead and do the other two walls soon. What do you think???

A Guide to Shipping Packages

 Let's talk shipping today! I personally love shipping orders all over the world and often get questions from friends or family about how to ship, so I thought I would share some of the things I've learned over the years.

Years ago, back when we still had super-slow dial up Internet service, I started selling on eBay to make some extra income. I taught myself and followed the on screen prompts to list and sell my items. I would then print my shipping label from my home computer and ship out the package the next day. Fast forward a few years and I started an etsy shop and now I ship on a daily or weekly basis. Do not let shipping scare you into not starting your online business! 

I try very hard to ship all my packages in a prompt fashion and my sweet customers often comment about my fast shipping, when leaving shop reviews. If the item is ready to ship, it usually ships the same or next business day. I ship Monday-Friday and occasionally on Saturdays (if I'm home and/or its a rush order). Most of the time, we ship from home, although sometimes I do drop off my packages at the post office.

I always print and purchase my labels online.

• commercial base pricing online is a little less than the post office counter price. Pennies and dollars add up folks! 
•  my customers automatically get a notification with tracking info emailed to them.
• for priority mail packages, I get double the amount of insurance online ($100 opposed to $50 for free) opposed to the post office.
• additional insurance can be purchased
• signature confirmation can be added for a fee (for PayPal purchases over a certain price, signature confirmation is one way a seller can protect themselves from charge backs or non-delivery claims. Refer to your account for details.)

A little pet peeve to add in here - it aggravates me to get a shipping notification and then the package is not handed over to the shipping service for a few days. What this means is someone purchased the label and marked it shipped that day, but didn't actually get it mailed off. Don't do that... just don't! With etsy shipping labels, you can schedule the post for today, tomorrow, or the third day. So if I am actually printing labels on a Sunday to mail on Monday, I will clicked that Monday is the day I'm shipping, not Sunday. Make sense? The customer will not receive shipping notification till Monday and I will hand it over to the post office that day. 

Boxes and shipping supplies

My shipping assistant occasionally checks out the boxes and sometimes claims one for her new bed! She particularly likes to check out all incoming boxes and would never be happy if we purchased her a store bought bed and expected her to sleep in one place! 

I get my boxes and shipping supplies from a variety of places.

• Free boxes from USPS.com - These are marked for priority or express delivery. There is more size options available online, than at the post office. I personally do not use the flat rate boxes or regional rate boxes. My experience is that overall, I can ship more economically by avoiding those two options. My favorite sizes from the USPS are 12x12x8, 15x12x3, and 7x7x6.
• WalMart - I get some standard brown boxes locally in assorted sizes such as 6x6x6, 12x12x10, 14x14x14, 16x16x15, and 18x18x18. These work good for shipping items First Class Mail (under 16 ounces online), Parcel Select Ground, and can be used for larger items that will not fit in the USPS provided boxes. 
• Local Shipping Store - for me, this is in Longview (about 30 miles away from home.) I stock up on supplies when I am in Longview on other business, so I never make a trip just for a box. I get the large wreath boxes there, along with packing peanuts and any other unique boxes I need. The wreath boxes I use are 24x24x12 (which can be cut down- more on that later.) I previously ordered the big boxes from Uline in bundles of 10, along with packing peanuts. The boxes were cheaper there, but shipping a large bundle of boxes in not cheap, so they wound up costing me $7-12 a piece. The local store buys in bulk and I can buy single boxes at a more affordable rate. Same goes for peanuts - they are light weight, although they are bulky on a UPS truck, so they cost a lot to ship. The local store has a bigger bag for less! You can check your local stores or always order online at Uline. 
• For envelopes, I can get them in small quantities at Walmart, although I've recently been ordering on eBay or Amazon and getting a better quantity price. My preferred sizes are 9x6, or 15x10. I'm currently liking the poly bubble mailers for some added protection and water proof. I need to reorder these myself, as I'm getting very low.

• I only use the EZ Start Duck brand tape. Strong, sturdy, and has never let me down. I tape three stripes on the bottom and top of the box, where the flaps meet and one over each end, so that all edges are covered. Some boxes or envelope are self sealing, although I generally add one reinforcement piece over them.

