{Heavy Heart.}

I am at such a loss for words about the senseless tragedy in Connecticut.  

Our prayers are with everyone affected. 

"But Jesus said, Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for

of such is the kingdom of Heaven."

Matthew 19:14

{Monograms}

I never knew how important monograms were until I moved to North Carolina 9 years ago.  Monograms is a southern thing.

A must thing if you live in the South. 

I started doing monogram frames a few months ago.  

They've sold like crazy.

I really love how they turn out.  

There's something really pretty & classy about a monogram. 

Here's an example of the single letter monogram. 

This frame was a special order for a family Christmas photo.  

I love the ASCP Antibes Green up against the red chevron.

The 3 letter monogram is probably my absolute favorite!

I love the look of a monogram.

I've been working on several monogram frames lately!

 I love creating beautiful pieces for our customers!  

I will be taking a break from making frames soon so that I can focus on the wholesale side of our business.  We've had tons of inquiries about wholesale & it's something we offer but want to perfect.

If you would like to order a custom monogram frame please check out our Etsy shop for more information on ordering!

Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!

{Meeting Miss Mustard Seed}

Saturday I had the amazing opportunity of meeting Miss Mustard Seed.  

She was doing a book signing at SuzAnna's Antiques in Raleigh, NC & I wasn't missing it no matter what!

My awesome husband accompanied me on the 2.5 hour drive & even chatted Marian up about farming cotton! 

MMS is the reason I started my business.  I have followed her blog for years & even tried a few of her DIYs like her German glass glitter letters & ornaments.  She is a constant inspiration & her words of wisdom & truth gave me the push I needed to open Raised In Cotton Interiors.  

Marian is a real genuine person.

Her accent is adorable!

And that new short haircut is totally her!

My husband actually asked me when I was going to cut mine like that.  What? 

He was as smitten with her as I was.  

She wasn't in a rush as she signed our books.

She talked with us.  Asked us questions. 

It's what I love most about her.

She is a real person.  Just like you & I.

I could sit & talk to her for hours.  

I am so thankful she shared her talents with so many of us through her blog, paint & book!

If you get the chance to attend a book signing please do!

You won't be disappointed!

I look horrible in this picture mainly because I was so nervous.

I mean I'm standing next to Miss Mustard Seed!

She said to me, "Anything is possible." 

She is so right!

What a great day it was!

I am seriously still pinching myself & re-reading what she wrote to me in my copy of her book. 

What an honor to meet someone like her....

{Happy Thanksgiving!}

{RIC via Instagram...}

I've been so swamped lately with custom orders for frames {one huge wholesale} & with restocking furniture that I just haven't had time to blog. 

Through this process I've learned that I am not the most organized person & I seriously need to work on that in the new year. 

One thing I am good at is taking pictures with my phone.

So while I am waiting on some frames to try I thought I'd post a few pics from Instagram!

If you don't follow me please do!

You can find us at jessicasingle.

{Ornament frames}

{Chalkboard Ornaments}

{Single Letter Monogram Frames}

{3 Letter Monogram Frames}

{Embroidery Framed Verses}

I've had a lot going on & am just so thankful to be able to do what I love.

I will be off Wednesday until Saturday as we give thanks for all that God has blessed our family with this year. 

Happy Thanksgiving from our family to yours!

{We've Moved In}

Ever since I started this business it was always a dream of mine to have my own shop. 

 I knew it was a big dream.  

I mean the overhead of owning or renting a space is huge but I was up to the challenge.

Or so I thought.

After looking at several buildings & hearing about rent, utilities, etc. I decided to start I needed to go a different route.  

So I started searching for a different route.  

A lot of the blogs I read are ladies who rent booth spaces & I knew that was the route I needed to go.

It was perfect for a beginner like myself.  

I could do what I love while staying at home with Landry.

So today I made the leap. 

I took a risk on ME.

I started moving stuff into my booth at The Shops at 123 Hay Street in downtown Fayetteville.

I am so excited.  Like a kid on Christmas morning. 

