If you are willing to unclench your fist

And well beyond

That's All Folks

Well, that's all from me this week. I am taking an early mark and heading away for a few days. I'd just like to thank the Skirted Girls again for having me over at their table this week. I really did have such a wonderful time. Thank you also for all of the beautiful comments you have left me this week too. You are all very, very kind. Looking forward to being back here next Tuesday. Have a great weekend!!

Image via Lolitas blog

Blue & White Lamp Heaven

I am so excited to say that we finally have some beautiful blue and white lamps available at Black & Spiro. As you can see above the girls have just unpacked them this morning and they are about to be put into the shop. We have some white crackle lamps and some really great orange lamps available too. Oh, and we also have some more new blue and white ginger jars which just came in this morning as well...just in case anyone is interested!!

Display is Like Playing Dominoes...... Everything Moves!

Early yesterday morning and late last night, I worked on new product displays at Poppyseeds. Temps here in the Seattle area have been in the high 90's all week, so we are all making adjustments to how and when we work each day.

This might seem like a strange time to choose to restyle retail displays, but it was just time for a change... the existing look had been there for two months, and that's just too long! Variety is needed each month to keep customers interested and returning. The photos above show the final product: a sunny, bright, cheerful mid-summer look as soon as you enter this darling boutique.

Another reason for the change was that new product had also arrived, so it was time to feature it in the front room. In a small shop, when you move one item, it affects everything else. The product that was here was relocated to another room - which meant that everything in that room had to be rearranged as well, to accommodate the merchandise. It's like lining up dominoes and watching them fall! I'm not sure if it's an 'official' industry term, but 'Domino Effect' certainly applies here...

So, I'd like to know: how often do you change the displays in your store? Windows? Front of Store/Entry? Interiors? Point of Purchase? Have things been the same for longer than a month? Two months? THREE months? Hey, folks, retail is change! If we never brought in new products, we'd be outta' business. Same is true with displays - you have to mix it up, move it around, make it fresh & new to stop your customers in their tracks. Otherwise, they just walk on past, thinking 'Been there, seen that.' Yes, it's work... it's time... it's effort..... but it's a foolproof way to increase customer awareness of what you offer. Isn't that worth it?!

To see the Before and After of this room, PLUS where the 'Before' product ended up in a new room and new display, check out the slideshow below... the first pink & black GLAM look is the Before, the aqua & orange is the After, and then the pink & black moves to a new location in the last photos.

If you are in the Seattle area, stop by Poppyseeds this weekend for the Furniture Fair event, running in conjunction with the Stanwood-Camano Community Fair. You'll find lots of furniture & home decor available direct from local designers, under a tent in the parking lot from Friday through Sunday, 10 AM to 5 PM.

It's easy to find: Located between Marysville and Mt. Vernon. Exit 212 from I-5, East onto Hwy 532 and 6 miles East to Stanwood. Poppyseeds is located at 26915-98th Drive NW Stanwood, Washington, on the right side of Hwy. 532 next to John L. Scott Realty (and just past Starbucks!) 360.629.73339

Necessitating Proper Expertise

Port Nolloth - West Coast

Talking Around The Skirted Round Table

A huge thank you to Linda, Megan & Joni for inviting me to their Skirted Round Table for a chat. I had a fantastic time talking with you all yesterday. If anyone is interested in hearing our discussion click HERE to be directed over to The Skirted Round Table.

Presented individually

Vintage Chairs

Sorry about the terrible photos however, I just had to snap a few shots of these pretty chairs I recently had recovered for one of my clients. They were her mother's chairs which we have worked into her lounge room scheme. We covered them in a black and white ticking and had box pleated skirts put around the base of them. I wanted to keep the timber frame in it's original condition so as to show the age of the chairs.

My Point (and I DO Have One....)

