Happy Anniversary!

 

It's time for a little celebrating! tammy taylor interiors has been open one year!  That is really hard for me to believe!  Time really does fly by when you are having fun!

Okay, let me be honest...it hasn't been all fun and no work!  Having the shop has certainly had its challenges.  

First of all, I never thought shopping would be so difficult, especially for the one whose husband calls her the "professional shopper!"   My first buying trip to Atlanta was actually STRESSFUL (as have trips since then!)  It's difficult to know who will buy what.  You know who you hope your ideal customer will be, what they will want, and what they will spend.  But what I have found is many times there is no rhyme or reason to what people buy and why they buy it.  Yes, marketing and merchandising are very important, but when it comes right down to it, the items that I think will fly out the door SIT there and the items that I don't feel as confident about find their way right into a bag and right out the door!  What does seem to stay the same is the median price point.  I have slowly learned and will continue to learn that keeping items in a certain price point maintains sales.  That doesn't mean that I don't sell higher-priced items, because I do.  It just means that I have to remember my demographic and sell things that meet it.

It has been interesting to find out that shopping for my interior design clients is SO much simpler than buying for my shop customers.  You see, when I reach the point of going out to purchase items for my interior design clients, I have gotten to the point of knowing them, their tastes and their budgets.  This begins to happen over time with those that visit the shop, but it takes time, conversations and sometimes a good sale. It's trial and error. Sometimes you get it right and sometimes you don't.  Those good sales help you part with those items that you don't get right!

If you haven't had the chance to make it to the shop, I hope you to see you soon!  I am closed Mondays and Saturdays, but open Tuesday through Friday 10am to 4pm.  At times I schedule design consultations in order to meet my client's needs.  You may want to give me a buzz before dropping by: 704.908.3740.

Have You Seen This??

Hello!  What a beautiful day in the Carolinas!  I am so happy that Spring is finally here!

Today’s blog is short and sweet.  I wanted to share a couple new things I have at the shop.  Please stop by soon!  We would love to see you!

This little Bee Plaque can be purchased on it’s own or apart of a set of 3, which includes a butterfly and dragonfly!  They can be hung on the wall or, as you see here, can be displayed on a stand.  Great for bookcases!

Know someone who loves the beach?  What about someone who owns a beach home, or maybe YOU own a beach home?  These items make great gifts or great additions to your current table décor!

Hello all you Grammies!  This Photo Memo Board is a grand way to show off the Grands!  It’s fun and unusual!  For those of us who aren’t Grammies just yet, it’s a great way to display your pictures and keep reminders at bay as well!

                                        

 

 

That’s about it for today- short and sweet as promised.  Please stop by soon and see these and many other special little things- perfect for you or for that special someone!  This little chick is waiting to see you….

Have You Seen This?

Hello!  Hope this day finds you with a smile!  We have had such wonderful weather over the past several days that it is hard for me NOT to smile!

As you may know, if you have followed any of my blogs, I am a monogram fanatic!  I don’t care what it is- napkins, pillow cases, or jewelry, I love a crisp, clean monogram!!  (My husband refers to me as the “Monogram Queen!”) But,  do you know the reasons behind monogramming?  Historically, a monogram was used as a royal signature.  The Romans and Greeks used them on coins to identify their rulers. Then, in the Middle Ages, artisans began to use them to sign their work. Victorian-period high-class persons adapted the monogram for personal use as a symbol of their place in society. (Thanks to carvedsolutions.com for the information!)

 Because of my love for the “initialed,” I had to include these beautiful soaps I recently found.  Yes, I know, who hasn’t seen monogrammed soaps?  But these are so elegantly done and have a beautiful smell as well.   I could not let the  chance go by an d not share.  And, just a reminder, these make wonderful gifts for that hard-to-buy one on your list!  Please visit carvedsolutions.com to take a peek at not only their monogrammed soaps, but also their monogrammed candles!

Okay, this next item caused me to let out one of those Southern expressions that I miss hearing my grandmother say- “Well, I swanee!”  Since Spring is on the way,  we will not be needing one of these smart little objects much longer, but it is something I will look forward to using next winter…The potpourri Fireplace Starter!  You can light a fire with this and this alone!  No wood required!  And the best part???  It smells good too!!  The Potpourri Fireplace Starter is available through lafcony.com  for $40.00.

