A Gathering Place, Inside PAINTED TREE 308 South Bryant Avenue, Edmond, OK (2026)

05/22/2026

What a month (plus) it has been! As my Mr. AGP Man and I have worked to navigate our way through some challenging post Painted Tree Boutiques (PT) trauma, we have firmly planted our feet back on solid ground and are looking forward to better days.

I hope all of you who were affected by the closure last month of all PT Boutiques across the USA have found your way back to a place of peace and strength. If not today, then I sincerely hope that day will find you before too long. For those of you searching for another market, I hope you'll find one that will fulfill all your dreams and desires. For those of you who are still seeking a new home for your businesses, I pray you will find a place very soon.

I took some time over the past six weeks or so to reflect upon what is ultimately best for me and the future of our AGP business. I have A LOT of merchandise sitting everywhere (three boutiques worth) and although we've sold off a ton of display stuff and duplicate products, there is far too much to try and sell off one-item-at-a-time. That said, we've opted to lease a space in a very SMALL Oklahoma City marketplace, and when the time is right I will share with you where it is as we move forward.

There were many things to consider as we thought things out and planned for the coming days. Several of our local vendor malls (Oklahoma City and beyond) already carry our Bellflower Girl LLC Bellflower Girl Greeting Card Line and so my first thought was that I needed to honor those wholesale buyers and not crowd in on their spaces. Secondly, since I doubt I will ever be a part of a corporately run/large market again, my heart really wanted something small. Something that wouldn't take over our personal lives and run us into the ground. After four years we were tired of the drive to Texas from OKC, and honestly, the thought of moving back into something huge again left me feeling completely overwhelmed.

In the course of building our AGP business I've learned something incredibly profound. At least for ME it was profound. It is this:

More square footage, more stores, more WONDERFUL, no matter how beautiful it all may look, doesn't always equate to MORE overall profit.

Don't get me wrong...I LOVED my time at PT. I did. And except for the last 'truly awful year', I will remember my time with them very fondly. I will especially miss the loveliness of my Highland Village (TX) Boutique and all the precious customers I was blessed to interact with. I've made lifelong friends and I will miss them all very much.

To be sure, we are carrying on with the wholesale end of our business, our Bellflower Girl Card Line. Our Cards are now sold across the USA and we couldn't be more excited about where this journey has taken us. We sell our Cards both retail and wholesale on our website, and also wholesale only on FAIRE. You can find us here: https://BellflowerGirlLLC.Faire.com

I'll be back before long with an update on just what we are doing and where we are going. Thank you for all the kind notes and emails and for the beautiful messages (and cards!) of support from our friends. They have helped carry us through some challenging days.

Love to you all~ Rebecca & her Mr. AGP Man, Steven

04/30/2026

Dear Friends...

(EDITED... all these flowers have sold. Thank you, guys!)

Well...it's been a hot minute! (UGH!)

As many of you know (if you don't, please read a couple posts below), our A Gathering Place business was caught up in the Painted Tree Boutiques Bankruptcy that was announced 16 days ago (I suppose I'm still counting!). Along with thousands of other vendors, we had 10 days to remove ALL of our retail merchandise from our stores, dismantle pergolas, chandeliers, security cameras, track lighting and all display pieces, including furniture.

To tell you we were overwhelmed, upset, angry, irritated, etc., would be an understatement. My Mr. AGP Man and I have owned our A GATHERING PLACE business for years and years, dating back to our first retail space in 1987. We've watched it grow and change over the years and four years ago we joined Painted Tree and expanded at one point into five stores.

We could not have imagined how it would all play out and end up.

We've taken the past two weeks and two days to weigh out our options, gather our thoughts and then begin to put one foot in front of another in order to move forward. I personally wasn't sure what 'moving forward' would look like at first... Being forced to rent a storage shed (a big one) and then also have TONS of merchandised-filled-bins all over my house has caused me great anxiety. To be honest it took me a week to even begin to think straight.

But...such is life. I will NOT allow the reckless, pathetic, unprofessional and secretive behavior we were forced to watch from the sidelines take us down. They can all pound sand.

04/24/2026

Dear Friends...

Yep. Up late. Just sitting here trying my best to process everything that has transpired over the past week or so with Painted Tree Boutiques... Isn't it just INSANE????

How are you doin'? Do you have a game plan or are you just gettin' by? Were you able to get ALL your stuff out of the stores you were in by today's deadline? I've seen where some vendors just abandoned some of their merchandise...

