New Arrival: Miss Mustard Seed's Book, "Inspired You!"

Some girls get giddy over a new pair of shoes. Marian Parsons gets giddy over room makeovers. With a lot of ingenuity, a little bit of effort, and a tight budget, she has transformed her home into a beautiful space and filled her heart with a lot more contentment. Thousands have found inspiration at Marian’s blog, missmustardseed.com, and now she shares dozens of new projects, ideas, and DIY adventures in the pages of Inspired You.

Marian will remind you that homes don’t have to be magazine material to be special, comfortable, and inviting. The goal you’re working toward is home. Not a perfect home. Not an “impress the neighbors” home. Just home—one whose walls and rooms tell the story of the family who lives there. Beautiful homes start with inspiration and a willingness to try. So uncover your God-given creativity. Be encouraged, be willing, and be inspired.

Follow this blog to win your copy!

In two weeks, we will draw randomly from all of our blog followers.  Watch for your name and contact us within 48 hours to receive your book!

Like us and tell us on our Facebook page that you're a follower of our blog, and receive two more entries to WIN.

♥,
Apple Box Boutique

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What's On at Apple Box Boutique? Here's the Latest!

People are Chalking Chalk Paint® Workshop
Well, that was fast!  Our 'People are Chalking' morning workshop has sold out and the evening session has just one seat left.  We are SO excited to be holding Chalk Paint® classes and looking forward to getting creative with everyone attending.

Visit our website Workshops page or click below to learn more about this workshop or to register:

Want to hear about upcoming workshops?
Visit our Workshop Notifications page to sign up and hear about upcoming workshops!  Your interest and feedback helps us determine which sessions to run next!

Colours of the Month
Who would have guessed that our January "New Year's" colours of the month would sell out so quickly!  But we are fully restocked and with everyone starting back into projects put on hold over the holidays, it's a great way to save money.

Christmas in January Sale
There's just one week left to make a clean getaway with fantastic sale prices on bath products, decor and ornaments! Save up to 50% until January 31st.

Reimagined Monday Draw

We would like to highlight more customer projects!  Send us your before/during/after pictures and tell us about your creative process and you'll be entered into our monthly Reimagined Monday draw.

Each month we will give away a different item like paint, brushes, books, supplies, gift certificates and more. You don't have to be featured to be eligible... the month you enter is the month you will be included in the draw. 

Send your name, phone number, pictures and story to: info@appleboxboutique.com and win!

♥,
Apple Box Boutique

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Two Days Left to Christmas Shop!

New to Apple Box Boutique: Gift Cards!

You asked for them and we love to make our customers happy!  Our Gift Cards allow you to load them up with any amount you'd like plus they have no expiry date or additional fees and are easy to redeem.

Just in time for Christmas -- make gift-giving easy this holiday season!

♥,
Apple Box Boutique
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What to Give Away in the Giveaway?

We are well on our way to 50,000 Pageviews, and when we get there we want to hold a giveaway.  We have so many great things as options that we are having trouble choosing.  SO... we decided to leave it up to you!

What would you like to see in our Giveaway basket?

• Home Decor
• Bath and Body Products
• Miss Mustard Seed Products
• Annie Sloan Books and Brushes

Comment below with your thoughts, and don't forget to sign up as a Follower of this blog to be eligible to win.  Then share it with your friends and we'll get to 50,000 Pageviews -- and our Giveaway -- that much quicker!

♥,

Apple Box Boutique

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The Apple Cart - Great New Shipping Rates!

In September we quickly created special online shopping options to help with customer demand when our Chalk Paint™ shipment was delayed due to Hurricane Isaac.  Now that we have all caught up, we are revising The Apple Cart.

What's new?

Miss Mustard Seed's Milk Paint is again available for pre-order. With the original 'rush' shipping rates being a bit higher than we were comfortable with, we closed the MMS section of our online store until we could do better for our customers.

The 'Pick up at Boutique' option has expired.  We added this as a choice so that when Chalk Paint™ by Annie Sloan arrived there wouldn't be a crush at the paint cabinet.  The pre-orders came pouring in and we feel it was the right thing to do under the circumstances.  Now that things are settling down, it is back to 'the normal rush' and paint is available on the shelves at Apple Box Boutique. 

We've been looking for really great shipping rates and we found them! 

Now when you visit The Apple Cart there is an Add To Cart button rather than a drop-down box with options.  That is because we researched and landed great rates so that we can get your paint to you as inexpensively as possible.

Watch for upcoming online specials starting in October!

