Pixie Dust Cottage: Dreams really do come true!

First I want to thank everyone who left comments after my last Post......I am glad we share that dream ! Now, this post is about a dream that did come true! Ever since I was a little girl, my fraternal grama.....Granny Ruth and I talked about someday having a little shop together. She was a stubborn, fun, opinionated, exciting, creative woman. She became an artist in middle age and even had her own separate "Art Studio" where she went to paint and give lessons. She was a huge inspiration to me even though we never did get to have our little shop together. She passed away some years ago at 85. The dream of having my own little shop continued to grow over the years. We live in a quaint little town in Oregon. It has lots of shops that tourists seem to enjoy. Several years ago, after noticing a sad, little empty shop right on the main drag, I decided I just HAD to do my shop there. I did some research, and tracked down the owner in Hawaii. I was able to afford the rent and got on the ball! After lots of hard work, great helpers, mass buying, and prayers......Pixie Dust Cottage opened!! It was a children's boutique, candy store, etc......

The inside walls were painted periwinkle blue with yellow as the accent color. Everything looked so cheerful. I hauled furniture from my own home to use as display pieces. I found lovely companies to order from, made stuff, and redid second hand stuff.

My son was 11 at the time and having inherited my sweet tooth, he insisted we have a candy counter.

You don't know how hard it was to not eat candy the whole time we were working! I, of course, had all my favorites sitting right there on the counter in big jars. Liquorice pastels, (can eat a pound by myself) smooth Melty mints (heavenly) Swedish fish (do I need to say anything??) and Hot Tamales!! Frodo's friends would come in to buy their stash! Lots of samples were given out!

I had found some of the most adorable vintage baby clothes. We had sweet diaper bags and lots of Carter's. Stuffed animals were scattered throughout. We also carried the Disney Faeries and lots of other faerie themed items. I met soooo many wonderful people who loved my shop and gave me such nice complements. It was a lot of fun but was also a lot of work and meant a lot of time away from home. Unfortunately, the economy started to take a downer and I was just not making enough money to stay open for more than one tourist season and had to close. It was a hard decision to make since you always put so much extra money into an operation the first year. I was sad to close but realized I had been successful in making a dream come true. I also felt successful because people loved my shop and merchandise. My kids learned a lot that summer being shop keepers with me. We have wonderful memories...(and serious credit card bills, sigh...) But overall I feel it was definitely a positive experience. I am now heading toward opening up a Etsy shop. I still have stock I need to get moved and lots of ideas I want to make. Maybe someday I will have a little coffee cafe/books/antiques/vintage kitchen & baby/handmade stuff/organic produce shop. I can dream, Can't I ??!!

Blessings- LillySue