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Sometimes I find it overwhelming how beautifully the pieces of this crazy univeral puzzle fit together. And it really is the small things in life that matter.

It's no secret that I have been spending my days in Asheville preparing for my shoppe opening in New Hampshire in June. And boy am I excited! I have been scouring yard sales and thrift stores for all of the fixtures I needed to find (more on that later...just WAIT 'til you see the finds I have to show you!). I have been collecting vintage clothes, sewing skirts, painting signs, making hula hoops and trying to organize all of the paperwork from 1,000 miles away. And while I am known to most as an absent-minded and sometimes flighty artist, I would consider myself to be right down the middle: both right and left brained. I love to be creative, but excel at keeping things orderly (I'm not saying I DO THAT all the time...I am just good at it). I like to get messy, but I like organizational office supplies (a quality my mom and I both share we realized one day, as she was flipping through a Staples catalog and I could not wait for her to pass it to me).

So in my ridiculous organization, I made a list of everything that I was searching for in my Asheville travels for my shoppe. It was very specific, from a metal vintage clothing rack to scrolly plastic frames to maroon velour fabrics. One thing I wanted to find was a small rack to display my mom's gorgeous bracelets that she is going to be selling at Veggie Art Girl (ones that I wear and receive compliments on daily!) So I set out to the Salvation Army. They are having a green dot half price sale. I walk in, pick up this (used to be mug holder), think "wow, that would be perfect," see the green dot, pay $.50 and go on my merry way (oh, I also found a great pair of boots for $3.00 while I was there!) I hop in Janis and look at my new treasure, wondering what color I am going to paint it. Then I flip it over: Lucas Co. Manufacturing. This is a sign from the universe, right? Well, my jaw dropped over it!