Recycled, Restyled & Fabulous.

Over the last few days we have been doing some pics of some ideas for using our Masons AFTER you have enjoyed your Fabulous Scents Vintage soy candle.

Lets have a look shall we?

Heritage Blue Limited Edition Mason Jar Candle

Square Mason as a Soap Dispenser / Soy Candle and Beverage Jar

The perfect Beverage Jar for a Fabulous Wedding?

Vintage Jars ~ recycled & restyled

Glitter Mason with tealight

Hand Made Pin Cushion Lid

Holding your cotton balls in the bathroom

Just a few ideas  to help you Recycle, Restyle and ...................

Stay Fabulous

fs vintage
xx

The Mason Tests & Toilets

Recently we have been testing a couple of new jars to see how they go. So let me introduce to you  ~The Pint and a Half  & The Monster Redneck Drinking Jar!
 There was a need for something a little bit bigger than a traditional Pint & a little smaller than a Quart..

Monster Redneck Drinking Jar

Say hello to The Redneck Monster Drinking Jar.
(Gotta mention ~ every time I pour or use these jars ~I laugh.)
Anyway ~ in between looking for The Perfect Contractor and trying to sort out paperwork we have managed to get these beauties poured and tested. We are on round three and it is looking gooood. They are burning beautifully and I probably should not admit ~I lost count after 80 hours ~I know I know ~pretty not very professional but I was sidetracked by toilets....
 Yep ~Toilets.
I said to Mr Fab:
Me: I really want one of those toilets like on The Block ~set back in the wall
Mr Fab: All toilets are in the wall
Me: No those ones that have no gap behind them
Mr Fab: *blink*
As soon as I saw the adorable *blink* I knew it was a date with Mr Google for me.

New Monster Redneck Drinking Jar

Finally found some pictures to show our Hero and he was happy. We have ~in a fashion ~decided on The Toilets. So that's Toilets / Paint & kinda sorta ~The Kitchen!!!

I know I know ~its AMAZING! *sigh*
After he was happy I was able to move back to The Fabulous Test Process.
Those of you who have followed us for awhile know we really REALLY try to be Eco friendly , environmental, care about what we are doing and recycle everything. I spose its lucky I love to forage and restyle? We are striving to make sure the Reno is as Eco as we can make it and we are searching for ways to make sure we do use recycled materials and do what we can to be aware of our environment. In saying that? We encourage our customers to be aware as well. Not in a preachy way but in a helpful way. An example ~we supply recycled glass refill bottles of our Reed Room Diffuser Oil and always ask our customers ~ Do you have a gorgeous bottle in a cupboard at home? They usually do and while we lose out on the sale of one of our beautiful bottles......we feel better.

New Pint & a Half Mason Jar

We also purchased some of the fabulous Mason Drinking SippyLids so our customers can recycle and reuse their jars for whatever Fabulous beverage they choose!

Pint & a Half with Mason Drinking Sippylid

Environmental Baby steps baby but still making steps....... Ohhhh yeahhhhhhhhh

Stay Fabulous

fs vintage
xx

How to Make Glitter Mason Jars ~Part 2 ~continued

So after a couple of days ~the end result.

 

Stay Fabulous

fs vintage

xx

Lets get this Renovation Party started

Ok so the paperwork is all done and lodged and ready to go. I am pretty sure I was at my Eco Worst today as I printed out all that was needed. I have also been googling for information on the relevant laws regarding Renovations / Fence building / pest control and so on. The files are BULGING with information! We are also trying to keep being Fabulous and going for the Eco / Recycled / Re-purposed way on everything we will be doing. We even have old furniture down there which I will paint and use as the fixtures for The Fabulous Scents Vintage Shop downstairs. Nothing will go to waste.
So in the next week or so we will be cashed up and ready to start the Renovation Process. Now the hard part ~finding the perfect Contractor. Not asking for much ~basically someone who is a super pedantic, fussy, perfectionist who will listen to what we are saying.
The first hurdle will be having the aforementioned Perfect Contractor ~turning up on time for the quote appointment!!! We will have a very small window of time to be down there and it is a 12 hour drive both ways ~ tiring to say the least but also ~ kinda exciting. Not the drive of course ~the finding the right Contractor bit. I am hoping we simply "know" straight away. I also want someone who will keep us informed of whats going on. A txt? Phone call? Email? Just to say ~"Well today we did ....."
We have decided we will buy a couple of sleeping bags and a couple of blow up mattresses to throw down on the floor for when we go down to inspect the work and whats happening. I am thinking of it as Camping without The Bugs?
 The kitchen is completely sorted in my head ~along with the bathroom and the paint color. I have even decided where the shelves for our vintage jars are going and in what order they will be displayed...thinking Age / size / color? 