I was contacted the other day by Dennis Eros, the promoter of the Sand Point Antique & Design Market here in Seattle. He asked me to redesign his existing blog. What he didn't know he was in for was a total redesign of his brand image! It just makes sense to tackle them together... since he didn't really have any identifying elements of the show brand, I developed them. Using some vintage clip art images and replicating the feeling of old-time ads with black, white, and charcoal tones and some interesting fonts, I was able to express the qualities of the show in a way that will appeal to a wide demographic.
This is essential in businesses of this type - it's not just collectors of antiques that come to the show. It's decorators & designers, with their clients who have seen rooms in magazines and books that include antiques - and they want them. It's newlyweds and first-time homeowners, looking for affordable and interesting objects to decorate their rooms. It's Earth-conscious NorthWesterners, looking to recycle furniture and ideas. It's even dealers who sell antique & vintage goods, looking for a great find at a great price that they can pass on to their own customers. Reaching out to all of these people is important for the success of this show.

I created a custom blog background, banner, blog button, and then uploaded it all and added new functions to the blog. I also created an entire portfolio of marketing material, including fliers, postcards, business cards, sign graphics, and more, so that everything related to this show will be consistent and tell the brand story.


I worked on the graphics for four hours to complete them. Then it took me two hours to upload the new blog content, add a post, add sidebar content, create a slideshow and upload it, and create the blog button code. In six hours, Dennis got a whole new image for his business. Since I've already seen an influx of page hits on his stats, I'd say he's on his way to revitalizing this show that is so important here in Seattle.

And the funny part of the story, which I have to tell you, is that about halfway through the process of creating the graphics, I let out a laugh. I suddenly realized that the vintage hand graphics I had chosen were a pun: Sand POINT Market. Get it?! ugh..... it took me awhile!

Need help with your brand image? Let me point you in the right direction......

Given assistance so they can return

Old Photo's, new tricks.

Folk art leaf papercutting (wip)

50cm x 35cm

I've started cutting the other side of the leaf and have also decided to fill in the four outside corners. This is my progress so far. I'm holding my own verdict on it at the moment - still not completely convinced about the design, but fortune favours the brave. So we'll see.

George Trip!

Fuck the Buck is a annual Skateboarding Competition held in George. The majority of skaters come down from Cape Town to contest at the Skate Lab Park.

This year our crew consisted of 7 guys driving up in one bakkie and camping out at the George campsite for the weekend. We met up with a bunch of other skaters in the campsite and partied till the early morning hours. The contest was small but lots of fun. Alan Marola won with Jacques Jaakness taking best trick on the handrail.

At the end of last year we went on a trip called Via The Backroads. This weekend felt just like one of those trips and made all of us excited for the next one.

I'll add a link covering the comp as soon as I find a write up with photos posted on the internet.

Why Did the Chick Cross the Road?

Because she saw a FABULOUS display, of course!
Walking down the sidewalk, talking with my hubby, enjoying a sunny day.... and this little piece of funny jumped out at me! TOO fabulous. A broom used as a mannequin - and it's the sunglasses that just make you laugh out loud. This is right up my alley - fast, cheap, easy, simple, and effective. The shop owners at Amaryllis in LaConner, Washington are smart to utilize a visual merchandising trick like this! They don't have a web link, but here's some info on them:

• Amaryllis 717 South First Street, La Conner, WA 98257, 360-466-1499, This women's shop specializes in hand-designed and unique items.
  

The next interesting thing I saw on our walk was this darling shrub topiary, trimmed to look like a teapot...

Wanna' guess what kind of shop it sat outside of?

Ruby Sue's Teas & Treasures

Tea Room also!

625 S. First Street
La Conner, WA 98257
360-466-9948
Open daily

Just some simple little things people are doing to grab passerby attention..... give you any ideas? Send them to me! You might find your shop here on my blog!

Friday Flowers

Here are some beautiful tulips which I just arranged in a vintage jug for the shop. I love this little corner in the shop at the moment and these fresh tulips fit right in. I hope you have a great weekend. See you next time!

xx

Anna

Folk Art papercutting (front and reverse) work in progress.

