Celebrating Marie Antoinette - It’s Time To Start This Party!

Her youth, her beauty, her grace…this is my week to Celebrate Marie! And since every party needs music, as a treat I’ve added music to my blog this week from Sofia Coppola’s Marie Antoinette movie - my favorite Marie movie that’s just bursting with beautiful macaroon colors and sparkle. So turn up your volume and let’s get this party started!!!

Welcome to my celebration! Why am I celebrating? On newsstands today is Stampingtons newest magazine “Marie” – a gorgeous publication filled with the most scrumptious art, crafts, jewelry and more, all celebrating the Queen of France. I am beyond excited that my Marie Antoinette Charm Bracelet is included in this publication!

It’s always thrilling to be published, but this issue was extra special to me because it is dedicated to all things Marie. If you’ve followed this blog for any amount of time, you already know about my passion for all things Antoinette. A little over a year ago, I hardly knew anything about her life… just that she was Queen, she was guillotined and she said “let them eat cake”. After seeing creative artwork everywhere about her, I decided to read her biographies and learn about her life. Her life was more extraordinary then I could even have imagined….oh, and by the way…she never said that infamous line, let them eat cake. Historians now attribute this quote to another Queen over 100 years before Marie Antoinette’s time. After learning about her life and all she went through, I almost cringe every time I see or hear this line because it just perpetuates an untrue myth about her. And many experts will tell you that Marie Antoinette was the first victim of bad PR!

The more I learned about her life, the more I wanted to focus on the good and create a line of jewelry that would honor her life. She endured so much pain at the end of her life and yet when things got tough, she showed such strength and courage in the face of unimaginable sorrows. And I have to admire that.

In doing my research, I came across this fascinating document:

This is a copy of the French official revolutionary inventory of her jewelry, along with several pieces from the Princess de Lamballe. This inventory was done in August of 1795, a couple of years after Marie was executed. I am amazed that there was even anything left that hadn’t already been stolen or looted at that point in time to even inventory!

There’s no doubt about it, Marie loved her jewels and diamonds and pearls were known to be her favorites. This inventory is from her personal collection and is not to be confused with the inventory of the Royal Crown State Jewels, which were stolen from the Treasury during the revolution in 1792.

Since these were her personal pieces, I was inspired to create little soldered charms of my favorite Marie portraits over a copy of this historical document…. jewelry about her jewelry, so to speak. I selected my favorite portraits of her ranging in age from a young girl through being the Queen of France.

After awhile, I became curious about what these actual pieces of jewelry were. My French is limited and I was having a hard time using Google to translate each word. I posted a call for HELP on my blog and THIS dear blogger, who is a 3rd year French language major, graciously translated the document for me.

I am going to share this translated information with all of you during my weeklong celebration! The document lists a total of 113 pieces of jewelry, so I will break it down and share snippets each day during the celebration.

I hope you have enjoyed this little peek into history and seeing the descriptions of the actual pieces of jewelry she owned. And speaking of jewelry, I also wanted to create another piece of jewelry that would coordinate with the charm bracelet that’s in the Marie magazine. Here is my newest piece, the Versailles Charm Necklace…



….just a little something to wear as you stroll around your own chateau!!! And because I am celebrating Marie this week, I’ve put all my Marie Antoinette jewelry on SALE at 15% off! And to make the celebration even more FUN this week, I will be having 3, yes, count them 3, Secret Giveaways during the week!

Each giveaway is for a large Marie Antoinette Charm that you can wear as jewelry or hang someplace special as a small ornament. The secret part is that I am not announcing the DAYS the giveaways will be! To enter, you need to come visit each day and leave a comment, since you won’t know which day I’ll pop in and let the random number thing-a-mah-bob pick a winner from that day’s comments. I'll announce all the winners on the final day of my celebration.

I hope you’ll join in the fun and come back to visit each day through Tuesday, April 7th. And Tomorrow’s fun? We’re gonna get our sparkle on with the real jewels of the French Crown!

She’s Coming!

Just a gentle reminder to come visit tomorrow as I kick-off my weeklong celebration of Marie!

I’ve been working hard to prepare a fun event full of history, glamour and some giveaways too! Hope to see you here….

Recycled Treasures….

I just finished a custom order today for the sweetest customer. Jodi contacted me a little while ago about making 8 Broken China Necklaces from her grandmother’s china. She intends to give this special jewelry as surprise gifts to various family members.