#vintage mason Pint Jar

Its the little things I cant seem to think about................
Where do I put the power points? 
Do I need extra in the study? (I think ~yes) 
You get the drift....... 
Which Front Door do we pick?
How big does the Deck need to be?
Our Big Book Of Renovation is filling up with notes, pictures, ideas & thoughts. The funny thing is ~I have the entire build sorted in my head ~ just need to bring it out and into reality.
The other thing will be the cleaning up and sorting of the house. I have already said to Mr Fab ~ nothing stopping us from getting in and ripping out cupboards and making sure everything is packed up in one room. We could also start to remove all the doors and cupboard doors as they will be going as well.
There will be plenty of pictures ~Before during and the best ones....AFTER! I cannot begin to tell you how much I am looking forward to sitting on my Zen Balcony ( a little one at the front of the house) with a glass of Bolle and a platter of assorted delicious cheeses. Just Zennin & Chillin and doing nothing......

Hope you join me!

Stay Fabulous

fs vintage
xx

fabulous scents vintage: How To Make Glitter Mason Jar ~ Part 2

fabulous scents vintage: How To Make Glitter Mason Jar ~ Part 2: But wait ~there is MORE! I decided to try another way..... While googling I came across LilyShop. I am not sure how to tag but let me try an...

How To Make Glitter Mason Jar ~ Part 2

But wait ~there is MORE! I decided to try another way..... While googling I came across LilyShop. I am not sure how to tag but let me try and add a link ~https://www.lilyshop.com/lilyshop-blog/item/how-make-glitter-mason-jars.

Lets get this glitter party started!

So with this one I simply filled the Quilted Mason with about 1 inch of Mod Podge & added a stack of Gold and Green Glitter.

 Swished it around and then left it turned upside down for about 2 hours.

 

Wiped down the rim and turned the right way up..... These have been drying in the Fabulous Scents Vintage Shop of Sorts for about 4 hours. I am going to leave them for a few days and see what happens. Do you see around the top they have started to dry?

So far it looks like it is working ~stay tuned for updates!

Stay fabulous

fs vintage
xx

How to Make Glitter Mason Jar

It popped into my head this morning that I had a motza of Mod Podge left over from "The Tinted Mason Jar Fiasco " (*see earlier post). Those of you who have been following us for the last couple of years know we have been dealing with vintage and new mason jars for a very very long time but cannot seem to crack the arty farty things. Candles? Oh yeah ~we rock at Soy Candles and quite a few of the Mason Jar Crafts but we cannot seem to get the whole painting thing! (*AGAIN ~Refer The Tinted Mason Jar Painting Fiasco) This morning my brainwave was ~ GLITTER. I do so love a bit of glittery blingy fabness so I have set to and had a go..... Guess what?

It Worked!!!!!!! Here is a Step by Step Tutorial with much Fab love!

 Materials:
1 x Jar (We used a new Pint Mason)
1 x Mod Podge
1 x Food Dye (Optional)
Glitter
Step 1:
Mix Mod Podge in container with enough water to make it a nice consistent paste that flows freely. Add a drop or two of Food Color if you would like to. Add Glitter... We added a Pink and a Purple Mix.

Step 2: Add mixture to jar and swirl till completely coated. Turn upside down on to some paper towel and let sit for about 5 minutes. Clean any excess from out side of jar.

Step 3: Pop into a pre heated oven to about 200 degrees (We used a Fan Forced Oven.)

