Time after time I have been asked the question, What is the real purpose of having a blog? In fact my husband was one of the first people to ask me why in the world would I start a blog. I said to him I think the real question is why wouldn’t you have one?

The first time I had ever heard of a blog was when my brother had told me that he was going to start one up about traditional music. My brother has been a musician for years now and for him I looked at his blog as being just another creative outlet for him to show to the world his talents and love for music. Although this is not his career he does on occasion get paid for gigs.

In some peoples view, I believe that these people think that blogging is a bit of an egocentric thing. They wonder where these people have the time to blog about such self absorbed topics such as their hobbies. Nowadays I think it is just the opposite. The more that I surf the web the more I have found blogging to be not only a creative outlet but a way of promoting your business and networking with the entire world. Its like putting your resume up in the sky for everyone to see.

In this slow economy I think it is imperative that you begin to utilize the benefits of a blog. I believe once you have shown to people that you are not only creative and smart, but that you are human, you start to attract those to you that share in the same beliefs. This in turn helps your business to grow and thrive. If you are using a blog just for fun then the more power to you. If you are using a blog to help promote your business then you are one step ahead of the ones who don’t. The way I see it is if you don’t try to improve your business plan then how can you knock it. I must say that I have talked to other business owners in my area about starting a blog and their response to me is I just don’t have the time. I look at that as having a fear of the unknown and what potential benefits a blog could be for your company.

For me I see a blog as a way of letting my customers know when I will be setting up at an antique show, when I get new items in, or when their will be a sale in the shop. I also feel it is a way to get a better feel for what my customers are really looking for so they feel that I am looking for things in their best interest.

In this age more and more people myself included have joined the entrepreneurial race. The need to conform to the typical rat race is getting less and less. We have learned that through creativity and persistence that if we are willing to put ourselves out there to the world maybe just maybe someone will discover the talents that we hold with in us. This is where the idea of one having a blog comes into play. Blogs have become so popular that even people such as Martha Stewart have one. Martha is the queen of marketing to the world her creative ideas and concepts. While some of us may not like her and what she has done in the past, it is irrelevant to the fact that she is utilizing the tool of blogging to help to promote her massive business, and might I add succeeding. She is just one example of a person that has used a blog to promote their business.

For me, while I may not be Martha I have already made so many connections through having a blog. The many women and men that I have met through this experience is immeasurable. While most of them have antique related businesses of their own, some of their sites seemed to have launched them into a semi famous status. Along with having a large subscriber fan base some of these folks have been featured in some well noted magazines such as Country Home, Country Living, Romantic Homes, and Victoria Magazine. You can’t ask for better advertising for your business than that now can you? Some of their readers or shall I say subscribers check their sites every time they add a new post. This to me is such an important thing in helping to develop relationships with your customers. I initially started this blog to promote my new antique business. After being in a job that didn’t utilize my creativity, I finally feel like I found one that has. The more I began to post the more I entertained the fact that I should not only write about my love for antiques, but that I should showcase my other creative talents and try to integrate them into the blog. This included my love for photography, interior design, and my overall crafty witty nature!! The shop that I am in does not have a website, and I thought to myself how in the world will anyone know I am even in the shop if I don’t just put myself out there. So it was from that idea that Antique Therapy was started.

Initially I wondered how would I even get traffic to my site. After surfing the net yet again I discovered that the more you switch links with other bloggers the more my traffic increased. It also helped when I left comments on other peoples sites. With the help of a little friend that I like to call Google Analytics I then got to see who viewed my site, where they were from, how long they stayed, and who referred them to me. I am happy to say that Garden Antiques aka www.gardenantqs.blogspot.com/ has been the source of some of my best traffic. So thanks Theresa. I truly appreciate it.

In closing, for me I have enjoyed not only the new friendships that I have made through having my own blog, but feel that the sky is the limit as to where it will take me. I will do whatever it takes for my business to flourish and succeed. To any of you still on the fence about starting one up for yourself take the leap along with the rest of us and experience it for yourself. I am sure it will prove to be a wise decision for your business. The possibilities are endless!!

Now that the Sex and The City movie has been out for a few weeks I thought I would post some pics of Carrie Bradshaw’s posh new blue digs.

I must say not only was I blown away at all of the fabulous fashion in the movie, but was completely infatuated with the electric blue walls in Carries old but redone apartment.

Now I am a woman who loves color and isn’t afraid to use it, so when I saw the movie my mouth was hanging open wide drooling again over the decor, and of course in true Carrie style she had that great little blue dress to match her pad. Apparently the blue was hand mixed for the movie set, but the closest color to it is Electric Blue by Ben Moore. I am now trying to imagine where I could put that color in my house. Hmmmmmm……could this be the new color of the exterior of my house!! I am kidding, I wouldn’t do that to my neighbors. Well anyway have fun diving into the blue!!