I came across this little quote and I thought it was pretty fitting given all that we've been through of late. Honestly, since September I felt like I was being bullied by the man behind the curtain. Know what I mean? So this kind of sums up how I'm feeling tonight.

I'm not sure what I'm going to do just yet. I've had three amazing offers to join other vendor malls...and a couple that weren't so great! :) I'm taking my time to think, plan, ponder and then THINK THINK THINK some more. I won't make a final decision until I KNOW I am at peace with my choice.

Just want you to know I'm thinking of you all and wishing for you good things...only good things!

04/20/2026

Dear Friends...

If you haven't already heard the news (I'm sure many of you have), the boutique co-op I was a part of for several years claimed bankruptcy 7 last Tuesday. I've been a part of Painted Tree Boutiques (PT) for a long time and I along with hundreds of other small business owners, was blind sighted (of sorts!) by the news. To tell you I am overwhelmed would be an understatement.

All of the vendors across 62 Painted Tree Boutique stores across the USA have been displaced. Most vendors are scrambling to find another location in which to sell their wares. Millions of dollars have been invested (and so much lost) by my fellow vendors and friends and so you can image how devastating this news is to all of us. We were given 10 days to remove ALL our merchandise, build-outs, display pieces, furniture, etc. It's been truly a gut-punch and we are understandably tired, stressed and concerned.

I'm trying to keep things in perspective. This is NOT a full-on tragedy for me personally. I know firsthand what real loss looks like and this is not it. I can only speak for myself, but I know in my heart that even though this hurt us financially and even emotionally, we are still healthy and strong and eventually our business will land back on her feet and we find a place for the thousands of dollars worth of merchandise currently housed off-site. I'm reminded of an old song my late mother used to sing about God's grace...it says "He giveth more grace when the burdens grow greater..." and so I'm holding that belief close to my heart tonight. My faith and belief are still strong and this will NOT take us down. My most sincere thoughts and prayers are with all the other vendors who have been truly financially devastated by this action. Some of my friends were in ALL the PT stores... Ten days is not very long to try and pack up and clear everything out...

For those of you who have purchased from us online or locally, THANK YOU SO VERY MUCH! For our Bellflower Girl LLC card buyers they are still sold locally across Oklahoma in several locations. They are also sold throughout the USA and we couldn't be more excited about that. (Who knew!???) You can still purchase our cards on our website www.BellflowerGirl.com and if you are a wholesale buyer with a shoppe or boutique, you can find us on FAIRE here: https://BellflowerGirlLLC.Faire.com I would LOVE to have you visit us and consider offering our line to your customers.

I do not know where I will land, but I do have a couple of options in the works. I promise to keep you posted when I know more. I will not speak disparagingly about PT. For many years they were very good to me, it was only after it was sold last September that things took a noticeable (and unfortunate) turn. Broken hearts and busted-up pocketbooks are everywhere...

Thank you so very much to our friends and family and even customers who showed up to help me and my Mr. AGPMan pack up and load. We are understandably very, very tired and your notes, texts and emails have meant so much to us. We finished packing up and loading our Edmond store right at 6PM this evening and we are just so happy this part of this journey is behind us.

I will share more soon.

04/09/2026

I thought you'd all like to see some of latest cottage core greeting card designs over on our Bellflower Girl LLC page. We are always creating fresh and new offerings... Still love combining the new with the old. It all makes my heart sing!

03/05/2026

I thought I would share something with you today to make you SMILE.

I've been in this business for a long, LONG time. I first started when my children were very young. I was a stay-at-home mom looking for a way to earn a little extra money while still being home with them.

My very first attempt at selling anything was at a small church bazaar in Irving, Texas. I made pillows that showcased tiny cross-stitch designs.

As my kids grew, I branched out into all things country (yep… that country blue and muted pink were all the rage back then). My Mr. AGP Man built my pink fence backdrop, and I filled my little booth with a ton of handmade things—pillows, bears, dolls, sweatshirts (with collars!), and so much more.

I’m pretty sure I single-handedly kept Polyfil in business… at least in my humble opinion.

This photo was taken at Country Temptations in Oklahoma City (Warr Acres) back in 1989. I made the t-shirt dress I’m wearing, and big hair was all the rage. Hey… I loved big hair (still do!).

I remember that day well. I nearly sold OUT of everything in my booth and left with only a handful of items.

