The Stone Rabbit

A GARDEN SALE AT "GATHERINGS"

I love this time of year--ooooh, the warm weather, the blooming flowers, THE SPRING OPEN HOUSES! Many of the wonderful shops are still having terrific open houses to showcase their fabulous seasonal decor, but our Kansas City weather just hasn't been cooperating!  However, being the persistent and seasoned shopper I am, a little drizzle and cold air doesn't stand in the way of a long-awaited trip to my favorite places.

One such shop belongs to my dear friend (and another mentor on my "mentor list") Peggy.  She is the owner of GATHERINGS, located in Greenwood, MO.  Her shop is in a 1920's home and is filled to the brim with spectacular items she has collected or created to decorate our homes and gardens.  Let me introduce you to her!  Here she is on the back porch of her sweet shop.

This charming sign greeted her shoppers as they entered the store from the front porch.  She carries a large array of vintage and repurposed items. There's not much Peggy can't do---she's also a wonderful floral designer--check out the cute yellow boots sporting their Spring arrangement.

                               

A view from the back.  The parking is in the rear and this is what it looked like as we approached her shop.  She had charming arrangements of furniture and other wares scattered on the lawn surrounding the shop----a real "Garden Show" experience.   

                                                                                                       

A delightful display in a corner of the front porch.                           

          

A view of the front porch.                                                                           

               

                                                                         

The hostess served up a delicious treat---she knows we get hungry when we shop!

                  

Our group posed in front of Peggy's sign. From L to R you see:  Patty, Peggy, Regan(a treasure hunter in training), Julie, me (Dana) and Bonnie.  We were freezing, but we had a great time.  Peggy pulled out all of the stops to make her Garden Show a wonderful experience.

If you find yourself in the Kansas City, MO area, I hope you will visit Peggy at Gatherings in the town of Greenwood.  You will love her shop.

I took a treat home to THE STONE RABBIT.  Peggy had made darling cupcakes---out of plaster. (I told you she could do it all--another example of her many talents.)  My bunny loved it as much as I did and it's calorie free.  He just won't give it back.     Dana

(An apology for the weird spaces and "flying" articles (the A by a photo).  I'm struggling with this----but I am making progress.  Be patient with me!)                        

                                                                        

                                 

Gettin' by With a Little Help from My Friends

                                                                                          

I thank my lucky stars for having Jill as a friend. (Pictured with her darling Lilly).  She and I met shortly after I started the little business I previously posted about. A mutual friend, Donna, who owned The Iron Dove in Plattsburg, MO, knew I was trying to find items to sell in my booth that were different from what was offered at the local wholesale gift market (and the other five vendors in the shop) .  She suggested I give Jill a call and check out the soaps and potpourri she created.  I did just that and I guess I pretty much knew, right off the bat, that she was someone I would like to get to know better. She was very interesting to talk to, a lot more knowledgeable than me about running a small business, AND she had a web site!!!  I was drooling with envy and confusion---COMPUTERS!#??? e- gads! What a woman! (Remember, our first meeting was about eight years ago and I was totally computer clueless and computer fearful---she can tell you that I still am).

Jill eventually left the wholesale side of her business and officially opened her Bittersweet Boutique on the Square in Liberty, MO.  Her retail storefront was darling!  Her distinctive decorating and display styles were perfect matches for her very own lines of fabulous bath, body and home products. Over the years, I made numerous trips to her shop and each time we would talk and talk and talk.  A friendship formed.

Yessiree, only a friend would spend an entire day helping me (and I must say with a staggering amount of patience on her part) set up my blog.  While I'm still struggling with learning how to "click" and "drag" and "insert" and "save" and all of the computer terms it takes to actually POST on a blog, I can say there is no way I would be this far in my newest adventure if Jill, my Bittersweet Buddy, hadn't been so generous with her knowledge and time.  Now that I really study that smile on her face (featured in the above photo), I'm thinking maybe it's just a big old look of relief.  After all, the thickheaded "blogger-wanna-be" was finally about to get in her car and leave!  Actually, I think her eyes looked a little glazed over.  Hmmmmm, so do Lilly's.

Thank you, Jill, for all of your help----ooooh, and the delicious lunch, too.  And Lilly, thank you, as well.

Dana

SO WHAT IS "THE STONE RABBIT"?

About eight years ago, I was asked to be in a shop with five other ladies to do what I enjoyed a lot ---"junking", reselling the junk, and selling my handmades. The location of the store was in Greenwood, MO, home to a variety of antique and specialty shops.  OOOOH, I was in heaven!  Not only was it a shop I wouldn't be tied to every day, as we would be taking turns working it, but it gave me a legitimate avenue to "treasure hunt".

I had to have some of the basic things in place before I could actually open my little booth space--- a business name, a sales tax number, and a checking account.  I needed these so I could not only sell my "vintage treasures", but so I could "go to market" to buy other neat things to add to my booth.  The name part wasn't coming easy and I couldn't proceed without it.  I couldn't think of a thing I liked---and I had to come up with something FAST.

You know how sometimes inspiration just hits you like a lead balloon?  It did just that to me when I was coming in the front door of my home one day.  Sitting on the steps, keeping watch over our little domain, as he had for many years, was one of my favorite items---yep, a concrete bunny.  He was one of the first things I purchased when we bought the house.  He mainly resided on the front stoop, but he had also made appearances on the patio or on top of a table, as a festive touch to a centerpiece.  On occasion he would sport a greenery wreath or a seasonal ribbon. He added lots of interest to many parts of our home. He had been out in the weather for many years and still looked strong and charming.  Then it just clicked. I hoped my business would have a couple of his qualities---to stay strong and weather the storms that were ahead and to offer products that would be charming and appealing to future customers.   "The Stone Rabbit" was born.

                                                 

          Welcome to our adventures.  Dana                                 

                                                                                                                                    

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