Crazy Town!

If you wonder what your donations support, just look at today's Facebook post by Project Elf.

"Today was crazy town at the closets, we had a full house! Everyone's kids needed summer clothes! It is amazing how fast it goes out the door; in one hour about 300 lbs of clothes, 12 bottles of mouthwash, a case of paper goods, six deodorants, a new stroller, 8 baby blankets, a box of toys, 9 coloring books, 7 hello kitty watercolor print sets, 5 full size shampoo bottles, 20 toothbrushes, and 7 pair of shoes left the closets! Thank you to everyone who helps us sort, purchase, and gift to these families in need!"

Look at the variety of items that were needed and put to good use.  We're not just looking for your gently used clothing, but anything else that someone without a home might need.  Kids in shelters need "entertainment" (toys, coloring books, crayons, craft supplies, books, jump ropes, etc.) too.  

Take a look through the free boxes at garage sales too, last year I found a box of about 12 newer, beautiful bras for free, just because the lady didn't feel like pricing them!

If you're local to me, and want to donate before Gypsy Soiree III, give me a call or text and I can always take donations in (thinking summer clothes now especially, and sandals, etc.).

Time to plan!

Well, it's time to start planning for 

Gypsy Soiree III!

Mark you calendars for Saturday, September 12, 2015.  I think we'll start a little earlier in the day so you can enjoy the party details a little bit longer before it gets dark (if you choose to).  

Although...once it is dark, the magic begins and that's my favorite time!

Invite your friends and add them to the Facebook list.  Last year we had about 70 women here, double what we had for Gypsy Soiree I.

We're just beginning the planning stage, so if you have suggestions, leave a comment or two or email me.

Survey

Please help us plan next year's event by completing this short survey!

Gypsy Soiree II Survey

Photos!

Special thanks goes to Carrie Bayless of C.Bayless Photography of Zimmerman, MN for the professional photos of Gypsy Soiree II.

I posted photos on a separate page, click here or on the Photos link above to see them.

Mark your calendars, next year's Gypsy Soiree III will be held Saturday, September 12, 2015.

Getting there - Wrap-up 2014

Today I started sorting through the bags and organizing things just a bit.  I have not touched the clothing yet, so this is just the "other" stuff that was donated (and I may still find some other stuff in the clothing bags).

I'm amazed, truly amazed.  You guys are AWESOME!  I cannot imagine being a person who needs this stuff so much, and to just "magically" have it appear for me.  Your generosity overwhelms me.

Besides all the stuff on the list, there are also TWO "Birthday Party In a Bag" gift bags, complete with a cake mix, frosting, candles, paper plates, snacks, a puzzle AND a birthday gift...one for a boy and one for a girl.

Click here to see a list of what I've logged so far.
Gypsy Donations!

What an amazing night!

Does it get any cuter than this??

Or more fun than this??

We had such a great turnout, I tried counting a few times, and I'm pretty sure there were at least 70 women here throughout the night.  

We ate great food, drank a little wine, danced a bit, were entertained by fabulous fire dancing, and enjoyed the camaraderie of women.

Oh, and of course, gathered donations for the homeless shelter!

My plan, over the next few days, is to sort through and organize the donations and make a list of what all is there, just for curiosity sake.  The area under the table was packed with bags and bags of things too!  

You Gypsies ROCK!  

It takes about 3 days of work to set up the party, and at that point I'm thinking "do I really want to do this again next year?"  Then the party hits, and yeah, I want to! This year I had some amazing help tearing down too, which helped tremendously.  Instead of it taking me a week to pick at taking down, it was all pretty much done and packed away in one day.  Such a huge, huge, huge help.

There are a lot of photos on Facebook already, and I'm expecting more over the next few days.  If you search for the hashtag #gypsysoiree2 you should be able to see everyone's photos.  I'll add more photos here too, for those not on Facebook.

Thanks to everyone who participated, including our professional photographer Carrie Bayless, the performers from Insphyre Performance, Connie Crocker for teaching us all how to belly dance, our massage therapists Carol Etzel and Sara Peterson and Reiki master Karlene Plante.  It just wouldn't be the same without you guys helping!

And how cool is it to have this fabulous new Vardo just for my Gypsy Soirees! I don't know of anyone else who gets to have their own Vardo in the back yard (aka "Grandma's Playhouse")!

Every Good Deed Brightens a Dark World!

Every good deed....every single one helps to brighten this world that at some times can be overwhelmingly dark.  

Last year we had so many items donated that we overflowed a 10-foot conference table stacked with goods, and this year I'm so excited to see what you'll all do!  

If  you're still wondering what to bring for your donation to the homeless shelter, click on this link Donation List for ideas.  

And yes, you can also clean out your closets and bring clean, gently used clothing, in all sizes (larger women's are greatly appreciated), but please make sure you're bringing your BEST...no one wants to wear ripped or stained clothing).  If you wouldn't wear it, don't bring it!

Homelessness can happen to any of us, at any time.  Take a minute and watch this video.