This piece is going to be in the shape of a leaf. Showing the reverse side gives you an idea of how I go about drawing out a picture, but also, what the final piece will hopefully look like! The paper is matt black scherenschnitte paper - a German product which I can't find anywhere anymore and am rapidly running out of - boo hoo! So I'll soon be switching to fadeless art roll paper which isn't quite as velvety black. On the positive side, it comes in lots of colours, is slightly thicker and comes in a roll so I can go bigger if I want to, so we'll see how it goes. I never use scissors or tweezer scissors, just an Xcelite craft knife suits me best. This picture measures 50cm x 35cm.

Cupboard Makeover

I have an old cupboard at home just like this one however, at the moment mine certainly isn't looking as chic as this one.

At the shop I have lots of bits of left over wallpaper from displays we have done. I'm thinking I might use some of these bits to paper the back of my cupboard door.

My little cupboard is in a hallway near our kitchen and currently it is bursting at the seams with sheets and towels. I think I should move the sheets and towels into my larger laundry cupboard and fill this little one with some of my special pieces of china.

This pretty image has inspired me.

Image - Vogue Living

We Need A Price on Register Three...

I stopped at a local fresh produce market a week ago - not just to grab a handful of fresh flowers and a box of berries, but because I was drawn in by an antique yard sale taking place out in front. (You know me, I just can't resist the old peely stuff...) Before I bought my produce, I wandered around for about ten minutes, looking at the large array of items of every kind that the dealer had on display. (I use that term as a generality, really.... this stuff wasn't displayed).

I must have picked up at least half a dozen items that I was interested in: a large old soda bottle, a few rusty tin cans, some old feed bags, and others that caught my eye. In every case, there was no price tag. I had to try to catch the eye of the seller to ask about a price - but he was busily shuffling boxes around and avoiding eye contact with me. Even though I was the only person there, I was ignored. I walked up to him to inquire about the price of the soda bottle, and he stared at it and said "Well, I really like that one, it's unique. So I guess I'd charge five bucks." Being too much for me, I sat it back where I had found it.

Then I picked up two old torn dirty feed sacks that had been tossed across a rocking chair, lifted them up, looked at him, and asked "And these?" He replied, "Ahhhhhh.. well, those are from the forties. My dad had those in his barn. They're really old. So, maybe, ten each." He did this on every single item I expressed interest in. Acted hesitant, as if he really didn't want to part with it, then quoted a ridiculously high price. The high price hit me this way: either he has no idea what it is he has and what it's really worth, he's desperate to make money but doesn't know how to sell, or he is using an old sales tactic that treats customers like hapless idiots who know nothing about what they are buying. He was, in effect, almost ensuring that I wouldn't buy anything at all.

And I didn't.

I just bought my berries and a bunch of daisies and left. I was thinking all the way home that he just blew not only a sale, but also prevented me from ever stopping to look at his wares again. Even if I had found something absolutely amazing there, I would not have bought it...I felt like he had not priced his wares simply so he could 'size up' each customer and charge them accordingly. I hate that attitude, I really do. It irks me! As a customer, I've made the effort to stop and look at your products, so don't jack them up on me just because I drive a decent car and look nice. (I look like I'm far better off than I am, actually, but that's not the point.) The point is that in any business, every product has a value to the seller and the buyer. Sellers/dealers/retailers have to determine that value and price the item. Then the buyer can decide if it's what they value the product at, and either buy it or pass on it. Or, bargain on the price in some cases - but there has to be a starting point.

If you offer products for sale, no matter where or how you sell them, price them clearly. It will go a long way in making your customer see the value in what you are offering them - and the value you place on their business and their time, as well.

Image Credit: http://www.flicker.com/photos/littlepinkstudio
(These price tags were for sale on her site back in March.... what a GREAT way to price your merchandise!)