Need a conversation starter at your next soiree or girl”s night?  These heavy paper Pill Coasters are sure to get the laughs going!  From fishseddy.com,  they come in sets of 12 for 4 bucks!  Talk about bang for your buck!  Enjoy!

 

 

 

 

 

Chat with you next week!!

Have You Seen This?? Valentine’s Edition

It’s Valentine’s Day!  One of my favorite holidays!  I think it’s great that there is a day set apart from all other days just for sharing, caring and giving.  After losing a young family member just 2 weeks ago, I am reminded that we should take the time, no matter what day it is, to let those in our lives know just how much we love and care about them.  We may not get the chance again…Happy Heart’s Day to you!  Do something special for someone you love today!

I honor of Valentine’s I think we should put the color pink on it’s well-deserved pedestal!  Peruse these amusing items I found that are definitely “Pretty in Pink!”

 

 

Okay, what lady doesn’t need their very own pink extension cord??  Enough with the safety orange already!

(Coleman Cable pink extension cord $75.00).

 

 

 

Awww!  How sweet!  We can’t forget about our four-legged sweethearts!  Of coarse our Lab could care less about this little bauble, but I sure think it’s cute! She would much rather have a cookie and a ball!  (Lands End Pet I.D. Tag in fresh pink- $7.50)

 

 

 

 

I love anything Chippendale and anything pink, so this chair makes my heart skip a beat!  (Hickory Chair- “Linwood Side Chair” $1995.00)

 

 

 

 

How cool is this??  What a clever name- the “Paper Pot!”  I love that someone’s creative brain thought to change the humdrum name from Kleenex box cover to “paper pot!” Genius!  One of those things that seem so obvious and make you say “I should have thought of that!”  (“Paper Pot” is apart of the Ai Collection from Molla Space.  $40.00).

 

 

 

 

This iPad sleeve serves many purposes.  It’s smart, innovative, stylish…and PINK! What more could you need or want?  Look smart while you work smart!

(From Smythson, in Magenta- $280.00)

 

 

 

So, you have your iPad, your sleek iPad Sleeve, guess you just have to have the hip headphones to go with.  These pink headphones from Urbanears are just the ticket!  Strap them on and get your listen on!  Sixty bucks and they’re yours!

 

Last, and certainly not least, is this beautiful lamp from Currey and Company ($360.00).  The “Lilith” table lamp comes in this luscious blush color that is so “OMG!” While you are at it, complete the pink by using the “pinque” light bulb by Sylvania.  Task lighting never looked so good!  Ooh La La!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

WAIT!!!  How can we discuss pink and not include…

                                         The Pink Ladies!!!

              Can’t forget these hip chicks!

                       Girl Power!

 

    Make sure to put some pink in your life!

Thanks for spending some time with me today!

Have You Seen This?

After being in Atlanta for the Winter Gift and Home Furnishings Market over the past couple of days, I feel as if I have seen everything, but I did come across these simple, fun little items from a company called “Tokyo Milk.”  Check out their website and do some exploring for yourself:  www.tokyomilk.com

If you have read any of my previous blogs, you know that I love bees, so when I saw these items on the Tokyo Milk website I had to include them in this week’s “HYST?”  (Have You Seen This?)  The hand creme is called “Honey and the Moon” and the soap is called “Bee Soap No. 82.”  I love the packing and the clever naming of the products.

The company also carries stationary, which has been and will probably always be close to my heart.  The lettering reads:  “Don’t fret about a couple of ‘ol gray hares!  Happy Birthday!”  Again, how clever.  I also love the old style typesetting and the graphics are great too!At the Atlanta Market, birds were everywhere so I just had to  share one of the soaps in the Tokyo Milk mini soap collection- “Staccato Mini Soap No. 13.” I love the colorful portrayal of the birds on the soap’s packaging.  To me, it’s little things such as a product’s stylish  packing  that both set it apart from other items and make me want to buy it!   Think about that as you are out on your next shopping trip.  Keep your eyes peeled for the bright, or “pretty packaged” items and how they seem to stand out.  That’s how they reel us in to drop that pretty little thing into our shopping cart!  No matter if it’s the soap for your dishwasher, a candle for your home or the colors and design on pack of chewing gum.  Companies are forever trying to find ways to make you say “I want that!”  Be conscious of this the next time you are shopping- does packaging influence you??  Things that make you hmmmm….