I always enjoy working with my customers to create something beautiful for them from their broken treasures. Why toss that cracked or chipped plate, teacup or bowl into the trash when it can be turned into sparkling jewelry?

Jodi and I went back and forth via email confirming the details and when it was time to ship her items to me, we discovered that we live in neighboring cities….just across the bridge from one another! These necklaces really turned out beautiful in person…so colorful, just like a springtime garden. I hope Jodi and her gift recipients will enjoy this special and sentimental jewelry for many happy years to come. Her order is packed and ready to ship and since she lives just over the bridge, she should be sparkling in no time flat!

Mothers Day Gift Idea!

Although Mothers Day is a little over 7 weeks away, I am already busy with custom orders for this special day. I wanted to share with you a special order I just finished today…..

A Mom ordered these 3 Broken China Necklaces for herself and her 2 adult daughters, who are each mothers too. She asked me to create a matching set of Mother-Daughter jewelry using stock from my collection of vintage French Limoges china. She wanted all 3 necklaces cut from the same plate and she asked me if each necklace could feature a different part of the pattern.

She also requested different colors of Swarovski Crystals for each of the pendants. The idea was that the jewelry would represent how the mom and the daughters are each cut from the same mold, but yet, they are each different and unique. How lovely is that? I am sure these sentimental gifts will be treasured for years to come.

This is just one example of how I can customize my jewelry for you and there’s never an extra charge to do this. There’s still time to be added to my production schedule right now for this fast approaching holiday. If I can also help you create something special for your Mothers Day celebrations this year, just click HERE and let’s create something beautiful together!

A Message From Barkley…

My mom said I could post on her blog today because I’m 3 years old!!!

My people went all the way to Savannah to adopt me from HERE.

I was a birthday gift to my mom from my dad!

I do lots of chores to help out. I have to supervise A LOT!


I also like to supervise the trash can (you never know when something good might go in there)…

I also like to supervise my people. I can’t let them out of my sight for a minute! When they try to leave the house, I have to jump up and grab hold of their pants leg and hold them back… I don’t understand why I can’t go EVERYWHERE with them. I only want them to stay home and play with me all day long…what’s so wrong with that?

Even though my mom says I am spoiled rotten (what does that mean?), I know I’ll get even more love & hugs tonight. I’m sure I’ll get a new toy plus lots of extra yummy treats!!! I wish you could be here to help celebrate, but thank you for letting me share my special day with all of my moms’ blog friends.

Sincerely,
Chantilly’s Sir Barks A Lot (that’s my fancy-pants name)
aka Barkley

Finding Your Creative Bliss….

I often receive emails asking me how I do what I do, how I got started, how do I find my inspiration, etc…. Although as an artist, you want to protect your work…it’s your baby after all, it’s also fun to share inspiration and to help others along their path.

These are two of my favorite books and if you’re a creative sort, you might enjoy them too. The first is “The Business of Bliss – How To Profit From Doing What You Love”. I’ve had this great little book in my library since 1999. It’s been around awhile, but it’s still relevant for today.

The next book “Where Women Create” has become my bible. This is the book that inspired the new magazine that is being published by Stampington. I’ve had this book for a couple of years and still adore it.

Here is a little secret I’ll share…. They contacted me a little while ago and my studio was under consideration for this publication! Although my space ended up not being quite what the editor was looking for, I feel so honored that I was even contacted. Being in "Where Women Create" has been a HUGE dream of mine since 2007. I knew my studio was not ready for this publication… and I vow here and now, that my next studio will be worthy! The reason our house will be on the market soon is that it does not fit our needs anymore. My dream is a full-fledged studio, in an old carriage house with overhead beams, whitewashed walls, crystals chandeliers, old farmhouse plank tables and plenty of room to create and invite others in for fun workshops. It may take a year or so to get here…but I promise, I will!

I also want to share a couple of websites geared to women entrepreneurs. Bliss Guild is a creative community for women and is a great source of information on getting started, planning and growing a business. I started visiting their website years ago and often stop in to visit their informative forum. Registration is free and is open to women everywhere! And they are helpful too! I was recently contacted by Louise who sent me a congrat’s letter for being published in Artful Blogging. As a member, she wanted to feature a bit about me on the homepage of their website. Click HERE to visit this inspiring and informative community.

