You are cordially invited to our 3rd Year Anniversary Party! MONDAY, March 1st from Noon to 4 pm.

OMG!  We have made it 3 FULL Years!
Thank you soooooo much for the LOVE and support!

It will look a little bit different than last year’s party….More details to follow!
Here is what we looked like at last year’s celebration……
it almost looks fake doesn’t it?

Left to Right, Lori, Peggy, Emma, Sandy, Indiana, Me, Kathy, my mom, Gala, Joanne, Steve, Jo Dallas, and Valerie!

 

Welcome to Lynn’s Latest #03…

February 13th, 2021
Watch for it every Friday or every other Friday! Or even on a Saturday!
Volume II  Issue 03

 

It has been a crazy few weeks and I have not had time to write a newsletter.  Reason #1…of course, it has to do with the DOG.  Cha Cha got Spayed on January 28th and our lives changed drastically.

Here she is just chilling in the waiting room prior to surgery and then in the cage when we left her.  It broke my heart!

Here she is after surgery with Dr. McNeill, Indy, and Ya Ya trying to put a DeBell T-shirt on her.  Shout out to the girls of DeBell at Pepperdine!

So why was it so difficult?  You try keeping a 35-pound Floppy Doodle (as my friend Tina Burke calls her) from running, jumping, and chewing at her stitches for TWO weeks!  In addition, she couldn’t go outside by herself.  Which meant any time she needed to use the “facilities” (even if it was at 1 am) she had to be on a short leash with either Indy or me.

It was not pretty.  Lots of sedatives (for both me and the dog LOL) and round-the-clock watchers.

Thank God Indy was home until last Sunday to help me, otherwise, I would have gone CRAZY!  Here is Cha Cha dressed in her finest surgical suit and floppy cone.

Time for an eBay score, don’t you think?  I bought this beautiful and delicate Italian Art Glass Vase at a recent estate sale.  It was marked $45 and everything was 30% off, so I ended up paying $31.50.  I took the best offer of $257 for it.  I could have waited for more money, but I was happy with that rate of return after it was listed for ONLY 21 days on eBay!

Oh, and it shipped to Puerto Rico!  If you want to learn more about this piece, check it out here.

I recently read a book that has changed my outlook on a lot of things.  It is called “How to Make Sh*t Happen:  Make more money, get in better shape, create epic relationships and control your life” and the author Sean Whalen is very unconventional & a bit radical.

Even though Sean’s approach is unconventional and some people even find him rude, it has shocked me into making some radical changes.  The most important takeaway for me was that I need to put myself first.  Wait a minute….slow down.  I am a mom and have ALWAYS put my kids first.  What would that even look like if I put myself first?

Sean’s reasoning made absolute sense to me.  If I am not at 100%, how will I have anything to give to the people around me that need me.  There are 4 core principles that he talks about (Core4) and they are Power (your body), Passion (your relationships), Purpose (spirituality), and Production (work).  He teaches that equal time must be spent in each of those quadrants.  WOW!  What an eye-opener.  I am pretty much all in when it comes to the 4th core principle, Work, and I give that my 110%.  No Bueno!

The first change I have made is to focus on Power.  I hired a personal trainer for both Indy and myself, Bree at The Vent, who is phenomenal!

The first thing Bree had us do was get our body fat tested.  OH MY GOODNESS!  Check out Indy!  It was scary!

I worked with Bree privately for a few weeks and she has slowly eased me into the group classes.  LOL.  I have to laugh because 4 weeks ago I would not have believed that yes, this is me… Lynn Dralle, going to a 7:30 am cross-fit group class!  OK, I don’t go to all of those 7:30 classes, but I am making two a week….so far!

You see, I am a night owl.  I work on eBay or the store until around midnight, get up when the puppy gets up at 6:30 am, and try to wear her out so that I can get some more sleep until 9:00 am.  I have finally realized what a WASTE of time those hours are and instead of trying to wear her out, I just leave for the gym.  Hahaha!  Jokes on you Cha Cha!

Here is what those two USED to look like in the morning roughhousing while I try and sleep.  It is such a funny picture because Cha Cha still has her cone on Hahahaha!

I must say that I am really proud of myself for making these changes and I believe it will become my new modus operandus!

