Thursday, January 14, 2010

The Art of Gifting

Good Morning
My sweet birdling friends :)
I hope this Thursday finds you well
& with a smile on your face :)

{NKOTB always sure to bring a smile}
hahahah


: ) (I like smiling, smiling is my favorite!) :)

Perhaps you would like to know why I am smiling???
For those of you that are new to the Good Girls world of whimsy &
fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants-ness I'll share a piece of my "story"...
(& for those of you that have heard this before go enjoy a cup of coffee & recon back here in 1 min.!)

Not only am I the sole proprietress of said Good Girls Studio but I am the sole proprietress of The Boy ;) Being a full time single mom & running this thrifted ship full time is a bit nerve racking (to say the least if you read Mondays blog!) ! With the nature of business being up & down, we live quite frugally. No fancy dinners out (good thing I know my way around the kitchen!) , thrifted goodies (good thing I know my way around a thrift store too hehehe!) & no fancy shiny new car (bought & paid for in full when The Boy was just a wee peanut).

(welcome back all you who stepped out for coffee)

The not so fancy car died about 6 months ago {pity}
& I've been driving my parents car ever since.
(this is longest story ever)
Long story short, they needed their car back & me w/o funds was about to be carless.
{insert reason to smile :)}
Can you believe that some friends of mine from church BOUGHT me a car! Just bought it & said here, have a car :) Who does that??? My loving generous friends did! I am amazed at the kindness of others & what God works out for us! Wow!! I am humbled & grateful & trying to not worry so much about how we will get by since I am soo well taken care of!
{the next best gift-giver after God is my mom, just throwing that out there ;) }

So yes, Smiling!!! I've been dying to share that with you since I found out & so to return the generosity (on a rather smaller scale!) I'd like to gift one of you dear readers! Please leave me a comment about the best gift you've received or perhaps the best you've given & I will draw one of your names on Saturday!! The winner will receive a pair of revamped vintage earrings made especially for them :) Make sure you check back on Saturday to receive your gift!!

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

I updated the shop with this beauty yesterday!!!

Sense & Sensibility No3
(wouldn't she be perfect for a bride!)

& this girl will be available soon'ish
~Eternal Friendship~
Their friendship was eternal,
the bond between them could not be broken
no matter how far apart their lives took them!


If those didn't bring a smile to your face perhaps this will...



aahahahaha...love'n the fantastic hairdos!

Hope your day is lovely & kind to you!
& Don't forget to leave your comment to be entered to win those earrings!

Smooches,
Jo

21 comments:

Retro Chick said...

Oh! NKOTB! I was madly in love with them when I was about 10. *sigh*

I think the best gift I've ever given was managing to get tickets to a Christmas Eve Cinema screening of It's a Wonderful Life for my Husband (it's his favourite film)

I've received so many lovely gifts is hard to say!

Winchester Manor said...

You blessed girl you! I love it when good things happen to good people! Boy, your crappy start to the week sure got better and this lovely gift you received brought tears to my wanna be French eyes! Hallelujah my friend!

My best gift wasn’t of the material sort (those are nice too) but rather the gift of knowledge. An ex boss of mine that I worked with for 10 years, gave me the gift of some good ol’ business sense. His examples have carried me through many career changes, allowed me to open my own boutique in NY and make it successful. He also taught me that you can get to the top of your chosen field without stepping on others, but rather through good old hard, superior ethics and integrity all things are possible.

Your latest creations are stunning my friend!

Love and big hugs,
Karyn

Andrea said...

Wow. Truly a wonderful gift, mostly because it restores your faith in mankind! I am so happy for you! My mother runs a program for single parents and I always wonder if you have those resources in the US too...They help a lot of people!
The best gift was Christmas 2008. My dad secretly bought me a serger, not the gift itself but because I had been trying to get one for years but some financial thing always got in the way. And that it completely surprised me. When he showed me the box under the tree I had no idea what it could be...A gift to help with my future plans. I cried.
I loved Jordan. I look at him now and think "I was in love with a man who wore mascara and was prettier than me..." Thankfully my taste has changed!
:)
Thanks for sharing the uplifting story...now to go join a church :)

the real mia said...

Total score on that New Kids shirt. I'm a little jealous.

Julia said...

wow that is fantastic about your car! i love your etsy shop. i love looking through it!

Jessica / Lola Vintage said...

Our lives sound so similar it's almost scary! So glad I found your blog. :)

That is amazing about the car, and CONGRATS!

The best gift I've ever received was on Saturday June 5, 1999 at 2:40 in the afternoon. It was the moment my little boy, Lukas, was born. I don't mean to exaggerate, but seriously I felt like the entire room, (along with the world eventually) became noticeably brighter. True story. :) ♥

Unknown said...