And when you are ready to kick things up a notch…go HERE to visit the creative website of Ladies Who Launch. There’s lots of information here and you’re sure to find something that will be helpful. Inspiration can come from many sources so I hope I’ve provided a bit of inspiration for you today.

“What distinguishes a great artist from a weak one is first their sensibility and tenderness; second, their imagination and third, their industry” – John Ruskin

Home Staging

Here’s a little secret….we are just about to put our historic 1920’s bungalow on the market. Although it’s currently the worst real estate market in decades, we are going to cross our fingers and see what happens. We are fortunate that we have the luxury of not HAVING to move. It’s not like we have a job transfer or relocation to consider. We are both just ready for a change and a new challenge. Historic homes in our area seem to have a niche following and seem to always be in demand, so we’ll see how it goes….

This weekend I started work on the master bath. Since we have two full baths, Mr. Cupid has his own private space and I have mine.

It’s gotten a little girly in there over the years, so I pulled everything out and we painted the walls a gorgeous shade called “Fragile Beauty” by Sherwin Williams. Gone are the roses and heavy florals, gone are the antique china platters and plates that once adorned the walls, gone are the prissy aspects that sang “I’m a girl”. So now I am trying to add things back in, things that are more “neutral” in personality….that would appeal to a broader range of buyers. I am trying to create a bathroom that someone would want to come in with a good book and soak for awhile. Or feel like they have plenty of space to get ready in the morning.

So here are the bit’s I’ve added so far…. A thick white luxury feel shower curtain, like what you’d see at a 4-star hotel. I found this at Target! I also found the beautiful crystal shower hooks…. aren’t they pretty? Their classic design adds a nice touch of sparkle, without being too “girly”. They also mimic the original glass knobs on all our interior doors. I got those at Target too! They are from the Rachel Ashwell, Shabby Chic line.

This is a favorite beaded lamp that my parents gave me as a birthday present years ago. I think it adds an elegant touch and it shimmers so pretty at night!




I LOVE the detail and color of these towels. These are my “company’s coming” towels that my sister-in-law gave me one year for Christmas. I think they make the perfect “fancy” towels for staging.

This is an edge of a gorgeous antique mirror that hangs over my sink. Rather than use the standard bathroom mirror that came with the house, Mr. Cupid had an antique picture frame set with a mirror for me. This was a surprise birthday gift, but I think I will have to remove this from the bathroom… since it’s mounted to the wall as the bathroom mirror, I don’t want to confuse buyers and let them think this mirror is staying with the house! No way!

Then I’ve tried to bring back in the neutral accent pieces…. but only a few.

For months now, we’ve been pouring through magazines, watching home staging decorating shows on HGTV and visiting websites and blog’s. For the last couple of months, we’ve been following the advice of experts….repaint walls in a more neutral color, spruce up landscaping, get rid of excess furniture and accumulated “stuff” and de-personalize the house as much as possible.

I found this website with really good advice for staging your home. Click HERE and then click the video to watch.

If anyone out there has gone through home staging to sell a house or if you have any advice to offer, please leave me your words of wisdom!!!

Homes In Savannah's Historic District

The historic district in Savannah is only about 2.5 miles in size, so it’s really easy to walk around.

We really enjoyed looking at the details on these beautiful homes.

There is a wonderful mix of charming historic homes, with most being between 100-200 years old!

You’ll notice classic architectural styles and ornamentations.

You’ll see elegant town homes, spacious mansions and charming carriage houses, all mixed together. And resturants and shops are all within easy walking distance.

Almost all the homes seem to have hidden gardens, sometimes between picket fences, brick walls or beautiful iron gates.

If you want to live in the historic district, you'll need to have deep pockets!

You may see a few half-million dollar “fixer-uppers” but not very many.

Like most neighborhoods in today’s economy, we noticed an awful lot of homes with for-sale signs out front.

So if you have deep pockets, you might be able to pick up a deal.

Just for fun, click HERE for a good link to see some beautiful real estate for sale in the Historic District. If you love to “window shop” for homes, you’ll enjoy being able to take a peek inside some of these very special homes.

I hope you have enjoyed visiting Savannah with me this week. Mr. Cupid and I thoroughly enjoyed spending our romantic anniversary weekend in this charming town. If you ever have an opportunity to visit Savannah, I am sure you will be charmed too!

