the mermaid's mercantile

DIY Seashell Covered Ribbon

2012-02-03T11:12:00.000-08:00

It's going to be a wonderful weekend!

Here is my newest video tutorial!

This diy shows you how to wrap gifts with seashells AND I do a little rap at the end...

yo yo crafty girls!

Fun giveaway! how to make a Mermaid Pendant

2012-01-24T20:35:00.000-08:00

Here is my latest video tutorial, just in time for Valentine's Day!
I am selling a kit with all the supplies needed to make this beautiful heart shaped necklace on my Etsy site. To order visit http://www.etsy.com/shop/debisdesigndiary or enter to win this one by subscribing to my youtube channel, subscribing is free and easy just hit the subscribe button embedded in this video.
Have a great day everybody!
Sincerely,
Debi

2012-01-16T13:03:00.000-08:00

Happy Monday everybody!

I have a new video that I want to share with you.

I have made thousands of these seashell covered letters! to find out why watch the video below and go to my design blog at http://debisdesigndiary.blogspot.com

Hope you all have a great day!

Sincerely,

Debi

The balance between selling your handmade stuff like crazy and creative burnout!

2012-01-10T09:49:00.000-08:00

Way back in the day before I opened my shop, I was making my handmade crafts and selling them to gift stores across the country, I had a whole line of handmade gifts that I made and sold, to 300+ accounts... this was the 1980's long before there were blogs, Youtube, Facebook or Etsy. It was fun!... but after making hundreds of the the same thing, over and over,... not so much.

It was the creative process that I loved and craved, coming up with an idea and then perfecting it, seeing others respond, that was the thrill!
One of my accounts was a chain of 11 stores in Hawaii, I would get a big order from them, work like a banshee to fill it, and as soon as I would come home from the post office, my fax machine would screech out a new order from them. yay! combined with a heavy sigh....
I was super grateful to be making a living doing what I loved, but I struggled to find balance between mass production (I was a one man band) and my passion for designing new things. I kept my business open for 7 years and then opened my own shop, this months marks the 15th anniversary as a store owner.
Although I no longer make hundreds of the same thing at one time, it is still a challenge to carve out time to create new things, If I do get into my studio to create, it is usually between the hours of 10pm and 2am.
As many of you you may already know, I have always wanted to share my ideas in a big way, get them out there and inspire others to create! Our world has changed a lot since the 80's and there are so many ways to connect and share!
Last month I started my youtube channel, DebisDesignDiary.
I have posted six craft videos so far, the one above is a DIY on how to make Seashell Candles, these candles are one of the many things that I made thousands of,... to the point of tears.
My hope is you will watch my videos and they will inspire you to create, then all the tears will be worth it!
I will be posting a new video to youtube every week, so please subscribe if you like them, subscribing is free!
If you do, make one of my projects, please post a picture on my Facebook page!
Sincerely,
Debi

Two new videos and Two Giveaways!

2012-01-06T11:24:00.000-08:00

Watch this fun and easy video, How to make Seashell Curtains and you could win the curtains I make in this video!

Watch this video on how to make these super pretty seashell pillows using pillow covers from Ikea!

Subscribe to my Youtube channel and you could win these pillow covers too!

Happy new year everybody!

yay 2012!

Sincerely,

Debi

A New video! How to make a Seashell Table with a crinoline skirt...

2012-01-03T07:28:00.000-08:00

Hello Everybody!
I am super excited to tell you that I will be posting 9 new videos this month! Here is the newest one, How to make a seashell table! You will be amazed at how easy and affordable this is!
I also have Three more BIG giveaways coming up, to be entered into my giveaways just Subscribe to my youtube channel (shesellsseashellscom) you can get there by simply watching the video above and hitting the subscribe button!
Happy 2012! Wishing you the most creative year ever!
Sincerely,
Debi

Big News, HUGE Giveaway and Fun How-to Video ... awesome giveaway!

2011-12-22T16:32:00.000-08:00

Happy Holidays Everyone,
I so excited to announce that I have started a fun Youtube channel!
Debi's Design Diary on Youtube will be all about how-to craft and home decor projects.
I will post several videos a month, sharing my step-by-step instructions on how to create lots of beautiful items for your home. I will be sharing my secrets and my experience with you of over 20 years of creating and selling my handmade designs. My videos will be full of ideas for repurposing vintage items into great home decor and I will be doing some really amazing room makeovers too,
AND, will be lots of giveaways starting today!

I am going to give away one Sandman kit for every 10 people who subscribe to my YouTube channel!
That's a one and ten chance to win!
All you have to do is watch the video above and SUBSCRIBE to my channel. The winners will be picked at random and announce here and on my Facebook page in January.
Coming up.... next month, How to make a seashell mirror like the one I made on ABC's Extreme Makeover Home Edition, and yes I will be giving that mirror away to one lucky subscriber.... stay tuned!
Sincerely,
Debi

Remember you gotta subscribe to win...

The Mermaid's Mercantile is this Sunday!

2011-11-23T18:55:00.001-08:00

Watch the video find out the New name of the shop and get all the details here!
we will be open from 10am- 5pm
Our garden will be full of colorful and fun handmade and vintage treasures!
We have something fun and unique for everyone on your list!
Hope to see you soon!
Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!
Debi
you can call us at 858 755 7630

How to make Sea urchin cupcakes video!

2011-11-15T13:52:00.001-08:00

Here is my first DIY video!
I will be posting all of my new videos coming up on my other blog, which is DebisDesignDiary.blogspot.com
If you like this video please subscribe to my youtube channel!
You can order a kit to make a batch of Sea Urchin Cupcakes on my Etsy shop.
www.etsy.com/shop/debisdesigndiary
I will also have a few dozen finished cupcakes for sale at the next Mermaid's Mercantile
on Nov 27TH!
Hope to see you there!
Sincerely,
Debi

The next Mermaid's Mercantile is Nov 27TH!

2011-11-08T22:01:00.000-08:00

Thank you all for the wonderful and encouraging comments on my last post!
I was so touched by your kind words, a comment or thoughtful word can change your whole day.
With new inspiration,
I have decided to create a DIY web show on my own...
This video is the first of many to come.
I am already working on the next one, a DIY tutorial, how to make sea urchin cupcakes!

stay tuned, I hope to finish this one by next week.
I also want to create a tutorial on how to make this vintage seashell wreath for the holidays!
I am up to my eyeballs in ideas and can't wait to share them all with you!

It is the first time I have ever shot, produced and edited a video by myself.
I hope you like it! and I hope to see you all on November 27TH!
I will post again with some photos of the artists and vendors and what they will be selling!
Sincerely,
Debi

The Help that comes from above.

2011-10-11T15:12:00.000-07:00

A fellow merchant stopped me on the street awhile ago to say that she really enjoyed reading my blog!
My response, "oh I feel so guilty, I rarely post and when I finally do I labor over the thing to the point of exhaustion."
She said, '"keep doing what you're doing, only post when you have something to say and keep putting your heart into it."
Wow, I thought as walked away, some people actually read my words.
That was months ago, busy and uninspired I have not posted again until today.
You may already know that I have dreams of hosting a show. I have known that I wanted to be on television since I was a child. I have always wanted to make something, that will inspire and entertain, something that the world has never seen before! These big dreams that I have are a mixed blessing to say the least.
I have had many successes and many, many closed doors. I have tried so many things, auditions, submissions projects, too many to count, I do not want to put you or myself though the pain of reliving it all again just believe me when I say that I have tried a lot of things.
I don't know how to explain what drives me except to say that, 'I just have to'. Most of the time I keep so busy that when the "no thank you's' come, it only stings a little, but once a awhile I will find myself hammered by self doubt, words like 'wasted life, missed opportunity' and coward' race through my brain and torment me. I found myself stuck in one of these moods last week, I woke up feeling it creep in. The contemplations of what to do next, the reflections of my failed attempts and the question, why can't I find satisfaction in what I have accomplished and just let go of the seemingly impossible dreams that plague me? Then I said a prayer, it went something like this,
"God, I am tired, I'm discouraged, I don't have a plan, I've tried so many things, what do I do now? If I am really supposed to keep trying at this then please send me some inspiration, and some direction!"
That morning I logged on to my email and saw a headline that said, 'Best selling author, Kathryn Stockett rejected 60 times before published' I read Kathryn's interview as she recounted her story and her words struck me, "what if I had given up on try #15? or try #60? Then she said, I did not know how to make myself give up" I could definitely relate to that. Kathryn's book , 'The Help' was finally published became a best seller and recently has been made into a film!

Feeling some of the inspiration that I prayed for and a lot of curiosity, I went to see this film.
I got rid of my TV years ago, and I rarely go to see a movie.
After the movie was over, I sat in my seat, not ready to leave the theatre, I was in awe of this woman, her tenacity and how she created this book that became such a beautiful, powerful film.
I almost never stay to watch the credits roll but something kept me in my seat that night. As the theatre emptied out my friend said, "wow that will probably be nominated." and I overheard a couple say Oscar as they left. As I chatted with my friend we were the only ones left still sitting, a name on the screen caught my eye, "whoa, Tate Taylor" ? I said out loud, my friend said, "what? who's that? do you know him?"
My first thought was, 'oh Tate, I remember he said he was from Mississippi, he must have acted in this? Then the words writer, and director rolled up, and I said, " What? how did he do that? This was a 25 million dollar film, when I met Tate a few years back he was the standard boy from a small town moved to Hollywood to make it big.

(Tate Taylor in the middle directing his lead actresses on the film set of The Help.)

Tate came to my shop to interview me in 2004, he was a writer sent by Coastal Living magazine.
My shop had been open a few years and one of my big dreams was to be featured in the pages of Coastal Living magazine. I just knew that this was going to happen, I knew it before I ever opened for business. Never mind that I had never seen a story on a business in Cl that was more than a page long, that most of their stories were on very expensive beach homes. A customer who was a writer told me that the proper protocol for getting into magazines, was to get an agent who would pitch my story, I needed some professional photos and a query letter, that I should not contact the editor directly but send it to their secretary and then if there was interest send more information. Well at that time I did not even own a computer and I knew that If I had to do all of that I would never do anything.
I decided to disregard this advice and do what I could do with what I had. I borrowed a camera took some very regular snapshots of my store, wrote a story, and arranged it all into a very homemade, very amateur looking scrapbook which I sent directly to the editor in Birmingham Alabama. Two weeks later my phone rang and it was editor Kathy Still Johnson telling me, "we just love your store' in her pleasing southern accent. then she said,
" is your home a cute as your shop?, could you send us some more photos ? you see. Coastal Living does not produce features on businesses, the story needs to be about how you live and your work."
'Well I said, "sure, my house is real cute, no problem....."
When I hung up I was super excited that they actually called me! and I was also super panicked, my house was not cute at all, it was a 400 square foot mess, my last priority a one room loft with a giant hole in the roof that used to be a skylight, my landlord had nailed down a big unsightly piece of plywood because he did not want to replace it and you could see daylight through it. I was also struggling financially as I worked to get my business off the ground I had basically no budget to decorate, the only thing that I had going for me was, If there was one thing that I knew I was good at, it was interior design and creating something fun and whimsical out of nothing.
My plan was to set up and photograph a few cute corners in my loft, trick them into thinking my place was magazine worthy and buy myself enough time to decorate it properly before they sent a photographer out. Somehow this plan worked and they set a date to shoot my shop and my home that was 6 months out.

(above, one of the pages from my homemade scrapbook)

(another page of snapshots that I took of my loft six months before the Coastal Living photo shoot)

I worked like a banshee on my house for the next 6 months, I painted the walls to look like the inside of an abalone shell, I pulled out all the tricks I had up my sleeve, I owned a ratty sofa that I could not afford to replace so I painted that too and glued seashells to it! I made the most beautiful seashell mirror I had ever made and I painted a giant pink seahorse over a sad looking painting that I bought for a dollar at a yard sale and I covered up the giant hole in my roof with a dozen paper parasols. I literally worked daily up until the night before they were scheduled to arrive. I wanted to make sure I did everything I could to make the best of this opportunity.
In my mind Coastal Living was the epitome of all design mags, I pictured the editors to be like the characters in the 1980's TV show, Designing Women. I also thought that they would personally come out to my shop to do the story and I couldn't wait to see their reaction to all of my hard work!
I was green,
and naive,
and very very lucky that they were doing a story on my humble little shop
at all.
What actually happened on the long awaited day of my photo shoot was they sent two young hip freelancers from LA to write and shoot my story.
Tate Taylor pulled up in his pick up truck, flip flops, tee shirt and shorts, he was kind, he was polite and I am pretty sure he was not too blown away by my work. He was a guy, (my shop is a girl's paradise) an aspiring actor and writer, freelancing as a means to realize his own big dreams.
So much for my visions of a Dixie Carter type, dressed in Lilly Pulitzer, falling in love with my designs and offering me a design column at Coastal Living.
When the 7 page story finally published a year later I was very happy with what Tate wrote, I asked him to write about how I started my shop from scratch and recount my 'if I can do it, anybody can' story. I wanted the article to inspire people to do follow their own dreams, I did not want it to be just another story on design and decor and it wasn't .

