Victorian Trading Company's "Back Room" Treasures

I am fortunate to live a near a Victorian Trading Company Outlet.

While I seek true vintage items, VTC offers beautiful reproductions, of which many find their way home with me.

The VTC Outlet store near me has a "Back Room" that offers
damaged items at fair prices. 

I enjoy scouting through the back room for pieces I can repurpose and breath new life into them.  

Earlier this Summer, in conjunction with Birdsong 5, Peeps visited our local
VTC Outlet. 

I stopped by VTC before heading up to Birdsong 5 and ran into my dear friend Gail along with meeting other Peeps.  Fun!

Gail and I both love to shop the back room.  I had packed in my car, two repurpose creations from VTC's backroom.  One was an amazing necklace Gail created for my birthday last year and the other was a fairy garden gift I created, on its way as a gift for Karla.  

    We shared our repurposed creations with VTC and were posted directly onto the VTC Facebook page

 Gail's altered mini Altoid tin necklace is shown bottom center.  She used broken jewelry pieces she purchased from the VTC "back room" to create her gorgeous necklace to me.

This cherub piece was a former clock; however, the clock was broken.  I removed the clock and used its frame to house
a fairy garden.

 

front

back

front close up

 back close up

 

At home on Karla's buffet 

(photo courtesy of Karla)

On a recent trip taking Belle to the vet, nestled in the parking lot corner, I found a small chippy painted, weathered board amongst rain-soaked debris...my husband looked at me oddly when I picked it up, brushed away the debris and put it in the car to take home...isn't it fun to repurpose items with new life????

Bird Song II - Part Two

Twenty-eight women gathered recently to learn, teach and be blessed with kindred spirit at 
Bird Song II - as one Peep said 

"I've found my people"

 The day before Bird Song II - 

Rebecca, Laurie, me & Suzanne went treasure hunting

 Our amazing teachers 

Beth, Karla and Lisa

These gals are full of creative inspiration and so willing to share it! 

The Peeps

 

 

 Our classes were held in Karla's beautiful studio

(one can only be inspired from its beauty & creativity)

Day One 

 Beth's class - Nature Collage Assemblage

My collage includes a 1925 Kansas City newspaper featuring the Grain Market Review and an ad for Emery, Bird & Thayer, a store I remember from childhood on the Country Club Plaza.  The bottom right corner is a decoupaged napkin from our morning coffee - way too sweet for coffee use, so I used it on my collage.  It was a hit, several other Peeps uniquely used a napkin in their collages

Karla's class - Woodland Sprite

We created the mushrooms out of screen, duct tape, and then paper-mached the mushroom with vintage paper, included a frozen Charlotte all gussied up as a fairy, vintage millinery
and natural items

Day Two 
Lisa's class - The Faerie Theatre

I chose to use a photo of myself at age two to create my fairy.  Lisa taught us how to use wire, fabric and hot beeswax to create our fairy wings

Karla's class - Handmade Vintage Necklace 

Karla provided us with lovely vintage beads & watch faces to create our lovely necklaces.  This was my first time ever to create from scratch a necklace... after awhile my arthritis took over my fingers, my eyes grew tied, so I decided to finish my necklace at home...
still need to do that (!)

Here's Karla's example necklace, lovely isn't it?

   Still have oodles to share with you, so please check back again to see more of Bird Song II.

Till then, Find the wonderful in today!