MORE DETAILS ABOUT OUR UPCOMING Anniversary Party

As per state mandate, we can allow 25% of our max occupancy of 88 in at one time.   There will never be more than 22 people in the store at one time.  There is also plenty of room outdoors to celebrate!

Monday, March 1st from Noon to 4 pm.

Individually wrapped appetizer type food, individual drinks (beer, wine, soda, etc.), and Door Prizes!

Please stop by and help us Celebrate!

OK, that brings me to the store of course! Just what has been happening there? LOTS of new items! And I finally changed the front window to Purple. The last in our ROY G BIV series.

RED
ORANGE
YELLOW
GREEN
BLUE
INDIGO
VIOLET

I am not completely satisfied with it yet, but here is how it looks right now. Definitely a work in progress.

In more great store news, I got a text from a gal who was looking for help in selling her mother’s furniture.  Her mother is 94 years old and had just moved into assisted living.  They were looking to sell her entire living room full. Her mother had purchased Mid Century Modern furniture starting in the 1950’s from Urner’s in Bakersfield.  Well, it wasn’t called Mid Century back then (I don’t think) it was just “new”!

I could NOT believe how amazing all of the pieces were!  I was so excited to get it into the store.  Luckily, Adolio and Sunny were able to pick it up this past Tuesday.  Here they are ready to unload!  The boys do such a GREAT job of moving for us and our customers!

I was so excited to redo the front window, that I actually came in on Tuesday (my day off) to work on it with Sandy and the boys!  Here is a shot of the work in progress.

Unfortunately, before I even got to style that front window we sold the Dux Barrel Chair!  Ughhhhhhhhh, I hate it when things sell out of my front window.  Just kidding, kind of!  And then we sold the nesting tables and the small three-drawer wall unit.

Here is a shot from the street at night and it is still not styled….Oh well!

I think it is time to talk about Indiana, because Oh My Goodness, does she have A LOT going on!  First, for those of you who saw her in “Polar Bears, Black Boys and Polar Fringed Orchids” thank you for watching the Zoom production.  Even Carlos caught one of the shows!  That is Indy in character on the left.

Here is an Instagram post from Pepperdine Theatre.  Indy got a letter of interest from Casting at Disney!!!!!  Yay!  She is shopping for an agent if any of you know a great one!  I am so excited for her and for what is to come!  THE BEST IS YET TO COME!

In more Indy news, ever since Pepperdine broke for Christmas break back in November, she has been working on a special project, Allegories of our Youth, that aired last night and will air at 10 am this morning through the Lisa Smith Wengler Center for the Arts at Pepperdine.

It is free and delivered directly to your computer.  Even if you can’t watch it live, the downloadable live stream will be available for 48 hours.  Indy and the other students poured their hearts and soul into this for the past several months.  I highly encourage you to sign up for it here.

Indiana also created the cover art (she has always been incredibly artistic).  Next to the art is a post from Pepperdine showing Indy talking about her part in the project.  I love how she reposted it and said “I’ve Made it to the Big Leagues”  Hahahaha!

Here is more about the performance and its back story.  View the event program here.

For Indy’s 5 minute performance she questions herself regarding whether or not her mom should put up a Black Lives Matter sign in her store.   Indy played nine different characters (all parts of herself), recorded it and edited it.  It was a huge undertaking.

I think it is wonderful!  But of course, I am her mom!   My favorite character, of course, is 12-year-old Indy.  I miss that little kid!  Which of the two photos is the REAL 12-year-old Indy?

Thank you for letting me overshare about Indy!  I appreciate it!  Now back to an eBay score, don’t ya think?

Check out this WILD bedspread and curtain set.  I LOVE it!  Bought it at a Ventura garage sale for $20 or $30.  Sold it for the best offer of $155 last week.  Gotta love eBay!   And this piece is so MCM (Mid Century Modern era 1947-1969) and Hawianna.  Two styles that can’t be beaten!  Check out the listing here.

Before Cha Cha got spayed, there were some milestones we should definitely talk about.  First and foremost, we have been taking her to obedience lessons.  Check out how cool she and Indy look doing the work….in the cold….outside…in the dark…with a mask on!

She (along with Indiana and I) graduated from Puppy Obedience School at Doggin’ Around with Ellen.  She is awesome!  Check us out on graduation night!

