Sentimental Sunday

My friend Cha Cha is hosting Sentimental Sunday and I decided to join in this week

I am in the planning stages of a 40th wedding anniversary party for my mom and dad

I have been looking at pictures of days gone of all of us as I ready for a surprise of my mom and dad and came across this picture of my mom and I after Christmas in  probably 1982

I got the knitted outfit from Santa for my doll

I loved playing with dolls so much and always wanted to be a mommy

I can remember the whole house ~ we are in the living room and even though this set is long since gone I can still recall how my mom said she saved  a long time to buy it

Red plaid set with green carpeting ~ I guess I know where my love of plaid comes from

I kept warm with that afghan on the back of the couch 

My neighbor Thelma made it. She is now in her late 80's and a few months back she gave my mom an afghan that she crocheted for my baby because she said she was not sure she would be here to meet him or her!

On the right hand side I can see my rocking chair ~ I loved that chair!
Oooh I have so many more pictures that I am weeding through
I will be taking a sentimental journey all week long as my task is to tackle PICTURES!

~ Consigning ~

I am joining Kellie with this post
I hope it helps and inspires you to DeClutter and Consign your unwanted STUFF!
Spring Fling your way to CLEAN!!!




\I was the manager of my moms home consignment  shop for 3 years!

I loved every second of it!

I built the shop from the very first day and I lived and breathed all things consignment for those three years.

I won  two international awards and was the president of our local alliance.

The business was booming...  then the economy went bust and we closed the shop in July.

I still love consignment and would not hesitate to open another shop in the future.

That being said I decided to do a 3 part series on consigning.

 I hope that you will follow me for the three weekly installments and maybe give it a try if you have not already.

It really is easy and very lucrative as long as you are informed and comfortable with the shop you choose

My main area of expertise is home consignment which is furniture and home decor however there are all kinds of consignment shops... clothing, children, and more!

The core of any consignment business is the consignor...  A consignor brings unwanted items to be sold at a shop and then receives a commission once the item sells.

Without the consignor... there would not be a shop!

I am going to do some housekeeping first so that you can get some background on how a consignment shop works.
Here are some questions to ask and then a follow up of what we did in our shop.

• Do you have an agreement and what are the terms? EVERY shop should have an agreement also known as a contract. If the shop you are interested in does not have an agreement,  do NOT consign there. PERIOD.  The agreement should make you feel comfortable. If you are not comfortable, ask questions. If something is not clear, ask questions.  Our agreement protected the consignor and the shop. We offered a 60 day term and the consignor rec'd half of the selling price. We paid on demand and you could use shop credit. You were welcome to pick up any unsold items after the 60 days or we would have a charity sale for the childrens hospital and all proceeds went there.

• How long will my items stay for sale in the shop? All shops have different time periods. Some are seasonal, some are monthly, most are 60 days. We were 60 days.

• Is there a fee to consign? Some shops charge a yearly fee of $5.00 for book keeping. Some shops charge a seasonal fee.  I have heard of fees as high as $25.00. We did not charge a fee.  Find out what the fee is for. Like I said many use this for book keeping and mailing checks and some shops use it to weed out less desirable consignors.

• Can I have a receipt? You should ALWAYS get a receipt for any items you leave at the shop.  Some receipts are itemized and priced. Other shops give a count. We gave an itemized receipt to our consignors. 

• Do you buy outright? Sometimes shops will buy smaller items outright. We did this. We purchased candles and stationary, costume jewelry and smaller trinkets.   We also purchased items outright that could be used for display.  You may get a quick $10.00 bill for a box of mix matched greeting cards that the shop either sells or adds on to packages.

• If my items don't sell can I have them back or do you dispose of them? These items are yours. You own the items during the duration of the consignment period.  Read what you are agreeing to.  We had two people in three years ask for items back. One person had sellers remorse and the other wanted our contract so he could open a shop of his own.  Some shops will charge a fee for taking your items back before the contract expires.

• If you dispose of them do you toss them or do you donate them to charity? We had a sale for the childrens hospital and then donated those leftovers to the church across the street from the shop for their flea market.

• How much commission will I receive? Some shops are 50/50 (we did this split) or 60/40. This is important to know. Either you split the selling price evenly OR the shop takes 60% and you get 40%.

• Do you pay on demand or do I have to wait for a check? We paid on demand and consignors were allowed to use shop credit anytime.  Some shops pay you at the end of the consignment period by cash or check.  Be careful though because some shops do require you to PICK up your check and if you don't pick it up in the scheduled time frame, you forfeit YOUR earnings back to the shop.

