Lamp Creations

Lamp Creations will be featuring it’s tin lamps this month with a 10% discount. Stop by and take a look. Expect new postings in all categories this month as well.

Mimi's Rose Chenille Boutique

Happy New Year to each of you! We are very excited about the New Year and all of the new items Mimi’s Rose Chenille Boutique will be offering. New boutique clothing items for Spring are in the design stage and will be added to our website within the next couple of weeks! We will also be adding our wonderful “Shabby Chic Bunnies”, just in time for Easter, along with more “Rose Lights” and gorgeous new Shabby Cottage Fabrics. “Hop on over” to Mimi’s Rose Chenille Boutique for wonderful new items for you, your family and friends!

Vintage Dragonfly

Happy New Year to Everyone! At Vintagedragonfly.com, I am starting a new year with wonderful new creations that will be affordable to all. My goal is to create Beautiful products for every budget! Please visit often as I will be adding new items in the next 2 weeks! I will also have a full line of Valentine creations soon~I also offer layaway on the larger items.Please email me for details! Thank you to all of my Fabulous customers!

Sincerely, Mary Garrett

RME Bath & Body's Tips for New Year's Resolutions

NEW YEAR'S RESOLUTIONS

If you're like many people you've made at least one New Year's Resolution. In many ways, that's the easiest part! The most difficult part is having a realistic plan to attain that goal! In my therapy practice I work with people all of the time on personal goals. The biggest pitfall that I see repeatedly is that the goals are simply unrealistic. Believe it or not many people set themselves up to fail before they even begin! Please keep in mind that almost any goal is attainable if you approach it with realistic ideals and a positive attitude!

In the spirit of achieving success with your New Year's Resolution I have found some advice that I think you will find very helpful!

Expert Advice from the University of Maryland Medical Center http://www.umm.edu/features/prepare.htm

UM experts offer these tips to help you reach your goals:

• Avoid perfectionist thinking. While we certainly always want to better ourselves, it is healthier to think in positive terms than it is to focus on how much we fall short of our aspirations. In other words, students should view the grade of an A- as better than a B, rather than not as good as an A.
• View setbacks as lessons for growth. Mistakes can be and usually are opportunities for learning. If you fall short of your goals, ask yourself what kept you from achieving them and then try to make corrections. People who like to sail understand this navigational concept. You almost never go directly from point A to point B. You set a course and periodically take readings of your position then make adjustments as you go along.
• Don't make absolute resolutions. Keep them realistic. For example instead of saying you won't yell at your kids anymore, resolve to yell at them less often.
• Don't keep your resolutions to yourself. Tell someone you trust about your resolutions. It helps to share your goals with friends, who can gently nudge you in the right direction when you veer off course.
• Give them some meaning. People sometimes make goals that aren't necessarily meaningful to them. Your goal should be something you really desire to change or achieve, not something that society says is good for you to do, or your family members would like to see you do. If you don't have strong, internal motivation within yourself, you won't be successful.
• Take baby steps. Set realistic goals that are attainable and then take small steps that are likely to be met with success toward those goals. Don't try to lose 10 pounds in a week or quit smoking cold turkey with no preparation. Instead, try joining a weight loss program and try to lose a pound a week, or join a smoking cessation group.
• Fine-tune your spirituality. It is important to add a spiritual dimension to your goals. For example, if one of your goals is to get fit, you may also resolve to get outdoors more often instead of going to the gym. Time outside will help you get in balance with nature, and will honor both the physical and spiritual sides of yourself.

By Jill RachBeisel, M.D & Hinda Dubin, M.D

Stay focused and stay positive! Focus on what you have accomplished rather than what you think you haven't accomplished. This is the best way to ensure success! Also, don't forget to reward yourself and praise your successes no matter how insignificant you might view them.

Wishing you much success in all of your endeavors this year!

Jacalyn Kelly, LCSWR

Licensed Clinical Social Worker

RME Bath & Body Shop
www.rmebathproducts.com

Artistic Glass Decor & More

“I am happy to share a few of my Holiday Personalized Ornaments” They are only $10.00 each. If a customer wants to purchase one, they are allowed two lines per ornament, 12 characters per line. A cute little trinket is also attached to each ornament I make and is included in the price. They will be wrapped delicately in tissue paper and shipped with a whole lot of love included in the gift box.

These ornaments take hours to make, but you can’t beat the price. They’re unique, one of a kind ornaments and cannot be bought in stores. Please visit my web-site: http://www.artisticglassdecorandmore.com and click on PERSONALIZED ORNAMENTS to see all the different types and different occasions that are represented and available to purchase. In the future, I will be adding even more different types of “Chic” ornaments, so keeping checking back to see what is new at Artistic Glass Décor & More. I’m getting ready to add a variety of different types of items in the next few weeks as well to my web-site. These items will cover a broad spectrum including Chic, Vintage, Country, Primitive and Traditional décor!

Artistic Glass Décor & More wishes everyone a happy new year and we pray that each and every business on Shabby Lane Shops prospers in their business adventures in 2009J

Shabby Cottage Designs

Graceful Rose ~ Holiday Money Saving Tips

Money Saving Tips for the Holidays

There are many things we all can do to save money for the holidays. Some are just common sense and some you may have heard before. Here are a few.

1. Recycle old Christmas cards. They can be cut in half and uses as post cards which will save the cost of the post card and the postage. The cards can also be cut up and used as gift tags.

2. Ornaments that have lost their hooks or tops can still be used in displays in a bowl or tall vase for a festive look.

3. Using Children’s art work for wrapping small gifts.

4. Use scraps of wrapping paper for gift tags. Just cut a square, fold it half, punch a hole in it and put a piece of ribbon through it.