 

 We set our Timer for 5 minutes Blocks and checked what was happening. We used 10 minutes as our set time. (* This is our vintage timer which we use all the time. A gift from a wonderful & interesting old lady)

 Step 4: Remove from Oven and let cool for about 15 minutes ~ IT IS INSANE HOT ~BE CAREFUL!!! Add the rim of a Mason Jar for that added extra zing ~don't forget we have heaps available here at Fabulous Scents Vintage   https://www.facebook.com/FabulousScentsVintage  so make sure you ask for one next time you are here. Happy to give you one if you need it!

Step 5: Sit back and admire your creative handiwork! We are using ours to hold our Wick trimmer and bid bods on the bench. A little bit stylish ~a little bit Fabulous. 

 

Hope you enjoyed our very first Fabulous Tutorial! Let me know how you went with your Fabulous Glitter Mason Jar!

Stay Fabulous

fs vintage

xx

Let the Renovation Games Begin.......

I am not sure if we call this Day one? For the sake of this Blog we shall ~so lets begin with Day one and see where we are.
We have been approved on our Renovation Loan so we can at least make a start. We have started a book filled with ideas ~probably limited by money of course but dreams is dreams....
I cant even put up a picture as we are yet to make the journey down to clean out the house and pack whats left away till its all done.
Mr Fab told me I would cry ~I am NOT a crying person so it must be pretty bad....HOWEVER *stiff upper lip* ~ we shall do what needs to be done and get the job finished and ready for us to go home.
My friends suggested I Blog about the Reno process as a kind of soothing balm if you will ~ when things get tough and my mind is mulling over Effective Ways To Dispose Of  A Body and looking directly at aforementioned and normally much loved ~Mr Fab..........Perhaps this will help me return my usual Place of Zenness?
We made a huge and massive mistake when we didnt pack everything up and put it into storage ~so lets begin with Lesson Number One:

1: Pack everything up and put it in Storage.

There are one or two things which I really hope are still there and in tact ~nothing valuable to anyone but me of course but extremely sentimental. I have been cranky and grumpy about a couple of things like my RayBan sunglasses which I purchased in the Eighties after saving for literally a year ~ gone and their case filled with a delightful pair of Fiorelli sunglasses...Ummmm no people ~ it is not the same. Fiorelli are quite cute of course but they are NOT original RayBan.
I had collected 50 cent pieces for about 20 odd years including quite a few round ones.....yep...gone.

Someone once said to me: " If someone steals from you ~ they must need it more than you."

I have decided to go with that bit of wisdom and move on.

 

In the midst of all this schmozzle we will still be doing what we do ~ Fabulous Scents Vintage Mason Jar candles. The new shop will be incorporated into the reno which is a tad exciting with a studio for my creating behind the store...Ohhhh yeah ~Fabulous.
So tune in for the Ups and probably a few Downs in the Fabulous Scents Vintage Renovations!

Stay Fabulous

fs vintage
xx

Happy Wednesday

Happy Wednesday Peeps ~Its the middle of the week and to be honest? I awoke on this rainy day not feeling very Fabulous. Ohhh no not at all ~generally a pretty upbeat and perky kinda gal ~various things managed to drag me down. "Begone Rapscallions "~ I said to my Doldrums......... and begone they did. 
 

Photo  By Isaac Weddings 2013

 We were lucky enough today to have a visit from Adrian ~One half of the amazing New and Fabulous Magazine called ~Isaac Weddings! What a bloody brilliant Idea folks??? Seriously??? Its a colorful fun magazine full of really really cool articles and information. All the help a Girl could need planning her Big Day from Around the House Do it Yourself Ideas ~ ( I am serious ~funnest Idea Ever on how to quickly and efficiently make your guests wine glass personal! ~I reckon even I could do it ~ not withstanding the never to be again mentioned Mason Glass Tinting Fiasco ... or the Chalk Paint Fiasco .. or ~I digress as usual). Beautiful pictures including the one I have gone back to from Frosted Delights Cakery ~ A gorgeous Wedding Cake surrounded by frilly lace which is ICING??????? *SWOONWORTHY*