Tate's story in Coastal Living was priceless to my business, it tripled my sales, opened doors to my work being featured on Extreme Home Makeover and many other exciting things happened because of Coastal Living.

Still wondering how Tate came to direct this film, I went home that night and started reading about the film online. As I read interviews of Tate and Kathryn, I thought to myself, now I understand what God meant when he said Faith will move mountains.
According to my understanding of what I have read, Tate and Kathryn were childhood friends, they grew up together in Jackson Miss. After Kathryn had written her book and was rejected over 60 times she gave the manuscript to her friend Tate , she asked him to tell her if it was any good because nobody wanted it. Tate saw what others did not see in his friends book and encouraged her to keep trying. He told her that he wanted to make a film based on her book, he could see that eventually the book, would be published and become a best seller, and he wanted to make sure that he was the one to make the film, having grown up in the same town under similar circumstances he just knew that he was the only one to tell this story properly, he was concerned that Hollywood would warp the story, or worse buy the rights and let it sit on the shelves for years which is apparently a common practice in the film industry..
Tate pestered Kathryn until she agreed, all of her friends and family advised her not to give the rights to Tate, who had only produced two small Indy films, but she did agree. Tate started writing the screen play and was actually finished with it before the book was ever published!
When Ms. Stockett's book became a best seller Hollywood did come calling for the movie rights just as Tate predicted, but Tate already had the rights and everybody was asking who is Tate Taylor?
These LA producers were not too convinced that this new comer should write and direct this film. Knowing that Tate indeed did have legal rights, they said, "well we are going to need a screenplay before we can consider you as director. I bet they were surprised when Tate promptly handed them the screen play and probably said, something like, 'here ya go' In my imagination I can see the disappointment in their faces as the realization set in that what they were reading was well written and Tate had earned his right to direct this film. In fact, Tate had so much faith in this project that he already had a lead actress and a backdrop for the movie prepared.
I wondered how Tate felt when Stephen Spielberg green lighted this 25 million$ project? Was he saying, 'oh shit I really am the director!' I have asked myself, when I finally get what I have been working towards for so long, will I be scared?
Tate was asked if he was scared, with so much money invested, so many big name actors to direct, a dream works production.... his answer, "if it had been a film about robots or something that I didn't understand, I would have had a panic attack, but this story is important to me, it's what I know, and I knew that no one could tell this story better that I could. I was never afraid."
Wow... I love that! What I love even more is that this film directed by this newcomer, totally kicked ass! It will no doubt receive many awards.
I sit here writing to you and I know that God has indeed answered my prayer for inspiration, the direction I asked God for however is still foggy.
The deadline to submit a video to HGTV this year is Oct 21st and I am not sure I want to audition again.
I do know I want to keep trying, but what to do now is a mystery to me.
Part of me wants to just start doing it on my own, in my own amateur unpolished goof ball way, put it online and see if anybody likes it. (you can see some of what I am talking about on my youtube channel just type in Debi Beard)
The big dreamer part of me wants finally get picked for that show win it and create the best design entertainment show ever in the history of network TV.
it is also said that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again expecting a different result.
What do you think?
It has been said that, wisdom is in a multitude of counselors "
I would love hear to your comments, tell me if you think I should send another audition tape to HGTV, if I do this will be my 7th attempt!
What should do in my five minute tape this time?
What do you think they want to see?
Should I forget it this year and do something else?
Go ahead give me your constructive criticism, new ideas and advice. I want to hear it and I can take it.

Kathryn Stockett was asked what inspired her to write 'The Help'?
She said it was her maid Demetri, who helped raise her, whom she loved and missed. Demitri passed away when Kathryn was 18 and she longed to hear her voice again, seeking comfort she began to write in Demitri's voice.
I lost my childhood friend Shayne two years ago. and sometimes I can recall his voice so clearly, rooting for me, cracking jokes and encouraging me in his own sarcastic way. Shayne was like Tate in a lot of ways, he lived and worked in Hollywood, he had dreams of making it as an actor, he was smart, talented and driven and he would help me when I had a new idea, in fact he helped me edit the submission I sent to Coastal Living.
The last time I saw Shayne he was in the hospital using all of his courage to stay alive. He was hooked up to so many machines that he couldn't speak. so he wrote to me on notebook paper asking me, 'what are you working on now?' When I told him that I got a callback out of an open call of over 10,000 he gave me two big thumbs up, when I said 'yeah but I didn't get it he said (wrote) "keep trying."
Shayne was my best friend of 28 years, he was charming, easy to love and had so many friends that loved him dearly. Shayne's life was cut short and for reasons that I do not understand, there was never a proper memorial for him. I never got the opportunity to stand up and say publicly what he meant to me and what an extraordinary man he was. I promised him in the hospital that I would tell everyone how brave he was and and how hard he fought. Shayne was my Tate, many times I witnessed him demonstrate the type of courage and faith I have written about here. This post is dedicated to my friend,
Shayne

Shayne and I, at 16 years old.

Here we are at our 20TH high school reunion.

Shayne Arik Ireland
March 19, 1966
March 6, 2009

This one's for you my friend,
Sincerely,
Debi

Come Celebrate the Red, White, and Vintage Blue This Sunday!

2011-06-30T10:29:00.000-07:00

Are you ready for the 4th of July?! Come celebrate with us this Sunday at Out of The Blue on Cedros in Solana Beach. Debi (shop owner) and all the vendors have been working like crazy to put out our best handmade items and vintage goodies! Debi has transformed the store and garden into an incredible place of vintage splendor! You won't want to miss this spectacular flea market!

There will be beautiful handmade jewelry, fabulous old religious goodies (virgin mary, rosaries, etc), old quilts, crinolines (yes...that's a plural!) in all sorts of colors and styles, linens, hats, awesome furniture and yard decor such as pink, white, and aqua bird cages (yes...plural again!), pink adirondack chairs, pink metal pool lounge chairs, etc.

Oh...and if you're an artist yourself and need supplies, there will be plenty of those as well! Old keys, ephemera packets, wallpaper, embellishments, old buttons, lace, etc. Please stop by! All the vendors are super nice and we can't wait to meet you and share our treasures!

the Next Mermaids Mercantile is June 26th! vote on what you think the JUNE theme should be!

2011-05-31T11:47:00.000-07:00

Send us your vote or come up with a theme for us! the most 'liked theme will be selected and posted on June 15th!

here are a few ideas!

#1 'Lucy I'm Home' -all things fun and vintage from the 50's including vintage dresses and vintage kitsch!

#2 The Vintage sewing circle- vintage fabric, trim, and notions and lots of fun DIY projects using vintage bits and scraps!

#3 'The Vintage Doll House'- everything to doll up your home in vintage style, vintage painted furniture, pretty chandeliers, pin tucked sofas and dolls too!

#4 Leave it to Beaver's Mom!'- fun vintage kitchen goods, dishes, aprons, cakes and pies!
Vote on one of these or send us your own idea today!
You can vote on our FACEBOOK page too, come on over and give us a 'like'!
hope to see you on June 26th for another fantastic flea market.
Sincerely,
Debi

the next Mermaid Mercantile is May 15th!

2011-05-05T10:39:00.000-07:00

Join us for a fun day of vintage shopping, coastal breeze, and sunshine!
Over 20 vendors selling Vintage and Handmade treasures in the gardens surrounding our historic cottage.
10am- 5pm at 315 south Cedros Ave. Solana Beach, Ca 92075 phone #858 755 7630
in te heart of the Cedros Design district.
Daily store hours Tuesday-Saturday 11-5pm Sunday's 12-5pm

It was a 'Moulin Madhouse'yesterday!

2011-03-21T22:58:00.000-07:00

( photo by Laura Christin, http://www.laurachristinphotography.com/ )

Yesterday was a beautiful blurr... we had our Moulin themed Mermaid Mercantile to welcome Kim Caldwell (AKA alchemist of all things amazing and magical) and a bus load of wonderful ladies who made the trek down from LA in the rain to shop our event.
I had been preparing for this event, working into the wee hours and getting just a few hours of sleep all last week. By Sunday morning everything was perfectly placed, pretty and stocked full of vintage goodness. All 20 of my creative genius, vendors had been creating up a storm, literally.

The weather report called for rain......, wind, hail..., radiation plume.... yikes!
In spite of this I was determined to carry on with the show, accuweather said no rain untill 7pm Sunday night.
One by one all 20 of my vendors called me, "what about the rain Debi?" are we still going on with the event?
Kim Caldwell called asking if we we planning to hold our outdoor event rain or shine? Her group still wanted to come even in the rain...
I had a conversation with God, my Mom and myself. I gave myself a pep talk, my Mom gave me a pep talk... "Debi carry on, have faith, better to be ready for the best than to give up in the last hour. No matter what happens, you will know that you gave it your all."
I am not one to give up easily and neither are my vendors...
All of my artists showed up Sunday morning set up their spaces under the ominus clouds, and created vintage magic. Their tents were sparkling, the garden was a wonderland of beauty and chatter. I have to say, I love these women, beyond words.... they amaze me every month with the work of their hands and all the wonderful 'vintage pretty' that they proudly display. Each lady has her own special touch. Every time we set set up for our show, I walk through the garden, my heart races, the beauty is indescribable, a colorful quilt of creativity and individual personality. I have held the Mermaid's Mercantile for two years now. I have been blessed to get to know these women and have honor to showcase their talent. They inspire me, humble me and have caused me to refine and perfect my own work. In the next few months I am going to post on each of my Vendors so that you all can see them all through my eyes.
Tonight as I type at my computer, I am a tired girl, recovering from the storm and filled with gratitude.
The wind and the customers showed up Sunday morning, then the bus pulled up.... I stood waiting to welcome these ladies as they stepped off the bus, I was dazzled by each of them , creative sisters, a sea of stylish clothes, amazing handmade jewelry, pony tails and pink hair. I felt like I was five years old again and it was my bithday party! With the wonder of 2011 technology I had gotten to know some of these women vicariously through their blogs, I had ooohhhed and awwed over their creative handiwork and gotten a peak inside their magical lives. I was super excited to meet them in person!
I wanted to chat with them and tell them how much I enjoyed what they had posted in blogland, but there was no time for that, they started shopping immediately, these ladies were serious vintage shoppers, discriminating, savvy and ready to bargain.
In a matter of minutes the line behind my cash register was all the way to the back of my store, they purchased every petticoat, vintage box and train case in the place. I sold things that were tucked away hiding in corners and drawers that I forgot I had! Some of my best treasures have found new homes. These women came and went like a whirlwind leaving behind an empty looking store that looked as if it had been completely picked over shaken upside down.
As they prepared to go, Kim let me board the magic bus to say goodbye, she gave me her microphone and I thanked them all for coming, but what I wanted to say was, "you like me, you really really like me!"
As I write this post I would like to say thank you again to all my customers, I thank the lord there are people out there like you who appreciate handmade work. In our current economic climate it is more challenging than ever to make a living as an artist. It has been 14 years since I opened my shop, by the grace of God and several miracles my doors are still open. I am blessed to have my efforts supported, and I am honored to share that blessing with the women who make the Mermaid's Mercantile what it is.
I have lots of photos to post from our event, which will come later in the week. If you attended on Sunday, please email your photos so I can post them. (debidot@yahoo.com)
Our next event is planned for May 15th, I ordered lots of Sunshine and flowers, hope to see you then!
Sincerely,
Debi

Artist Spotlight - Janina Farias - She-Devil Confections

2011-03-15T20:44:00.000-07:00

I still remember the first cake I baked. I was about ten years old and Vicky, our Bluebird troop leader, let us take turns adding to a box of yellow cake mix. I watched her pull the cake out of the oven using oven mitts and thought, “What’s the big deal? I can do that!” Days later, I called my mom at work and asked if I could bake a cake on my own. I figured she’d be too busy to say “No” and wouldn’t want to listen to my protests anyway. I was right. Later in life I’d use the same tactic when I wanted permission to shave my legs and wear make-up.

After that first time, I baked constantly. I baked more than even a ten-year-old with an insatiable sweet tooth could eat, so I’d give my creations away to anyone who would take them off my hands. My ballet teacher, the housekeeper, my grandparents, they all became members of Janina’s Cake-Of-The-Week Club. I loved the taste of cake batter and licked the beaters quickly so I wouldn’t have to share with my sister. I don’t know how long my baking fervor lasted until I got bored with packaged cake mixes and moved on to something more exciting, like boys.