5. Try giving hand made gifts instead of store bought gifts. Sometimes a plate of cookies or a home made cake is just enough for that special neighbor or teacher.

6. As far as saving money at stores, I did this the other day. I was shopping at a Large Department Store and they had a sale going on and had hand bills at the door with coupons. One coupon was for $10 off purchase of $50.00 or more and the other was $15.00 off a purchase of 75.00 or more. I was purchasing approximately $130.00 worth of merchandise so I divided it into two purchases and used a coupon on each one, saving a total of $25.00. So be sure and check for special and coupons at the department stores and if you don‘t see any, ask the sales clerk, sometimes they will have a coupon they can give you..

7. My next tip is one that some may know about and others may not. My husband and I run an auction in our little town. My husband works very hard and is very honest so people flock to our auction, especially at Christmas time. You can save as much as 90% on many things especially Christmas decorations. We go and get pallets of overstock items and we go through every item to make sure it works and we put stuff together to make it is all there. We sold prelit 7 ft Christmas trees for as low as $13.00. We have something new every week and we also have other people who come in with great buys. We have a guy here this week with brand new craftsman tools for the men, we have another guy who comes and brings toys for the kids, all brand new still in the box. My husband also gets general merchandise that includes kitchen appliances, stereos, Ipod docking stations, etc. Most towns have auctions around if you ask around. Some are better than others and some are not as diligent about checking things out, so be careful but you can get some real bargains if you check them out. Our auction has gotten busier since the economy has gotten worse as we try to sell things that people need and would go out and buy anyway. Just another option to think about.

8. Regifting. You will have to be careful here and not give this to the person who gave it to you but we all get gifts that we really don’t use or perhaps put away and forgot about. This happened to me when I got my decorations out this year I found 2 or 3 brand new gifts that I received last year and forgot about and they got put away so now I have at least 2 things I can regift.

9. Buy all year when you see things on sale and put them away. You can really save money this way and also saves the stress of trying to find everything during the holidays when there is so much to do.

10. Buy several of the same item when you see a good sale, such as a special ornament or candles, etc. and give the same items to several people on your gift list.


11. When decorating, use nature. Bring in real pine boughs, cones and berries to dress up that mantle. Also you can use popcorn and cranberries to make garlands.
How pretty is a glass jar filled with cranberries with a candle in the middle!

12. Create a family calendar. Select family photos and get calendar kit from your office supply store. You can personalize each month with family birthdays and special events. You can even include favorite family recipes. Grown children would love this too and it is a great way to pass down those special family recipes.

13. Obviously shopping after Christmas for next year is a money saver.

14. Making your own decorations with your kids is a great way to save money. You can create tissue paper wreaths, special ornaments and other things that will be treasured through the years.

15. If you have a big extended family, draw names.

Holiday Decorating Ideas from B.Catherine Designs

~ Holiday Decorating Ideas ~

Garland does not have to be used just for the tree. Every year I dress the tops of breakfronts & cabinets with lighted greenery. To add a bit of color tuck in flowers, Christmas balls & ribbon. This year I added a strand of Pearl Beaded Garland dripping down.

In your cupboard or breakfront, add garland draped off the shelves. Add some faux or fresh sprigs & this will sure become one of your favorite Holiday additions. I have draped my Pearl Beaded Garland right over the dollies I use all year round. A little touch of the unexpected

This is one of my favorite holiday plates & I chipped the plate & mug last year. You can either break it up & use the pieces for a beautiful Holiday Mosaic Piece. Here I covered the chip in the dish with a faux sprig & hung the mug along with it, facing the other way so the chip is in the back. Still a fun and jolly addition to my kitchen this Christmas!

Mrs, Charlotte's tips for a Stress Free Holiday

How do we handle stress during the holidays?

It can be a real challenge handling stress and depression during the holidays. We are all trying to do to many things in a short

period of time and we pay the price. Some of the following tools will help us have stress free holidays.

1) Organize your time. Don’t over book yourself. Be reasonable with your schedule. Give yourself a break, create time for yourself to do

things that you love to do. Plan ahead.

2) Delegate household duties such a cleaning and decorating to each family member. Make some time for yourself.

3) Make a budget before going shopping and stick to it. Make sure you stay out of debt.

4) Don’t always say yes, only say yes to what you really want to do. People will understand if you can’t do certain projects or

activities. Learn to say “No”.

5) Get plenty of sleep, exercise and good nutrition. This will make you feel better and helps you cope with stress.

6) Acknowledge your feelings. Give yourself permission to be sad. It’s OK to cry or express your feelings when needed.

7) Appreciate the simple things. Get into the holiday spirit by putting on holiday tunes or make your favorite recipe.

8) Choose resolutions that help you feel valuable and provide long term happiness.

9) Accept family members and friends as they are. Don’t try to change them. They are probably feeling the effects of holiday stress

and depression too.

10) Seek support if you feel isolated or down. You don’t have to go it alone. Don’t be a martyr.

References: Mayo Clinic

Cola's Cottage

Just in time for the Holiday season, Cola’s Cottage has new art creations! Along with the original HP Rose pieces, we now have our first Canvas Giclee and Giclee prints. We have also added gift tags, note cards and ornaments, with more coming soon so keep visiting to see what is new! Soon to be added are fun and fashionable crocheted hats and scarves and embroidered linens.

Also coming soon we will be adding custom portraits with the option for printing on cards and gift tags too. Please feel free to contact me for any questions or custom work. I am happy to help you with any ideas you may have! Have a wonderful and blessed holiday season! ~ Nichole Huotari