The Squares of Savannah…

On our last full day in Savannah, we enjoyed walking around the beautiful historic district.

Savannah is known as America’s first planned city. Since Mr. Cupid is a City Planner by profession, whenever we travel, we always have an interest in the local architecture and how the city was put together.

In Savannah, the city was planned in an organized grid pattern that allowed for wide-open streets mixed with shady public squares. The squares served as parks and town meeting places for the residents.

In the 1730’s there were 24 original squares and today, there are still 21 squares in existence! That’s a lot of history these beautiful squares have witnessed!

Some squares feature monuments and others have fountains, but each and every square has its own unique identity and no two squares are the same.

The city grew up around its squares and many of the original homes and row houses still line the streets of downtown.

Did you know that Savannah holds one of the nations largest St. Patrick’s Day parades? The city celebrates by dyeing the water green in all the ornamental water fountains that are in the squares! This weeklong celebration was just beginning as our trip came to an end, so we were able to see the famous green water!

And much like years gone by, these squares are still enjoyed by residents. As we spent the day walking, we noticed many families enjoying picnics, people walking their dogs or playing catch, or simply basking in the afternoon sun while relaxing on a blanket with a good book.

Savannahs Historic District was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1966 and is one of the largest historic landmarks in the country.

Just look at these beautiful moss covered trees... and they are everywhere in Savannah! When you walk through these lovely squares, it’s easy to imagine that you have slipped back in time. Especially when you see horse-drawn carriages passing by with a few lucky tourists seated inside, it only adds to the atmosphere of charm and grace.

It’s such a beautiful and special place, with a unique character all its own.

If you ever have the opportunity to visit Savannah, a walk through the squares is a must!

Please come visit tomorrow and I’ll share some photos of the beautiful homes and architectural details that surround these beautiful squares!

The Paris Market & Brocante - Part 2!!

At the Paris Market, you can also shop downstairs in the basement! The original brick walls are white washed and the floors are original brick too. As you descend the stairs, this is what you first see…

Old salvaged windows, sparkling mirrors, antique chandeliers, French furnishings and housewares. You just know you are walking into a very special space. Everything on this level sparkles!

Century old antiques are mixed in with new items that look old…..

When I saw these piles of old books, with their antique paper covers, my heart started to beat faster! Paula told me that most of these books date from the late 1800’s to early 1900’s. Most of them are French too!!!

As much as I wanted to sit down at the table and go through each and every book on the shelf, I was distracted by all the sparkling glassware…




Who can resist such treasures?

Paula’s design studio is also located in the basement. You can run your fingers over the most beautiful fabric samples and sit on lovely furniture that is so very chic!

You’ll also find treasures for your garden or patio! I loved the vintage garden chairs with their original green chippy paint. You can also find an assortment of new garden and decorating books to help you achieve that ooh la la French country garden look!




I loved both the wire and vintage wicker baskets! These would be perfect on a kitchen wall or even a garden fence!






I just loved the look of the old white painted walls next to antique crystal chandeliers.





And who among us could not use a few extra glass jars around the house to hold our favorite treasures??





When I finally stopped drooling over everything, I selected a few treasure to take home with me. I’ve been wanting one of these fun initials for a while now. I love the pearls wired onto the antique looking metal frame. This little beauty will find a new home in my studio!




This was my FAVORITE find of the day! It’s a very old French portfolio with its original ribbon ties. It’s dated on the cover, circa 1883. When I saw this on the shelf, I immediately grabbed it thinking it would be a stylish place for me to keep important papers on my desk. I hardly read the cover…just noticed the word “l’hotel", and that there were a few old architectural pictures inside.

Now, stay with me on this… here is where it gets interesting. When Mr. Cupid and I returned to our hotel room, we were relaxing on the balcony and I was reading (yet another) Marie Antoinette biography. All of sudden, I was reading a passage in my book that is talking about “L’Hotel De Ville De Paris” – it was like a lighting bolt hit me…. that was the title of the French portfolio I had just purchased!!! I ran inside our room, unwrapped my treasure and sure enough, it’s the same place!! Then my eyes noticed the stamp mark on the cover….. could it be….. the entwined Marie Antoinette monogram???

