@refunkmyjunk
Helping you Refunk your furniture and home one piece at a time! Exclusive retailer for CeCe Caldwell's Chalk & Clay paints and Miss Mustard Seed's Milk Paint
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Mon 20th May 13 20:17 - My Style Crush: Tori Spelling http://t.co/jLvNzjCvDh
Mon 20th May 13 12:40
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I Got Jacked! Or Also Known As How A Student Stole My $1000 Camera
I have been debating if I should write this post. Will I open up a can of negative worms if I do? I want Refunk My Junk to be a positive place to come, get inspired, share tips, tricks, and ideas, and be a forum for DIY opinions and products knowledge. But owning your own business and DIYing furniture is not all roses and fairy wings. Sometimes it’s ugly, nasty, and just plain scary.
This past Saturday I held a workshop and my camera was stolen by a student in the workshop. Yes, my brand new Nikon D5100 with a special lens, professional memory card, and awesome chevron camera strap. I set the camera down prior to the class starting and by the time 10am rolled around, we started doing class introductions, it was gone.
My Mom felt like it was stolen. I wanted to believe that I had just set it down in a weird place. So I proceeded to tear everything apart for the entire 4 hours of the class, attempting to act calm in front of everyone, while holding back tears. Deep down I knew it was stolen. But I didn’t want to believe that someone would do that to me. Especially someone who took a class from me. When someone can afford to pay almost $200.00 for a furniture painting workshop it’s not like they are from the low-end of society. As soon as everyone left I proceeded to cry on my Mom’s shoulder in disbelief. I still didn’t want to believe it was true.
I decided to file a police report in case the person who stole it tried to pawn it. That way the serial numbers would be on file. My Mom had her suspicions of who in the class took it. I just wasn’t sure and still didn’t want to believe it. But when we gave that person’s name to the officer, they pulled her criminal record, and there was the proof in black & white. She had felony charges dating back to 1975 until 2003 of burglary, theft, and credit card fraud. I was shocked.
This woman looked me in the eye, stole my camera, and then proceeded to sit in the front row and take a 4.5 hour furniture painting class from me!
I have a picture of the person, their address, phone number, and even text messages from this woman. I am not going to post them because this is not intended to publicly embarrass her. (But she is in this Facebook photo I posted on my page. Can you guess who it is? Nope. Didn’t think so.)
Yes, I hope she gets caught. Yes, I pray I get my camera back. I hope she reads this post, feels terrible, and returns it to me. But I am not trying to publicly humiliate her.
I am writing this so that you know that I will not let this person steal anything more than my camera. It won’t steal the joy I get from teaching classes. I didn’t let it steal my Mother’s Day. I won’t let her steal my belief that most people are good.
But I will keep my eyes more open in the future. So, when you see my blog, and the photos are from my iPhone and not beautiful, professional looking, magazine worthy photos, you know why.
I have to save up another $1000.00 to buy another camera. It will take me some time but I won’t let her, and her bad decision, ruin this blog or my business.
Have you been jacked by someone too? Was it hard to not allow them to steal your joy too? Tell me I’m not alone and join my pity party by leaving a comment. No more negative posts, I promise, I just had to get it out and I knew ya’ll would understand.
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Welcome To Craft Hell! {My Week Before A Craft Show Home Tour}
Do you wonder what my home looks like? I have been meaning to photograph a “home tour” for a few weeks but I can never manage to catch my house when it’s perfectly clean enough to photo. Or when it is clean my camera battery is dead. So my “Week Before A Craft Show Tour” will have to do.
Most bloggers post perfect, pristine photos of their homes. I have been guilty of it too.
But I’m keepin’ in real with a home tour the week before a craft show. This time it’s An Affair of the Heart. This is what I like to refer to as “craft hell”. It’ ain’t pretty folks.
I can’t eat off of my dining room table.
I can’t walk around my house without tripping.
Stacks of paint cans line every surface.
Oh, I can’t eat in my 2nd dining room either.
The week before a craft show my son will watch an embarrassing amount of television. I will probably eat out too much. I will most likely wake up at 5am everyday worrying that I will forget to do something and jot it down in my spiral notebook To-Do list that seems to never end.
I will live in white-trash piles of boxes and sample boards until the show is here. It’s like Martha Stewart and the Tasmanian Devil birthed a craft baby in my living room.
So the next time you see a picture perfect home tour. Think again. Professional craftin’ ain’t easy. Or pretty.
But I LOVE it.
My New Camera {Getting to Manual Mode on my new Nikon D5100}
Happy Day After Christmas to ya! Did you survive? I received a new Nikon D5100 and I can’t wait to tell you all about my plans to take it off of Automatic and get fancy with Manual!
We are still in our jammies and I have taken a grand total of 2 naps today! Even our 2 year old slept in until 9:30am this morning! He played and played until he could play no mo! I would love to have some adorable new photos from Christmas to show you, but I still have to install the software for my new camera onto my computer. So instead of flaunting my Pinterest Perfect family (that’s dry sarcasm at it’s best.. We are hardly Pinterest Perfect around here! We ate on paper plates and drank out of plastic cups if it makes you feel any better!)
I have actually had my new camera for over a week now; I purchased it from Bedford Camera in OKC. I was waffleing between the Canon Rebel T3i 
So I have been patiently waiting since the Haven Conference in June to take advantage of Christmas Sales.
After talking to the salesman at Bedford and doing plenty of online research, I settled on the Nikon D5100
I then ran home, plugged it in, and let it sit there for a week.
I just stared at it.
How the heck was I going to figure this darn thing out?