It wasn’t until a high school Home Economics class that I baked my first cake from scratch. It was a German Chocolate Cake and making it was far more exciting that using a mix. I sifted, I measured, I melted chocolate, and I made a mess. I felt like a cross between Betty Crocker, a mad scientist and Party Animal Barbie. The difference between scratch baking and using a mix was like the difference between Oprah Winfrey and a drunken co-ed. My German Chocolate Cake was like Oprah: dark, rich, and complex. My packaged mix cake was the drunken co-ed: cheap, easy, and forgettable. Again, I baked often and ate a lot of cake batter. Then I hit my early twenties and set down my spatula in favor of bad boys in rock-and-roll bands.

Even in my wild, wild twenties I still baked from time to time. I’d whip up plates of chocolate chip cookies for roomfuls of party animals with the munchies. I even dabbled in cake decorating and created Ninja Turtle and Shamu cakes for my nephews. When my son came along, I designed an elaborate three-tier circus themed cake complete with carousel and legions of clowns for his first birthday party. It never occurred to me to count the number of servings. I ended up giving away enough cake to feed the Duggars for days.

Again I set my spatula down. Working fulltime, often at jobs I hated, combined with the demands of single motherhood left me with little energy to bake more than the occasional pan of brownies or batch of cookies for my son’s class parties.

Fast forward about 19 years to the day I met my sister Debi. We had just enjoyed a Thai dinner and I announced that I was ready for a sugar fix. Debi took me to a nearby cupcake bakery. It was pink. It was sparkly. It was all girly gorgeousness. My son waited outside.(I think he was worried that his testosterone levels would drop.) And the cupcakes! Oh the cupcakes! They looked like edible tutus. Pirouettes of sugary buttercream frosting topped with arabesques of edible glitter. I agonized over my decision and settled on three mini-cupcakes. I took a bite and thought, hmmm, maybe the next bite will be better? I tried the next flavor. Nope. I tried the next. Meh. They were bland, mealy, and just plain disappointing. I muttered to Debi, “Mine are better.”

“You should do it then.” That was it. With those five words this woman, this sister I’d known for a mere couple of hours changed the trajectory of my life. The seed had been planted. Why not? Why not get paid to do what I love to do? My shelves were full of cookbooks. While everyone else was watching American Idol, I spent hours watching the Food Network. I called it my food porn. Forgotten baking memories started rising up from deep within my brain. I was stunned to realize that I’d been a baker most of my life.

Debi had told me about The Mermaid’s Mercantile. Intrigued, I checked it out and was floored by all the amazing artwork assembled in one place. It was one stall after another of feminine, vintage delight. The Mermaids were so welcoming and were clearly having a wonderful time in each other’s company. I just had to be a part of this sisterhood of talent. When I asked Debi if I could have a space at the Mercantile to sell my cupcakes, she said something along the lines of, “YESSSS!!!”

From that point on I dreamt in sugar. I could think of nothing else (except, perhaps, men, and maybe wine). I baked two, sometimes three times a week. I tweaked some flavors and abandoned others altogether. I decided on lavender cupcakes with rosewater buttercream and deep chocolate cupcakes with peanut butter frosting for my first sale. They were a hit! I reveled in the way my customers moaned and their eyes rolled back in their heads when they took their first bite. I still do. It’s how I know I’ve nailed it. My repertoire has expanded to include flavors like chamomile, chocolate chipotle and piña colada. I have several repeat customers who seek me out now and I’ve even catered a few parties.

It didn’t take long for me to realize that the kitchen was my calling. I’d been working towards a nursing degree and hating every minute of it. Nursing seemed like a good, solid career path, but I had a hard time mustering up any enthusiasm for it. I dreaded the thought of a future filled with other people’s body fluids. So I changed course and enrolled in pastry school. Now THIS was a career I could get excited about! Since then I’ve been reading non-stop: chef’s memoirs, cookbooks, baking textbooks. In short, I’ve become a pastry geek. Everything I’ve read tells me I’m in for long, stressful work shifts in a hot kitchen to the exclusion of a social life and ever seeing daylight. I can’t wait to start!

Please be sure to visit my blog!
http://cupcakeinshe-devilpanties.blogspot.com/

The next Mermaid's Mercantile is March 20th! Moulin Rouge Theme!

2011-03-09T18:56:00.000-08:00

Vintage and Handmade wares from 20 talented vendors!

If there is a little vintage gypsy showgirl in you,

you will not want to miss this!A Staged photo booth awaits our customers! Come change into Vintage costumes and take your pictures in a fun theatrical setting!

A magnificent day of shopping, vintage goods at great prices, furniture, chandeliers, handmade jewelry, hats, clothing and so much more!

Sunday March 20Th 10 am -5pm

315 s Cedros Ave

Solana Beach, Ca

92075

in the gardens of our charming historical cottage,

858 755 7630

Exciting news!

Look for the Mermaid's Mercantile featured as the next 'local of intrigue' in the May issue of Somerset Life!

We are tickled pink to be included in such a beautiful magazine!

Annie Sloan coming to give paint demo this Monday!

2011-03-03T19:10:00.000-08:00

Come to Out of the Blue on Monday March 7th from 1pm-3pm

to meet paint legend Annie Sloan!

Annie will be demomstrating the ease of chalk paint and signing her two latest books,

"Creating the French Look" and "Quick and Easy Paint Transformations"

Annie is one of the worlds most respected experts in the field of decorative painting and probably the main reason for the painted furniture revolution though her unique chalk paints and creative aproach.

come join us for a complementary afternoon of paint education and fun.

315 south Cedros Ave

Solana Beach, Ca 92075

Call us at the shop for questions,

858 755 7630

The next Mermaid's Mercantile is Dec 11Th and 12Th

2010-12-03T18:36:00.000-08:00

My mom has always said, "Good things come in small packages!"
Our tiny historic cottage is packed full of the best Holiday gifts and suprises!
The Mermaid's have been making all kinds of wonderful handmade goodies for everyone on your list.
The garden will be filled with holiday treasures and the parking lot will be full of tents as our wonderful vendors and artist present their latest treasures!
Come down and spend the day with us, Sat Dec 11Th and Sun Dec 12Th from 10 am to 5pm

Or visit the cottage Tues- Sun 11am- 5pm at 315 Cedros Ave. Solana Beach 858 755 7630
We can't wait to see you again!
Sincerely,
Debi

Join us for the Next Mermaid's Mercantile Nov 27Th and 28Th

2010-11-21T08:49:00.000-08:00

We have lots of wonderful handmade Gifts for all the special people on your list...

20 vendors and artists have been creating the most wonderful things.....

Ornaments, jewelry, clothing and more...

vintage goodies we know you will adore....

The fun begins at 10am, be sure and arrive early, we will be stocked full of a kind treasures that can't be missed.
Several new vendors will be joining us this month. We hope to see you soon!
Sincerely,
Debi

Introducing guest blogger and Mermaid: Kimberly Allison!

2010-11-11T17:07:00.000-08:00

Happy November everyone! As most of you know, The Mermaid's Mercantile wouln't exist without the artistic creations of our many "Mermaids". Each and every amazing Mermaid has a story of the circumstances which led them to create their own special brand of art. For this reason, I will be featuring guest bloggers, so you can get to know the Mermaids and understand the love that goes into their work and where it all came from. Because, to know a Mermaid is to love a Mermaid. So without further ado, I give you, Kimberly Allison!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

There is a 5th dimension beyond which is known to man. It is a dimension filled with beads, buttons and thrift store finds. It is the middle ground between creativity and insanity, humor and madness. It is the dimension between imagination, celebration and regurgitation. It is an area we call the Kimberly Zone.

Hmmm... Maybe a better description is in order.

My name is Kimberly Allison. I am the owner, artist and madness behind Lume di Luna Designs. I have a specific disorder known to many artists as AADD: Artistic Attention Deficit Disorder. Simply put, I am a multi-media artist. I work in ceramic, lampwork glass, soldering, fine beadwork, fiber and soft sculpture as well as many other media. In other words, I want to do it all.

Art is my drug of choice. In my case, it is a life-saver. After the birth of my 3rd son, I fell into the deep pit of Postpartum Depression. I was encouraged to follow art as a part of my therapy. For nearly 20 years, I had placed it in a category of “I’ll do it after all my work is finished". As a mom of 3 boys, my work has NEVER been finished! But I slowly started to wade out into the waters of artistic expression. Then, I began to swim. I have never looked back.

I approach my day like an Olympic runner. I wake and begin a slow, methodical stretch of my mind by indulging in a cup of coffee and catching up on my e-mail. Then I begin to sprint: Sewing, felting, beading, supervising homework and mediating brotherly disagreements. I fall into my bed at night totally exhausted and spent only to be awakened by my Muse's call as she hands me ideas wrapped with a celestial sledgehammer at 2 in the morning.

The past year has brought many changes to my work. But, the biggest by far has been a marked effort to start working "Green". I have always been the type of person who hates to throw away an object that might prove useful someday. The down-side is a tsunami of clutter that takes over my work area. But, all great art requires sacrifice! I find it odd that after the technology of the 20th century, we started to abandon the old ways of "use and re-use". We became a disposable society. In this sense, it's time to turn back the clock.

My latest creations are inspired by this idea. Borrowing the practicality of previous eras, along with the dark silliness of today, I have created what I call "Habromaniacs". The clinical definition of Habromania is "Insanity through morbid cheerfulness." I take felted cashmere sweaters, vintage fabric and buttons and "green" wool roving (that I have prepared myself) to make wild monsters with tons of attitude. My menagerie can be seen at my varied shows, in addition to "Art and Soul" in Encinitas, and the Oceanside Museum of Art. In 2011, they will appear in "Stuffed" magazine as well.

One of my favorite venues is The Mermaid's Mercantile. I simply love the creative and inspiring atmosphere. So many art shows have taken on the rabid feel of a Used Car Tent Sale. The “Mermaid” remains upbeat and serene. Everyone is a phenomenal artist within their own right, with so much creativity to share. It's almost a sisterhood.

In the Mermaid Sisterhood, I am the family oddball. Given a box full of wool socks, vintage buttons, glue, grout and a potato; I would put on a Marilyn Manson CD, ignore the grout, glue the potato to the wall, and make monsters from the socks and buttons.

What else could be expected in The Kimberly Zone?

***Editor's note - Kimberly did not mention this, but each and every one of her fabulous stuffed creatures has their own story to tell. Just pick one up and ask her. She'll tell you.

Come join us at the Mermaid's Mercantile today! A few fun photos from yesterday!

2010-09-26T07:20:00.000-07:00

So here are a few sneeks from yesterday, it is gonna be crazy today and I must get down to the shop!
Forgive me please, not sure how to rotate the photos and I am running late. Hope to see you all today!
Thanks to all of the great peeps who came and had fun in the Sun with us yesterday.... looks like summer finally showed up at the coast!
Sincerely,
Debi

The Mermaid's Mercantile begins in a few hours! Woo hoo! and a $75 giveaway!

2010-09-24T22:38:00.000-07:00

Our Fall show and Sale is just a few hours away, and before I get to a good nights sleep before the big weekend I would like to show you some sneek peeks of what we have in Store!
Tommorow is our preview to the fall season. We are super excited to annouce our new vendors Sicilian Gypsies....
. I am very selective when it comes to great bags, when I saw this amazing collection I was at a loss for words, the best thing to do is give the words that these very talented designers use to decribe their passion.
Sicilian Gypsies quality style and beauty.
We invite you to enter our world, the kingdom of the Gypsies and find that one of a kind object of desire that allures you.
Maria and Susan
you will not want to miss this sale.
We also have a tent full of vintage costumes... hundreds of cool frocks and wild get-ups!Jenn Wiley is back with her totally over the top Halloween accessories, Jenns spooky goodies flew out the door last year. I know she has been counting down the days to Oct 31ST and I can hardly wait to see what is in her bag of tricks this year!
We have a whole garden and store full of new treats! I made a halloween chandelier that I had to force myself not to keep for my house! Rachel and Frauke have been buzzing around whipping up black glittery goodness, Valentina and Marie Vollaire dropped off a few loads of treats, one customer bought chairs from Marie before they even made it off the truck! I am sure Marie and Mary are back at home finishing up more goods for tommorow morning!
The fabulous Nicky Glade and Cynthia Bardeen will be waiting to greet you in our classroom as they reveal our brand new and long awaited, fall class schedule! We have Terri Brush coming back for another soldering workshop (sign up fast she sold out last july) and a whole new line up of sewing, needle felting, jewelry making and holiday projects galore! I will be teaching a class on seashell and mermaid christmas ornaments that will make you dizzy with excitement!
Last but not least our New Mermaid ! Michelle Ramirez has just moved into the cottage and she has some of the best blingy jewelry supplies that can be found.this girl is a doll! and she has talent coming from her elbows, welcome Michelle!
See you all in the morning! This mermaid has got to get some sleep... she has been working her tail off getting ready!
Oh and remember to sign our guestbook this weekend, we will be picking one lucky person to recieve a $75 gift certificate!
Sincerely,
Debi

A spooky Giveaway, Lot's of Vintage costumes this weekend and....A real true Halloween Story..........