• Tissue paper - I get this at a variety of different places. Before Christmas, I was in SAMs Club and saw a package of 400 sheets for less than $10 (I think it was closer to $5, but I can't remember for sure.) After Christmas sales are a good place to stock up as well. I've also purchased or been given large boxes of old sewing patterns. You would be surprised by how many patterns have never been cut up and have big sheets of tissue paper in them! One thing I strongly encourage is to NOT use colored tissue paper! I used to, but after some pretty purple tissue rubbed off on some white fabric flowers and I had to replace them, I decided no more colored paper! 
• This my friends, is well worth the money and will save you tremendously over the long run! Get yourself a box sizer. Let's talk about shipping wreaths here. I get the 24x24x12 inch box. I try my hardest to keep my wreaths under 6 inches deep, because if that box is 24x24x8 or bigger, its going to cost you a whole lot more to ship it. At that size, it is the balloon rate and cost goes way up, so you cut that box down to save on shipping. The customer pays shipping (unless you offer it for free, but we know that really just comes out of the cost of the item and nothing really ships for free,). If I estimate the size and weight as one figure and its actually larger, then the extra comes out of my pocket. Trust me, it occasionally happens. One time, it cost me almost $40 to ship a wreath and I had only charged $15. I had specified that I would ship Priority Mail and the customer lived in the upper west coast region and Priority was so expensive. I was accustom to that size shipping for $7-15 to most locations.  Live and learn, although the shipping calculator on etsy surely helps now, if I put in the correct sizes ahead of time!

• A digital postal scale. This is the scale I use for weighing all my packages. For First Class Mail, the price is figured by ounces. For all other classes of mail, it is by the pound. For example: a package weighing 2 pounds 1 ounce ships for the same price as a package weighing 2 pounds 15 ounces. That would be considered the 3 pound category.
• A couple of other random supplies to have on hand - zip ties, wire, or pipe cleaners and an ice pick. You can wire/tie your wreath in the box to keep it from moving around and reduce the need for packing supplies. For most wreaths, I will use two wires, zip ties, or pipe cleaners to tie the wreath to the bottom of the box. I use an old ice pick to poke a hole on each side of the wreath and run my wire under the box and tie inside the box. Make sure you run a couple of pieces of tape over the exposed wire on the bottom of the box. (Think of how all the toys are tied into a box, when you are opening them up at Christmas!) Once I learned this tip, it certainly cut back my packing peanut use and made it much easier to ship wreaths.
• Occasionally we get the air filled bubbles or bubble wrap on incoming shipments and my family saves them out of theirs. We will reuse them, only if they are clean and in good condition. I occasionally buy bubble wrap, if I know I have some fragile items that will need extra protection while shipping. I seldom reuse boxes, as I prefer my items to be presented in new, sturdy, and clean boxes.

You've got your supplies and your item has sold, now what?

I sell predominately on Etsy, although I can (and have) purchased shipping labels through PayPal (if the customer paid with Paypal) or on USPS.com. 

• On etsy, I can purchase First Class Mail Postage for items less than one pound. I believe at the post office, this option is only up to 13 ounces. It can not be purchased through USPS.com. This is great for most clothing, hair bows, and tumbler wraps in my shop. Average is 2-5 business days. First Class International is good up to 4 pounds and I believe, with box measuring less than 12 inches. 
• Priority Mail is 2-3 business days to most locations. I ship with this option the most. As mentioned earlier, through Etsy shipping labels, I get $100 worth of insurance instead of $50 and I can get some free boxes. For items shipping in the general area and nearby states, I find that priority mail can often ship for the same price or within pennies of the Ground (standard) shipping price and I get the added insurance and sometimes the box. It always pays to compare prices, as it will surprise (and puzzle) you sometimes. I will often upgrade the shipping to priority, even if ground was selected. Everyone likes getting their package quickly.
• USPS Ground or Parcel Select Ground is 2 to 9 business day expected delivery and best for large boxes that are going the distance, such as big wreath boxes or custom wedding orders over 12 inch box size. I must use my own box, insurance is extra, although it is more affordable, especially when going west or east coast directions from here in Texas. Ground shipping can not be purchased directly through USPS.com and it seems to change names from time to time, as it was formally Parcel Post. 
• Priority Mail Express - while most people assume this is overnight delivery, it is not guaranteed and the post office says 1 to 2 day delivery time and it cost much more. In a pinch, this method has been used a few times for rush orders, at the customers request. 

If you need a shipping estimate, you can use the customer's zip code and figure the shipping through the USPS app or website. I personally use the app on my phone, all the time.