I did not notice this in the store. I am confused and don’t understand what this means. Does anyone have a clue? Why would her monogram be on this portfolio???

As soon as we returned home, I started researching on the internet. The L’Hotel De Ville De Paris, is not a “hotel” at all but has always been what is essentially “City Hall”. It was built long before Marie’s time and it played an important part in the French revolution. The square that front's this building turns out to be the square where Marie was executed. Oooh dear! This connection is a bit upsetting!

In 1871 a fire gutted the building leaving only the stone shell. Rebuilt later in the 1870’s, the architects who were hired to do the reconstruction, are the same architects whose names appear on my portfolio!!! This is their work! And the architectual drawings inside I mentioned? They are original etchings created as a record of the building details! I am awed by this discovery. The etching are really detailed up close and I think I will end up framing these historical documents.

And my last treasure for the day was this very old book. It’s French too and I just love the old pen & ink numbers that mark it’s former place in a library from long ago…

This sweet book translates to “Happiness – It is the duty of love – Memories and Confidences Collected for Young Christian Girls”

…and it is filled with precious graphics, like this little French girl with her favorite doll.

I don’t know just yet how I will use my new treasures, but you can be sure that I will think of my special trip to Savannah, my discovery of the Paris Market & Brocante and the surprising connections of my discoveries with Marie Antoinette!

This wraps up our shopping tour. I hope you enjoyed this little shopping adventure! Please come visit tomorrow and we will take a walk through the beautiful garden squares of Savannah!

The Paris Market & Brocante - Part One!

Move over Savannah, there is a new Paula in town! In our past 3 visits to this beautiful southern town, it was all about THIS Paula. But on our trip to Savannah this past weekend, I discovered a new Paula…and this one is way more friendly for my waistline!

Meet Paula Danyluk, the owner of the fabulous Paris Market & Brocante, a true heart-stopper of a treasure filled shop, located in the heart of the historic district.

Paula and her husband travel worldwide to stock their shop with treasures from Paris, Egypt, India, Italy, Belgium and other distant locations.

You’ll find gorgeous Parisian textiles in the design shop, religious icons, antique chandeliers, antique jewelry, scented French soaps and cosmetics, housewares and salvaged European architectural treasures.

You’ll also want to visit the beautiful antique bar where you can order gourmet coffees, beverages, yummy cupcakes and other tasty treats!

I was fortunate enough to meet this darling shop owner, while crouched in a basement corner digging through century-old books no-less! She had graciously stopped to ask if I needed any assistance and I recognized her from her wonderful blog. I guess I had a crazed and frenzied look on my face…you know, that one you get when you stumble upon something extraordinary and you can’t believe what you are looking at! Purse, sunglasses, camera, everything I was holding hit the floor so I could devote both hands to the dig!




But more about my wonderful finds tomorrow….. Today I want to take you on a tour of the first story of this charming building (it used to be an old grocery market back in the day).

Whenever I visit a special shop, I like to check with the staff first to make sure it’s ok to take pictures to share on my blog. You would not believe how often I can get a strange look or a very hesitant answer. Many owners are reluctant to allow this.

But not at the Paris Market! The staff exudes southern hospitality and was more than happy to let me snap away. So snap away I did and now I can share this adventure with you! I took so many photos of this lovely shop that I’ll have to split my post into two days!!!

Today, I am sharing photos from the main floor and all the wonderful sights that greet you as you enter the front doors.

Paula is one of those rare, talented and inspirational gals you come across once in a blue moon. As a young girl, she collected pretty pictures from magazines and dreamed of going to art school. As the first in her family to attend college, her father urged her towards more practical studies and she found an interest in speech pathology.

After earning her masters and 11 years of practice in New Orleans, she fell in love with a physical therapist who went on to become a medical resident in Baltimore.

Paula then became a voice coach for singers, teachers and preachers. While she was reading the bestseller “Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil”, she was taken with the descriptions of Savannah and thought it sounded like a funky place, a lot like her beloved New Orleans.

They drove to Savannah for a look-see and her husband ended up paying a visit to Memorial Hospital. Two days later, he was offered a position as an Emergency Room Physician, where he works today.

Paula took a break and studied Architecture and Interior Design at the world famous Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD).



She switched gears once again and rented a booth in an antiques mall where she started selling her treasures. Soon, trips to Europe followed and her collection evolved from a flea market booth into the fabulous Paris Market retail shop that it is today.