We moved the big stuff in today {thanks to my amazing husband} & on Thursday I will move all the little things in. 

I hope that every thing works out & my stuff sales. 

I'm nervous that I will fail but that fear is what motivates me too.

Here are a few shots I took today with my phone. 

Once everything is set up I will take more pictures with the camera. 

And just a Instagram picture of our tags!  I LOVE them! 

 My dear friend over at Restoration House Interiors hooked me up with Paper Monkey Press.

Amazing products and amazing customer service! 

I will check back in later this week with some more updates on the booth space.  

I will be getting ready for our Holiday Open House the 16th-17th.  

Lots of exciting stuff going on at RIC Interiors!

If you aren't following us on Instagram please do for sneak peeks!

{jessicasingle}

Happy Tuesday!

{RIC Giveaway Over at Liz Marie Blog}

I met Liz Marie several months ago & I am so glad I did!

This gal is super talented & super sweet!

She is hosting a giveaway this week for Raised In Cotton!

TWO winners will win a custom frame of their choice & entering is simple!

Head on over to her blog for more information!

{image courtesy Liz Marie Blog}

{It's Been a While}

It's been quite a while since our last post & for good reason!  We've had so much going on lately with family stuff & working out some business stuff that I just haven't had time to post here.  I also have a personal blog that I post on quite often but I'm trying to balance the two!

When I started this business venture it was really as a hobby to give me something to do to make a little extra cash for our family & to give me an outlet for my creative side!  I never imagined that it would be anything more than me painting furniture in our laundry room or making frames on our dining room table.

A few days ago I was given the opportunity to be a vendor in an amazing shop in downtown Fayetteville.  I jumped at the chance & now I'm running around like a chicken with its head cut off trying to get pieces painted, frames made & I'm working on some special projects too.  I am renting a booth at The Shops at 123 Hay Street.  My space is a 7x12 & I am super excited about staging it.  I open on November 1st which means only 17 days away!  And to top it all off the Holiday Open House is November 16-17th!  Eek!

I am super excited though!  I am actually typing this while a piece dries.  I am working into the wee hours of the morning but I am seriously loving every single minute of it.  God has blessed me in so many ways & I am going to embrace each moment.  God and bad.  I've learned a lot since starting this business & I know I have so much more to learn.  And I'm ready.

First thing first is we are changing our name just a tad.  I guess more like adding to it.  We are now Raised In Cotton Interiors.  We will be offering so much more than just furniture & frames!  We will be sharing all of it as we go & will be even offering some tutorials along the way.

We are leaving on the 25th for a mini vacation to Nashville to see my cousin perform & it couldn't have happened at a better time.  I will definitely need a getaway after all the work we are doing to prepare for the opening.

I am working on a schedule so that I can be a bit more productive as a business woman but also still be an amazing mom to Landry.  It's challenging but I know in the end will be so rewarding.  Well back to work but here's a sneak peek of a few of the pieces we've finished!

{Awesome News}

Today we got our first wholesale client!  We were beyond excited as we stood nervously closing the deal with a local boutique owner.  We are working on her custom order & cannot wait to form a lasting relationship with such a wonderful boutique!

I'm going to be a bit honest & tell y'all how discouraged I've been lately.  I have been working like crazy on furniture {that I have no problem selling} because the frame business hasn't been going so great.  We have several orders for family & friends but I want to reach a broader crowd.  Our Etsy shop has had tons of views but no orders.  We did a giveaway on the blog and Facebook page & no comments.  It's been so disheartening because we've invested so much time & money into this  business.  My husband, who is the greatest, told me today that he was proud of me & reminded me that most businesses like ours don't make any money the first two years.  I have no idea if that's true but it did make me feel better.

I know that I have to be patient & trust God in this journey.  Is that always easy?  No.  I hope I'm not alone in this feeling.  I love making the frames & being able to be creative.  Today was a sign for me to stay focused & driven.  To never give up.

