Wine ...Anyone???

Funny day around here...I am sure for you, too!  Let me just say...it is really nice to have a sister in law that has a winery (super close) on days like today!  I am enjoyng a class of some of the BEST Pinot Grigio...and unwinding...hopefully you are, too!

I am working on some cute winesacks for the upcoming wine trail weekend. I LOVE taking my handmade pillows, runners and vintage furniture out to my her winery on those weekends...such fun people! I also like helping pour wine...people watching is GREAT! One sip for you..two for me!! Ha...just kidding! (Not really!)

I am pretty excited about my new fabric tags!!! They add a little bit more of me to my stuff. I am still just one girl...working hard during those hours our oldest is at preschool and the baby naps...but this is all part of my dream!

The only thing I would add to that last quote...is to have faith in God! Love & Junk~ Julie

LOVE

Lots of new projects going on at The Barn! My main project around the house right now is CLEARING THE CLUTTER!!!! Did Santa really need to bring all thse toys? Our oldest's birthday is next week as well...we are hauling junk out! Donating gently used items...giving away some other stuff...and just flat out hauling the junk to the dumpster! FEELS GOOD!!! Ok...so my sweet little 4 year old assistant and I kept ourselves out of trouble this afternoon and worked on some Valentine pillows.

I found some of the cutest fabrics and very nice quality at premierprints.com (I am kind of addicted now!)

These fabrics are making beautiful pillows, perfect for tossing on your couch or dolling up a bed. I am working on a few table runners, which will probably make me want to paint my table a creamy white. (If You Give a Mouse a Cookie...)

Classic...

Clean...

Cute!

Stay tuned for a giveaway with pillows made from these fabrics! Have a fabulous week...and get rid of the clutter!!!!! Love & Junk~ Julie

The BEST of 2012

The BEST of 2012! What a year it was! I returned to what I LOVE most...my junking, restoring and decorating. I have only really been back at this since August after THANKFULLY not returning to a job I HATED!! (That was another post..."Follow Your Heart.") Here is a recap of my favorite projects, a little bit about them and what it to come for 2013!!

One of my ALL TIME favorites. This piece belongs to my friend Renee, it was her grandmother's set. Renee wanted to revamp it somehow, giving it an updated look for her home. Classic black, distressed and FABULOUS fabric from Pottery Barn for the seat covers. Voila! I begged her to let me keep this set...no luck! Renee has invited me over for coffee (I need to go) that she enjoys at this table with the paper. Renee...I am on my way!

My mom spotted this dining set at her neighbors yard sale...and she knew I could make it even better. I cleaned her up, gave her a classic coat of black and she moved into a new home with a fabulous family.

This vintage farmhouse hutch and I had quite the relationship during her stay here at the barn. I wanted to keep her, but that would mean having to move or get rid of something in our house. In the meantime a dear friendfell in love with her and I was happy to let her go to a good home.

A little bohemian, beach chair with a burlap seat. I painted her in a funky turquoise...distressed her and she was set.

I found this desk looking as rough as they come. My hhusband wasn't sure it was going to work...but, she is beautiful. Again, just my classic black with a distressed finish. She now serves as a small buffett in a beautiful Napa Valley home.

Perfect piece. This retro buffett got a classic black paint job and a light distressing. This piece was shipped all the way to New York City! I am so thankful I got to jump back into what I love...and great things are to come for 2013!

 Love & Junk~ Julie


Linking to...................

Coffee Addicts Unite!

No Joke. Addicted to coffee.

So addicted that I found these authentic burlap coffee bean bags at a flea market in Northern California and knew they had to go home with me. For something. I was sure I could do something with them...they wer going home with me. Back to the addiction for a minute. Seriously, an 8 cup pot MYSELF (my husband doesn't drink coffee) and in the fall and winter months...another 4-6 cup ot in the afternoon. LOVE it. I love the smell, the taste and just the feel of holding my warm mug. With an almost 4 year old (her birthday invites should have gone out today) and a 1 year old...I NEED IT!

Okay, now back to the uses for the burlap coffee sacks. Pillows!!! Yep, after airing them out and dumping out left over coffee beans...I started sewing. I have made pillows, some with the coffee sack front ad back, others with a cool black or red canopy stripe fabric on the back. I sell these pillows in my Etsy shop, www.thevintagebarn.etsy.com for around $35. So, it is almost 4:00pm and it is a chilly winter day...you can guess where I am headed. To my kitchen to brew a pot of coffee! Now...for a fabulous coffee treat that OF COURSE has a dairy product (supporting my husband and fellow dairy farmers!) in the recipe. This was (and still is) my favorite winter drink. I found this on a fellow blogger's site, www.dineanddish.net. This is an Eagle Brand recipe...delish! Love & Junk ~ Julie

Cinnamon Spiced Cafe Latte A pot of sweet and cinnamon goodness, from our friends at Eagle Brand Ingredients 3/4 cup ground Folgers Classic Roast® Coffee 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 3 cups cold water 1 (14 oz.) can Eagle Brand® Sweetened Condensed Milk Whipped cream, as desired Additional ground cinnamon Instructions 1.Stir together ground coffee and cinnamon. Brew coffee in coffeemaker using 3 cups cold water. 2.Pour sweetened condensed milk into large coffee pot or 1 1/2-quart pitcher. Add hot brewed coffee, stirring until thoroughly blended. 3.Pour coffee mixture into cafe mugs. Top with whipped cream and sprinkle with additonal cinnamon, if desired. Serve immediately.