On the form above, I have some preset box sizes and info, so all I have to do is add the actual weight and it figures the cost of shipping immediately. The names and addresses are pre-filled in as well. You can compare prices with the drop down menu for the different classes of mail. Click "confirm and buy" and you are ready to download and print your label. As a home-based, small business, I print all my labels on white printer paper. I know that you can get special adhesive label paper or printers, but lets be honest, I don't have room for another gadget to set on the desk or the additional cost of paper. I print my label, cut it out and tape it on with the same tape I use to seal my boxes. Do not tape over the bar code though! That helps the post office scan it and track it better. I tape all edges and a swipe through the middle to protect names and addresses from getting smudged or messed up. 

I also print a receipt for the customer and leave a hand written thank you note and a business card inside the package. I read a tip one time that said if the outside of the box or shipping label was ever damaged, a receipt with contact info inside would allow someone to get in contact with you or the customer, so the package could get where its going. I don't know if its ever saved one of my packages, but it can't hurt and my receipts have ways to connect with me on social media, etc. and they can remember where an item came from. 

If shipping Internationally, the custom forms are usually prefilled and you just have to sign and date them and use a special sleeve (clear envelope, so the form can be removed) on the front of the box. Order at USPS online or pick up some at your post office. Not hard on etsy, although through PayPal, I had to fill out more of the forms and it took a few minutes longer.

Packaged up, now its time to SHIP the goods to the customer! 

I love, love, love my rural route mail lady! She has been a blessing to this business and I can't sing her praises enough. She maintains the thought that the rural carriers are to be able to do anything that you would go to the post office for. We live about 12 miles from the post office, so I don't need the added time or expense of going to the post office daily. You can schedule a pick up, although Sharon tells me just to put a note in the box, leave the flag up and open the gate. She pulls in the gate, honks and I run out to meet her with packages. She scans the package into the system as we chit chat a second and then the packages are in route. 

If I have business in town or won't be home when she comes, I take my prepaid packages and drop off at the post office. 

Now this may sound like a lot of work, but it really isn't. It's second nature to me now and I much prefer shipping items opposed to selling on Craigslist or Facebook marketplace and having to meet strangers.

• Shipping is safer than meeting strangers somewhere and we do not allow customers to come to our home.
• It's more time efficient as I can still be working instead of driving.
• It allows me more flexibility and convenience. If I have local events I am working on or we have farm work to attend to that takes me away from home, I can package my orders late at night or early mornings and have them ready to go out in the mail, instead of having to meet at a particular time. It allows me to serve my customers worldwide and still be available for some local work.
• I regularly see the complaints on the Facebook garage sale sites that customers didn't show up or were late and never let the seller know. I do not want to deal with that. Plus, I feel as if I have quality, handmade items I am selling and to me the garage sale sites are for selling discounted or used items. 
• Many times, it's more cost effective than driving to meet someone. Some items ship for as little as $3 and I can't drive to town for that price. I've had others want to drive 3-5 hours to meet to pick up a single bouquet. Trust me, the shipping price will be cheaper than the gasoline for that trip.
• We can offer our products to customers all over the world, creating a larger marketplace. No matter the size of your town or your friends list, you can deliver to customers almost anywhere. That, my friends, is amazing! 

On occasion, I will meet friends in town or deliver locally. It has to be someone I know and trust. Also, I try to schedule my time where this coincides with other business I have going on, whether it be going to the bank, grocery shopping, going to the feed store, etc, because the bottom line is that for self-employed small business, we must be wise and frugal with our time and efforts, if we are to be profitable. We must control our business, instead of letting it control us.

In all my years of online selling, I've only had to file an insurance claim twice for damages. One of those was a box marked FRAGILE all over it and it looked like it literally got run over by a truck. Seems like that ask for the box to get damaged and I don't mark anything fragile anymore! Only one package went missing and was never found. Fortunately, we had time to work with the customer and make new items for her wedding, at a reduced cost. The only times I've had trouble with orders is when a customer didn't provide the correct address. Even with a forwarding address on file, there have been a couple of occasions were it didn't get properly forwarded, such as the case with the one missing package. It was left at the old address and the new tenants said they left it out for the mail to pick up, since it wasn't theirs, and it was never seen again. Through online tracking, the other customer noticed the package was not forwarded correctly and we caught it in time. Inquire or report any issues immediately! A few times a package seemed to sit for a few days and after inquiring, it seemed to get moving again.

