No Excuses for Boring Window Displays!

A small mom n' pop hardware store in a town near me has this creative window display up right now. I was laughing so hard when I parked in front of it that I could barely keep the camera still! I LOVE this! The array of silver-tone merchandise featured in this window is astounding, and the imaginative use of everyday hardware items to create a winter scene is wonderful.

For those who may ask 'But how does this sell products?', I ask you: What do we do at the first of the year? We clean, we organize, we try to simplify. And so we need trash cans. If this window doesn't make you notice it, and then think, 'Well, I do need a new trash can", go in and buy a retro galvie trash can, well, I don't know what will!!!

Kudos to this business....they've outdone the big box boys. And if these people can do it, so can you!!!

Looking Ahead...

I received my copy of a Home Accents Today special issue magazine today. In it, I found an 'annual report' of sorts on the home accents industry. Lots of facts & figures, lots of info, and a few of those things just jumped out at me:

Consumers look for decorating ideas in magazines (67%), store displays (60%), tv design shows/channels (53%), and the internet (38%). Other sources are friends & family (43%), decorating books (36%) model homes (27%), and home shows (25%). Designer showcase homes, newspapers, interior designers, and store sales people are low down on the list at @ 10%. (I sure hope store owners are reading this study, and focus on those store displays!)

Only 4% of households in the study hired an interior designer. Reasons given by the 96% who didn't hire one include that they wanted to decorate by themselves (59%), Designers are too expensive (40%), didn't even think of hiring a designer (14%), they were afraid the room would be decorated in the designers' taste and not their own (10%), and they didn't know how to find a designer (6%).

O dear. I'm going to ramble here for a moment.

That whole 'designer ego' issue scares the bejeebers outta' people. Hildy Santo Tomas and Doug Wilson are very talented designers, but they did more damage than good on Trading Spaces when they forced their wacko design aesthetics on wary homeowners who were used to white walls and overstuffed couches. (CHICKEN FEATHERS ON A WALL???? Hildy, good lord, what were you thinking???!!!) I actually never say the words 'interior designer' when someone asks me what I do. It just conjures up horrified responses. I say 'Creative Visual Designer' and they look at me like ....'oooooohhhhhhhhhh', meaning they have no clue. Better than a jaw drop and rolled eyes!

This report has helped clear away a bit of the clutter in my head. I've been working on clarifying just where it is I want to take my business in the coming year...considering options, looking at new opportunities, facing changes that landed on my doorstep within the past month (two major clients making massive changes in January, ending my consultancy with them), and creating a new plan.

I do find it interesting that the Holiday retail reports on the news focused on the big box stores, with no info at all on independents. The women entrepreneurs I know reported that their sales - both online and in brick & mortar shops - were up over last year. Those news reports and the Home Accents Today articles did not take into account sales of handmade merchandise through blogs, web sites, or boutique brick & mortar shops. This avenue of retail is growing by leaps and bounds as we all redefine the way we shop, live, work, and interact.

Part of my plan is that I am going to focus on the 'end user' a bit more - the consumer who is buying boutique merchandise and furnishing her home with it. I want to provide inspiration & resources & information that will make the entire design process better, easier, more fun for her. I'll be looking at opportunities to speak at home shows & conferences for decorators, and writing for shelter publications. I am really excited about retreat, the new venture I've started with my husband. We are creating products out of vintage & reclaimed materials, driven by our philosophy of 'rethink, recreate, reuse' and selling them through booths in cooperatives, at shows, and eventually online.

I'm not cutting wholesale shows, retail clients, or gift shows out of my picture, by any means, but that realm is changing and so am I. 2008 will certainly bring changes, clarity, and challenge my way! And this Diva is ready......

....no chicken feathers required. wink.

First Year Anniversary

Well, it's been a year in our little shop on Florida Ave. We moved in right before Christmas last year, and this Christmas finds us happy with our decision. We have lived in Seminole Heights for almost three years now and this neighborhood continues to surprise us. Our business has evolved considerably over the year. When we opened, we weren't sure how the neighborhood would accept our unique take on furniture and it's mix with our own treehugger tendencies. However, the response has been wonderful, and we will continue to evolve and grow with our customers.

We have met so many great neighbors and made some wonderful friends here. I am happy to see that Nicole is moved into her Green House on Genesee and that her built-ins are handling the majority of her book and record collection.