The next milestone (right after obedience school mind you) is a no Bueno.  A few days after graduation, she got into Houston’s room, found Emma’s blue tie-dye dye in a bottle, and proceeded to carry it around with her so she could chew on it…the plastic bottle that is.  But guess what happens when you chew on a plastic bottle and you have really really sharp teeth?

Bingo!  Blue dye ALL over the dog and my house.  At least it is a really pretty blue color…..  Still trying to find someone who can clean the cushion covers for me….anyone knows a good upholsterer cleaner?

And here is the culprit who was caught red (or should I say blue) handed after several baths.

Speaking of Houston and Emma, boy do I miss them!  I just text Houston and said please send me a current photo for the newsletter.  I have forgotten what you look like!  Luckily, Emma was in OKC for Valentine’s Day and she is going to corral him and get some shots.

These are random, but fun!  One of Hous and Emma with Indy right before they headed out to OKC and one of Houston on a recent bike ride!

In more store news, we just got in the new Baggu designs.  So much fun and very Spring Like.  We have new masks and bags in stock!  Come and check us out!

Time for an eBay score!  Actually, this is a score in the making.  My mom just called me and it is so freezing up in Bellingham right now that she grabbed a hat that she had just listed on eBay to wear to keep her head warm.

Fortunately, she checked the auction (that had only been up for 2 days) and this particular hat already had 4 bids and was up to $50 from a $17.99 starting bid.  She decided not to wear it!  hahahaha  And she forgot to even put Hat or Cap in the listing….just goes to show you, anyone can sell on eBay!  Just kidding mama!

If you want to follow the auction, you can do so here.  Let’s hope it goes even higher for her!

In more exciting Annie Sloan news, she announced a new color last month, Capri Pink!  And yes, we do have it in stock!

Peggy and Sandy painted a couple of end tables/nightstands in an Athenian Black and Capri Pink combo.  The icing on the cake is the Leopard print in reverse color block.  I LOVE THESE!  Only $125 each.

Let’s check out some of those Scandinavian Teak MCM pieces in more detail.

If anyone knows the maker on any of the MCM pieces that we have been unable to identify, please help us out!  Thanks!

OK, time for a super funny story.  My friend, Kimberly Wallace, posted this on her story.  I misunderstood and thought this was a picture of a movie star.  So, I messaged her and guessed James Woods

This is what she posted in response to my message……hahahaha!  I love Kimberly and she obviously has a great sense of humor!

Of course, I had to immediately report on my story and proudly say…..I AM THAT FRIEND! Not my proudest moment, but a super fun one!
Let me show you a photo of what Kimberly really looks like and she is beautiful! This photo was taken during a live eBay boot camp that she attended back in 2010. For the record, I have known Kimberly since 1993 when she walked into my grandmother’s antique store in Bellingham to sell me flower arrangements. We have been friends through thick and thin ever since!

Just a reminder of Our CURRENT HOURS:

Tuesday through Saturday 11am to 5pm
Sundays 11 am to 3pm

Regarding Covid, I just want to reassure you that we are taking this very seriously and following protocol. We sanitize, wear masks, request that you wear a mask (unless you have a health issue that exempts you), and have a very large store.

With over 5,000 square feet our max capacity is 88 people. WOW, I wish I could have 88 customers at once when covid is over! Wouldn’t that be amazing? Just kidding, but kind of serious.

Bottom line is this, even at 25% of capacity (which the Governor is suggesting), there can still be 22 of you in the store. We never get that busy, so please feel safe and please ask us if you have any special requests. We are more than happy to make your shopping experience a great one!

Since Indy was moving back to her condo in Agoura Hills on February 7th to start the Spring semester remotely, I knew that it was my last chance to get out of dodge.  Cha Cha was still recovering from her surgery and Indy being the angel she is, agreed to let me head out to the desert on Weds February 3rd for a few days.

It was heaven to not have to babysit the pooch 24/7 and worry about her stitches!  My friends all had to work, but I went thrifting every day (found a ton of great stuff) and went to my hairstylist and aesthetician.  Since I lived out there for almost 16 years it still feels like home.

I did manage to squeeze in lunch one day with Kel and Candy.  Super fun!!

I brought back two of these mermaids for the store.  I guess you could say I rescued them from the desert and brought them closer to the sea!

