Girls, you're gonna want to mark your calenders for this.....
Thursday, October 22 from 5-8 p.m, join us for a
"Witches Night Out"
Leave the kids at home, grab your friends and hop on your broomsticks! Your in for a real treat, as you shop each of the Uptown Girls stores.
Enjoy refreshments if you dare...... and come dressed in a costume to recieve specials at each store.
It's going to be a howling good time so don't miss out!

We will have a limited supply of our 10 oz. "witches brew" candle available only at this special event!

I hope to see you there!!!

The other day, I stopped by my parents house to visit and every time, well not EVERY time, I usually end up leaving with something . I will say, "Can I have that?" And for the most part, they will say yes. SCORE! Well, I found a couple more frames in their basement to add to the chalkboard wall. I love how this looks and it breaks it up a bit. Ya know what I mean? Now if I can just get them to say yes to the GINORMOUS kitchen cupboard out of their garage!!!!

Fall is definately in the air in my neck of the woods and it's time to pull out the sweaters! I have a love for cardigans, especially the longer type. Here are some of my favorites I found online. I looked at three different websites, all in a different price range. I will start with the most expensive......

The first two are from Anthropologie. I have to start by saying I ADORE these sweaters, but it will be a cold day in hell before I ever own one. It's completely out of my price range. If I bought these sweaters, I wouldn't be able to afford to keep the lights on, as combined they come close to the same amount as my power bill. I'm just sayin'. I love to look at their website tho, cause it's fun to see what the latest trends are.

The next two are from Ann Taylor Loft, one of my very favorite stores. I have alot of clothes from here, BUT, I very rarely, ever buy anything full price, as it is still just a little high for me. I would feel so quilty if I spent $90 on a sweater. If I wait a bit, I will be able to get it for half, and me likey that!

The last two sweaters are from a place that some almost think of as a dirty word. You guessed it, the "W" word, good old Walmart. Yup, I shop there and I definately would buy these sweaters. I think they are darling, and guess what? They are under $20!

I am a firm believer, that to be fashionable, it doesn't have to cost you an arm and a leg. That is one of the reasons I wanted to be a part of Dressin' Up (for those that don't know, it's our consignment shop)

Honestly, I didn't always feel this way. I used to think I HAD to have the name brand and buying something from Walmart was like WHAT???? I thought that the clothes made me. I was portraying a false image of myself to others.

I have always loved clothes and still do, ALOT, but I refuse to break the bank doing it. I'm not saying I don't have any name brand clothes in my closet, cause I do. I just wait till they go on sale or I find them at consignment shops, or hint to my hubby that that's what I want for Christmas and birthdays. :)

I'm not sure why I felt compelled to do this post. I think maybe there is a part of me that gets a little envious of those who seem to have an endless supply of cash, because that is sooo not me. I guess I thought maybe there were others out there feeling the same way. I'm just being completely honest here and keepin' it real.

On that note, I hope you have a great day, now I gotta go cause I'm headin' to Walmart! :)

I HEART Glitter......

If you have read my blog for long, you know about my love of glitter. I'm always looking for things that sparkle with the stuff and then, it hit me! Why not just order some for myself then I can glitter up anything I want! So a couple of days ago, I ordered some silver glass glitter. In fact I ordered a pound. I honestly don't know if that is alot or not. It can't weigh that much, so I figured it would be enough to go glitter crazy! I have some fun ideas in my head, especially for the holidays.

One of the first things I'm gonna do is glam up a small skull that I got from Walmart last year very similar to this one. I'm probably gonna have glitter on anything I can get my hands on, kind of like my chalkboard paint obsession, but I promise that I won't have a glitter wall!

Cougar Town.....

I have to admit, I look forward to season premiere week and I already have a new favorite show. It's Cougar Town with Courtney Cox. I am telling you it is HILARIOUS from beginning to end. They got the relationships between girlfriends perfectly! I mean, I laughed till it hurt because the dynamic between Courtney's character and her bff (shown below) is dead on with me and my bff. My husband even said so. The way they talk to eachother and conversations they have is SOOOOOO Lori and I!

I am willing to bet there are TONS of women out there who feel the same way and can totally relate to this show. All of the characters add to it! My hubby thought Courtney's ex husband was hilarious. This is definately not just for women.