2010-09-22T01:03:00.000-07:00

The moral of this story is: Never rent a Halloween costume, always buy one outright!

Allow me to set the scene. It was the dawning of a new decade: the groovin' 70's, and I was 6 years old.

Halloween night had finally arrived -every child's favorite candy coated holiday. I think I probably looked forward to this night more than most kids. You see my mom was, and still is, very much a health fanatic. There was absolutely NO SUGAR allowed in our house. Mom made bread and even ketchup from scratch! She did not want her family eating sugar, refined flour or foods laden with sodium. This would have been OK except that her early attempts at baking and cooking healthy foods were, um, hard to swallow. I have memories of dense and chewy whole-wheat birthday cakes with honey and flax-seed frosting that none of my friends would eat. Seriously, could you blame them? Mom made oatmeal wheat germ cookies that would give someone a concussion if used in a food fight. One year we had little boxes of organic raisins to hand out at Halloween. A great many of them ended up floating in our swimming pool the next day. Are you getting the picture yet?

Even though my family did not hand out candy, Halloween was the one exception to our strict diet. Mom very reluctantly agreed to take us trick-or-treating even though it just about killed her. I was a very strong-willed child, and I was determined to get as much candy as possible. This was really my only chance! My Easter baskets and Christmas stockings were filled with carob chips, fruit roll-ups and string cheese. But one magical night a year, we were permitted to eat the forbidden treats. So, off we went, me, my little sister, and Mom into the dark and chilly neighborhood to get the good stuff. My favorite? The chewy peanut butter taffy wrapped in orange and black wax paper. On this particular Halloween night, my Dad stayed back at home listening to Simon and Garfunkel, drinking beer, and snacking on whole wheat chips and organic guacomole with his buddys. My parents were hosting a Halloween party for their friends, and I knew that we would have maybe 15-20 minutes max to score some candy. At that point we would be allowed to eat two pieces and be put to bed while my parents partied the night away 70's style.

Soon after we set out, I realized that I had to go to the bathroom. Letting my mom know this would be Halloween sucide. I just knew that if we went back home, that would be it. The trick-or-treating would come to a screetching halt, and my plastic pumpkin would be filled to less than a 10% capacity. Needless to say, I held it. In my head I was chanting, "Just one more house. Just one more house." Mom noticed after a while that I was doing the pee pee dance and asked me if I had to 'go'? "No Mom", I assured her. I said that I was just a little cold, but I was fine and wanted to keep going. That particular year I was dressed in a flannel clown suit with one of those plastic masks that made it difficult to breath. Every house was a gamble, but I just had to have one more piece of candy.

We had made it all the way around the block and we were now at the house across the street from ours. This house belonged to a very cranky and scary-looking old man. This man totally freaked me out, "Hey little girl!", he would shout across the street to me, "You see these?" and he'd wave these little brown sticks in the air. "These are poisonous sausages. The next time your little dog gets out and goes in my yard, he will eat one of these and it will make him very, very sick!" I loved my little dog Bootsie and I'd be in tears every time he dug a hole and escaped under the fence.

I don't know if was because I'd pushed my bladder beyond it's limits, or if it was the sight of this man up close and personal that made me wet my pants, but I did -right there on his porch. And it went on for a good long time. I left a giant puddle on his front steps! Looking back now, I feel that justice was served in twisted sort of way. I am sure this guy must have been way more put out by me peeing on his porch than he was by Bootsie lifting his leg on his landscaping. Even so I was mortified and there are pictures to prove it.

OK this is not really me. I don't have a scanner to show you the image of me crying in my clown suit or the look of humiliation as I walked through the front door in a wet costume . But the look on my face was the same.

For me, Halloween will always be bittersweet. I still love the candy, but after several root canals and thousands of dollars in dental bills, I try my best to avoid it. The costumes are a different story, I adore them! I especially love the really creative ones. I am a firm believer that every costume should be original. You never want to show up wearing the same get-up that some other girl ordered online or bought at a chain retail store.

The handmade and vintage numbers are a must, and there is no limit to how you can alter them or switch them up. For example, don't go as a regular hula girl, go as Miss Hulaween! Sort of a Goth death-warmed-over hula babe. You take a black grass skirt and a coconut bra that is made to look like giant eyeballs. This is just one idea, I have thousands more and I will be happy to offer complementary costume styling advice this weekend.

So whether you are thinking Minnie Mouse on the prowl or Twiggy off her diet, we have got a tent packed full of cool and creative costumes galore and we will be revealing them this weekend at the Mermaid's Mercantile! Oh, I must mention, there will be lots of peanut butter taffy for everyone! (Except me, I never touch the stuff)

Be sure to sign our guest book on the way in, because we are giving away a $75 gift certificate! The winner will be picked at random and announced in next week's post!

Stay tuned, tomorrow's post will be a vendor preview! Soooooo much good stuff!

Sincerely,

Debi

The Mermaids are featured in Romantic Country.... Yay!

2010-09-17T11:24:00.000-07:00

What a blessing and a super fun experience to be featured in Fifi O'neil's fabulous magazine.

I went to Von's today and bought three copies, the checker looked at me a said "are you in this magazine?"

YES! I replied with a super big all teeth smile!

A few months ago Sunday Hendrickson came out to produce a story on our monthly flea market, it was so exciting to meet her and see the pictures come to life. The entire process of being published is exciting, from speaking with Fifi, to being interviewed by Kimberly McCole to seeing the joy in the eyes of all the hardworking artists as their work was photographed by Sunday Hendrickson.

Many of my amazing Mermaid vendors are featured in the article, including Deb Hodge of http://breathingbesideus.blogspot.com/, Marie Vollaire, Holly Stinnett, of http://hollylovesart.blogspot.com/ Melissa Robinson and Linda Scheitman.

here are some tidbits from the issue but you will want to get your own copy as this issue is packed full of magnificent articles including dreamy Debbie Dusenberry of Curious Sofa and the one and only Tracy Porter.

not to mention the pages and pages of Halloween and Holiday ideas!

We love you Fifi!

all of the mermaids say...

thank you, thank you, thank you!

We are busy getting ready for our next Flea Market on Sept 25TH and 26TH

It will be a great weekend filled to the brim with vintage and handmade goods Galore!

We have got some of the dreamiest handbags that I have ever seen, perfect for Fall and so beautifully handcrafted.

Stay tuned... photos of some of the merch, info on our talented artists and a giveaway to say prayers for!

hope to see ya all in one week!

Sincerely,

Debi

Several Truckloads of Dreamy Goods for our next Flea Market, in just TWO weeks!

2010-09-11T21:52:00.000-07:00

We are trucking in the Goods for our next Sale from all over the place!

there will be a ton of Sweet deals, EYE candy and treats!So don't let the grass grow under your feet! Get to the Mermaids Mercantile bright and early Sept 25TH and 26TH 10 am -5pm.Because you never know what you will come home with!

Stay tuned we have some MAGNIFICENT giveaways coming up in the next post!
Sincerely,
Debi

August Giveaway! Pretty In Pink!

2010-08-26T19:13:00.000-07:00

Did somebody say “Giveaway?”

Lots and lots of Giveaways!

The Mermaids have been shopping for weeks

and we scored a boatload of vintage clothing and accessories

and you can get your hands on some of this rare and delicious loot this weekend

Saturday & Sunday

August 28Th & 29Th

10am to 5pm

As the Mermaids celebrate the

"Joys of just being a Girl"

Pretty In PINK

This weekend will be a celebration of

feminine style and coquettery.

Want to make a splash at all those upcoming holiday parties?

Halloween is only 66 days away!

Among our featured items are:

vintage prom dresses,
groovy clothes from the 60’s and 70’s,
some AMAZING Victorian pieces,
girl’s dresses from the 40’s and 50’s,
petticoats, shoes, bags, hats, accessories and more!

All at deep, deep, DEEP discounted prices that'll make you throw your hands up in the air!

But wait, there’s more and I’m not talking Ginsu Knives either

Some lucky Girl will win a

$75 Mercantile Gift Certificate,

Good for anything within the Flea Market as well as inside the store!!

We’re also givng away this gorgeous soldered “Courage Bracelet” from Terri Brush Designs

Every person who spends $100 or more gets a free pink cupcake to further sweeten the deal!

Make room in your car because you won’t want to hold back during this Incredible event of girly pink fluffiness!

August Mercantile

2010-08-04T19:04:00.000-07:00

Save the date Girls!!

August 28Th & 29Th

Sat & Sun

10am to 5pm

The Mermaids celebrate the

"Joys of just being a Girl"

Pretty In PINK

Lots of Giveaways!

So keep an eye out here on the blog for some amazing pieces offered by our amazing artists.

Some lucky Girl will win a

$75 Mercantile Gift Certificate,

good for anything within the Flea Market as well as inside the store!!

More to come..........

Countdown to the NEXT Mermaids Mercantile... AND a giveaway to swoon over!

2010-07-21T22:13:00.000-07:00

In JUST three Days..... The Mermaids will be coming together Again! Swim on over and join us for a Magnificent day of shopping and Inspiration!

July 24th and July 25th

10 am to 5pm

We can't wait to see all of you!

The mermaids garden will be filled to the tree tops with all kinds of vintage furniture, handmade bags, dreamy linen dresses and shimmery treasures! If you love to create art... you will find a sea of vintage baubles and glittery confections to inspire your next artistic vision.

Race day Hat contest.... come wearing your most creative hat, and enter to win a $75 gift certificate.... and we will take your picture and post it here on our little blog!

Two days of vintage heaven.....

just around the corner!

a whirlwind of blessings!

2010-07-03T04:22:00.000-07:00

Where do I begin? Friday afternoon a box of Today's Vintage Magazine arrived. We were all super excited to see our shop featured on the cover! This great publication can be picked up at most antique stores up and down California and Arizona. Rachel Luna and I worked really hard to create this cover shot at the editors request. Rachel took all of the photos (about 50 or so) When we were convinced that we had one or two that the publication would like, Rachel convinced me to put on the little hat and take pose for some goof ball shots in our vignette. Well needless to say, the one with me and the tiny patriotic hat was the editors choice. When I got dressed that morning I put on red to get in the spirit of the task of the day, but I was not intending to put myself in the photo thus, no makeup, and barely combed hair. All said, we had a really nice write up inside the magazine and I will highlight some of what Nicole Bissett wrote for you. On page 18 and 19 Nicole writes,

"...love for vintage and a passion for keep the environment clean is what makes this 44 year old, Solana Beach boutique owner tick. Debi Beard, owner of Out of the Blue, has loved collecting vintage since childhood. "as a teenager I was decorating with things found from yard sales" Beard said. " I've always loved old houses, my great grandparents lived in a community where all the houses were restored and kept in their original condition. The neighborhood has never fallen apart. I just remember as a child, seeing the difference between a tract house and an old house, and how there's so much detail and beauty in things that were created before the inventin of the condominium. Aside for her love of all things old, Beard is concerned with preserveing the environment. "especially now, with the economy the way it is, I really think it is important to use what we already have and ive things a second life," Beard said. In business for 13 years now..... ( for the rest of the article please visit http://www.todaysvintage.com/)

It's such a blessing to get this kind of press. And guess what? This is only the tip of the iceberg. Stay tuned for more updates! Until then, check out these pictures from June's Mermaid's Mercantile taken by Sweet Laura Christin . Thank you Laura for capturing our event in such a beautiful way!

Rachel Luna selling her cool vintage finds all day long she had about 1 doz pairs of these beautul baby shoes.... so dreamy........

Valentina's booth, filled with girly goodness!

Laura Zellers breath taking baby goods!

Gina of Lizzy B's sold her fantastic jewelry made from vintage silver and typewrtier keys all day long.

Our new girl Frankie of Frankie and Julie has the hottest belt buckles!

Deb Hodge of Breathing Beside Us and beautiful Jane of Art Takes A Village are two of the most giving and talented ladies I have ever been blessed to know.

Stop me dead in my tracks! Marie Vollaire is the Queen of beautiful reupholstery. If you love Marie's goods, come early, her work sells very quickly!

My sister Janina's cupcakes... omg.. they are better than ANY cupcake I have ever had. (I have had my share believe me!)

We were blessed to have the Queen of Tarte come to our event all the way from Oregon, along with Auntie Joy, Here are just a few shot of their vignettes. These ladies are beyond talented and a huge inspiration to me. I am so grateful they came. So many of you were delighted by their goods.

On behalf of all the mermaids and the many customers who lined up to purchase your goodies We say thanks for coming to the MM!

Our new classroom and super fab cabinet that I got at 'the mouse' aka matilda's mouse.

