Round Top - It Takes a Village
Round Top was where we realized our sister midlife crisis company was going to work!
We first popped up in the yard of @townsendroundtop 4 ½ years ago and we pre-sold to customers who didn’t even get to try on our boots! We didn’t even know how to work a POS or really do a sale. Then we moved over to @roundtopmakersmarket @bluehillsatroundtop . Then we popped up with the wise and wonderful best friends forever @arloom @cvalenciadesign and @gathergoods Now we have our own space right next door to our More is More besties and our beloved @thecottonshed family.
We are grateful from the bottom of our hearts to our Round Top framily! And grateful to our customers who agree with our idea that the world needs cuter boots.
We learned a lot from round top: you can’t say yes to everything, you can’t be everyone’s cup of tea, most people are really, really nice.. If they aren’t you gotta look at them through eyes of compassion and remember you never know what’s going on in their world. Babies and puppies brighten everyone’s days. God is good all the time. Eat protein and drink a ton of water. This year was HOT!! We were SO lucky to have helpers!!
Here’s a little snippet about our booth setup. We have always been enchanted with century plants. Margaret’s husband Johnathan took one of the large tall blooms and spray painted it and installed in inside their rental property on the San Antonio river. Fraulein used it on our roadrunner boot. Agave americana, also known as the Century Plant, is a large, striking succulent with dramatic foliage and a unique flowering habit. Appearance: It forms a rosette of 20–40 thick, pointed, blue-green leaves with serrated edges and sharp spines. The rosette can grow up to 5 meters wide, and the leaves can reach 2 meters long. Flowering: The plant blooms only once in its lifetime, usually after 10–30 years, with a flower spike that can grow 20–40 feet tall. Every show, we want to “do something different” – different art, different clothing to compliment our boots and we’ve been itching to do an installation of some kind. Margaret was driving by the McNay Art museum in San Antonio, Texas and noticed maybe 10 or more century plants in bloom. The wheels started turning and a light bulb went off. She called her friend and dear Fraulein customer Amy Stieren who has been a wonderful supporter of the McNay art museum and asked if she knew the gardener. Minutes – literally – maybe 30 minutes later the grounds keeper said they were scheduled to cut the blooms the very next day. They lined them all up for us. And much to Margaret’s youngest son’s chagrin, we hauled them in his pickup truck a few by few and leaned them on our house for 5 months to dry. Then we spray painted them in our teal pantone and took them (sorry Johnathan) in a trailer to Round Top to install in our booth!
Speaking of our booth, we were lucky enough to enlist the help of renowned San Antonio decorator, Courtney Walker, Margaret’s dear and wildly talented mother-in-law. Every heard of Hotel Emma – yep – she was the lead design consultant on this double Michelin key hotel. She loved the century plant concept and even had some dried agave leaves that we installed on another wall. And let us tell you something. One time one of Courtney’s clients had a clock designed that read: “Can’t keep up with CJW.” Our neighbors could not believe her incredible energy and pace. At 81 years old, she was running circles around us. We are so grateful for her energy, focus and creative genius.
We featured San Antonio artist Paige Holland art. Paige Holland is a San Antonio-based artist known for vibrant, expressive works that fuse contemporary abstraction with Southwestern motifs. Her pieces often explore color, movement, and cultural narratives, inviting viewers into a bold, immersive visual dialogue.
We also had art by Sally King Benedict. Sally King Benedict is a contemporary artist whose work engages with themes of memory, fragility, and everyday objects through intimate, tactile painting and mixed-media textures. Her pieces often invite a quiet, contemplative response, balancing softness with a sense of disciplined precision.
This show, we showcased the beautiful California clothing line, Cleobella and got to meet and greet founder Angie O’Brien. She is a darling gem of a human who we immediately felt a “LYLAS” love for her and her husband. Cleobella is a bohemian-inspired lifestyle brand known for its handcrafted, globally sourced accessories and home goods. By prioritizing fair trade, sustainable materials, and ethical production, Cleobella blends artisanal craftsmanship with warm, traveler-chic aesthetics to tell a story of conscious, desert-meets-city living 💛
We had a beautiful collection of squash blossom and native American jewelry from Houston collector Shannon Smith. She is a rascal and her collection is rare, funky and FABULOUS!
The days were long and hot and being “on” for so many hours is a hard feat, but there is nothing more precious that meeting customers, hearing their stories and where they wear our boots.
We fell in love with restaurant Le Petite Dame. It is an oasis that feels like France, delicious food, sunsets and peaceful beautiful energy. We are eternally grateful to our cousin, Junk Gypsy veteran Kelley Keen for housing us. And all the friends who brought us ice, hugs and coffees. We are already scheming for March!!
