Hello, friends!,

It’s so hard to believe that I’ve only been back from France for three weeks! It seems like months ago, that these ladies were enjoying a great lunch, followed by decadent sundaes, after a boat trip on the Mediterranean!

Still, I’m already thinking about next year’s trip! We’ll visit a different region, starting or ending, with a few days in Paris.  If you haven’t been to Paris, the experience is so different from the old, small villages.  I’ve never been to the famous markets of Paris and that’s on my bucket list!

Aix en Provence, where we stayed this year, is still one of my favorite small French towns.  It’s walkable, affordable and charming! So if you’re planning a trip to Provence, be sure to check it out!

This year we added a cooking class at a restaurant in Coucuron. The chef is well respected in the region and was very sweet, with a great sense of humor.  So much of the trip had been focused on shopping and I thought it would be nice to break things up a bit.

While we had a wonderful group of women on the trip, there were 14 of us!  That’s a lot! Our guide says she prefers smaller groups and I’m all for that!  When you have 14 women, plus two drivers, including the guide, that can be a lot to coordinate.  So, next year’s trip will be for probably just about 8 women.  (I can’t imagine going on a tour with a bus load of travelers and a guide who leads with a flag held in the air and everyone wearing earphones.)  If you have any interest in learning about next spring’s adventure, I’ll let you know probably by mid-summer.

I also learned that being away from home for 2 weeks is just too much for me.  Silly, but I start getting home sick after nine or ten days.  I need to keep that in mind in the years to come.

For future reference, if you think you’d like to join us next Spring, don’t hesitate! The tour fills quickly.  Having a travel buddy/roommate isn’t required, but I think it’s more fun, even if you have your own rooms!

We are having a serious love affair with Iron Orchid Designs!  (Don’t tell Mr. Wonderful!!) Jill and I painted this sweet vintage dresser and then applied an amazing IOD image transfer to the drawer fronts!

 Today, a customer asked if I had painted the flowers…uh, no!

She really is a beauty!

Isn’t she adorable!?  Yes, Jill too!

Since then, artist friend, Wanda Brent and I spent a number of hours painting Winter’s Song, IOD’s paintable image transfer.

Step 1: Paint the board

Step 2: Paint the greenery

Step 3: Paint the flowers.  There are about 348 ways to do that, so our class this Thursday, will explore the options!

Wanda and I spent probably 5 hours, doing this together.  There are faster ways to finish the project, but the process was so fun! Why rush it, when you’re having fun!?

These are new cuff bracelets, beaded on leather, by women from Tanzania!  They’re really pretty and selling well!  I just think about the patience required to do this kind of work!  We have several product lines  in the shop, made by women in Africa.  I love to support their  pursuit of independence.  I just wonder what the men are doing!? There’s such an strong, engrained cultural thing going on there.

It reminds me of when, growing up, my only brother, among  4 sisters, didn’t have to make his bed, in the morning, like the rest of us girls. Women’s work!  Really?!

Now, where was I?!

PAINT   PARTY, THIS SATURDAY, 11-3 p.m.!       

ENJOY REFRESHMENTS & CHECK OUT THE NEW         COLORS, PLUS, 10% OFF ALL FUSION PRODUCTS! 

We will receive 5 new Fusion Mineral Paint Colors, this Friday!  Fusion partnered with Lisa Marie Holmes, to create the new line of colors.  She’s a lover of home design and homeopathic living and has worked with JennyLynn, Fusion’s president, to come up with this new pallet.

What do you think? I hope you like the new additions!  I love the Sage and Echinacea!

So, for all of our Paint loving friends, I hope you can come  by Saturday, for an introduction!

Last but not least, there an IOD napkin stamping transfer going on, this Saturday.  A few spots remain, so call now, or go online.  Thetreasuredhomeclasses/com 

Sending good thoughts!

😍 Barbara