To me, Paula is that classic example that if you follow that little voice inside you, it can take you to magical places and guide you to your destiny. Although Paula took a few side trips along her journey, she ended up right where she is supposed to be.

Anyone who visits this special shop will know that it has been put together with true love, passion and a deep devotion. If you ever plan a visit to Savannah, please be sure to visit Paula and this lovely shop.

If you can’t visit in person, please visit her website HERE. She also has a wonderful blog where she shares her travel and shopping adventures, and you can go along with her just by clicking HERE!

I hope you enjoyed Part 1 of my visit to the Paris Market. Come back tomorrow and we will take a trip downstairs to the brick-walled basement for more treasures!


The Paris Market & Brocante
36 West Broughton Street
Savannah, GA 31410
(912) 232-1500

Our Romantic Getaway To Savannah!

Have you ever been to Savannah? Mr. Cupid and I just returned from a long weekend getaway celebrating our 12th wedding anniversary. This was our 4th trip to Savannah and we always have such a wonderful time visiting this beautiful city.

This trip, we stayed at the Marshall House, a historic inn that was built in 1851 as the first hotel in Savannah. We always like to stay in the heart of the historic district. This way, we park the car once and never have to move it again until it’s time to go home.

You can walk to everything within the historic district! Great shops, wonderful restaurants, museums and home tours, the River Walk and more.

The Marshall House is full of history. Over its lifespan, it’s been used as a hospital several times. Once back during the Civil War, it was used as a hospital for Union Solders and another time when the city experienced a yellow fever outbreak.



All this history contributes to its reputation as the most haunted hotel in Savannah!!!

It seems that when renovation work was done back in the 90’s, there were many bones and skeletons discovered under the first floors of the hotel, where the old operating rooms used to be. Apparently they had to do lots of amputations and many solders also lost their lives.

I did not know these facts before we booked our room, but I am happy to report that no scary incidents occurred during our visit…..unless you count my horrifying image in the bathroom mirror each morning! Savannah can be humid, just like our Florida weather, and humidity and my curly hair are just not compatible for good hair days.

We stayed on the 2nd floor where we could access the original balcony from our room. After touring the city all day, it was fun to relax on the porch for our very own private happy hour, before heading back out for that evenings entertainment.

I brought my new camera with me and used this opportunity to learn more about its features. I snapped lots of photos to share with you, so please come back tomorrow and I’ll take you on a shopping tour of one of the most wonderful shops I’ve discovered in years…..The Paris Market & Brocante!

Celebrating Marie Antoinette!!!

Only a few more weeks until Stampington’s “Marie” magazine is released to the world!!! Marie is due on newsstands April 1. But you can pre-order a copy for your very own self, HERE.

Why am I excited? Back last December, the editors of Stampington notified me, that my Marie Antoinette jewelry would be published in this special edition! As a devoted fan of all things Marie Antoinette, I have just been over the moon with happiness that my homage to Marie will be celebrated between the pages of this wonderful publication.

So I've decided to have a P-A-R-T-Y!!!

In celebrating the magazine release, I've decided to theme my party “Celebrating Marie”. The party will last for 1 week (April 1 - 7) with a different Marie post each day. I’ll also have several give-aways during the week, lots of fun history and facts about Marie’s life and lots of sparkling glamour too!

So mark your calendars dear friends! You are invited to come and celebrate your inner-Queen as we also celebrate the beautiful Queen of France, Marie Antoinette!

Time To Teach?

I had an opportunity come my way today about teaching a class in making Soldered Jewelry Charms. I have to admit that it sounds like an awful lot of fun!

I’ve been thinking about teaching or writing an instruction booklet for a while now. I have actually already started working on the book. I receive so many emails asking for tips and information on how I create my jewelry. I understand how frustrating it can be to learn a new skill or craft. I am self-taught and I struggled for a long time to get the needed techniques down to a science to create my broken china & soldered charm jewelry. When I was trying to learn, there were no classes or even books around to show the way.

So I thought I would just toss the question out into blog-space and see what comes back. Is there anyone out there interested in learning how to make soldered jewelry? The class will be taught in St. Petersburg, Florida….anyone live nearby who might want to attend such an event?

Thank you dear blog friends in advance for your opinions or comments. It is much appreciated.