Happy New Year! What a WONDERFUL year this is going to be. So many ideas and projects are swirling in my head, on my notepad by me bed, on the notepad in my car and on the whiteboard in my office. I can't stand it...I need more hours in the day! I thought I would share with you some FABULOUS pictures my dear friend Shana Tomlinson, owner of Rustic Photograpy (find her on Facebook she is located in Chowchilla, CA) took of our little family this Christmas. She is awesome...so fun to work with and does a FABULOUS job! Her daughter, Ally just happens to be one of the best asistants around and we love having her babysit our girls while I lock myself in my sewing room/office to WORK!!!! The barn you see in the background is definitely a "Vintage Barn.!" It isn't exactly "THE Vintage Barn"...YET!!!! Work in progress...someday Julie, someday.

I am beyond grateful that I have so many joys in my life. I know this time of year it seems like everyone is working on their "New Year's Resolution." Hmmm....well, I think I will do something different this year. I am setting GOALS. Goals for myself as a mom, as a wife, as a daughter, as a sister, as an entrepeneur and as a child of God. I have OH, SO MUCH TO WORK ON!!!!! But, with "Faith, Hope and Love" I can reach all of my goals (or at least get close!) Speaking of "Faith, Hope & Love" here is my first GIVEAWAY of 2013!!!

Go to my Facebook page, www.facebook.com/thevintagebarn and LIKE my page, COMMENT on the post and SHARE with your Facebook friends to be entered in the drawing!!! One winner will be picked Monday, January 7 at 5pm PST. Good luck!!! Keep the FAITH, Have the HOPE and just LOVE in 2013!!! Love and Junk~ Julie

Clean Slate...

We have a family tradition in our house usually the day or two after Thanksgiving, like many of you all. My husband hauls in my many boxes of CHRISTMAS DECORATIONS!!!!! Yes, this really is my FAVORITE time of year. However, this year...I haven't been able to do it yet. I am really chompin' at the bit to get them in. Instead, I have gone through and taken every mirror, picture frame and clock off of our walls. We are getting a nw roof...what a mess! As I have sid before, we live in my husband's grandparents ranch home on the dairy. The roof had years and years of feed, hay and dirt caked in it. Needless to say, the majority of it fell through and into MY KITCHEN!!!!!!!!!! It sounded like a warzone in our home yesterday. Crashes, bangs and booms along with hammering, pounding and the occasional #$@% bomb from the roofers. Miraculousy, our 1 year old STILL took her morning nap and afternoon nap right on time and just as long. (Amazing!) My almost 4 year old and I were busy working on Christmas orders. We had a few shipments to Texs, Maine and Florida.

Christmas win sacks are the erfect holiday party "hostess with the mostest" gift! We were also working on a huge order of table runners and napkins, in my vintage inspired red ticking stripe, headed to Texas.

On the bright side...my walls, shelves and mantle are clean slates. Perfect for giving a good scrub down and decorating for Christmas! Find us on Facebook...www.facebook.com/thevintagebarn Check out all of my new stuff at www.thevintagebarn.etsy.com

Well, I was on a roll....UNTIL MY NEW LAPTOP DIED!!!!! About a month ago, my dinosaur of a laptop died. No problem. I had her for about 7 years...she did her job. So, I happily purchased a new one and was going along just fine until I was having problems with Windows 8. UGH!!! So, a couple days later...and I finally have a new laptop with Windows 7 and NO PROBLEMS!!! So, I missed a couple of days but...I was super busy filling orders before the Thanksgiving holiday. I LOVE Thanksgiving. I am not sure if it is the family, the food or just the feel of it??? It has to be all three. I thought I would share with you this morning, a little bit about my family. I have a fabulous family. My mom and dad are hard working people who have built there own business from the ground up. My parents both, work very hard and I have always admired that. Growing up in a hard working household, always made me want my own business as well. I have one sister, who is married and I finally have a brother...in law! She is a labor and delivery nurse. Let me tell you how comforting it was both times delivering babies (WITHOUT an epidural, thank you!) to have your sister the L&D nurse there double checking every move.

My husband and I just celebrated our 5 year anniversary on November 17th...hard to believe.

He is a third generation dairy farmer and we are lucky to live right on the dairy. Living on the dairy is a fabulous way to raise children.

We have two girls, our oldest is almost 4 and the youngest just turned 1. We spend our days walking on the dairy, checking in the maternity barn for newborn calves and visiting with the milkers in the barn. It is definitely a fun way of life. Finding the time to paint and sew can be challenging with two little ones. When our oldest is in preschool, the baby takes a pretty good morning nap. That is when I knock a lot of it out. There is not enough time in the day. Well, it is time for me to head back into the kitchen and finish up our Thanksgiving treats. I hope all of you have a wonderful Thanksgiving!!! Love and Junk- Julie