Popped in to say hi!

stephie g. said...

Wow, that just goes to show that we mustn't worry about how WE are going to make it. because duh, GOD has a plan for us. Someone once told me that he will never give us more than we can bear (did i spell that correctly)...and its true.

Your story is great, I will share it =]

The best gift I ever received in life...I wanna say my little sister. When I was young (5) I would beg my parents for a sibling. And she was born when I was 6 but it isnt until now that I appreciate her soooo much

Kate said...

No stories from me today, my sweet, BUT I just want to say that anyone who can post about NKOTB without really posting about NKOTB is a true hero in my book. You're the best!

P.S. Hands off Donnie. He's mine!

Good Girls Studio said...

Retro Chick: Great gift! & Glad to meet a fellow New Kids fan :)

Karyn: I read all your blogs with a French accent :)& I've had that amazing gift as well!

CrowNology: Hope you find a church with loving caring people! You can have Jordan, Joey is MINE ALL MINE!! :)

Mia: I totally didn't get it, couldn't being myself to relive my first concert :)hahaha

Mart & lu: thank you my dear!

Marvin: thanks for popping in :)

Jessica:I'm sorry you're gong through it too! Prayers for you!It will get better! My best gift is my little man as well!

Steph: Indeed! Thanks for popping in!

Kate: You've got the right stuff...baby :){hugs}

Createology said...

What a blessing your friends and family are for you and your son. You should keep smiling as it shows your beauty and inner happiness. My best gift ever was the love and lessons my maternal grandmother gave so generously to me time and time and time again. Now I understand my role as grandmother to my two granddaughters. :o) Smiles to you

Kristin said...

haha! I LOVE the NKOTB references in this post!

You have some amazing friends! I find that tough times always end up strengthening families and friendships so much! What a wonderful story! :)

Unknown said...

It is a lovely thing to see God's love at work through friends! When we put our trust in Him, He really will take care of us.

Please, don't enter me in your drawing, I just want to say 'hi.' :)

I will say that the best gift I ever received was from my darling husband... and it may seem silly, but it was a vacuum. I'm pretty practical and, several years ago, the dirt of a house under renovation and the unbelievable amount of hair shed by our dog convinced me that we needed a new machine. So, for Christmas from parents, I asked for money toward the purchase of a Dyson. I'm bad about not coming up with much of a wish list, anyway, and there wasn't anything else I wanted. So DH just bought it for me... and I actually cried.

The Eternal Friendship necklace is my new favorite!

BonBon Rose Girls Kristin said...

Ummmmmmm, dude. YES your post did leave me smiling. I am the biggest NKOTB fan EVER. My cousins, sis and I saw them when they toured a year ago and got all dressed up in our best 90s attire! And woop woop for much deserved good luck and good friends!

Unknown said...

My heart is smiling for you, Johanna!! What an amazing gift and what amazing friends!! GOD is GREAT!!

Loved the video too!! And, all the yummy eye candy too!!

One of the most amazing gifts I've received is my mom! Being a single mom she had to be my "everything!" She worked so hard for us, never complained and had endless love for me (and I have to say, I wasn't the easiest kiddo either)!! My senior year in high school I entered her name in a contest at a local Hallmark for "Opus" (remember that little penguin cartoon?) pj's and she won! So today I am entering for her and it happens to be her birthday today too!! She is truly deserving of something so beautiful!!

Thanks for the opportunity, girl!!

SewSweetStitches said...

So glad that worked out for you!
If I'm gonna be sappy, I'd say the best give I've ever gotten was my little girl. But as she's currently destroying my living room, I'm more inclined to say my parents bought me a car after my husband ran off and left me pregnant and broke. ALso my beloved grandparents bought me a zuni turquoise necklace when I was a little girl and I never take it off, that's pretty cool. Oh wait how about my Knit Picks Harmony complete set from my mom.
Wow, I could go on and on!

Kelly said...

this post just made my day!!! it's so refreshing to read about people doing good for others!!! you are so blessed :)

i am so unbelievably happy for you!!!

Rianna said...

cute t-shirt!!!
Rianna Bethany xxxx

Emily Claire said...

This brought tears to my eyes! I am so happy for you!!! :)

Good things happen to good people!

Unknown said...

ah new kids on the block! back in the day lol xoxox

alexkeller said...

great news about the car!
i love all of your pieces - beautiful!
and the best thing i've ever received is the love of my family. but that goes without saying. other than that? my wedding ring! okay, that's pretty standard....but really, it was the cute boy in the bar near the pool table that gave me a pat on tummy as i walked by...he's now my husband :)