Whatever happened to Colleen & Erin?

Have you visited our blog over the past 7 months and thought, "What in the world is going on with those Perry girls?" "You know, the ones who own BRISSONTE'?"

Do you have a moment? Well, actually several moments? This may take awhile......

December 2009, my Erin decided it was time to spread her wings and follow her dream to create her art. So off to sunny California she flew. It's been over 7 months, and I miss her more than words can express BUT this was so right for her and it was time for ME to spread my wings.

So I looked for the job of my dreams. And I got it! My boss was great, but sitting behind a desk all day, learning the protocol (it was a really hard job to learn) and staring at the computer all day was draining me of me. All of you will understand. I was no longer creating or sewing. Reading my favorite decorating magazines was a thing of the past. I was afraid to be inspired, for I knew how sad I would be when I could not act on my dreams. For 7 months I worked 7 days a week; 5 days at the office and weekends at the shop. My poor husband was so tired of hearing me whine.

So we sat down, weighed our options, (truly I have the best husband in the world) searched for a new location to move the shop to and EUREKA, it was right under my nose. I had been driving by it 5 days a week to and from work. So I gave notice at my job. (My boss really is a super great guy and I felt perfectly awful saying, "I'm resigning".) I've been one week unemployed today and I know I made the right decision. The minute the words, "I'm resigning", left my mouth, out came the magazines and decor books and the inspiration started flowing. I was free!

Free to close the existing shop, free to move to our beautiful new location, free to move and set up my new studio, free to start the creative process and open the doors to my lovely new shop. So BRISSONTE' in Lawrence, MA will officially close Friday this week, move to North Reading, MA and re-open in mid September. Oh, there is sooooo much to do, and I am sooooo happy to be doing it. My dear husband took 2 weeks vacation to work with me on this. He drives back and forth from shop to shop loading and unloading. He is my Prince. (Every now and then his crown gets a little crooked but then mine does too.)

So please join me on this journey of self-discovery. I will share the ups and downs of moving 1,600 sq. ft. of stock to a new location, of learning who I am in this beautiful world God has shared with me, of having an empty nest for the first time, and of taking a leap of faith in God's plan for me in pursuing my heart desire.

Christmas at Brissonte

C'mon down and get your Christmas on at Brissonte.

Antique radiator ... didn't last in the store but a day!

Just wanted to post a few pictures of a lovely antique radiator that sat on the shop floor for less than a day before being purchased.

Decorative Bird Cages from Brissonte

Bird cages, sans birds, are becoming quite popular in home decor these days. Brissonte's been collecting antique bird cages for awhile now and we'd like to show you what we have as well as how others are using bird cages as accent pieces. The first 5 bird cages are at Brissonte' in Lawrence. Also included some pictures from a few other blogs highlighting bird cage decor.

Enjoy!








This picture below was featured in a fabulous post by Boston's own Marni Katz over at StyleCarrot.

Definitely check out Marni's post on this.



The above picture was on PointClickHome:

Recently, we’ve been seeing birdcages just about everywhere. No longer just a decorative accessory or home for a feathered friend, birdcages are being turned into pieces for a host of other functions. And one of our latest favorites is this chic birdcage pillar holder. At an impressive 31″ tall, this is a dramatic piece for a table centerpiece and a great way to add height and visual interest to a basic console.

Bird Cage Pillar Holder, $31; ConranUSA.com

Check out a new magazine, online called LONNY

Hey there, check out this new magazine online called Lonny, these lovely images came from the home of textile designer Caroline Irving. Many of the homeowners profiled profess to be flea market aficionados.

Guest Blogging at Brissonte: Check out what's in the store

Decorative Anchor Plate from 181 Canal Street, the building that houses Brissonte - there is beauty everywhere!

Crowns have been showing up lately as decorative accents and Brissonte has quite a collection. July 2009 House Beautiful had two pages on crowns, must get that and post it. Click on this picture and you'll get a close up of Colleen's crown collection:

The crown below was on one of my favorite blogs, Desire to Inspire:

Below we have a vintage metal office chair, fully restored with luscious gray mohair from Brissonte:

Shot of chair without Brissonte back drop:

Here are some other chairs that were featured in posts over at Desire to Inspire:

Brissonte's first guest blogger

Good Morning, my name is Christine and I discovered Brissonte' almost two years ago. There are so many reasons to love Brissonte' but my number one reason is the warm welcome you get when you walk in the door. For those of you readers who are local to the area, there are precious few places to shop vintage in Lawrence and Colleen provides a great launching pad for adventurous souls who desire to know the city of Lawrence better. Brissonte' is located in the heart of The Old Cotton Weaving House and is within walking distance to other places of interest: Lawrence Heritage State Park,New Balance Factory Outlet Store and Fisichelli's Bakery, home of the world's best macaroons.

Colleen and I differ on many design choices and I put together this Venn Diagram to help explain where we come together

I have learned a lot from hanging out with Colleen and her cool daughter, Erin. The most important lesson is keeping an open mind, design-wise and other. You never know what you will find there.

I am going to share with you some of my favorite parts of Brissonte' and give reference to some other design/decor blogs that provide my inspiration. Colleen is too busy in front of her sewing machine to read blogs all day. I, on the other hand, have a very bad blog-habit.

Here's the Brissonte'/Lawrence version:

Linen covered settee with two chairs

From the blog SoSylvie, via a mention on Decorno:

I hope to be doing a post on Halloween offering very soon, till then,

keep punching