Local Shopping Guide (updated)

I love junkin. Something about a rusty/weathered anything just makes my heart happy. A lot of people ask me where I shop so i wanted to compile a list of the best places in town [within an hour radius] to go junking. Now, if your aren't a local you might want to skip this post but for all you Colorado Springs folks here you go!

Willowstone Antique Marketplace
2150 West Garden of the Gods Road, Colorado Springs, CO 80907

American Classics Marketplace
1815 Academy Blvd N, Colorado Springs, CO 80909

Sweet William
2109 Broadway St, Colorado Springs, CO 80904

Paris Market Vintage
1785 Briargate Pkwy suite 711, Colorado Springs, CO 80920

Gatherings
1434 Kelly Johnson Blvd, Colorado Springs, CO 80920

Whitewashed Cottage
 13530 Front St, Peyton, CO 80831

MONUMENT

The Roost
 135 2nd St, Monument, CO 80132

Village Merchants
155 N Jefferson St, Monument, CO 80132

The Barn
 400 Third St, Castle Rock, CO 80104

The Emporium
 200 Perry St, Castle Rock, CO 80104

PUEBLO

The Downtown Farmgirl
321 S Union Ave, Pueblo, CO 81003

Unique Treasures
1909 E $th Street, Pueblo, CO 81001

Old Time Antiques
204 S Union Ave, Pueblo, CO 81003

Union Antiques
200 S Union Ave, Pueblo, CO 81003

Real Deals
310 W C St, Pueblo, CO 81003

FLORENCE

Salvage, Antiques, Vintage Etc
201 W Main St, Florence, CO 81226

Willie's Antiques
 111 Church Ave, Florence, CO 81226

Antiques at the St Elmo
318 W Main St, Florence, CO 81226


xoxo,
Jackie

DIY Canvas Bag Turned Pillow

I came across this cute tote bag at Hobby Lobby and thought,that'd make a cute pillow and bam, this project was born. The bag was $4.99 and i already had the pillow on hand so it was a cheap and quick project, my favorite.

First, cut the handles off the bag and suff your pillow inside

I can't sew a lick so I use hot glue to close up the gap. I do the corners first then pinch them and run glue along the edge and pinch close as I go. Easy peasy.

Voila! 5 minutes later and you have yourself an adorable farmhouse pillow for $5.

---Jackie

DIY Custom Wood Sign

I am back, and better than ever. I told you guys I had some projects coming up, bet you didn't think I get anything done that quick though right? This project was created based off budget for me. Did I have to DIY it? No. Was it a ton cheaper to DIY it? Hell yes. I have been scoping out these custom signs for a while now but for the size I wanted (5ft x 2ft) prices were sometimes over $200 (or they didn't come in that size at all). Not happening in my world. That's okay though, because you can DIY almost ANYTHING these days.

source

source

First, I created the sign online. There's tons of free poster creator sites you can use or, like me, you can use good old fashioned paint shop.

Next, I went to Hobby Lobby and grabbed my letters in three sizes. If you wait for them to go on sale you can do this project even cheaper! I got the 10" letters (wood) for the first line, then I grabbed the smaller chip board letters for the second line and finally, the mini wood letters (they come in a bag, I needed 2 bags) for the final line.

After that I went to Lowes and got a piece of 20"x 72" edge glued pine, 3 pieces of 1x2x6 boards and a 6ft piece of flat trim.

When I had all my supplies on hand I started the project off by spray painting (I used Rustoleum Chalked spray paint) to get those letters a flat black color.

Then I cut down my sign (to 5'5" ) and painted it white (leftover paint i had on hand) and stained the 1x2 (after I cut them to make a frame around the edges of my sign) and whitewashed them.

Assembly time! I arranged everything to see how I wanted it to look then measured measured measured to make sure everything was even. i used scrap wood as spacers and wood glue to secure the letters to the board.

After I let it dry flat overnight Zack and I attached the frame around the edges with our nail gun.

Here she is in all her glory.

So pretty and total cost for the project was only around $70

Large letters: $1.49 each =$10.43
Medium letters $0.99 each= $10.00
small letters $3.99/bag= $7.98
wood sign $29.95
1x2x6-$2.96 each = $8.88
flat trim $4.96
paint/glue= $0.00 items I had on hand
Total: $72.20

---Jackie

*some people have been asking me what to do if their name doesn't sound good with 'mercantile' so I came up with a list of other options below

-General Store
-Market Place (or Market)
-Textiles
-Commissary
-Wholesale
-Trading (or Trading Post)

You can also choose to do things like
-Bakery
-Cafe
-Parlor
-Brewery
-Bake Shop

Admitting My Mistakes

It feels like I havent posted in forever. I really havent. Truth is, I'm not feeling very inspired right now. After our trip to California/Arizona I decided to completely redecorate into a boho theme. Y'all remember that right? Now I'm realizing I made a huge mistake. I love the bohemian style, dont get me wrong, but its like I sold all the things I had collected over the years, things I loved, and filled my home with a random slew of items that fit that theme. It didnt feel like home anymore. I actually got to this point where I was like I dont even want to live here anymore because this house has been such a challenge for me. In the end, I decided to cut my losses and go back to the roots of this blog: Farmhouse. No, I wont be re-buying all the things I sold. Unfortunately, those items are long gone and I have to let it go but I will be slowly re introducing that farmhouse style back. Also, I do still want to incorporate some bohemian items but only the things I LOVE! Of course, this means starting over, yet again. I went through the house and purged all the things that made me say "eh" and created a plan on paper for how I was going to put all these things together, and make them look good! It's frustrating, for me and I'm sure for you too. You're probably sitting there like, "damn girl, pick a lane!" Trust me, I feel the same way. But, I'm back with so many plans I can't wait to get started on. I'm feeling inspired again and I think I'm finally headed in the right direction this time! Thanks for your patience! Be back soon.

---Jackie