I have to apologize here to both y’all and to Carlos. This entire newsletter (AGAIN) has been hijacked by Cha Cha.
And here are a couple of pictures of my little “bubba” from a year ago this week. He was soooo tiny and we do love Carlos so much! He was helping me write an ezine! Crazy how much he has changed in a year!

Thinking about our 3 year anniversary has me thinking about my dad.  He passed away at Cinco de Mayo in 2017.  I opened the store with money that he left me and that is why our grand opening was on March 1st, 2018, the day that should have been his 84th birthday.

My dad was my biggest cheerleader and biggest helper (my mom still is!).  Always willing to do any kind of job to help at my grandmother’s store, at my house, or at my eBay warehouse.  I really miss him and know that he would love the store so much.

This photo popped up in my time hop of him 5 years ago.  He was sitting at the table in the front window of my eBay office/warehouse on Boardwalk in Palm Desert patiently sorting the crazy messed up boxes and boxes of jewelry that I inherited from my grandmother.

Here he is helping (well actually not helping because he built the entire thing) build a crate to ship an expensive painting I sold on eBay.  That was my Dad, always making friends wherever he went, even if it was the guy down at Lowes.

Then there he is on the phone with my brother building the crate outside of my office in Palm Desert.  Check out my awesome turquoise crowns.  I still am The Queen of Auctions you know!   But, I really miss my dad.  Just know that our anniversary party on March 1st is my way of honoring him and I hope you can join us.

One of my friends posted a very poignant slogan the other day and I feel like I must share it.  Covid has made it extremely hard to do business and we have been working tirelessly to keep our customers happy, keep our consignors happy, and quite frankly to just stay in business.  It has not been easy.

Lately, some (very few but it still makes a huge impact) customers and consignors have been so angry, mean, and unreasonable that I wonder if it is worth it to keep the doors open.

So please read this and do what you can do to support your local businesses.

Please, please, please show us your support at our Anniversary Party on Monday, March 1st.  Even if you just honk while driving by.  It will be greatly appreciated.

AND, please don’t forget us….it has been super slow lately and your business is greatly appreciated.

Oh, and one last final future eBay score.  I bought this Rainbow Mid Century Lamp at a local garage sale for $75.  I have it listed on eBay for $1,999 or best offer.  Check it out here.

Finally, a great photo from back on March 1st, 2020 before all of this madness began and we could all be together.

My team, from left to right.  Indy, Val, me, my mom, Sandy, Steve, Peggy, Joanne, and Kathy Rutan.  Those were the days my friends!  Soon to come again I believe…Keep the faith and keep smiling (as my dad would say)!

Thanks for reading my ezines!  I appreciate it….as always!

eBay with Heart & Design with Heart……Lynn

 

P.S.  All of the professional photos I use on Instagram, Facebook, and in these newsletters were taken by my friend Denise’s daughter, Jaclyn Sabo.  She is amazing!   To learn more about Jaclyn….https://www.jaclynszabo.com/

P.P.S.  If you have a friend who wants to sign up for this newsletter.

 

A Goldendoodle, 2 Adults, 3 College Students, and a 3 Hour Car Ride…. What could possibly go wrong? Hahaha

Welcome to Lynn’s Latest #01…

January 9th
Watch for it every Friday or every other Friday! Or even on a SATURDAY like today!
Volume II Issue 01

 

When we found out we were getting a DOG, I reached out to Tina at Aloha Grooming for advice. She recommended Stacy Ayub for training. Stacy is AMAZING! Since I don’t have a photo of Stacy, here is one of Tina with her Alpaca who came to shop in the store this past Halloween. Just remember that all animals (of any size) are welcome to join you when shopping at Lynn’s!

One of the things that really stood out to me from our time with Stacy, was that the more exposure you can give your puppy the better. She said “Make sure she meets 100 people in her first 100 days, Take her to Lowes, Get her in the car, etc., Take her to the park…. because the more she experiences as a puppy, the less she will be afraid of later on”

Sooooo, over New Year, I decided we would take the familia and Cha Cha to Palm Desert! Why not? It would still be our “safe” family pod, but we would be in a new environment. Gotta shake this Covid thing up somehow! And, this would allow my mom to fly out of Palm Springs directly to Bellingham for her return trip. The PSP airport is a breeze and is so much easier on her than flying out of LAX. And Palm Desert is sooooo beautiful this time of year! It was going to be a win-win for everyone! or so we thought?