Yet again it was another fun packed weekend full of gorgeous antiques, amazing weather, meeting some new friends, and reminiscing with old ones.

On Friday we headed on up to the infamous Skinner Antique Auction House in Bolton Mass. Skinners generally has a Discovery Auction once a month. Last week they held the Fine Arts and Antiques auction. The two day auction consisted of Couture vintage fashion, silver, estate jewelry, and fine antique furniture. Here is a sampling of what they offered. Skinners was nice enough to let me photograph some of their antiquities.

Saturday was a truly perfect day for the Historical Society Grafton Antique Show. This is by far one of my most favorite shows. Located in quaint historical Grafton, the show offers some thirty to forty dealers. I must say I enjoyed strolling and drooling over every single booth there. Not only were the antiques beautiful but the dealers were friendly and knowledgeable. I met so many new friends. One imparticularly impressed me. Her name is Susan. Susan actually owns a sweet little shop in West Townsend Mass called the Cooperage. It turns out not only do we have similar styles but we also share the love of blogging about antiques. It is so refreshing to meet people who share not only in the love of antiques, but who truly seem to have a passion for what they love. Here is a shot from Susan’s booth. If you would like to visit her website and blog you can go to www.thecooperage.com.

Here are some of the other booths from the day. Feel free to join in on the drooling!!

On our ride home we drove past Tufts Veterinary School. The school lies on acres of rolling green hills. I had to stop and take a few shots because it was so breathtaking. I loved the hay bales set on the hill. What a peaceful place!! Enjoy.

Well it seems as though I wasn’t smiling enough on the first round of self portraits. So I guess I will give it another try. Now I know how a fashion model feels………I am kidding. I have to admit it was kind of fun playing around with the camera trying to get different shots. I have always loved photography so this was a fun challenge. I don’t usually like most pictures of myself, so here goes nothing………..

This is the place where……………

History was made……….

A baby girl was baptized…………

A small girl played in……….

A girl dreamed she would marry……….

Love was found…………

Music was played…………

Songs were sung…………

Rivers run wild…………

Pure beauty lives……….

Friends were made………….

Winds blow free………….

Of never ending stories……………

Close to my heart…………….

A girls heart was broken………….

It feels like home………….

This is the Wayside Inn with the Grist Mill, and Martha Mary Chapel. They all reside on the same historical property in Sudbury Mass, and in a sense are part of who I am today. I have had so many different experiences in this magical place. I just felt compelled to share some of them with you. It is a very special place to me…….

I should start out by saying that I am not a very vain person, In fact I would say that I am just the opposite, but every artist needs a self portrait right? So here is a few attempts at mine. Please excuse some of the blurriness in some of them, I dropped my camera a while back so I think it might have messed with the clarity a bit.(Oops!!) My birthday is coming up soon so I think I will ask for a new one. Suddenly I have had a wave of inspiration, not sure where its coming from but here goes…………In fact this could be a precursor to the next game. A myriad of self portraits from all of you bloggers!! Yes I think it would be fun !! Go for it!!

First off I wanted to thank everyone who participated in the favorite antique game. It was fun to see everyones amazing collections. If there is anyone else that would like to play please feel free to leave me a comment and I will gladly add your link to my page.

After a long day of tagging and hauling out the items for the yard sale, I am content with the fact that we sold alot, made some money, but more importantly cleared out some clutter in both of our houses.

It always amazes me to think that other people want my so called junk. Although if I wasn’t busy hosting the yard sale I would have been out there myself with the best of them finding more great treasures. More than half of our customers told me that they themselves should be having their own tag sale instead of buying more junk that they didn’t need. I think one reason that people love antique hunting is because certain objects remind us of memories from the past. I can’t tell you how many times I have heard people say oh honey look at this bleepy bleep I used to own one of these when I was a kid. This is one aspect of the business that I love, and brings me to my next story.

About a month ago I was in a great little antique shop in Grafton. As I scoured the store for treasures, I came across something familiar. The object was not only familiar but it was something of mine from the past. It was a mother of pearl inlaid hairclip that my grandparents had given me from a trip to Mexico. I had sold it about ten years ago at a yard sale. The dealer was there so I asked her where she got it from. She said that she had purchased it from another shop a couple of months ago. It is so amazing to me to think that after ten years something from my past showed up in an antique shop. I then wondered how many hands it went through until it finally ended up in that shop, and how many more it will go through in this lifetime.