Photo By Isaac Weddings 2013

 Poor Adrian made the mistake of asking about our Mason Jars while in the Fab Shoppe Of Sorts ~the poor man had the bewildered look of someone hit in the face with a fish after I said "Well ~Adrian ~Let me tell you ~Back in 1913.................". The man now has a brain full of trivia from why Vintage Masons are Blue to when the Heritage Blues will discontinue. He took it all in his stride and must have been listening ~after a night shift~ ( I was impressed by THAT) ~ as he did ask some really good questions!
Now the Mag is chock full of super fab things like Naturally Beautiful ~information and recipes for natural facials for your Big Day / Seasonal Flower information / Where to have your Wedding/ Stories from Beautiful Brides and as mentioned ~ Do it Yourself Tips and Step by Step Tutorials. Thats just a small portion of whats inside!

Pop over to their Facebook Page or read the latest happenings at

http://isaacweddings.blogspot.com.au/2013/04/when-everyday-gets-in-way.html

Plenty of copies available NOW right here at fs vintage!

Tell them Fabulous scents Vintage sent you!

Stay Fabulous

fs vintage
xx

Dexter The Wonderdog

Dexter The Wonderdog ~ By Kate Redmond Photography

Have you met Dexter? Our beautiful boy?  
Mr Fab and I were talking about getting a dog and I was not really keen. We were looking at photos of 12? I think? Puppies for sale and we both pointed to our boy at the same time and said "That one".
He came into our lives in November 2011 and we have not regretted one single day! Yep he thinks he is the Alpha in our household but who could resist that face?

Dexter By Kate Redmond Photography

Dexter by Kate Redmond Photography

Stay Fabulous

fs vintage
xx

Its Monday

Heritage Blue Mason Jars

Monday has rolled around again ~ Pour day here at fs vintage. Now today is kinda interesting because I am doing ~ vintage glassware along with Heritage Blues and stock. A customer has entrusted me with their Uranium Depression glassware and Russian Teacups. I don't sell recycled vintage glassware but I am happy to refill it for customers. I wont fill anything that doesn't " feel right " ~ or on inspection ~ has even the smallest or most miniscule fracture / scrape or crack.  Also the last of the Heritage Blues are rolling out and I must admit ~its kinda sad. The frenzy they created still leaves me blinking like an owl in surprise! Wow! I had no idea when we first started to think about bringing them into fs vintage that they would be received even HALF as well as they have been. And ~ yeah yeah ok I admit its STILL kinda deliciously squirmy cool that we seem to be the only ones with them ~ Makes me feel all serene and zen just thinking about it.
Update on that ~New American order on the way and Australian order ~still no more information other than May 1st.

Stay Fabulous....

fs vintage
xx

The Tinting Fiasco

Huge disaster

Thought I would try my hand at Mason Jar tinting ~Cannot even begin to tell you what an abysmal failure it was. I now have a sink full of weirdly tinted wide mouth mason jars and a dishwasher full of the ones I have managed to remove the Mod Podge from. 
I tried both the American and Australian versions ~found on many many pages and Blogs. Followed the instructions TO THE LETTER.....
and I have come to the conclusion ~I suck at Mason Jar tinting.

This will NOT be something available at Fabulous Scents Vintage. 

Think we may just stick to what we know.....

Quilted Ball Mason Jar as Fabulous Scents Vintage Soy Candle with Rusty Lid

Keep being fabulous

fs vintage
xx

Imitation the highest form of Flattery? I think not....

Vintage and New Heritage Blue Perfect Mason Jar Candle

No I am not grizzling about MY copycats ~although....*cough* I digress. A friend of mine has a Copycat ~(don't we all) Now I automatically went to ease her pain with the usual platitudes.....

