I just made my wish through Intuit to hopefully buy a van for our business. At the moment, we are having to rent vehicles or call on friends if we want to bring furniture into our shop. This often means missed opportunities and/or a large expense for the company.

It is our hope that we can get some votes and perhaps get the $5000 prize.

We are kind of late to the table, so our chances are pretty slim, but we’re still going to give it a try.

If you would like to help our cause you can post a vote for our wish here. Your support is very much appreciated.

Like I said, we’ve just signed up and there are only 6 more days to wish, so if you’re going to vote, vote now!

We don’t want to miss the boat!

I just got a new shipment in from Bangkok today! 

53 new tops and summer dresses for your shopping glory at 407 Roncesvalles Avenue, Toronto, Ontario.

I will be putting the bulk of the new stock out tomorrow, throughout the day, so come on down and say hello!

I’ve got great secretary tops and dresses, sun dresses, fully lined dresses (for those colder nights) and much, much more.

You don’t want to miss it!

At the moment, I’m in the shop two to three days a week, which gives Heather the rest of the week to move stuff around, rotate stock, add stock, sell stuff, etc, etc, etc.

Well this time, I was away for a whole 2 weeks while I was away in Regina. When I came back, I could hardly recognize the place!

It looks fantastic!

We have a new section for prom/grad gowns/dresses, new bags/purses, sun dresses galour, new books, tons of new records and much, much more.

The store did great while I was away. Heather did a sweet job of keeping things under control and, in spite of not so awesome weather, sales were good.

This first picture is taken from behind the counter. You can see our jewelry rack, prom/grad dress section and in the far back ground, you can get a taste of our amazing windows.

This picture is taken from our front door.

The lighting isn’t the best, but you get the idea.

You can see all of our dressers that contain aprons, scarves, tights, belts, caps and etc.

Our round rack at the front, which holds all of our spring and winter coats, and the beginning of the dress rack on the right.

Hanging from the ceiling, we have stained glass panels, lighting fixtures and game boards.

I wish there were better pictures of the art that we have hanging around the store. The majority of it has been done but Heather, who is an amazing talent.

We have to deal with florescent lighting, but with all of the extra lights that we have around the store, I think that it isn’t as obvious.

We have been in our present location since the beginning of February and, until recently, kept the old ‘Holy Land Food & Gifts’ awning.

Many people in the neighbourhood thought that we should keep it for nostalgic reasons. The ‘Holy Land’ had been in the community for 25 years, before the owner retired.

While the weather was freezing, we just put our signage on the front windows in a chalk marker.

Now that things are warming up, we’ve finally had the chance to make a move on the awning. This picture is after one coat of paint. Two more to go.

Once the red has settled, the sign will read ‘Maggie’s Farm Vintage and Secondhand Curio Emporium’, with a rocking cowgirl pictured above the shop title.

The Tickety Boutique will have signage in vinyl in the window.

Although I have no immediate plans to move, Heather and I have moved into this location together as a way to help each other out.

Neither of us could have afforded the space on our own and so we are using each other and our similar goals as a way to get ahead.

Eventually Heather will be able to afford 407 Roncesvalles on her own and eventually I will be able to afford to move out onto my own.

I plan to stay in the neighbourhood. I love it here.

I would probably go for smaller square footage and therefore, hopefully, a lower rent. Not to mention, I would be horrified by the pressure of filling such a big spot with inventory, week after week, month after month.

It’s something that I hope to accomplish by sometime next year.

I don’t know what I will do without Heather. I love working with her so much and everything that she brings to the shop.

She knows everyone is in the ‘hood and seems to meet new and exciting people everyday. I don’t know if I have that kind of people power.

That isn’t the type of thing you learn, it’s something you’re born with.. or maybe it’s something that you eventually become accustomed to?

I will certainly miss her when our time together is over and I, personally, hope that I can open somewhere reasonably close so that we can continue the vintage uprising of Roncesvalles Village.

Until then, I am continuing work on my own line (to debut this spring) and am expecting a slew of new inventory any day now.

If you’re shopping for spring and live in the Toronto area, Maggie’s Farm/Tickety Boutique should definitely be a stop on your list.

Maggie’s Farm is a state of mind and the Tickety Boutique is where everything is tickety-boo!

We have been opened since in our location at 407 Roncesvalles since February 2013. Heather had been opened for a year prior, just up the street past Howard Park.

Now together, we make up one of the best locations for vintage on Roncesvalles Avenue.

Heather is down at the shop today, throughout the week waiting for you to come down and say hello!

If she isn’t out on the floor with the customers, she is in the back refinishing furniture, sewing on buttons, painting and steaming clothes.

I will be at the store tomorrow and throughout the weekend, I will be there, ready to serve you.

I am not the furniture refinisher or painter that Heather is, but I have sewn on my fair share of buttons and you can always hear the steaming machine running while I’m in the shop.

I am the blogger, tweeter and facebooker of the bunch and when I’m not on the floor or using my steamer, it’s a pretty safe bet that I’m on my computer.

Lately in the shop, we have been getting in lots of cowboy boots, hats, books, dresses, cowboy shirts, skirts, curio and everything in between.

You can come in on a Tuesday and return on a Wednesday to a whole new environment.

We strive to rotate our inventory on a daily basis to give the shopper a new experience on a daily basis.

Since we offer all of our product right beside each other, we hope to offer a satisfying shopping experience for Mothers and daughters alike. Where else can you get that!?

We even have a special ‘boyfriend’ chair, for those men who do not wish to participate.. even though they’re missing out on our great men’s section!

So, we hope that you’ll come by and say hello, if you are in the Toronto area, or find Maggie’s Farm on Shopcaster here.

If you are familiar with the Tickety Boutique, then you will know that we got our start online. For the time being, all online sales have been suspended while we reconstruct our website and wait for a whole new slew of inventory to come in.

The Tickety Boutique is hoping to resume online operations in early to mid May with all new stock and a whole new look. We look forward to seeing you there for the launch!

Until then, please come down to 407 Roncesvalles or visit us on Shopcaster!

We are always here to serve you and we love it when people come in and mention the blog, so please don’t hesitate to say hello!