Lisa's Cottage

May Gray?  Not out my window!  It’s sunny and warm and there’s a nice breeze making it oh-so-wonderful in Southern California.  I love this time of year!  We’ve got Cinco de Mayo, Mother’s Day and Memorial Day this month!  (For those of you following me in Kentucky, have fun at your Kentucky Derby parties!)

We’ve got some exciting things coming up here at the store.  Beginning this Friday, May 6th, we will be open late (until 8 pm!) on the FIRST FRIDAY of every month.  A large percentage of the stores in the village will be open late and have specials and refreshments for you!  Look for the balloons outside the store to let you know which merchants are participating!  If you don’t have a Mother’s Day gift yet, we’ve got some jewelry from visiting artist Kelly Evans:

These earrings also come in a silverplate version…aren’t they pretty?

Also, we have a class on Decoupage coming up.  The date is Thursday, May 26th at 9 am.  Shown above is the sample plate we have in the store of what you’ll be making.  Come in and sign up!

Remember, if  you’re stumped on what to get “MOM” for Mother’s Day, stop in and let us see if we can help you!

We have some handmade Mommy and Me aprons.

We just restocked our handmade soaps (you all are loving these!)…

We’ve got some new cute pieces of furniture at great prices!

Did your grandmother have a foil dispenser like the one in the picture?  Mine did!

We have lots of cool barware and pretty cordials and etched glassware!

This would be nice for your taco condiments…

If nothing else, pick up a nice hankie and stick it in  your Mom’s card.  She’ll love it!

How many of you are getting the good china and silverware out in preparation for Easter weekend? 

Do you have your Easter bonnet picked out?

I asked my best friend Julie if she would take some pictures at the store while I was at my house having a storage shed built (it came out beautifully!).  I had just remodeled everything (AGAIN!) and was anxious to see how it looked in pictures.   Love it!

REMINDER:  Beginners Ribbon Flower class is next Thursday, April 28 at 9 am.  As of today, we have 5 out of 6 slots taken. Don’t wait if you want to learn to make these beautiful pieces of Art!

As I look out the window of the store at yet ANOTHER dreary day,  I need to stay focused on the positive and remember that our yard is so green and full of blossoming flowers!  

We have lots of flowers here in the store too, in all shapes and forms. 

Some on china:

Some on chairs:

Some on pins:

Some on pretty teacups:

Some on Mother’s Day baskets:

And in pretty “Claire’s” basket – (Claire is the store mascot)…

Well, you get the idea…  We LOVE flowers at Lisa’s Cottage!

Hey, speaking of Mother’s Day (it’s May 8th…write it DOWN…LOL!), we are getting some cute things in the store in the next few weeks that will be PERFECT for your Mother (and Mothers-in-law!).  ALSO, we will be giving out a free gift with minimum $25 purchase beginning Saturday, April 9th (while they last).  Mention you read about it in the blog!   Check back for updates as we get them in…

CLASSES….CLASSES…..CLASSES….

Our ribbon class filled up quickly last time so if you want to reserve a spot in our next class, Ria will be teaching a beginners ribbon flower class on Thursday morning (9 am) on April 28th.  Cost of the class is $15 + 5 materials fee.  You will make 3 ribbon flowers and Ria will find out how many of you want to take an advanced class to make the flower necklace shown below. 

If there is enough interest, we’ll book an advanced class.  The advanced class would cover how to make a necklace using the technique learned in the beginner’s class.  The finished product looks something like this:

Call the store at 619-466-2600 to prepay your spot if you want to assure that you’ll get in on the beginner’s class (Remember, if you commit to take the class, it removes a spot for someone else, so the class fees are non-refundable).

Ria will also be teaching a class on decoupage, the craft of applying paper with an adhesive sealer to decorate all kinds of items.  We’ll try to post photos of an example of what you’ll be making for the class.  Again, the cost is $15 + $5 materials fee.  THAT class will be Thursday, May 19th at 9 am.

For those of you who can’t make the classes during the week and would like to attend, please send me an e-mail to lisascottage@gmail.com and I will teach a Saturday class if there is enough interest.