My mom and I headed out with Cha Cha on New Year’s Eve. The kids wouldn’t join us until New Year’s Day. We did OK with Cha Cha getting out there (but it is definitely a 2 man job). We had an appointment at 11 am at Barkingham Palace where Cha Cha would spend the day in Doggy Day Care so we could go thrifting!

Immediately after dropping Cha Cha off, we hit the thrift stores and yes, we hit them hard! I found a ton of flatware…probably 25 or more sets this trip. One of the sets was a Reed & Barton for only $8. Turns out that at high retail, this set adds up to over $1,000. I usually sell for about 1/2 of high retail, so that will be quite the ROI!

I got these listed in 16 separate auctions while I was out in the desert. As you can see from this recap, it does add up to over $500 and these are the lowest prices that I would accept for these pieces. If they don’t sell at auction, they will get listed in my store at a higher fixed price…the high retail from Replacements. Here is a link to see the current auction listings.

Hey, before I forget, I hope y’all had a very Merry Christmas. Ours was mellow, just me, my mom, Houston, Indy, and my brother Lee. Oh, but of course I am leaving out the most important people…how could I forget Carlos and Cha Cha! Notice Cha Cha’s Christmas sweater. It lasted about 10 seconds on her!

Here is a throw back photo of Carlos’ first Christmas in 2019 in his super cute sweater and next to it a photo of him wearing that same sweater in 2020. Still fits…kinda?

Oh, what a difference a year makes! And that is NO JOKE!

A high point of Christmas was that my brother made it down from San Francisco. Here is a cute photo of him and my mom and one of Cha Cha giving him some love!

Here is my brother at the store shopping in the Baggu section. He got some really cool pieces and believe it or not, he just text me to say, “The Baggu Mask with Stars is my current favorite mask”.

Just a heads up, the Baggu Masks are amazing but are sold in a 3 pack of $32. Not very convenient. So, we at Lynn’s Consignments, have started selling them individually at $10.95. Come in and check them out!

And finally, a last-minute selfie was taken as my brother was leaving to prove that we were all together for Christmas!

OK, so that wraps up Christmas! Let’s get back to the Palm Desert Fun!

After hitting about 10 thrift stores, it was time to go and pick up Cha Cha from her “doggy daycare”. When I got there I asked the girls how she did. They said, “She walked in like she owned the place!” That’s my girl! They also told me that she was much more interested in socializing than eating. Seriously, Cha Cha is just too much fun!

Once we secured the “package-aka Cha Cha” we drove to our hotel to check-in. Here is my mom chilling with the Cha Cha while they finish getting our room ready. Such a good girl!

Once we were settled into the hotel, it was on to the task of what to have for New Year’s Eve Dinner. Couldn’t go anywhere and it would have to be Take Out. I suggested Cactus Jacks because it is right across the street from the hotel and I LOVE that place!

When I lived in the desert, it was one of our hangouts and I used to frequent it with my good friend Max. I miss him! He moved to Puerta Vallarta….ugh! Here is an old Insta post from August of 2015…Ancient History! But it is all of us at Cactus Jacks for lunch….Oh the shenanigans!

That 2015 photo at Cactus Jacks lead me to an old ezine I wrote in September of 2015 right after dropping of Houston for his freshman year at Pepperdine. I started my Instagram during that time and the post I just shared was only my 4th ever. I only got 3 likes! LOL, thank you Kimberly Wallace.

That ezine that I wrote in September of 2015 was a really big one for me….I had just dropped off my firstborn at college…..Lots of lessons in that one….For those of you who want to check it out, here is a link. Interesting reading (especially for me)! Lots of tears. Here is a photo from that ezine.

OK, thank you for letting me go down that rabbit hole! Back to reality, when I called Cactus Jacks to place the New Year’s Eve order, Joan told me about the NYE special, Steak and Lobster for $59. I was buying & two dinners was out of my budget during this “Covid Christmas” so we settled on Cheeseburgers.