I'm excited about the future of this business & what it will mean for our family.  It feels good to be doing something I love.  My grandfather told me tonight that this is only the beginning of the wholesale clients so I better buckle up.  I think he might be on to something & I'm super excited about it.  Now off to work on some frames....

{A Giveaway}

Everybody loves a giveaway!  

We reached 50 likes on our Facebook page so we are giving away one free 5x7 frame of your choice!

Yes, we realize 50 isn't exactly a huge number but it's a start for a small company who is just getting their feet wet!  

All you have to do is leave a comment & tell us which frame is your favorite.

The giveaway will end Monday, August 6th at 10 pm EST.

Winner will be announced Tuesday, August 7th.

Good luck & thanks for your support!

{Simply Gorgeous...}

I purchased this piece a few weeks ago & finally got around to painting it.  

It's a solid piece. 

Made by Thomasville. 

It didn't have dovetailed drawers but I bought it anyways.  

I loved the lines and it sort of looked like some of the popular bamboo pieces I've seen lately. 

This is what she started out as

She was a dirty ugly cream color with pink highlights. 

 The hardware is amazing!  It just needed some sprucing up so I gave it a fresh coat of white spray paint. It's as good as new now.

Here she is all dressed up....

This piece turned out beautiful. 

I'm going to hate letting it go but it's going to be for sale. 

Here's a sneak peek of the piece I'm working on now....

{Furniture, Frames & Paint... Oh My!}

You may have noticed that we changed the name of our blog & I'm super excited about the changes we are making here at Raised In Cotton.  I have had a long love for refurbishing furniture & until recently I was just doing it for myself.  There's something extremely rewarding about taking an old ugly piece of furniture & giving it new life with a little TLC.  

We have purchased over 25 pieces of furniture that I cannot wait to get my hands on!  

We met with a wonderful lady yesterday about renting a booth in her shop in a quaint little town. 

Unfortunately I waited too long to go visit because all the spaces are filled but I am first on the waiting list. 

We also checked out a building for rent at a crazy ridiculous price! 

It's a steal for the space & location so we have a million decisions to make. 

We are also looking into some flea markets like Luckett's & Round Top. 

So until we decide what we want to do we are going to just continue to make frames & paint furniture!

I know that God has an awesome plan in store for us & being patient isn't always easy but I'm trusting Him & waiting on Him this time.

So just a little teaser of the piece I'm working on today....

Happy Tuesday!

{Frankie Makes Her Debut}

I took a break from frames because I went to Texas to visit family for two weeks & then came home to a stomach virus.  It was not fun as it hit my husband first, then Landry & then myself!  We were all pretty pitiful for a week.  We are feeling much now & so we've been back to cutting frames.  I have several that have been ordered & I'm working like crazy to get them done.  

One of my favorites is Frankie! 

 She's a bit modern with a sassy flare.  

And no matter the color combo she's amazing! 

This one is painted in AS Chalk Paint (TM) Louis Blue, Pure White with trim done in Old Ochre. 

 It can be done in any color & we can match fabric colors as well.  

I hope y'all love Frankie as much as we do!

We will be expanding our business soon to refurbished furniture as painting furniture has always been a love of mine.  Tomorrow we are meeting a wonderful couple about renting a shop space in a town not too far from us.  It's a big undertaking but we truly feel like God has put this opportunity in front of us for a reason!

We hope everyone had a great weekend!

If you haven't entered the amazing giveaway at Restoration House Interiors please do so now as the giveaway ends tomorrow!

Restoration House Interiors Giveaway!

We are super excited to be part of an amazing giveaway over at my friend Kennesha's blog

  Restoration House Interiors!  

She's giving away some pretty cool stuff so hop on over to enter!

The giveaway ends July 23rd!

Winner will be announced on July 24th!

And while you are there browse around her blog!  

She's a genius with a paint brush & some paint!

{Tracie... The Newest Member}

This frame happens to be one of my favorites! 

When I was asked to design a frame for a Mother's Day gift I knew this one would be perfect.

I've met Tracie many times & she's a super sweet, classy gal who loves browns & blues! 