By the end of the year, we should have the first piece of TSM Designs (our own label!) furniture to grace a public city office! Speaking of official, we even visited Madison Middle School at our favorite art teacher's request and judged their recycled door decorations for Christmas.

We are still excited about the neighborhood's direction. More businesses are looking to our neighborhood for growth opportunities. Even as the housing market slows, our neighborhood is holding its values well compared to other areas in the city. We are so excited for what the new year will bring and hope that it brings you great things as well. Come by and see what's new!

Amy and Charles
Tampa Street Market

Totally Terrific!

Wasting time blog-surfing this morning, I found one of my photos on Totally Tabletops!

It's a shot (not the one above) of my white Santa mugs (I scrubbed all of the paint off of them, obsessive decorator that I am...) filled with snow. Anyone who reads my blog knows it's SNO-Wonder , of course... (and no, they don't pay me to expound their virtues! I just LOVE this product!!!)

Got SNO?

HOT SNO!!!! ;o)

Head over there to see what fab table decorating ideas await!

Retro Holiday

I found this book while thrifting awhile back (at the Glorious Goodwill outlet in Seattle, which means I paid about forty five cents for it) and thought you'd all love to see some fun things I found within it...like this very mod tree (well, it was mod in 1953 when the book was published!) and this thrifty nifty idea for a tablecovering Admittedly, not the grandest of decor ideas, but if you have a company party in a cafeteria, or something for the kids, this is a fun and simple idea - especially for the buffet table. This photo makes me remember that when I was a kid all of the neighbors on our street wrapped their front doors like presents - loads of metallic foil papers and huge Santa faces and holly sprig prints, accented with giant ribbons & bows. Mom covered our stunning persimmon-orange door with red paper for the season, accenting the brown & white siding just perfectly. I see fast food restaurants wrap their hanging pictures like this every year, too! (Tho it's hard to coordinate holiday wrapping paper with the abstract patterns and bizarre colors of outdated 80's naugahyde upholstery....sigh).

This book is like a peek into the past, revealing what was new and exciting in holiday decorating in 1953. No, not much there I can use now, but it's still fun to see what Martha's of a past decade recommended!

Holidays at Diva Central

Since a few clients and readers have asked me what the Holiday decor is this year at my Cottage, I thought I'd share a few photos of what I came up with. Essentially, I took my inspiration from my displays at the Willows Lodge decor seminar (silver, gold, and white) and combined them to create our decor for this year.

It's encapsulated in the photo above: tarnished silver, dried hydrangeas, old spalted glass balls, ivory velvet poinsettias, old sheet music & book pages, and lots of letter 'K's. Sort of a 'tattered & torn Holiday', straight out of an ancient stone grand house somewhere in Texas, one that has been a bit timeworn and abandoned. It's warm, it's heirloom, it's elegant but worn, it's comfortable, and actually quite a bit masculine. Compliments our rooms without competing - and to me, in a small house, that's very important. I love the browns and ivories...like wearing cashmere!

I still have birdnests out, plus some beautiful branches from Seasons of Cannon Falls that are brown, white, and ivory. I used lots of ornaments, drippy beads (thanks, Dona, I bought some of yours!) and very old real silver tinsel to add sparkle to the scheme.

In this photo, you can see the tree reflected in the mirror. It's actually two trees: a six foot vintage chrome tree (with color wheel!) and a four foot white tree, which I am not quite finished decorating yet. We nestled them together to create a fuller look. I"ll post a photo of the completed tree sometime soon!

On the game table, wood game pieces (Scrabble, Jenga, Pogs) sit waiting in silver bowls. A rusty birdcage holds candles.

See those cooooool ornaments? They are ivory glass with cream flocked damask designs. I found two packages of three at TJ Maxx, and actually yelped out loud when I saw them! GORGEOUS! The silver julep cup with dried hydrangea & a poinsettia made from vintage chenille is something I made and have for sale in my retail space. (Oh, yeah, I haven't told you about that yet, have I??!!)

The 'K's are cookie cutters, metal letters, wood letters, paper letters covered with ivory glitter, and even old woodworkers' rulers that I formed into our monogram. Our son came up with a saying a few years back: "Merry Kennemas!', so the K's are a reference to that sentiment. (And yes, it was his version of Kramers' 'Happy Festivus!'!!)

