Coming Next Week...

Labor Day always seems to be the unofficial start of fall and there's certainly been a shift in seasons at The Blue Pear. Our Fall Open House starts next Monday, September 12th and it will run through Sunday, September 18th. Normally we're closed on Sundays, but we're having extended hours for this special occasion so all of you can make it! As I've been preparing for this event, I've really tried to think outside the box and I'm so excited to share all of my great finds with you guys! Stay tuned...

New Tags

If there's one thing I can tell you about having a shop, it would be this: You NEVER stop thinking about it! All day. Every day. The Blue Pear has become my baby and I'm admittedly a little obsessive about it. I'm always looking for ways to set my shop apart and nothing gives me a bigger thrill than when I hear a customer say "oh my god, I never would have thought of that!"

So...as I'm in the midst of preparing for my Fall Open House and knee deep in orange glitter, the obsessive artist inside of me decided that maybe throwing another project into the mix wouldn't hurt. I had been growing tired of my previous card stock tags, but couldn't decide on an alternative. I wanted simple, but it still needed to have that little something special. I just found a bag of these paper-thin pieces of wood and instantly knew they would be my new tags! A quick hole punch and some twine...mission accomplished!

Save The Date!

Fall Open House

September 12th

through

September 17th

I have been searching far and wide for great items to fill the shop! The Blue Pear will be bursting with:

• Creepy Crawly Halloween Decor
• Warm Autumnal Accents
• New Artwork by Local Artists
• Salvaged Architectural Goods
• Soaps & Candles
• Vintage Curiosities
• Our New Line of Pillows

And much, much more!

Everything in the shop will be on sale!

A Walk Through The Shop

August can be an odd time of year in the world of merchandising. Like most of the country, we in the midwest had a really hot summer (like really hot), and I'm ready for the season to change. (Bring on the scarves!) But with warm days still yet to come, I'm reluctant to bring out the fall product too soon. And with summer and garden merchandise approaching hibernation, we seem to be left at a crossroads. I ran through the store and snapped a few pics. Enjoy!





These drawers are from a vintage sewing machine. I love the carved wood details!

  



Last of the mushrooms. I think 2011 was the summer of the mushroom!

 



The glitter birds are still one of my favorites.

 



These birch discs have endless possibilities, but I especially love the way they look under our cloches.

 



These hanging orbs in varying sizes catch everybody's attention.

 



People love anything with numbers...

 


Where is she going dressed like that? These driftwood garlands have been very popular.





A Little French Garden Vignette

 



I love the texture on these pots.

 



This was an actual vintage cheese box I found at a local antique shop - you can rarely find them this big anymore.
I just knew it would look great stenciled!

 


Imagine all the things you could hang on his horn!



Don't Jump!

Do you smell something?

I just put out the new Votivo candles! The great thing about these candles is how luxurious they are. Votivo is known for their quality and their rich scents. Plus they're a natural soy blend, so they burn all the way down! They're amazing! The scents include: Red Currant, Clean Crisp White, Forgotten Sage (my fav), Lavender Chamomile Pear, Island Grapefruit, and Smoke On The Water.  This is in addition to our Spark soy candles.

This antique pine cabinet is the perfect size for the candles!



The tiny elephants love the candles too!



Travel Tins ~ Great Gift Idea!

Such an Intriguing Scent

Designer Matches ~ Pair w/Candle for Gift Basket!

Our Always Popular Spark Soy Candles

Baggage

As any shopkeeper will tell you...Having your own store is an unbelievable amount of work. What really helps balance out the long hours and stressful responsibilities are all the "fun" decisions that come along with the package. 


Speaking of packages (yes, that pun was intended!) is the task of choosing bags. This definitely qualifies as one of the fun decisions. I recently had to re-order bags & tissue and I thought an upgrade was needed! Blue colored bags were an obvious option, but my logo is already a saturated shade of blue, so I went with crisp white shopping bags. They're simple & chic, and surprisingly economical. I ordered stickers with my logo printed on them and added blue tissue paper, and suddenly I felt like my store was really legit! The bags are sturdy enough to use again and again which makes them eco-friendly as well! I ordered the labels from Sticker Giant. They can make any kind of sticker/label you want. They're perfect for the bags.


I love my customers. They're the reason I do what I do and I want them to feel special. At the risk of pointing out the obvious...I wouldn't be able to have a shop if it wasn't for them. In the grand scheme of things, selecting packaging is really just a tiny decision, but at least it's one of the fun ones!

 

The Soap Has Returned!

I just brought in some more soap! Poppy Petunia is our in-house line of soap and definitely one of the most popular items in the shop. Customers scooped up our last batch so quickly and we've been sold out for the last month or so.  Handmade soap is so much better than the stuff you buy at the grocery store-- it's beyond creamy and nourishing, and we always try to have really delicious smelling scents.  Also, I think customers really respond to the fact that our soaps are made right here in Indiana!  We currently have 15 different scents to choose from - some are returning favorites, but there's also a few new scents!


Bamboo & White Grapefruit
Wasabi Violet
Bergamot & Tarragon
Oatmeal, Milk & Honey
Grape Crush
Raindrop
Cerdar & Saffron
Agave Lime
Widberry & Sage
Mango Papaya
Blood Orange (my new favorite!)
Red Tea Lychee
Rainwater Moss
Sweetgrass
Lavender Spa

Best in Show!!!

Good News...This past weekend I participated in the 30th Annual Fine Art Show in Flossmoor, IL and I won Best in Show!  Along with the fancy shmancy ribbon, I also won a very handsome monetary award.  I was very happy to say the least! 

Besides the award, it was also a very successful show in terms of sales.  But I have some great pieces left, so I'll be bringing my unsold sculptures into the shop in the next week or so.  Check back to see those pics!

New Stuff!

Things are forever changing at The Blue Pear so I thought I'd post some updated pictures of the shop.  One of the great things about selling merchandise is replacing it with something even better!  Believe me, in this uncertain economy I am well aware of how lucky I am to have had such a warm welcome and I'll be eternally thankful for all my customers who have made these first few months so successful.  Thanks!  Here's a peek at some great new pieces...

Old gun case that I modified. I lined the background with vintage sheet music.
And I love those sconces!

Glass plate w/botanical images.  And mushrooms...very popular.

Big stone urn filled with small globes.

Vintage Church Pew

These giant spheres are my favorite right now!  The biggest one is almost 4 feet in diameter!

Knobs & Drawer Pulls.    Journals & Notebooks

Paper Script Flowers

Twig Pencils & Notebooks.

Three Large Birdcages filled with rolled sheet music scrolls!

The two large wire planters on the left are filled with handmade moss balls.

Cool santos figure sitting on salvaged wood porch column.

Bird in a Tiny Drawer

Large Horse Sculpture

Stone-Faced Man...Another Favorite!

Large Bells hanging on Vintage Ladder

Birch Orbs

Glitter Bird Under Cloche

Another Glitter Bird

Love the Old Church Window!