Junk Bonanza....

The Creative Connection Event and Junk Bonanza both took place last weekend here in Minneapolis... the city was overflowing with creativity!

Unfortunately, I never made it out to CCE due to work schedule, but I did manage to spend most of Saturday at the Junk Bonanza!

Don't let the name fool you....   this is the good stuff! 

You were greeted by fun fall decor and fabulous vignettes...

 

It seems like the "it" projects, materials and medium of the moment in Blogland can be spotted throughout the event...

for example....   burlap

 

..this shade was fabulous!  It had a unique mix of textures....

 they used pearls and rusty iron knobs as accents.

 

...lots of tattered books without spines... beautifully embellished with fabric, buttons, buckles.

 

I spotted a few "new" ideas; like these mushrooms made from vintage laces and fabrics, their base/stem consist of old wood and/or knobs ...  they were so lovely!

 

...this may not be a new concept or idea...

but it was the first time I'd seen them in person.

...vintage buttons and pearls inside glass ornaments...

 

There were some amazing dressforms!   Old, torn, tattered, embellished....  these two were among my favorites.

 

 

...isn't the "black wings" idea cool?  Perfect for Halloween!

 

... I almost dropped my camera when I spotted this one!

 The wings are wood - the metal tiles spell out "junk love"

 

A few santos dolls were in attendance...  I'm still searching for the right one to bring home;

they were all over $150, which is way over my budget...

so the search continues.

 

ISN"T SHE BEAUTIFUL?!  

This bust stole my heart!  I was ready to pull out the plastic and buy it, no matter the cost...but then I noticed the "NFS" tag ...  

don't you hate it when that happens?  

There should be a law against it!  Using pieces as props and getting us all worked up about them - only to find out we can't bring them home!

 

...these little girl dress/slips have been tea stained and embellished with tattered laces... so darling!

 

The booths were a destination themselves...  vendors went all out to make their wares look fabulous.  

This one was one of my favorites... the queens of posh ALWAYS go over the top with their displays...  you just sit there and drool a bit.

 

See what I mean?

 

I had a great time chatting with vendors, some of which are also bloggers.

The Etsy folks were also there and it was nice to actually meet and greet the "real" people behind this booming business.  We talked about one of my fears:  Etsy has gotten so successful that they will be gobbled up by a big fish... and then, our Etsy that we've come to love... will change.  Hopefully not anytime soon.

 

I hope you are having a nice week!

I'm joining these parties....

White Wednesday at Faded Charm

Feathered Nest Friday @ French Country Cottage

Vintage Inspiration Friday @ Common Ground

 

Comments

[Debra @ Common Ground]

Thanks for taking us along to JB. some of the ideas are fabulous, great photos, thanks for linking up to VIF! xo

[Gretchen Schaumann]

I'm so glad you enjoyed JB this year. Thanks for including my naughty angel along with your blog as one of your favorite dress forms. B4 you stopped by she had a cool small gun necklace, as well as another funky necklace layered around her neck and a pair of cowboy boots too. Those items were for sale, but as you can see from the prices at the show on dress forms and other props, when you primarily are selling jewelry in your vendor space, you just aren't able to keep up with finding/creating/buying cool props to sell them at every request one gets when 15,000 people go through these shows. lol My space would be in a constant disarray if I did so. I do however, each year bring props to sell and sold quite a few that were quickly snapped up during the show.
I so enjoyed seeing your photos, as I personally didn't get the chance to see hardly any of the other vendor booths and what great stuff they had offered the public.
Gretchen
Mimi-Toria's Designs

[barbara Jean]

wonderful post. so fun!!
blessings
barbara jean

[Courtney]

Gorgeous inspirations!! Love so many of the things you have shown~thanks for sharing at Feathered Nest Friday!

[Noemi]

Thanks your comment at my blog, and I'm grad to meet you! I love very much your photos! It seems you have something magic to turn simple things to wonderful sighs of magic! See you soon, and God bless you.

Noemi from Magic Twist

[Jessica]

Love your posting...every picture is eye candy! thanks for your comments on my lamp shades...I only have two in stock right now but I'm planning on listing some on Etsy next week. I do have the white one still if you are interested?