My business has grown and changed so much over the years. Back then, I could never have imagined where I would be today—or where those early dreams of owning a business of my own would take me.

Sweet memories.

Got dreams, too?

Go. For. Them.

Love to you,
Rebecca

03/05/2026

A quick note to my Highland Village Painted Tree friends and followers:

I will be moving out of my booth in Texas and will be completely out by March 31st.

Leaving was a difficult decision, but the best one for us. We truly loved our time in Texas and have been honored to be part of several Painted Tree stores over the years. For now, we are still a part of the Moore and Edmond Oklahoma stores.

My Mr. AGP Man and I are choosing to put ourselves first and do what is best for both of us, as well as for our A Gathering Place business. Our focus moving forward will be on our Bellflower Girl LLC greeting card line—marketing them across the USA through our website and continuing to grow the wholesale side of our business on FAIRE.

Each month we celebrate a new shop owner choosing to carry our cards, and we couldn't be more excited about what lies ahead.

The good news is that our cards will still be available at the Highland Village Painted Tree location! My precious friend Dionetta has picked up our line and will be selling them from her charming shop inside the store.

Thank you all for your support and kindness during our time here. It has meant so much to us.

Love to you all... Rebecca

01/22/2026

I haven't been around my AGP page in so long. I've been busy running my little shops AND our Bellflower Girl LLC Greeting Card Biz! That little ADVENTURE has certainly taken on a life of its own! I never really thought the whole thing would fly...but here it is...FLYING HIGH!

Happy New Year to you all! I hope this finds you well and pressing on in a good way! All of my longtime FB and Blogging friends are growing older, aren't we? Seems like yesterday I was creating Christmas stockings and home decor from fancy vintage ribbons and laces... Gosh I loved those days and STILL love creating things when I can carve out time... There is a time and season for everything, I suppose!

My sweet Miss K was still little back then and now she's all grown up and off living her one amazing life with a hubby and babes of her own. I miss her terribly...but just like our kids, our grandkids leave the nest as well!

08/20/2025

We'd like to welcome Jo's Shabby Cottage to our Bellflower Girl family of retailers. You can find Jo's Shabby Cottage shop inside Painted Tree in Colorado Springs where she is now carrying our Bellflower Girll greeting Cards Bellflower Girl LLC WELCOME JO!

If you are interested in carrying our Bellflower Girl card line, please visit us at www.bellflowergirl.com or for more inquiries via FAIRE please visit here: https://bellflowergirlllc.faire.com

https://www.facebook.com/share/1EPjZmUorS/

08/16/2025

It is REALLY hard for me to believe, but I started selling my wares over 20 years ago now on e....bay. WHAT? Doesn't seem possible. A few years later, 2009, I started blogging and that was a very busy and exciting time in my life. I met TONS of wonderful women and so many of you have stayed lifelong friends.

I remember during my very first selling days on e...bay I was TRYING my best to paint flowers! After going back and looking at a few of those early photographs (yes, I've saved a lot of them), well...I can only say I had a lot to learn. A.Lot.To.Learn.

That said...I don't think one can ever be an 'expert' at everything. I've loved growing and learning more about both sewing and painting over the years and today I just enjoy working on what I love.

I still have my retail booths in Texas and Oklahoma and I love them. I still own and operate Bellflower Girl LLC, the greeting card company I started about 11 years ago. I still paint pink roses whenever I can, but have expanded my watercolor archives to include a bit more.

Still...pink roses call to me. They always will. I just finished a collection of six different "pink roses & coffee" notecards that I hope to have on my website soon. I also joined the online wholesale market, FAIRE, where I offer our Bellflower Girl Notecards to the wholesale trade.

On August 14th, that would be yesterday, I passed the one year mark on my knee surgery. I will spare you the details and only say I thought I would surely DIE before I could sleep soundly or walk again without pain. But here I am...doing great now and I can boast about being, at least partially, bionic!

Here's a picture of our BFG's newest pink rose cards...so much fun to paint! Sure is a lot easier to scan my artwork than painting pink roses on everything on the planet! Ha!

Hope you are well. School has started up again and our neighborhood pool looked sadly empty when I drove by it this afternoon. I love the frolicking days of childhood. With every passing year new kids enjoy the pool-time fun...while others are called into early adulthood, never to visit it again. And so life goes...right?

Fall is already calling out my name. I love September and can't wait for her to get here.

Love to you~

Rebecca

A Gathering Place

05/22/2026

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