And finally a few shots of Terri's soldering class. Terri Brush dazzled us with her knowledge and ability to make a difficult artform seem easy. (Only the experts can make it look easy and Terri is all that and more. Three days of all-day workshops. Just look at all the happy faces! I know that many of you did not get a chance to sign up for the workshop before they filled up -not to worry ! Terri will be back to teach again in the fall! Check her blog for updates.Thank you all for a spectacular weekend! I am so gratful to see so many of you come out and support my hardworking vendors. They all work very hard and it is an honor to be surrounded by their talent and their passion. I still have more pictures to post.... there was just so much going on, I could not get them all in! Look for more photos and info about our next Flea market on July 25th and 26th!

Sincerely,

Debi

The girls are rolling into town tonight!

2010-06-24T01:06:00.000-07:00

Ok so I told you that we have some very special guest vendors this month. One of these guests is none other than Joy Bayer, also known as Auntie Joy!

Joy Bayer

Joy is an amazing jewelry artist! I am so in love with the "Believe" necklace, pictured above. It's just the perfect thing to wear as I wait for Oprah's phone call.

Joy is also an expert in hunting down vintage goods! Here are some shots of her space at Farm Chicks, a few weeks ago.

I wonder if she sold that thingy with all the cubbies? I love those! What were they tool bins? Mail slots? what ever it once was, it is perfect for holding craft supplies like glitter crowns and pretty little paper mache birds. I hope she is bringing that with her to sell. If I were you, I would plan to arrive when we open at 10 am because goodies like this never last long! Don't be surprised if I buy all the best stuff for myself (yeah ... I wish....).

As promised, I want to tell you how we got Cindy, Joy and Terri to come all the way down here from the Pacific Northwest to sell their magnificent wares at the Mermaid's Mercantile.

Well, it all started with Deb Hodge. Now we all know and love Deb, she is one of the most talented women I have ever met, If you are wondering who creates all of our beautiful flyers and emails, that would be Deb. Deb is good friends with artist Terri Brush.

Terri Brush

Deb has been raving about Terri for weeks -about her soldering classes, her wonderful paper clay art and how she is the best teacher anywhere! Deb told me that Terri would be in San Diego to teach a soldering workshop and that it was a rare opportunity to learn from her. Deb and Terri were emailing back and forth as Terri's workshop was starting to fill up and Deb mentioned the Mermaid's Mercantile would be the same weekend as her workshop.

All of a sudden Terri got an idea. She thought it would be fun to bring her friends Joy and Cindy along, and did we have room for all three of them to sell their goodies at our event? Well, hmmm, let me think... uh YES! I thought to myself, I will make room even if I have to display some of the goods up on the roof! (If you have been to my shop, you know that I am not kidding.) So, then we all decided that we would be fools if we didn't make Terri's workshop part of this weekend's Mermaid Mercantile. We found Terri a classroom to teach her three day workshop right next door to our event. Yes, that is correct, you can shop and learn from the one and only Terri Brush all in one fabulous weekend! Terri may have one or two spaces left, email her and see if there is room, her classes begin on Friday!

Come meet Terri, Joy and Cindy this Saturday and Sunday! Trust me, you won't want to miss this!

I have a few more giveaways coming and a sneek peek... The Mermaids are on the cover of Today's Vintage magazine! It hits the newsstands on Friday!

But that will have to wait untill tomorrow!

Sincerely,

Debi

Another Audition... this time it's for OOOOOOOOOOOOprah!

2010-06-23T16:50:00.000-07:00

Hi Everybody!

I am auditioning to win my own show on Oprah Winfrey's new television network.

Please click HERE to view my video and place your vote!

Vote often! Vote daily! Lots of votes are a big help in the competition, so feel free to tell your pals, share this to facebook, tweet and blog! You may vote over and over and over and....

Thanks a million!
Debi

PS My sister Janina also submitted an audition in a different category. Looks like talent runs in the family! Be sure to click HERE and watch and vote for Janina's video too! (Yes, it's okay to vote for BOTH of us.)Maybe you will see a family resemblance. Maybe they'll take us as a package deal. Maybe we'll get our own reality show out of this. Maybe....

All that Glimmers....

2010-06-20T10:35:00.000-07:00

All that Glimmers....Is a Special All Day Event that will take place at The Mermaid Mercantile on Sunday June 27th. I would like to first introduce myself: I am one of the Mermaids that has been lost at Sea for the past several Mermaid Mercantile events...However I am back and ready to make a Big Splash! I am Jennifer Wiley located in East County San Diego. I will be bringing along some of my creations, which also currently can be viewed and purchased at "The Out of the Blue" but I will be also Hosting an Unusual Event that is perfect for these hard times with how the economy is. This is a Golden Event...that you have an opportunity to bring along any old,unwanted Gold,Silver or Platinum and we will Pay YOU Top Dollar Cash at this Event! So I am asking each of you to start your Treasure Hunt ...Start looking in your jewelry boxes, drawers etc. and grab a small bag or box and start filling them up with anything you think you will never wear or use again...Here are some examples and ideas to get you started on your Treasure Hunt....
1. Earrings (including single earrings, sets and damaged)
Necklaces (including damaged or tangled)
Bracelets (including damaged or tangled)
Rings and/or class rings (including those with missing stones and damaged)
10k, 14k, 18k, 22k, 24k gold items
Gold watches
Estate jewelry
Silver and gold coins
Silver serving sets (including incomplete sets) Make sure it reads 925 or Sterling Silver
Dental gold
And much more!
Now on your Hunt you may be thinking I am not sure if this is real...I suggest...throw it in your pile and bring it along with you and I will be Happy to test it for you while you Enjoy your stroll through the Mermaid Mercantile.
This is a perfect time to do some spring cleaning and you may find some unwanted treasures that you thought were not worth anything and turn them into some extra cash that was unexpected and have even more Fun and Shopping with your Extra Earnings at The Mermaid Mercantile!

Come meet Joy, Terri and Cindy at the Next Mermaids Mercantile!

2010-06-17T23:36:00.000-07:00

Are you ready to jump though your laptop and start shopping yet? Yes? That is exactly what I wanted to do when I first discovered Cindy Dockins through the pages of Somerset Life Magazine. I opened up the magazine to discover the Land of Tarte -a once a month barn sale in Oregon City. Oh it took my breath away! I said to myself, Who is this Queen of all things beautiful and vintage? And who took such dreamy, not of this world, photographs? That would be Robin Laws of Bird Tweets Photography. ( That's Robin pictured below with her camera.) All of these incredible photos are her work. Visit Robin's blog to see some of the most breath taking photography ever!

Robin Laws,

Photographer Extraordinaire!

As I read all about Cindy, I wanted to jump in my vehicle and hit the highway. I wanted to see the Land of Tarte for myself, and fill my truck to the brim with some of those beautiful vintage finds. Never in my crazy, wild dreams (and I do a lot of daydreaming, wishing, hoping and praying) did I imagine that This Queen from the north would be packing up her magic and coming all the way to Solana Beach to sell her rare goods at my very own Mermaid's Mercantile!

This is Cindy, the Queen of Tarte herself!

The Queen's barn. Isn't it just magical?

Don't you want to shop here? I know I do!

Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful!

If you live anywhere even remotely close by, I suggest you hightail it over to the next Flea Market on June 26th and 27th for this rare opportunity and see what I am raving about for yourself. But wait! That's not all! Yes, it gets better! Cindy is coming down with Joy Bayer (that's Auntie Joy to you!) and Terri Brush! Two of her extraordinary gal pals, who are equally fabulous in their own right.

How did this all happen you may be asking? Well, to know the whole story, you will have to first meet Terri and Joy. I will tell you all about these talented ladies, show you some photos of their over-the-top talent, and give you ALL the details on how I can we to be so blessed to have them at the next Mermaid's Mercantile in my next post! (Tricky way to get you to come back eh?)

Stay tuned, more details very soon...

Sincerely,

Debi

Breathing Beside Us Has A Giveaway!

2010-06-13T10:12:00.000-07:00

Deb Hodge from "Breathing Beside Us" will be giving away this
one-of-a-kind Shabby Cuff
at this months Mermaid's Mercantile!

Cuff is handmade by Deb, using a linen~cotton blend and a Vintage rhinestone brooch.

All you need to do to enter is leave us a comment on this post, and one on
Deb's Blog

between today and June 24Th.

The winner will be chosen at random.

Winner will be given prize on Sunday June 27Th at the Mermaid's Mercantile and must be present to win.

Please check in at the cash register to see if you've won :-)

Winner has until 5:00pm Sunday to pick up their cuff.

Good Luck!

A Giveaway on Saturday June 26Th.......

2010-06-12T20:22:00.000-07:00

The amazing Terri Brush will be giving away one of her original

"COURAGE" bracelets

at this months Mermaid's Mercantile.

Terri will be ramdomly picking the winner on Friday evening, June 25Th.

All you need to do to enter is leave a comment on this post, then be present at the Mermaid's Mercantile on Saturday, June 26Th to recieve your prize.

Check in at the cash register to see if you've won.

You'll have until 5:00pm to pick up your gift.

June '2010 Mermaid's Mercantile and Fantastic Friends!

2010-06-09T19:55:00.000-07:00

Hello Girls...

Just a little update on the Terri Brush soldering art workshops in San Diego..

Terri has secured a location right next door to the Mermaid's Mercantile.
with exciting N E W S.

Workshops will start at 9:30 am and end about 5 pm with a yummy lunch served. There are still a couple openings in these fun soldering workshops, so don't delay signing up.
Come shop, play and learn new techniques..

Terri is also bringing with her from Oregon, two wonderful antique dealers who will be participating in the festive weekend here at
"Out of the Blue"

"Mermaid's Mercantile"
Flea Market

Cindy Dockins "Queen of Tarte"

and Joy Bayer of "Auntie Joy"

are well known in WA and Oregon State for their fabulous Antiques and treasures.

Please read below for more information.

Here is the address for the workshops,

Terri Brush Workshops ... 337 South Cedros Avenue, Solana Beach CA 92075.

www.terribrushdesigns.com

( if you are in Terri's workshops during this event, feel free to slip away and take a break to shop!)

Last Sunday!..... part two.....

2010-05-31T08:04:00.000-07:00

So where was I?

Yes, yes, lots of hours spent getting ready for the big day!

I had stopped drinking coffee as a New Years resolution, and it was going fairly well until this month, then, well, not so much. I think I have given up caffine at least a half a dozen times in the last 10 years. It's not easy when your life requires endless stores of energy. If I could hook up an IV of the stuff I probably would. I delude myself into thinking that I will give it up again soon ( I hope).

Back to the point.... Sunday morning finally arrives and the mermaids begin to set up and help with all the last minute details, I am so blessed to be surrounded by 25 extremely talented women who work very hard to make our event so magnificent. I could go on forever about these gals. Many travel hours to come sell their beautiful wares. They are stay at home moms and women who support their families and themselves with their handiwork. They sew and paint , hunt down treasures like super women, and their talent is extraordinary! When you purchase an item from the Mermaid's Mercantile you are supporting families, art and women who are passionate about giving life to vintage finds and creating by hand!

Last Sunday's turnout was overwhelming! We had the biggest show ever, and it was wonderful to hear all of your kind words and enthusiasm! The only problem was that the cashier line was too long! (thank you for your patience,we will have more help and a speedier system next month.). We had a enthusiastic crowd of shoppers from the minute we opened. So many of you came from hours away. We met so many new friends, and it was exciting to meet many that I have admired through their blogs.

In the information age and the world of blogs it is fun and exciting to meet all of you who have posted wonderful pictures and words about our event. I speak for all of the artists and send you a big thank you from the bottom of our hearts!

In the midst of all of this joy Sunday Hendrickson, stylist extraordinaire, arrived to photograph our day. I have to say, she was just as lovely as her work! She so graciously took the time to meet and chat with all of the girls and get to know some of the stories behind what they do and why they do it before taking photos. In the midst of all the excitment, I did not get a picture of Sunday, ( I know, I know ) I will try to describe her: a tousled mane of sandy blond hair, enormous smile, kind, enthusiastic, and down to Earth! It was a day I will always be thankful for. Sunday Hendrickson's work can be found in just about every design magazine on the shelves, and you can read more about her home and Romantic Country Magazine on Fifis O'Niell's blog http://fabulousfifi.typepad.com/ . Look for a feature on the Mermaid's Mercantile in an up coming issue very soon!

Here are more of the blessings that happened on Sunday....

I got to share the day with my sister Janina! Many of you know the story from my personal blog http://debisdesigndiary.blogspot.com/. I just found my new sister on facebook last month along with my biological father and a whole family of relatives. Janina is an extraordinary pastry chef and she brought her yummy cupcakes to the Mermaid's Mercantile. Never one to shy away from an unconventional idea (sort of like...me!), she delighted us with Lavender Cupcakes with Rosewater Buttercream in addition to Deep Chocolate Cupcakes with Crunchy Peanut Butter Frosting. You can read all about her sweet adventures on her blog or come taste her creative confections next month! (She's developing a special Mermaid cupcake just for us. But don't worry, it won't be seaweed flavored or anything THAT strange.)