Have You Seen This???

Before getting into my weekly installment of “Have You Seen This?” I have to take a second and mention how excited I am to be sitting in my office looking out at the beautiful falling snow!  Can’t wait to have some snow cream for dessert later…

This week I want to tell you about a little gadget I read about  in an article by Susan Dickenson in the November 2010 issue of  “Home Accents Today”.  Even if you are not in the market for this nifty little piece of equipment, I think you will still find it innovative and just another way technology equals convenience.

“Square” as it is called, is a little, FREE,  piece of plastic that allows you to accept credit cards via your iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch or Android.  The process is simple:  The Square snaps into the headphone jack of your phone. You slide the card through the slot and enter the amount of the purchase.   The customer signs the phone’s touch screen and “cha ching”, you are done!  You can then enter the customer’s email and a receipt will be sent automatically. 

What’s the catch, you ask??  Although the equipment is free, the usage comes with a price.  The merchant is charged 2.75% of the purchase price, with an additional 15 cent charge to swipe the card.  This little piece of convenience isn’t free, but it sure is handy. 

Let’s go back, just a minute, to what I said above about those of you who may think you aren’t in the market for such a thing.  Susan Dickenson, the writer of the article, mentioned Girl Scout cookie salesman, people that do yard sales, babysitters and cab drivers.  For impulse buyers, and just for the sake of convenience, this could mean the difference between losing and a sale and getting a sale!  (For any interior designers out there, I thought how great it would be, in the case of being out at a client’s home and finishing up a design consultation, that I could get paid on the spot!  Wow!  That would be great!) 

Keep in mind, as with any new piece of technology, there are glitches to be worked out.  But, once the bumps and malfunctions are ironed away this will another device that will help us move effortlessly along the information highway.

To read more check out: https://squareup.com and http://www.homeaccentstoday.com/

Have you Seen This???

So, here we are, a new year!  My husband and I were watching something on TV last week about folks discussing their resolutions and how, this year, they would do things differently.  My husband made a valid point. “It’s just another day” he said.  “If you didn’t do it on December 31, what makes you think you will do it on January 1?”  I thought, yes, that’s probably true, so rather than make some grand proclamation about this or that and what I plan to change, I will just simply say I hope that I can be a better blogger in 2011.  Okay, now that I have that out of the way, let’s get moving!

I have been compiling things that I happen upon in magazines, on the internet or otherwise.  I would like to share these things that I think are innovative, fun or just plain cool.  Hope you enjoy!   Here’s the first…

As I am often referred to as the “monogram queen” what I saw in the December issue of Southern Living Magazine was very exciting for me and just simply put a smile on my face.  Flipping through the first couple of pages, I saw it- custom monograms attached to beautifully wrapped Christmas gifts!  What a novel idea.  I thought “this is the kind of thing that makes gift-giving extra special!”  I jumped up and ran to my computer to do a quick search for “Southern Proper Monograms”  Check it out: www.southernpropermonograms.com. 

Southern Proper Monograms, by “Mark it with a "B” is a company that makes custom, wooden monograms.  The monograms come in different sizes and font styles.  In addition to the large monogram (seen in the wreath above) the company also offers individual letters.  Your monogram arrives to you in unfinished wood so that you can further personalize with the color of your choice. 

I was so excited to receive my little surcie;  I opened it up like a little kid!  I couldn’t stand it until I got outside, spray paint in hand, to complete the little Christmas gift to myself. Once painted, I happily placed the monogram on the mirror over my fireplace.  I stood back and said, “Gosh, it’s just the simple things in life that make me smile!”  Josh, my husband, chimed in and said “Well, I really got jipped…I could have gotten out much cheaper for Christmas had I known a wooden monogram would please you so much!”  After receiving “the look” he kindly disappeared…Ha!!

I have great plans for my little monogram.  It will be proudly displayed this Spring on my front door, in a fresh lime green, I am sure!  Can’t wait!

Stay tuned for more fun things….