While in Minneapolis last week during The Creative Connection, I had finally curbed my anticipation and had the opportunity to also attend the Junk Bonanza...
traveling in style, and arriving at the
J U N K
fall foliage and plump white pumpkins greeted us at the entrance...
while arrows pointed the way...
any direction would have led us to fabulous and funky "junk!"
As I looked around corners...
bedazzled by the vintage beauty of delicate jewels and...
softly worn leather baseballs,
flowers were blooming everywhere and looked especially cute in vintage metal jugs and buckets.
Delicate heirlooms of linen and lace with antique watercolour etchings in gilded frames and sculpted decoration on furniture were a beautiful contrast to the backdrop of rustic planks.
This stylish dress form adorned with a flouncy pill box hat was stunning in black and white...
as were these tarnished silver platters.
It was a bonanza of fun and as I headed back on the bus to The Creative Connection headquarters, I met some delightful new friends, who I hope I will stay "creatively connected" to for quite some time.
The next day was my "big" morning as the Featured Designer at the Editorial Breakfast. The tables were decorated with a charming collection of old typeset pages from magazines and books with flowers in the center of the tables made with crinkled paper,
and this country white collection of editorial bouquets made from vintage papers, newspaper string, retro milk glass bottles with wreaths hanging above made with yellowed pages of text from newsprint and old, tattered books.
My white cotton millinery flowers were made by Jo Packham and her team and looked darling with the variety of buttons they used for the center of each flower. It was flattering to see so many of the women attendees wearing these flowers on their lapels after the event.
{My friend Jennifer Hayslip, who by the way had a booth at the Marketplace full of her luscious one~of~a~kind hand made gifts and Sweet Eye Candy Creations, took this photo of me and Jo. Thanks Jenn!}
After Jo greeted all of us and introduced me, I presented her with a gift of some of my hand made cotton and linen millinery flower tea towels ~ stamped with a crown, of course!
{I will be offering similar designs of these towels in my Etsy shop and on My Front Porch for the holidays.}
I also made her a pretty one~of~a~kind booklet from one of my colour photographs, ribbons, organza, and baubles.
{A new collection of my one of a kind booklets will be listed in my Etsy shop and on My Front Porch later this week.}
The editorial panel included fabulous speakers from Lark Books, Stampington, Better Homes & Gardens to name a few, and of course Jo herself.
I know that so many of the attendees will be writing about their experience at The Creative Connection {and have already posted much about it}, and there will be thousands of photographs posted everywhere, so I will leave it up to you to find them and have fun doing so!
For now, I want to say that it was a great opportunity for me and to be selected as one of the few Featured Designers at the event was most flattering and for that I am thankful.
Ciao amici,
Suzanne