The list of talented women who came to see us was amazing, Kim Caldwell of Artistic Bliss showed up with her talented gal pals. I have admired her dreamy events online and in print for ages. The chance to meet Kim and chat with her was such a pleasure! Kim's next dreamy event will take place in July and it is right up my alley. Les Sirenes takes place in the Belamar hotel in Mannhatten beach. Kim has a few spots left. If you would like the ultimate dreamy creative experience, visit Kim's workshop page and sign up before her event is full.

I know you all have been waiting for the winners of the seashell letters and the Marie De la Mer class!

and the winners are:

For Best Vintage Outfit........ Mattie Allober! Mattie is is pictured above in her darling Chartruse and vintage boots and will recieve a sheshell letter of her choice.

The winner of the Marie class......... is Kim Fille de Fleur! Kim has a reserved spot in my Marie de la Mer class on July 9th. I have three spaces left for this over the top class. Please call the store if you would like to join us! 858 755 7630. Speaking of Marie Antoinette, I learned a lot of interesing facts about that fashion icon through all of your great comments!

Thank you to all who participated in our give aways. There will be more to come, so please keep visiting the blog and letting me know what's on your mind. You never know when one of your comments will win you a fabulous prize!

Congratulations to all of you who spun the wheel with the fabulous Nicki Glade and won so many wonderful giveaways! Thanks to our wonderful artist, we had giveaways all day long! Nicki was our exuberant greeter and carnival barker! She's also a talented needle felting teacher and artist! Thank you Nicki for taking our event over the top!

The next Mermaid Mercantile is going to be TWO days! June 26th and 27th We have some exciting giveaways planned as well as some very special guest vendors from out of state!

Stay tuned! The giveaways and special announcements will be posted throughout June and they will be GOOD!

sincerely,

Debi

Sunday! Sunday! Sunday!

2010-05-26T23:42:00.000-07:00

It has taken me three days to recover from last Sunday's Mercantile... for so many reasons it was a day to remember. It seemed like it was raining down blessings. Here is a little story about blessing #1.

Like so many of you I have a passion for glossy magazines and the dreamy stories inside them, some of my favorites through the years are Country Living, Home Companion, Where Women Create, and Romantic Country Homes.

These are just a few, I am a fool for magazines, I can't throw any of them out and refer back to them over and over again.... What is my point you ask? Well you know when you open up a new issue to something totally amazing and it just takes your breath away... you may even go so far to cut the pretty page out and post it somewhere for inspiration, or you may just look at it untill you have memorized every detail.

Well every time I discover an article that makes my heart race, I began to notice a common factor, the name of the stylist is always the same, just about every time... hmmm ....I began to wonder who this woman was, and how she created her magic.... then one day, I opened a new issue of Home Companion and there she is.... the face behind the name, in her totally darling green and blue office smiling back at me, I read about her... this woman who can style like no other, and has created beautiful articles for so many magazines.... she is referred to as the Devine Art director at Large, and she is... she truly is.

After I finshed reading, I said to myself, I would really like to meet this woman some day....( maybe someday.... maybe on a Sunday.)

The years passed by and her name was always there attached to some of my fave magazines, and then recently, there she was again.... featured in the thick glossy pages of 'Where women Create' a wonderful piece on her creative genius. Again I hoped.... maybe someday...

A short time later, one of my vendors suggested that I contact

Fifi O'Neill the Editor-in-Chief of Romantic Country Homes, to see if she might want to do a story about the Mermaid's Mercantile.

The following week I sent Fifi an email and a link to our blog. Exactly, approximately, about, 5 minutes later my phone rings, and IT'S FIFI! I am standing in my living room, still in my PJ's looking at her picture attached to editors letter and listening to her beautiful french accent come through my cell phone.... she is calling from her pale pink cottage in Florida you all have seen it on her blog http://fabulousfifi.typepad.com/

Fifi is telling me that she would like to send her stylist/photographer out to our next Mermaid Mercantile for her magazine!

Holy Batman, can this be real? and then..... she says, she will pass my info to to her west coast stylist and to expect a call from Sunday Hendrickson..... Sunday Hendrickson, the Divine Art Director at Large! Right about this time, I think I cried, then I jumped around, then I said a thank you to God, then I called everybody, put out an APB to all of the mermaids AND then, I worked really hard, along with the tireless help of Rachel Luna her hero of a husband Pete and so many others who helped make my store look better than it had ever looked, ever, ever before.

So last Sunday I finally met Sunday!

and there is a lot more to tell...

and I have to annouce the winners of the the give-away's too!

but it is 11pm and my eyes are burning, so now I give you the words,

to be continued....

stay tuned, there's lots more to share and many more photos to show you!

Sincerely,

Debi

Tomorrow is the BIG day!

2010-05-22T07:47:00.000-07:00

Bring an empty suitcase with you, and a Uhaul! We have so many amazing treasures for sale, loads of vintage, furniture, and handmade delites!

There are at least a dozen give-away's from all our great artist that I have not had a chance to post here, wonderful goods like a hand embroidered mermaid pillow. hand made hair flowers, cupcakes and so much more!

come join us for a Super Fun Day!

Sincerely,

Debi

Jane Pollock.....Art Takes A Village

2010-05-20T21:21:00.000-07:00

Jane Pollock

An artist, a philanthropist and ever so passionate about her charity.

Jane established and runs a very special non-profit
"Art Takes A Village"

where she teaches art therapy to women who have endured extreme hardships, and are trying to rebuild their lives.

I am honored that Jane will be attending the Mermaid's Mercantile, this Sunday, May 23rd.

Jane will be selling her amazing handmade jewelry.

You don't want to miss this very special guest.

Trying not to get Blogged down............

2010-05-17T22:00:00.000-07:00

This is the next big give away! I have named this pretty glass dome, 'Marie de la Mer' she is made from paper, vintage fabric and sea shells. The glass skirt lifts up to reveal the underwater vignette, a pink paper seahorse swiming in a coral reef embellished with vintage jewels and pearls. Marie's high vitorian collar is made from seafan and tiny paper thin starfish.

I will be teaching a class, so that you can make your very own 'Marie' on July 9th the cost is $129.00 but I am giving away one seat in class! To qualify just leave a comment here and tell me a fun fact about Marie Antoinette. The lucky winner will be announced this Sunday at The Mermaid's Mercantile!

We have been working late hours creating, staging and making things beautiful for the next Sunday's big flea market event! We just unloaded two truckloads of beautiful vintage pieces that will be for sale this weekend.
I came home from the shop last night at about 10pm and my laptop was calling me.... blog Debi Blog!
I can create art untill 3am but working online is something that is better done in the morning.
I try not to get blogged down... I really enjoy the world of blogging and after my post is finished I always say that wasn't so bad. For some, blogging must be a breeze, I am so amazed by all of the talent, beauty and art that I never knew exsisted untill I dipped my humble toe in the blogging pool.
For me it is not so breezy, I must talk myself through it, labor over every word and delete and start over untill my eyes burn.
OK enough complaining.... there is 5 days untill the Mermaid's Mercantile and I have some wonderful artist's to introduce to you.

First there is Tricia Samsal, of http://vintagebliss.typepad.com/ Tricia is a doll...and her Mom is just as sweet and talented too! Tricia travels, teaches, sells her vintage bliss all over, and if that is not all... Tricia produces her own magazine called, Blissfully Traveled! A magazine dedicated to fun places to visit and shop for the vintage and handmade obsessed! The dreamy crown pictured above is a special process that Tricia teaches using cool images and beeswax. The cupcake painting is from her Mom, Jeanne Samal. This yummy cupcake painting sold right away, please make another Jeanne!
Tricia and her traveling trunk of treasures can be found at Glitterfest this Saturday and with us at the Mermaid's Mercantile on Sunday!
The next artist to introduce to you is the lovely, Holly Stinnet. of http://hollylovesart.blogspot.com/ coming to us from the LA area.

When I first saw Holly's work I was completely enamored with her art, everything she touches seems to have that wonderful vintage flair that makes your heart race. Have you ever seen such girly goodness? I mean seriously everything she creates is so pretty and well done.

I am so excited to meet Holly and see her work in person, I cannot tell you. Holly's dreamy art studio was recently featured in Cloth Paper Scissors magazine. Holly also teaches classes and can often be found selling and creating at one of the fabulous events hosted by Kim Caldwell.

Holly will have a table full of Handmade aprons and Mermaid dolls, and vintage inspired goodness.
I would arrive early before her table is sold out. I know that I will be at her table shopping and making a list of all the things I must own by this oh so very talented artist.

Thanks for stopping by,
Looking forward to seeing you all this Sunday! More give aways coming all week long, stay posted!
sincerely,

Debi

Eight days untill the Next Mermaid's Mercantile!

2010-05-15T20:50:00.000-07:00

The next artist I would like to introduce is the super darling Laura Zeller of http://posiesboutique.com/wordpress

Laura makes hand made baby couture with a vintage flair. The photo above is a pic of her fanny panties, ok soo cute! Laura has a whole candy store of baby bedding, vintage furniture, darling dresses and jackets made from embroidered linens and pillow cases. You can see more of her talent on etsy too!

Be sure to visit Laura at our next Mermaid Mercantile for your next baby shower gift or to doll up your little one. If I were two, I would so totally have my closet stocked with the entire posie boutique line!

Untill tomorrow.... I will be back with more artist profiles and give-aways!

coming up.... Holly Loves Art and Rachel Luna!

stay posted :)

Debi

Nine days to the Mermaids' Mercantile and lots of giveaway's to go!

2010-05-14T08:03:00.000-07:00

Gina Balourdas of http://lizzybs.blogspot.com/ is one of our ultra talented vendors not only can you find Gina at our event she is also getting ready for Glitterfest. Gina creates beautiful jewelry from found vintage objects like silverware, chandelier crystals and watch components. I also heard that she just got back from a fun buying trip on the east coast. Gina is offering a necklace made from vintage typewriter keys. Simply make a comment here and on Gina's blog and the winner will be posted at The next Mermaid's Mercantile on May 23rd.

Come meet Gina and see all of her beautiful work a week from Sunday!

Sincerely,

Debi

Dear readers, please forgive me... it has been 7 days since my last post!

2010-05-13T22:46:00.000-07:00

But I have a very good excuse! You see in the last few days I have meet an entire family that I never knew
I had. I posted on my personal blog how I found my biological father on Facebook last month ...
I met him and about 20 family members for the first time this week, needless to say it has thrown me a little off track. It was a wonderful and miraculous experience that I plan to write about on my other blog soon,
but for now I have a lot of catching up to do! Our next give away is so beautiful.....I wish I could win....
Deb Hodge from http://breathingbesideus.blogspot.com/ is giving away one of her latest designs,
one of her dreamy hand sewn ruffled cuffs with vintage embellishments. They are so pretty! All you have to do to qualify to win one of these soft little vintage treats is leave a comment here and also on Debs's blog, then come to the mercantile on the 23rd and the winner will be posted. Good luck! I have tons more info and give away's coming up and only ten days left to post them all... I have to make up for some lost time be sure to check back ......the next give away is coming up sooner than you may think!
sincerely,
Debi

The next BIG giveaway and 17 days untill the next Mercantile!

2010-05-06T22:40:00.000-07:00

This is the amazing work of the fabulous Nicki Glade of Mermaid Glade. Nicki doesn't have a blog yet but she is working on it.... maybe she could use a little encouragement leave her a comment here and tell her that you would like to see more of her work!

Nicki is a needle felting artist and teacher, she offers classes in our shop every week.

Nicki's mermaids are just the tip of the iceberg.... did you know that you can create anything from flowers to seahorses and mermaids by stabbing wool repeatedly? Nicki has set up a mini shop stocked full of supplies for creating her incredible items at Out of the blue...... she stocks wool in every color, and all the goodies you need to get started in needle felting.

Come take Nicki's class this Saturday at 1pm or leave a comment on our blog and enter to win a free needle felting class with her!

These classes are a blast, you get a lesson and a comedy routine in one with our exuberant Nicki....

if you are lucky, she brings a yummy snack too!

for class info call us at 858 755 7630.

Stay tuned LOTS more super good giveaways all month long!

Sincerely,

Debi

Wheel Of Fortune

2010-05-04T18:18:00.000-07:00

Please join us on May 23rd at the Mermaid's Mercantile for a

"Vintage French Carnival" .

Spin the Wheel Of Fortune for a chance to win this stunning hand set Sea Shell~Rhinestone Crown

valued at $150.

10am to 5pm

Countdown to the next Mermaid's Mercantile.... 20 days!

2010-05-03T23:29:00.000-07:00

Our next Flea market is May 23rd! One week early this time because of Memorial Day. click the flyer above to see all the details.

This one is going to be over the top! Lots and lots of vintage treasures and handmade beauty! This month our theme is Vintage Carnival, think Coney Island in 1950!

