Welcome Home Sylvia!

Sorry for the delay folks, I know you've all been patiently waiting for some news on the homecoming, that being said I will now take this opportunity to proudly announce that Sylvia has finally arrived!


For months I've pictured what she would look like in the yard, where she would sit, the gardens around her... but nothing beats seeing the real thing. There is still a bit of work to be done to get her looking her best before the opening on the 18th. We're going to polish her up a bit, and there's still some painting and landscaping that needs to happen before I start putting away the stock that has been arriving daily. 


I promise to start sharing some of the treasures with you shortly, but for now I'm going to leave you with a collection of shots since her arrival - enjoy!

Welcome to Flying Cloud Boutique!

She fits in here quite nicely!

She even looks good from the bug tent!

Looking cozy.

These shelves were once the floor - yay free-cycle!

Hello from Tacha and Gary!

Experiments in cleaning aluminium...

Bryan did all the dirty work.

One side with $25 spray the other with $5 oven cleaner

After a buff she is going to shine like a mirror!

The quilt top I found at Frenchy's is a perfect fit for the booth!

I'm sure this find was a gift sent from my Grammy, it
looks as though something  she would have sewn herself.

I'm thinking I might do a little decoupage in the accessory area 

I'm a little tired right now, but it's all worth it!

Multitasking the Days Away!

Well the count down is officially on! Sylvia will be coming home in 8 days and Flying Cloud Boutique will open it's doors in 21 Days!  That's just 3 weeks away!!!


I feel like I've been busy just about every minute of every day, working on one thing or another, getting ready for the soft opening Saturday June 18th.


Last week I had two interviews - the first with the lovely Nicole Trask for a feature appearing in the summer issue of Halifax Magazine, and the second with Glen Parker from the Chronicle Herald. 


I've never been interviewed for a publication before, it was quite an exciting experience; my only disappointment was that I couldn't show them Sylvia up close... but they, like me and you all, will have to wait for the big reveal next weekend!


Until then I am going to keep working away... getting contracts signed, organizing inventory, writing informative blogs on all the participating artists who've come on board... and no doubt fighting off mosquitoes and black flies as I try and make Sylvia's new home as pretty as possible.


Wish me luck!

This Week in Reno's: Some very clever recycled racks

The view from my counter, it feels so open and spacious!
I just love how the turquoise bounces off of the walls.

The always inventive free-cycler Gary puts some old racks to good use!

Here's another one salvaged,  now cleverly disguised as a magazine rack.

In three more weeks I'll be sitting right back there wearing
 the biggest smile you've ever seen, I can hardly wait!

Last Week in Renos

Gary found the perfect match for my colour scheme - it's called Scooter!

Bottom shelves complete!  Now to build the towers of shelves & drawers.

Checking in on Sylvia's Renovations

This last weekend we took a trip to Annapolis to check in on Sylvia's progress and exchange ideas with Gary about the designs for the shelving. 


So far things are looking really great! I just love the combination of recycled and salvaged material; transformed by such a clean design style, it is what I would build if I had the first clue as to how to build! I may have done well in junior high "Wood-shop"  pumping out a spice rack, a loonie shaped piggy bank and a foot stool, but I've always been a little too afraid of power tools to take on any project as detailed as this one on my own... so I'm pretty thankful we found Gary! 


One obstacle for us had been what to do with the floors, but super Gary came up with yet another brilliant solution, one that I think will end up looking absolutely fabulous (but you'll have to wait for the reveal to see for yourself!)


We had a great visit with Gary as he showed off all his hard work and displayed the benefits of his versatile designs. One example being the transformation of the dinette into a double sized bed! Gary has so many tricks up his sleeve...  now I just have to patiently wait for the next four weeks to pass so I can finally revel in Sylvia's complete makeover! 


Until then here are a few pics of what's been done so far...

The view from my counter.

The built in storage also hides the wheels.

Gary showing me how the storage cupboards
on the other side will be deeper.

Gary has plans to build me a display
case made from recycled windows.

Gary had to replace an old leaky vent - bye, bye water!

The previously built in cupboards are pretty rad themselves, with
a little paint they are going to work nicely as display boxes!

Moving Right Along

While I've been keeping myself busy prepping for the Halifax Crafter's Spring Flight show this weekend at the Olympic Centre in Halifax http://pistaciapages.blogspot.com/ Gary has been working away on the camper renovations.


It was absolutely thrilling to finally see my sketches coming to life in the form of storage cabinets and built in benches.


It has been strange to be so far away from Silver Sue while the renovations have been going on, but I know she is in very capable hands. With less than six weeks to go until we open I am just bursting with anticipation!

I don't know about you, but this gal can not wait to see what else the talented Mister Webb is going to come up with :)

Welcome to the Family Silver Sue!

Sylvia

On  March 26th, which also marked my sister's 14th birthday (a momentus occasion in itself), we ventured towards the South Shore to pick up the newest member of our family. 


I've haven't had the best track record naming things, my cat became known as Mister Fluff because I couldn't decide which word would best describe him... and I thought it a novel idea that due to his striking resemblance he could be the reincarnation of my first pet Fluffy.


Thank goodness then that Bryan instantly came up with a suitable name, and seeing as it is also the name of my Grammy's baby sister, I thought it was the perfect fit -  Sylvia, or Silver Sue for short.

We left home that Saturday with clear skies and sunshine, however we were greeted in New Canada by a sequence of snow squalls so powerful that they nearly knocked us over. Winter hadn't been kind to the area around Sue, so the boys had to work almost an hour to wiggled her out of her nook in the yard. By the time we were ready to say our goodbyes the weather had turned and the sun started to peak through again, lighting our way back towards the valley.

Bry and I had the good fortune of following behind Silver Sue as she gracefully made the turns of the very familiar #10 highway. Growing up I spent nearly every summer at the other end of the #10 with my Grandparents in Nictaux Falls.  As we chaperoned Sue on her way to her makeover we went down old roads that I had not traveled in over 15 years.  

Certain buildings and streams brought back memories from dreams I'd had since then; bizarre visions and emotions of being confined in a summer camp, and participating in an escape led by a girl with dark ringlets, wearing a blue trimmed white sun dress. False versions of this drive had replaced my memories of the true scenery I'd enjoy'd as a child, so it was an incredibly surreal trek that afternoon as I sorted though the fact and the fiction in my mind.  

Once we safely got Sue to Gary's we started our thorough examination to find out the true extent of damage. Unfortunately Sue's tarp had been missing for some time, so the holes where the new vents were to be installed had been letting in water. Sadly the newly replaced floor that the previous owner had painstakingly installed is now damaged and needs to come out. 


On a positive note, the previous owner had been an electrician, so all of Sue's wiring is new and in working order. Thank goodness, because I hadn't really budgeted for that department.


Sue is going to spend the next 9 weeks or so with Gary as he finds creative ways to transform her into my dream boutique! It was sad to leave Sue so far away in Annapolis while she gets her face lift, but my excitement grows daily as I prep for her arrival here at home, where she will eventually appear all primped and preened and ready to go!