Going to the grassroots

From the Files

This image {above} is one I've kept on file since mid last year. It's from an article Inside Out magazine did {May/June 2008 issue} on former Vogue Entertaining & Travel & Vogue Living Editor, Sharyn Storrier Lyneham's home.

After spotting this image in my files earlier this week I remembered that Vogue Living had done a story on Sharyn's home too {January/February 2008 issue}. I found a copy of the story and thought I would post the image Vogue Living published of this very same room.

I just adore the look of this sunroom - it's so fresh and pretty, inviting and mismatched and how divine are the fresh Hydrangeas?! Apparently those to die for cushions on the cane chairs are vintage.

These days Sharyn is in partnership with Australian Fashion Queen Belinda Seper in their unique concept store, Edit.

Image 1 - Inside Out Magazine, Image 2 - Vogue Living via Edit

Looking Forward To This...

Michelle Adams is at it again with her business partner, photographer Patrick Cline. Here's what they are about to launch into;

{Excerpt taken from M.A. Belle}

In a time when shelter publications are turning their last pages...

OUR MISSION is to reopen the doors of accessible design. By embracing an online platform we provide inspiration at the click of a finger, directly connecting our readers to their favorite products and resources. Our freedom from page limits means that we can share more content in each issue, delivering an intimate look into the way people really live. At Lonny, we value independent thinking and believe not in following trends but rather in making choices that lead to happiness. We believe that good design and affordable design can coexist and that true inspiration can be found in the teeniest of homes or in the grandest of spaces.

Coming Fall 2009 ;)

I will definitely be checking back for updates on their new venture!

A Fresh New Life

In my work I try as much as possible to encourage my clients to reuse, repurpose, and reinvent their old pieces or pieces which may have been passed down to them from family members. I often get little old stools or chairs or lamps dropped into me from clients wanting me to choose a fabric which would work with the rest of their things. They usually just leave it up to me and then I deliver the piece back to them with a fresh new look.

I was recently asked by one of my lovely clients to make some cushions out of some old embroideries she had. I thought I would post them here today as I have become a little obsessed with them myself. I wish I could take them home and add them to my cushion collection. I think they look great mixed with the black and white geometric cushion. They even have the old pencil markings on the fabric which we kept.

Images - Anna Spiro

Little Bits of Loveliness

Just because I think they are pretty.

Image 1 - Domino Magazine, Image 2 - Tiny Happy

The Hart

The Hart Lodge in Tauranga Bay of Plenty New Zealand looks like it would be a beautiful place to visit and if you were feeling a little extravagant you could fly in on your own helicopter and land at the property's helipad. If only I could flit off over there for a few days. That would be nice!!

Breaking Retail Trade Show News

There is a lot happening in the trade show industry, with sales, mergers, acquisitions, and closings taking place everywhere. Locally, the Seattle Gift Show has been sold to Atlanta-based Urban Expositions - ditto for the San Francisco International Gift Faire. From what I've read, big improvements are in store. (Hallelujah). Read more here.

The Portland Gift Show has been placed back into the capable management hands of Western Exhibitors, tho ownership remains with Canadian company dmg/GLM. It has also seen a reschedule to a fall date, which will combine it with the existing fall cash & carry market. Read about that here.

For more information on all kinds of trade shows in multiple industries, check out this web site.

Interviewed by Holly Becker

I feel like this week is becoming thank you week here at ABT. Today I would like to thank Holly Becker for the very kind post and interview she has done on me over at Decor 8. I very much admire the way Holly always supports up-and-coming young designers, artists, crafters and shop owners on her blog. Thank you again Holly!

Stepping Outside

I've been collecting a few pictures of some outside areas I like. I thought I would share a few of them here with you. Creating a space outside which feels like it could well be inside is something I love especially living here in sunny Brisbane where we practically live outside....in Summer that is!!

Image 1 - via the libertines, Images 2, 3, 4 - via sweethome style