April 2015

Well, we did it! We survived that nasty winter!!! I hope you’re enjoying this great spring weather that we have all waited so long for! The activity in the store and the pop of color on the ground is telling me that a new season really has arrived! With busier days ahead, my monthly newsletter will now be coming out bi-monthly. However, keep up with new items and store happenings via Instagram (my new favorite app), Facebook and our website.

Now that the outside weather is finally aligning with the inside mood of our store, keep in mind the big dates ahead of us all; Mother’s Day, Graduation, Confirmation, First Communion and Father’s Day. We are packed to the gills with great gift ideas for everyone. As always, we are happy to ship anything you need at all and if you spend $250 or more, shipping is free.

We hosted our first store event of the season this past week -- thanks to all of you who made it! Pam Fink, creator/owner of Good Charma hosted a trunk show and boy did we love having her (and her dog, Coheo) for a couple of days. The reaction to her jewelry was overwhelmingly good and we will be sure to have lots of her gorgeous pieces on hand from here on out. Marc LeBlanc, a local athlete/marathon runner was serving up Fit Vine wine, which we all agreed was delicious. Maria of Salon One shared some beauty tips on hair and make up, while our Maria Dilorenzo shared her style sense and debuted our newest apparel. All in all, we had a great time! Mark your calendars for April 30, when we host our next Girls Night Out event with Deborah Trickett, our garden guru who is the creator behind our containers in front of the store. She will be teaching us how to make the most out of container gardening. It should be a fun night and one lucky winner will go home with one of Deborah’s gorgeous arrangements.

I wish all the runners of this year’s Boston Marathon a great race! Our daffodils are up and standing at attention to greet you as you run by the store. And to all who are leaving for April vacation -- safe travels and enjoy some well deserved R&R.

February 2015

Curled up in a chair on our fifth snow day in two weeks, I was feeling inspired to write my first newsletter of the year -- it’s been a while, I know. The past couple months have been filled with holidays, family travel, two buying trips, a major Super Bowl win (go Pats!), a blizzard and lots and lots of SNOW. These past couple of snowstorms have been pretty brutal if you’re living in New England -- "The Shining", “buried” and “enough, already" hardly begin to describe how we feel! Let’s focus on the warmer season ahead (spring apparel is starting to arrive, so it can’t be too far away!) and in the meantime, grab a nice cup of tea, a cozy blanket and a good book (or cookbook!) and cozy up!

For me, much of January was spent in the Atlanta and New York showrooms. I love attending the shows and coming back with lots of new items -- this year did not disappoint. I got to meet so many artists -- new and old, including Curly Girl designer, Leigh Standley, Alexandra Ferguson, Zoe Zilian from Farmhouse Pottery (who, by the way, will be headed our way in March to do a trunk show!) and so many more great innovators. Check out our new items on Facebook, Instagram and in the store over the next few months -- we hope you’ll be as smitten as we are. For those fans of Good Charma, creator Pamela Fink will be joining us for a trunk show next month as well -- stay posted on Facebook for details!

November 2014

It's been crazy busy since my last newsletter. I attended the Planning Committee meeting for the Foundation for Metrowest's Inspiration Breakfast, spoke to the senior citizens at the Friendship Circle and styled seven young women for the National Charity League's recent Mother-Daughter Tea and Fashion Show. Meanwhile at the store, seasonal traffic is picking up and the UPS man at the back door is overloaded with goods from our favorite artisans and designers. Our tabletop and gift departments are growing every day with new arrivals. Thanksgiving is just around the corner and now is a great time to stock up on linens, tabletop decor and hostess gifts.

This is the time of year that I tell everyone to strap on their seat belts. It's difficult not to notice that the holiday season is approaching -- between our early snow, the Target holiday commercials and the red and green candy at CVS (since the day after Halloween!). Since there are only four weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas, we have begun trickling our holiday decor and gifts up to the sales floor. We know it can be a stressful time of year for many of you, but be assured that we are all in this together and we promise to keep it fun and anxiety free!

Over the next couple of weeks, we will be putting up our trees, decorating our windows and preparing for Wellesley's Holiday Stroll on December 7. We hope you’ll stop by that day. We’ll be serving up Wasik's cheese along with champagne and some of our favorite artisan foods. We will also be giving away a Frasier Fir candle with every purchase that day. Did you know that Pine Straw is the proud sponsor of Holly the Trolley this year? We are beyond excited to bring back such a great tradition!

Keep an eye out for shopping tips, recipes and gift ideas. If you have any holiday ideas you'd like to share with our Pine Straw community, please post them on our Facebook page. We will be adding pictures and tips daily to help you enjoy the season.

In the meantime, have a very happy, healthy Thanksgiving. We cannot thank our customers enough for getting us to our fourth (!) holiday season. What a ride it's been and we are thankful to have the best customers, ever.