Bella and The Cupcake Cafe - Lake Havasu City, Arizona

 While on our trip cross country, I found some wonderful shops and met some great people.  Over the next week, I'm going to let you inside these shops - all of which are places you must see if you are ever close by! 

 

First up is Bella and The Cupcake Cafe, owned by Anita Fluke, located at 171 Swanson Avenue #102 in Lake Havasu City, Arizona.

Before I even start I have to say I loved meeting Anita!! What a kick! Her energy and enthusiasm is infectious! When I entered her shop and introduced myself, she welcomed me with opened arms, offered me a cool glass of water and before I knew it, there was a delicious cupcake set aside for me!

I first read about Bella and The Cupcake Cafe when the stores were featured in the article "Sweet Shop" in the August 2011 issue of Romantic Homes magazine.  While nearing the California-Arizona border, I checked the map to see how far off our route Bella would be - only 20 miles off the main highway AND the London Bridge was there - another sight we wanted to see. The side trip was well worth it!

Anita created beautiful graphics for her store - The Bella logo you see in the first picture - it is painted on a wall above her wrapping station for the gift shop.  The Cupcake Cafe logo you see here is painted on canvas and hung in a prominent corner in The Cupcake Cafe- a separate area in the same building!  She came up with a great idea to have a place to gift shop and a place to grab a sweet treat, when a group of regular customers like to linger in her shop!

We got to the store an hour before closing and we were lucky to get a cupcake at all as she was just about sold out!  This is the cupcake display case - the front panel of the case is a salvaged window she turned on its side.

The window makes a beautiful display!  

The pom-pom trimmed banner adds a whimsical touch!

Cupcake towers, pedestal dishes and boxes sit atop the display cabinet waiting to fill orders to be delivered - Boxes all receive a sticker with "The Cupcake Cafe" logo before going out the door!

A signature decoration at the Cupcake Cafe is the floor to ceiling "Cupcake Tree".

The flocked tree is decorated with pink feather boas and of course, lots of cupcakes!

But cupcakes aren't the only reason people visit Anita's shop!  Bella, the gift store side of the shop, is filled with fabulous European and shabby chic treasures displayed in creative ways by Anita. I love her display of bangle bracelets displayed on a cupcake display piece - a perfect marriage of cupcakes and gift ware!!

A queen size bed anchors the space filled with luxurious linens!  I love the sign "The Queen will NOT be accepting an audience!"

Soaps made from lavender and olive oils fill the old postal cubbies - I love the green color she picked to paint the wall - it subtly tells shoppers the soap are 'all natural'.

A combination of industrial galvanized boxes and wire baskets anchor this tabletop display - note the Romantic Homes magazine in the middle basket - it is the issue the store is featured in!

Apothecary jars sparkle with their decorative stoppers.

 

 A shabbied vintage cupboard displays Cavalleni postcards, stamps and note cards.

 A lavish Louis XVI dressing table shows off purses well. 

I just love the vintage clothes rack!

 

Anita carries lots of vintage and European inspired jewelry - This weathered cement statue sums up how I felt about my visit to Bella and The Cupcake Cafe - Satisfied and relaxed!  I recommend a stop by this wonderful shop on your travels!  You can contact Anita at (928) 855-PINK (7465).  Anita and her friend, Tammy, also have their own online shop www.pinkfunnyfarm.com where they sell vintage and European inspired gift ware.

And don't forgot to visit the little European landmark as well!  A billionaire moved the London Bridge to Lake Havasu City brick by brick - the gorgeous bridge features ornate street lamps and there is a English Tudor style tourist town built at the base where you can even pick up some fish and chips! Next post - a find in Amarillo, Texas . . .

Quick Change: Red, White and Blue!

Welcome to my living room!  Well, its not exactly 'dressed' yet in this picture!  I was lucky enough to get new furniture this past year and I decided I would go with a neutral 'palette' that would make it easy to decorate for the holidays.  I LOVE to decorate for the holidays and when the boys were young, they loved coming home from school and seeing the house transformed.  Now that they are out of the house, I needed to find a way to decorate a little simpler, since I do not have so many hands to help anymore!

The neutral couch would be perfect for changing out pillows, the coffee table will get a runner and centerpiece, and the small shabby shelf above the couch, could hold some seasonal trinkets.  The shelf holds small, cherished photos of my grandparents all the time, but it has space for a few treasures!

  I found the vintage bicentennial tin plate with an eagle on it at a thrift store so I put it on the small gold easel.  The salt glazed pitcher and a deep red candle in a pewter candlestick add a bit of color and the metal star from Joann's Fabric Store balances the bright red of the candle. 

The coffee table vignette!  I first placed a neutral linen tablecloth I found at Homegoods, down the middle of the table.  Next came the vintage piecrust pedestal mirror - I found it that day with Margaret at the Sacramento Antique Fair.  I was so excited when I saw it because it was the nicest one I had seen in years, and in years - I had to have it for my collection. The deal was sealed when the kind lady came down $20 from her original asking price!  I added a vase, darling little crystal creamer, apothecary jar and a red vintage candy dish - to which I added (in order!) some flags and a baseball, penny candy sticks, red, white and blue poker chips, and a family favorite - Hershey's Kisses in the candy dish!

Fourth of July is enchanting for children . . .and adults!  It just brings out the child in all of us thus the reason I had to add some of my cherished collection of Boyd's Bears to my decor.  This red bear sits atop a vintage ammunitions box topped with a vintage lace hankie.  I painted the flag table years ago when three other neighbors and I all had toddlers at home.  We did country craft shows together and called ourselves 'Four Friends' - cherished memories!