The USPS has a relatively new program called "Informed Delivery." I get a daily email or you can check through the USPS app or website and see all of the packages or letters that will be delivered to you that day. It has been beneficial to me and you can report if something wasn't delivered. You can also sign up for text messages to get alerts with shipping details. 

I hope this information can be helpful to you and you will fill confident to start shipping your packages out!

*For your convenience, this post does contain affiliate links to purchase some shipping supplies. I make a few cents, at no additional cost to you, if you purchase through my link. These are all items that I use for my shipping business.  

A Week of Farm, Flowers and Snow...

With the new year, I set a goal to blog at least 2-3 times a week and here we are a week since my last post... sigh...  In the last week, our Texas weather has been on a roller coaster, from 60's on Monday to ice and snow Monday night and Tuesday morning. Wednesday morning was 6-10 degrees, depending on which thermometer you looked at. I know for some of you, you live with negative temps every year, but I seriously don't remember it ever getting that cold here and I consider anything below 40 to be cold (actually I prefer it never go below 50). My mom seems to think the winter of  '82 or '83, it got that cold... Yesterday was in the 70's and I was working in the yard in shorts, followed by thunderstorms and another temperature plunge last night.

(I used a watercolor app to edit my snowy barn scene picture.)

It seemed like a lot of our week was spent taking care of the farm animals and making sure they survived the cold (and they did just fine!) I was driving the truck for Jeff to put out extra feed and snapped this picture... I loved that it showed both of us working together to feed the cows. I'm not a fan of snow or cold, with the one exception that it does provide a few different photo opps! 

 While most of Texas seemed to shut down with the snow, we did not! We had packages to ship out and since we were already getting out to go to the farm, we went by the post office and dropped off some pretties.

This bouquet was in one of those boxes, headed to Canada (where y'all are probably laughing at how we deal with snow.) 

 I created woodsy, outdoors style arrangements for our neighbor, who lost his battle with cancer. He loved to hunt and some of his antlers and turkey feathers were included in his casket spray. I love being able to create arrangements that are personal and reflect the person's life and interest.

 Y'all know I am a former 4-H member and think it is a wonderful organization - I was ask to help out at their local fashion camp last week and we worked on creating fabric flowers. I have to admit, it was a different style of flower than I usually make and I learned a few things myself! Our niece was one of the participants. We are very much alike, except she loves cold weather and I can't wait for spring and summer!

I'll be boxing up these jade burlap bouquets this morning and shipping them out this afternoon!
I often get ask about the different sizes - this is a medium size bouquet and two small bridesmaid bouquets. Occasionally the medium size is used as a bridal bouquet or most often used as a maid of honor or bridesmaid bouquet. The medium is similar in diameter to the bridal bouquet, although it is not near as full of roses.

While Jeff did some farm work outside of the barn, I spent time inside the barn, photographing some new bouquets and dream catchers I created this week. This video shows the details of a new bouquet. It is ready to ship now and can be found in my etsy shop.

I created a sample toss bouquet for a potential customer with navy and maroon burlap roses, since I didn't have any pictures of a bouquet in these colors. She is still deciding on  her exact colors and style for her wedding, so I decided to add more to this bouquet and offer it for anyone interested. Its in between the small and medium bouquet size, with maroon, navy, and tan burlap roses, white and ivory lace, and dried babies breath. This bouquet is ready to ship or I can create additional bouquets for your wedding. 

 When we got to the barn, we noticed a bird had been there and we cleaned up the evidence. Later on, I saw new evidence in the same exact place, so I looked up and found this owl roosting in the barn rafters.

Dreaming of Spring!!! Can't wait for the forsythia and spring flowers to start blooming and birds sitting on their nest!

The following two wreaths were also created this weekend. I have several local customers who like this style of wreath and often send them to funerals, as something a family can keep. These are listed in my shop and can be shipped or you can contact me for local delivery.

The first wreath is in white and cream colors, with cotton and burlap ribbon. 

 This wreath has red roses, peonies, and daisies, along with the white heather and burlap and lace ribbon.

We've been talking to lots of bride's-to-be and excited about creating lots of things for all of you!

So that's a run down of what happened last week with the farm and flowers. Hope you all have a fabulous week and if you have a tip for how to keep your feet warm, please pass it on to me! (Wool socks and/or 2 pairs of socks and fuzzy, fleece lined boots didn't do a good job.)

New Fabric Wedding Bouquets and Video Options!

