Tales of this Shopkeeper - A Romantic Homes Magazine Experience

It's 2 pm and there are friendly, chatty customers in the shop as the FedEx guy brings in the box....my heart skips a beat as I sign for it and say a few words to him.  There it sits in front of me....I resist opening the box while my customers shop around the store.  They are sweet and asking questions.  It's hard to concentrate on what they are saying but I force myself to wait....
Once the shop is clear I open it revealing the cover of my favorite magazine.  Like an old friend these past few years, I have loved spending time with Romantic Homes Magazine.  This time is different and instead of starting at the beginning I quickly flip through to about where I usually find the "shopkeeping" section.
There on page 78 is Winsome Cottage!!  I see my name in the first paragraph and am instantly humbled.  It's not often I see my name in print...really never these days unless I've signed up to take part in an event in town where they list the shop and owner.

The editor has captured our story very well and I think to myself what a good listener she was as she interviewed me and how she included my husband in the telling.  That was important to me as he is half of this business we do together.  There under the title is the editor's name and then my friend, Jodee's name, at least her business name and I am so grateful that she was given credit.  She is a sweet talented photographer/teacher with a very busy schedule.  But when I called her she was there the next day to shoot the photos.  Go to:
http://www.jpballphotography.com/ to see her wonderful work. Here is one of my favorites from the shoot ...

Pretty, huh?
I'm not sure how I was chosen for this special experience except that I, like all shopkeepers out there, have a story to tell and there is something about that that is always interesting ie. how did she get her start? or what made them decide to open that type of business?  Thus, my favorite part of my favorite magazine...."Shopkeeping".

The fact that we are featured in the July issue and that July will be three years that we opened the shop is just another fun aspect of this whole thing.  I mean we opened with a very small inventory and were so excited about what we had in there.  It was a beginning....
Here are just a few photos of Winsome's early days, very early!!

That was our first location and it was very cute inside!!

Before we opened....

And so here we are in a different location with wonderful customers who have made this all possible.  Too many things to be thankful for and so much to look forward to!

Thank you, Romantic Homes Magazine and Rebecca for allowing us to be in your wonderful publication!!