SO now that I've spilled the beans, I'll direct you to retreat - a new venture that my husband and I are creating together, and we are beginning by selling our designs at Faded Elegance Antique Mall in Everett, Washington. We'll also be doing shows in the future, and my books will include a great deal of these projects....so much underway! If you are in the Seattle area, I invite you to stop in at Faded Elegance - it's on Hewitt Avenue in Everett, near the Events Center.

Shop 'Till Ya Drop.....

I was at ToysRUs today, grabbing just a few extra goodies for our grandson's first birthday celebration tonight (not spoiling him at ALL...ahem) and I spied this amazing, adorable thing: 'Pink Boutique' Monopoly! I just have to share this, it's SO cool and totally about getting girls into learning about money, and shopkeeping and entrepreneurship....okay, okay, and shopping. Here's what ToysRUs says about the game on it's web site:

"This is Monopoly like you have never seen it - dressed up in pink and all about things girls love! Buy boutiques and malls, go on a shopping spree, pay your cell phone bill, and get text and instant messages. You and your friends will adore the funky tokens, cool buildings, and cute illustrations. Best of all, the game is stored in a beautiful keepsake box which doubles as a jewelry box. Cool game features include: 8 collectible tokens just for girls, keepsake storage box with removable tray and mirrored insert, pink gameboard with fun properties, pink and purple translucent boutiques and malls instead of houses and hotels, Instant Message and Text Message cards instead of Chance and Community Chest, pink Title Deed cards, redesigned Monopoly money, flocked banker's tray, 2 pink dice, and instructions.

Paint the town pink with this ToysRUs Exclusive!"

Tho that write up sounds like it's targeting eight to sixteen year olds, believe me every woman I know would love this version of the classic game! Got a girl to shop for? Maybe one who owns her own store or boutique or business? Perfect gift! (hint hint, Santa....)

Image and quoted text from http://www.toysrus.com/

Finish Line....

I feel like I must be reclusive or something, 'cause everybody I know keeps calling me, and emailing me, asking what I'm 'UP to'! I'm here to report that I'm 'UP to' my regular Holiday HooHah & Mayhem! (And no flooding in my part of Washington state...lots of rain, but no flooding.) It's madcap adventures with the schedule, I'll tell ya', but I got smart and cut my client list waaaaaay down this year so life isn't quite as crazy as past years! It's been busy, but not crazy:

So, I started here (three hours) .... and he knows I only come to decorate when the office is closed because I can't STAND to hear that dental drill......

...and then went here for three days (two trees, four dozen Dept. 56 houses, 152 nutcrackers, two dozen teddy bears, and a partidge in a pear tree....)

and then I went here for four hours and the most beautiful snowfall went on the entire time we were decorating the house. (Now how much service do I deliver, I ask you???? I even bring the SNOW!!!! ;o) )

...Today I was here (four hours) , admiring a vast collection of vintage ornaments (Dresdens, wire tinsel, glass so fragile & thin it's like tissue paper... awe-inspiring 100 year old ornaments) and moving oh-so-slowly so as not to break any of them!

...and then here (three hours), where a charming young lady of 101 smiled with joy as we filled her rooms with Holiday cheer. SO rewarding!

Some are big, some are small. One business, four residences.
All the retail clients were done way back in October. And now, as of five thirty today, I am officially DONE and may now commence with the festivities!

On my list of fun stuff to do: Celebrate my grandson's first birthday - TODAY! Picking up the first of our holiday guests - our daughter from Texas - at the airport tonight! Spending the weekend visiting with her, attending a soiree on Saturday night, finishing my own decorating.....yeah, well, maybe I'll get to that next Tuesday! Then it's Christmas letters & cards & photos, shopping for stocking stuffers (the gifts were done before Thanksgiving and THAT, my friends, is a record!), another party, then pick up our son & his girl at the airport, and indulge lots of Holiday music, eggnog, and fireside visits.

Holiday Cheer, indeed! Wishing you all a season filled with joy, peace, and festive decorating!

Let's Table This Conversation....

If you're on the lookout for some great tabletop decorating ideas, check out this blog: Totally Tabletops. The blog is linked to a party supply rental company, offering ideas for entertaining along with their rental services.

The photo above is my tablescape, two years ago at Christmas. And yes, that IS SNO Wonder in the Santa cups! (You knew I had to mention this fun 'faux snow' at least once this season, didn't you?!

Speaking of tabletops, I'm off to the Rosanna Inc. warehouse sale! Later!