It's a new year and with that comes many new engagement rings and wedding planning. Fun and happy times and I'm excited to help all of you that are planning your dream wedding!

One of the first orders for the year included a new color combination and I'm loving it! Blush pink, sage green, grey, and cream colored burlap roses, an assortment of lace in white, blush and ivory, along with silk heather, and dangling foliage. Sara contacted me through Instagram and we were able to discuss her wedding through direct messages. Her color request is soft, pastel, and so pretty together! Due to her Scottish family ties, she ask if some Heather could be included in the bridal bouquet and I was able to find some for her!

I was curious and had to google to find out the Heather / Scotland ties. I found this story, along with some other info about the flower at this website.

'although it is the symbol of my sorrow, may the white heather bring good fortune to all who find it.'

Even today, white Heather is considered to be lucky, especially for brides, and adding a spray of it to your bouquet, on table decorations and so on is popular.

I was able to send her short videos showing her completed bouquets. This was a new way for me to show more details and connect with the bride-to-be.

I sent progress pictures, before adding the Heather and dangling foliage to the bridal bouquet, to make sure all the colors were like she wanted.

Once she approved of the design on the bridesmaid bouquets and boutonnieres, I completed the remaining items and sent another short video of everything completed, for approval, before shipping. 

With the fabric bouquets that are made to order, you have final approval, before shipping. This way, you know exactly what you are getting. If any changes need to be made, they can be made for you without having return postage, etc. Happy brides make me happy and honestly there have been only a few times that someone has requested a change. 

Through my etsy shop, I can only send picture messages, although if any bride's would like to see videos and connect through Instagram or Facebook, please let me know and I'll be happy to send you  a video.

I'm looking forward to helping all of you who are wedding planning this year! Please let me know how I can help you!

Space Saving Tips in a Small Kitchen

There's no denying we live in a small house. Jeff is all the time talking about building us a tiny house and I reply "we already have that." Granted ours is bigger than a tiny house, but it's still a small home compared to so many. Counter and cabinet space is limited, so what's a girl to do? 

I was looking for a place to store my pie saver  - you know the vintage Tupperware pie holders. It would not fit in any of my narrow cabinet doors. I also had a few enamel dish pans needing a place to stay. So, I hung them on the wall! 

While this may look like decor to some, its functional for me. A smaller dish pan and the pie saver are nested within the bigger dish pan and all hung on the wall together!  Space saving and wall decor in one! Win-Win! 

Kayla and Andy's Wedding - Timeless Elegance

The wedding of Kayla and Andy was held in September at the El Cerrito Lodge and had a Timeless Elegance theme to it. I've known Kayla for many years and she always said I would design her wedding flowers! Kayla's favorite flowers are daisies and hydrangeas and she chose burgundy, blush, and cream colors for her wedding bouquets.

The bridal bouquet featured hydrangeas, roses, dahlias, daisies, berries, pods and assorted greenery styled with an organic, natural, hand picked look.

The bridesmaids carried similar versions of the bridal bouquet.

Mr. and Mrs. Tefteller

The ceremony was held outdoors, while the reception held both inside the lodge and outside. The rustic lodge sits in the middle of a large hay field and the hill top view provided amazing views and we enjoyed a gorgeous sunset during the reception. 

The cake! 

The bridal bouquet was made so that it would fit in a pretty vase and could be displayed on the bridal table during the reception.

Side story here - I had been working on location that day. While I was cleaning up my mess, I was ask to create a cake topper. I had a few extra supplies in the truck and found a clear plastic cup to hold the floral foam and flowers. I cut the cup down small and had just enough extra flowers to make the topper. A few minutes later, the cake arrived, and they were worried the topper was too heavy to go on top of the cake. They said, "if we can find some straws in the kitchen, that would help support it..." There wasn't any straws in the building. Quick thinking reminded me of my stash of straws in my truck! I carry my tumbler everywhere I go and when I stop in town to get a Sonic tea, I pour it into my own cup and don't use their straws, therefore, I had some in the truck, to save the cake! 

The centerpieces for the reception were made in an assortment of mercury glass style vases (a friend of the bride took clear vases and gave them a mercury glass appearance.) The centerpieces featured burgundy red daisies, safari sunset, roses, hydrangeas, and assorted greenery.

The sparkler send off - Congratulations to Kayla and Andy! Wishing you many years of love and happiness together! Thank you for letting me be a part of your very special day!

*All pictures in this post were used with permission from the bride and taken by Casey Douglas Photography.