Some cute things I also wanted to share with you at Lisa’s Cottage…check this out:

THE most adorable chocolate lab was patiently waiting for their owner, Lore (one of our fav customers!) to finish her purchase and get BACK in the car.  Sooooo cute!  Just had to snap a picture!

Or perhaps they were trying to strain to see “How much is that doggy in the window?” These are cute, handmade dogs that can be custom-made for your pet! 

Also, we have some cute, cute things that we just brought in:

CHECK OUT this adorable PINK Royal Typewriter!

Who’s going to take home this cute little shabby chic desk?

We’ve got some beautiful hats that would look great on a hatstand on your dresser!

Oh, by the way, we finally had enough sunny weather to get our sign up on the building.  Here is Rich surveying his wife Jurene’s and his granddaughter’s Jenny’s work!  They did a great job!

And finally, I hope to soon be bringing in my vintage tools, some beautiful pots to use in your garden and some vintage trains and comics.  It should be a FUN spring!

The village merchants of La Mesa will be having one of their biggest events in a few weeks, so be sure to mark it on your calendar!  The LAST SUNDAY in MARCH (3-27-11) from 9 am – 4 pm, we will have our annual Antique Street Faire.  This is a great annual event with a multitude of vendors sellings some wonderful antiques and collectibles.  Parking is free on Sunday but you can also access it via trolley!

If you make it down here, you can see some of the new displays in the shop!  We want to celebrate all that is Spring…the birds are busy building their nests in the front and back yards (which makes for a noisy morning!) and we have lots of new bird related items to show you…

We’ve got a whole beautiful display of some wonderful teacups and teapots for  you to see!

!

If you don’t walk through slowly, you might miss these:

These candle pins dress up an ordinary candle and come in a variety of designs.

We’ve got good, old-fashioned antiques too…such as these:

For those of you who can’t make it down, I wanted to let you know that a lot of items from the shop are on www.etsy.com.  You can go directly to my shop at http://www.etsy.com/shop/LisasCottage.  Also, don’t forget you can SUBSCRIBE to this blog and the updates by clicking on the <Sign me Up!> button on the right. 

We should have class information for you very soon!  We have another ribbon class and a decoupage class in the works!

Our post header refers not only to the gradual warming temperatures we’ve been experiencing but also to the incredible warmth this community has shown us.   It’s been fun for us as more and more people are out walking now that the days are getting longer.  We’re meeting the  local community and their kids (furry ones included!).  Thanks for the great welcome!

We hope you’ll subscribe to the blog by clicking on the subscription button to the right and get notified of our specials, classes and upcoming events.

We’ve sold the hutch but still have this “lazy susan” table made by Lexington Furniture.   It is definitely an item of superior quality that will last for generations to come!

Some local characters…(the pictures speak for themselves…ha!)

As usual this time of year, the daily forecast has been up and down.  Makes it hard to figure out what to wear every day, doesn’t it?

We’ve been getting the store prepped with a lot of fun Easter and spring items!  We have some adorable egg cups that came from a local woman’s incredible egg cup collection.  She probably had over 400 egg cups….I’m not kidding! 

We held our first Ribbon Flower class and everyone told me they had a great time.  Ria Roberts, our instructor, came well-prepared and we left the class with 3 completed projects (and new friends!).

And here are the finished products!  I was so proud of everyone for participating and accomplishing so much!  Stay tuned for our next class…

Last but not least, let me introduce you to Charlie.  He wanted to ride the Fire Truck pedal car out front and his Grandpa graciously let him.  Look at the adorable fireman boots!  He loved it!

"Charlie" our visiting Firefighter!

Interested in learning how to make a flower out of ribbon?  We have just the class for you!  For only $15 (+$5 for materials), you will leave the class with 3 ribbon flowers in hand that look very similar to this:

If you have a cool vintage pin or maybe an old set of earrings that still have a pretty setting, you can always use it for these pretty items.  They can be made into pins, put on a headband or attached to your purse. The class will be held on either 2/16 or 2/19 depending on what day the largest number of people can attend.  Call the store for details and to check on availability.  (619) 466-2600

Here’s some neat things you can spend your 10% class participation coupon on:

This pretty jewelry box is priced right for your Valentine gift-giving needs!