• Can I use store credit? Ideally you could. I am not sure why any shop would not allow this... it is a win win situation... !

My BEST advice is to READ the agreement and if you are not comfortable... find another shop.

So now that you know the inner workings of consigning here is how to be the PERFECT consignor!

I am serious... you can be a PERFECT consignor!

We had several of them ... when they came through our doors we dropped everything because they were our rock stars.

When you are a great consignor, you make the most money too.

Here are my top hints for being a dream consignor

• Visit the shop  FIRST and see what the shop accepts. I know this may seem obvious but some shops are very particular about the age of items and the season. 
• Make sure your items are in pristine condition. Clean your mirrors, shine your wood table, check for stains on your linens... Be sure your items are in the exact condition that you would want to purchase them in.
• Take your items to the shop and DO NOT BABY SIT!! I am serious about this one. When you declutter and make a pile of stuff to get rid of...  that means you no longer want the items. I had one woman who came in EVERYDAY to see if her items sold... they NEVER did! LOL

• See if the shop offers drop and run...  this is a great way to drop off your stuff quickly and be on your way! Drop and Run is offered AFTER you are an established consignor in a shop.

Whew...
I think that this is all for today...
please ask any questions you may have in the comments
and I will do a follow up post at the end of the week!

I hope this post was helpful to you and that you are now more informed about consigning!

Blessings ~ Patricia

PS: Pics are from our shop...through the years...

PSS: Shopping consignment is coming next week so stay tuned!

Then look for information on how you can make consigning a job!

Irish Potato Soup...

Last Saturday my mom and I ended up sharing a beautiful afternoon of Irish tea!

I called this a God given treat... we got to sit down to a lunch together without the distractions of life... we chatted and shared an ordinary day that felt extraordinary to me.

I am blessed!

We visited one of our favorite Irish shops for a gift for my Aunt and ended up sitting down to a cup of soup ~ a delicious sandwich... and a pot of tea!

The owner of the shop, Jane Clarke,  shared this recipe for her potato soup!

This soup was so delicious!

Actually... it is now THE BEST potato soup I ever had!

There are no real instructions however... so you kind of have to a a pretty decent cook in order to make this.

I think what I liked the best about the soup is the diced potato... when I make my soup I don't dice... I usually just chunk so the diced texture reminded me of something my grandma used to make!

Jane Clarke's Potato Soup

What you’ll need:

• Butter (to taste)

• 1 medium carrot, diced

• 1/2 medium onion, diced

• 1 stalk celery, diced

• Flour (use judgment)

• Water

• Four to five russet or red potatoes, peeled and diced

• Heavy cream (to taste)

• Salt and pepper

Dice vegetables. Melt butter in medium saucepan, add vegetables and saute. Add flour to make a roux and stir for several minutes. Add water to cover and stir again. Stir in peeled, diced potatoes and season with salt and pepper to taste. Simmer until vegetables are tender. Stir in heavy cream to taste. Total cooking time is at least 20 minutes.

Let me know if you try it!

Oh and if you are wondering... we did get a gift for my Aunt and we are taking her for her very own birthday tea party next weekend!

Can I just show you...

the cake my mom made!

She is awesome!!

I am doing it...

image from holiday hair

tomorrow!

My hairdresser (mom) is coming over tomorrow... 

I am making lunch for her and my dad and  in exchange she is CUTTING my hair!!!

WoHOoOoO!!!

I like the style above... 

I TRIED yet again to grow my hair long and I cannot take it anymore!!!

I may or may not take an after picture!!

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Oh and I did it... I finished ALL of Nicholas Sparks books this week!!

All 16 of them which includes the book he co authored that was VERY hard to find!!!!

I am so proud!!

Another new year goal completed!!!

Linking up to

Sugar Free Present

My Uncle turned 60 yesterday and his parish threw him a surprise party!!

I had no idea what to give him until I was in my favorite store... the dollar tree ~ and saw all the sugar free candy they have. 

He is diabetic.

I had a container that I bought for $.25 (actually I bought several of them) from Dollar General last Christmas

 

I covered it with paper that I printed on my computer and trimmed it with my favorite black ribbon

I also covered some microwave popcorn with this label that I created

 

I took all the candy out of the packages and placed them in pretzel bags and tied them with a personalized tag and curly ribbon

 I also covered the peanuts and nuts with personalized wrappers too

So far so good

 

It is really packed now!!

And here it is all wrapped and ready to go!

I hope he loved it ~ I am sure he will let me know soon!!

Brunch...