About 15 minutes after the order was placed, my mom said, “You know we could have shared one”…Oh crap! She was sooooo right. I was sooooo bummed that we missed out on Steak and Lobster, but as my mom reminded me “a Cheeseburger is the imperfectly perfect way to end 2020”. We got a good laugh out of that one. Especially, after we flushed 2020 goodbye!

Toilet photo courtesy of Valerie Harrington (my first Lynn’s employee)! LOL! BTW, her husband Ron is COMPLETELY cancer-free and he is even back to work! God is GOOD! Praise the LORD!

The next morning it was up and out early as we had TWO estate sales to attend! As my grandmother used to say, “Never a dull moment” and I truly try and live my life that way. I am always looking for my next adventure!

It was my plan to drop Cha Cha back off at Doggy Day Care so that we could shop alone, but alas, it was not to be. “Barkingham Palace” was closed on New Year’s Day. Luckily at our first estate sale stop, my good friends Jack and John, were more than happy to take care of the Cha, while I shopped!

Here is Jack with the little lady. She was sooooo good for him and she loved the attention.

I got so many fun things from the boys! Great finds and we will see how they do on eBay and in the store. It is always so fun to see them…they are good people! As I was shopping, a Duran Duran song came on, “Hungry Like the Wolf”…that was my sister’s favorite song (for those of you who don’t know she passed away in 2012 from lung cancer at 42 and left her two boys, only 3 and 5 at the time) and hearing that song, made me know that she was there with me. I wrote the boys a check for $599 and it was on to our next estate sale.

At the next sale, as I was shopping I spotted an ink blotter with a green slag backing. I knew immediately that it was Tiffany (without even looking for a signature, as my grandmother had the exact same Pine Needle patterned Stamp Box in her collection. It was then that I knew my grandmother was also with me on that New Year’s Day.

Here is a photo of my mom holding the ink blotter in the car.

As I did some quick research on my phone, I found an identical one for sale at $599! OMG, That was the amount of the check that I wrote at the first estate sale! Such a Godwink moment. My grandmother & my dad were looking out for me and handed me a score that would cover almost everything that I spent that day. WOW!

I think it is time to talk about the store and we can get back to the Desert trip later (hahahaha didn’t they call Coachella for the old folks with The Stones etc. the Desert Trip)…OMG!

We have been doing some super fun decorating. This past Wednesday, Val, Wayne, Adolio, Sunny, and I took down the Christmas Trees! What a huge job! Don’t forget, that through this upcoming Sunday 1/10…all Christmas is 25% off. But, only 2 more days! Don’t miss out!

Here are the guys taking down the trees….what a huge job!

Here is the front window display that Val and I replaced it with. Kind of Luxe and Fancy….right? Darn it though! We already sold the beautiful dresser from the corner. UGHHHHHH! I hate it when that happens.

And this driftwood look dresser just arrived!

Back to the Desert and that Ink Blotter. Here is my listing for the same ink blotter, but mine has a green slag background. I started my auction at $299 and will be thrilled to get that much for it! Click here to see if it has any bids yet!

Here is a story from my 1st “100 Best Things I’ve Sold on eBay” Book about the Tiffany Stamp Box that my brother inherited from our grandmother.

I love this picture of my brother and my grandma! It was taken at my wedding back in 1994. I couldn’t find it in color so will share one of my mom, Lee, my sister Kiki, me and my grandma.

Back to Palm Desert, it was only day 2 out in the desert and my mom and I had already had sooooo much fun! Next stop, was a visit with Sandra my former neighbor at Lake Mirage. She is retail royalty and her husband Alan was a top executive when I was a buyer at May Dept Stores Los Angeles. How crazy is that many years later she would be my neighbor? I love talking “shop” with her as she has some brilliant advice. She got to meet Cha Cha this trip!

I took Cha Cha on a little walk while my mom and Sandra visited and strangely enough she made a beeline to our former house. Didn’t want to go in any other direction just headed straight for our old patio. Strange, huh? I do think pets have a sixth sense. Here she is checking out the Lake and view from our former residence.

The kids arrived in Palm Desert just as we left Sandra’s house. Yay! We met them back at the Duplex. Do you think Indy missed her Cha Cha?