Now for my quick change pillows!  I took a plain red and white striped pillow. . .

. . . and laid a large star-spangled cloth  napkin on an angle over the top of the pillow.  I folded the napkin back over the top of the pillow and safety pinned it to the back of the pillow, making sure the safety pins wouldn't show. By using safety pins, I can remove the napkin and change it out to a different one for a different season!  I needed to secure the napkin to the front of the pillow so something that will be pretty since it will show . . .

I dug into by jewelry box for some brooches!  I used a vintage sun brooch to pin down the point on the top of the pillow. Luckily, I had two sun brooches for my two pillows.  Star brooches, or even rhinestone brooches would work for the Fourth of July!  Done! You can adapt this method to any holiday.  The red and white striped pillows do triple duty for me - I can leave them as they are for a nautical look or for a candy cane Christmas! But the addition of a colorful napkin affixed with a vintage brooch and the pillows are only limited by your creativity!

Here's a close up of my other sun brooch!

Abracadabra! The quick change is complete!  A tall tin flower pitcher filled with red geraniums and white mums grounds the coffee table centerpiece.  I found the blue denim print pillow at The Tattered House, the fleur-de-lis pillow at Restoration Hardware and the red pillow with the shell accent at Homegoods.

 As empty nesters, my husband and I have lots of quiet times in the house.  The days of three boys running in and out the doors are gone for now and we can display mercury glass candlesticks on our fireplace hearth which we would never have done when they were all at home.  A photo and the teddy bear are reminders of those wild Fourth of July's when we saw sparklers and smoking snakes scar our patios. 

So from all of us, to all of you - have a Cherished Fourth!

Artist Spotlight: Annette Eagle

 

As soon as I saw this sea themed cloche collage in Annette Eagle's space at Melange, I knew I had to have it! The two seahorses dancing in the wine glass reminded me of my wedding at the beautiful Our Lady of Malibu Catholic Church, the starfish - of the many early Sunday morning walks with my father along Latigo Shore, and the pearl in the clam shell - a symbol of my days in Gamma Phi Beta sorority at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo!  I had to meet the artist who pulled this fantastic piece together - and the minute I met Annette, I knew I had found a friend I would cherish!

Annette Eagle is a tiny woman with enormous talent!  Annette can take old, chipped, uncared for, throw away items and transform them into vintage looking, sea shore inspired art pieces.  Annette hunts flea markets, thrift stores, yard sales and craft fairs searching out the broken jewelry, chipped statuettes, faded ribbon, and ripped and torn fabric she uses to create her art.

Annette mixes her own paint colors to mimic vintage finishes and adds seashells to embellish her finds.  This bust is a great example of how Annette combined a vintage pearl collar with a seashell encrusted crown to make this piece truly unique.

Move over Pottery Barn - your seashell bottles can't compare to the ones Annette has been making for years!  Plus her prices are so reasonable, as you can see in this picture.  Annette finds vintage bottles that most people would throw away and adds her special touches of glittered starfish or custom painted coral, to top off the silver leaf stoppers.

Starfish appear regularly in her space at Melange in Historic Folsom.  Annette combines her vintage jewelry finds into mini-collages and embellishes the starfish after she has painted and glittered them.  She also sells vintage jewelry like you see on this pillow.

No one can make sea fan look as elegant as Annette!  She custom paints it and adds glitter or mica flakes to make them sparkle. Cuff bracelets are some of Annette's latest projects and can be found at The Tattered House in Roseville, as well as Melange.

Annette's assemblage necklaces are one-of-a-kinds and hard to get a hold of since she sells them as fast as she makes them!

Crowns, miniature boxes, statuettes, and rosaries all have been given Annette's "Midas touch".  As soon as Annette gets some of her crowns in her space, they disappear!

 Annette fashioned this custom crown from crushed velvet,and vintage lace, jewelry and millinery flowers. Annette states, "I have always enjoyed art and crafting for as long as I can remember, as a child my favorite past time was coloring and painting ceramics.   When I was 19 I started making gifts for family and friends and about 5 years ago I did my first flea market where I started selling my creations.   My greatest passion is creating, when I know I get to spend a few hours creating it’s like a kid at Christmas time!  But the most rewarding part of it is when you create something for someone and they appreciate it…this is the real joy!!"

The cloche collages Annette creates have a whimsical tone - the way Annette compiles her minute treasures create stories for the viewer to interpret as they may.  In this cloche, a glittered bird sits atop a jar filled with vintage pearls, and vintage braided trim encircles the base.

Annette's shadow boxes are magical as well.  What is the story behind this one - who wore the vintage pearls?  Who played with the chipped little figure which received a glittered crown courtesy of Annette?  Where did the vintage snippet of lace and the millinery flowers come from?  Each of these pieces are like a snapshot of times gone by, but then brought back to life to tell a new story.

Nests featured prominently in Annette's displays as well!  Each of these are masterpieces in themselves!  Found feathers, lace, leaves, fabric, wire, are all masterfully woven together, glittered and then given eggs, a sign of new life.

Annette's artwork never fails to amaze me - I don't know if it is the soothing colors she uses, each creative combination she comes up with, or the vintage coastal vibe that draws me to cherish her work.  But I do know she has a knack for telling stories with her pieces, whether she knows it or not, people connect to her pieces like they connect to their past memories, and her artwork keeps those memories alive.  Annette's "Eagle Marie Designs" can be found at Melange in Historic Folsom, The Tattered House in Roseville, and she has also been a featured seller at the Remnants of the Past show in Nipomo.  Contact Annette directly by phone (916)761-9405, email Annette@bmrparts.com or leave her a message about her work by commenting below!