My friend Meghan over here at Unintended Housewife inspired me to have a brunch!

Since moving into our new home, I really enjoy having people over.

This time the invitees were my mom and dad.

I served brunch!

I did not worry if the house was clean enough...

for once!

I just called and told them to come over for 11am

I served scones with cream and jam

A breakfast casserole

A lime fruit salad

Coffee ~ Tea ~ Juice

Easy peasy!!

Really... it was

I had the scones in the freezer and warmed them up in the oven

Whipped some fresh cream

Made a egg, sausage and hash brown casserole and left it overnight in the fridge

Cut up some fruit and added some fresh lime juice, honey and poppy seed

That is it ... oh and I woke up at 10am, turned on the oven and set the table!

My dad voted that we do this weekly... no one seconded him!

But I may just call and tell them to show up again soon!

Dinner last night!

The hubby had a clergy appreciation dinner last night.

He wanted an appreciation gift that was practical and inexpensive

But what do you get the clergy?

Seriously ~ my one Uncle is a priest and he has everything he needs for himself
... the things he really needs cannot be bought on a tight budget!

So on a trip to Christmas Tree Shops the other day (are you detecting theme ~ I love this place) ...

after scouring almost the whole store... I came across these little faux leather notebooks

At 1.99 each these are adorable and they have a really nice attached ribbon bookmark!

So we picked these up for all the priests
My idea is that they are always writing things down and these are compact enough to keep in a jacket pocket  

I knew I would be able to package them up nicely via the cricut!!!

I put the notebook into a cellophane bag from dollar general ( 30 for a buck)

And closed it with  a cross stamped cricut cut tag and my favorite black and white ribbon

The hubby wrote thank you on the back of each tag

I think they are nice and I hope they know how much they are appreciated!

It was a beautiful affair and I am so proud of my husband!

Nicholas Sparks & Ice Cider

The day before New Years Eve we made a trip to see my family in NY

We had such a good time

We stopped on the way up at this really cool apple orchard

I enjoyed some ice cider and the hubby enjoyed some hot cider

We bought some bread and pastries too...

When we arrived in NY we went to my cousins home and had lunch

While we were talking and chatting and talking and chatting we began talking about books

I began making a list of books that they suggest I read

My cousin gave me 2 Nicholas Sparks books to take home and read

The Lucky One and Dear John

I love to read and had read a few of Sparks books before and enjoyed them.

The books I find are an easy read and Nick (yep) takes me right along and I get lost...

There is nothing vulgar and everything is always bittersweet in the end

Driving home that evening I decided that I would read ALL of Nicks books in 2010

I love to set goals and achieve them

I enjoy crossing things off and I relish the challenge

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

I have the Notebook... and the Wedding and never yet read either

I started with Dear John ~ It was a great read!

Lots of things going on and everything tied together at the end.

I prefer to read rather than watch the movie... although I will probably go to see Dear John when it comes out in February...

I read Nights in Rodanthe and then watched the movie... I did not like the movie

I think sometimes the imagination is better than any movie could be!

I just finished reading The Last Song last weekend...  I loved this book!

I cried tears that were buried far beneath the surface

It was a beautiful book!

Well written and the theme really hit home for me in ways I never imagined!

The movie is coming soon... I hope it lives up to my expectations!

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

My dad taught me to read... he read to me every night

My dad taught me to pray... he prayed with me every night

The Last Song reminded me of my Dad!

So I let my dad borrow the book from me that I borrowed from the library.

My dad is a fast reader too... I hope he enjoys the book as much as I did!

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

So there is my goal... So far so good

I have read over  1/2 of my goal so far and it is only January still...

I will probably take a break soon... maybe!

Reading is helping me to keep my mind off my other goal of losing 50 pounds this year

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

So back to our trip... after staying a while and visiting we headed back not before stopping for some ice cider and some hot cider and some sharp cheese... cuz ny sharp is the BEST!

Tradition at Christmas

Whew... I am exhausted but thrilled to have celebrated Christmas Day with my family

Our Christmas is rich in tradition starting with this

Yes, this is a white damask table cloth that is signed with permanent marker

Many years ago my mom saw this idea on Oprah to have all of the Christmas guests sign the tablecloth

We have at least 50 people in and out of the house on Christmas Day and everyone signs "in"

Little ones and big ones are all accounted for on the cloth...