I love a show that you can get lost in, (even if it's just for 30 min) AND laugh you arse off! I'ts on ABC Wednesday night at 8:30. I think you can probably go to abc.com to watch last nights episode too if you missed it.
If you had a chance to see it, let me know what you think!

Halloween Candy...... eye candy that is.....

I was surfin' the net last night looking for halloween inspiration and wanted to share some of my favorites with you...... enjoy!I love this idea. We have a couple of vintage masks at the store to do this with!

Black and white perfection in my book.

LOVE these glitter pumpkins!

I sooo wish I could carve pumpkins like this!

Isn't he a cute little guy????

This is such a pretty front porch. So welcoming!


Hopefully these photos inspired you as well!

*All photos courtesy of Country Home and Martha Stewart

Randomness in my Home....

Here is the makeover I did to my front door, thanks to www.wonderfullywordy.blogspot.com! I had painted the door black earlier this summer, but just recently got the numbers put on. The cotton wreath is from my store.

I think you all know my love of chalkboard paint. I had to add some to this bucket and I put my fall grass in it.

The little buffet in my dining room all decked out for Halloween. I know you are probably thinking it's to early, but I LOVE seasonal decorating and want to enjoy it as long as I can. I have been known to start putting up Christmas decorations the day after halloween. I haven't done that for a couple years now tho. I think it's because I am surrounded by Christmas decor in the store right after halloween, and my "need" is fullfilled!

I had a sweet suprise this morning from my friends Tracy at http://www.lovingprettythings.blogspot.com/ and Nora from www.faithfuldays.blogspot.com I love these girls and their blogs! If you have not yet checked them out, you really need to. They are women of God, with great style and inspiration. I am glad to call them my friends, all thanks to blogging!!!! Thank you sweet girls for thinking of me!

So, here's what I need to do now.......

1.) Say thanks and give a link to the presenter of the award.
2.) Share "10 Honest Things" about myself.
3.) Present this award to 7 others whose blogs
I find brilliant in content and/or design, or those who have encouraged me.
4.) Tell those 7 people they've been awarded
HONEST SCRAP and inform them of these guidelines in receiving

Boy, 10 honest things about myself???? Well here goes....

1. I was married at age 20. That seems so young now. I couldn't even drink at our reception!

2. I stongly dislike mall shopping. It's all way to commercial for my liking.

3. I used to be a size 6 and now I am a 12. (That is totally honesty girls) AND I've finally gotten the boobs to prove it!

4. I have struggled with acne my entire life and have to take antibiotics to maintain a clear complexion. :(

5. My favorite wine is Kendall Jackson Chardonnay. LOVE!

6. I would have liked my boys to be a little closer in age ( they are 5 years apart) but it just took us that long to get pregnant the second time. God was in control and had a plan!

7. I went to the same school K-11th grade The summer before my senior year, my family moved. This new senior class was not all that welcoming, so to say the least, I did not have an ideal senior year.

8. I have NEVER gotten a speeding ticket. I'm kind of a rule follower.

9. I SUCK at math. I mean SUCK!

10. I am definately a Republican.

Now the seven people I am giving this to are.....

Jessica- http://www.livingbettertogether.blogspot.com/

Denise- http://www.thequeenbeekeeper.blogspot.com/

Heather- http://www.themezzanine1.blogspot.com/

Amy- http://www.thenestonline.blogspot.com/

Amy- http://www.themaisyreport.blogspot.com/

Jerusalem- http://www.miastoriadivita.blogspot.com/

Barb- http://www.sistersgardeniowa.blogspot.com/

I have so many blogs that I love, but I chose these cause some are new to blogland and some are just new to me and some are old friends! They all have awesome blogs and If you haven't visited them, GO! Right now! WHY are you still reading, you should be clicking on links!

Have a great Sunday!!

New Fall scents just added to etsy!!!

Fall Open House.....