"Its the highest form of flattery"
"Don't worry ~ your the original"
"Take it as a compliment"

But then I remembered how I feel when someone else tells me about the ones who copy ME. I don't care what the platitudes are ~I am frustrated and cranky and basically gobsmacked. Not speechless ~never speechless but completely and utterly gobsmacked.
Why? The unmitigated BALLS (Seriously no pun intended) Yes the BALLS of these thick skinned people who imitate.
So ~ Can one of you who has copied or imitated please please PLEASE tell me how you justify it to yourself? What are YOUR justifications and how do you have peace with doing it? How can you sell a product you have copied and literally stolen an idea from someone? I am genuinely asking this question because when I am unable to understand something ~I research and delve till I found the answer. I NEED to know. I WANT to know. I have to admit ~sometimes I go and have a look at my imitators and I see they have incorrect information ~ or they are going on about something and its completely wrong ~ or their customers are saying how clever they are ( yeah yeah ok that's annoying as well I admit it)~I start getting incredibly itchy just wanting to send them a message and ask....why? You have decided to copy another persons idea but you are using incorrect information or not producing a product with the same quality or your imitation is only half way there ~WHY DO IT???? Lets talk about this honestly ~so ~you obviously have some creativity or you would not be making a hand made product correct? You obviously enjoy it or you would not be wasting precious time on something which has such a small return ( I hear the Crafters and Hand makers reading this saying "Oh yeah sister you got that right") So ~use that beautiful brain of YOURS!!! ~ yep there is only a finite amount of things you can do in crafting but why not put your OWN slant on it? Why not do the hard yards and figure it out for yourself? I will freely admit to roaming the Internet and Etsy ( Shameless Plug ~Please visit our Etsy store! https://www.etsy.com/shop/fsvintage ) I found ideas and thought "hmmmmm how can I make that Fabulous." I didn't trawl pages and think "Hmmm that's a good idea I might copy it exactly and then carry on as like its my idea". 

Vintage Mason Wire Ball Pint burning with New Ball Mason Pint Jar

Just be true to yourself till next time fabsters....

fs vintage 
xx

Are you feeling Blue?

Vintage Perfect Mason Jar with Heritage Blue Perfect Mason Jar

Around the beginning of the year I was googling for some information on a Vintage jar when I came across ...The Limited Edition Heritage Ball Blue Mason Jar. This Jar was commissioned and produced by Ball to commemorate 100 years of the Perfect Mason. I almost swooned ~literally. My heart started beating faster and I was fanning myself like a delicate  Southern Belle ~ Ohhh lordy ~ Ah do de CLARE I said to myself (still fanning) I have to have those!!!! So began The Search. Eventually I found out they would not be released till March so I started contacting a few American companies I had used in the past for our normal square Half pint Masons. Wasn't getting very much feedback so I spoke to our dear friends in the US and said ~FIND ME SOME OF THESE JARS!!!!

Subtlety is not my strong point....

Heritage Ball Mason Blue

Thankfully she found me what I was looking for and the long process began. We are not 100% sure but pretty darn close to it ~that we may well be the first ones in Australia to have these jars!!! How exciting is that??? Yes VERY exciting.......and kinda cool but nerve wracking! We have sold out of the first batch and have ordered again from the same supplier ~ Bless em ~ and should have more stock in about 2 weeks ~ fingers crossed.
You can of course purchase them from us empty but DAMN ~they seriously make the most beautiful soy candle EVER. I have them burning every single day (In the interests of testing for quality control ~ as ya do....) and I have to say they are probably up there as my faves. Well I love all the jars but ~*serene sigh* They are so beautiful...... 

Heritage Ball Mason Blue Soy Candle

Are we bored yet?

fs vintage

Its been Months

Vintage Pint Perfect Mason Jar Candle Photo By Kate Redmond Photography

Its been months since I have written ~where to begin?  Sadly I have let the frustration of others really get to me which really? STUPID! So ~why not write about it?
Let us begin ~ When we started doing Mason Jars as a soy candle ~both Vintage and new last year ~ oh my goodness ~ we were poo pooed ~ "You cant use those ~they are not candle JARS"? "Are you insane?" / "They wont sell"/ "Yuk they look stupid"/ and so on and so on. We ignored it and brought our first batch of jars and proceeded to turn them into beautiful candles. We tested those suckas for weeks and weeks till we had it PERFECT! Initially? *shrug* Yeah sure slow going but after awhile? People were contacting us to say ~"Hey I love those jars to". 
Gotta tell you ~I was chuffed! So we sorted out which ones worked ~and which ones were a dismal failure and eventually we managed to stock exactly what people wanted.