Some write their own name and the little ones hands are traced

After it is used for dinner it is washed and used again the following year

My mom then uses the filled up table cloth for a tree skirt

This one is retiring this year and will be added to our first cloth under the tree

It takes about 9 years to fill up a cloth completely

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Another tradition at Christmas is this

Antipasto salad with extra extra (2 large cans) of black olives

The antipasto is made by me each year since I was about 13

Prior to that my mom made it

The antipasto includes

Assorted lettuce

green onions

tomatoes

ham

3 cheeses

pepperoni

2 kinds of olives

red onions

cucumbers

pepperocini

radishes

~~~~~~~~~~

It is served with home made garlic bread and Good Season Italian dressing

It goes FASTTTTT...

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Another tradition includes

Little ones with tons of boxes and papers and presents strewn all over the living room floor

Oh and not so little kids (anymore) getting together to celebrate too later in the evening!

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

The best part about Christmas for me is seeing my family

even the annoying ones!

Just as the table signing and food we eat are tradition so it the invitation to come to my mom and dads on Christmas night

We as a family are very Blessed

COOKIES...

One day ~ Four Women ~ 10 different kinds of cookies

Peanut Butter is show above using a classic peanut butter cookie recipe

My Aunt ROLLING and Rolling nut roll cookies.. just like Gram always did... she looks exhausted!

Here they are all powder sugared up!

These are my favorites... Nut cookies with jam

Mom with her new apron!

Italian White "S" cookies with pink glaze

Pepper Cookies waiting to be dunked in white frosting

Butter Spritz trees

Peanut Butter Chip

Working HARD for NO money ~ just cookies!

Peanut Butter Hershey Kiss

 

Okay... enough... look at the messyness of baking :)

Nah... only 2 more kinds to go...

but only a picture of 1... my moms famous chocolate chip cookies

The other one we ended up making was a classic snowball... nut cookie

So here is the chocolate chippers and a big glass of milk...

oops... sorry I drank the milk!

Finding Gram....

Well I did not make it to my friends party tonight because of all the snow!

I am so looking forward to April when the snow stops and I can visit people again!

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

FINDING GRAM

My gram died back in July ~ I miss her!

On Monday when I was preparing for my tea I thought of her and cried

I could actually hear her in my heart telling me that she was with me

~~~~

Tomorrow while we bake cookies... I know I will think of her often, that was our thing

My gram, my mom and I would make and bake for Christmas

Gram flattened the nutroll cookies with the bottom of a glass and then spread the nuts evenly over the dough and roll them so tight with her beautiful hands

As we made more and more cookies Gram would clean the messes and make lunch

~~~

Grams service when she died was beautiful... my Uncle made programs and every once in a while my hubby will come across the program around the house or in his car... it really is the darnedest thing, he will put the program in one place only to have it appear in another

He will look up with his baby blue eyes and ask Gram what she is trying to say to him

Today he found the program again...

and tonight he came across a birthday card from her to me with $10.00 in it in our filing cabinet

~~~~

She always signed the cards "luv u Gram"

I smiled when I saw the card and teared up because I miss her.

When we "find" Gram around the house or in the car it is a blessing... the hubby rolls his eyes sometimes because he is not "into it" like I am ... deep down though I know he believes she is telling us she is still around

I will miss her tomorrow... a little more than I do today

But I know that I will feel the tug at my heart and feel her presence with us

~~~~

I like finding Gram... and someday when my time is through here on earth I will find her and  will get to keep her close!

O Christmas Tea Pictures

I invited the ladies I love over for a tea party today in celebration of Christmas

Here are some of the pictures from the event

I asked my friend to make me  a few cookies and here is what she did for me

She blew me away!  Oh wow were they YUMMY too!!!!

I transformed the hutch into a tea cart LOL

On the top I put the glasses for the cranberry punch

The second level was the tea cups

The third level was the punch in the soup tureen :)

Along with a basket of assorted flavored teas ~ sugars and lemons

Here are the two tea pots of irish tea that I made

Here is the one three tier of goodies

Scones on top

Second level is assorted tea sandwiches

Next level is buckeyes and truffles and Susies cookies

PBJ for the little girls

Crock pot full of asparagus cream soup

My Godmother and my Mother in Law

My mom wore her hat!

She looks like Madeline :)

My Goddaughter and her sister and their Nana, My Aunt Kathy enjoy their first tea party

Notice all the bling on the girls!!!

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We all had so much fun!

There was hardly anything left at all which makes me so happy!

In addition to the tea favor 

I put everyones name in a pitcher and gave away 3 decorated Christmas Trees

My Aunt Betty, Cousin Joanne and friend Melissa won

The tree can be seen in the pic behind the little girls!

I would highly recommend hosting a tea party and will definitely plan one again possibly for the spring time