Then it was time to start talking about dinner. The kids grew up in Palm Desert so were throwing out all of their favorite restaurant names for take-out. I suddenly had (what I thought was) a brilliant idea! I do that sometimes 🙂 What if I called Cactus Jacks to see if they would extend the $59 Steak and Lobster for one more day? I called and Joan asked the chef…they said yes!

We decided to order one prime rib/lobster for Houston and two steak/lobster dinners for the 4 girls to share (me, Indy, Emma and my mom). It was a win-win and we were FINALLY starting 2021 off right! Check out that big bag of Cha Cha’s dog food in the photo. LOL!

My mom was flying out of Palm Springs the next morning (Saturday) so it was a great end to our holiday! And after dinner, we played Trivial Pursuit and had a blast!

The kids were going to be leaving Saturday as well and the plan was for me to stay until Sunday and drive back ALONE with the Cha Cha. I started to rethink that….not a great idea with a puppy.

The kids and I went thrifting Saturday and grabbed Islands for lunch. Here they are in a few of their new “old” outfits. Soooo cute!

The kids agreed to take Cha Cha home with them Saturday afternoon (WHEW) and since there was going to be a lot of traffic out of the Desert on Sunday because it was the end of the New Years’ weekend, I decided to stay until Monday. That way I could see the Palm Desert girls who had either been working or with the company. FUN!

Sunday morning Mo and I headed out to thrift and then we were going to head up to La Quinta to Candy’s house for drinks and appetizers. As we got off the freeway in Sun City and headed towards Angel View, my steering wheel stopped turning. SCARY! See, what could possibly go wrong on a road trip with a Goldendoodle? Thank God the Goldendoodle was safely back in Ventura!

Somehow I managed to pull my SUV into the parking lot and we called AAA. I had no idea how long my car would be in the shop, so we unloaded a ton of boxes of thrift items to take with us. Ughhhh! You can see the Angel View Sign (that we never made it to) in the background.

Luckily Candy was able to pick us up and I dropped off my keys at my old mechanics, European Auto. Then we headed out to Candy and Ron’s house for appetizers and drinks. We even watched a movie, “The Way We Were” and then called it a night.

The next morning, my mechanics emailed me an estimate…at first I was shocked with the $5k and then I looked closer. It wasn’t work that needed to be done right away and some of it not at all. Lilly let me know that $180 for power steering repair would get me home and being so sweet they did the work for me first thing that Monday morning! Yay for that!

I picked up my car at 1:30 and did a bit more thrifting. Thank goodness I would be able to drive home the next day which was Tuesday (day 5 of being in the desert). I was starting to feel like I still lived there.

But it was back to reality and the store! Check out the new paint kits from Annie Sloan that we have in stock! Purchase now for her “Big Paint” that will be taking place in February….Can’t Wait!

Click here to order yours now!

Here is more info about The Big Paint & It will be virtually taught by me at the store (an independent stockist that’s me :))…..

“The Big Paint is an international online painting workshop that you can enjoy from the comfort of your own home. Hosted by Annie Sloan and her network of independent Stockists, The Big Paint workshops will be taking place online in countries all over the world during the same week (1st – 7th February 2021). Reconnect with friends, family, and the wider Chalk Paint® community whilst nourishing your soul with some soothing creative therapy.

Your workshop kit will be sent directly to you by your local Annie Sloan Stockist and will contain everything you need to transform an authentic Indian tea tray. Included are 120ml tins of Chalk Paint® in Aubusson Blue, Scandinavian Pink, and Chicago Grey, an exclusive stencil design, a small tin of Clear Chalk Paint® Wax, a Flat Brush and the tray.

On the day itself, you’ll log on to your online hosted workshop, and follow along with other upcycling ticket holders as your Stockist demonstrates the ease of applying Chalk Paint® to create high-end finishes at home.”

Check out what comes in the kit and all of the creative different ways you can finish your tray! This is going to be FUN!!!

In more epic Lynn’s Consignment news, I actually cleaned off my desk! I know, I know right? Who would have ever thought that would happen? And in even better news, one of our new consignors sent in a dining room table with a glass top.

Unfortunately, the glass got chipped and Tom was going to take it and throw it away. I asked him if it might fit on top of my desk (so that I would have a smooth surface). We measured it and it was too big. Tom, being the awesome person that he is, offered to take it to get it cut. Seriously? Y’all here in Ventura are too darn nice!