And don't miss Late Night on the Ave this Thursday, October 4th... but more on that tomorrow, here at On The Apple Box.

♥,  
Apple Box Boutique

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Good Things Come To Those Who Wait... Chalk Paint™!

After tap-dancing around the fall-out from a hurricane including lost packages, confusion by Customs and sparring with the universe, we are happy to report that our shipment of Chalk Paint™ has finally arrived in Edmonton!

First things first:  We now know that everything that happened to delay our anxiously-awaited shipment was directly related to Hurricane Isaac, and want to thank everyone that put in time and energy to get it to us and to our customers.  

Like they say...

Good things come to those who wait!

Because if we had to wait for something, this is absolutely the thing we would continue to wait for.  There is nothing else out there like it, and thank goodness we've ironed out what happened!  It's hard to imagine a DIY life without this miracle paint.

With that, we would also like to express our excitement at officially becoming a Certified Stockist of the Chalk Paint™ brand by Annie Sloan!  It is new and fun, and we are looking forward to carrying a full line of Annie Sloan™ products over the coming months and supporting retailers in making it more readily available to customers in Alberta!

Image courtesy of Sea Rose Cottage

For those of you who took advantage of The Apple Cart to be first on the list for paint and wax, orders will be available for pick-up starting Tuesday.   We realize the wait was long -- we'd like to sincerely thank you for your patience and we are also waiving the 3-day pick-up condition.  We are happy to hold your order until you can get in to the Boutique to pick it up.

Likewise for our customers who have patiently waited for your shipped orders.  We so appreciate you hanging in there with us!  Your purchases will be shipped on Monday and Tuesday in the order they were received.

And what of the Boutique?  We will be stocked up with paint and waxes!  But stop in soon... we know it is going to go fast!

♥,  
Apple Box Boutique

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Get Creating with Annie Sloan Paint Books and Classes

At the boutique we do our best to share what we know about painting with Annie Sloan Chalk Paint, but it is also really helpful to have step-by-step instructions and detailed pictures... which is why we keep Annie Sloan books on hand.

Quick and Easy Paint Transformations: 50 Step-by-step Ways to Makeover Your Home for Next to Nothing

Author: Annie Sloan

With this book in one hand and a brush in the other, you can learn how to create different finishes and effects with paint to change everyday rooms and furnishings into something special, all for the price of a pot of paint. The first section of the book tells you everything you need to know before you start - how to prepare surfaces properly, choose the right paint for the right place, use the best tools and select a colour scheme that will work with the room in question. Then, the 50 different techniques are divided into nine sections: colour washing; distressing and aging; fabric effects; wood effects; stone effects; metallic effects; stencilling and printing; stripes, checks, and spots; and, varnishing and glazing. 

There are step-by-step photos showing how to achieve the finished look, backed up by inspirational photos showing the effect used on walls and doors, furniture and floors. Learn how to bring old second-hand furniture bang up to date, or how to give modern pieces a softly aged appearance, as well as ways to treat and transform floorboards, doors and plastered walls, all with the aid of a pot of paint and a brush. Whatever the style of your interiors, "Quick and Easy Paint Transformations" will show you the best way to makeover your home.

Creating the French Look

Author: Annie Sloan

The French interior evokes a way of life to aspire to, with its good food, unhurried pace and, above all, its past for which many people feel nostalgia. Developed over hundreds of years, the French look reflects all tastes, from the cultivated grandeur of the chateau to the simplicity of rural living, and can be adapted to every home, including the Mediterranean style villa and elegant town house. In this book, the look is divided into 'Chateau', 'Country', 'Provencial' and 'Parisian style', and applied to living room, kitchen and dining room, bedroom and bathroom, and to living space in the garden.

As well as describing each overall look, focusing on colours and fabrics, Annie Sloan emphasizes the details and accents required by each one, and, aided by 25 clearly explained step-by-step projects, shows how to achieve it. Among other things, she explains how to paint and distress furniture, and describes how to cover an armoire door with embroidered voile. Whatever interior you desire, this book will guide your choices from the grand statement of the painted armoire to the finishing touch of a little posy of lavender.

Annie Sloan Paint Classes

We will also be offering Annie Sloan paint classes if hands-on learning is more your style.  And when you register, you can save money by using our coupon code: APPLE.  Watch On The Apple Box  for news on upcoming class dates, or visit the ASCP Classes page on our website to request email notifications.

Whether you feel you need a little how-to info or a lot of applied assistance, we want to help you feel comfortable and prepared to take on your summer DIY painting projects and more!

♥,

Apple Box Boutique

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