We have some magnificent giveaways and events planned all day long! Check the blog every day because I will be posting a new give away right up to our event! Thats 10 fabulous giveaway's in 20 days! BUT.. I am not going to say which days will be give-away-days! you will need to come on over to our blog and take a looksie.

All month long I will feature a new Mermaid Mercantile vendor, you will get the lowdown on what they create and who they are and we will give you a sneek peak at some of the goods that will be for sale on May 23rd.

Our first featured artist is the ultra super talented Lisa Loria of http://vintagebling4u.blogspot.com/ I first met Lisa last August, she came into my shop, I was at an estate sale, my Mom was running the store and struck up a conversation with Lisa and invited her to sell her jewelry at The Mermaid's Mercantile.

Lisa came to our next show and set up her candy store of mouth watering jewels and dreamy belt buckles all made from vintage components. I looked at her table and I was speachless... kinda like when you see a cute boy and you just stand there stammering and looking silly because you are soo enamoured... well that's how it was, I wanted to own all of that jewelry and all I could do was look at her and say, "I love you."

she laughed and we pretty much became instant friends (aka crackheads) we both work like maniacs, creating and selling our art and Lisa will call me up and say, "what cha doin crackhead?"
and we are... addicted to vintage art.
Lisa's talents go far beyond jewelry making, this woman can do anything, altered art, mosaics , sewing but her magnificence lies in her painting (see her blog). Her work is dreamy whimsical heaven and you never know what she will design next..... seriously she has a whole new trunk of treasures every month.
For Lisa's giveaway, she is offering one of her newest creations, a tiny fairy dancing under a smiling moon. A miniature diorama encased in resin dangling from an aqua blue beaded chain (pictured above)
To win this beautiful piece you must leave a comment here and then go to Lisa's blog and leave her a comment too.
Lisa will pick the lucky winner. Here is the catch the winner will be posted at our next Mermaid's Mercantile, you must be present or have someone representing you there to check in for you to claim your prize. For all of you out of state fans call a friend in the area and send them to the mercantile.
If the winner does not check in the giveaway will go to the next person on the list. Good luck!

remember to stay tuned there are lots more giveaways and fun details coming up!
Sincerely,
Debi

The Memaid's have been honored with a a blogger Award!

2010-04-29T00:39:00.000-07:00

Here are a few pics from our last mercantile. There are more photos and lots to say! I will write more later this week. The Mermaid's have been given a blogger award by http://lorimcktia.blogspot.com/ this is a delightful blog titled 'Cottage by the Sea" about life and family in our coastal town of Solana Beach stop by and say hello to Tia, you will love her!

Our next Mermaid Show will be a week early MAY 23RD....

it is going to be Over the Top! more details to come...

stay tuned!

The Next Mermaid's Mercantile is April 25th! It's a Mother's day celebration of vintage goodness, artfull classes and warm weather fun!

2010-04-16T22:16:00.000-07:00

These beautiful photos are from Claire Brocato. Thank you Claire for sharing your amazing talent with us! You can see more of Claire's work and contact her through Flickr.

Well it has been a very busy month! There are big changes at the shop and lots of excitement coming up at the next Mermaid Mercantile! Our theme this month is 'May is for Mothers and Daughters.'

We have a free gift for the first 50 mothers and daughters who come dressed in coordinating outfits and loads of Mother's day gifts and ideas. Just look at the DREAMY ruffled bag and pillow by Deb Hodge: http://breathingbesideus.blogspot.com/ These goodies take her hours and hours to sew, I would come early because I just know that she is going to sell out of them next Sunday!

We also have classes going on all day in our outdoor classroom tent! You can sign up on the spot or see our class schedule for details. The link is on the right...give it a click! Bring a vintage container with you and plant it with flowers, moss and other goodies in Sandra Lee's funky garden container class! Sandra creates the most beautiful container gardens from birdcages, muffin tins, and many other unexpected items.

There will be all kinds of fantastic vintage goods, clothing, jewelry and one of a kind handiwork for sale. All 25 of our magnificently talented vendors are working like busy bees for the next show. Rachel Luna has a new assortment of darling vintage dresses for girls from the 30's, and Laura Zeller of Posies Boutique will be offering her assortment of vintage inspired baby goods and treasures.Inside the shop we have undergone some major changes! We now have a room full of designer fabric and sewing supplies! Dreamy....Vintage buttons, lace and trim...

Cynthia Bardeen is the master mind Of lil' Urchin Fabrics and she has brought her wonderful talent, teaching skills and fabric Store to Out of the Blue. Cynthia specializes in fabrics and that you will never see at a chain store! Amy Butler, Michael Miller and Jennifer Paganelli are just a few of the designer fabrics available, you can also take one of her classes, sewing 101 or her funky fabric clutch class are just a few of the classes that Cynthia offers.

Nicki Glade has also set up shop and offers a wide variety of needle felting supplies and felted artwork. Nicki teached classes too! Be prepared Nicki's classes are wild and fun! You can learn how to make Mermaids, flowers and seahorses sculpted from wool. when ever Nicki's class is in session it's a room full of women laughing and stabbing wool repeatedly with a needle..... I hear things like, "this is my therapy" hmmmmm... sounds like I could really get some frustration out in this class.

Lisa Loria pretty much sold out last month and has an entire new stock of repurposed vintage jewels, painted clothes, fine art...the girl has a slew of talents!

Last but not least is the fabulous Rachel Luna! Rachel has set up a room full of vintage doo dads, and very fun accesories from the 30's 40's and 50's! Rachel has a flair for vintage styling that comes from natual talent as well as 20 years as a buyer in the fashion industry!

Rachel's aunt, Vonnie Ware, stocks us with her handmade chocolates and goodies! PLEASE keep the white chocolate licorice away from me! This is seriously addicting!

Ok girls.... here is the best part....a few days ago.... Rachel, Cynthia, Nicki Deb and I happened upon a truckload of vintage goodies, prom dresses, square dance petti coats, vintage shoes, handbags, the most darling childrens dresses, fabric, trim, furniture and lots of other AMAZING stuff!

All vintage! All crazy GOOD!

Out of the Blue is the place to go for inspiration and creative fun! We now have a 'candy store' filled with one -of -a kind craft, mixed media, and altered art supplies! We sold out of our handmade vintage german paper, more is on the way! We have jewelry supplies made from victorian molds and vintage findings, vintage sheet music, trim, doo dads and so much more!

Our goal is to carry art supplies that will never be found at a chain store and offer creative classes that are beyond even my wild imagination.

So if you would like to learn how to sew, make handmade flowers and crowns, doll up your vintage handbag, solder or needle felt... check our class schedule (the link is on the right)! New classes are added each week! We hope to see you Sunday at the one and only Mermaid's Mercantile!

Be sure to visit my personal blog... http://debisdesigndiary.blogspot.com/ I have BIG news there too!

Sincerely ~ Debi

The next Mermaid Mercantile is March 28th!

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Join us on March 28th for an entire day of great shopping, craft demos, make and takes and magnificent classes!

Debbie Lawrence will have her amazing hand made hats that you can embellish and personalize for Easter and all your spring events! There will be vintage jewelry, lots of great furniture and the best handmade clothing!

Cynthia our new vendor is bringing her petite fabric store to our sale....she has dreamy, hard to find prints and textiles that you never see at a fabric store! She will be teaching sewing 101 in our new classroom along with some other great classes too.

The whole garden will be packed full of vintage finds and handmade goodness. Hope to see you there!

For further questions and details feel free to call the shop or stop by! 315 s. Cedros ave. Solana Beach, Ca 92075 858 755 7630

a lesson in Faith and Miracles.....

2010-03-06T23:29:00.000-08:00

I wanted to share this story , I hope that it will encourage you. This is about a miracle! You will want to take note of the photograph above because it plays a big part in this magnificent story.
I opened Out of the Blue 13 years ago and it has been an adventure and a lesson in faith to say the very least. It was a miracle that I was able to open my shop to begin with and I have to attribute a series of miracles, the grace of God and lots of hard work to the fact that I am still open now (especially this year).
The Mermaid's Mercantile an extension of my store, began one year ago. My vision was to create a place for artists who love vintage and hand made goods to gather and sell their handiwork. When I set out to begin this new project it was inspired by Somerset Life magazine.
I was looking though the pages of this beautiful compilation of inspiration and art, page after page of shimmering beauty created by women across the world who submit their delicate vintage inspired handiwork to be published.
To me opening a new issue of Somerset Life is the equivelant to eating a slice of the best cake, while curled up in a comfy chair listening to my favorite song with my pj's on..... Visual Heaven.
My hearts desire was to create a vibrant and colorful market place that would come to life on the last Sunday of every month in the garden that surrounds my shop and name it, The Mermaid's Mercantile.
I told myself that when I accomplished this goal I would submit  photos to Somerset Life with hopes that we would be published in their 'Locals of Intrigue' section, a story about beautiful places to shop featured in every issue..
I set out to find the most talented group of artists. I choose them for their kind hearts as well as the quality of their work.  The mercantile became all that I had hoped it to be and I found myself surrounded by an amazing group of women who quickly became friends. When all of us gathered in one place we became a creative force of encouragment and inspiration. When my 'mermaid's started showing up with their past issues of Stampington's magazines, passing them around and sharing them I thought OK it's time to submit our event to the publishers.
I hired a photographer for our October show and put together a handmade scrapbook with stories and pictures about our event and the artists behind them, it was a beautiful presentation that took a week to put together. I hand glittered and embellished the photos and words, added vintage wall paper and snippets of lovely little things hoping to create a presentation that was worthy of the magazine.
Then Deb Hodge helped me send it off to Stampington and included a personal note to Beth Livesay the editor for Stampington's Altered Couture, Jewelry Affaire, Somerset Home and Haute Handbags.
Not long after, Beth came to visit my shop, during her visit she said that she would like to to come back in a few months to see our Feburary Mermaid's Mercantile  and she also passed the info about our event on to the editor of Somerset Life.
A week before our Feburary mercantile I got an email from a photographer who said she would be coming to photograph our Mercantile for the Locals of Intrigue section of Somerset Life... well of course was super excited about this and so were all 25 of my Girls! I assumed that this was due to my scrapbook and Beth mentioning us. Well .... this is what actually happened......
Claire Brocato is a photographer who lives here in San Diego, she was walking by my shop one evening when we were closed and took a photograph of the vintage bicycle that sits on the porch at my shop. Claire posted this picture to her flicker site along with hundreds of other beautiful photos. A short time later she got an email from someone asking where the picture of the bicycle came from? Claire wrote back and said it was taken at shop in Solana Beach called Out of the Blue. The person inquiring about the photo wrote again saying that she was a publisher for Stampington publications and would Claire like to send more photos of Out of the Blue? Claire then came to our January mercantile and took more pictures which she sent to Stampington. Then Claire got a call ... turns out this person's name is Kellene Giloff! (the president of Stampington ) and she wanted to hire Claire to photograph the Mermaid's Mercantile as it was just what she was looking for...... to feature in her Locals of Intrigue section in Somerset Life!!!!!
In the natural life... what is the probability of that happening?
This was a big lesson for me about faith, there have been many times when I have worked tirelessly on a new idea and the door just never opens, or I will create something that does succeed only to have it copied by someone else.
I have questioned why things happen the way they do...friends disappoint, strangers take liberties where they should not, some seem to profit from injustice.  All of these things have happened to me and many others that I know.
One of my favorite authors, Oswald Chambers writes ,
"Tenacity is more than endurance it is endurance combined with absolute certainty that what we are looking for is going to transpire. The greatest fear man has is that his hero will be conquered and that God and everything he stood for -love and justice and forgivness and kindness among men- will not win out in the end. Then comes the call to spiritual tenacity, If our hopes are being disappointed just now, it means they are being purified. There is nothing noble the human mind has ever hoped for or dreamed of that will not be fullfilled. One of the greatest strains in life is the strain of waiting for God."

there are many unanswered prayers in my life, many dreams still waiting to be fullfilled... one thing I know is this....when God wants to do something he will move heaven and earth to do so.  A few weeks ago he used a rusty bicycle to answer one of my prayers and I am grateful!
Psalm 46:10 "be still and know that I am God"
in other words ... Debi, go ahead give it your best effort, but I am still God and I will do it my way.....
for all who are waiting... trust in what you know to be true, keep working tenaciously, follow your heart  .... God quietly preforms miracles every day in his own unique way.
May your life be full of rusty bicycles or chippy furniture, or tattered quilts....or......
Sincerely,
Debi

Last Sunday The Mermaid's Mercantile was a day filled with Excitment, Sunshine, amazing talent and super fun Classes!

2010-03-04T15:28:00.000-08:00

Well.... I have been so busy and there are many things to catch up on!

First of all the mermaid girls headed up to CHA last month to hunt for new products and creative ideas for our classes and DIY event, we all were super excited and inspired! We met up with Beth Livesay from Stampington for lunch and she gave us the newest issues of Altered Couture and Apronology!