Part of the job of being a dealer is trying to buy cheap and sell for a good profit. It is inevitable that another dealer will come along buy your merchandise mark it up again and resell for a higher profit. It’s just part of the foodchain game. It is a crap shoot as to where its final resting place will end up. This cyclical event could go on for years until the antique has finally found a good home to someone who collects and loves it. Even if a dealer decides not to sell the item in a shop, alot of antiques are sold on E-Bay and then sent to some far off place across the world.

Maybe I analyze things to much, I tend to do that, but it’s just food for thought for when you buy an antique try to imagine where it has been, who has touched it. Has it touched the life of someone else. Eventually you might even rediscover something from your own past like I did!!

I thought I would share with you some of the things in my home that are green. I seem to have alot of green objects. I think the reason why is is because green is such a soothing and organic color to be around.

In the first collection I have included a sample of some of the green fabrics I have,new and vintage.

Here is a couple shots of my best cat. As you can see his eyes are a beautiful shade of green. He is the nicest cat you will ever meet. I love him dearly.

These are just some other random fun green shots.

The picture was taken in my mothers green room in her house on my wedding day. It is one of my favorite pictures from that day.

I hope you enjoy your weekend. As for me I need to get up super early for the yard sale my mother and I are having at her house. Wish us luck!! and that we make millions!!

Ok, Google Analytics tells me that I have had alot of traffic on my site from the last two days, so where is everyone? Am I all by my lonesome in the favorite antique game? I was really hoping to get some players featuring their collections of fabulous antiques. So I guess I will sit here with continuing anticipation………………In hopes that you all will join in on the fun.

While participating in Sadie Olive’s I Saw Red game it occurred to me that it might be fun to try something fun over here a little different at Antique Therapy. The more I thought about it the more challenged I was to see if I could come up with something clever for everyone to participate in. So here is my simple yet fun idea.

One of the reasons that I started this blog was to have a place to talk about and share my love for antiques and decorating. So far it has proven to be not only a wise business decision for me, but also a place where I have met so many new friends who also share in the love of decorating, collecting and selling antiques. Most of these women truly seem to have a passion for not only antiquing, but are truly clever and artistic in how they have chosen to craft their businesses into more than just a job. They seem genuinely happy in what they are doing and offer nothing but encouragement to those who are new to the business. And for that I am grateful.

In the past I never would have pegged myself as being an entrepreneur, nor would most of my friends and family. But I feel I have finally found my niche and true calling. So you ask, what does all this rambling have to do with talking about your favorite antique? Well I will leave it up to you all to think about and post on your own blogs. I myself need to think about it. Please let me know if anyone thinks this is a good idea and would like to play along. I am not offering any prizes , I am just merely passing on some more inspiration and hoping that you all will join in with me. So please dig out your favorite antique or collection and explain why that piece means so much to you. It could be a family heirloom or can be as simple as a great yard sale find that you want to share with everyone. Whatever strikes your fancy. I hope that you will all play along. I started a Flickr group called www.flickr.com/groups/favantique/ if you want to add your pictures there. Or you can add them to your own page. I can also post all of your blog names on my site so everyone can see who is playing like Sarah did. P.S. Sadie Olive I hope you don’t mind, You have inspired me to start a different game!! Please let me know if you want to play. Stay tuned for some of my favorites!!!! Good luck.

Here is my first picture of My favorite antique.

About a year before I got married my Grandmother from my fathers side gave me this small sweet silver sugar spoon for Christmas. The spoon was originally given to my great grandparents as a wedding gift. When My grandparents got married they then gave it to them as wedding gift. My Grandmother then passed it down to us. It is by far the most special antique that I own. It is simple but elegant at the same time. Right next to the spoon in my china cabinet lies my grandfather’s parents silver plated tea set. He gave them to me about two years before he passed away. My grandfather wasn’t one who usually gave gifts, so the set is very special to me. On the other side of the tea set is my great grandmother on my mothers side etched wine glasses. I love them because they are classic and timeless. The last piece in my favorite antique section is my silver baby cup. The tiny etching on the rim is so sweet. These antiques are not just objects to me they are a part of my own history and lineage. It is my hope that I will pass them on for generations to come.

Now that I have posted a few pics of my favorite antiques it’s your turn. Don’t be shy now join in on the fun!! If you want to post your fav you can start today if you like and we will run the game through till Fri June 20th.

I found a few more people to join. Check their blogs in the next few days for their favorite antiques.

List of participants

Shawn at www.euroantiquemarket.blogspot.com/

Karen at www.graphicsfairy.blogspot.com/

Katie at www.harringtonhouse.typepad.com/

Sue at www.vintagerescue.typepad.com/

www.enseignedegersaint.typepad.fr/