With 2023 officially at an end, I’m taking a look back at some of my favorite finds, projects, and memories from the past year.
New year, neutral color palette
I started off 2023 by packing away all of the red and green holiday decor that was left over in my booth at Brown Street Emporium and replacing it with vintage pieces in a neutral color palette. That wooden monkey sold quickly. Isn’t he a hoot?
My post-Christmas decor included a few refurbished cutting boards and some vintage ironstone dishes that I displayed in a wall-mounted plate rack. I also had a few leather briefcases that I hung in a row from vintage hooks. I loved how the briefcases looked lined up like that.
A magazine feature and a few upcycles
One of my spring highlights was having a sign that I made featured in Country Sampler’s Farmhouse Style magazine.
I used to be a newspaper reporter and editor in a previous life, but it’s still a thrill to open a publication and see my work in print.
Meanwhile back in my booth, I sold a few metal boxes and wooden crates that I had given makeovers to. I do a lot of these kinds of upcycles. I generally get inspiration from Pinterest or elsewhere on the web. Then I draw up the designs in Photoshop and cut stencils with my Cricut.
I also went on a bit of a concrete kick over the spring. I bought a bag of a cement product meant for leveling subfloors and used it as a skimcoat over a bunch of cheap resin and ceramic decor pieces I had picked up secondhand. When the cement dried, I sanded off the rough spots and applied white wax to mimic the look of lime over the concrete. The concrete bunnies especially were pretty good sellers.
Summer: Vintage finds and a festive Fourth
This vintage wicker frog was one of my favorite finds from the year. When I picked him up secondhand, he was in a sorry state. Only one of his limbs was solidly attached to his body. The other three were barely hanging on. Luckily, I was able to re-attach them with wire. The frog lent my booth a boho vibe for a little while.
I found this handmade red, white, and blue dress on a rack of Halloween costumes at a thrift store back in the fall of 2022. I waited until May to bring it to my booth because I knew it would be a great statement piece before the summer holidays . The dress sold just before the Fourth of July. I hope whoever bought it wore it to a parade and had a fabulous time. How could she not? It’s a fabulous dress.
Fall: Upcycled pillows and painted signs
What to do with a rug that’s in great shape except for a stain in the middle of it that won’t come out no matter how many times you wash it? I cut mine up into pieces and upcycled it into throw pillows. I made a couple for myself first and then brought a few others into my booth to sell. I’m not a great sewist by any means, but pillows are easy enough for me to handle, and they looked great spilling out of one of my upcycled crates.
I love Halloween. This year I brought a few handmade signs and a witch’s broom into my booth. I was happy with the spooky vibe, but the signs were not great sellers. I think next year I’m going to have to move on and find something else to make and sell in the fall.
Christmas decor galore
Early in the fall, I found this unpainted toy barn at a thrift store for $3.60. (It was marked $4.50, but it was on sale for 20 percent off on the day I bought it.)
My husband installed a sliding barn door for me and made a few other structural improvements. Then I painted the walls red and the roof green and made some signs and stencils that turned it into a Christmas barn.
This was probably my favorite upcycle of the year. I was so proud of how it turned out!
When the Christmas season rolled around, I once again had a lot of vintage red and green holiday decor in my booth, but my favorite vignette was this black and white and silver display. I made the Oconomowoc sign and the Ho Ho Ho sign hanging in the back. Both of them sold. Yay!
That was a fun trip down memory lane! And now it’s time to do it all over again. What was your favorite project or vignette of 2023? Let me know in the comments below!
— Lisa