The Red Barn Outdoor Market + BIG News!

Hello friends! I'm finally back after a looong stint of silence (sorry about that).

But here's why I've been silent: I quit my job.

Yes...you read that correctly! I quit my job at the ad agency and Friday is my last day. God has opened up some incredible doors of opportunity for me to pursue my passion--everything that MYU represents. On the same Tuesday, in the same hour a few weeks ago, I was offered not one, but two jobs. The first was a part-time nanny position. It's low-stress, it pays extremely well and it's a steady flow of money, which was something the Lord knew my mind would need to prepare me for the phone call that followed.

Less than an hour after the nanny position was essentially offered to me, Abbe Doll, owner of local business The Cottage Collective, whom I barely know and had only met in person once, asked me to call her. Before I proceed, let me tell you that I've been working on furniture to sell at The Red Barn Outdoor Market since January (more on that in a moment). Because of that, MYU is now set up with an EIN#, a business bank account, the ability to accept credit cards and more. We're a real-life, breathing business in the eyes of the IRS, which is so extremely exciting to me! I had been praying for direction about how and where to proceed after the market. When I saw that Abbe Doll and six other ladies were opening up The Cottage in March, I asked her if she would consider allowing me to sell within her shop (this is where I mention that Abbe also does furniture, so I had a pretty good feeling that the chances of selling MY furniture in the same space were nil).

Fast forward to that God-given Tuesday; I called Abbe and this is basically what she said (paraphrasing): "I need an assistant...my shop is selling out faster than I can re-stock"..."I need someone to come help me paint furniture or hit up garage sales while I'm covering the shop Thursday-Saturday"..."the Lord brought you to mind"..."I want to mentor you in business, which is something I wish I had had when I started doing this"..."If you and I are in a mentor relationship--not competing--I have no problem with you trying to sell some of your furniture in my shop."

Yes. My jaw was on the floor, too. She had no idea, because she had no reason to, that I had just been offered another part-time job. For all she knew, I would have to turn her down because of my current full-time job. It took all I had to not break down in tears of overwhelming joy (until we got off the phone, that is...then it all came and I was a blubbering, ecstatic mess). You see, this is my dream. And we serve a God who not only pays extremely close attention to us (something we are already so undeserving of), yet he continues to top that by giving us the desires of our heart.

I put in my two weeks notice that following Friday (I had already planned a trip up to KC that day weeks ago, another example of God's perfect timing!), and I have two more days left. It's a bittersweet time, as I'll miss my work family, but seriously--what an incredible opportunity God has lined up for me to start next week!

So, all of that to say, because of this change, I will also have more time to focus in on this little blog of mine and growing this baby business I've started. This past weekend, I was contacted by two separate people asking me if I would take custom orders. Of course I said yes, and then I found out that the two orders combined are over TEN pieces of furniture! God is good.

But before that, my sister-in-law, Nicole, is seeing her own dream come to fruition this weekend, in form of The Red Barn Outdoor Market. I'm SO incredibly proud of her! There will be food, live music, more than 30 different handmade/vintage/antique vendors. It's going to be a living and breathing Etsy festival! So, if you're in the Wichita area, stop by on Saturday from 9A-3P. You can search for The Red Barn Outdoor Market on Google maps for directions!

Here are a few things you'll see in my booth...

Chalk paint red dresser with hand-painted herringbone drawers

Nautical rope doorstops/paperweights and vintage trunks

Reupholstered wingback chair, pillows galore (not all are pictured!)

Restored antique Jasper Desk Co. desk (still not quite done letting the finish cure, obviously!) and white/black striped side table

Turquoise glass-front cabinet and OH! my banner!

You guys, I had big dreams of staging all of the furniture and writing up an individual blog post for each one. I even named the furniture, in classic Alina-fashion. But what world do I think I live in? Not one that allows those sort of frivolous ventures in the schedule, obviously. ;)

I'm off to wax that turquoise cabinet and finish up my antique desk restoration. Oh, and clean my house...my mom is staying with us this weekend!

Hope to see you guys Saturday!