I used a cane basket weave stencil to create this 8x10 frame.  It's painted in BM Texas Leather & White Linen with the trim done in Annie Sloan Chalk Paint (TM) Provence.  I distressed this frame lightly & then glazed in a mocha tint.  

I was really happy with the way this frame turned out.  I can't wait to free up some time to make some frames for our own home!  

Tracie loved her frame & so it only seemed fitting to name it after her! 

This frame can be made in any size up to an 11x14.  

All of our frames come with glass, backing, framers points and hanging hardware! 

We are in the process of working with some local boutiques to sale wholesale to them!

Talk about being super excited & nervous! 

We are so blessed to be able to do something we love & cannot wait for the journey this business will take us on!

Happy Monday!

{Huge Thanks to TMC}

I've worked with Elizabeth over at The Mustard Ceiling before & she's a joy to work with.  She did an amazing job designing this blog, along with our Etsy banner & FB timeline cover!  This woman truly is a design genius!  

If you are looking for a blog makeover please check her out!  

Thanks so much, Elizabeth!

{Meet Jennifer...}

I named this frame after my oldest sister, Jennifer.  When I first did this frame I had no idea who I would name it after until she saw it & fell in love with it.  The Ikat print is one of my absolute favorites and now is one of her favorites too.  She ordered several in this print & exact color scheme.  This particular one she had made for her boss for Mother's Day!  

I love the color scheme.  It's ASCP in Graphite & Old Ochre with trim in Valspar's Antique Brass.  I distressed this one more than usual because it's what my sister wanted.  This frame is an 8x10 but can be done in any size up to an 11x14.  If you would like a larger size please email us & we will work together to make it happen!

I'm excited about the launching of our new business.  It's definitely keeping us busy but we are loving every minute of it.  

Please make sure to follow us on Facebook for updates & promotions! 

We hope everyone had a wonderful weekend!

{Meet Jackie}

I hope everyone had a great Mother's Day!  It was definitely an amazing day in our house!  I got to spend it with the most amazing & beautiful little girl named Landry! 

I also spent the day working on the business with my sister.  She's always been a huge part of my life & inspires me more than she will ever know.  She is one of my biggest supporters too.  We decided to name our frames to give them more personality & to make them easier to order.  It was such a fun process with lots of eye rolling & laughing! 

The first frame I want to introduce Jackie!  It's a beautiful modern Moroccan stencil that will fit in even the most traditional of homes.  It comes in any color & any size up to an 11x14.  If you are interested in a custom size please email us at raisedincottonnc@yahoo.com. 

This piece was done in BM Texas Leather & ASCP French Linen.  The trim is Valspar's Antique Brass.  We distressed & glazed it then sealed it with a clear wax to protect it.  This frame is definitely more gorgeous in person! 

Please remember to LIKE us on Facebook!

{Welcome, Y'all}

Hi there! My name is Jessica  & I am a Texas gal living on the east coast who has always loved to share my creativity with those around me.  I am a stay at home mom of a beautiful little girl who'll be turning one in June!  I am obsessed with photography and could never quite find the frame I wanted for the price I wanted.  So after spending hundreds of dollars on frames that I didn't love I decided to do something about it....so with the support of my family Raised In Cotton began..... Handmade, hand painted distressed frames. 

My husband was raised in cotton & so will our sweet girl!  I wanted a name that would build a legacy for our daughter, Landry.  Something that was meaningful to our family! 

Our frames incorporate a touch of southern Texas charm mixed with beautiful patterns & colors.  Each frame is custom made, hand painted, stenciled & lovingly distressed.   We are excited about the future of our business & what it will mean for our family! 

We are hoping to launch by Monday, May 14th.  We are working on tons of frames right now to build up an inventory!  Please stop by often to catch up on promotions, new designs & more! 

Our Etsy site is raisedincottonnc.etsy.com and our Facebook page is facebook.com/RaisedInCotton. 

Have a great weekend & a Happy Mother's Day!