Deb Hodge cover girl that she is ....her beautiful white cotton dress and matching apron was selected for the cover of Apronology! It is devine! and Rita Reade was also featured you can see her dreamy tea stained flea market apron inside the pages of Apronology too!

On the way home from Anaheim I got a phone call from HGTV's Design Star! ( thats a whole other story that you can read about on my personal blog.. http://debisdesigndiary.blogspot.com/)

After our trip to Anaheim we came back and brainstormed for our next Mermaid Mercantile.

Our theme was DIY and we had classes in progress, craft supplies for sale and lots of demos!

Lisa Loria was painting on vintage wig heads, Rita Reade was teaching some gals how to solder a vintage bottle. Gina was stamping antique silverware into glorious pendants, Erin was wire wrapping, Nicki and Kimberly were needle felting and I was teaching some lovely ladies how to make seashell letters and a seashell tiara. Just look at their faces... don't they look happy! I had never taught a class before so this was really a fun and rewarding experience for me!

Oh and did I mention that a week before our show we were notified that we would be photographed for Somerset life???? So there we were.... the sun was shining, Jack was playing his guitar, and all of my talented artist were busy teaching and selling their magnificent handicrafts while Claire was taking hundreds of pictures of all the glorious goodies for sale.

Laina had racks and racks of vintage clothing , there were oodles and oodles of the best hand made jewelry you have ever seen , handpainted cowboy boots, tempting hand made chocolates from Vonnie, Pam's hand stictched pillows, the cutest cupcake aprons ever by Melissa Robinson, Kimberly made an apron from recycled mens ties... this apron was so cool I wanted to wear it like a dress! Rachel had vintage Barbie and sewing supplies, Tricia had the coolest crown and cameo wall hangings that would be perfect in my living room why I shoulda bought the pink and black one with the pom poms?.... I need it! Linda hand a booth full of repurposed furniture, Val Hebert came to us for the firsrt time with her to-die-for felted sweaters pillows and goodies and there was more lots and lots more!

To top everything Beth and her crew of darling friends show up to shop, mingle with us and pull new goodies for Stampington! I had been telling Beth all about my talented group for months and to see all of their happy faces as they got a chance to show their work was a priceless moment for me. If you don't already know this, I love handmade and especially handmade combined with vintage or repurposed materials. All of my vendors work with their hands to suport their families. when somthing is purchased from The Mermaid Mercantile you are supporting families and locally made, recycled art.

Beth went back to Stampington with all kinds of good stuff that we hope to see in up coming issues!

We will all get to see what they decide to publish this fall.

If thats not all... My issue of Porch arrived the day before our event.. Polly featured the Mermaids! If you have not ordered your copy of Porch you can do so at http://porch-magazine.blogspot.com/ this is beautiful magazine created by people who want to highlight handmade and vintage treasures. So many great photos! Thank you Polly!

Thanks to all of you who came, took classes and shopped! We had twice the turnout! It was so great to see all of you and meet new faces! We have some really exciting plans for our next show on March 28TH stay tuned!

Sincerely,

Debi

Join us this Sunday as The Mermaid's Mercantile is photographed for the beautiful pages of Somerset Life!

2010-02-25T07:48:00.000-08:00

Come join us this weekend Feb 28th 10am -5pm for the best flea market and sale of vintage handicrafts ever!
The Editors of Somerset Life will be there to photograph our event for the dreamy pages of their magazine! All of the Mermaids will be selling their goods, Through out the whole day there will be craft demos, make and takes and on going classes !
Lots of cool stuff for sale! Racks and racks of Vintage clothing, to die for... re-purposed jewelry, heart stopping flea market treasures, home accessories, pillows, aprons, furniture and more!
Hope to see you there!

Fun classes and DIY Demos at the next Mermaid Mercantile on FEB 28th

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Make this fab seashell and crystal tiara this class is taught by Debi! It is offered at a special price to celebrate the kick off of our new classroom! We have room for 8 students reserve you space today! (cost of class is $35 includes all supplies) On Feb 28th we will be teaching classes all day long in our DIY craft tent! We are offering six classes! Sign up to take a class 1st come first served! Class schedule...

Feb 27th

11am Rita Reade's soldered seashell bottle and pendant class (cost is $75 includes everything you need to make both projects.

Feb 27th 2pm-4pm

Debi's Seashell covered letter class (cost is $50 and includes everything you need to make one nine inch letter of your choice. This class is almost full so call the store soon to reserve your space.

Feb 28th

11am-12:30 Tricia Samsals vintage egg class.(cost is $35 includes supplies to make three darling eggs)You can contact Tricia at http://vintagebliss.typepad.com/ or call the store to reserve your spot)

1-2:30 is Lisa Loria's initial bling ring class you can contact Lisa at http://vintagebling4u.blogspot.com/ or call the store ($35 includes supplies to make your own mongramed ring)

3-4:30pm Rachel Luna's darling cupcake purse class (cost $25 all you need to make this adorable purse call the store to reserve your space)

11-12-30 am Deb Hodge beautiful rosary beaded necklace class you can contact Deb at http://breathingbesideus.blogspot.com/ or call the store(cost is $65) Learn from Deb who has been featured on the cover of Haute Handbags and Apronology. not to mention that she has been published several times in the pages of Altered Couture.

1-2:30 Debi Beard's seashell tiara class! create your own with seashells, crystals pearls and more!

3-4pm Dana Erickson's fabric flowers. These fabric roses are all the rage right now ... you see them everywhere... they are all over the head bands, purses and tee's at Anthro... why pay $40 for one headband when you can make six of your own for the same price? Wear them as hair flowers or anything else you can dream up... these cute flowers have a magnet attached to them so you can put them on anything!

Doll up your out fits your shoes, your hair accessories! In this class you will make six flowers for $40!

contact Dana at http://tutumonkey.blogspot.com/ or call the store to save your spot in class.

Call the shop now to reserve your spot! 858 755 7630

Class Schedule

Feb 27th

Rita Reades soldered jewelry class make this seashell bottle or a cool charm! I took Rita's class last month and it was so much fun! We made a beautiful winged heart pendant and a seashell bottle. Rita is an excellent teacher and every one was so happy with their projects! rita has room for 5 students so reserve your space by contacting Rita at http://mammabellarte.blogspot.com/ asap!

time Feb 27th from 11 am -1pm

cost $75 includes all supplies

Tricia Samsal's vintage egg class is Sunday Feb 28th! cost is $35 you make three darling eggs two small 3.5 inch eggs and one larger 7.5 inch egg! using fun glitter and paper mache tecniques. Tricia teaches all kinds of fun classes and we are so excited to have her come all the way from AZ to teach us and sell her beautiful work at the Mermaid's Mercantile this month!

Lisa Loria's vintage letter ring class! Learn how to make your own monogramed ring using crystals vintage paper and a fab metal letter! Lisa made one for me and it is my favorite! OMG people stop me every where I go and ask where I got my super cool 'D' for Debi ring'

reserve your spot today as space is limited! Class time Feb 28th cost $35 we have room for 8 students.

this is just a few of the things that will be going on at our event on Feb 28th!

we will have artist demos, make and take projects, and diy kits all day long!

there will be cool handmade items for sale and Laina's booth will be packed full of her magnificent vintage clothing, there will be a seamstress on hand to alter and doll up these pieces just for you!

it's gonna be fun!

see you Sunday!

The next Mermaid's Mercantile is this Sunday Jan 31st!

2010-01-25T16:35:00.000-08:00

Swim on over to the Mermaid's Mercantile this Sunday! We are setting up our beautiful flea market at Out of the Blue! Our garden will be overflowing with sparkle and color! Tucked among the vines is a visual dream of vintage and hand made finds! Over 20 super talented vendors will be offering their one-of-a-kind, personal accesories, vintage decor, repurposed furniture, vintage clothing and jewelry, childrens wear and heart stopping garden accessories that you wont want to miss!
Be sure to visit our DIY tent where you can sign up for classes, chat with the teachers and view samples of our upcoming projects. Febuary is filled with loads of exciting classes! Needle felting, Soldered jewelry, vintage egg decorating, metal stamping, and so much more! It is going to be so Fun!

Beth Livesay from Stampington Publications came to visit Out of the Blue!

2010-01-12T15:59:00.000-08:00

Beth is the wonderful editor for Altered Couture, Somerset Home, Haute Handbags and Apronology just a few of many other to-die-for magazines! read all about her visit on my other blog! http://debisdesigndiary.blogspot.com/ It was a beautiful day of blessings and excitment, shared with friends and fellow artist.

more beautiful photos from Sunday's vintage wonderland!

2009-12-04T08:01:00.000-08:00

Our next Mermaid Mercantile is going to be on Dec 12TH and 13TH

here are some more pics from last month!

Sandra Lee's booth... dreamy outdoor wonderland full of birds and vintage tresures!she makes her own garden bricks! I want one that says, 'Mermaid'Deb and Dyanna's magnificent scarves, pillows and bottles,

all made by hand with crystals and wonderful embellishments.

What is better than a shimmering chandelier pillow?Linda Wattles finds tresures to repaint and repurpose she is the Queen of giving old relics a new life!

You will find some beautiful basic white pieces for your home in her booth BUT you will also find great color!

Linda likes to say 'beige is not a color'

and I have to agree with her.Darlah won't sell her tiny dress forms, (I can't blame her) they are perfect for diplaying her fantastic jewelry.

I really would like to get my hands on one of those forms and doll it up though! wouldn't a tiny vintage prom dress on one of those be great!Linda Morrow's mosaics and vintage finds. I love the fish!Hand felted nativity by Marion Buzzbee.

Marion and Nicky Glade share a booth and make all kinds of felted mermaids, seahorses and other goodies.my seashell crown with butterflies and vintage jewels.

Be sure to come see us on the 12TH and 13TH we are making all kinds of new must have gifts and goodies to give and keep!

last Sunday at the Mermaid's Mercantile was like stepping inside a snow globe!

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havaianas hand embellished with rhinestones by Dyanna Cooley at $26 dollars a pair or three for $60 they flew out of the garden!Deb Hodge's super cute boyfriend jeans! I want to run home to my closet with all of her belts! I wore her 'Queen of the beach' belt all day until a customer took it off me and bought it! DEB! please make more!

Lisa Loria's hair flowers are sooo pretty! Lots of great shopping!Rita Reade's soldered charms! She will be teaching classes at our shop next year!Rita and Christie's beautiful booth! .

Laina has the best vintage clothing ever!

Her prom dresses! OMG! I got the cutest pink print dress it's sooo I love lucy!

and petticaot pants that will be great peeking out under dresses and paired with cowboy boots!

her prices are too good to be true...

think if Anthro had decided to delete the last three digits from their price tags!

oh yes girls! you better come early because her treasures are snapped up in a flash!Pam's darling pillows!Linda Wattle's great holiday sign!this beachy christmas house lights up!Brenda Griffin's surfboard murals!Erin Pettit's silver clay jewelry! Erin will be teaching classes on how to work with silver clay! Become a follower and get all the updates on upcoming events and more!cute cupcakes made with sea urchins...

I gave up sugar (trying to!) and now I find myself creating all sorts of sugar related crafts!

At the next sale I plan to have a seashell wedding cake!

(made by a single girl jonesing for sweets!)

be sure to come see us at our next Mermaid Mercantile Event Dec 12th and 13th!

It's gonna be Beautiful!

Sincerely,

Debi

Handmade and Vintage Holiday Wonderland Nov 28th and 29th!

2009-11-18T12:52:00.001-08:00

our Next event is going to be so Beautiful!
we have some wonderful new vendors and all the girls are working on lots of dreamy new goodies that will be glorious to give and receive!
I had the honor of selling my work at La Maison Rustique last weekend. This is a beautiful event from Linda Carpenter in Temecula, Ca. It is a must attend event.
visit http://lamaisonrustique.blogspot.com/ for details.

Here are some photos of some of the goodies that I made for her show. The seahorse is made from thousands of tiny shells, coral and vintage jewels. She is now for sale at my shop.

This pink seashell wreath sold. Thank you Rita for getting a photo before it was gone. It was oh soo sparkley! Lots of vintage jewels and pink mercury balls.

A customer came in this morning and bought ALL of these seastar ornaments!
Yay! and ohhh ....I have to make more :(
I made them with pearls from a vintage handbag that was falling apart and rhinestones.
They were also dipped in pearl paint, I loved them, hope I have time to make more!

Hope to see you all soon! there are so many beautiful items that will be for sale at our next event! Jewelry that is soo beautiful you will want to cry!
The best belts, purses and cowboy hats ever, Havaiana flip flops encrusted with vintage jewelry ( for only $26.00!) Soldered art, crown pendants, bird houses made with chandelier parts and more that you will love love love!
don't miss the next one! save the date!
Sincerely,
Debi

New blog For the Mermaid's Mercantile!

2009-10-02T01:16:00.000-07:00