I want to thank you first of all, for the really sweet comments and words of encouragement! It means the world to me! I LOVE all of my blog friends!!!
Ok, now for the fun stuff.....
This is our display of Tokyo Milk. It's a new line of parfume, bubble bath and soaps we found at market. This stuff is BOMB!!! I love each and every scent and the bottles are soooo cool! I do have to say tho, that my VERY favorite scent is Dead Sexy followed closely by Ex Libris. I really like a spicier scent in the fall and these two fit the bill perfectly!

The rest of the photos are just some of my favorite fall and halloween goodies that we have. The cute little black cat coming out of the pumpkin sold right away on Saturday.

I LOVE glitter and fell head over heels for these glittery luminaries. They are the coolest color of orange.

The candle scent shown here is our new Iced Lemon Biscotti. It is AMAZING!!!! This candle has a very strong scent throw and WILL fill up your house with the yummy scent of sweet lemon, vanilla icing and nut! Let me just say it again, AMAZING!!!!

I think these pumpkin and ghost sap buckets are so darling. I can just imagine one's porched filled with these on halloween night all lit up for the trick or treaters.

In spite of everything, we had an awesome open house. I am so thankful to be doing what I love and for all of the loyal friends and customers that make this dream all possible! We also had some fellow bloggers drop in which was a sweet suprise! My new friend Denise from http://www.thequeenbeekeeper.blogspot.com/ and my friend Jessica from http://www.livingbettertogether.blogspot.com/ sent her mom. If you have never stopped by these blogs, DO IT! They are amazing women FULL of inspiration!

The winner of the $50 gift certificate to our Etsy store is....... Char! Congrats!

p.s. If you want to check out some of the new fall merchandise from Dressin' Up, go to www.dressinup.blogspot.com. I just posted again, FINALLY!

I have tons to tell you about the open house, but before I do that, I HAVE to get something off my chest....... I am by nature, a very trusting person. I always see the good in people, even when I've been wronged by them. Yesterday I feel like I was wronged and I can't get it off my mind. You see, our fall open house always coincides with the annual craft show held on the square. I always like to do a walk through before I open the store to see what goodies there are to be found. There are always a few candle booths but nothing I ever felt threatend by. Then as I was walking by one particular booth, I noticed not only did it look eerily like our store, but it was being run by someone that I thought was a loyal customer of ours. We have filled and sold her many a candle. AND the women helping her was someone I would certainly call a friend. I was shocked to say the least and it really pretty much ruined my day.
You see, I know that I can't get upset about every single person that decides to make candles, and I don't. BUT, it's a little hard to stomach when it's someone who has been in your store dozens of times, lives in the same town and decides to make the same kind of candles that I felt really set us apart from other candle makers (like the ones pictured). To top it off, she even had some of the same scents.
You've all seen the pics of my workspace, it's very open for all to see. The only thing seperating it from the retail space is a set of screen doors. I will have to rethink how that is all set up now because I can't help but wonder if she saw the kind of wax we use, names of the suppliers on our bottles, etc...... This is where my trusting nature comes in because I NEVER even thought about that before.
What do you all think, am I over reacting? I CAN'T get it off my mind, and I need to know what you all think! Thanks for listening!

p.s. I forgot to mention, that this candle booth was so similar to us that people were commenting about it to us throughout the day.

A Giveaway.......

Now that the long weekend is over, I'm in for a LONG week. It's time for our fall open house which is this Sat. Sept. 12th. and I have tons to do to transform the store for fall. It is also our two year anniversary, which I can hardly even believe! Soooo, in honor of all of the happenings, I'm having a giveaway! If you would like a chance to win a $50 gift certificate to our etsy shop, just leave a comment and you will be entered! You will have until midnight on Sunday Sept. 13th to enter. I will be adding some of our fabulous fall scents before then as well. Some are new and some are back by popular demand!

Have a great week and good luck!

I'm gonna keep this short and sweet......

We have guests coming for the weekend and they arrive tomorow. I have tons to do before they get here ,so Im signing off till next week! I hope you enjoy the last official weekend of summer!

If you love this pillow as much as I do, you can find it at www.lisagolightly.etsy.com.

Shop Goodness.......

I hope you enjoyed seeing some goodness from our store. As I have said before, if you ever see anything that you can't live without, email me at www.backyardtricia@hotmail.com.

Tokyo Milk is scheduled to arrive today!! Yippeee!!!!!