I know I took a class at Haven, but I can’t remember half of what I learned. So I dug through my blog conference folder and found a flyer for Shoot Fly Shoot’s Online Photography 101 class! It is a $69.00 investment and so far it seems well worth the money. I am about half way through their course and I am already feeling so much more confident.
Once I install the Nikon software onto my computer I will have to show you some of my photog moves from Christmas day!I can’t wait for my photography to get better, which also equals my blog gets better!
Have you taken a photography course? What words of wisdom do you have for me as a DSLR virgin?
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From Corporate Professional to Professional Crafter
It’s been exactly 2 months and 7 days since I left my job as a corporate professional as a VP at a bank to pursue growing my business, Refunk My Junk, full time. And just in case you missed it, you can read more about my decision to leave my job here and here. So how has it been going thus far?
Last month was a record month in paint sales, so I am not on food stamps, you will be happy to know.
I was able to attend the Haven DIY Blog Conference in Atlanta, GA.
I had enough time to clean out my garage and give one blog reader all of my latex paints and glazes I no longer use.
I participated in my first craft show, The Junk Hippy Roadshow. I was never able to do any events like this before because of my work schedule.
I also signed on to carry another paint line, in addition to CeCe Caldwell’s. Miss Mustard Seed’s Milk Paints will be hitting the shelves in a few short weeks. I would have never had the guts or the time to do that if I was still working full-time just because I knew I couldn’t manage one more “thing” on my plate. But, now I can confidently say YES to Milk Paint and know I can serve my customers and my market.
I had the time to finally paint my dining room table.
I taught 4 workshops in 3 weeks.
Two mini-workshops at Showplace Market.
And an Advanced Workshop, where we had so much fun I forgot to take pictures.
And A Refunking 101 Workshop.
I have been able to spend more time with my two favorite guys.
And we have even visited the Children’s Museum and Science Museum.
When I was working full-time and Refunking on the side, I rarely got to do anything fun. Now, I get to slip a little bit of quality time and joy into my week without feeling like I should be working, answering emails, or posting on my blog.
I also got to attend a 160-mile garage sale in Arkansas.
I am now planning more workshops (be on the lookout for more mini-sessions soon), hosting a Junk Swap in October, and participating in Affair of the Heart in October.
I am slowly figuring out my new routine, but I haven’t perfected my schedule just yet. Sometimes, I look down, it’s 3 o’clock and I haven’t even put a bra on yet (because I have been working, not because I am being lazy bones). I also wake up at 5:30am, thinking about all of the things I need to do, so I sneak out of bed and start working before Axton is awake. It’s such a productive time of the day for me and I don’t like being on the computer when he’s awake. His 3-day/week Mother’s Day Out starts Sept. 5th, and honestly, I can’t wait. It’s hard to be productive with a toddler around, but I am enjoying all of the fun we are having together too.
I have never worked this hard before, but I have also never enjoyed what I do so much. I have taken a day off here or there, but for the most part I feel like my brain or my hands are working 24/7. Maybe I will learn to shut it off. Maybe I won’t.
Either way, since my last day at the bank has come and gone, I have not regretted this decision for one second.
If you are a WAHM, what is your secret to success? Maybe someday I will be an expert at the balancing act that is self-employment. But until then, I will just wing it and enjoy the ride while I am at it.
Business Basics Series
So what would you like to know about starting your business?
What scares the HECK out of you?
What are you losing sleep over?
Email me at allison@refunkmyjunk.com and I will answer all of your questions!
Must Read Book for Small Business Owners & Dreamers!
I started reading this book, Quitter, by Jon Acuff.
It is about how to pursue your dreams while still working a full-time job, and then bridging the gap between the two. I think Jon Acuff dialed Jesus’ direct line in his huge corner office and wrote this book just for me. I actually like my ‘real’ job. I am actually really good at what I do. But is working in Treasury Management at a bank my passion? Um, no.
I had the idea for Refunk my Junk over a year ago, I put it off for way too long, and had filed it in the “if I had more time, if I ever got layed off…” category of what were really just excuses. Some day I will write a post as to why I jumped off the crazy train and moved forward. But in a nutshell, the reason why I started this is because Jesus made me. Literally. You actually might fall out of your chair if I told you all of the loud and clear ways he told me to do this.
So here I am, being obiedient, and really excited to see what He has in store for me and this little business of mine. If you wonder how to take your dreams to the next level then read this book! You can also visit Jon Acuff’s website HERE.
Just a Blogger in the Wind…
The Booth is Open for Business!
Come take a peek at my booth at Beaucoup Boutiques, A Market – Now Open to the Public TODAY!
Big Annoucement!
Many of you know that I have been referring to a few surprises I have up my sleeve for Refunk My Junk. Obviously the blog revamping was one of the surprises, but the time has arrived for me to come clean and let you all in on my little secret… I am putting my big girl panties on and going for it! And by that I mean I am renting a booth at a new market opening in May.
Beaucoup Boutiqes is located at 14400 N. Lincoln Blvd in Edmond off of 33rd & Lincoln in the old Pump It Up building.
Here I will be displaying and selling my handpainted pieces! Here is a little sneak peak at my booth!
I will also starting hosting group workshops in June - allowing 6 women (or men if you so choose!) to learn how to paint, distress, and glaze their very own piece of furniture, with breakfast and a catered lunch provided, as well as a fun-filled day of learning all you ever wanted to know about refunking all of the junk in your home! All paint and supplies will be provided – all you do is show up in comfy clothes with your piece of furniture!
I hope that you all are as excited as I am! This is a BIG leap of faith and I can’t wait to see where this new journey takes me! I hope you come along for the ride!
