It's Friday...

... do you know where your bottle is?

Okay, seriously, I don't know why this is sideways.

Crazy times at Chez Rat.  Tracy and I have been waiting until the last minute to prepare bottle tags, centerpieces and our raffle items for the DOVES "Iron in the Desert II fundraiser."  (For some reason, we were put in charge of the wine - not as easy as it sounds.)

Our vision was "organic" and "rustic" and in keeping with the evening's theme of iron.  Hence, pretty much everything got wrapped in bailing wire. 

I'd like to say we were "on it" straight out of the gate, but, frankly, that would be a lie.  After the initial two-case donation from Cheuvront Restaurant & Wine Bar and the funds for an additional case from my parents (Thanks, Mom and Dad!), we stalled and then hung on for the BevMo! 5-Cent Sale.  Wine: Check!

Then it got complicated.  We wanted tags on the bottles we were going to sell, some sort of centerpiece advertising the fact that if you didn't want to cough up $5 a glass for wine you could go for the "deal" and buy and entire bottle (with the cute tags), and then we each created an item for the raffle.  Tracy did one of her fabulous handbag-from-an-old-cigar-box with a semi-raunchy cowgirl on the side, and I made cowgirl-inspired note cards (boots, of course).  The centerpiece took not less than five trips around the block to Tracy's for editing and artistic critique.

It took a lot of champagne to complete all our little projects, PLUS beer on St. Patty's Day, when Mary J. generously gave of her time and creativity to wrap bailing wire around river rocks.  (It looks cooler than it sounds.)  I think that all-in-all, our efforts paid off. (Click pictures to Bigify.)

Stationary Set: 8 Note Cards - 2 of Each Design.  Bailing Wire Embellishment on Box. (It's supposed to be a pony frolicking in the sunshine, but it looks more like a poodle, I know.  I'm blaming that on Lola, that's all I'm sayin'.)

Centerpiece - Front Side

Centerpiece - Backside

Oh, Yeah!  The Rocks Are Sweet!  You Know You Want One!

My Dining Room - Rocks, Wine, Bailing Wire... What Could Be Better?

Tracy's Super Sweet Cigar Box Hand Bag. ("Ooooh, I fell off the mean pony!")

So, the Big Event is tomorrow.  Whew!  Yeah, I was folding the cards for the centerpieces this morning before Dona arrived to pick everything up.  BUT, now it's done and I can start fretting over my next project (right after Happy Hour!).



Addendum:  Sadly, Happy Hour became a Little-Less-Happy Hour when Tracy and I discovered an inconsistency and an omission in the table-top menu when compared to the brochure.  Up early this morning to try and correct same and reprint fifty copies - then discovered another correction needed to be made this afternoon.  That Five-Dollar-Beer is gonna taste REALLY GOOD!