Vintage Perfect Ball Mason Jar Candle with Burning Heritage Blue Ball Mason Jar candle

Then the emails began ~Yep people telling us that this page and that page on Facebook had started to copy. Gotta tell you ~that saying? Imitation is the highest form of flattery? Nope its not. Its annoying and frustrating and in this Bloggers opinion? RUDE! Get your own bloody ideas and dont pinch mine! Now settle down people ~Not saying we here at Fabulous Scents Vintage are the Boss of Mason Jar candles but DAMN ~Cant you at least find your own way of packaging????? Don't copy mine!
Hmmm do I feel refreshed finally saying all this? You betcha! And I must add ~it is nice to be back and continuing my woffling. Read this or dont ~your choice ~but come along for the ride as I regale you with whats happening.

fs vintage

Its Saturday.....

Finally made it through to Saturday!!! Honestly felt like the week would never end. So ~breaky with a friend then back here to open fsv for a few hours to cover customer appointments. The rest of the day spent just relaxing and doing a Mr Fab ~laying on the couch. I do not remember the last time I simply did ....nothing. Well unless you count carting a few pint masons outside to take some pics and make a sorry attempt to create an arty visual to appeal to your eye....... Not sure how successful I was but.......
It was blissful.

Home Show .................. Done.

Home Show is done and the tablecloths and assorted table decorations are packed away till next time. What a HUGE weekend which left us both exhausted. Mr Fab stepped up and I have to stop shaking my head in amazement. I knew he would help but had no idea he would step up to the mark and be ...well ...just Fabulous!

Our aim was to get Fabulous scents vintage out there and in peoples minds. I am pretty sure we were successful. Met some amazing people and established new customer relationships so all in all? Good job!
Now to get cracking on Christmas.........

Its beginning to look a bit like ..... Xmas....

Finally have everything unpacked and organized. Even managed to get a start on a couple of the amazing baskets we will be offering this Christmas season. The hardest part was finding a basket that was suitably vintage looking and Fabulous! Pretty sure we nailed it with the Romaine tin baskets.....

What do you think?..............

What a Fabulous Week

Amazing and interesting week! We always love New customers and we have had a few this week and all have been wonderful! I once again think to myself how insane lucky I am am to be able to do what I love every day. Thats not to say ~some days I become seriously fabbed out and quite honestly would like to walk away from wax and wicks and not being able to smell anything because of the fragrance overload....then a gorgeous new or old customer will pop in and have a chat....and all is right with the world once again.

Also ~all the stock we ordered for Christmas has arrived and there are some really amazing things! It has been incredibly hard to find gift baskets in keeping with our Vintage look and which would compliment our Jars. Eureka! All here and this weekend is dedicated to preparing a couple for the shelves.

Have a Fabulous weekend!

Delivery Day

Delivery Day here at fsv HQ. A huge parcel arrives and I am once again dazzled by our American supplier managing to pack these beautiful jars so they arrive without a scratch. I do have to admit to the unpacking process taking a teeny bit longer than it should because I read the American newspapers the jars are wrapped in. I enjoy seeing how much it costs for anything from a bathroom sink to a pack of cookies.
I must also admit I am having one of those weeks where you seem to be on the go with no spare time to stop and still not getting anywhere. Now as an added distraction our supplier put in some Presto Jar Company glass lids so I will have no choice but to begin an adventure by searching out everything I can! The lids are actually very cool! Apart from that ~when we embarked on this journey of turning Vintage Mason into beautiful Soy candles we discussed the fact we simply cant just toss some soy in a vintage jar and send it on its merry way. We need to able to give the customer a little bit of info on each of these beauties ~even if its just a date range. We need to be able to say with absolute certainty that these are Vintage Mason Jars and not replicas.

I find I can spend literally hours late into the night just searching for any snippet of information I can ~hmmmmmm obsessed much?