Following the prompt... Collective Grace
'Dream big, let faith rise' I made this for one of our pastors and I have been clinging to it as we enter into this holiday season.
Do you have people in your life that push you just a little further than you would typically go on your own? You know, the friend who you tell about an idea and they keep asking you about how you're doing with that idea... or you tell them about a struggle and they ask you what you're doing to fix it... These are my Proverbs 27:17 friends "iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another." These friends make me better and I'm so very thankful for them (not going to lie sometimes it'd be easier if they didn't push, call me out, or tell me I'm ridiculous, but that'd be boring) These are the people that make life just a little more 'full of life' and I am so very thankful for them. I pray that you all have some friends like these, they're keepers!
So, for the past couple years my friend Rachel and I have talked about what it could look like to open an 'occasional shop'... Last year we hosted a handmade Christmas event which was amazing. So, this year we decided to push further and take on a full retail space! Are we crazy? Possibly. Is this the busiest time of the year for our business? Absolutely. Should we have given ourselves more than 2 months to pull this together? Probably. But... the doors and opportunities have opened themselves up. Our favorite makers have said yes to joining us. And we feel God has called us to say, yes to this adventure. So, we're going on it!
Our shop is called, Collective Grace www.facebook.com/collectivegrace and we will be open in Downtown Lakeville, MN from November 30 - December 2. Our goal is to support the makers this holiday season, to promote shopping locally & handmade. So, of course our shop will be filled with all of that goodness - handmade & vintage home decor and gifts. We will have everything to turn your house into a home this Christmas season and will help you check off everyone on your shopping list.
We're dreaming big and letting our faith rise as we go on this adventure. I hope you'll come along with us!
Love, allison
Keep it simple. Life is good.
There's this special place in Minnesota called, Rochester. If you aren't familiar with Rochester it's about 90 miles from the Twin Cities and is home to the Mayo Clinic - one of the best hospitals in the world. So a handful of times during the summer I pack up my goods, head down to spend the day outside of the Mayo Clinics and am part of a farmer's market called, Thursdays on First & Third.
So, I sit in my booth from 10:00-8:30 and meet people from all over the world. It is in this booth that I feel at home, I feel like this is my 'mission field'. And every time I am here I am touched by someone's story, like Shannon who lost her husband in a snowmobile accident in January, or Kim and Jean who are having heart problems & looking for answers, or Brandon & Katie who are following the Lord's prompt - moving to Seattle and planting a church, or Kirsten who's fighting pancreatic cancer and walking through this journey with her loving husband Eric by her side, or John who's fighting brain cancer for the second time. Then there is Sandra who walked into my booth last Thursday smiling, wearing a shirt that said 'keep it simple, life is good' Sandra is having open heart surgery today and as I was praying for her this morning I was reminded how blessed I am. It is truly a blessing that I get to make art to grace the walls of your homes, but what's even more of a blessing is that you open your heart & share your stories with me, thank you.
Let's keep it simple and share love everywhere we go - because God is good, all the time.
The official sign of summer!
Well Rochester & Southern MN friends I will be back this summer for Thursdays on First and 3rd! Every winter I anxiously await for the letter whether I'll be accepted into your amazing market & on Monday the good news arrived in my inbox (insert happy dance!). I'm already stirring up some new & fresh ideas for you all! So clear your Thursdays and make sure to come and visit me.
And here's a fun video I put together today - needless to say my videography (if that's a word) skills are not good - it may have only taken me 3 hours to create this... so please take the time to watch. I get asked all of the time - 'is each sign really hand painted?' The answer is yes. yes it is - each and every sign. Thanks for supporting me and letting me do what I love - truly blessed.
-allison