Fast forward to about 30 minutes later and Tom shows up with the glass and patiently waits for me to clear off everything on my desk so we could place it on there. I am sooooo grateful to Tom! Check out my new and improved office AND my mom even painted that little cubby in Annie Sloan fun colors for me to use as desk drawers. Way to go Mor Mor!

OK, do you remember this eBay auction from the last newsletter? I had hoped it would sell in the $250 range. Here is the link to check it out. I paid $12 and started the auction at $99. Darn it! My bad in judgment.

Since it was over the holidays, I should have started the auction where I hoped to sell it. I was thinking (incorrectly) that it would get multiple bids and go over my $250 estimate. Didn’t happen. It sold for $146.38 with only 3 bids. UGHHHHH….I hate leaving money on the table!

Since I haven’t been in the store much, I haven’t been able to take pictures of the new items coming in….so please stop in and see us. We have so many great items!

Here are a few of the new arrivals!

Also, do you remember those really neat botanicals that we carry at $4.95 each? The ones posted up high on the wall? Here are some of the original ones up on the wall.

We just got in a ton of new beachy/unique ones. Please come in and browse through our notebooks full of them. They are 11 by 17″ and tea soaked for a distressed appearance. They are great just taped up on a wall, decoupaged on furniture, given rolled up as a gift or framed. Here is a sampling.

Just a reminder of Our CURRENT HOURS:

Tuesday through Saturday 11 am to 5 pm
Sundays 11 am to 3 pm

 

Time for an eBay score! I don’t think I have shared an ACTUAL score yet, but before I get to that….our eBay business is off the charts! I am NOT kidding! Cindy had to ship about 45 packages last weekend. It was crazy! Here is a picture of her with all of the boxes.

OK, here is a score for y’all. I am so sad that Houston is leaving in two days to go back to OKC. It has been so nice to have him home! Ughhhhh, but this score is definitely Houston-related because my little guy (well not anymore) still loves his choo choos. This is a railroad plate that I paid $1 for and listed during the first Covid lockdown back in April. It sold for the full asking price (less 10% from a sale I had running). Score! Over $75! Check it out here.

Regarding Covid, I just want to reassure you that we are taking this very seriously and following protocol. We sanitize, wear masks, request that you wear a mask (unless you have a health issue that exempts you), and have a very large store.

With over 5,000 square feet our max capacity is 88 people. WOW, I wish I could have 88 customers at once when covid is over! Wouldn’t that be amazing? Just kidding, but kind of serious.

Bottom line is this, even at 20% of capacity (which the Governor is suggesting), there can still be 17 of you in the store. We never get that busy, so please feel safe and please ask us if you have any special requests. We are more than happy to make your shopping experience a great one!

I have to apologize here to both y’all and to Carlos. This entire newsletter (AGAIN) has been hijacked by Cha Cha. Although, Carlos did get some representation with those cute sweater photos…am I right?

OK, so here is a screenshot of a video I posted on my Instagram stories. Carlos was diligently cleaning Cha Cha and it was sooooo cute. They really love each other!

OK, now back to Cha Cha. Hahahaha. I met one of my high school friends, Marty Mundell, in downtown Ventura yesterday to walk our dogs and get some drinks. It was super fun and here is Cha Cha meeting Willy for the first time. They had a blast as well!

And I will end this ezine with two fun pics of Houston and Indy trying to pick up their newest bundle of joy.

Let me wrap this up with a HUGE thank you for your continued support of me and my small business! You are keeping us going and my gratitude is immense! THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!

Finally, a great photo from back on March 1st, 2020 before all of this madness began and we could all be together.

My team, from left to right. Indy, Val, me, my mom, Sandy, Steve, Peggy, Joanne, and Kathy Rutan. Those were the days my friends! Soon to come again I believe…Keep the faith and keep smiling (as my dad would say)!

Thanks for reading my ezines! I appreciate it….as always!

eBay with Heart & Design with Heart……Lynn

 

P.S.  All of the professional photos I use on Instagram, Facebook and in these newsletters were taken by my friend Denise’s daughter, Jaclyn Sabo.  She is amazing!   To learn more about Jaclyn….https://www.jaclynszabo.com/

P.P.S.  If you have a friend who wants to sign up for this newsletter.